Page 54 of Something Unforgettable

Was this real life? A month ago, this wasn’t even a fantasy. Finn wasn’t the kind of guy this stuff happened to. He got up, walked downstairs to work, helped his grandfather, and tried not to be too awkward and shy when people were nice to him. Now, he was—well. Here. There were freaking palm trees and he could see the ocean from Xavi’s bedroom window. Yesterday had been…amazing. The party. Remy. Xavier… His Daddy. Finn was afraid of what might happen if he pinched himself.

His cell phone buzzed with a new message.

Ev

Finny, don’t freak out, okay?

Finn’s heart leaped into his throat. Oh god. What now? It took him three tries to type out a reply that was readable.

You can’t start a conversation like that and expect me not to freak out. What happened? Is it Pops?

Ev

Oh, fuck. No.

He’s Fine.

Sorry.

Everyone’s fine.

Finn shut his eyes and forced himself to breathe until his racing heart was back under control.

Okay. I’m okay. What’s going on? What am I not freaking out about?

Ev

Soooo.

You and Remy are trending.

What?

Ev

Did you happen to see any photographers while you were out yesterday?

An image started downloading. At the same time a door slammed and Asher called Xavier’s name.

When the picture popped up, Finn just stared at it. It was Remy and him, leaving the place where Finn had gotten his hair cut. Remy had on sunglasses and a ball cap pulled low, but Finn hadn’t taken any of the same precautions. He wasn’t anybody. Why would they include him in the picture?

The next text was a link to an article. REMY DALTON SPOTTED IN WEST HOLLYWOOD WITH MYSTERY MAN. Finn’s thumb hovered over the link.

“You don’t need to read that,” Asher said from behind him. “It’s just a bunch of speculation. None of it is true.”

Xavier must have spotted Asher, because he put his feet down and stood, walking over to them. “Ash?”

“Finn and Remy made the news outlets with their shopping trip yesterday. Everyone’s trying to figure out who Finn is and if they’re dating.”

Xavier stopped and put his wet hand on Finn’s knee, giving a squeeze that made him shiver.

“All right, that’s not ideal, but not a disaster either. Tell them Remy has no comment.”

Finn frowned, clutching his phone where it was still blowing up with texts. Ev, and then the group chat. Apparently, Izzy had seen the news as well.

“What about me?” he asked. “What should I do?” His phone started ringing then, Grace’s name on the screen. He answered. “Hi, Grace.”

“Finn, good morning, hun. I’m at the store and people have been asking if it’s really you in a photo with Remy Dalton. They want to know if you’re dating. What should I tell them?” Finn’s stomach rolled with nausea. People in town were gossiping about him? He looked to Xavier, hoping he knew what Finn should say.

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