Chapter 25

The morning after our last meeting with Serenity, I was drinking my coffee and scrolling through my phone, reading the news, as had been my morning routine for as long as I could remember. I'd been hoping the monotony of the routine would help take my mind off things, but so far, it was only putting it in much sharper focus.

Yesterday, I'd woken up to pictures of Jennifer and I hugging goodbye plastered everywhere. Every website speculated about our relationship, most questioning whether I'd finally found the woman I was going to settle down with.

Although I knew I shouldn't have cared, I hoped Serenity could see it had been nothing. Lance had cleverly been omitted from the pictures as if he hadn't been there, though I didn't know if he'd simply been out of the shots at that point or if they purposely removed him or blurred him into the background.

Either way, it wasn't like I was fondling her or touching her inappropriately, and I was hoping it would be clear to Serenity that I wasn't involved with Jennifer. I'd wanted to explain myself to her yesterday in her office, but in the end, I'd realized I didn't owe her an explanation, nor had she asked for one.

So instead, we'd sat there in that angry, charged silence without saying much of anything to each other. Thank God, my mom took pity on me when she got back.

Not that any of it mattered really. Serenity and I had very little time left to go of enduring each other, and then the wedding would be over and we'd never have to see one another again. I let out a deep breath, but as I did, I opened the entertainment section of the online news site I was on and my blood froze in my veins.

A new piece had caught my attention, one that had been published only a few minutes ago. It had my name in the headline, and once again, I had no clue what it could be about. "Dash and Serenity Caught on Camera."

My heart stuttered in my chest. What the fuck is this?

Hastily clicking on the link, I squinted at the grainy picture at the top of the article. Annoyed heat spread through me when I realized it was of Serenity and me kissing outside her apartment door all those weeks ago.

How the hell did they get their grimy fucking paws on that?

Logic as well as image quality dictated that it had to be a still from security camera footage, which meant someone had breached her building's system. A deep scowl settled on my features, but I was curious, so I read the article instead of just navigating out of it.

"We're just friends" was the statement given by Serenity herself after she and St. Clair were first photographed together, but these new pictures tell a whole different story. It looks like LA's It Girl has found new love with Dash St. Clair, 33, just a few months after her divorce from Ethan Langley, 40, was finalized.

When asked about his ex-wife's new relationship, Langley had the following to say. "I don't think she's sleeping her way to the top. She's just enjoying herself, and hey, if it helps, it's just good business."

My eyes flew wide open and I scoffed, instantly furious at the asshole on her behalf. For the first time, I could really see what she'd meant when she'd told me about their marriage. At first glance, it seemed like a nice, nonchalant thing to say by an ex who didn't want to appear fazed at all by her new relationship, but it wasn't that.

It also wasn't the compliment it could be construed as. It laid the groundwork for people to speculate that she was, in fact, doing what he said she wasn't, and I knew that was precisely why he'd said it. There had been no suggestion that she was using me to advance her career. We simply happened to be in the same industry, but by bringing it up at all, suddenly, people were going to start wondering.

Unable to keep reading, I couldn't help myself. I clicked into my contacts and called her. I needed to find out if she was okay. Unsurprisingly, it seemed that this would be a classic case in which the woman's name and reputation would be dragged through the mud while the man—me—would be made out to be either a victim for being used or some kind of conquering hero who had allowed her to be with him for whatever reason.

Righteous rage sped through me, my heart pounding until she finally picked up. "Is this about the wedding?"

"I'm sure you know it's not and that you know exactly what it is about."

She sighed heavily. "I was afraid of that, but I don't want to talk about it. Don't worry your pretty little head about it though, okay? I'm going to take care of it. You'll come through unscathed. Just say ‘no comment' if anyone asks."

I frowned, but instead of telling her I didn't need to be taken care of, I tried to be kind. Understanding. "I can help, Serenity. I'm part of this too and you don't need to take the fall for me. Just in case that's what you're thinking of doing."

She shut me down without even considering the offer. "I said I'd take care of it and I will. Just enjoy the free publicity and ignore the reporters. It'll all go away soon. This isn't about taking the fall for you. It's just not your fault, but I'm sorry you got dragged into it."

