Even though it was well before the start of the workday, Cassandra approached Frank’s office knowing he’d already be there. Anger ate away at her like acid eating through metal.

After Brett left, she hadn’t even attempted to go back to sleep. She needed a plan of action. Now that the press had found out about Naomi, she was well aware that the situation needed to be handled by Brett, which meant him coming clean about the accident. Also explaining how he’d got this far in his life without the accident becoming common knowledge to the public.

She’d picked up her phone countless times to call him and ask him how he was. To let him know she would help him through the minefield they now found themselves in. Only she hadn’t, knowing he would probably either hang up or not answer her call. There was no way she was going to give up on helping him through this, but the hard part would be convincing him to let her.

First, though, she needed to find out who leaked the information. Without knocking, she walked right in.

“How could you do it, Frank? Don’t you know that an innocent girl, a girl who can’t comprehend the day like we can, has now had her peaceful existence shattered? In all the years we’ve worked together I’ve never seen you stoop this low. Why now? Why Brett?”

Her breath rushed out of her as she finished her tirade. Over the years working for Star Image, she never would’ve imagined Frank had done what he’d done.

“If you’re through, I’d like an explanation. Anyone else I’d fire on the spot. But I’ve never seen you this upset, so I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt.”

Cassandra rocked back on her heels. How could Frank not know what was going on? Now she understood Brett’s disbelief when she protested her innocence at his accusations.

“Are you telling me you don’t know about Brett’s visits to Spring Mountain being exposed to the press?”

Frank leaned forward. “Yes that’s exactly what I’m telling you. I considered everything you told me or didn’t tell me, so I contacted Dan. After I blasted him for not telling me about the situation, he explained to me the reasons behind them. I may want to use everything possible to help clients, but this was one situation I was happy not to.” He cleared his throat and looked at her. “I understand now why you didn’t tell me. Although I didn’t at the time, and the way you’re reacting has me wondering if there might be something else you need to tell me.”

While Cassandra wanted to blame Frank, because if he wasn’t him who the hell had leaked the information to the press, she couldn’t ignore the sincerity in his tone. Also, he’d never lied to her. He owned what he did, just like her, which meant she would have to come clean about getting involved with Brett.

Although there was nothing between her and Brett now, and her heart broke a little more at the thought. Would he give her an opportunity to defend herself and Star Image? Would he give her a second chance? Would he give them another chance?

She loved Brett. More than she ever thought she could. Her feelings for him were stronger than anything she’d ever felt for Michael. How had it happened? How had she fallen for the bad boy?

Aware Frank was still waiting patiently for a response, she straightened her spine. “Yes, there is something else, and I know that what I’m about to say might mean I’ll lose my job, but it’s a risk worth taking. I’m in love with Brett Hunter. He also told me about Naomi. I wanted to protect her and protect the man I’d fallen for, so I chose not to tell you the truth.”

“I see.”

Oh shit, there was so many ways to take those words.

“After what’s happened in the last few hours, I don’t think that’s an issue now. He believes we leaked the news, so basically, he’s done with me.” God, she hated the way her voice cracked with sadness.

Frank nodded slowly. “Well, it wasn’t me, so we need to find out how the news got out and—” he paused as his phone buzzed. She was grateful that he could sense her distress so he hadn’t pushed or berated her for falling for Brett. It would be coming though. No doubt about it.

Frank’s muttered curse had her looking up at him. “What’s happened now?” she asked.

“Brett told the reporters last night he would be holding a press conference this morning.”

“By himself? What’s he thinking?”

“I would say his main idea is to protect the girl.”

He turned to his laptop. With a few clicks of the mouse, he pulled up three gossip websites. Cassandra didn’t need to see the screen to know they’d all be leading with Brett and Naomi.

“How bad is it, Frank? After the way Brett walked out on me last night, I don’t think he’ll trust us to help him deal with the press conference.”

“There’s not a lot of information about the accident because no one has dug deep enough to uncover it. The fact the news broke in the early hours of the morning is working in our favor.” He turned back to her. “I don’t care what you do or how you do it. You need to get Brett in here sooner rather than later. He won’t be able to get through this without our help.”

God, the way she was feeling at the moment, Frank had asked for the impossible. But she knew he was right.

“Okay, I’ll call him. But we also need to find out who leaked this information if it wasn’t us.”

“My guess is the same source who called us then called one of these sites when it looked like we weren’t going to run with it. Looks like our source is desperate for some fame.”

“Why would someone do that to Brett and Naomi?”

“A disgruntled lover, maybe?”

