shoulders of a petite brunette, her hair long and shiny. I couldn’t see her face because she was leaning into Blake, like she was hanging on his every word.
I felt my hands involuntarily clench into fists.
“So who is she?” The girl who’d been interviewing me prompted me, still looking half sorry she’d even asked.
I closed my eyes for a minute, willing the tears to stay back, and took a deep breath. I relaxed my fingers, my hands still trembling with anger.
I tried to keep my voice as calm as I could make it. “No idea,” I chirped, hopin g that I came off as unaffected. “Never seen her before in my life.”
I took one last glance, and then forced myself to turn around. Blake was still engrossed in his interview, still with his arm around this girl. But I could see her face in profile this time, porcelain skin and giant blue eyes.
She was absolutely stunning.
I bit the inside of my lip as hard as I could, and looked around the room, desperate for something to take my mind off what I’d just seen.
And then, suddenly, I felt an arm slip around my waist.
“Had enough?” Tanner’s voice whispered into my ear, and I looked up at him gratefully. He smiled easily, and it felt like a lifeboat. I could see flashbulbs all around us, like someone had just turned on a strobe light, and I wanted to shield my eyes.
“Can we please get out of here?” I whispered, looking up at him desperately.
Concern flickered across his face for a moment. “Of course,” he said softly, leading me in the opposite direction of Blake and the girl. He didn’t seem to have noticed them, and for the moment, I was grateful.
As we started to move, a different photographer came up alongside us, holding the camera up to his face.
“Can we get a picture?”
“Can you guys stop for a second?” Another one joined in.
I looked up at Tanner nervously, and then caught myself.
It didn’t matter anymore whether Tanner and I were photographed together — after I’d tried so hard to show the world that Tanner and I were just friends, Blake had turned up here, tonight… with a date.
We were over. I gritted my teeth. It hurt to think that it was true, but it was the only way I was going to finally start moving forward.
Facing the photographers, I squared my shoulders and plastered on a bright smile.
If Blake Parker had brought a date — well, so had I.
Chapter Twenty-Three
“Are you ok?” Tanner whispered as he pulled me through the string of photographers, bypassing the girl in a black headset checking names at the VIP door without a second glance and pulling me inside.
“I’m fine,” I said, mustering my fake smile yet again.
He looked at me for a moment, and then leaned down. “I mean, I get it. It’s practically criminal to make us do those interviews before we’ve even had a drink.”
I was relieved — I didn’t want to talk about what I’d just seen. I didn’t even want to think about it. So the smile on my face was more genuine when I looked back up at Tanner.
“Exactly,” I murmured. “ Champagne please.”
Forty-five minutes later, Tanner and I were sitting on one of the couches in the VIP section of the party, my third glass of champagne sitting half-drunk on a low, black table in front of us.
The shock of seeing Blake had started to wear off — in fact, by this point in the night, I didn’t feel much of anything. All the anger and pain had finally gone numb, like I was about to have a tooth pulled and the anesthesia had just started to kick in.
Tanner was chatting with a television star I recognized on the couch next to us, his hand resting possessively on my knee. Normally I would have firmly removed it after a half second, but in a room full of strangers, with Blake Parker and some mystery girl outside, I found that I didn’t really mind all that much.
“So when are you headed back to L.A.?” The actor asked Tanner, as I
I felt my hands involuntarily clench into fists.
“So who is she?” The girl who’d been interviewing me prompted me, still looking half sorry she’d even asked.
I closed my eyes for a minute, willing the tears to stay back, and took a deep breath. I relaxed my fingers, my hands still trembling with anger.
I tried to keep my voice as calm as I could make it. “No idea,” I chirped, hopin g that I came off as unaffected. “Never seen her before in my life.”
I took one last glance, and then forced myself to turn around. Blake was still engrossed in his interview, still with his arm around this girl. But I could see her face in profile this time, porcelain skin and giant blue eyes.
She was absolutely stunning.
I bit the inside of my lip as hard as I could, and looked around the room, desperate for something to take my mind off what I’d just seen.
And then, suddenly, I felt an arm slip around my waist.
“Had enough?” Tanner’s voice whispered into my ear, and I looked up at him gratefully. He smiled easily, and it felt like a lifeboat. I could see flashbulbs all around us, like someone had just turned on a strobe light, and I wanted to shield my eyes.
“Can we please get out of here?” I whispered, looking up at him desperately.
Concern flickered across his face for a moment. “Of course,” he said softly, leading me in the opposite direction of Blake and the girl. He didn’t seem to have noticed them, and for the moment, I was grateful.
As we started to move, a different photographer came up alongside us, holding the camera up to his face.
“Can we get a picture?”
“Can you guys stop for a second?” Another one joined in.
I looked up at Tanner nervously, and then caught myself.
It didn’t matter anymore whether Tanner and I were photographed together — after I’d tried so hard to show the world that Tanner and I were just friends, Blake had turned up here, tonight… with a date.
We were over. I gritted my teeth. It hurt to think that it was true, but it was the only way I was going to finally start moving forward.
Facing the photographers, I squared my shoulders and plastered on a bright smile.
If Blake Parker had brought a date — well, so had I.
Chapter Twenty-Three
“Are you ok?” Tanner whispered as he pulled me through the string of photographers, bypassing the girl in a black headset checking names at the VIP door without a second glance and pulling me inside.
“I’m fine,” I said, mustering my fake smile yet again.
He looked at me for a moment, and then leaned down. “I mean, I get it. It’s practically criminal to make us do those interviews before we’ve even had a drink.”
I was relieved — I didn’t want to talk about what I’d just seen. I didn’t even want to think about it. So the smile on my face was more genuine when I looked back up at Tanner.
“Exactly,” I murmured. “ Champagne please.”
Forty-five minutes later, Tanner and I were sitting on one of the couches in the VIP section of the party, my third glass of champagne sitting half-drunk on a low, black table in front of us.
The shock of seeing Blake had started to wear off — in fact, by this point in the night, I didn’t feel much of anything. All the anger and pain had finally gone numb, like I was about to have a tooth pulled and the anesthesia had just started to kick in.
Tanner was chatting with a television star I recognized on the couch next to us, his hand resting possessively on my knee. Normally I would have firmly removed it after a half second, but in a room full of strangers, with Blake Parker and some mystery girl outside, I found that I didn’t really mind all that much.
“So when are you headed back to L.A.?” The actor asked Tanner, as I
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