Confusion muddied my thoughts for a moment. "Excuse me? It's not your fault either, Serenity. They must've hacked your fucking building. I can help you. We can hire someone to investigate?—"

"That won't be necessary," she said curtly. "I already know who it was, but we'll never be able to pin it on him, so just forget about it and move on."

As she spoke, I read between the lines and the answer hit me between the eyes. "Hang on. This was Ethan, wasn't it?"

She paused for a beat, letting out a harsh sigh before she groaned. "He threatened to do this if I didn't get back with him. I should've warned you that he was blackmailing me, especially after I pissed him off, but I'll handle it. I have to go."

Without another word, she hung up. I sat in my bed, reeling as I watched the sun keep rising high into the sky outside like it was just another day. To the rest of the world, I guessed that was exactly what it was, but to me, it was the day I realized I'd messed up royally.

While I hadn't truly ever believed she'd used me for exposure, I'd never have imagined that she was being blackmailed. If I'd let her explain when she'd offered though, perhaps she'd have told me the truth and I could've been there for her through it all instead of leaving her to deal with her abusive ex as well as my idiocy.

I grunted out loud at the force of the realization, tossing my phone aside to scrub my palms over the day-old stubble on my jaw. If she'd let this article come out, obviously, she'd never wanted Ethan back. He'd lied to my face when he'd said they were trying to work things out.

That night when I'd run into him outside of her apartment, he must've been there to let her know what he had on us, and instead of helping, I'd made it worse. I'd broken up with her, sarcastically wishing her luck with her reconciliation with the manipulative, blackmailing son of a bitch.

Shit. Fuck. Oh, man.

In the space between one heartbeat and the next, I jumped out of bed and took off to my bathroom. I had no idea how to do it, but I had to make this up to her somehow. I'd been such a dick to her in a time when I was sure she could've used someone by her side. Someone supportive who believed in her rather than accusing her of wanting to try again with the asshole who was now trying to destroy her reputation.

I hadn't been able to stop thinking about her at all and I knew for sure now that she didn't want anything to do with Ethan. I wasn't in the way of them making their marriage work and I wasn't sticking my nose in where it didn't belong. They were no longer husband and wife and she had no intention of ever getting back together with him. If she did, she would have taken him back instead of letting a story like this get out after he'd threatened her with it.

Deciding to risk it, I looked up Julie's number once I was dressed and ready. She picked up, sounding puzzled when she answered. "Dash St. Clair? I programmed your number into my phone from the paperwork you guys filled in for the wedding, so unless I got it wrong somehow, this is you, and if you want me to hear you out, you better speak fast."

Wasting no time, I didn't even bother with pleasantries before I told her why I'd called. "I need your help. I fucked up with Serenity and I want to make it right."

There was a brief moment of silence before she spoke again, her voice strong and firm. "Fine, I'll help you, but only if you're serious this time. I'm tired of seeing my friend hurt, and if you do it again, with my help to boot, I will have your balls. I don't care how much they're worth, St. Clair. I will neuter you."

I flinched involuntarily, but I didn't let her know about it. "I'm not going to hurt her. Granted, I had a momentary lapse in judgment, but it won't happen again. Have you heard of Pablo's Coffee Bar?"

"No, but I'll find it."

"It's between your office and mine. Meet me there in an hour." I tacked on the last word as something of an afterthought. "Please?"

"Okay," she agreed, dragging out the word. "But I swear, if you?—"

"I won't," I repeated firmly. "Just meet me there, okay? I'm going to prove to you and to her that I'm sorry, and I am. I thought…"

"You thought you were interfering in a marriage," she finished for me. "I know. She told me what you said. How very noble of you not to be the other man even after the couple got divorced."

Sarcasm dripped from her voice, but instead of calling her out on it, I made sure she'd meet me. Then I hung up. Actions spoke louder than words, and arguing with her right now wasn't the way to go. I wanted her to help me. I needed her to help me if I was going to pull this off.

As I grabbed my wallet and keys, I sent out a silent plea into the universe that my plan worked. If it didn't, I would lose her forever. A possibility I didn't even want to think of facing. I wouldn't lose her. I couldn't.

Not like this. Not now. Definitely not because of a douchebag who'd already taken so much from her. I simply wouldn't allow him to take me too.