Page 18 of Until the End

I grin. “Great.”

“She spent four hours in her studio,” Chelsea says, pulling my attention away from drowning in Carson’s gaze. Her eyes bounce between me and Carson, a smirk ticking up the side of her mouth.

“Then you’re probably starving.” Carson squeezes my biceps and grabs my plate from in front of me. He stuffs one side with appetizers and the other with pasta before handing it over.

“I’ll never be able to eat all that.” I breathe out a laugh.

Carson shrugs as he sits next to me. “I’ll eat whatever’s left. Did you guys put together a plan for the Weasel yet?”

Tanya points at him. “That needs to be a thing. How have we not thought of that before?”

“We were going to talk while we ate.” Chelsea brings her full plate to my other side while Tanya sits next to Carson.

“First, we need to know if you want to come out with the truth, a version of the truth, or on the attack,” Tanya starts. She bites into a breadstick with a groan. “Gee-zus, that’s the best damn thing I’ve ever eaten.”

I snicker around my own bite of breadstick. They really are the best in the world. “Part of me wants to say a version of the truth, but I think accuracy will be the best course of action. I don’t particularly care about my own reputation, in all honesty.”

“Is that smart?” Chelsea asks. “Not that I’m saying wedon’t do it, I just want to discuss all the possible consequences.”

I shrug. “I don’t know.”

“Most of your fans are going to be on your side,” Tanya points out. “Especially if you’ve got proof of his cheating.”

“I didn’t exactly think to take a picture.”

“Security cameras?” Carson asks.

“We could call the venue to see if they have any footage,” Chelsea suggests.

“Daren could call. He’d be a little more official.” Carson grabs a fork and picks at my plate. I move it closer to him for us to share. “He could say we think someone stole stuff from one of the groomsmen.”

“So with proof of his cheating, you think people would understand? Has he said anything yet? I’ve kept myself far away from anything resembling news.” Even if Wesley had made an announcement, there’s no way I could watch the vitriol spill out. Everyone would’ve blamed me for our falling out, and technically, they wouldn’t have been wrong. I was the one to end our engagement. It wouldn’t matter to anyone if Wesley cheated.

“Cecelia released a statement saying the two of you were taking some time apart,” Tanya says. “That’s why the journalists have been rabid over trying to get eyes on you.”

“We really need to make a statement. Especially before the Weasel does,” Chelsea insists.

“Okay, here’s what we’re going to do.” Tanya has her business tone on. “We’re going to say that you and Wesley have decided to go your separate ways. You wish him all the best and happiness in the future. In the meantime, we still get the security footage.”

Chelsea hums in approval. “The partial truth will prevent a scandal, and if he decides to be a scumbag, we’ll have the proof in our back pocket. We can make you looklike a saint because you could’ve shared that info from the start.”

“What do you think?” I look at Carson.

“Sounds like a solid plan to me. I’d hate for you to be dragged through the mud if you don’t have to be.”

“I agree.” I catch Tanya’s and then Chelsea’s eyes. “But I’m not afraid to put up a fight if needed.” Grabbing my phone, I send Daren a text to ask him to come into the kitchen. While we wait, Tanya and Chelsea pepper Carson with questions. They ask about his life in Sonoma and what he likes to do for fun.

I had no idea he still liked to draw, although I did know he lived with Michael and Ryan. I can’t imagine what that bachelor pad looks like these days.

Daren comes in a few minutes later, his thick arms testing the limits of his black T-shirt sleeves. “Hey, Miss Ginny. A call just came through from the LAPD, but what can I do for you first?”

“Oh, I hope everything is okay. Um, yeah, we were wondering if you could call the venue to get the security tapes from the groom’s suite. It would be nice to have some insurance, just in case.” Since I left the venue without him, I made sure to stay in contact with Daren the entire time Carson and I were at the hotel. He didn’t like not being there to protect me, but he knew it would be too suspicious if there were security guys around our hotel room.

Daren’s shoulders soften. “I’m one step ahead, Miss Ginny. I got the tapes already.” He grits his teeth. “I…also have text exchanges from Mr. Reed’s phone. Don’t ask me how I got those, though.”

Carson snorts. “You have the best security team in the world.”

Tanya leans around Carson. “Agreed.”

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