Billy puts his arm around her shoulder. “You make me feel alive, Gwen. I don’t want to scare you by saying this, but I hope you plan on staying in Spartan for a very long time.”

  “I think I just might.” Leaning her head against his shoulder, she adds, “I’m starting to see the perks of living here.”

  Tara

  The Best Places I’ve Traveled

  Staying in a thatched bungalow in the ocean in Bora Bora. I particularly loved the glass floor showcasing the crystal blue lagoon below

  The Ko'a Kea in Kauai. Romaine proposed to me over a long weekend there. The whole trip was magical. I felt like anything was possible.

  Hang gliding in the Interlaken District of Switzerland. My instructor forced me to eat a Swiss chocolate bar in its entirety, claiming it was the only way to fully appreciate the full Swiss experience. I’m not sure what one thing had to do with the other, but I did it. While the hang gliding was a lot of fun, it was the chocolate that really sold the experience.

  The Worst Places I’ve Traveled To

  Anywhere Cash Cartwright and I had to go together for work

  “What are you doing here?” I ask Claire. As if life hasn’t been strange enough lately.

  “I’m here for Romaine’s wedding,” she answers.

  “His what?!” They’re the only words I can get out before my throat constricts to the point of pain.

  “Cash convinced Romaine they should get married the same weekend you and he were going to.”

  “Cash Cartwright? Does he love her?” I ask, forcing the words past the lump in my throat. I’d heard they started dating, but I would have never guessed things had gotten serious so quickly.

  “I don’t know if he loves her. If you ask me, she’s about the most unlovable person on the planet. But after you left, she swooped in and took over Romaine’s life. She brought him soup, she listened to him talk about you, she acted like she was his best friend in the world for two months. Then she changed the game.”

  “I thought Romaine’s sister was named Lutèce?” James interrupts.

  Claire turns around and says, “Lutèce is our sister. Who are you?”

  “I’m James, Tara’s boyfriend,” he answers.

  “My pretend boyfriend,” I hurry to clarify before telling her, “A reporter from the Tattler followed my mom here. I decided it would be better to talk to Rachel in hopes she’d write about how boring my life is so people will lose interest in me. James was nice enough to help me out.” I don’t look directly at him because I know he’s probably hurt by my words. There’s just too much turmoil right now for me to think about dating for real.

  A wave of nausea washes over me as I realize the current truth of my situation. “The press will never leave me alone now. Not after Romaine gets married here. Oh my god, and I’m supposed to be making their cake! Why would he do this to me?” I demand.

  “I don’t think he knows you’re here,” Claire says. “The lodge was Cash’s idea.”

  My skin heats up like I just won a five-alarm chili-eating contest. “Cash’s taste runs more toward the Four Seasons or Greystone Mansion. The Willamette Valley Lodge isn’t showy enough for her. Also, how did she even know I work here?”

  “She probably had you chipped in your sleep,” Claire jokes. “But seriously, I’d bet she had a private investigator following you. She’s always wanted Romaine, so making sure you were out of the picture was a necessity for her to stake her claim.”

  “And you’re planning the wedding for them?” I can’t help but feel hurt. Claire was the sister I never had but always wanted.

  “I’m only doing it for Romaine. He’s had a hard time since you’ve left, Tara. I don’t know if he really loves Cash or not, but I do know she’s been a good distraction for him. I just want him to have a nice party.”

  “I need to talk to him,” I tell her.

  “You do,” she agrees. “But where and how? The lodge is full of reporters. I heard the owner tried to throw them out but they just started coming in and buying things so they couldn’t be charged with loitering.”

  Geoffrey interrupts, “James, can you grab a room service cart out of the back room? Tara can hide under the tablecloth and be wheeled up to Mr. Choate’s room that way.”

  James doesn’t look at all happy, but he answers, “I’ll put on a chef’s coat and do the wheeling.”

