CHAPTER FIVE
HONEY
The ride to the airport was relatively calmer than I expected it to be, easing whatever thoughts I had of anyone recognizing me and making a fuss about it. I couldn’t exactly hide my signature red hair from the world, but I managed to hide most of it under a cap.
It was better than nothing, really.
I wasn’t even supposed to be here. I was supposed to be riding in a private jet, but the place I booked it at messed up and double booked it with someone else. Since that someone else was a high-profile celebrity and infinitely more famous than me, I was given up with some beach resort compensation for the inconvenience.
I wasn’t going to lie. It plunged my mood down and added to my already throbbing headache, but I let it go and didn’t make a scene, not wanting it to add to my rapidly growing scandal.
Thankfully, I managed to get a ticket on a commercial flight and managed to get a seat at the very back, where privacy could at least be maintained. The only person in that lane with me was an old woman named Sally who looked pleasant and wanted to chat, and because I wasn’t in a sleeping mood, I responded to her attempts, and we got to talking.
The headache eventually disappeared, slowly bringing my mood up along with the old woman’s constant cheerful complaints about gadgets and how she could never get used to them. My grandma died when I was just a little kid, but I could still remember how sweet and sassy she’d been at the same time, lecturing me on the proper ways to be a Southern belle and cooking me all kinds of comfort food.
By the time the plane landed in Florida, I was shaking hands enthusiastically with Sally and warmly wishing her well. Then I was taking a taxi to the building where I parked my car, wondering what Sara had to say. I texted her my flight details and only got a text back that we needed to talk. Knowing her, there was probably a lecture coming my way, followed by sympathy and a solution to this dilemma.
Sara and I hadn’t always been this close, particularly when I was still starting in Florida and her then-secret lover, Doug “Cooper,” took me under his wing and helped me adjust to city life and the much harsher racing world there. I developed a crush on him back then for taking such good care of me, and I tried to find ways to get him to notice me. When I found out about Sara’s and Cooper’s relationship, I couldn’t deny that I resented her for a little bit. But I came to understand later on that the two were actually in love, and I decided to distance myself and let them be after I realized that Cooper would never be mine.
Sara had always been nice to me in her aloof kind of way, starting by loaning me money to buy a personal car, because I was too broke from investing in my race car. Then, when the race car driver she managed, Gray, took a hiatus a few years ago, Sara decided to invite me in, wanting to guide me further. It was a sincere offer, and I knew she was a whiz at this, which was why I found myself accepting and staying with her.
Sara was the reason the sex video was mostly deleted from the internet now, as she worked overtime with her marketing team to clear my name. It was damage control at its finest, though a little bit too late as the damage was already done to my reputation. Still, it wasn’t her fault.
The taxi ride was a short one, and I hurried to the parking lot with the thought of food and where I could grab my lunch before heading to Sara’s office. The decision to stop over at the nearby cheesecake house was already set and exciting me, which in turn had me preoccupied.
Too preoccupied to hear the footsteps until it was too late.
“Miss York! We’ve been waiting for you.”
My heart sank at the sound of the eager voice that I didn’t recognize. I contemplated ignoring it as I kept walking, but my car was still on the other end of the parking lot. A few seconds later, my path was blocked by a young blond man with another young brunet cameraman beside him. His eyes lit up as he took me in, like he’d hit the jackpot.
I sighed, trying to bite off the rude words about to come out of my mouth. “Yes?”
“Everyone’s been looking for you,” he said, shoving a recorder in front of my mouth and making me blink. “Where have you been hiding yourself?”
“I’ve been on vacation,” I muttered, then sidestepped to get away. It didn’t work because the reporter seemed to anticipate my move and sidestepped with me.
“Where? Were you with someone? We’ve gotten reports that you were with a guy. Are you meeting up with Desmond Louis, the photographer in your sex video? Are you guys back together? Is there another video coming up soon?”
The questions and the declaration had my mind reeling, as I didn’t know how they came up with this shit. There was a certain gleam in the reporter’s eyes that I didn’t like, and I also didn’t like that even with me gone and trying to get away from all of this, it just grew and grew in my absence and had now come to this.
“I wasn’t with anyone, I was just resting,” I said. Then I began to grow irritated with myself that I was even responding, and I decided to cut it short. “Have a good day.”
Sara had often emphasized how it was best to be pleasant to the press, but I wondered if they detected the impatience in my tone when I said my goodbyes. I didn’t look back, my gaze zoning in on my car. Dismay settled over me when the footsteps came again, and unconsciously, I was walking faster, already taking the key from my pocket.
