A Slow Burning Fire (5 page)

He needed to be careful. Once the story broke to the media about his breakup with Katie, they would be on him like a swarm of hungry flies. She'd promised to not make any kind of public statement about it until after the show finished filming, and she was far away in Hawaii. The paparazzi were not something he handled well, unfortunately. When he drove, he was always on edge that they were following him, making him far more careless than he normally would have been. He couldn't even leave the house to go grocery shopping while looking like himself. A breakup was the perfect juicy story. He wouldn't be able to leave the house for at least a month. There had to be a way for him to escape.

“You're frowning,” Arial observed. She picked up her fork and added some salt to her hash browns.

His frown soon became a smile. He'd have to remember to be more careful about expressing his emotions so openly in front of her. Arial noticed things. She actually paid attention or at least was one of the few who cared enough to talk about real things with him. Not something he minded normally, but he'd probably already worried her a lot last night.

Bryce shook his head. “I'm not frowning anymore.”

“But you were. What's wrong?”

“Just thinking about some stuff.” He took a small bite. “Nothing… crazy happened last night, right? I mean, I know what I did, but there are some things that are a little blurry,” he explained.

****

Arial smiled at him gently. “Nothing crazy. Just a classic Bryce Valentine ramble.”

Swallowing slowly, he nodded. “I'm good at that, huh? Whatever I said, don't read too much into it. I probably only said something stupid anyway.”

You told me you loved me.
But if she said that, how would he react? He'd probably deny it. Arial laughed it off. “Not quite as bad as you're imagining, but I'll keep that in mind. I'd heard somewhere that drunken rambles were the most truthful ones. Is that not the case with you?”

“Depends on what I said.” He winked. “In all seriousness, words just have a great way of falling out of my mouth when I get like that. I just wanted to make sure I didn't say something to offend you. The last thing I want to do is hurt you. Since you’re my best friend, I need to make sure you know that. Please ignore whatever lame thing I told you.”

“Ignoring,” she whispered.
If loving me is lame, then I must be nothing more than a sister.

“So, it sounds like you're going back to see your Mom and Dad?” he asked.

Her eyes narrowed. “Yeah, I'm staying in fantastic Gloriana, Ohio, for the next couple of months. Hopefully, I'll get a lot of music written while I'm there. My manager said she would have a meeting with a record producer waiting for me when I get back, plus a pilot for another show. Of course, she would prefer I not go at all, but some things need to be done.”

He nodded. “So true. I envy you and your ability to put the world on hold, to slow down. I still have no clue what I'm going to fill my summer with. Surfing? Skateboarding? A painting class? Too many options, and there are only so many scripts I can read in a day before my brain starts to melt. I'm all about working hard, but —”

“We just put in nine years of it. Go on vacation if you have to get away so badly.”

Bryce stirred his food together with his fork. “Sounds good in theory. In practice not so much.”

Arial watched him play with his food, frowning. That sort of thing wasn't like him at all. Something was clearly troubling him or he wouldn't keep looking so darn sad every time his gaze went down to his scrambled eggs. He was hiding something, she knew it, but she didn't dare try to press him on it. She trusted him to tell her on his own time, though she had a pretty good idea what the problem was without him having to say a word.

Wiping her mouth with a napkin, she smiled at him. “I just had a great idea. You should come with me.”

“Hmm?” He glanced up at her, his green eyes gazing into her own. “Not sure I'm following you.”

She laughed. “Come back home with me. You need to get away, and what better place to be left alone than the middle of the country? Stay for a few days, a week, and then go on your merry way to China, India, and all those other places you keep telling me you want to go see. How many times have you talked about backpacking around the world? You have some time. Go do it, clear your head, and come back a new man.”

Arial watched him with a raised brow. “Well?” she pressed.

He smirked. “I'll go. We'll save traveling the globe for another time. It's not as much fun when you have to go by yourself.”

