Plain Again by Sarah Price

hounded by well-meaning partygoers who wanted him to attend the after-hours gatherings, Alejandro gave noncommittal answers and fought his way through the crowds to get into his awaiting car. He was tired. It had been a long day, and despite the fact that Mike would be furious, Alejandro leaned forward and instructed the driver to take him back to his condo. He had more long days ahead of him, and the last thing he wanted to do was spend the rest of the night partying.
    No, he thought. Those days were over. Without Amanda, he told himself, he had no interest in drinking and dancing until the early hours of the morning. Instead, he’d relax at the hotel room and get a good night’s sleep. For once .

Chapter Five
    Wunderbar news about the award.
    Danke for letting me know.
    What is this about a nurse?
    Another surprise?
    <3
    A.
    Harvey slowed down the car before turning into the parking lot behind the natural food store. He glanced at Amanda before he put the car in “Park” and turned off the engine. “You alright, then?” he asked, concern in his eyes as she faced out the window, her hand covering her mouth and the color drained from her face. “You know you could never have gone in a buggy, Amanda. Driving was the only way.”
    She nodded and lowered her hand. Several other cars pulled in behind them. She already knew that those cars were driven by the more brazen of the photographers who had followed them. She had no choice but to face them, head held high and eyes straight ahead. “ Ja , I know,” she replied softly. “ Danke for bringing me.”
    She hadn’t counted on the paparazzi following them. But as soon as Harvey had pulled out of the driveway with Amanda in the passenger seat, three of the cars immediately followed. She hated the thought that they were taking her photograph with another man. She knew enough about the gossip magazines to suspect what the headline would read. There would be suspicions about who the man was driving the car and more speculation that her rushed marriage to Alejandro was already failing.
    Oh, he had told her about those headlines when they had talked on the phone just two nights ago. He was in Los Angeles, working on several endorsements. He had told her about the concerts in Chicago and Detroit and St. Paul. And then he had told her about the tabloids.
    Despite his casual manner about the stories, she had found herself in despair. The thought that people might actually believe those horrid stories upset her. Indeed, his news had broken her heart and she had felt increased pressure to rejoin him on the road. But he had reassured her that it was just part of the game.
    Now, as she faced the intruding cameras once again, this time with Harvey Alderfer by her side, she did not need much imagination to visualize the headlines on the social media and tabloid papers that would grace the grocery store aisles within days.
    Harvey glanced over his shoulder at the men who emerged from their respective cars, cameras in hand, busy snapping away, the lenses pointed in their direction. As usual, he remained calm and collected; nothing seemed to bother him. “Shall I walk in with you, then?”
    Amanda hesitated. She hadn’t dealt with the paparazzi one-on-one. Not really. At the farm, the police had kept them off the property. Now she was in the parking lot and her parents needed her to pick up a list of items. She could have asked Harvey to go without her, but she had felt the need to leave the farm, to escape the sorrow that had fallen over the house since her daed ’s accident and her return. When Harvey had proposed that he drive her in his car, she had happily accepted, insisting that she pay him for the gas. She hadn’t considered the possibility of the photographers following them.
    “Or we can go back to the farm,” he suggested.
    The cowardly way, she thought bitterly. It was bad enough that she was apart from Alejandro, especially since they had barely been married a month,