Dorothy’s knowing expression appeared in my mind. As much as I wanted to bask in Cruz’s affections, there was a part of me that felt wrong encouraging his advances when he would be leaving so soon. Then he’d be back out on the road … and I would be here.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, gently cupping my face and turning it toward him. “You went from carefree to sad in a tenth of a second.”
“I’m fine,” I said, pumping in all the cheer I could muster.
“Tell me what’s wrong, Lex,” he urged, studying my face.
Nearly suffocating from the emotions that threatened to take over, I swallowed air in hopes of calming down. What had I gotten myself into? Here I was, dressed up and ready for a night out with a man who played the part of sexy TV host. But to me he was just Cruz—hot guy with witchy powers that he rarely showcased. Thoughtful, caring, just the right amount of naughty.
However, it was selfish of me to lead him on when I was bound, literally, to Sage Springs.
“We should talk,” I rushed, words coming faster than my brain could monitor. “I like you, Cruz. Really like you. So much. And this,” I gestured between the two of us before I nervously twisted my hands together, “is going to leave me heartbroken in a way that makes me sick to even think about. I didn’t expect to fall so hard. I think—”
“Stop right there,” Cruz hushed, tilting my chin so I was forced to look into his pensive green orbs. “You’re not the only one who feels that way.” He wasn’t lying. I could tell that in the way he touched me, in the way he looked at me, and in the way he treated me.
Cruz was falling for me just as hard.
I shook my head in wonder. “But—”
The car slowed and the driver walked around and opened my door, halting any further discussion.
Cruz cleared his throat. “We’ll talk about this more later, okay?” he requested softly.
I nodded once, took a deep breath, and slid out of the town car. That’s when the flashing started.
“Cruz—”
“Lexi, right? Are you—”
“Miss, are you and Cruz together? Where—”
Cruz cursed and wrapped an arm around me, guiding me inside and shielding me from the cameras. “Damn, paparazzi. Are you okay?”
“Yeah.” My mind was still reeling from the last ten minutes in the car. I couldn’t care less about the paparazzi. “I’m fine.”
“Heinous bitch,” someone said as she stormed into the restaurant, bright lights flashing behind her. I turned to see Erin Denzin shaking her head in disgust. “That irrelevant Bianca chick tweeted the location.” Erin held up her phone as proof. “What an idiot.”
I smiled, immediately knowing I’d made a new friend. “I don’t think we’ve met. I’m Lexi Alamont,” I said, liking Erin on the spot.
“The one who made the mint cookies?” Erin asked, putting her phone in her handbag.
“The very one,” Cruz said, smiling down at me.
“I only baked them if you liked them,” I joked, trying to get the attention off me. I’d never been comfortable with compliments. “But if you didn’t—”
“Are you freaking serious?” Erin crowed, eyebrows arching high on her forehead. “They were unbelievable. As a matter of fact, I’m glad I ran into you. I have a party coming up in a few weeks, and I wanted to see if Sweet Stuff would cater it.”
Squeezing my shoulder, Cruz winked and followed the hostess to a private section of the restaurant, leaving me to trail behind with a very congenial Erin.
Cruz pulled out my chair and Erin sat next to me, chatting about buttercream frosting, of all things. After we’d ordered drinks and greeted the rest of the cast, Bianca strolled in—dressed to the nines with a calculated smile stretched from ear to ear.
“Nice move, newbie,” Starla Stigmata called out over the lively chatter in the room. “You’ll never last five seconds in Hollywood by pulling stunts like telling the paparazzi where actual talented people are gathering.”
Bianca’s face flushed with anger as she pulled out a chair next to Tommy Hillsdale. “Funny coming from you, since you wouldn’t know talent if it hit you in the face,” Bianca said smoothly. She straightened her spine in a way I recognized from years of watching her hurl insults. I cringed, preparing for the acid about to be spewed from Bianca’s blood-red mouth. “After all, you lip-sync at concerts, right, Starla? I’m sure we all saw that lovely ‘live’ performance fall to pieces last month.”
Erin rolled her cocoa-colored eyes and turned back to me. “Let them fight. So not interested.”
