“She doesn’t say anything she doesn’t mean,” I said.
“And this must be your granddaughter!” Alton said, and then pointed at Eli. “And this husband-shaped person must be a grandson-in-law.”
Eli grinned but said nothing and as I started to object, Alton led us toward a back hallway for employees only and turned the conversation to business. “Okay, we’ve got a little step and repeat for you to do as you walk in. You’ll find your table right up at the front, but I’ll escort you there, of course.”
We followed him onto a freight elevator, and I couldn’t help but enjoy how much Ruby was eating up this kind of VIP treatment.
“The speech you sent over is on the teleprompter,” he continued, “but feel free to go off script. Anything you say will be iconic. Tomorrow we have you scheduled for a panel in the afternoon and then a charity dinner in your honor tomorrow night. More casual than this. Sort of a mingling situation. And that’s really it. The fans are ecstatic to even be in your presence. You’re truly a living legend, Ruby.” He let out a giddy shriek. “I can’t believe you’re here. Would it be weird to ask you to kiss a napkin for me so I can get a tattoo of your lip print?”
Eli and I looked at each other with wide eyes, but Ruby was undisturbed. “Just as long as you let me apply a fresh coat, honey.”
Alton sighed. “My boyfriend is going to be so jealous.”
We stepped off the elevator and immediately into a bustling hallway just outside of the banquet hall.
“Maybe I should quit my job and sell off Ruby’s belongings online,” I whispered.
Eli snickered, and then I remembered I was irritated with him.
As we walked toward the step and repeat, Ruby stood a little straighter and fluffed up her hair before turning to me. Only because I knew her so well did I recognize the slight panic gathering in her worry lines.
“You look amazing,” I assured her.
She wore a deep green gown that hugged her curves in a way thatwould’ve made me question gravity and the laws of time if it weren’t for the thirty minutes I had spent helping her maneuver into her undergarments. Shiny sequins shimmered from head to toe and the V-cut bodice was topped off by long, billowing chiffon sleeves that joined in a cape at the back with a train. It was completely emblematic of the swamp creature movies that made Ruby a staple of the genre.
“But do I looksexy?” Her smile sparkled, and it was the same flirty grin I’d seen in photos of her since she was a little girl. There was something comforting about carrying the same smile all your life despite the weight of time. Sometimes I looked at Ruby and had difficulty remembering the buxom scream queen she once was, but she was there. She’d never gone away. She was always there.
“I don’t really think of my own grandmother as sexy, but if I did, you would be the epitome.”
“You look stunning,” Eli added.
Ruby blushed slightly. “Thank you, