Landon

The rest of our time at Annia and Kai’s ended up being pleasant and relaxing. It was nice getting to know more of Zara through her sister’s stories. They were so alike in so many ways. Both had a passionate love affair with their state. Both had a sweet tooth. I finally found out the real reason Spike was named Marshmallow. I laughed hysterically, picturing a preteen Zara hiding the white puffy treats under her pillow to avoid getting in trouble from her mother for eating such crap.

The differences between the two sisters were what made them so unique. Annia had been the defiant one when they were younger, while Zara had hated disappointing her parents. The sisters also shared stories of Lilou, and how she had been the mother hen of the three. I took Zara’s hand as tears shimmered in her eyes.

Through the bits and pieces I learned, I somehow fell deeper in love with Zara. I also became more worried about our future. Part of me felt I was setting her up for so much heartbreak. She didn’t deserve the insecurities, the scrutiny, and even the endless lies that she was sure to face because of me. She didn’t deserve what my world did to people like her. How could I subject her to all that? What kind of person would that make me?

But in my defense, didn’t I deserve to be happy, too?

Our time in Honolulu went by too fast. Like a wonderful vacation that comes to an end, melancholy hit us full force now that it was over.

The flight back to Lanai was very quiet. Except for Zara and me, there was one other passenger a few rows ahead with his head buried in a newspaper. Zara sat beside me studying her new cellphone. After an argument at the mall yesterday, she’d finally stopped fighting me on the purchase. She was now the proud owner of the latest model iPhone, and the poor thing had done little but stare at it in awe since she pulled it out of the box.

There were four contacts currently saved—Kai’s, Annia’s, and both my real cell number and the burner phone that I had with me in Lanai. With my help, the first thing she did was text both my numbers so I had hers as well. Then, she figured out how to work the camera. She immediately began snapping some amazing shots of random things and making them not so ordinary through her talented eye. I watched as she flipped through them quietly, stopping on a picture she took of me. It was in Annia’s backyard and I was laughing at something. Zara had captured it just as my gaze strayed toward her.

“When did you take that?”

“This morning.” She skimmed her finger on the screen, shifting it to the right. When she turned to look at me, the smile on her face both warmed and hurt my heart.

“I can’t wait to sext you on that,” I said, leaning closer to kiss her nose.

“If I learn how. I feel like I need to cram for an exam when I get home. This thing is complicated.”

“Not really. Once you get the hang of it, it’ll be addictive. Trust me.”

We’d already discussed places on Lanai she’d have to go to just to get cell reception. We arranged a day and time we’d talk, promising not to get off the phone without arranging our next call. I even promised I’d sync my calendar to her phone once I got back.

“We’re about to land. Why don’t you text Annia to let her know?”

She looked up eagerly. “Okay, here goes.” She was so damn cute, biting her lip in concentration as she touched the square green icon and opened a new text screen. A few seconds later, she tapped send with a flourish. “Tada!”

“See, easy.”

A response came back immediately.

Welcome to the twenty-first century, my sister.

“She thinks she’s so cool,” Zara said, making me laugh.

She typed back, Call Mom and Dad and let them know. I’ll be home later. Looking up at me with a devilish grin, she wiggled her eyebrows. “I assume we’re going to your place?”

“You assumed correctly.”

Her phone buzzed again with another text.

I will. They left a few messages but I’ve been so busy I didn’t call yet. I’ll call them now.

“This texting thing is so amazing.”

“It can be, but it can be a huge pain in the ass in my business.”

When the plane came to a stop I lifted the shade, blinking against the blinding sunlight.

It didn’t take more than five seconds for it to register.

The corralled small horde of people, all standing anxiously while holding obscenely large-lensed cameras. Uniformed officers faced the plane bored and pissed that they were forced to waste their time protecting a privileged Hollywood asshole.

Shit.

Zara was still fiddling with her phone when I took one of her hands. She smiled warmly. “You give me too much credit if you think I can work this thing one-handed.” The look on my face caused her to frown. “What’s wrong?”

“Sweetheart, I don’t want to make you nervous, but they know I’m on this plane.”

She looked up, confused. “Who knows?”

I pressed back into my seat so she could peek out the small plane window. “Oh my God. There are so many.”

I didn’t have the heart to break it to her that the dozen or so waiting to pounce were really not that many.

“How did they find out?”

“I have my suspicions.” Taking her phone from her hand, I opened Twitter and searched my name. Sure enough, a picture of Zara and me in Annia’s backyard surfaced with a tweet:

Found him! #LandonPrice and girlfriend #ZaraJobert have been hanging out in Lanai. #sneakyboy #busted

“The original tweet came from Rosalani, and her friends retweeted it five minutes later, the domino effect causing it to go viral.” I tilted the screen toward her.

Her eyes widened while she read. “That bitch. That was posted the night Rosalani met us.”

“Apparently, and it already went viral.” I glanced out the window grateful there weren’t more out there, but then again they could be fanned out all over Lanai waiting for me to appear. “Fuck,” I muttered out loud. “I should have predicted this.”

I should have known that night that Rosalani was capable of causing us problems, since her fucking phone had been attached to her the whole time. What the hell? Had I been out of the loop so long that I’d forgotten basic principles of being proactive?

