Taming the Country Star: A Hometown Heroes Novella (Entangled Bliss) by Margo Bond Collins Page A

for tomorrow. And yes, I said I love her. I do. Like a sister.”
    “Her? A sister? Wait. Billie’s a woman?”
    “Yes. A happily married woman. One who would sooner gouge her eyes out with a fork than do anything to hurt her husband.” He reached out to wipe away a single tear that had fallen to her cheek.
    She almost leaned into him, but stopped herself.
    One reporter. That was all it had taken for her to fall apart. In between one heartbeat and the next, she traced out the entire trajectory of their relationship. Every time a tabloid mentioned his name, her heart would stop. She would shrivel, spending her life chasing down rumors and worrying if this time, maybe they were true.
    She might not be her mother now. But she would end up exactly like her, bitter and angry and unhappy.
    Even if Cole didn’t leave on his own, she would eventually drive him away.
    “No. I can’t, Cole. I can’t do this.” She stepped back.
    He followed her, speaking quietly. “I’m not going to go away, Kylie,” he said. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you who I was when we first met, that I let Jeffries get photos of us. I shouldn’t have. I should have protected you. I should have insisted on telling you who I was. But I want to make things right between us.”
    Tears welled up in her eyes, spilling over again. “I’m sorry, Cole,” she said. “But I can’t take it. You will always be surrounded by other people—taking pictures, asking for autographs, following you around and”—she inhaled one deep, shaky breath, her voice quavering as she finished—“and using you up until there’s nothing left over for anyone else.”
    Cole shook his head. “It’s not like that, Kylie. I’m a performer. It’s a show. They don’t get the real parts of me.” He paused. “But you can,” he added quietly. He bent his head toward her, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her in close.
    Kylie stifled a sob and blinked away tears. Maybe he’s right . Maybe this could work.
    But as she tilted her head up to meet his descending lips, a camera flashed in her eyes, jarring her out of the momentary belief that she and Cole might be able to be together.
    She dropped back down to her heels—she hadn’t even realized that she had stood up on her toes to meet Cole’s kiss. Behind him stood a small group of gawkers. They had clearly followed him from the party. She heard Cole’s name, saw his manager moving toward them. Close on her heels was the tabloid reporter, grinning as he snapped more pictures.
    Cole cursed as he turned to stare at them, and Kylie moved from the shelter of his arms, not stopping to look back as she ran toward the safety—and anonymity—of her store. Breathless, she pushed her way into the cool interior, locking the door behind her.
    …
    “Dammit, Kylie, let me in.” Cole pounded on the door, but it stayed stubbornly closed and locked. With the lights out, he couldn’t even see through the window into the interior, and he was only dimly aware of Jeffries’s camera continuing to flash. He didn’t even look back until he heard Billie’s voice raised in anger.
    “Give it to me,” she shouted. Cole turned to see that she had grabbed Jeffries’s camera and was tugging it away from him.
    “Let go, you stupid bitch,” the reporter yelled, rearing back as if to strike her. Before he could land a blow, however, Cole tackled him from behind. Jeffries fell to the brick paving with a thump, and Cole leaned over his shoulder, speaking into the man’s ear. “Don’t you ever threaten her again,” he snarled. Jeffries lay still, breathing heavily, and Cole stood up.
    “I’ll have you arrested for assault,” Jeffries wheezed, coming up onto his knees.
    “And everyone here will testify that I was protecting Billie,” Cole said. “You’ll lose.” He brushed dust off his pants leg and bent over to pick up the camera from several feet away, where it had been tossed in the scuffle. Pressing a button, Cole