“Why are you on the show?” I asked Erin, sipping the glass of wine Cruz handed me and ignoring Starla and Bianca. “You seem a little … normal.”
“Thanks for that,” Erin chuckled, biting into brisket. “My agent said I needed some positive media attention after that paparazzi incident.” She grimaced and mimed hitting someone with her shoe.
“I haven’t seen much about that in the media,” I assured, digging into my own brisket.
“That’s because I’ve got a good PR team behind me,” Erin confided. “They’re worth their weight in gold, even if they are conniving jerks.”
“What did the paparazzo say to get you so mad?” The question slipped from my lips, and I could practically hear Eliza chastising me for prying.
“They were talking about my family,” Erin answered, setting down her fork with a clank. “No one threatens my family and gets away with it.” Her eyes flashed with raw emotion. I patted her hand.
“I don’t blame you,” I comforted. “Besides, it’s not like you tried to take out that guy’s eye, right?”
“Right.” Her phone lit up and she reached for it.
“I’ll be right back,” I said, needing a quick breather from the stuffy room.
Cruz broke away from his conversation with Jodie and offered me a quick grin, acknowledging that he’d heard me. Erin nodded absently as she typed a message on her phone.
After touching up my lipstick with the help of the mirror in the restroom, I fixed a few out-of-place tendrils of hair and headed back to the cordoned-off section where other diners were eagerly trying to get a glimpse of Cruz and his crew.
“Damn, where was that dress when we dated?” a grating voice called out before a manicured hand grasped my upper arm, stopping me in my tracks.
Justin.
CHAPTER 19
“Justin, let me go,” I said, not even bothering to turn around to look at him.
“How about we talk first? You know, now that you don’t have your guard dog by your side,” Justin sniffed, positioning himself in front of me. He looked preppy in his black dress slacks and a light blue Oxford. Not a wrinkle in sight.
“If you’re referring to Cruz, he’s waiting for me. In fact, he’s probably wondering where I am right now,” I told him, tugging my arm out of his grasp.
“We would have been good together,” Justin said conversationally, as if he hadn’t heard me. “The young veterinarian and the woman with no ambitions other than to make me happy and pop out a few kids.”
Bile rose in my throat as I looked at the man I’d wasted hours of my life on. How had I been so obsessed with finding love that I’d spent time considering this disgusting excuse for a human being? It was strange how things became crystal clear after I’d found what I was looking for, and Justin was not it.
“I’m not sure why you’re so obsessed with this nonexistent ‘us,’” I said calmly, using air quotes to punctuate my point, “but what little we had is over, Justin. Completely over. Please just let it go. You’re making me uncomfortable.”
“I went by your house,” he said, words sending a trickle of unease down my spine. “But his car was there. Again. What do you see in him?”
Starting to feel a little apprehensive about his advances, I leveled with him. “Don’t stop by anymore, Justin. I don’t know how else to say it. We were never exclusive, and this behavior is creeping me out.” Justin’s eyes flashed with
anger.
“You need to listen to me,” he said, gripping my arm again.
“There you are. What, did you get lost walking to the restroom? Typical,” Bianca said condescendingly, twisting her mouth in disapproval. “Who are you?” She eyed Justin, who immediately dropped his hand from my arm.
“Justin,” he said, offering her a hand to shake. Bianca stared at it like it was a dead animal.
“Well, whoever you are, Lexi’s got to go. We’re waiting on her,” she said, effectively dismissing him. She shoved at my shoulder, urging me forward. Bianca had me pushed around the corner before I could even protest. She pointed to the private room that had been cleared of milling onlookers. “Go on.”
“Where are you going?” I asked as she took a few steps away. “I thought you said you guys were waiting for me.”
“They are,” she replied, stopping to dig through her oversized purse. “I’ve got better things to do.”
My mouth dropped open as I realized what she’d done. “Did you just save me from Justin?” My tone was full of uncertainty and shock. Bianca Sutherland had done something nice for me.
Bianca shrugged her slim shoulders, pulling her phone out of her bag. “You guys were blocking the way out.” Her eyes met mine briefly before she looked at the blinking screen on her phone. “Gotta go.”
