Page 252 of Just for the Cameras
The door opens, and Phil walks in but pauses when he sees all of us. “Um, sorry for the interruption, but we have security pushing people away from the flamingos right now given what’s going on.” He then clasps his hands together. “Um, I think we’re going to send you home early, Maple.”
“What? No. I don’t need to go home.”
He clears his throat and says, “We think it’s best that you do and take some time off.”
“What?” I ask, shocked.
I can feel Graydon tense next to me, and I can already hear the voices in his head, telling him this is his fault. This is all his fault.
And it’s not. It’s just the circumstances of the situation.
“It’s probably best,” Gretchen chimes in. “Until we can get ahold of the story and solidify security here.”
“I don’t want to leave. This is…this is where I want to be.”
“Unfortunately, we are not giving you an option in the matter,” Phil says. “Please grab your things. We have security waiting outside to escort you to your car.”
I pause because that sounds like I’m being let go rather than taking a few days off.
“Are you…are you firing me?” I ask.
Phil sighs and then shakes his head. “No, but we’re in a sticky situation here, Maple. We need to tread carefully. We can’t cause a commotion. It will disrupt the animals, and they are always our top priority. If we can’t get everything under control, then we will have to—”
“No need,” Graydon says. “We’re not together anymore. So just let it die down and everything will be okay. It was a PR relationship after all, right? It was bound to happen.”
“What? Graydon,” I say, turning toward him. “That’s a lie and you know it.”
He steps away. “Gretchen, make sure she follows the NDA guidelines for the breakup contract.”
“Graydon. Stop.” I take his hand in mine, but he quickly pulls away. His face remains emotionless as he puts distance between us. “Graydon.”
He doesn’t look at me.
Doesn’t even spare me a glance as he heads toward the door.
“Don’t push me away. You don’t mean this.”
He pauses before he leaves and looks over his shoulder, but not at me. Instead, he looks at Hank. “She won’t be hurting anymore.”
Then he takes off, and I’m left feeling like my world is crumbling around me.
Because it is.
He’s…he’s done with this, with us, I saw it in his eyes. The finality was there.
Hank comes up behind me and places his hand on my shoulder. “Are you okay?”
I shrug him off, taking a step back. “Am I okay?” I yell. “Do you think I’m okay? Hank, you just single-handedly made my boyfriend believe that he was a burden on my life. When he’s not, he’s…been such a blessing. He’s made me feel special, wanted, needed. And what we have, it’sreal, there’s nothing fake about it, but everyone seems to have an opinion on the matter, despite it not being their business.”
“Maple, let’s go—”
I push away from Gretchen, who is trying to take me by the arm.
“No, I don’t want to hear it. All I want is to talk to Graydon and for everyone else to step out of our business.” I head toward the door but stop in front of Phil. “By the way, if the money that was donated by Welcott does not go to the flamingos, you can bet I’ll be writing a scathing article about you, your dishonesty, and how you actually don’t care about the animals but rather the bottom line with your merchandise ideas. I’m sure the board of directors will love that.”
“Maple,” Hank says, but I hold up my hand.
“No. I don’t want to hear it. I don’t want to hear it from any of you. All I wanted was to help the flamingos, and when Graydon came along, I saw the kind of man he is, the generous, sweet man, and I wanted to help him as well. But all of this…these demands, these needs, the use of his celebrity status, it’s gotten out of hand, and frankly, I’m sick of it. He’s a good person, and he shouldn’t be walking away from a relationship that I know he wants, that he needs, because he’s afraid you might fire me.”
