“Could we ...,” another woman asked hesitantly, holding up her phone.
“Sure.” Eden waved them over. The request for photos had been inevitable, and she didn’t mind, not with Taylor here to keep things civilized.
The women clustered around her, talking over each other in their excitement. Eden answered their questions as she posed for selfies. Shehadn’t realized until she saw herself reflected on one of their phone screens that she was wearing Anna’s purple hoodie.
“Could you sign this for me?” one of them asked, handing her cell phone to Eden.
“If you have a pen,” Eden told her, and they all started rummaging through their bags until one of them came up with a marker. “What’s your name?” Eden asked.
“Nancy,” the woman told her breathlessly.
Eden scrawled, “To Nancy. Love, Eden Sands” on the back of the phone case. They all managed to come up with something for her to sign and then asked for a group photo with her, which Taylor took.
“Which outfit will Anna be wearing for your duet tonight?” someone asked after Taylor had snapped several quick photos. “Can you give us a hint?”
“It’s purple,” Eden told her.
“The dress you wore to accept your first Grammy!” Nancy squealed. “Ilovethat one.”
Eden shrugged as if she could neither confirm nor deny, but she also winked, letting them know they’d guessed correctly. Taylor politely ushered them back to the elevator now that they’d gotten their photos and autographs, and then she guided Eden down the hall to the stairwell, since they’d gotten off on the floor above Anna’s.
Taylor paused, listening to make sure no one had followed them into the stairwell before they descended to the thirty-ninth floor. Finally, they arrived at Anna’s door, and Eden knocked.
“Just text me when you’re ready to go back to your room,” Taylor told her.
“I will. Thank you.”
Anna opened the door in a loose blue T-shirt that hung off one shoulder, and Eden’s stomach fizzed at the sight of that bare skin. “Hey, you,” Anna said. “I’ve narrowed down our movie choices and ordered popcorn from room service.”
“Perfect,” Eden said as she waved goodbye to Taylor.
Anna closed the door behind her and led the way to her bed, where a bowl of popcorn waited. “So, if you want a modern rom-com, we’ve gotMarry Me, which is a celebrity marriage of convenience with Jennifer Lopez. I haven’t seen it yet, but it’s supposed to be good. Then there’sTo All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, which is a teen rom-com that’s super cute. Or we could do a classic likeOne Fine DayorSleepless in Seattle.”
“I think all your emotions are amplified when you’re a teenager, so if we’re using this as songwriting inspiration, let’s go with the teen movie,” Eden said. “Plus I’ve heard a lot about that one, but I haven’t seen it yet.”
“Perfect,” Anna said.
To keep from staring at her, or worse ... kissing her, Eden walked to the window and looked out at downtown Denver. Her own room overlooked the mountains on the other side of the hotel. Behind her, Anna tabbed through screens on the TV.
“Okay,” Anna said after a minute, patting the bed beside her. “Get ready for cuteness overload.”
“I’m ready.” Eden walked to the bed and sat to take off her shoes.
They propped pillows behind themselves and leaned against the headboard with the bowl of popcorn between them as the movie began to play. Two hours later, she was indeed on cuteness overload. She felt light and silly and just overall happy.
Anna pulled out her phone. “Now let’s capture these emotions in song.”
“Pressure’s on.” Eden settled beside her. She’d taken off the hoodie earlier when she got warm, and now she was in a tank top and leggings, trying not to notice the way Anna’s tee kept sliding off her shoulder, highlighting the fact that she didn’t seem to be wearing a bra. Her skin was so tan and looked so soft, and Eden couldn’t remember what her life had been like before she became consumed by thoughts of Anna.
“To all the girls I’ve loved before ...,” Anna sing-songed as she pretended to type into her phone.
Eden giggled. “I know there are a lot of you, but you’re all special to me in different ways ...”
“Hey!” Anna bumped her shoulder into Eden’s. “There aren’t that many, I’ll have you know.”
“Sure,” Eden teased. “I’ve listened to enough of your songs to doubt that.”
“How do you know they aren’t all about the same person?” Anna countered. “Also ... I didn’t really know you’d listened to my music.” Her cheeks were pink, and something in her expression reminded Eden of the way she’d looked the first time they met. She hadn’t seen the starstruck version of Anna in a while.
