"I have my ways," Prince Michael says with that smug little smile.
"And word on the street says Ward wants you. Badly. This weekend’s rumored to be a look-see before he sends you an offer to seal the deal."
Steven's eyes lock with mine across the table. In that instant, I sense he is thinking the exact same thing I am.
Holy shit.
This is really happening. This is exactly what we dreamt of back when we were just smartass kids with guitars. We've been bleeding cash for months, funding this tour out of our own pockets since we left that small boutique label.
We need this.
We need Midnight Records to turn us from a popular band with a cult following into a household name.
"We worked hard for this," Prince Michael continues. "We have the opportunity of a lifetime in front of us. There's no margin for error."
Prince Michael steps into my personal space. “Rio, do you understand your cooperation is central? We got you your fake fiancée to convince the sponsor and the public your wild ways are behind you. Do your job.”
“Got it. Now get off my back.”
Yet I’m already distracted. I'm thinking back to the momentMaddie stepped into the room earlier. God, she looked good. Different. Sharper.
And I’m thinking about that battered ballerina-themed notebook.
I hadn't thought about that thing in years until I saw her pull it out of her bag. I gave it to her on her thirteenth birthday, back when she was just Steven's gangly kid sister with braces.
We were playing a gig at a hotel. I remember rushing to the gift shop last minute, desperate for a present.
The selection was slim. I ended up grabbing that cheesy ballerina notebook because it was the only thing appropriate for a kid.
But when I gave it to her, she lit up like I’d handed her the moon.
Later that night, I saw her sitting alone while everyone else danced.
She looked so lonely that I pulled her onto the floor and spun her around for a song. It wasn’t romantic. It wasn’t a "moment." It was just me humoring my best friend’s little sister.
Or at least, that’s howIremember it.
But seeing that same notebook today after all these years made me pause. Why did she keep it? Did she attach more to that night than what was really there?
I shake my head, clearing the memory. It doesn't matter.
She's here to play a role, and so am I.
CHAPTER 8
MADDIE
“I’m pretty sure he wiggled out of his carrier just to show off that Louis Vuitton necktie,” I say, watching Snorty trot ahead of us in the glittering Las Vegas retail arcade.
“Oh, I agree,” says Antoine.
It’s been only an hour since I've seen Rio for the first time in years.
And our encounter awakened all the mixed feelings I’ve held for him all that time.
Infatuation. Longing. Adoration. And an emotion I can’t even put a name to.
Back when I was a kid, Rio made me feel special. Like I was his fated, secret princess. And all I had to do was grow up, and then he’d make me queen of his magic castle.
