Chapter 32

Ryan

I woke up early the next morning, grabbing a cup of coffee and heading to my office. I had a ton of work to get done, but my mind was only halfway focused on what I was doing. I made some phone calls, keeping my door wide open and one eye constantly on the hall. I was waiting impatiently for any sign of Sara. I had really thought we were going to have an amazing time out together and was excited she even agreed to go to dinner with me. Then, the damn paparazzi had to go and ruin the mood. I was so interested in our conversation and her adorable intoxication that I had completely forgotten to think about the fact that the press was constantly lurking around every corner and that I wasn’t in Bonanza anymore. My night had been cut short, and I didn’t like that.

I had to say dinner had gone perfectly, with wine, conversation, laughter, and most everything that we used to do when we were actually together. She had been super impressed by the restaurant and that we had our own private dining room. Even the food seemed to impress the hell out of her, which was cute to watch. She was so tiny, but man, she could put away some food, and I loved to see it. I wanted her to enjoy her first meal out in New York.

Sure, Sara had been a little buzzed, maybe even a little drunk, but we had been on our way to an even better evening than we were already having. We could have gone on a night stroll through the city, looking at the lights, or maybe come back and watched a movie together, cuddled up on the couch. The sky was the limit at that point, but I knew I wasn’t ready to call it a night. But no, that damn journalist had to come out of nowhere and bring up Natasha right in front of Sara. Why they couldn’t let her go, I still didn’t understand. They acted like I was the most important person in the world and my love life was of national interest. I hadn’t even seen anything about the normal hot-headed celebrities, just me and this damn Russian scandal. I was really tired of hearing the name Natasha from anyone. It was screwing up everything in my life, and I really had thought when I went to Bonanza, it would begin to simmer down a bit. I had put my love life completely on hold after Natasha, not even going out to the bars for a random hook-up.

Part of that was intentional, though. My PR rep had called me to her office immediately after the story broke and laid it out for me, letting me know that finding another girl needed to wait. She knew my taste in women wasn’t the best and bringing another scorching romantic affair into the media’s eyes would only fan the flames to what happened. I needed positive press, not more negative, and I needed to show the public I was responsible, business-minded, and most importantly, trustworthy. No one would do business with an untrustworthy company, and that could be a killer to my plans before I even started.

I needed to let the whole Natasha debacle blow over until no one even thought about it anymore. In the meantime, I didn’t need any extra negative attention, and she knew I was like a magnet for negative attention, especially when it came to women. Personally, I had no problem following that advice, considering I’d had enough of relationships after that time with Natasha. I needed to get my head back on track and get back to being the man motivated to change the world with my ideas. When I had met Sara, though, I’d changed my mind about the relationship thing, and on the plus side, she pushed me to be a better man all around. My PR rep loved it and had given me her blessing when it concerned Sara. She even went as far as to answer questions to the press and actively promote the idea of the two of us. She hadn’t asked before she did it, which upset me a little, but at the same time, I couldn’t deny it was definitely doing something fantastic for my reputation. My PR’s involvement was probably the reason the paparazzi was still hunting me down.

The initial picture came out on its own accord, but PR had jumped right on that when they found out how amazing Sara was and how much good it was doing for my reputation. I had never had someone in my life with such outstanding qualities, and that she was a small-town hero with her vet practice made the story even sweeter for the media. It was at a point where I couldn’t stop the media from coming after us, but I definitely needed to figure out how to circumnavigate the whole situation. One thing I had learned really well in my time in the limelight was how the paparazzi and the mainstream media worked, how they thought, and where they liked to attack. I had spent enough time with these people that I was starting to know their routines like the back of my hand. I was pretty sure that with a little planning, I could keep Sara out of the limelight while she was here with me in New York. The word was out that she was here. That was something I couldn’t take back, but there were other ways I could protect her.

As I sat there thinking about it, I heard the familiar shuffle of Sara’s feet coming down the hall, and I sat up as she appeared in the doorway. Immediately, my breath caught in my throat staring at her with her long hair cascading around her shoulders, wearing some shorts and a T-shirt. She was so damn beautiful all the time and had this innocence to her that was breathtaking. I just had to figure out a way to keep the media from snatching that away from her. It definitely wasn’t going to be easy, but it was well worth it.

“Good morning,” I said, standing up. “Did you sleep well?”

“Yeah,” she said, blushing. “The bed is amazing, but the alcohol definitely finished off the job.”

