Page 58 of Blue Moon

“I’m on my way.”

Two Weeks Later

After the Vidal situation, I’d pulled back from social media. It turned out that he had scammed many other influencers. And even worse, he had sexually assaulted a few women. Many others had all been bilked out of money from fraudulent last-minute permit fees. I was hopeful that I could save at least one person from my fate by telling my story. So, I posted about it and had received an outpouring of support. But unfortunately, Vidal had not been found.

Sawyer hadn’t once rubbed my face in the fact that he had been right. He had apologized for telling me what to do and promised to work on his communication skills. He’d never been in a relationship before, so he was struggling on how to navigate his position in my life. And I got that. On my end, I promised to calmly listen to his concerns and try not to overreact. He was worth it, so I was happy to take the time to assure him that I wasn’t going anywhere.

Last week, I had accompanied Sawyer to Minnesota, which was absolutely beautiful. We had a wonderful time, and I had met the nicest people.

We spent Sawyer’s non-flying time sightseeing, but I no longer felt the need to hire a local photographer everywhere I went. I was still trying to figure out my true passion.

This week, we were back in Pensacola. Tonight, Sawyer had made me an amazing steak dinner. He was a great chef, which was wonderful because I was no Paloma. All night throughout dinner, a hunger of a different kind grew inside me. There was no more doubt. I loved Sawyer. Truly loved him like I’d never loved another soul.

I had to tell him.

He poured me a glass of wine, and I stared at him. He was so handsome. That first night at the Chinese restaurant he’d definitely felt as uncomfortable in my world as I’d felt in his. But over the past month, we’d grown together. He didn’t flinch when I took pictures of our meals, and I didn’t complain when he took me to a greasy burger joint.

We weren’t alike—no, we were way different. But somehow, we made sense.

“Babe, what’s up? You look distracted.”

I smiled. “I have something to tell you.”

His brow furrowed. “What is it? Please don’t tell me you have another gig that you have to go to alone.”

“No, it’s nothing like that. I learned my lesson.”

“Then what is it?”

I looked into his beautiful eyes. “I love you, Sawyer.”

A blank look graced his face, followed by a deafening silence.

Definitely not the reaction I was looking for. “Sawyer, did you hear me? I love you.”

“You sure?”

What kind of response was that? “Yes, I’m sure. I love you. I know it’s only been a month, but you’re wonderful. I have changed and grown so much since we met. I’m madly in love with you.”

“Cool.”

Cool? His tone was a bit icy, and honestly, my heart hurt not hearing him say he loved me back. I didn’t say it for him to repeat it, but even so, I felt he loved me.

I silently pouted. After dinner, we normally turned on Netflix and then made love all night.

But this night was different.

He put on his shoes and looked at me coldly.

“I have to take care of some business. I’ll be back later.”

I paused. “Business? A night flight?”

“I’m behind on some admin crap since we’ve been spending so much time together.”

I eyed him hard. Sawyer was never behind on any flight reports. He was the best pilot and super organized with paperwork, unlike me. Even Beck had complimented Sawyer on his attention to detail. Even worse, he was trying to blame me for not having time to work, which was ridiculous. I never once interfered with this job.

But I understood he needed to process what I said to him. I was not going to freak out, yet. “Okay. I love you.”

“Don’t wait up.”

Damn, he didn’t even kiss me goodbye. That was a first.

My heart constricted and sadness overtook me.

I walked into the bedroom and took out a scrapbook that I had been making. It had all our pictures together—ones I hadn’t posted on social media. Every meal we ate was depicted here, including the dumplings.

I looked at a picture of him looking at me with love in his eyes.

It didn’t matter to me that he wouldn’t admit it.

I knew he loved me.

And for now, that would have to be enough.