Big, big trouble.
FOUR
Ellie
“See? That wasn’t so bad,”Rachel chirped, bumping my shoulder as we stepped into the stadium hallway. She was grinning like she hadn’t just made me call a man I barely knew and ask him out.
“Someone answered the phone and asked to direct the call.” I slipped my phone back into my pocket as we started walking toward the elevator.
“Okay, so…maybe a little bad.”
I shook my head. “I panicked and almost hung up. For a solid three seconds, I think I forgot my own name.” I glanced at her, and the familiar sting of embarrassment crawled up my neck. “I should’ve just texted. I was a mess.”
“You actually sounded pretty chill,” Rachel said, clearly amused. “Give yourself a break. You’re a normal human living on this silly floating rock.”
I hummed in response.
“Coffee might not be the worst idea for a first date, but coffee with your security team? That sounds…fun.”
“Shit.” I bit the inside of my cheek. “I just thought...normal people go for coffee, right? It’s casual. Not date-level. Just caffeine-level.”
After what happened that night of the body camera footage, we hadn’t just updated venue security—we were rebuilding my entire team. I had new personnel, stricter protocols, and every show was planned down to the minute. My new head of security was set to start right before my first show.
Rachel laughed, nudging me. “You do realize the idea is to actually go on a date with him, right?”
“Yeah…”
The elevator opened, and we stepped inside, my temporary security team flanking us. Their eyes scanned every corner like it was second nature until the doors slid shut.
She raised an eyebrow. “So, are you planning to drink your feelings through the entire fake dating experience?”
“That depends. Do they make extra-sweet lattes in IV drip form?”
She snorted. “You’re so dramatic.”
I gave her a look. “You’re the one orchestrating a pretend relationship between me and a man I kissed while bleeding from a gunshot wound.”
“I’m not saying it’s traditional.” She lifted her chin. “I’m just saying it’s got potential.”
I watched the floor numbers tick down inside the elevator and pulled out my phone to see that Sawyer blowing me a kiss was already all over the internet. I let out a deep breath.
“What's with that look?” Rachel asked.
I kept my eyes on the screen. “It’s just…the second anything looks like a story, I stop being a person. All anyone cares about is the next tour or who I might be dating.” The words tumbled out before I could stop them.
“That’s not true.”
I looked up at her and shook my head. “No one's rooting for me, Rach. They're only rooting for the version of me that makes a good headline.”
She nudged me with her elbow. “I’m always rooting for you, no matter what.”
I let out a dry laugh. “That’s your pep talk?”
“Hey, I’m working with what I’ve got.”
The elevator dinged, opening onto a quieter hallway—a VIP exit that kept us away from prying eyes and flashing cameras, for which I was very thankful, especially tonight. My boots echoed on the concrete as we walked, and my security team was a few paces ahead, clearing the way.
“You ready for the tour to start back up again?” Rachel asked.
