While I shouldn’t have eavesdropped on his conversation with his parents, I’m too frozen to move. In all this, in everything he’s done for me, I’m the one hurting him now, whether he wants to admit that or not. And now he’s crossed a line we can’t uncross. He’s discussed me with his parents. Things aren’t casual; they’ve just become serious. I should be happy, but I’m not, and therein lies the problem.
I hurry out of his bedroom to avoid getting caught, and soon, I’m entering his kitchen, inhaling deep, struggling to right my world that’s spinning ever faster out of control. I never wanted any of this to happen. Here I stand now torn between what I know I need to do and what I want to do.
“McKenna.”
I gasp and spin around and blink, finding Gabe staring at me, clear concern in his eyes. “What’s wrong?”
“Everything,” I whisper, eyes watering.
He frowns, and then slowly, cautiously, he approaches me. Not a second later, I’m in his arms, and he hoists me on top of the counter. At eye level now, he steps between my legs, studying my face. “Please explain.”
I glance down at his naked chest, barely able to look at him. “What did the tabloid article say about us?”
His finger tucks under my chin, bringing my gaze to his. By the firm set of his mouth, I see that he doesn’t want to show me. Eventually, he reaches for his phone in his pocket, clicks a button, and then hands me the phone.
I swallow the emotion bubbling up as I read the text implying that he’s abusing me. I take in the photograph of us, a clear injury by my eye. But it’s not that I can’t look away from, it’s the way I look in the photo, it appears like I’m recoiling from his touch. I know that’s not true, but the rest of the world doesn’t.
My heart clenches as I look at him. “Did your mother see this?”
He nods, slight wariness crossing his expression. “Yes, she saw the article, but she believed me when I told her that the story isn’t true.”
That should be good enough. I place his cellphone next to me on the counter, and then ask, “What about your father?”
Gabe studies my face and then shakes his head. “My parents love me, and they know that I would never hit a woman.”
While I know that’s true and anyone who knows Gabe won’t believe this
story, my heart still feels the blame. “The world doesn’t know you like your friends and family know you.”
He scoffs. “I don’t give a fuck what the world thinks of me.”
“Liar,” I retort with a scoff of my own. “You very much do care about how you’re perceived in the public eye. If you didn’t, then why did you hide that you owned Afterglow.”
He cocks his head, eyebrow winging up. “Because I care that what I do affects the people I love. My mother doesn’t need to know how I like to fuck, McKenna.”
“Okay, while I believe that.” I gesture to the phone on the counter, “this is worse, Gabe. This story makes you look really, really bad.”
“I’m well aware how this story makes me look,” he tells me, voice hard. His eyes, though, are gentle and concerned when he adds, “At the same time, I can’t keep worrying about how everyone sees me. It’s gotten me nowhere but constantly worrying about something I have no control over.” He pauses. Then, he cups my face. “Yes, before I was torn up about all this because it affected my friends, too. I wanted to know who was behind it all. Now I know who’s responsible.”
I can tell he regrets his words immediately, because of the way I cringe.
His eyes begin to narrow as he studies me, and then sighs, pressing his hands against either side of my legs. “All right, that’s quite enough now. Stop that.”
“Stop what?”
He points to my face. “That guilt you’re feeling. I’ve tolerated it so far because I understood. But all this shit is not your fault. You need to see this. You need to stop blaming yourself.”
“I can’t help but blame myself.” The guilt is still there for last night. In fact, I realize now, it’s even worse today.
His expression goes hard. “You will stop thinking this is your fault.”
I shut my eyes, fighting off the tears. “I know that none of this is my fault directly, and that the blame rests on my brother.” I reopen my eyes and stare at him deeply, seeing Gabe for the amazing man he is. “Regardless, it is my brother. My family has done this to you. And I can’t let this damage your life any more. We need to be more careful. This can’t happen again, Gabe. It can’t.” A tear escapes my eye, sliding down my cheek.
He curses, pulling me into his arms, pressing his chin on top of my head. “How can we be more careful than we’re already being?”
“We ensure they can’t get a photograph that they can use against you.” I sniff, fighting the tears back. “I mean, seriously, do you want for this to get worse?”
“Of course, I don’t want that,” he admits and leans away.