The Resilient One: A Billionaire Bride Pact Romance by Cami Checketts, Jeanette Lewis

licking her ice cream any more. Beck shook his head and smiled like his assistant was crazy.
    “You know how they are, trying to take pictures of you in your skivvies and disgusting stuff like that. Just be careful.”
    A chill ran through him at her warning. He looked at Alyssa. She was a photographer, but a beautiful and considerate kind of photographer. She’d never take unwanted pictures of someone for profit. Her talent was a gift to the world, not smutty pictures for the tabloids.
    “Thanks, Linli,” he said to his assistant.
    “It’s what I do.” Linli hung up before he could say goodbye.
    “Everything okay?” Alyssa asked.
    “Yeah. My assistant is a bit paranoid. She thinks someone stole my itinerary and is trying to exploit me.”
    Alyssa swallowed and stared at him. A chocolate drip ran over the back of her hand.
    “Don’t worry. I’ll be fine. There’s nothing the tabloid rags can do to me that they haven’t already done.” He thought of the pictures taken after his parents’ funeral. They’d twisted a situation with his sister, Anna, and made it look like he was restraining her and then she was hitting him, when in truth he’d been holding her as she sobbed and then she’d accidentally elbowed him when they both bent to pick up her son. To think that someone had intruded on their grief and made them fodder for gossip, that was completely untrue, still upset him sometimes.
    “Oh, um, okay.” A panicked look filled her eyes and the ice cream was still dripping down her hand.
    Beck smiled to reassure her then the realization occurred to him. “You’re worried they’re going to photograph us together.”
    “Oh, no, it’s fine.” She shook her head quickly, failing to convince him. She was famous in her own right. Of course she wouldn’t want some smart tabloid writer to piece together that A.A. was with Beckham Taylor and though he was thrilled to be with her, he didn’t want his private life on display, ever.
    “It’s not fine. We’ll watch out for them.” He wrapped an arm around her then took her napkin and wiped her hand off.
    Alyssa giggled, but she still sounded nervous. He’d better get her back to the bed and breakfast. It had been a long day and she was probably exhausted. He regretted saying anything to her about the photographers. A true artist like her would never understand those cockroaches who stooped to exploit others and sell hurtful pictures to the tabloids.
     
     

 
    “I have a clean report for one Beck-ham Taylor,” Maryn drawled out.
    Alyssa sank onto her bed. “Really?” Was her intuition finally on? Beck was a good guy and wouldn’t hurt her? Her heart raced as she thought of Beck’s exciting kisses in the boat today but then it dropped when she remembered the intense scorn he’d shown for the paparazzi. How could she ever tell him she’d been desperate enough to do that, and even worse, to take pictures of him and his family when they were grieving? She hadn’t known how far the tabloid would twist the pictures she’d taken, but still it made her physically sick.
    “Yep. He’s a good guy, my friend, committed to his family and helping children. Of course there were some pictures of him dating, but it was never smutty or anything.”
    “Maryn,” Alyssa all but wailed, “How am I going to tell him I took those pictures of him and his sister?”
    “I don’t know, sweets. Maybe give it a little more time. No reason to unload all the dirt on the second date.”
    “I feel like I’m hiding something from him.” Alyssa pressed her eyes closed. “I hate it.”
    “That’s because you’re so pure and good. Take your time and get to know him. When he sees how sweet you are, he’ll know my girl would never take advantage of anyone, and he won’t care what you’ve done in the past.”
    Alyssa sighed. “Thank you, friend, that means a lot to me.”
    “It’s true. So tell me… you got a scoop?”
    “You had better be kidding.” Alyssa hated