Page 115 of Chasing Stardust

He takes my hand and slips his fingers through mine. “Under those circumstances, I probably wouldn’t have believed me, either.”

“I still don’t understand what happened to the pictures. They never showed up online or in Tattle Tale. It’s like it never happened.”

“That was Dad, too.” Dash heaves out a breath, and a shudder rolls through him. “But he wasn’t going to tackle a problem that big without certain assurances.”

I lift my head and meet his gaze. “What did he do?”

“He got an injunction.” Dash shrugs, but his stony expression tells me there’s more to the story.

I’m almost afraid to ask. “At what cost?”

“I had to agree to come work for him. Give up my dreams for his.”

Fiery rage floods my veins, and I jump to my feet. “But you . . . you despise what he does. You hate everything your father stands for!”

“I do.” His curt nod says far more than his words.

“So why would you agree to something like that?”

Dash wraps his fingers around my wrist and tugs me back down beside him. “Because it was the only way to stop those pictures from getting out. To stop your story from going public.”

“Dash . . .”

“No, Zoey. Don’t.” He squeezes my hand and rests his forehead against mine, bringing his lips closer than they’ve been in days. “Do you know why I wanted to go with you on your trip?”

I swallow hard and shake my head.

“It wasn’t because you’re tenacious and beautiful.” He cups my cheek in his palm. “Or because I couldn’t stand the thought of you walking out that door and never seeing you again.”

I raise an eyebrow.

He smiles. “It’s true. But you were also driving across the country for a chance to be closer to your mom, and I was doing the same thing to get as far away from my parents as I possibly could. You remember asking me what I’ve been writing on napkins?”

I nod.

“I submitted my first freelance article the summer before senior year. I never expected anyone would pick it up, let alone pay me for it. But I’ve been getting paid to write ever since.”

“How—”

“I use a pen name. You’re the first person I’ve told.”

“Why keep it a secret?”

“My dad won’t hesitate to sabotage anything that isn’t what he wants me to do, and this is the first thing in my life that’s been all mine. No strings attached. He’s never once asked me what I wanted to do with my life, because he doesn’t care. And my mom? She used to be a real journalist. Used to write about things that matter. Not anymore. And when it came right down to it, she sold out her own son for a story.”

“That isn’t your fault.”

“Maybe not directly, but I’m the one who put you in that position to begin with. Zoey, I want to do something with my life I can be proud of. And up till now, I haven’t. I should’ve never told my mom—”

“You couldn’t have known she’d use it against you.” Thoughts of his mother betraying him are all that keep me from kissing him.

“I should have.” A dark chuckle rolls out of him like distant thunder. “That’s who she is.”

The realization that we’re on borrowed time hits me square in the chest. “If you promised your dad you’d go back, why are you here and not there?”

“You didn’t really think I’d pass up a trip to the beach, did you?” He winks.

“Dash . . .” I groan, my stomach twisting with dread. “We both know your dad isn’t gonna wait forever, so please get it over with and tell me when you have to go back.”