  While I don’t particularly relish the thought of Romaine and James coming face to face, it’s a sound idea. When James comes back with the cart, I crawl underneath it like Lucille Ball did on an old I Love Lucy episode where she was trying to meet a famous movie star. Except in my case I’m doing it to give a rock star a piece of my mind.

  As Geoffrey assembles various food items to put on top of the cart, my phone rings. It’s Rachel Perry.

  “Hey, Rachel, what’s up?” I answer.

  She repeats what she already texted me. “Romaine is at the lodge. I got a call from the Tattler today telling me to stay in Oregon and find out what he’s doing here.”

  “And you want to know what I think about that, huh?” I can’t help the distrustful tone in my voice.

  “Yes,” she answers before adding, “but I also wanted to warn you.”

  “About what?” I ask.

  “Cash Cartwright got on a plane for Oregon from San Francisco two hours ago. I’m guessing she’ll be joining Romaine at the lodge soon.”

  Is it possible Rachel doesn’t know about the wedding? “Why would you want to warn me?” I ask her.

  “I like you, Tara,” she says. “I think you’re a nice person and I don’t want to be part of making your life any more difficult than it already is. As far as I’m concerned, I’ve done what I was sent here to do. I think you deserve a break from all the nonsense.” Then she asks, “Can you meet me tonight? There’s something I want to show you.”

  “When and where?” I ask her.

  “How about James’s farm tonight at eight? That’ll give me some time to nose around the lodge and see if I can find out anything from the other reporters.”

  It’ll also give me time to talk to Romaine, not that I’m going to tell Rachel that. “Okay, we’ll see you then,” I tell her before hanging up.

  James lifts the cloth from the table and asks, “Was that Rachel?” When I nod my head, he asks, “What does she want?”

  “She knows Romaine is here and she wants to talk to us. She’s meeting us at your farm in a couple of hours. Are you okay with that?”

  “I guess.” He doesn’t seem overly excited. I’m not so jazzed about the idea either. But no matter how you look at it, all hell is about to break loose and the more I know upfront, the better.

  Geoffrey puts a final plate on the top of the room service cart and announces, “That’s it. Good luck and let me know if I can do anything else,” he says.

  “Thanks, Geoffrey,” I call from my spot near the floor. And then we’re off. Off to lay eyes on the man I said goodbye to six months ago, the man I used to think I’d be spending the rest of my life with.

  Chapter Forty-Four

  Ruby

  “Things seem a little quieter than they did when I left,” Ruby says as soon as she enters the lobby.

  “Most of the press are currently in the dining room or bar, probably waiting to see if Romaine comes down for supper,” Chris suggests,

  “I wish we could charge them double for being annoying.” Ruby shrugs out of Billy’s jacket.

  “Rubes, once their articles come out, we’re going to be swamped with business. As much as it pains me to say, this is going to be a publicity extravaganza, especially when people find out Tara is our new pastry chef.”

  “Poor Tara,” is all Ruby manages.

  A server from the restaurant comes running in and hands Ruby the puppy. “Can you please take her? I can’t carry trays and a dog at the same time.”

  “What are you doing with her?” Ruby sounds confused.

  “James left her in the restaurant and he never came back for her.”

  Ruby turns to Chris. “I thought Penny was in the office.”

  “I took her out for a walk a bit ago and James took her from there. I’m not sure what happened after that.”

  Ruby snuggles the puppy and gives her kisses before saying, “Well, at least I have you again.” She asks Helena, “How’s everything in the dining room?”

  “We’re packed and there’s an hour wait. We’re going to make bank tonight, so I’m not complaining.”

  “Good. Get going. I’ll be there in a few minutes to check on everyone.” After Helena walks away, Ruby asks Chris, “Can I hand over the grandpuppy for a few minutes? I just want to make sure everything is going well.”

  Chris puts her hands out to accept her charge. “Rubes, we’ve got to get you a baby.”

  “That’s been my plan all along, Chris.”

