She felt a prickle of annoyance. She’d been so caught up in Anna, she’d forgotten she was surrounded by people bustling around in postshow mode. Suddenly, the hallway felt loud and chaotic.
Paris was holding her cell phone in Eden’s direction, displaying a photo taken during their duet. Anna wore a red pleated dress almost identical to the one Eden had worn in the video for her single “Take Your Time.” In the photo, Eden had an arm over Anna’s shoulders, and they were smiling at each other.
“Your hashtag is trending again,” Paris said, looking amused.
Eden almost flinched. She wasn’t sure why that hashtag made her uncomfortable, but suddenly she didn’t care. Somewhere over the past few months, Eden had regained her passion for her music, and Anna was at least partially responsible. She energized Eden, and Eden valued her friendship too much to let a silly hashtag bother her.
“Let’s move this along. We’re in the way here.” Paris waved an arm, herding Eden in the direction of her dressing room.
Eden nodded gratefully. She very much wanted to change and go home. Also, food. And probably another bottle of water. She started walking, flanked by Paris and Anna.
“The new dress was a hit,” Anna said, bubbly as ever as they walked. “When I scrolled the comments earlier, it seemed like people had been hoping—if not expecting—that we’d recreate the duet for the tour, but they weren’t expecting me to model a different early-Eden look. Now they’re tossing theories left and right on what I’ll wear next.”
“You were right,” Eden mused. “The outfits are creating buzz.”
Anna bounced on her toes. “I’m so excited that the fans are excited.”
“Me too.” Eden brushed a strand of hair from her face. Her skin felt sticky from a combination of makeup and sweat. God, she couldn’t wait for a shower. “I wasn’t sure you’d still be here,” she said to Anna.
Paris, who’d been walking a few steps ahead, paused and unlocked the door to Eden’s dressing room, motioning her inside.
“Are you kidding?” Anna gave her an incredulous look. “There’s no way I’d miss watching you perform, especially on opening night.But I’ll probably—” She cut herself off as if she’d just realized that she’d followed Eden into her dressing room. “Sorry, I’ll get out of your hair.”
“No,” Eden said, surprising even herself. “Stay a minute. We can head out together.”
“You sure?” Anna asked.
Eden nodded, tossing her empty water bottle in the trash.
“I’ll find Kyrie and coordinate both cars to be ready in about five minutes?” Paris asked.
“Perfect. Thank you.” Usually, Eden left the arena faster than this after a show. She would walk off the stage, change, and get straight in the car. But everything moved slower on opening and closing nights.
Paris left, closing the door behind herself, while Anna dropped onto the couch and started reading Eden some of the comments the fans had left about tonight’s show. Eden opened her duffel bag and took out the jeans and top she’d brought to wear home.
“Be right back,” she told Anna as she opened the door to the bathroom, but before she could go in, there was a knock on the dressing room door. Eden sighed. She felt half-drunk as the adrenaline left her system. All she wanted was to freshen up and go home, not schmooze whoever was at the door.
“I’ll get it,” Anna said, standing from the couch. “You go change.”
But Eden lingered to see who it was. It was her dressing room, after all. When Anna opened the door to reveal Paris standing there, Eden relaxed. Surely the car wasn’t here yet? It hadn’t even been a minute since Paris left her in her dressing room.
“Eden ...,” Paris began, sounding apologetic. “Your parents are here, and they’d like to see you before you leave.”
“Oh.” Eden braced a hand against the wall as her knees forgot their job for a moment.Oh no.She hadn’t seen her parents in over a year, and while she’d sent them tickets to the show the way she always did,she hadn’t expected them to come. Now she was left unprepared for the soul-sucking experience of entertaining them, and she certainly didn’t have the energy—physical or mental—for it tonight.
She inhaled, lifting her chin. “Fine. Send them in.”
Anna shouldn’t be here. She shouldn’t have invited herself into Eden’s dressing room in the first place, and she definitely should have left before Eden’s parents came in. But it had all happened so fast. She’d been caught up in the moment, celebrating with Eden after she came off the stage, and now here she was.
But while Anna had initially thought Eden’s parents’ visit was an exciting surprise, it hadn’t taken her long to realize something wasn’t right. Eden wasn’t acting like herself. Beneath her stage makeup, she seemed pale, and the look in her eyes ... well, Anna wasn’t sure exactly how to read it, but it made her sad. No one should look like that when faced with their parents.
The well-dressed couple in the doorway weren’t giving her warm fuzzies either. Eden’s father radiated “self-important white man” energy, and her mother was literally looking down her nose at Anna. Yikes. Anna leaned against the wall and tried to make herself as unobtrusive as possible.
“Mom, Dad, this is a surprise,” Eden said, hands clasped tightly in front of herself.
“Why?” her mother asked. “Your manager provided us with tickets. If she didn’t tell you she’d sent them, perhaps you should think about new representation. I never have felt she was as good as Peter.”
“No, I knew she sent them, I just ...” Eden trailed off, looking down at her hands. She’d known her parents had tickets to the show tonight, and yet she hadn’t expected toseethem?
