Ava sat on the edge of her bed, fuming. She had no one to be angry with but herself. Why had she gone along with this façade? No one pushed her into it. Sure, they guilted her, but she had the option to say yes or no, and she had foolishly agreed to do it.

Scooting toward the top of her bed, Ava wrapped her arms around her knees and pushed out an air of frustration. She couldn’t believe she had allowed herself to get so wrapped up in the kiss. Brendan had been so gentle and sweet with her, caring about her feelings every step of the way. An involuntary sigh released when she thought about how soft his lips were and how intriguing his masculine scent was intermingled with the cologne he wore; his cologne that held notes of sandalwood and citrus.

Just as she had prepared to wrap her arms around his neck, he had pulled back. Searching his face, she had seen nothing but frustration and perhaps, disappointment? Had the kiss been so appalling to him? Obviously. He wasn’t able to go on with it. Instead, he seemed to be willing to call the whole thing off after that kiss. And then when the words, “trust me, I understand” had poured from his lips, it had taken everything in her to stay strong and remain for the interview.

For a time, she had allowed herself to be caught up in the fairytale of it all. He had sent a team of people in to make her over. Ava had enjoyed the entire experience. Although she had known her potential and what she could look like if she removed the grungy clothing that had become her comfort in college, she still glowed when she saw the look in Brendan’s eyes when he first saw her.

There was no mistaking his appreciation for what they had transformed her into. As a matter of fact, he seemed to be looking at her like a woman and not Keith’s little sister. And if memory served her correctly, he had even appeared to be attracted to her. She saw the way his eyes sparkled when she first turned to face him. Heard the slight gasp he released, and then the way his lips turned up slightly. She recalled how he had been unable to speak at first. Imagine that, little Ava Cullen rendering one of America’s most desirable bachelors speechless. And not just any bachelor. But the man she had carried a crush for since she was a little girl. The one who fueled her dreams in college as she watched from afar, as he realized dreams. While all the other women screamed over who he had become, she was enamored with the man that he always had been.

Now, she was uncertain who Brendan was anymore. Pulling her hands through her hair, she allowed her mind to briefly reflect on the photos and the story that was all over the tabloids and now. The Brendan she had known would never mess around with a married woman. He would never become caught up in such a scandal. People often said photos don’t lie, but she knew better. She had been willing to ignore the pictures and the fabricated story. Yet, when the words poured forth from Brendan’s mouth, there was no more ignoring what was obviously so true.

She had been listening raptly to his interview on WK104, as she did with all his interviews. When he had the chance to clear his name, Brendan hadn’t done that. Instead, he had allowed everyone to draw their own conclusions. And there was only one time when Brendan ever chose that route. When the truth was so bad, he didn’t want others to know the full story.

“Oh, Brendan,” she signed, pushing her hands through her hair. “What happened?” she had resigned herself to the fact that he obviously had sold out to fame, as had many others that came before him.

It couldn’t be easy having women throwing themselves at your feet. The temptation was too great, she understood, but how could she respect him when he wasn’t strong enough to stand for what was right?

His parents hadn’t always been around, but his grandparents had raised him and Drew well. Maybe that was it. His parents were missionaries always traveling the world, doing great acts of human kindness. His mother was a teacher and his father a doctor, and they returned home once a year for two months to spend time with their sons, and then three more times each year to spend a week with them. Brendan was searching for something with Misty Waters that he had been missing. Didn’t he realize he could never replace his parents with something so superficial as an affair with a renowned actress?

Then there had been the interview. He had held her hand throughout the entire ordeal, smiling at her, gazing into her eyes as if she were the only one in the world. He was an incredible actor, she’d give him that. Perhaps the same could be said about her, but she knew hers was no act. Ava had simply sat there and allowed her true feelings to surface…in everything she said about him to the reporter and in the way she looked at him with adoration. So, no, she couldn’t be accused of giving an award-winning performance, although Keith and Brendan thought she had. She only acted out her true feelings. And only Roxanne knew the truth.

As if her thoughts alone had conjured Roxanne up, she manifested in person, knocking on Ava’s door and calling her name. “Ava, it’s me. Can I come in?”

“Sure,” Ava called out, pulling her knees down, grabbing a stuffed pillow, and holding it against her chest.

“Hey, girl. How’s it going? You’ve been holed up here since you two finished the interview yesterday. You can’t continue to hide out, you know.” Roxanne plopped down on the bed on her back, staring up at Ava knowingly.

Nodding her head, she sighed. “I know. It just makes it easier is all.”

“Seriously, who are you trying to persuade. Me? Or you? This thing isn’t going to get any easier. It’ll be that much harder when you do have to face him. Ava, I really think you should give Bren the benefit of the doubt about this story that’s out about Misty and him.”

Jerking her head up and searching Roxanne’s face, she asked, “Why? Did he tell you something, Roxi?” she asked with hope.

Shaking her head, Roxanne replied, “Nope. He still hasn’t shared the story with me or Keith, and I respect his wishes not to. But we all know Bren pretty well, you and your brother more so than me. I think we all can agree that’s so atypical of the man we know.”

“No, Roxi. He had the opportunity to clear the air on the radio, and he didn’t take it. Instead, he allowed everyone to draw their own conclusions. Bren only does something like that when he has something to hide.”

Sticking her bottom lip out and lifting an eyebrow, Roxanne reached out a hand and patted Ava reassuringly on the leg, a look of disappointment tinging her eyes. “I hear you, but still…you should give him the benefit of the doubt until you know otherwise. Or…”

“Or, what?” Ava prompted.