Taking Zara’s hand, I waited until she focused on my face before speaking. “Baby, keep your head down and say nothing. Okay? They already know who you are. Do not engage with anyone.”

“Okay.” Her hand trembled slightly in mine.

“Don’t be scared. We knew this would happen, it’s just sooner than we thought.”

Her dazed look morphed into one of panic. “Lance, my parents. Do you think they know about this where I live?”

I wasn’t going to sugarcoat this or lie to her. With a resigned sigh, I nodded. “Probably, baby.”

She ran her free hand over her forehead while scrunching her eyes shut. My heart shattered at the pain written all over her face. All my plans of easing her into my life one small step at a time had been completely fucked because of Rosalani. With her one tweet, she had just grabbed Zara by the waist and thrown her into shark-infested waters with no warning or life vest.

I wrapped my arm around her, trying to comfort her as best I could. The flight attendant appeared with a tight smile. “Do you need assistance?”

“Yes, actually.” I pointed to the window. “They are there because of me. Can you have airport security meet us on the tarmac?”

“Of course, sir.” She strode to the front of the plane and lifted a phone on the wall. Turning my focus back to Zara, I gripped her chin and looked into her eyes. “I am right here. I will not let go of you. Okay?” She nodded slowly. “Do you have your sunglasses in your bag?”

“Yes.”

“Okay. Put them on, and hold my hand. You can handle your bag?”

“Yes.”

“Ready?”

She nodded again as she found her glasses and put them on. Once they shielded her eyes, a single tear slowly rolled over her cheek. I wiped it away before gently kissing her lips. “I love you. No matter what happens out there today, or tomorrow, or next week. I love you and I’ll never let them hurt you.”

“I love you, too.”

It took a few minutes for us to gather our bags and wait for security. It then took a few more minutes to gather our nerve and walk down the airplane steps exposing us to the circus assembled near the terminal. The only positive to our debut occurring at the airport was that, thanks to security measures, they were not allowed near the plane. I squeezed Zara’s hand in mine before we flew down the steps as quickly as we could.

Shouts came from the crowd all directed at us. Cameras all pointed at us. Questions flew at us in rapid fire.

“How long are you staying?”

“Landon, does Kaelynn know of your secret affair?”

“How did you meet?”

“Are you here because of her?”

Ignoring them all, I pulled her behind me and into the sedan that waited for us. Once I slammed the door she visibly relaxed. It was short-lived, because the moment we got to the taxi stand, more chaos ensued. Some chased the car and others darted to catch their own taxis.

I handed the driver a hundred-dollar bill and instructed him to get us out of there fast. Once we cleared the airport service road, I barked other directives, weaving us in and out of the streets of Lanai to ensure that no one was following us. Once it was clear we’d outrun them, I then asked that he slowly drive by my bungalow, but not stop. I needed to assess how much they knew. Did they know where I was staying, and did they know where she lived?

Turning her head to look out the back window, she asked, “Do you think they followed us?”

“No, I think we beat them out, but they may already know where we’re going. Maybe you should call Annia and warn her what happened.”

When she swiped on her screen, she paled even more than she had already been. “Shit, three missed calls and a text.” Her eyes roamed the screen. “Annia already knows. She said my parents are frantic, there are photographers surrounding the house, and police trying to control the crowd. Palu called my dad at work about an hour ago and told him what was happening at the house. Apparently a neighbor called the police department.”

The driver glanced at us through the rearview mirror, cutting his eyes away when I looked at him. I took her hand, and when I did she curled her ice cold fingers around mine.

“I’m so sorry, baby.”

“It’s not your fault,” she whispered. “I just wish I’d told them sooner. I hate they found out this way.”

“I know. Me, too. But this is entirely my fault. I should have predicted this could happen after seeing Rosalani’s reaction to me.” I looked away while the pain in my chest intensified. “I should have told you sooner, prepared you better.”

“No.” She held my face with her other hand. “You have prepared me, and you were right to wait to tell me. The only thing that’s keeping me calm is the fact you love me. If you didn’t feel that way, I’m not sure how I would be reacting right now.”

I appreciated her words, but that really didn’t change our situation much. Regardless of how we felt toward each other this was only the beginning of the shitstorm to come.

The cabdriver made a slow sweep around Hulopoe Haven, and thankfully no one was waiting for us. I recited Zara’s address and asked him to do a drive-by. The short ride was filled with tense silence as we approached her home. The moment the cab made the last right before her street, bile rose in the back of my throat at the chaos surrounding her house. We had known they were there based on Annia’s text, but it didn’t make the scene any less dramatic. This was her safe place, the place her parents had worked tirelessly to ensure their safety. And now, because of me, the Joberts’ identity was exposed like an open wound.

A few police officers were attempting to control the crowd with wooden barricades lining the front yard from fence to fence. Her parents’ car sat in the driveway with a Lanai City police car parked in front of the house. All the blinds in the windows were closed.

“Don’t stop,” I said, needing a few minutes to think this through. Many noticed the cab, pointing their cameras at it as we drove right past her home. “Do you want to go back to my bungalow until you’re ready to do this?”

“No. There’s no point prolonging this. I’ll never be ready. I think we need to get this over with.”

She was right. Our time as we knew it was up, and our party was over.