“However you want to spend your summer vacation,” she said with a shrug. She didn't understand the appeal of spending the summer in Ohio with her, but maybe he wasn't planning on staying for the remaining two months. But she did agree with his sentiments on not going alone. Having him there would make the trip that much easier on her.

“Your parents won't mind?” he asked.

She shook her head. “No way. They love you. Why would it be a problem?”

“Just wanted to be sure. I don't want to impose, but I can also get a hotel room.”

“Nearest hotel worth staying at is in the next town over,” she mumbled.

For whatever reason, Bryce's smile widened. “Motel? Apartment? Basement? Storm cellar? There's gotta be some place else I can stay if need be.”

“We'll figure it out.”

“Will I get a cool Southern twang like you?” He chuckled and spoke with a slight drawl of his own.

Arial couldn't help but groan. “I was hoping you hadn't noticed that.”

“Why not? It's cute.”

“Cute?” She put her fork down and stared across the table at him in disbelief.

Bryce shifted in his chair, coughing quietly. “Yeah, in a sweet Southern girl kind of way.”

“Oh…” Her heart sank, disappointed. Girl meant he still only saw her as a little kid and not a grown woman. Not best friend, but sister would have been more accurate a term to describe how he must have seen their relationship. She was pretty sure Katie's intuition was off behind her supposed reasoning for leaving Bryce. It would only be a matter of time before they got back together again if that was the case. There was no way Katie could give up someone as wonderful as he was so easily. She had to be crazy.

He'd been drunk anyway. People said a lot of stupid things when they were under the influence.

“Now you're frowning,” he pointed out.

Arial turned it into a smile — a small one, but it counted. “I'm all right. Let me call my parents, and we'll iron out details this week. I promise you'll have a blast and leave with a whole new kind of energy.”

And hopefully he wouldn't take her heart, too.

Chapter Four

News of Bryce's breakup with Katie hit the Internet the night after the wrap party. Once word got around that Bryce had gone to the event solo, speculation of trouble in paradise began. Rather than not comment, Katie's publicist confirmed the rumor and asked for space, citing that he and Katie were “still friends.” Their last conversation hadn't been any too civil, but over time he hoped to salvage what was left of their relationship and at least be a friend to her. The desire to be romantically involved left him a day or two after the actual breakup.

It was surreal not having her in his life anymore. While he'd weaned off having to talk to her every day a long time ago, she'd never been gone either. As he went through airport security, he kept noticing small things he would have messaged her about. People he saw or small things that reminded him of her. Their relationship had been far from perfect at the end, but he tried. He kept trying to show her he cared for her in small ways. Katie had never been one for romance, however. Not unless it came along with a big bell and whistle, or a show for the rest of the world. That was not his style, but for her he sacrificed his own comfort to make her smile.

He'd never realized how much he had given up until after they broke up. The inkling of knowing their relationship was unbalanced had been there, of course, but he'd ignored it out of his own stubbornness. Katie had been sensitive to criticism. One wrong word and she would have verbally ripped his head off and made sure everyone knew why.

You're free from her now and can move on to something better.
Why couldn't I have seen all of these things earlier?
he wondered. Deep down he knew that Katie wouldn't have let him dump her earlier. She had a way of putting him into a spell, making him bend for her. They could have fought until the cows came home, but if she wasn't ready to let him go, she wouldn't have given him permission to be released. Why she needed him for nine years, he wished he knew, but that was one mystery he wasn't sure he wanted to find out. The more he thought about it all, the more he realized she didn't love him. He'd been duped, blinded to believe it was destiny. She took advantage of his dreams, and it left him feeling dirty.

“I'm an idiot,” he muttered as he settled into a chair outside of the gate to their flight.

****

Arial glanced over at him as she pulled out a magazine from her backpack. “What are you talking about?”

“She used me,” he said.

It didn't take rocket science to realize he was talking about his ex. Shocking to hear, because Arial had believed their relationship had been as close to perfect as one could get — especially in Hollywood. At the same time, it didn't necessarily surprise her. Katie was a driven woman. Obviously she must have thought being in a long-term relationship with her co-star would be good for her in some way. A rather manipulative and deceitful way to get ahead in the industry, but Arial had also seen a lot worse. She hated the fact that Bryce was the one who got hurt because of it. He deserved a lot better than industry mind games. Those weren't something he did.

