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I heard the gentle ripple of the water and felt the warmth of the evening breeze on my skin, lulling me into a peaceful sleep. For a few blissful minutes, I let the world slip away. But soon, reality began to creep back in, reminding me of my task. I opened my eyes, feeling a renewed sense of focus and determination.
It was time to make a plan. I felt the late evening breeze brush over me, reminding me that I was outside. I sat up and stretched, feeling fresher than before. I got up to make my way back to the hotel room. I loved Bryce and we would figure this out. This was going to be a good story some day, I just knew it. As much as it gave me pain, I knew that we would find a way.
When I opened the door, he was sitting on the couch watching TV. I sat beside him and grabbed his hand. He looked up at me, his eyes still radiated sadness.
"Hey," he said.
"Hey."
I snuggled in closer to him, interlacing my fingers in his and resting my head on his shoulder. He used the remote to turn the TV off.
"Are you ok?" he tentatively asked. I paused.
"Yeah, I think so. This is just such a crazy situation to be in. It would be a lot easier if I didn't care about you and if we were just playing a part for the cameras. But now it's so real and as much as it's so right, there are also huge incompatibilities. And maybe there's more. We just haven't had the time to figure things out."
"But if we love each other, we will figure things out, Reyna. I'm sure of it."
"How can you be so sure?" I looked up at him and directly into his beautiful eyes.
He lifted his hand to raise my chin towards him. "Because. Because I love you and I've never felt this way about anyone before."
He lowered his face and pressed his lips softly on mine. I kissed him back, pressing into him. We deepened our kiss as I raised my arm to run my fingers through the nape of his neck. He let out a guttural moan, which sent a wave of heat downwards.
Our mouths searched each other. Desperately looking for the love we proclaimed for each other in a sea of uncertainty. At some point, we just threw caution to the wind and everything became more intense. His hands tangled with the strands of my hair, pulling me closer until I felt as if I was part of him.
An hour ago, we were feeling so distant, and we needed this to be close again. To feel like we were on the same team. He was right. If we were on the same team, we could do this.
But now, it was the time to enjoy and relish the moments together. Soon we would be entering the world of paparazzi, of worrying what people thought, of social media likes and click trends.
At the moment, that could wait.
I woke up in the early morning hours and, as the moonlight trickled into the room, I watched Bryce as he was fast asleep. I kissed him gently, which caused him to stir. He woke up with eyes heavy with sleep.
“Is everything okay?” he asked.
“I’m a little nervous about the interview,” I admitted, and he sighed. He knew that I wasn’t used to life in the spotlight and I was still trying to get used to it.
“I know, we don’t have to do it today if you don’t want to,” he responded, his eyes twinkling in the low light.
“No, we have to. I need to get used to this life if we’re going to be together,” I said. I wanted to show Bryce that I was committed to our relationship and that I was willing to do whatever it took for us to make things work.
He nodded and smiled. “I know, and I love you for that. You’re going to do great,” he said. He hugged me tight and held me close. I knew that no matter how our interview went, Bryce would be by my side. I lay my head on his bare chest and he began to stroke my hair gently. I could hear his heart beating gently against the frame of his chest, and I felt like I was home.
“What do you think they're going to ask us?” I asked him and I felt him shrug.
“I have no idea, but they're going to try to make us look like we really aren’t together,” he responded. “You don’t need to worry, though.”
But I was very worried. This was all getting a lot more high-profile than I’d bargained for, and for the first time, I started getting nervous about my family back home and wondered if this news was big enough to reach Tennessee.
Chapter 24
Bryce
Interviewday.
Nothing I haven't done before. I admit, money does weird things to people. You can be the biggest bastard in the world, and people still worship you because you have money. And, unfortunately, you can be the nicest person in the world, but if you don't have money, somehow your worth is diminished. Someone ought to change that.
Being born into wealth makes it all seem normal to me. To get the stares, adoring looks, whispers as you walk in. All of that is normal, and I don't even notice it anymore. But I know it's all new for Reyna, so my antennae were out to make sure she felt comfortable.