A wrist settled on my hand, and the reporter’s voice came on again.
“Come on, just one interview—”
Another hand grabbed my arm and tugged me in the other direction. “Take your hand off her.”
The other familiar voice had me blinking. Then I was freezing when I realized why it was familiar, and I was swiveling my head in that direction to make sure that I wasn’t hallucinating.
The sight of him—the man who pulled me away from the reporter—confirmed that I wasn’t hallucinating. My non-reaction was replaced by shock as I stared at him now.
What was Gavin doing here?
He wasn’t looking at me. Rather, he was looking at the reporter with what could only be defined as deadly steel in his gaze, one that sent a silent message: he wasn’t to be messed with. The reporter got it right away, and even the cameraman looked at the scene uncertainly.
Then the reporter got bold, narrowing his eyes. “Who the hell are you?”
“I’m a friend of Miss York’s manager. May I know what media outlet you represent and your name? If you really have questions for Miss York, we can set up an interview at a proper venue. What do you say to that?”
Gavin’s words were smooth, eloquent and just a tad bit threatening. I stared at him in amazement, then stared at the reporter who now lost the boldness. He backed off and muttered something about the company name being confidential, then that he’d see to setting up an arrangement.
“That’s great,” Gavin replied. “Now take a hike before something accidentally happens to that camera.”
Well. That was a quick turn.
My breath whooshed out in relief as the reporter and the cameraman hurried away, obviously put out. Then Gavin was directing me to my car, and it was only when we were both inside and navigating out of the parking lot that I finally got to ask him what the hell.
“What are you doing here?”
I couldn’t turn to him because I was the one driving, but out of the corner of my eye, I saw him shrug. “I was at Sara’s office. She got your message that you’re back and also got a tip that some reporters were lurking in the parking lot you used for your car. She sent me over.”
It was a pretty straight answer, allowing me to relax. But there was no actual relaxing when it came to Gavin, really—not when the sight of him alone had my heart thundering in my chest as I remembered what happened that night in the beach house.
Or rather, what almost happened.
I was drunk, yes, but I wasn’t too drunk that I would forget what went on. Now I was more aware of him than ever, and it was all I could do to keep still as questions arose in mind that I wanted to ask but couldn’t. Why did he almost kiss me? Why did he back off? Why did he leave the next morning without so much as a goodbye? Not that I expected much but we had a good night and at least a ‘see ya later’ would have been nice.
Why had the house been so empty after he was gone when we barely interacted when he was there?
I’d be a fool to deny that he was just too attractive for his own good, but I’d also be a fool to take a liking to him. The fact that he backed off gave me the indication that he really wasn’t interested and had just been caught up in an intimate moment.
And as a smart woman trying to keep my life from falling apart, I should follow his lead.
We got to Sara’s office in no time, and thankfully we weren’t followed. How Gavin handled that situation was pretty impressive, and I had to wonder what exactly his role was in Sara’s security team. Did he handle bad rep as well?
Sara welcomed me with a hug the moment I stepped foot inside her space, then took a step back to eye me critically. She used to be such a cool one, with the frostiest expression on the planet, but being married to Cooper, who was the most easygoing person there was, mellowed her out.
“How have you been handling things?” she asked without preamble.
I shrugged. “I’ve been getting by. They’re getting vicious.”
“They harassed her in the parking lot,” Gavin intoned shortly.
Sympathy flashed in Sara’s eyes, followed by determination. “It’s come to that, huh? I’ll deal with them. In the meantime, I’m glad you’re both here because I would like to introduce you to each other.”
I glanced at Gavin in surprise, but he was looking straight ahead. I had yet to tell Sara that I barged into her beach house, and her tone indicated Gavin hadn’t told her, either.
“Gavin, this is Honey York. She’s one of my drivers I am sponsoring. Lately, the press hasn’t been very nice to her.”
“I could see that,” he muttered.
“Ya I guess you got a taste of that,” she said. Then she turned to me. “Which brings me to my next introduction and decision. Honey, this is Gavin Wallace. He used to be a part of my security team, and he used to be in the military.”
Oh. I glanced at him again, unsure where this was going. It slid through my mind that maybe she wanted us to be friends or something, or wanted Gavin to keep me company for a while as I dodged the press.
Then my curiosity was replaced by shock at her next words.
“Get acquainted, you two. Gavin’s going to be your new bodyguard.”