All the Right Things (Love in LA) by Audrey Harte Page A

deodorant and body spray; a girl could never be too prepared. Her gas tank was full; she had stopped at the gas station on her way home from work so she wouldn’t be rushed to do it early the next morning on her way to the audition. She had rehearsed the three songs she’d chosen until she could sing them in her sleep. Hearing her hum all day at work probably had her co-workers on edge and prepared to kill her just to shut her up. Everything was ready to go. There was nothing further to do other than get some sleep.
    Yet sleep continued to elude her until the wee hours of the morning. It was around two before she finally drifted off, just to be rudely awakened what seemed like mere moments later by the extremely loud alarm clock she’d set on the nightstand right next to her head.
    She noticed that it was still dark outside as she hurried through her shower, Annie did some vocal warm-ups as she scrubbed herself vigorously. It didn’t take her long to dress, but she took quite a bit of time applying her make-up and fixing her hair before she was finally satisfied with the final result. She slipped on her espadrilles, took one final look at her reflection in the floor-length mirror that was attached to her closet door, grabbed the bag she had packed and the directions, then headed out, locking her door behind her.
    Alex was already outside waiting for her, leaning against her car with two steaming cups of coffee in his hands. Annie gave him a grateful smile as she took the cup he offered her.
    “Are you sure you don’t like women?” she asked teasingly.
    “Positive,” he said with a wink as he climbed into the passenger seat. “Let’s get this show on the road!”
    At this godforsaken early hour, traffic was non-existent; it only took them twenty minutes to reach their destination in Hollywood. Annie parked her car in a nearby lot, and then they began the short walk down the street to the venue. To her surprise, the line was already wrapped around the block. There had to be at least a hundred people in line, and it wasn’t even five o’clock, yet—the time the website had listed as the starting hour for people to line up.
    Annie took her place in line as Alex started chatting with another girl who was just ahead of them. Keri, as she introduced herself, was exotically beautiful with petite features and said she heard the people who were at the head of the line had been camping there since the night before.
    The three of them continued chatting as the girls explained how each had heard about the audition. Keri admitted to coming at the urging of her best friend and roommate who said she should give this talent competition a shot since she was always singing around the apartment. Annie said a friend had told her about it and encouraged her to audition.
    Keri asked Alex if he was auditioning as well, which made him laugh as he shook his head and waved his finger back and forth.
    “Honey, if I could carry a tune, I’d audition in a heartbeat,” he said.
    “Well, you know it’s not just a singing competition,” Annie reminded him. “Casey told me his old dance crew is auditioning, and you definitely have rhythm. I think it’s built into your DNA.”
    Alex laughed and shook his head. “No way, Mami. This is your deal. I’m just here to support you.”
    “Girl, you are lucky to have him here,” Keri told her.
    “Oh, I know,” Annie agreed. “He’s the best.” She nudged Alex with her elbow and leaned her head against his shoulder as she smiled. He smiled fondly down at her, wrapping an arm around her in a tight half hug as he kissed the top of her head.
    “And don’t you forget it,” he said, laughing.
    “Aw, you guys are so cute together,” Keri said with a giggle, and then paused. “Wait, you’re not dating, are you?”
    Annie had just started to take a sip of her coffee and nearly sputtered the liquid in Keri’s face. She eyed the other girl to see if she was joking, but Keri’s expression was