“Or ask him. I doubt he’d ever lie to you. Something tells me you mean more to him than you know.” Roxanne stood from the bed, stretching.

“Anyway, I just came to tell you that lunch is ready downstairs, and you two have an appearance to make tonight. So, get ready to be prepped and primed again,” she reminded Ava, wiggling her eyebrows.

“I don’t get it. I thought the man was supposed to be taking a vacation from all this stuff,” she pouted like a teenager instead of the twenty-three-year-old young woman she was supposed to be.

Roxanne shared a patient and loving smile with her. Crossing her arms and leaning against the doorpost, she replied, “He was. But this is all a part of the ‘Clear Brendan Powers Name Campaign.’ He needs to show you off in public to prove to people that he isn’t involved with Misty. You know, I don’t get you. Here’s your chance to be all dolled up and pampered every chance you get, and to be shown off on the arm of the man you love. Why won’t you just tell him, Ava?”

Ava looked up at her sister-in-law through her misty eyes. “I couldn’t bear the embarrassment of knowing his feelings aren’t reciprocated. Besides, it’ll change things forever between us, Roxi.”

“Maybe it will, or maybe it won’t. Either way, at least you’ll know where you stand.”

“I’d die from embarrassment before I had to stand in his face and tell him something like that. I just don’t have the courage is all.”

Roxanne turned her head thoughtfully.

“What?” Ava asked.

“Oh, nothing. Just a pointer…when you go out in public with him, he needs you to act as if you two are very familiar and have been involved for some time.”

Ava rolled her eyes.

“That shouldn’t be too hard, should it?” Roxanne teased and left the room.

Brendan kept a hand at the small of her back as he ushered her through the room, introducing her to someone new every few steps he took. Ava, a naturally friendly person by nature, felt as if her cheekbones were going to fall off after all the smiling. She had always been good with names and faces, but tonight they were all starting to blur together as one.

As a waiter passed by to his left, Brendan removed a couple of wine glasses and handed one to her. “Here, sip this. It’ll help you relax.”

Shaking her head, she declined, “I don’t drink, Bren…Brendan,” she stated, trying not to fall into their old comfort zone.

“I wouldn’t steer you wrong, Ava. It’s just a glass of white wine. Trust me; it’ll help you feel more comfortable.”

“What’s wrong with the way I am now?”

“You’re all tense. I can see it in your shoulders and feel it when I touch you,” he whispered in her ear.

A chill ran down her bare shoulders, and it had nothing to do with the air conditioning of the room they were in. He lightly massaged her lower back and said, “Trust me. Please.”

She took a sip and grimaced, handing the glass back to him. When he rolled his eyes, she felt a surge of disappointment well up inside of her.

“I’m sorry. I don’t like it.”

He blew out a breath and pulled her towards two large double doors leading to a gardened terrace. When he pulled the doors slowly closed behind them, she instantly missed the cool of the inside as the humidity of the night enveloped her in its heat.

Turning towards her, Brendan ran his hands through his short, stubby, blonde hair. He took her chin between his two fingers and tilted her head up, forcing her to look at him. Where she found the nerve to steel herself against his gorgeous hazel eyes, she had no clue. They often changed from a greenish glow to a hazy brown. Tonight, they were of the former color, with flecks of gold appearing to float around in them. Brendan had the most beautiful eyes, almost translucent. When Ava was just a kid, they were the first things she fell in love with before she even understood love.

And now that truth was no less a part of her reality, as she was forced to gaze into them. She thought she saw something that looked like longing. Breaking free of the hold he had on her chin, she turned her head away. No sense in imagining things that weren’t true just because she desired them to be so.

“Look, for just one night…can we…can we go back to being the way we once were?”

Shaking her head, she stated, “I don’t know what you mean.”

“Friends. We were really good friends, Ave.”

Ave. It had been so long since he had called her that. His nickname for her.

“You were friends with my brother,” she disputed. It was taking everything within her power to hold on to the resentment and anger she held for him. When he said things like he was saying now and treated her this way, she found herself wanting more.

“We were friends, too, Ave. True, you were three years younger than us, but the four of us had great times together. You, me, Keith, and Drew. Remember when we used to go fishing down at the lake and how Drew always squirmed because he feared the worms and you would offer to bait his hook for him?”

A slight smile danced around her lips.

“And he’d puff up his chest like he was ready for a brawl, declaring how he wasn’t about to let some silly girl show him off.”

Ava laughed for the first time in a while in Brendan’s presence. A real laugh, not some manufactured sound for the sole benefit of the others they were working to fool.

“Then, he would always creep to the edge of the water, away from you and Keith, and let me do it anyway.”

“Exactly,” Brendan smiled genuinely at her, causing her heart to flutter. “As if we couldn’t see what he was doing. Don’t forget about the time Keith fell into the water trying to show off for Beth Tinsdale and her friends when they came down that summer.”

Ava released a loud chuckle from deep within, her face turning red at the memory. Her brother had been so embarrassed in front of Beth, he had left everyone behind and stormed home early.

Brendan shyly lifted a finger and stroked her cheek. “See that?”

She stopped laughing, and her face became serious once more. “What?”

“That laughter. It was real. It was the Ava I know. The one that I miss, an old friend. I just need you to let that side of you show while we’re going through this. If you want to resume your anger afterward, I won’t fight you on it. I’d hate it if you did, but I promise I won’t hold it against you.”