Page 100 of Beyond the Hate

“I heard what I heard.” ~ Eli

Eli

I don’t want Eli to find out. No one can tell him.Paisley’s words have been on repeat in my mind for the past day.

I ignore the light in Paisley’s office as I march into the office building ofBuccaneer’s Whiskey.The same way I’ve been ignoring her for the past day.

I went toFive Fathomsto surprise her and take her out for dinner. Instead, I walked in on her having a meeting with her friends about me.No one can tell him.

Fucking secrets. I hate secrets. I knew better than to trust anyone but I went ahead and fell for Paisley anyway. Or, rather, the version of Paisley she showed me. I obviously don’t know the real woman.

“Good morning,” Dakota calls as I walk past her desk.

I grunt in response.

“What crawled up your ass? You’re grumpier than Mr. High and Mighty.”

“None of your business,” I grumble.

Rhett exits his office and stands in front of me with his arms crossed over his chest. “You don’t speak to Dakota that way.”

I rub a hand down my face. I shouldn’t take my frustration with women out on my assistant. “Sorry, Dakota.”

She waves my apology away. “No reason to apologize to me just because Mr. High and Mighty ordered it.”

“Stop calling me Mr. High and Mighty,” Rhett orders Dakota.

“Stop acting all high and mighty and I might consider it.”

I don’t have time for their antics today. I have things to arrange. I motion for Rhett to move out of my way. He steps to the side but then follows me into my office and shuts the door behind him.

“What’s wrong?” I ask as I settle behind my desk.

“That’s my question.”

“Nothing’s wrong,” I lie. “Just busy.”

“You’re always busy, but you’re usually not an asshole.”

“I apologized for barking at Dakota.”

“You’ve been an asshole since yesterday.”

“Only since yesterday? I’m falling down on the job.” I chuckle but it’s forced.

“What’s going on with you? Is there a problem with the distillery? OrApparoo?”

There isn’t but I latch onto the excuse. “I need to visitApparoo.I’ll probably be gone for a few weeks.”

“A few weeks? I thought you were done traveling back and forth between Smuggler’s Hideaway and California.”

I thought I was, too. I also thought I could trust Paisley. Apparently, I don’t know shit.

I feign nonchalance. “It’s only a few weeks.”

Maybe longer if I can get away with it. I don’t want to spend time on this island where Paisley is running around keeping secrets from me. I’ve had enough of people keeping secrets from me.

Dad left a week before my sixteenth birthday but his departure wasn’t sudden. He’d planned it in detail. He had an apartment already rented in another state. And a woman waiting for him there.

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