“I can imagine.” I chuckled, walking over to her. “Come on. You must be hungry.”

I grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her down the hall and to the kitchen. I had called a catering service and had them fully cater breakfast since I didn’t have a ton of groceries and wasn’t sure what she would like. She giggled and shook her head, looking at the spread, obviously impressed.

“I wasn’t sure what you would like so I ordered a bunch of different things.” I smiled, handing her a plate.

She smiled back at me, not saying a word. She was different that morning, a little withdrawn and more shy than usual. This normally would be the moment she made some funny comment about my cooking, but instead, she just went through picking out the things she liked and filling her plate. I hoped that what happened the night before hadn’t renewed her misgivings about being here with me in New York. I didn’t want her to think it was a mistake by any means. I followed along with her, grabbing some fruit and yogurt and heading to the table where the coffee carafe was sitting. She sat down across the table from me and started eating, barely even looking at me. I had planned on taking her out sightseeing, give her some fresh air, but I didn’t want her to think I was putting too much time and attention into her. I figured the best way to handle it was to bring the day up in a roundabout kind of way.

“It’s a beautiful day in the city today,” I said, looking up at her.

“It is,” she said with a smile.

“I’ve been so out of the loop with the business being in Bonanza,” I said. “There are a million things to do, so when I started the day, I figured I would spend it in my office, getting caught up on everything.”

I was so damn nervous when I was talking, and I had no idea why. Maybe I was scared she was going to stop me and tell me she wanted to go home. Maybe I was just nervous around her because I wanted it to work so badly. She nodded, eating her breakfast and watching me clasp my hands together. I leaned forward and opened my mouth to tell her that on the other hand, it would be rude to leave her all alone, when a familiar voice rang out, breaking my concentration and completely cutting me off.

“Hey, man,” the voice called out from the front door. “I hear you in here talking, and I’m hoping you aren’t talking to yourself. They make medication for that kind of thing, you know.”

I sighed, not getting to finish my sentence, realizing that I had given Alec access to my life all of the time. He was sort of my handler at times, but right then, I didn’t need him. I turned and forced a smile, watching Alec strolling into the kitchen. He stopped in the doorway when he saw Sara, and I could see the smooth debonair man start to seep out of his pores. Sara smiled and swallowed her food, wiping her mouth and looking between him and me. He never ceased to have perfect freaking timing every single time. It was the first time, though, that I actually regretted giving my best friend a key to my place. Usually, he would text or call beforehand, but I guess he figured since I just got back into town, I wouldn’t have had the time to have anyone staying over. When I talked to him on the car ride to the apartment the day before, it had been brief, and he didn’t know Sara was with me, not that it would have mattered. He still would have come walking in the front door like he owned the place. Sometimes, he lacked serious personal boundaries.

“Hey, man.” I stood up and shook his hand.

“Hey,” he said, smiling at me and glancing over at Sara. “It’s good to have you back. We’ve missed you out here.”

“Yeah, right.” I chuckled. “Alec, this is Sara. She’s staying here for a little while. Sara, this is my best friend Alec.”

“It’s definitely a pleasant surprise,” he said, pulling out his charm. “I had prepared myself to face his ugly mug, but you cleared that right up for me.”

She giggled and shook his hand, sending an uncomfortable jealousy into the pit of my stomach. I thought briefly about pushing him off the balcony to get him out of the way, but that might not be the way to win back Sara’s heart. Alec turned and grabbed some toast off the island and sat down.

“Whatcha been up to?” he asked.

“Just catching up,” I said.

“Sounds like you’re busy,” he said, turning to Sara. “Why don’t you let me show you around the city today?”

“You don’t have to do that,” I said before Sara could talk. “I actually planned on putting everyone off for another day and taking her out myself.”

“No, man, what kind of best friend would I be if I didn’t help show your guest a good time and let you get some work done?” he said with a charming smile in Sara’s direction.

“It’s fine, Ryan,” Sara said, already won over. “You get your work done, and I’ll hang out with your best friend for a while.”

Sara got up and put her plate in the sink, and I just smiled at Alec, showing him I wasn’t happy with his interruption. He flashed me a toothy grin and stood up, putting his arm out for Sara. She blushed and took it, looking over at me and smiling as the two walked from the room. When I heard the front door closed, I got up and walked to my office, wondering what the hell just happened. One minute, I was trying to make plans with her and the next minute she was gone with my best friend. I should have bit the bullet and been open with her from the beginning. Now I had to sit and wonder all day.