Page 10 of Destined For Forever

It hurt. The questions hurt. The pity hurt. Having people think she was some stupid little lamb who wasn’t tough enough for Hollywood hurt.

Still… a fake relationship? It sounded like something she’d write into one of her screenplays. She shouldn’t even consider it.

Only, she was considering it. Oh boy, how she was considering it.

Stop it right now. Because you know there’s nothing “fake” when it comes to Sean Hutcherson.

That was the big difference between Sean and one of her actor friends—the genuine feelings underneath the surface. The memories. The risk. But she was sorely tempted, both by the offer and by the man himself.

The rest of the flight was delightfully uneventful, and Lily kept her nose in her book, although she didn’t read a single word. How would that be possible when she could feel him sitting next to her the whole time? The flight attendants all flirted with him, cooing over his accent as he turned on the charm. With some guys, seeing that switch could be creepy—almost like you were watching manipulation in action. But with Sean, the charm was so natural and so authentically part of him. He’d always been that guy, the one who put everyone at ease. The one who made others feel welcome and included. When his attention was on you, it felt like you were basking in the sun’s glow.

The last thing I want right now is attention from anyone.

She would do her best to get through this wedding, flying as low under the radar as possible and not letting any tempting ideas about her longest-standing crush get into her head. Which was why, when the plane landed in Boston, Lily did her best to exit as quickly as possible. She had a rental car lined up, and the hour-long drive to Forever Falls would be a good time to get her head back in the game.

What kind of name was Forever Falls, anyway? It sounded like one of those Hallmark-inspired towns where people went, hoping to find a prince in disguise.

Spoiler alert. He’s probably a frog… if you’re lucky. More likely, you’ll be locking lips with a big old toad.

She knew better than anyone not to trust a handsome face and a throatily-whispered promise. After all, Brock had been oh so good at that.

Come here, Lily Pad. I can’t go another second without touching you.

Squaring her shoulders, she dragged her suitcase behind her as she left the gate. Sean didn’t try to catch up with her after she’d said a polite but firm goodbye. Thankfully, her message had been received. No fake relationship. No reliving her teenage crush. No getting lost in his dreamy silver-blue eyes.

None. Of. That.

But when she arrived at the rental car kiosk, Lily hit another snag. As she provided her booking details, the man behind the counter cringed.

“Ah, yes. The car you booked is out of commission, I’m afraid.”

“What do you mean it’s out of commission?” Lily groaned and scrubbed a hand over her face, praying she’d heard wrong.

“The car we had assigned to you was involved in an accident as it was being returned to the terminal, and unfortunately we’re completely booked out. The best thing we can do is check in with one of the other rental companies and see if they have any cars available.”

Apparently, there was a major convention happening outside Boston that weekend, and every single car at the rental company was booked solid. Of course, the car she’d booked—three months in advance, thank you very much—was the one that had gotten damaged.

Lily drew a deep breath to calm herself before she lost it at the guy behind the counter. It wasn’t his fault. But her cousin Evie hadn’t exactly chosen a place that was accessible by public transport, and an Uber would cost her a fortune. Which, given she was now living on her own and trying to shoulder the hefty LA rent, was an issue.

“Let’s try one of the other companies,” she said.

Ten minutes and three rental companies later, Lily was still without a car. She wasn’t sure whether she wanted to scream, cry, or turn right back around and catch the next flight to LA. Or maybe somewhere else… like far north Russia.

What was she going to do now?

The rental company associate was ringing around to their other locations in the hopes they could have a car delivered to the airport. She appreciated the effort, but watching him hang up the phone and then pick it back up to dial a new number over and over again was not filling her with hope.

To distract herself, she wandered over to a small shop that sold snacks, drinks and magazines. Maybe some chocolate might cheer her up. She perused the brightly coloured display, trying to decide between the options. But then her attention was snagged by a rack of tabloid-style magazines. The shop assistant was shelving the latest copies of US Weekly and a familiar face graced the cover. The headline, in bold font, felt like it was screaming at her.

Hollywood hunk engaged! Brock Silvers finds his true happily ever after.

The picture showed him with a willowy redhead tucked into his side, her hand pressed against her chest and an enormous diamond glittering on her ring finger. A smaller picture next to it showed Lily looking pale-faced and sad. She hadn’t even known that someone had snapped that picture of her! For a moment, it felt like her heart almost stopped beating.

So much for him wanting to shed his romantic lead image.

Had the backlash from #breakupgate hit him harder than Lily thought? Was he using another poor unsuspecting woman as damage control? Or what if this really was his “true” love and everything he claimed to have felt for Lily was mere platitudes?

Or worse… acting.

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