Page 75 of Christmas Crisis
I sighed. “I just figured you disapproved so much it was easier to avoid it.”
He nodded. “But there shouldn’t be a big thing in your life that’s off-limits. Stone is important to you. What kind of friend am I if you feel like you can’t talk about him with me?”
“Is that why you’re acting so strange?”
“Not entirely. It’s mostly because… Back in December, you said Stone was going to break up with Naomi after the movie came out. And I looked online the other day—” The pulse in his neck flickered. “I noticed that they don’t seem to be broken up. I even saw one article hinting that they’re secretly engaged.”
My breath caught. I’d seen that article too.
I turned my face toward the window. “That was the plan,” I said, hating the catch in my voice. Leo waited patiently as I gathered myself before continuing. “Do you remember when I was upset right before Marley and James’s wedding?”
“Your video call with Stone?”
“Yep.” I laced my fingers in my lap. “That as when he told me their PR teams wanted him and Naomi to extend their relationship past the movie premiere.”
Leo gazed out thoughtfully on the lonely highway. “I thought it might be something like that. Truthfully, I worried for a minute it might be even worse—like he'd started dating Naomi for real and left you behind. I…I’m sorry I didn’t ask back then. Sorry you had to go through it alone.”
“You danced with me at the wedding. And held me when I couldn’t sleep. That was what I needed.”
“Still, you’ve been sitting with it on your own for weeks. Unless you’ve confided in someone else?”
I shook my head. “You don’t need to worry. Honestly, the time in Coleman Creek was exactly what I needed. I asked Stone for time to think things through. We’ve still communicated, so it hasn’t been a total break. Just surface-level, though. He messaged me about his press tour. I sent him pictures of the dogs. Stuff like that.” Rubbing my palms against my thighs, I felt the relief of finally being able to talk about this. “Obviously, my first thought was just to end it. But I can’t shake this feeling like I haven’t given us a real chance. When we’re together, it’s good. But it’s also a dreamworld that exists in its own reality. Beingaway this summer gave me a chance to get some perspective on that. Then again, it’s incredibly rare for me to feel a connection with anyone. The past few years, it’s only been him. And you, obviously.”
Leo’s eyes flashed, but he stayed quiet, an inscrutable look on his face. Finally, he asked, “So you’re giving him more time?”
“I think I have to… You’re sure we’re okay to talk about this?”
“All good, Panda. I never should have shut the door on it.”
“Let’s never do that again,” I said. “I want us to talk about everything.”
“Agreed.”
An enormous weight lifted off my shoulders at his response. As much as I’d proven to myself that I could live without his guidance regarding Stone, my time in Coleman Creek showed me that I didn’t want to.
“Alright, then, as far as Stone goes, I decided not to end it before he and I have had a chance to make a real go of things. To be fair, I’ve been half-assing this relationship in the same way Stone’s only been in it half-time. We’ve both been uncommitted in different ways.”
“You want to wait until he actually ends the fake thing with Naomi and then decide?”
“Basically, yes.”
“Is there a revised end date for that?”
“The holidays. I told Stone that even if I give him more time, I’m done if it doesn’t happen by New Year’s, and he promised and told his PA too.”
“You believe him?”
“I do. When he broke the first agreement, I don’t think he was being intentionally dishonest. He's just derpy sometimes, and he’s pretty susceptible to being manipulated by his people.”
Leo appeared skeptical but dipped his chin. “Okay.”
“Bear, I realize that most women would break up with him. But like I said, I have to take into consideration that I haven’t been interested in that many people. It’s hard to give up on loving someone when you don’t get that feeling very often.”
Leo went still. “You love him?”
I crooked an elbow against the passenger door, resting the crown of my head on it. “No, but…I really care about him. I’m not in love with him, but maybe I could be.”
“And you want that? To be in love with Stone?”
