Total pages in book: 78
Estimated words: 73568 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 368(@200wpm)___ 294(@250wpm)___ 245(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 73568 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 368(@200wpm)___ 294(@250wpm)___ 245(@300wpm)
Maeve gives me a sympathetic look. “I can’t imagine what it must be like, being in the middle of all this.”
“I’m afraid I don’t belong,” I admit to her in a moment of vulnerability. What I don’t confess is that I fear Lex will one day think the same thing because part of me wonders if this is just a novelty to him.
That’s what Ronan said, after all.
And this morning, he was so distant it’s easy for me to believe the worst, that maybe he’s tiring of me.
But no… that’s not Lex. I know it.
Maeve does too as she narrows her eyes and smacks my arm. “That’s silly talk. You’ve got Lex in your corner and from what I’ve seen, he’s pretty damn crazy about you. But enough of that. I am officially free to escort you around the paddock for a bit. Let’s go check out all the other teams.”
That makes me feel so much better and I manage a grateful smile. Maeve hooks her arm through mine and we get no more than three steps before someone shouts my name.
Actually, more than one someone.
Multiple people.
Maeve and I turn to see a gaggle of reporters trotting toward us and for a moment, I think they’re coming to talk to Maeve since she’s the communications manager.
“Posey,” one of them yells, and my heart sinks. They are not here for Maeve—and there’s only one reason they could want to talk to me.
“Posey,” a young guy with a buzzed haircut calls out before shoving a recorder in my face. “Can you comment on the allegations that you’ve been posing as a journalist to research Crown Velocity?”
Nausea wells so violently that I have to suppress the urge to vomit all over the man’s shoes. My skin goes cold as I feel blood draining from my face.
This isn’t happening.
This can’t be happening.
Not now.
“What?” I stammer, my voice weak and shaky. “I… I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
The reporters press in closer, their voices overlapping as they hurl questions at me.
“You’re a romance author, right? Writing a book about FI? How did you deceive Crown Velocity into letting you in?”
“Is it true that Lex Hamilton knew about this the whole time?”
I glance at Maeve, who looks just as stunned and pale-faced as me. Her eyes are wide, and she’s shaking her head like she can’t believe what she’s hearing. “No comment,” she says firmly, stepping in front of me, trying to shield me from the barrage of questions. “There will be a statement after the race.”
But the reporters don’t stop. A female steps forward, shoving a microphone in Maeve’s face, a camera man standing just behind her. “We already have a statement. This story is going live in a few minutes. Do you have any comment on that?”
I freeze, my mind spinning. A statement? I didn’t give a statement.
And I can tell by Maeve’s bewildered expression that she’s not the one who let the cat out of the bag. She’s as shocked as I am.
And then, like a sledgehammer to the chest, it hits me.
Lex.
He was the only other one with my secret and there’s no other explanation for how they know.
My insides churn, and I swallow down the nausea. Why would he do this? Was this his way of ending things? Is this his out?
The way he was distant this morning, even a little standoffish. He didn’t like me asking if I’d see him before the race. Were these all clues that he wasn’t feeling it anymore? That he wanted to break things off and he didn’t have the guts to do it himself?
You’re a shiny toy to him right now, but he’s not built for monogamy. He’ll drop you as soon as he’s bored with you, so don’t be surprised when it happens.
That’s what Ronan said and he knows Lex better than I do.
Oh God… the pain in my chest is unbearable.
I whirl away from the reporters and start running. I hear Maeve yelling my name, the pounding of feet behind me. She grabs my arm, halts me only to have us surrounded once again by reporters.
I’m shocked to my core when Maeve turns on them, snarling, “Fuck off, for all that’s holy. There will be a statement from Crown Velocity soon, but not if you jackasses keep hounding us.”
Maeve steers me several feet away, and I’m relieved that the reporters don’t follow.
“Lex did this,” I mutter to myself, but she hears it loud and clear. “You and he were the only ones who knew my true identity, and I can tell you were just as surprised by those reporters.”
“Posey, no,” Maeve hisses angrily. “Lex wouldn’t do this. You know he wouldn’t.”
But I don’t know that. I don’t know anything anymore. Not when there’s a horde of reporters just waiting to out my perfidy to the world. The weight of it all comes crashing down, and I can’t breathe. I can’t think.