Take Two (The Jilted Bride #1)(53)

“Why?”

“Because I deserve better. I deserve someone who wants to date me and only me and isn’t hiding behind some lame ass contract that he could easily buy himself out of.”

“Melody, it’s compl—”

“I know! I know! It’s complicated! I get it! So let me make it less complicated for you Matt. Whatever the hell this was, it’s over.”

“Don’t. Listen to—”

“No. You don’t really know me anyway. You don’t know a thing about me—just basic surface things and those aren’t enough to build any type of relationship on. We can be associates six months from now.”

“I’m not waiting six months just to talk to you Melody.”

“Well I guess we won’t be anything at all. Good luck with everything. I don’t need your driver. I’ll call a cab.”

“Are you serious? I’ve been nothing but honest with you for the past two months! I told you that I liked you, that I wanted to be with you, and here you are going in the other direction again! Jesus! Answer something for me since you seem to think I’m not interested in you. Right now, who am I here with?”

“Who are you running to?”

Chapter 24

Matt

Joan turned on the lights in my room. “When’s the last time you took a shower?”

“I don’t know. Maybe three days ago? Don’t look at me like that Joan!”

“I’m going to turn on the Jacuzzi. You need to be clean for the Ralph Lauren walk-through.”

“Fine,” I sat still, not wanting to get up.

Melody hadn’t answered my calls or texts in over two weeks. Every morning and right before I went to sleep I called her and she never responded. I sent a white rose and a bag of Tropical Skittles to her job every day, with a “Please call me tonight” tag, but she never called.

I wanted to stop by her office, but I was convinced she would call security.

“You can’t have them both,” Joan patted my back. “It doesn’t work that way.”

“I don’t want Selena at all. You know that Joan.”

“Do I?”

“That hurts. Really?”

“Off the record?”

“Off the record…”

“You may have messed up your chances with Melody for good. She doesn’t seem like the type that’s going to come running back to you. You still have a chance to make things right with Selena though.”

“You know me better than anyone, Joan. You know she threatened to ruin my career. And you know that there’s a contract.”

“When have you let that stop you before?”

Never. I never had. I’d pulled out of films the first day of filming. I’d pulled out of photo shoots hours before. I’d canceled talk show appearances minutes before.

I didn’t know why I was still going through with the wedding, why I was putting myself through the misery of marrying Selena.

I sank down in my Jacuzzi, thinking about Melody, about Selena. All of a sudden it dawned on me: I still wanted the exposure. Even though I was annoyed beyond belief with the media, I was still secretly addicted to the fame.

I signed that OWN contract with no hesitation, with no second thoughts. I paraded around New York with Selena—even though I couldn’t stand her—silently relishing the same publicity I swore I hated.

I didn’t want Selena to go to the press with a bogus domestic violence story, but I always knew that I could prevent it: Joan had taken pictures of her putting on that prosthetic baby bump on two separate occasions.

I could’ve pulled out a long time ago. It wasn’t complicated at all.

Chapter 25

Melody

Janis Joplin and I threw another concert. This time we invited Kelly Clarkson and Reba on stage with us.

My heart was broken. Crushed.

My attempts to heal it with double pints of chocolate chip ice cream were failing miserably. I couldn’t figure out why it hurt so badly if I was never in love with Matt.

I just liked him a lot. A whole lot...

Every time his name came across my phone’s screen, I acted as if I didn’t see it. I didn’t open any of his text messages, and I made sure Sophie didn’t put him through to my line at work.

He showed up to my apartment twice last week, knocking so loudly I was scared he’d break down the door. I wanted to answer it, to bury myself in his embrace and invite him in, but I turned my TV all the way up.

This was how I usually dealt with things. I blocked my problems and whoever was causing them out. Over time, everything usually went away.

Jen and I were sitting on a bench at Coney Island. She was doing a great job of keeping my mind off of Matt, but all of a sudden I began to cry. I leaned on her shoulder and sobbed until I couldn’t anymore.

“You sure you don’t want to call him?” she patted my back.

“Him who?”

“Okay, whenever you’re ready to act your age let me know.”

“I can’t call him. I’m still mad…and hurt. If he didn’t like Selena and really didn’t want to be bothered with her, he would’ve left her a long time ago. I’m not stupid.”

“I know. Hasn’t he been calling you every day though? You can’t pick up just once?”