Taking a hesitant step forward, I placed a hand on Bianca’s arm for a fraction of a second. “Thanks.” I always knew there had to be some good in there somewhere, I added silently.
She didn’t turn around, but she nodded once before her slight form disappeared around the corner. The sound of the paparazzi shouting at her, letting her know the cameras loved her, asking her where she was going next, echoed through the restaurant.
“You okay?” Cruz asked. I felt his presence behind me before he even opened his mouth.
“I am now,” I said, leaning back against him.
“Ready to leave?”
“Depends. Where are we headed?”
“Clove Crossing,” Cruz replied, spinning me around. “And then to my place.”
“Not happening,” I said, laughing at his dejected expression. “You’re currently living at Cedar Inn with Aggie.”
“Yeah, good point. That line sounded better in my head. Guess that leaves your place.” He flashed me a grin and offered an elbow. “Shall we?”
“Sure, but I want to say goodbye to Erin first.”
Cruz nodded as we made our way over to my new chestnut-haired friend. “You guys are probably going to do adorable couple stuff, huh?” she asked when she saw us. “I have to say, I never thought I’d see the day when Cruz Drakov became smitten.”
“Tell me about it,” Aimee broke in, joining us. “You about ready to go, Erin?”
We said our goodbyes after Erin typed her number into my phone. She said she wanted to chat more about Sweet Stuff, and I was happy to oblige.
As we all walked out, we passed Justin, who was belly up to the bar with a few of his pals and a few ladies in single-and-ready-to-mingle outfits. Cruz stiffened when he noticed Justin, but I slipped my hand into his and kept walking. Justin looked up but quickly turned back to the blonde at his side.
Good riddance, I thought, preparing for an onslaught of flashes. But to my surprise, the paparazzi had left.
“Bianca tweeted where she and Tommy are hanging out,” Aimee said, holding up her phone. “Thank goodness.”
“Night, ladies,” Cruz called out as Aimee and Erin hopped into a cab.
Cruz and I strolled toward Clove Crossing, which was only two blocks away. There weren’t many other people on the streets at this hour since it was prime time to be inside the clubs and bars.
“Nice night,” I mused, enjoying the city sounds.
“Yeah,” Cruz muttered distractedly. I turned to see what was going on with him right as he picked me up and pressed my back against an old law office building in the blink of an eye.
“What are you—” The rest of my question caught in my throat as Cruz smashed his mouth to mine. Shocked, I froze at first, but soon reflex kicked in and I matched him kiss for kiss.
“You have no idea how damn hard it’s been not kissing you all night. This dress hits your curves in all the right places.” He smoothed one hand up my side as he held me against the wall with the other. “Not that there are any wrong places on you.” He dipped his head and pressed a kiss to the pulse point on my throat, making my eyes roll back in delight.
“Hey, Cruz?” I rasped, my voice catching.
“Yeah?” he responded, running his tongue along my jawbone.
“Take me home?” I gulped out.
Cruz’s eyes grew wide as he leaned back. “Shit. I’m sorry, Sunshine. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.” He set me down on the pavement, but my knees wouldn’t hold, so I wrapped my arms around his shoulders.
“I said that wrong,” I amended, feeling drunk off the combination of his touch and scent. “Come home with me?”
A slow smile crept on Cruz’s face as he pulled out his phone. The metal ring in his lip shined brightly as the overhead light glinted off it. “Yeah, can you bring the car to the corner of …”
I stopped listening to the rumble of Cruz’s voice as he instructed the driver to pick us up because the thump of my heart was all I could hear.
☀ ☀ ☀
“A few months?!” I squeaked, staring at my best friend like she’d lost her mind. “You’re getting married in a few months?”
“Calm down, Lexi. Your face is doing that thing that almost looks like a frown. Princess Sparkles can’t be doing any of that,” Ivy teased from behind the counter at Wicks Before Pricks the following morning.