  James

  I feel like a kid playing dress up, wearing chef’s whites and pushing a room service cart down the hall. “Are you doing all right under there?” I ask Tara.

  “Shhhhhhhhhh,” she hisses. “People are going to think it’s strange that you’re talking to yourself.”

  “I’m not talking to myself; I’m talking to you.”

  “Be quiet, James!” she orders. Stressed Tara is Mean Tara. Not that I didn’t know that from our head-butting sessions this summer, but she’s been so easy to get along with lately that I nearly forgot.

  When I pass through reception, I run into my mom. She says, “Pardon me,” and is about to walk right by me when she stops dead in her tracks. “James, is that you?”

  “Hey, Mom. Yup, just taking some food upstairs to one of our guests.”

  “I’m sorry, did I hire you recently?”

  I tip my head toward the cart trying to let her know something is up. “I’m helping Geoffrey out. He’s short-staffed.” Head bob, head bob, head bob.

  “Are you okay?” she sounds concerned like she might be about to call the men with butterfly nets to come get me.

  “Why don’t you walk with me?” I ask. “I need to keep moving so this food doesn’t get cold.”

  As my mom walks beside me, I whisper, “Tara is under the cart.”

  “What?”

  I don’t have a chance to answer because Tara says, “James, will you please be quiet at least until we get into the elevator?”

  “Tara’s under the cart,” Mom says, sounding surprised. Isn’t that what I just said?

  We’re all quiet until the elevator doors open. Once inside, I announce, “Tara, we’re in. My mom is with us.”

  “Hey, Ruby,” she calls out.

  “What are you doing under there?” my mom asks.

  “We’re on our way up to see Romaine. His wedding is the one we have booked for Friday.”

  “What? Why in the world would he get married where you work? That doesn’t make any sense. Also, I thought the wedding couple were named Tony and Tina or something like that.”

  “A lot of celebrities use fake names to keep the press away. Romaine doesn’t usually try to keep them away, but my guess is that Cash used the fake names so I wouldn’t find out they were getting married here until she wanted me to find out.”

  “When would that have been?” my mom wonders.

  I answer for Tara, “Probably when enough press was around to make sure they all got a shot of Tara finding out.”

  “Ding, ding, ding, we have a winner!” Tara says from under the table. “Cash Cartwright does nothing that’s not in her own best interest. Publicly humiliating me would be her ultimate revenge.”

  “Why does she want revenge?” my mom asks.

  “We always had a healthy rivalry going on when we were modeling. She felt like she played second fiddle to me and she’s always resented it. So, what better payback than to walk away with my fiancé?”

  “Ex-fiancé,” I clarify.

  When the elevator stops, we are quiet again. I push the cart to room three twenty-eight—hurray, the suite right across from mine. I knock on the door and call out, “Room service!”

  “I didn’t order room service,” comes the quick reply.

  “Tell him you have chopsticks,” Tara says.

  I have no idea what that means, but as soon as I say it, the door opens wide. Romaine Choate orders, “Come in.” Once I push the cart into his suite, he asks, “Where’s Tara?”

  My mom lifts the tablecloth and Tara scoots out from under the cart. “Romaine,” she says, sounding a little too mournful for my taste.

  The rock star reaches out and pulls her into his arms. He’s practically crushing her, which makes me want to crush him. “Babe, what are you doing here?”

  “She’s not your babe,” I tell him in no uncertain terms.

  “Who are you?” Romaine asks me.

  “I’m her …”

  Before I can say boyfriend, Tara pulls out of his grasp and says, “James is my friend.” Then she motions toward my mom and adds, “This is Ruby, she’s James’s mom. She owns the lodge.”

  Romaine Choate is one shiny, good-looking guy. He must get facials because he has this polished look about him that I find downright irritating. Real people do not look that good with or without a ton of makeup.

  We’re about the same height but he’s got this lanky rock star thing going on. He ignores me and reaches his hand out to my mom. “It’s a pleasure to officially meet you, Ruby,” he says. Is that a clear coat of nail polish on his nails?