Arial put a hand on his forearm and frowned when he pulled away from her touch.

“There could be photographers here. You know they like to hide around the area,” he said quietly. He pulled down on the black bowler hat he was wearing.

She returned her attention to the home decorating magazine in her lap. “Okay, I won't touch you.” Heaven forbid they be seen touching each other in public. He must have not thought all too highly of being seen with her, if that was the case.

He nudged her side gently, offering her a smile. “Just in case. I wouldn't want anyone to get the wrong idea about what's been going on. You saw the tabloids all throughout the week. I was buying snacks for the flight and stumbled across one that said I had a wild drunken binge, resulting in a lot of random flings with the models of an entire lingerie catalog. They take one tiny nugget of truth and spin it and —”

“I get it,” she said sharply. He didn't need to spell out for her why he didn't want to be caught with her by the paparazzi. The idea of being a couple with her must have grossed him out. Then again, she was just a kid to him still, so that was no surprise.

****

Bryce scowled. Why did she seem so angry? It's not like he didn't want to be close to her. Quite the opposite. If he thought he could get away with it, he'd have an arm around her while they waited. Being close to her always made him feel better, whole even. He knew with her he could relax and be himself without any kind of unrealistic expectations.

She was important to him, and he wanted to protect her reputation far more than his own. If the paparazzi saw them cuddling together on a chair, no matter how innocently, they'd spin the story into Arial being a home wrecker. Regardless of whether there was a home to wreck or not, it didn't matter. They would attack with no mercy. She would be painted as the woman who got in between him and Katie.

No matter how many times he told them they were only friends, a picture didn't lie. Bryce was definitely not ready for whatever one of those pictures might capture. Even if he thought he was being discreet in hiding his confusing emotions in regard to Arial, he didn't think he could completely cover them up. He wasn't that great of an actor, especially when it came to his real life. Using his skills to hide the truth had never appealed to him anyway. His father had taught him to be honest and that his integrity was the most important thing to keep in the chaos of such a dog-eat-dog world. If he didn't want to get caught in the act of displaying too much, he needed not to do anything worth catching.

Arial deserved better than to find out how he cared for her through a picture. He wasn't ready to say the words, however. There was still so much he needed to understand first.

****

Arial's seat number was called. Because he had booked the flight so far after she had, they would not be sitting with one another. Normally, Bryce made for a great traveling buddy. He talked enough to keep it entertaining but respected her privacy enough not to be a pest. Today, she didn't want him near her. Too much was on her mind, and her heart hurt. She'd told herself she wouldn't get a stupid crush on him, and she'd gone and done it anyway. The fact that he was single only added fuel to the fire. If she wanted to, she could devise a plan to make him hers. It wouldn't have been the right thing to do, though.

He needed space and time to get over whatever heartache he must have been feeling. After all, he and Katie had shared nine years together. That was a long time for anyone to be in a relationship. In Hollywood it was unheard of. It wouldn't be something so easily mended, no matter how unhappy the couple had appeared to be over the last few years. Arial had noticed something wasn't the same. When Bryce mentioned how they hardly saw one another for years at a time, it only confirmed her suspicions. He must have loved Katie a lot to stick around in a situation where he wasn't completely happy. Why else would someone do such a thing?

Putting any kind of moves on him would be taking advantage of his state of mind. She refused to be his rebound. Assuming he got over thinking of her as a kid sister, of course. But Arial knew how to make him forget that. She didn't want to stoop down to such a low level. That would only be hurting them both in the end.

She closed her eyes and let out a slow breath before opening them again. Peering over the seats in front of her, she could see Bryce a few rows down getting settled in his seat. His gaze caught hold of hers, and he flashed her a wide, toothy smile. She returned it, shaking her head and closing her eyes again.