“Lexi,” Eliza drew out, nearing me like she would a frightened animal. “Jake and I don’t want a big wedding. We want it simple and small—”
“No courthouse,” I warned, making it clear there would be no discussion about that topic. I shot a pointed look to Ivy for her wrongdoing. I hadn’t even gotten to bake Oliver and Ivy a cake for their wedding.
Eliza sighed. “No courthouse. We’ll have it at Cedar Inn in three months,” she explained. “That’ll give you plenty of time to bake the world’s best wedding cake, right?” she added.
“You mean it?” I squealed, peering into her grinning face.
“Of course,” Eliza responded. Then she grunted as I barreled into her for a hug, toppling both of us to the floor.
“You break it, you buy it,” Ivy deadpanned, unaffected by the swirling emotion in the room.
“Don’t be snappy, Grumpelstiltskin,” I called over to her, releasing Eliza and helping her to her feet. “We’re having a wedding!”
“Awesome,” Ivy said, continuing to pack boxes of candles to mail out. “A little help here? These orders don’t ship themselves, and you have enough energy for all three of us.”
Skipping over to my sarcastic friend, I bumped Ivy with my hip as I held open a box for her. “Oh! And when we try on dresses, it’ll be like a fashion show,” I squeaked. “Eliza in her wedding gowns and us in our maid of honor dresses.”
“Matron of honor,” Ivy corrected.
“Yeah, that too,” I rushed, my imagination running away with the amount of fun we would have.
“Someone’s awfully happy today,” Eliza noticed, raising her eyebrows. “I take it you had a good night out with Cruz?”
“The best,” I said with a dreamy sigh.
“Good,” Eliza said. “I want to hear about it, but I have to get back to the inn ASAP.”
“Aren’t you so excited?!” I shrieked toward Ivy once I waved goodbye to Eliza.
Ivy shook her head and rolled her eyes. “If this is you in wedding mode, I’m really glad I opted for the courthouse.”
“Stop bringing that up. You’re lucky I forgave you,” I said, folding the box so she could tape it. “I wonder if it’ll be a sunset wedding. It’ll have to be inside the inn since it’ll be cold in February. I wonder what kind of deco
rations would be best. Should we wear our hair up? I’m going to pin little daisies into Eliza’s hair. A braid! That’ll look so lovely. Oh, maybe there will be doves! Do you think there will be doves? They’re so romantic.”
Ivy stared at me blankly and crossed her arms. “Remind me to be out of town whenever you get hitched.”
I felt a blush creep up my cheeks as memories of the last few weeks danced through my mind.
Still eyeing me, Ivy frowned. “Ick. Get that dreamy look off your face, and by no means should you tell me what thoughts are traipsing across that mind of yours. Details are not necessary.”
“All right.” I shrugged.
“Have you decided how you’re going to deal with Cruz leaving and you staying?” Ivy asked, as if it were as simple as that.
I shook my head. Cruz and I had gotten caught up in … other things … and hadn’t had a chance to talk about the future.
Ping! I was saved from having to respond further when my phone drew my attention.
Erin: Have you seen this?
I clicked the link and stared at a photo of me looking disoriented as the paparazzi took photos of Cruz and me while we walked into The Pit. The headline “Cruz Nabs a Fellow Freak” glared up at me. I quickly scanned the article on Shana Vincent’s blog as Ivy leaned over to see what had my attention.
Well, ladies, Cruz Drakov might be off the market. Sources are saying the host of Cruz’s Fearsome Phantoms is getting very close to this tiny blonde, who has been identified as Lexi Alamont, a small-town woman from the place Cruz is currently shooting. Our sources say Lexi has worked her way into Cruz’s heart by doing what she does best—baking. She’s the owner of Sweet Stuff, an online baking company that’s made a small splash at celebrity events the last few months. After a rocky year of dating for Cruz, this turn of events makes fans wonder what Lexi’s got that all of Cruz’s other conquests lacked.
Now we know, and I’ve heard it from someone close to Lexi. The perky-looking twenty-three-year-old currently basking in Cruz’s attention is an alleged ghost-seer. Don’t let appearances deceive you, there’s a fellow freak lurking inside that all-American exterior.
Cinnamon and Sunshine Page 15