Cassandra immediately dismissed that thought. “I don’t think Brett has told anyone else about the accident. It defined his life more than even he realizes.” Another thought hit her. “You don’t suppose it’s a staff member at the facility do you, Frank?”

“It could be. I don’t think we’ll be able to get an answer today. I know you want to get this sorted out quickly, but I think it’s going to take time. The person who called me didn’t give her name, she passed on the information and then hung up.”

As much as she wanted to worry about it and find out who the culprit was, she was also aware that her focus needed to be on getting Brett to the office so they could prepare him for the press conference. No way could she let him face the hungry wolves by himself.

“Whoever this person is, she needs to pay for what she’s done.”

“I agree. I’ll see if I can find out anything more. Don’t worry, we’ll make her accountable.”

Cassandra always knew she worked for a good guy. Frank’s actions just now confirmed it for her. This was why she loved working for Star Image. She knew without a doubt that Frank would get to the bottom of it. Now, all she had to do was find Brett.

---

Nerves at seeing Brett again stampeded through her like a herd of elephants. She’d almost fallen off her chair when he answered his phone. Her expectation had been to leave a dozen messages, and have none of them returned. Even though she knew she could use the app to determine his location, she vowed not to. As it turned out, she didn’t have to. While Brett had been cool to her on the phone, giving monosyllabic answers, he seemed happy to cooperate with her on preparing him for the press conference.

He was due to arrive in a few minutes and she and her nerves were waiting for him in the conference room. The same room where they’d first met each other. That day she’d put off seeing him. Today, she couldn’t wait to see him. Her gut told her she didn’t think he’d be feeling the same way.

The door opened and she swung around. Her heart skipped a beat when Brett walked into the room. Even exhausted, he was the most handsome man she’d ever seen.

God, how she wanted to rush over to him and pull him into a hug. Let him know he wasn’t in this alone. She went to take a step forward, but stopped when she noticed someone else walking into the room—Dan, his agent.

Digging deep into her professional well, she pasted a smile on her face. “Good morning, Brett, Dan. Thanks for coming in.”

Brett nodded and sat at the table.

“Morning, Cassandra,” Dan said. “Let’s get down to business. There’s not much time until the press conference.”

Okay, so Dan was going to do all the talking. She glanced quickly at Brett. Tension radiated from his shoulders to the frown marring his forehead. His eyes were closed and the lack of sleep from the night before was evident in the dark circles under his eyes.

No matter how much she wanted to take care of him, for the time being, she couldn’t. Right now she had to be the PR consultant she was. But she was determined to speak to him alone—before he met with the press.

“Right, the main objective of this press conference is to shut the door on your visits to Spring Mountain while protecting Naomi at all costs.”

“We wouldn’t be having this issue if this agency hadn’t decided to blab to the press,” Brett retorted.

A sigh rushed out of her. How could she convince him that it wasn’t her or Frank or anyone else in the office? “It wasn’t us, Brett. I didn’t breathe a word of what you told me to Frank. I wouldn’t betray you like that.”

“Spinning words is your career, Cassandra.”

“Brett,” Dan said. “I’ve known Frank for over twenty years. He’s one of the good guys in this business. You’re not the first client of mine he’s handled brand management for and you won’t be the last. I told Frank about Naomi and your accident, not Cassandra. I also trust Cassandra.”

“How can you trust her? You don’t even know her.”

Dan shrugged. “Easily. If she was the type of person to gossip, she would’ve had plenty of opportunity to tell the press everything when she was divorcing Michael Green.”

Cassandra couldn’t hold back her gasp of surprise. “You knew I was married to Michael?”

Dan nodded. “Yes. I know what he did and how he acts. There’s a reason he’s gone through numerous agents. Your professionalism in not talking to the press is one of the reasons I asked Frank for you to work with Brett once I found out you were on his staff. Although,” he glanced between the two of them. “It seems a professional line has been crossed by the two of you. But I don’t think I have to worry too much.”

So, not only did Dan know about Michael and his reputation, he’d also figured out that she and Brett had gotten involved, but wasn’t worried about it? Had she stepped into an alternate reality?

There was no time to figure that out now. Cassandra steered the conversation back to the reason for the meeting. “The press conference is the main thing we need to concentrate on. I suggest you make a simple statement and don’t answer questions. They will only try to turn things around to make it more scandalous than it is. Plus, I’m going to make sure I get someone to video it. Once it’s over, we’ll upload it to all social media sites so that the truth is out there. If you’re happy with that, of course.”

