Second Chances by Christle Gray

forward and jabbed her finger in the air between them. “Because after you went back to the party that night, she told me very clearly to stay away from you, even though I tried to tell her we had just been talking.”
    His hand raked through his dark hair as David shook his head slowly back and forth. “Everything is such a blooming mess.”
    This whole scenario left her confused. Kristin reached across the table and took one of his hands in hers. “David, help me understand, and maybe I can help you. It’s just, well…I feel like there’s something you’re not telling me.”
    His other hand covered hers, sandwiching it between his own and he leaned forward, like he was about to reveal a secret. “You’re right. I haven’t been entirely honest with you about my situation.”
    Kristin’s chest tightened in triumph. She knew he’d been hiding something. The way he’d been acting around her and his fiancé hadn’t made any sense. But now that he’d admitted that fact, uncertainty plagued her. Did she really want to know?
    “Sophie and I aren’t exactly together like everyone thinks we are.” David’s words hung in the air like a low-lying storm cloud.
    Slowly she pulled her hand out from between his and laid it in her lap. “What does that mean? Either you are together and engaged, or you aren’t.”
    David stared intently at his lap. “It’s not that simple.”
    What was he trying to tell her? “So explain it to me.”
    He ran his fingers through his hair again, and her heart did a somersault. Why did she have feelings for him when she just found out he hadn’t been entirely honest with her?
    “Six weeks ago, I decided that it was no longer working between Sophie and I, and we came to the decision to call off the engagement. She had just started filming her first major movie role, and was terrified of how the breakup would play in the press.” He took another drink of his beer, while the fingers of his free hand drummed anxiously on the table.
    Kristin crinkled her nose. “Why would she be so afraid of the press?” The way Sophie acted, it didn’t sound to her that it was a press concern. The woman was way too possessive for it to be merely that. In that maniac’s mind, David was hers forever.
    David took a deep breath and clasped his hands together in front of him before he spoke. “Sophie has had a very established career, being in the public eye since she was a child. She developed a very specific public persona, becoming one of England’s sweethearts.”
    Kristin almost snorted in disbelief. Sophie was anything but a sweetheart. She turned her attention back to David as he continued. “This image is very important to her, so she begged me to pretend we were still engaged. It’s only until she’s through filming her movie. Then we can decide how we want to go public with the announcement.”
    The thoughts in Kristin’s head spun with all this information. She didn’t think it was going to be that easy with Sophie, but surely David could handle the woman. “So everyone thinks you two are still engaged when you aren’t? And, you’re going your separate ways?”
    “Aye, and it’s put my life in a bit of a shambles.” He stopped his fidgeting and finished off his beer.
    She picked up her wine glass and swirled the liquid around inside. “So why bother keeping up the charade?”
    David signaled the bartender for another beer before answering. “I’m not sure. I don’t want all the hard work I’ve put into my own career to be for naught. But, maybe it’s out of respect for a fellow actor’s career, or because I feel obligated, or maybe because I loved her once, and don’t want to do anything to deliberately hurt her.”
    Kristin shook her head. “If this is all a charade, then why was Sophie so angry at me last week for just talking to you?”
    David shrugged. “I can only guess she was looking out for anything that could lead to a story of us parting ways before we were ready