Page 33 of You and Me, For Real
I spin on my heel, unable to bear his baffled face. “I’ll text soon,” I call over my shoulder, tugging Teddy’s leash alongside me.
I hate my abruptness, but the thought of facing the relentless, intrusive paparazzi again is just too much. It’s not worth the risk.
We need an alternate plan. One that doesn’t include me getting caught in the spotlight again.
10
GRIFFIN
Every instinct in me wants to chase after her.
She was shaking, on edge, clearly upset about something, but wanted nothing more to do with me. So I stand here, frozen, holding Roxy’s leash as she sits next to my feet.
Despite her repeated compliments on our progress, Ashton running away makes me feel like a failure. She was afraid of getting photographed together. The reaction is foreign. Most people can’t get enough of the fame that surrounds me, but after a single hour, Ashton’s already had enough of me?
The morning had been great otherwise. Roxy and I didn’t make much progress, but Ashton praised me all the same. Kind of ironic, really. I’ve been pushing myself in my career for years, craving an ounce of praise from my father, and then this gentle, kind woman comes along rewarding me for mere attempts. She’d been so patient with me. Being around her was easy. Like breathing air. I didn’t have to pretend anything. I could justbe.
I hate that she’s so opposed to being seen with me. If I had another chance to talk to her, I could fix?—
“Griffin!” a female voice calls from a distance.
I spin around to see a dark-haired, living, breathing workout Barbie heading in my direction.
Scarlet.
She’s wearing a matching hot-pink velour pantsuit with neon-yellow tennis shoes. My eyes are assaulted by the sight.
“Wow. You made it.” I say under my breath, “Sort of.”
“Sorry, I got held up on the phone with my dad, but I didn’t want to miss the chance for us to be seen doing domestic things together.” She bumps into my shoulder, her high ponytail swinging behind her.
I slip my sunglasses back on to dampen the retina-offending colors. “Sorry you missed your perfect photographic opportunity.”
“It’s already over?”
“Our session started a little less than?—”
She cuts me off. “Aw, it’s Roxy up close and in the flesh!”
Roxy tilts her head to the side and looks at Scarlet. Her ears perk as though she recognizes her name. That, or Scarlet’s offending high-pitched tone is hurting her eardrums.
“Look at your forehead wrinkles. They’re just adorable, but they make you look like a sad doggie.”
She’s talking in that baby voice people often use with dogs. It irks me, almost like she’s trying to claim my dog as hers.
Scarlet squats in her pantsuit and pats her thighs. “Come here, girl.”
Roxy cowers behind me and pulls the leash as far as it extends. She inadvertently wraps the leash tighter around my legs, immobilizing me. “She’s shy, Scar. That’s why we’re here. We’re working on it.”
Scarlet stands and looks around, finally noticing Luke at a distance. She waves. He waves back. He loiters there like he’s unsure if he should approach or not. I give him a slight head shake.
“Your trainer already left?”
“You just missed her.” And more than anything, I want to jog to the parking lot to check on her.
“Aw.” She whines and pouts her lips.
Not in a cute way.
