“Thanks,” said Meagan, taking the photo and looking up at AJ brightly.
“Thank you,” said AJ. “You’re my first autograph.”
“Wow, really?” Meagan handed back the photo. “Could you write that on here?”
As AJ added the wordsmy first autographawkwardly above her name, she felt rather than heard Meagan’s earsplitting squeal of astonishment.
“Oh my God. Oh my God. Oh. My. God,” she said. “You’reRho!”
Noah had arrived at the booth.
He wore a black Henley and jeans and looked every bit the star he was. He was flanked by an attractive, no-nonsense woman in her mid-thirties—probably his publicist.
Their absentee row staffer had also appeared. He was beet red, sweating profusely in his Comic Expo tee, and visibly awestruck by Noah. Noah glanced at the table, where Dave, Toni, and Xiaobo sat equally agog, then to Meagan, then AJ.
AJ held his gaze. He’d actually come. Heart pounding, she broke into a disbelieving smile. Noah’s eyes lit.
“Wow, AnaandRho,” Meagan said, looking between them. “Did you two, like, plan this?”
AJ and Noah answered at once.
“No,” said AJ.
“Yes,” said Noah.
Meagan stomped her feet in excitement. “Oh my God. Oh my God.Oh my God.I have to tell Oona and Otto—they’re going toflip.”
With that, she sprinted away from the booth, body armor clanging joyously.
“Hey!” AJ called after her. “You forgot your—” She looked down at the photo in her hands and sighed. Noah reached for it, and AJ quickly pulled it away. He grinned at her.
“We’ll need another table, of course,” his publicist was saying to the staffer.
“I’m so sorry, Mr. Drew,” sputtered the staffer. “I-I don’t know if we have any more—if only we’d known you were coming…”
“We can make room here,” said Toni.
Noah took the measure of the situation in a blink. “Nice of you to offer,” he said coldly.
Then he put his hand on AJ’s shoulder and turned his back to them. AJ enjoyed this way too much—both the look she imagined on Toni’s face and the very real feel of Noah’s touch through her shirt. AJ had to fight the urge to rub up against him. Stupid big hands. Stupid delicious smell.
“I’m sure you can find something,” Noah said to the staffer. “We’re not picky.”
“Yes, of course, Mr. Drew,” stammered the staffer. “Right away, Mr. Drew.”
He backed out of the booth, head bobbing.
“Did he just…bow to you?” said AJ.
Noah laughed, taking his hand from her shoulder and running it over his face. His publicist stepped forward and showed Noah her phone.
“Now, I’m not suggesting you start doing social media, but if youwereto consider it, this would make a hell of a kickoff post.”
It was a photo of the moment AJ had seen Noah arrive; the juxtaposition of the way Noah towered above her and the tenderness in his eyes was compelling. AJ’s cheeks warmed as she took in her own face, so obviously affected by him. She might have been any lovestruck fan.
“Well, it’s good you’re not suggesting I do social media,” said Noah firmly. “AJ, this is Risa, my publicist.”
“Nice to meet you,” said Risa, her eyes sweeping over AJ, lingering on her flyaway hair and glasses. Then her expression changed. She grabbed AJ’s left hand.
