Page 53 of Guarded Hearts
Opening the door, I stepped to the side to welcome Mia into the room, and then I peered into the hallway. Ah. Mia hadn’t come alone. Not quite so weird, then. Gerald stood a few feet away, and he gave me a small salute. In response, I smiled and closed the door, my mind ticking through all the reasons Mia might have come.
“Are you pumped for our last practice today?” I asked and followed Mia deeper into my hotel room.
Pasha had been in charge of room assignments, and his suite had an adjoining door with mine. Since I hadn’t been expecting company, the doors between the rooms were wide open. We weren’t hiding anymore, but I felt a twinge of embarrassment at being so obvious.
Mia stared at the clear view into Pasha’s room, neat and tidy as always, before focusing on me. “Sure, yeah. The dance is great. I didn’t come about that, actually.”
“Oh.” My heart sank. I’d avoided a lecture about contracts and obligations and letting Mia down. Was that what was coming? I’d hoped we’d skipped that part when Mia hadn’t even spoken to me about our lies.
Pasha had borne the brunt of our betrayal, and I’d been mostly okay with that. Selfish, maybe. But I didn’t like confrontation, especially when I realized I’d been in the wrong.
“Uh, what can I do for you, then?” I perched on a nearby chair and gestured for Mia to take a seat.
Mia didn’t sit. Instead, she went to the balcony window and peered out at the crashing waves. “Did you”—she cleared her throat. “Have you been muting and blocking people like I suggested?”
I scooched deeper into the chair and tugged my phone out of my back pocket. “Yeah, mostly.” Not at first, but now I blocked without second-guessing myself. Muted people for one annoying response. I didn’t owe any of these anonymous people anything.
“Good. Good. Great.” Mia spun on her heel. “I just wanted to come see how you were handling the fallout. It’s been… a lot.”
I searched Mia’s face, her downcast eyes. “For you too?”
“Sure, yeah. Having people rake you over hot coals never gets less painful. Even when the hot coals are artificial, fake.” She rubbed her face. “I don’t know—I hope you’re not reading it—but people have been particularly nasty because I’m supposed to be all about women’s empowerment. I own that. I built my reputation off the back of the fallout from Kenny Connors. So, you know, that’s mine. But it stings when people create this false comparison. Jazz being fired and you and Pasha being together don’t have anything to do with female empowerment. My morals and values are just fine. Thank you very much.”
“Right.” I stared at Mia in stunned silence. Was Mia having a hard time? She was getting married tomorrow. From everything I’d heard from my friends who’d gotten married, a wedding was a big deal.
For me, marriage had been something for someday with someone. Now, when I envisioned a man at the end of the aisle, the figure took shape, the image lighting up my heart.
“Areyouokay?” I asked.
“Oh, me? Sure. Yeah. I just—Tyler banned me from social media until after the wedding—so I don’t know what’s been happening today.”
Today?She’d been keeping up with the nonsense every day before that? No wonder she looked rattled.
My sanity had been saved by Pasha clearing my notifications at least once a day, sometimes more. “I’m really sorry.” There was more I should say, but I couldn’t figure out how to phrase it. I’d never apologize for being with Pasha. “I regret how everything came out.”
“Me too.” Mia tapped a manicured nail against the wooden frame of the window. “I handle stuff like this all the time—well, it’s been a while since it’s been this bad—but still, I wanted to make sure you were okay.”
“I’m doing okay. Pasha’s been great at helping to manage assholes who think they have a right to weigh in.”
“So, being with him has been worth all this? If you had to do it again and all that jazz…?”
“Worth it?” I raised my eyebrows. “You’re asking me if Pasha is worth the harassment?”
“Sure.” She shrugged. “Over a guy. Because of a guy. Was the stress worth the relationship?”
I laughed. “A guy? He’s not just any guy. He’s…” What was he? “I never realized men like him existed. I’d never found one. Douchebags, liars, losers, cheats, thieves. Those were the guys I was attracted to, the ones I dated. He’s the best guy I’ve ever known. Hands down. He’s got the trophy in the bag.”
Mia gave a satisfied nod. “Then I guess it’s worth all this. I’ll see you at rehearsal later.” At the door, Mia turned back and examined me. “Your routine is truly amazing. And I hope after the wedding, once everyone sees how brilliant you are, they’re talking about that instead of about this.”
I placed my hand over my heart, a soft glow building in my chest. “Thank you. God, that means a lot. A whole lot.”
“Tomorrow’s your last full day on the island. But it’s going to be a busy one. I’ve given Pasha the rest of the day off—except for our final rehearsal. I hope you two have a good day together.”
“Thank you.” I took a depth breath, finding my courage. “I know I already said ‘sorry,’ and I am. But I’m even sorrier for letting you down. You gave me this job. You trusted me with the routine. I shouldn’t have violated my contract.”
Mia’s lips quirked up in a partial smile. “You clearly haven’t been following as many hashtags as me. Look up the hypocrite one and my name. You’ll get a whole host of mistakes I’ve made.”
I pressed my hand to my heart again. “Oh, Mia.”