  “Mr. Choate,” my mom shakes his hand. “I hope you’re enjoying your stay.”

  “So far, so good,” he says. “I’d like to talk to Tara though. Would you mind giving us a few minutes in private?” he asks while staring right at me.

  There’s no way I’m leaving Tara in here alone with Mr. Perfect. I’m about to say as much, when she turns to me. “I’ll call when I’m ready to have you pick me up.”

  “You want me to leave you here with him?” Instead of answering me, she pushes me out the door.

  Chapter Forty-Five

  Gwen

  “I knew from the time Tara was a little girl, she’d have a big life,” Gwen tells Billy while they eat their paella on the couch in front of the roaring fire.

  “How’s that?”

  “She always had a thing for Paris. Long before she’d ever been there, she used to ask the mall Santa for two tickets to Paris for Christmas.”

  Billy lets out a laugh. “She must have been disappointed on Christmas mornings.”

  “There were always plenty of other things to distract her,” Gwen tells him before asking, “Do you ever regret not having children?”

  “I’m not sure how to answer that.” After several moments of silence, he tells her, “When I was a kid I thought I’d get married and have a family someday, but that was before Vietnam. Once I got back stateside, I guess I didn’t think deserved one. I felt like I had to pay penance.”

  “You didn’t declare the war, Billy. You just followed orders.”

  “I didn’t really follow orders,” he confesses. “I just pretended to be doing what I was ordered to do. But I didn’t stop anyone else.”

  Gwen puts her bowl down on the coffee table. Then she takes his hands in hers. “How could you have stopped them?”

  “I’m not a religious person, Gwen, but I am spiritual. I have this theory that everyone, despite political or religious beliefs, together, makes up God. To harm any of them is to harm God.”

  “In the Bible,” Gwen says, “Jesus said, ‘That which you do to the least of my people, you do unto me.' That certainly lends credence to your beliefs.”

  “Jesus was a cool dude. I think he probably would have sat down with Buddha and Muhammed and any other religious leader and he would have called them his brothers. I’ve spent a lot of years out here in the woods communing with God and I’m a different person now than I was when I came here.”

  “I think you’re a wonderful person,” Gwen tells him. “And I’m really glad to have you in my life.”

  Tara

  “So, you and Cash, huh?” I say to Romaine once we’re alone in his suite.

  He shrugs his shoulders before answering, “We were just friends for a couple of months before anything happened. I was hoping you’d come back the whole time.”

  “But Cash? You know how I feel about her,” I accuse him like he got involved with her for the sole reason of getting even with me for leaving him.

  “I was a mess after you left,” Romaine retaliates. “Cash was a good friend to me.”

  “Yeah, such a good friend that she talked you into getting married at the very lodge where I work. It sounds to me like she’s trying to rub my face in the fact that she has you and I don’t.”

  “You didn’t want me.” He says angrily. “Plus, how do you know that Cash knows you work here?”

  “Gee, I don’t know, Romaine, maybe because for all the years that I’ve known her, she’s always talked about how she’s a city girl and can’t understand why anyone would want to be anywhere else.”

  “She wanted to get married in a place where we could be private without a lot of media attention,” he says as though quoting her.

  I plop down on his couch and practically spit, “That’s working out well, huh? The lodge is crawling with reporters.”

  Romaine crosses the room to join me. “It is kind of weird. I mean, they were here, waiting for me. I assumed someone at the hotel leaked the news that I was coming.” He changes the subject and says, “I still love you, Tara. I miss you every day.”

  “I don’t believe you. If you loved me, you wouldn’t be marrying Cash.” I know I sound jealous and while I don’t think I really am, I hate the idea of the two of them together.

  “Life moves on. I couldn’t stay in a funk forever waiting for you to come back.”

  “You named your new album after us. Why would you do that?” I want to know.