She opened the folder in front of her and pulled out a piece of paper. “I took the time to prepare this statement. I can change anything you want changed.” She pushed the sheet across the table to Brett.

“Can you leave us?” Brett looked over at Dan. Cassandra wasn’t sure what to make of his request. Dan didn’t say anything, just got up and walked out of the room.

“What’s going on, Brett?”

“Is it true? Were you married to Michael Green? The NBA star?” He couched the question softly.

The last thing she wanted to talk about was her failed marriage, and certainly not with a press conference looming. Although she knew if she hoped to have any sort of relationship with Brett, if he could forgive her, she had to be upfront with him.

Brett had bared his soul to her with his deepest, darkest secret. What sort of person would she be if she didn’t share her ugly past marriage with him?

“Yes, I was married to him. It was the hardest, most humiliating two years of my life.” Now that she’d started talking, she couldn’t stop. “I met Michael in college. I was flattered the star of the basketball team was interested in me. My friends told me not to trust him, that he was a player. But I was sure that I would be the girl to change him.”

Humiliation at her naiveté burned through her. She’d been every single cliché in her relationship with Michael. “Anyway, we dated and then, when he was drafted into the NBA, I left college and blindly followed him into a marriage that was doomed before he said the words I do. I don’t think he’d been faithful to me the entire duration of our relationship. When we split, I was determined not to fall for another athlete. No matter how tempting. I even failed at that. I fell in love with you.”

She pushed away from the table and stood. “So there you have it, my sordid past with the great Michael Green. I’ll leave you to read through the statement because we have exactly five minutes before the press conference.”

Cassandra strode toward the door when a hand closed over hers, preventing her from leaving. Brett’s woodsy scent enveloped her. How she wanted to lean back into that hard chest. Feel his arms encircle her. This younger, hot athlete who owned her heart completely, made her feel safer than she’d ever felt before.

“The press can wait. Michael Green was an idiot.” His lips brushed her ear. “I’ve been an idiot, too.”

Her breath caught in her throat. She turned around so her back was against the door and she could look into his eyes, his irises bright blue and clear. It was like he’d opened his soul up to her.

“What do you mean?”

His hand cupped her cheek. “I should’ve trusted you. I should’ve listened to you when you told me you hadn’t released the information to the press. Why would you do that when your job is to keep me away from anything resembling a scandal? I’m so sorry I didn’t believe you. Please forgive me.”

How could she deny him? She loved him and with that love came forgiveness. His knee jerk reaction to hearing Naomi’s security had been threatened shouldn’t have surprised her. Underneath the image he wanted the public to see was a man who cared deeply. She only hoped, one day, she would be a recipient of his caring nature.

“You really have nothing to apologize for. If the situation was reversed, I would’ve reacted the same, especially if someone I cared about was threatened.”

Knowing he needed more, she placed her hand over the one still touching her. She was about to take a leap into the unknown. “Yes, I forgive you, because I love you, Brett Hunter.”

Brett’s arms wound around her. Closing the distance between them he captured her mouth. Her knees buckled under the onslaught of his lips. She was grateful for the door at her back. Her mouth opened beneath his, allowing his tongue to duel with hers. It may have only been a few hours since the last time she had been held in his arms, but it felt like a lifetime.

She had no idea how long they stood in the room kissing each other but sanity eventually returned. “As much as I want to stay here with you, we need to get to the press room.”

“I need to say something to you before we go.” His tone was serious as he took a step away.

Surely he wasn’t saying thanks but no thanks after the kiss they’d just shared?

“What?”

“When I walked into this room a couple of months ago, I was angry with Dan. Actually, I was angry with the whole world. The last thing I wanted to do was listen to someone tell me how I should be living my life. I didn’t care if the public hated me. It was what I deserved after the accident. But then I saw you and everything changed.” He stroked a finger down her cheek. “You didn’t take any shit from me and you made me look at myself in a way I hadn’t in years. I began to hope and believe in a future when I never had before. It’s all because of you. You believed in me when I didn’t deserve it. I love you, Cassandra Fielder, more than I ever thought possible.”

Tears blurred her vision and tracked slowly down her cheeks. “This is going to get complicated,” she said with a smile.

An answering smile broke out across Brett’s face. “Babe, nothing is complicated when we face it together.”

The despondency that had held her in its thrall for the last few hours evaporated and joy filled her soul. “Well, then, let’s get going. There’s a roomful of reporters waiting for you.”

“Where you lead, I will follow. We’re in this together, Cass.”

Together sounded wonderful.