He glanced up. “How could you be so careless? This could blow up everything.”
Her stomach flipped over as she found her way into the chair next to Marcus. “I’m so sorry.”
Marcus put a hand on her knee and squeezed. “Take a breather. Both of you. This isn’t a done deal yet. We just have to spin this. Make it work for us instead of against us.”
“And how do we do that?” Daniel snapped. “I’m supposed to be the fucking relationship doctor!”
“Calm down, Danny,” Marcus said, eyeing Daniel with what Evan now recognized as the look of a dominant giving his sub an order. “People in relationships cheat sometimes. It happens. So we have Evan admit that she’s made a mistake. You admit that with all the travel, you’ve been neglecting your own relationship. And then you both talk about how you are committed to each other and are going to work it out.”
“Wait a second,” Evan said, her eyes widening. “I have to be painted as a cheater.”
Marcus’s brows furrowed. “Well, of course. There’s no other way.”
She looked from him to Daniel with disbelief. “Oh, yes there is. Like we have an open relationship. Or, I don’t know, how ’bout some honesty for a change and you tell people you’ve discovered you prefer men.”
“Absolutely not.”
“No!”
Both men shut her down in unison, and she wanted to knock their heads together.
“Evan, I can’t do that,” Daniel said, his tone lowering from pissed to pleading. “People aren’t going to accept either one of those. I’ll lose all but my most liberal of fans. Everyone else will write us off. We’ll lose the TV deal before we can even blink.”
“So instead we’ll just sacrifice my reputation? Make me out to be the whore who cheated on my oh-so-perfect fiancé?”
“I’ll take the blame for neglecting you. Talk about how sometimes cheating is a couple’s problem, not just the individual who strayed.” He reached for her hand across the desk. “Sweets, I know it’s a lot to ask, but I need you to go along with this. Don’t kill our future before we even get started. Will you do this for me?”
She stared down at his offered hand, her insides twisting into a sickening knot. Daniel had saved her once upon a time. Had protected her with unwavering ferocity when they were on the streets. The reason she’d never been raped, beaten, or killed while they were out there was because of him. The big brother she’d never had.
How many times had he taken a fist to the jaw on her behalf? Or worse . . .
Besides her mother, he’d been the only one who’d ever been truly loyal to her. The only one to always be there no matter what. She inhaled a deep breath and laid her hand in his open palm. “Fine. I’ll do it.”
Both Marcus and Daniel seemed to sag in their chairs with relief. Daniel laced his fingers with hers. “Thank you, Evan. This means everything to me.”
She sighed. “Just tell me what I need to say and do.”
“We’re not going to make you do the talking. I don’t want to make you lie blatantly on camera. We’re going to send you to a hotel for a few days until the initial flash of interest burns out.” Marcus flipped over the picture, which was still lying face up on the desk. He tapped it. “And you need to let Jace Austin know that his affiliation with this company—and with you—is over, effective immediately.”
She pulled her hand from Daniel’s, her full attention switching to Marcus. “What?”
He frowned. “We can’t very well have him associated with the book or show in case he’s identified as the guy you were sleeping with. And you certainly can’t continue any contact with him. The press will be watching you like a hawk.”
The room suddenly felt twenty degrees colder and like all the air had been sucked out of it. No more Jace? Ever? And his business . . . “You can’t pull the affiliation. Jace’s store is depending on it.”
“He should’ve thought of that before he fucked my fiancée,” Daniel snapped.
She smacked her hand flat against the desk. “You gave us fucking permission, Daniel! He’s a member of The Ranch.” She wet her lips. “And . . .”
Daniel’s eyes narrowed. “And what, Evan?”
“And we have a past.”
“What are you talking about?” Daniel leaned forward, elbows on the table.
“He was the one, Daniel. The one I loved. The one I ran from. . . .”
Awareness dawned over Daniel’s face. “The guy who got you pregnant?”