Hooked by Audra Cole, Bella Love-Wins

think so. I’ve always wondered what it would be like to walk down the red carpet. Ashley is insisting I document everything with my phone,” I answer with a laugh, remembering her excitement. We had talked about all the details at length the day before on video chat, while I contemplated what jewelry to wear with my dress.
    Brandon smiles down at me, brushing my hair back. “It’s going to be great. I know it’s been a rough week with the press and all that.”
    “I wasn’t expecting it, that’s for sure,” I say, scooting closer to Brandon’s side.
    “Well I have some special surprises for you today that might help take your mind off all of that ugliness.”
    “You do? What kind of surprises?” I ask, thinking that I’ve probably had enough surprises in the past couple of months to last a lifetime.
    The doorbell rings before he can answer. “Ah ha! Part one, starts now.”
    He kisses my forehead and gives me a broad smile before sliding out of bed. He throws on his gym shorts and a T-shirt. “Meet me outside in a few minutes. You don’t have to get dressed. Just put on a robe or something.”
    I wrinkle my brows together, not sure exactly what is going on.
    “Just trust me,” he says in response to my bewildered expression.
    “All right,” I hold up my hands. “I’ll be down in a minute.”
    He gives me another smile and leaves the bedroom. I hear him jogging down the stairs. As instructed, I get out of bed and pull on my robe.
    When I get outside onto the back deck, there are two massage tables set up and a pair of massage therapists waiting. Brandon comes up behind me and leads me to the first table. He holds up the sheet to cover me, while I slip out of my robe and get situated on the table. He runs a hand along my bare back, slides it under the sheet along my lower back, and gives me a wink before going to his table.
    Once we are both situated, the therapists start to work on us. I instantly start to relax and before long, I feel like I’m melting into the table. I’ve never had a professional massage before, and suddenly wonder why in the world not! It’s amazing.
    After an hour and a half of pure bliss, I somehow find the strength to get up from the table.
    “Well, we have about three hours until part two of your surprise gets here. What would you say to a bath?” he asks playfully.
    “Oh, a bath! Well I’m not sure,” I say, giggling. “I didn’t think I was allowed to use the bathtub, since I made fun of you for taking baths in the first place.”
    “If I remember correctly, you had a way to convince me otherwise,” he says with a laugh. He takes my hand and leads me upstairs.
    As promised, the second part of the surprise arrives a few hours later. Brandon hired a professional hair and makeup team to come and help me get ready for the awards show.
    Brandon makes sure I’m all set up in the master bathroom with the hair and makeup people, and then sneaks off. I settle in and before too long I’m laughing and having a really good time with Trina, the hair stylist, and Gina, the makeup artist. They are probably my age or younger, and make it really easy for me. It actually feels like an old-school sleepover with all the hair accessories and makeup stuff scattered across the counter, as we try different looks and flip through fashion magazines.
    Gina tries a few different things, and I end up with a dusty, smoky eye with different brown and gold tones. Trina messes with a few up-do looks but then we decide to do something totally different and we go with a stick-straight look. On a whim, she actually gets out her scissors and gives me side-swept bangs.
    I say good-bye to the girls, and then get changed into my dress. I turn to face the mirror and do a double take, hardly recognizing myself. I stare at my reflection for a long moment and run my hands along the front of the dress, smoothing away invisible wrinkles.
    “Wow.”
    I turn at Brandon’s voice and see him standing in the