Page 105 of Falling for the Grumpy Bad Boy

“You’re making it sound like I’m sixteen!”

“I know you’re old enough, but it looks bad, Clem. It doesn’t do anything for your reputation. I don’t have to outline all the many ways this looks bad.”

I felt like I was going to be sick. “Oh my God.”

“Clementine, I sent you on this tour because I thought it would be a good opportunity for you to grow up and get a taste of the real world. But if you keep treating everything like a fairy tale, the world is going to chew you up and spit you out.”

Tears started streaming down my face. “Dad, you don’t understand. Rhett and I, what we have is real. It’s not just some fling. I think I might actually⁠—”

“Love him?” Dad finished. “Honey, I can see it written all over your face. But love doesn’t pay the bills or keep sponsors from walking away. Love doesn’t protect your brother’s future or save a soup kitchen that hundreds of people are counting on. I understand why you would be enamored with Rhett, but it’s just not smart.”

I sighed. “I’m sorry, Dad. I know it looks bad, but I swear it’s not just a hookup.”

I got up, needing to get away from him and his scrutinization.

“I need you to think very carefully about what’s more important to you—your feelings or the consequences of acting on them.”

I left the study and went upstairs to my room. I buried my face in my hands and sobbed. Not just for myself, but for Rhett, who didn’t deserve to have his reputation destroyed because of me. For my dad’s reputation. And most importantly, his pet project. The soup kitchen and for all the people we were supposed to help on Thanksgiving.

After everything Rhett and I had been through on this tour—all the fights and make-ups, the moments of pure magic in the kitchen, the night in Chicago when he trusted me with his deepest secrets—I was going to have to be the one to end it.

A soft knock on the door interrupted my breakdown. “Clem?” Henry’s voice was muffled through the wood. “Can I come in?”

I wiped my eyes. “Yeah.”

He slipped into my room and immediately crossed to where I was sitting, pulling me into one of his bear hugs. He might be my little brother, but he’d always been my protector when it came to emotional stuff.

“Dad told me what happened,” he said quietly. “I’m sorry, sis.”

“Henry, I’m so scared this is going to mess up your scholarship,” I said into his shoulder.

“Hey.” He pulled back to look at me. “Don’t you dare blame yourself for my stuff. I’m good enough to earn that scholarship on my own merit, and any school that would judge me based on gossip about my sister isn’t worth going to anyway.”

“But what if⁠—”

“No what-ifs,” he said firmly. “You’ve spent your whole life supporting my dreams. Don’t let fear stop you from chasing yours.”

I looked at my little brother with a smile. When had he gotten so wise? I felt a new wave of tears coming. “I don’t know how to make this right, Henry. I’ve ruined everything.”

“You haven’t ruined anything,” he said. “But you do need to figure out what you’re going to do next. Because sitting here crying isn’t going to fix the soup kitchen or make Dad’s sponsors come back.”

He was right. I needed to stop wallowing and start thinking like the adult Dad wanted me to be.