fun.”
“It was,” she affirmed. “You know Jace. He always makes everything fun.” She shoved the door open on her dressing room and deposited her bags on the dressing table next to a big bouquet of pink and white flowers. “What is this?” she squealed as she reached for the card. “Oh my God.”
My stomach fell. “Who’s it from?”
She spun to me with the card clasped tightly to her heart. “It’s Jace.” There were tears in her eyes as she handed me the card. “Look.”
I took the card and read it silently. “Smile!” it read. “You’re beautiful. J.”
I sighed as I handed it back to her. “Wow,” was all I could say.
“Right?” she responded, giddy with excitement. She flung her arms around my neck. “Jordi, you are a genius. Recommending this for me, I’ll never forget it.”
I hugged her back. “Glad to help out,” I muttered.
“When Eddie joins the tour, we’ll have to double date!” she suggested at once before turning to her plethora of goodies. “Oh, I got you something,” she said as she handed me a small bag. “For everything you’ve done for me. I don’t think I’ve had a better friend than you, Jordi.”
Wordlessly I reached into the bag and withdrew a colorful scarf and matching hat, likely the only thing at T&L that would fit someone like me.
“Do you like it? Tell me you like it.”
I forced a smile as I looked back up at her. “It’s beautiful. Thank you. But you didn’t have to do this.”
“It’s the least I could do,” she said as she stated unpacking her goodies. “Now you get to help me decide what to wear tonight.” She spun around to face me with a cute lace tank top. “What do you think?”
“Looks perfect,” I gritted through my rigid smile.
It was another half hour before I made it back to the stage, where Jace had already joined Vanni onstage for an audio check.
I sighed before turning back to find Terrell, the stage director.
That night I threw myself into my performances, channeling all the inner yuck I was feeling about myself into the music. My normally bombastic voice ripped down the rafters as I tested the boundaries of my vocal gymnastics, especially during my song to introduce Jace.
I was holding out for my hero, so the performance was easy to sell.
The crowd easily forgot about me once he skidded to a stop, center stage, on his motorcycle. He launched into his song with renewed confidence, something I instantly attributed to his photo shoot earlier in the day. He looked the part in T&L clothes, which included a new T-shirt design proclaiming the wearer was FIERCE in fiery red font superimposed over a bold black background. He wore a matching red hoodie and loose fitting jeans, cut to feature his artificial leg and its trademark design.
“He looks great, doesn’t he?” Shelby asked as she came up from behind me.
I turned to face her only to catch a dreamy, lovesick smile on her face. “Perfect,” I found myself saying again.
“He was hopeless trying to decide what to wear,” she confided with a giggle. “I had to pick out all his outfits. Men,” she added with a nudge.
I mumbled something that passed as agreement before turning back to watch him perform. Shelby glued herself to my side until we joined everyone back on stage for the encore song.
During the after party, she made a beeline toward Jace. Media outlets wanted to capture the two new models for T&L with their new clothes, so photographers kept hounding them for pictures together. I tried not to take notice of how easily his arm curved around her tiny waist as he pulled her next to him for photo after photo. He’d lean into her with a big smile, and she’d balance on her tippy toes and preen like she had just won the lottery.
I turned back to the buffet, where I spied the various finger foods heaped in dish after dish. It looked glorious, so I grabbed a plate and dug in.
I was sitting in a corner, knuckle-deep in shrimp cocktail, when Yael
“It was,” she affirmed. “You know Jace. He always makes everything fun.” She shoved the door open on her dressing room and deposited her bags on the dressing table next to a big bouquet of pink and white flowers. “What is this?” she squealed as she reached for the card. “Oh my God.”
My stomach fell. “Who’s it from?”
She spun to me with the card clasped tightly to her heart. “It’s Jace.” There were tears in her eyes as she handed me the card. “Look.”
I took the card and read it silently. “Smile!” it read. “You’re beautiful. J.”
I sighed as I handed it back to her. “Wow,” was all I could say.
“Right?” she responded, giddy with excitement. She flung her arms around my neck. “Jordi, you are a genius. Recommending this for me, I’ll never forget it.”
I hugged her back. “Glad to help out,” I muttered.
“When Eddie joins the tour, we’ll have to double date!” she suggested at once before turning to her plethora of goodies. “Oh, I got you something,” she said as she handed me a small bag. “For everything you’ve done for me. I don’t think I’ve had a better friend than you, Jordi.”
Wordlessly I reached into the bag and withdrew a colorful scarf and matching hat, likely the only thing at T&L that would fit someone like me.
“Do you like it? Tell me you like it.”
I forced a smile as I looked back up at her. “It’s beautiful. Thank you. But you didn’t have to do this.”
“It’s the least I could do,” she said as she stated unpacking her goodies. “Now you get to help me decide what to wear tonight.” She spun around to face me with a cute lace tank top. “What do you think?”
“Looks perfect,” I gritted through my rigid smile.
It was another half hour before I made it back to the stage, where Jace had already joined Vanni onstage for an audio check.
I sighed before turning back to find Terrell, the stage director.
That night I threw myself into my performances, channeling all the inner yuck I was feeling about myself into the music. My normally bombastic voice ripped down the rafters as I tested the boundaries of my vocal gymnastics, especially during my song to introduce Jace.
I was holding out for my hero, so the performance was easy to sell.
The crowd easily forgot about me once he skidded to a stop, center stage, on his motorcycle. He launched into his song with renewed confidence, something I instantly attributed to his photo shoot earlier in the day. He looked the part in T&L clothes, which included a new T-shirt design proclaiming the wearer was FIERCE in fiery red font superimposed over a bold black background. He wore a matching red hoodie and loose fitting jeans, cut to feature his artificial leg and its trademark design.
“He looks great, doesn’t he?” Shelby asked as she came up from behind me.
I turned to face her only to catch a dreamy, lovesick smile on her face. “Perfect,” I found myself saying again.
“He was hopeless trying to decide what to wear,” she confided with a giggle. “I had to pick out all his outfits. Men,” she added with a nudge.
I mumbled something that passed as agreement before turning back to watch him perform. Shelby glued herself to my side until we joined everyone back on stage for the encore song.
During the after party, she made a beeline toward Jace. Media outlets wanted to capture the two new models for T&L with their new clothes, so photographers kept hounding them for pictures together. I tried not to take notice of how easily his arm curved around her tiny waist as he pulled her next to him for photo after photo. He’d lean into her with a big smile, and she’d balance on her tippy toes and preen like she had just won the lottery.
I turned back to the buffet, where I spied the various finger foods heaped in dish after dish. It looked glorious, so I grabbed a plate and dug in.
I was sitting in a corner, knuckle-deep in shrimp cocktail, when Yael
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