“She left town during a pretty chaotic time, as I’m sure you both know.” Jayson glanced between Tatum and his mom. “And the rumor mill won’t stop churning out the stories. Paige, did you know that you’re in rehab? That’s why no one’s seen you. You’ve been in rehab for depression over what happened with Colin.”

My stomach churned. That couldn’t possibly be true, or Quinn would have told me. Wouldn’t she?

“I don’t believe you,” I said, and crossed my arms over my chest as I narrowed my eyes at my agent and my ex.

Jayson pulled out his phone and swiped at the screen before turning it to me. A tabloid headline read:

Paige Lockwood Attempts Suicide Over Colin’s Mistresses. Details Inside!

“Oh my God! Why didn’t you put a stop to this?” I asked as the horror of it all came crashing down around me. I sucked in a quick breath, my head shaking as tears filled my eyes. “Because bad publicity is still publicity, right? And as long as people are talking about you, you’re still relevant. It doesn’t matter what they’re saying as long as they’re saying something. You taught me that.”

Jayson’s features settled into what looked like pity and disapproval. “Honestly, Paige, Corryn’s working on putting out that fire, releasing statements nonstop, but they’re very hard to corroborate when no one can find you or talk to you. Everyone believes these stories because no one’s seen you for weeks. This little stunt you pulled backfired. Big time.”

What had I done? What the hell had I just done to my career?

Tatum dropped my hand and turned to me. “Go talk to them. Figure this out.”

I nodded. “Okay. I’ll be right back.” I leaned up on my tiptoes and planted a kiss on his mouth. His lips barely moved to kiss me back.

“Let’s talk outside.” I motioned to both Colin and Jayson.

My heart broke a little as I walked away from Tatum and out the front door. When Colin held the screen door open for me, I edged away from him, not wanting to chance touching him in any way.

“You gotta come home, Paige. It’s bad,” Colin said, sounding sincere as he reached for my hand.

I pulled away quickly. “Don’t. Don’t touch me.”

“Sorry.” He bowed his head as Jayson reached for my arm and pulled me aside.

“Pack your things, we’re leaving right now. There’s no time to waste, and you’ve already wasted plenty.”

“I don’t want to go,” I said, practically whining. It was pathetic.

“I’m sure you don’t. He’s a pretty distraction. But, Paige, you want to talk about career suicide? That’s what is happening to yours right now, and you don’t even know it’s happening. You’ve spent the last month out here in Bumfuck, Egypt, doing who knows what while your reputation is being flushed down the toilet.”

“I’m sure you’re trying really hard to stop it all. You’re probably calling in the tips,” I shouted, and Jayson’s face reddened.

“Like I told you inside, Paige, no one believes that you’re not in rehab because no one can find you! Listen to me!” he yelled, and I noticed Tatum heading for the door before his mom stopped him. “You’ve been off the radar for weeks, and they’re asking everyone who’s close to you where you are. They’re all saying the same thing.”

“Which is what?”

“That they don’t know! And you and I both know that’s code for ‘She’s in rehab,’” Jayson shouted, his hands emphatically slashing the air around him.

“So when I get back, I’ll put out a statement or something. I’ll tell them all that I wasn’t in rehab, that I just—”

Jayson cut me off. “That you just what? Spent the last month in some small-time, off-the-map town? They won’t believe that either.”

“I don’t care what they believe. It’s the truth!” Completely frustrated, I turned to pace back and forth on the wood porch.

“You’ve been in this business long enough to know that reporters don’t want the truth, Paige. They want what sells.”

“Then we’ll give them something else to talk about instead. This is your area, think of something!” I shouted, emotions running wild through my body. There had to be something I could do to stop all the lies.

“Fine. But first things first, you have to come home.” Jayson pointed toward the house. “Go get your things.”

Knew It Wouldn’t Last

Tatum

The second Colin appeared on our doorstep, I wanted to burst through the screen and rip his head off. Paige looked horrified, and I had to fight my instincts to protect her.

Instead, I stood there silently and let her deal with this, since it was way out of my league. A helpless feeling consumed me while she talked to both Colin and her agent out of my earshot. I looked over at my mother, who was absentmindedly stirring her latest batch of tea.

“Mama?” I said, breaking her concentration.

“Yeah, honey?”

“What should I do?”

Before she could answer me, Paige walked back up the porch and inside the house, her face red and her eyes glistening. “They need me to go.”

Pain ricocheted through my chest. “When?”

“Now,” she said, and without another word turned to walk down the hallway toward her bedroom.

I inhaled a choppy breath that stabbed its entire way down. Turning away from her, I shouted for Buster and headed outside. I needed air. I needed space.

Buster barked and ran for Jayson and Colin, who stood whispering to each other next to a Mercedes. My anger only grew as I yelled for Buster to come to me and leave the two dickheads alone. Traitorous dog. The least he could do was bite their ankles.

Paige is leaving me.

I knew this day would come, but I foolishly thought it would be on our terms. How the hell I could ever think that, I wasn’t sure, probably because I didn’t know any better. I hadn’t thought much about her actually leaving, and how it would happen. I’d been so caught up in her simply being here with me.

Pain filled my chest and the simplest task, like breathing, became something I needed to remind myself to keep doing. My heartbeat echoed in my ears as my entire body tensed at what needed to be done. I’d lived through much worse than losing Paige Lockwood, but damn, if it didn’t feel like this was worse. Realistically I knew it wasn’t, but try telling that to my heart. And here I thought I had no heart left after my dad died and Brina left me.

Way to prove me wrong, heart. Now go screw yourself; you’ve done enough damage.

Paige walked back into the hallway, her things clearly packed and ready to go. She turned to look at me, her face twisted in some sort of pleading look that I couldn’t read for certain. Maybe she wanted me to save her and make them leave?

I didn’t know, so I stiffened my back, sucked in a breath, and knew this was going to hurt like hell. “Just go, Paige. We both knew this wasn’t a forever thing.”

“I know that, but…” She stumbled on her words as her voice broke, and nearly broke me with it.

She knew that?

I hardened my heart, then bit out, “It’s been fun.”

“It’s been fun?” Her face twisted as tears pooled in her eyes, and something inside me snapped.

“You’re a good time,” I said as coldly as I could.

“Is this a joke right now? It’s not funny.”

“No joke. I’m telling you to go. You should have never been here in the first place.”

“You don’t mean that.”

When she took a step toward me, I pulled back, knowing that if I let her touch me I’d be done for. I’d never let her leave if her fingers even grazed my skin. Ever.

“I do,” I lied.

“I know what you’re doing,” she whispered as tears spilled over her lashes, each one killing me a little more than the last. “You’re just acting tough, but you don’t mean it. You don’t, you can’t.”

Her words stabbed at me, but I had to make her leave and go back to where she belonged. Paige had never intended to stay in this town, and if for some crazy reason she convinced herself that she wanted to, she’d eventually resent me for it.