Shortcake*

Chapter 40: Love Story

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Early the next morning, Link and Cleo met up with Percy and Lily in the lobby and then went to the restaurant for breakfast. The hostess was able to get them a private room, and after, they had their meals in front of them. Percy turned his recorder on. "Alright, tell me how this whole thing got started."

"All of this started with the pictures of Gabriella and me in Greece." Link began. "I fully admit that I was with her at the same resort we stayed at while we were filming the year before. It was a little bit of a coincidence. After I got the role in Siren's Song, I was told we were going to be filming part of the movie on the Island of Kos in Greece. I had finished filming my previous movie and wanted a break, so I booked into the resort for a vacation and to familiarize myself with the location. It's something I do whenever I film on location: spend a few weeks there before we start filming, check out the nightlife, see the sights, that kind of stuff. I met Gabriella for the first time one night in a bar, and we came back to my villa and spent the weekend together. The photos were of her leaving the next morning."

"Why was she in Greece? Did she tell you?" Percy asked quickly.

"She was there on a shoot, but her mother is from Greece, so she feels very connected to the country and visits frequently, which is probably why she chose there for her honeymoon. I never saw or spoke to her after, it was a mutual, we were both just looking for someone to have some fun with." Link shifted, still feeling very guilty and uncomfortable with his previous actions. "Anyway, when the pictures came out, and the headlines were saying she cheated on her new husband with me while on her honeymoon, my manager lost her shit."

He sighed and rubbed his face. "When my ex-wife was released after serving half her prison term, my life spiralled and spiralled hard. I was partying and drinking way too much. I knew the articles and tabloids were reporting on what I was doing, and I knew she was reading them. I hoped I was causing her a fraction of the hurt she caused me. Of course, this all caught up with me, and my career has been circling the drain. When I signed the contract for Siren's Song, my manager promised the producer there would be no scandals. I couldn't prove at that point that I wasn't with Gabriella. She denied it, but wouldn't say where she was, everything was looking horrible and the suggestion came about for us, me and Cleo, to say we were secretly together."

"I agreed." Cleo joined in. "I didn't want my first movie as a leading actress to tank because of lies."

"So you believed him?" Percy switched his attention to her.

"Yes. His room was on the same floor as mine. I knew he wasn't in a villa, and I wanted him to have his second chance. We agreed to end things after the press tour. But while I'm very sorry for lying to our fans and the world, I have no regrets, and it has nothing to do with how well the movie is doing."

"Why is that?"

Link and Cleo looked at each other. "Because somewhere among all the time we spent together, we fell hard for each other." Link picked up her hand and kissed the back. "For me, it was our date at Knotts Berry Farm. We were going through their haunted house, and she was holding on to me for dear life. After, we got pie, and she had a little bit of blueberry filling at the corner of her mouth. I couldn't help myself, and I licked it off and kissed her, which we had done a lot of, but for whatever reason, this time, it made my heart somersault." He chuckled softly at the memory. "I've always thought she was gorgeous, and I binge-watched all five of her movies in one day. Working with her brought out some of the best acting of my career because I was trying to match her talent level. I admired how kind and caring she was to everyone on set and her fans and the fact that she was willing to help me, even though it meant she was going against everything she believed in."