A New York Love Story Read Free Page B

national news!
    The phone stopped ringing and he sighed with relief. The media war that Alice had instigated was dragging her down first. Her agent had probably advised her to come to some kind of agreement with him, to save face. But Cade had no intention of playing any more little games; he’d already taken part in this circus for too long. He never wanted to foster the juicy gossip that had emerged after their break-up, but he had been forced to respond to Alice’s accusations and wasn’t proud of it.
    His own image had been damaged by all the stories in the press too, although not as badly. Moving away from LA had become necessary to let the events settle, to find a balance again, and put this disruption behind him. Yet, even hiding in this remote and unglamorous place wasn’t enough. The text that he just received from Alice demonstrated this.
    I need to talk to you. This farce has lasted too long. Why don’t we end it for good? No use running away. Come back and deal with me face to face!
    â€œYou would love to have more photo ops together, right? It won’t happen, my dear…” he mumbled to himself, deleting the message. He called his secretary to have his number changed as soon as possible. He turned off the phone and collapsed on the couch.
    His friend Philip’s house was very different from his mansion in Los Angeles. From the living room he could see every other room on the first floor, but it was spacious enough, furnished with taste, comfortable and peaceful. It was the ideal place to relax and off the radar. He hadn’t been under siege for a few days now, there were no journalists in sight, and the refrigerator contained enough food for another week. This peaceful feeling was relatively new for Cade. As soon as he became famous, the opportunities to move freely around the States in privacy were almost non-existent. He had twenty-two rooms in his Californian home and enough money to travel to any place he wanted in the world. Yet freedom and privacy were still hard to come by. Wherever he went, he felt eyes on him and he saw journalists on every corner. If, at the beginning, the idea of becoming a star with a successful career had been exciting, now he began to weary of all the baggage that came with it.
    He had felt an urgent need for a complete change of scene, and the pleasant, yet anonymous house in Staten Island seemed perfect for this purpose. It wasn’t too far away from the lively social life of Manhattan, nor too central to be chaotic. It was the ideal hideaway to keep the journalists off his trail for a little while. They would look for him in Aspen, logically, since he often used to spend his winter holidays there. Even his crazy red-headed neighbor had pointed out that this wasn’t a place for Hollywood stars! Nobody would find him here. Although… to stay locked in the house watching old movies wasn’t exactly his idea of fun…
    He decided to go for a walk. He put on a heavy coat, his woolly hat, and left. When he had first arrived by taxi, he had noticed a large park, a sign pointing to a museum, and a couple of stores that he wanted to check out. Suddenly, he was filled with fear at the thought of being recognized, but quickly pushed it away. The only alternative he had was to stay confined inside the house, and the very idea was enough to bring on claustrophobia.
    As he stepped out into the wintry day, the icy air caught him by surprise. The temperature in New York was no higher than thirty-eight, and the weather report announced a further drop. It was weather that suited the holiday season perfectly, and in the Big Apple one could already breathe in the Christmas air. Cade wasn’t accustomed to this temperature. Right now in Los Angeles it would be around seventy. He put his gloves on, turned up his coat collar and went down the stairs.
    In the distance he heard cheerful music – lively notes and jingling bells – that made