Straddling the Line(89)
“Is that right? Maybe some of them could come along and read as well. If you could tell me who they are, I’ll make contact with them and see if they’re interested.”
“I’m sure they will be. All the guys involved with the charity would love to have some focus turned on it. Isn’t that right, Trevor?”
Trevor could barely focus on what Allison and Haven were saying. All he heard was Haven saying they’d film him reading to the kids.
He couldn’t do it.
“Uh, yeah. Sure.”
His throat had gone dry, his dinner now a brick sitting in his stomach.
He had to find a way to get out of this.
The rest of the night passed in a blur until it was time to say their good-byes. They climbed into the car and Trevor was dead silent on the drive back.
“It was fun tonight, wasn’t it?” Haven finally asked.
“Yeah.”
“I really liked all the women. And I have such a fantastic idea for a new story to present to my producer.”
“That’s good.” He gripped the steering wheel, focusing on the road, the cars ahead of him, trying to keep his attention on driving, while at the same time his mind whirled with ways to get out of what Haven had planned for him.
Fortunately, she’d been busy making notes on her phone, so she stopped talking to him.
He needed time alone. He had to think, to figure a way to back out of this. But how was he going to do that without coming across as a dick?
Damn Haven for putting him in this position. Why couldn’t she have asked him first?
By the time he pulled into the parking garage of the house, he was angry and on edge. He tossed his keys on the counter and went to the fridge to grab a beer.
Haven fixed herself a glass of ice water, then took a seat on the sofa in the living room.
“You were really quiet on the drive back here.”
He took several swallows of beer, not saying anything to her. He needed a minute or two to calm down, hoping the beer would help.
He stopped at the door to the back deck and stared into the darkness, taking another drink of beer.
“Trevor. Is something wrong?”
Anger boiled inside him, looking for a way out. He tried to contain it, but he turned to face her. “You made a decision without consulting me.”
She blinked. “Excuse me? What decision?”
“The literacy event.”
“What about it? I thought you’d be happy.”
He took a deep breath. “You shouldn’t have booked that without consulting me.”
“Why not? Is there some problem with the organization?”
“No. They’re a great organization. That’s why they’re one of the charities I support.”
“Then I don’t understand the problem.”
He saw her frown, and he knew he wasn’t getting his point across.
And he knew why. Because there was something he wasn’t telling her, something he couldn’t tell her without divulging his secret.
He dragged his fingers through his hair. “I can’t do it.”
“Okay. Care to explain why?”
“No. Just cancel it.”
He finished his beer and tossed the bottle in the recycling bin. It hadn’t helped, so he grabbed another out of the refrigerator.
Haven got up and came over to him. “Trevor, I can tell you’re upset about this. Talk to me.”
He pushed past her and opened the door to the back deck, needing the cool night air to clear his head. He walked all the way out to the boat dock and sat.
Haven followed, pulling up a spot next to him.
“I’ve never seen you this upset. Please tell me what’s wrong.”
Instead, he downed half the contents of his bottle of beer, looking for a solution in oblivion. Maybe if he got drunk, his problem would go away.
“I don’t want to talk about this.”
“I think you should. Tell me why you don’t want to do this story. If it’s something about the facility . . .”
“It’s not the facility. They’re great.”
“Then what is it?”
The last thing he wanted right now was to listen to her calm, concerned voice. He pushed off the dock, needing to get away from Haven. He went into the house, but he heard her right on his heels, quietly shutting the door behind her.
“Not now, Haven,” he said, not even looking at her.
“I’m not going away, Trevor.”
His blood boiling, he whipped around to face her. “Maybe you should.”
The hurt and confusion on her face was evident. “What?”
“I think we’re done here.”
She paused for a second, then shook her head. “Oh, no. You don’t get to push me away that easily. Something’s bothering you, and it has nothing to do with you and me. So tell me what’s up.”