Ciara
Oh my God.
People think I’m a prostitute? Is this some kind of nightmare?
The ‘article’—if you can call it that—is on a popular gossip website. I realize with horror that everyone I know is going to see this. Am I going to lose my job? What will Lianna and everyone at work say? They’re all already gossiping about me taking my month of leave. I look at Evans and am shocked to see that he looks unsurprised, maybe even a little bored. How can he not be freaking out at a time like this?
He sighs. “I have to say that I’m not totally surprised; the press is always trying to dig up dirt on the Leonard’s family. I’m just sorry they had to drag you and Alfred into it.” He reaches over and squeezes my shoulder.
“But it’s not true! I was your surrogate, not a prostitute. Can we prove it to them somehow? How can they get away with saying these things?” I can feel tears prickling at the corner of my eyes.
Evans wipes away my tears with his thumbs. “They’re just trying to grab people’s attention by stretching the truth into something scandalous.”
“That’s not stretching, that’s outright lying! Can’t we sue?” I sniff.
Evans sighs. “Ciara, that would only give them more attention, and more stories to publish. The best thing to do is ignore the whole thing. It will fade away, I promise,” Evans says. After a moment, he gives me a smile. “Did you know that I was a vampire?”
What? Was he in some weird cult I didn’t know about?
“When I first opened Barcode I only worked nights, so no one ever saw me during the day. The tabloids tried to convince the public that I was some kind of bloodsucking, DJ club master.” He laughs. “That lasted a couple weeks until I was spotted with my nephew at the playground. Who knew vampire club owners went to playgrounds?” He shrugs playfully, but I am not so convinced, or so calm.
“Why would anyone start such a nasty rumor in the first place?” I ask, looking from Evans to Bellina and back again.
Bellina glances at her phone. “The article states unnamed sources, so it could have been anyone.” She gives me a sympathetic look. “I’m going to go clean up the kitchen and give you time to talk,” she says, leaving the room.
Am I going to have to watch my every move now? Are strangers going to show up to the park and start taking pictures of me and Alfred? If I’m ever seen with a man who isn’t Evans, will people accuse me of sleeping with him and cheating on Evans? Will they assume he’s paying to sleep with me? It’s getting harder and harder to breathe. How am I going to get through this?
Evans hugs me. “That’s how these stories always work. They use ‘unnamed sources.’ I’m sorry, Ciara. I did warn you there would be publicity, and I’ve done everything I can to shield you from it. But we’ll find a way through this. We always do.”
Is he serious? How can he be so casual right now? They’re making Evans look like some kind of sleaze, and they’re making me look like a slut.
“I have to go to work,” Evans says, kissing my forehead. “Bellina can watch Alfred if you want to go out, but remember that you’re supposed to meet Elena at noon to talk about the wedding.” He kisses me on the lips and walks out. I watch him leave with a sinking feeling in my stomach. Ugh, first this headline and now Elena again. This is going to be a terrible day.