Page 138 of Not Exactly a Small-Town Romance

Jester relents, his mouth drooping. “Everything breaks after Desdemona gets hold of it. Kelsey was devastated about those unicorns. Desdemona slammed them in a box when I wasn’t here.”

“Did you ever know where they came from?”

His angry face returns, but I can tell he’s having to force it. I’ve known him a long time. “Why should I tell you anything?”

I sit in her chair, fingering the tiny horn.

Jester watches me awhile, but his urge to talk is stronger than his upset. “Her mother took her to a glassblower every year on her birthday. It was literally the only day her father let them out of chores.”

“Peach of a man.”

“Kelsey’s not too thrilled to be going back.”

Now his words penetrate. “Why is she going back?”

“Desdemona froze her out. She can’t get a job.”

“But she was going to stay in Wyoming.”

Jester leans back in his chair. “All right. I’ll spill. She ditched the lumberjack. He told her she couldn’t have both Hollywoodandhis babies.”

“He saidwhat?”

Jester raises his palms. “That’s all I know. She came home, learned she was fired, and has spent the last few weeks trying to find anything else. But Desdemona’s got her blackballed in Hollywood, so she’s going back to Alabama.”

Everything in my body vibrates at once. “When?”

“I’m not telling you.”

“When did you last talk to her?”

“Your five minutes are up.”

“Jester!”

“Zachery, neither one of you has been worth the tit on a mayfly since you left. Unless you tell me what went down, I’m not saying another word.”

I lose my head for a moment, and out comes what I was trying to never admit to anyone. “I fell in love with her. That’s what went down.”

He sits up, his face going pink. “About time you figured that out. And you still ran off with that woman to Italy?”

“She’s ... otherwise engaged.” I’m not about to spill Catalina’s secret. “It was strictly for show.”

“You know Kelsey saw it. You know she follows all your socials. You know what she thought.”

“What do I do now?”

“Go to her!” He leaps from his chair. “Fix this mess! Declare your love!”

“How? Where?” I’m not sure she’ll take a text from me, but I can try.

I pull out my phone, but Jester snatches it. “In what Hollywood happily ever after does the hero declare his love via a damn text message?”

He’s right. “So what do you suggest? Should I go to her apartment with roses?”

He crosses his arms over his pink pinstriped suit. “She left yesterday. But I know one place she’s going to be. Better use that fast car of yours.”

Chapter 45

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