Page 55 of Marry Me…Maybe?
She felt sure that right about now he must be wondering how to get her out of his house without seeming callous anyway. She’d put a lot of pressure on him in the last couple of days, dealing with her grief, and their already fragile relationship – or whatever the hell it was – was already under immense strain. The last thing she wanted was to outstay her welcome, so she decided she’d go back to London after they’d had breakfast.
To give them both a breather from the intensity of being together under such difficult circumstances.
To start the process of giving him up.
She found him in the kitchen, making his regulation strong coffee, and placed an empty mug down next to his, giving him a supplicatory smile.
‘Need! Coffee!’ she gasped, going for levity.
He gave her a grim smile and poured some of the dark, fragrant liquid from the jug into her mug.
‘You’re a very kind man,’ she said, blowing him a kiss and taking her drink over to the table, where his housekeeper had left a range of the day’s newspapers out for him.
She flicked the top one to the front page and ran her gaze over it while he walked over to join her at the table.
It took her a moment to realise what she was actually seeing.
When it finally sank in, her whole body froze in shock, causing him first to glance over at her with a frown, then down at what she was reading.
It wasn’t good.
Oh, no.
It really wasn’t.
There was a picture of the two of them at her mother’s funeral,with her gripping Theo’s hand possessively as the coffin was lowered into the ground. There appeared to be a dispassionate, almost haughty look on her face as Theo frowned at her.
Above it ran the unsubtle headline:
Treasure Trail’sEmily Applegate begs her earl fiancé to take her away from all this madness.
It went on to detail all the facts about her mother’s illness and secret hospitalisation, and how the affliction might be hereditary, going on further to speculate about her own private life and ask whether her ‘wild ways’ had anything to do with the possibility that she might be ‘on the wrong side of crazy’ herself.
It would have been entertainingly scandalous reading if it hadn’t been her life they’d ripped apart in under 500 words.
‘It must have been that fucking journalist from the film premiere,’ Theo muttered, swiping a hand through his hair. ‘She walked into the corridor just after we’d had that shouting match. Perhaps she heard more than we realised?’
‘It’s entirely likely.’ Her whole body was heavy with misery.
‘She must have followed us from your house to the funeral. In fact, thinking about it now, I distinctly remember seeing what I thought was the reflection of the sun on a camera lens.’
Emily sighed and dropped into the chair next to him. ‘Well, there you go. The mystery of how the most painful day of my life came to be splashed over the papers for all the world to laugh and gossip about is solved.’
It was all her fault, of course. She’d brought it on herself by craving the limelight. In fact, she’d actively sought it out.
She looked at Theo, standing there with that fierce look she’d grown to know and love on his face, and felt something die inside her.
It had been fun while it lasted, her and Theo – more fun than she’d had in a long while… maybe ever – but it was over now. It had to be.
‘Well, I guess we’re screwed.’
He frowned. ‘What do you mean, we?’
‘Your mother’s going to love it when she reads about what a great choice you’ve made for a wife.’ She laid on so much sarcasm she saw him blanch.
‘She might not see it,’ he said, sounding totally unconvinced.
She gave a sarcastic laugh. ‘She’ll see it. TheDaily Courieris one of the most syndicated newspapers in the world and the story will be all over the internet. People love it when a celebrity crashes and burns – it’s like having a big juicy bone to pick over. And I suspect your mother’s friends will be keen to point it out to her as soon as they see it too.’
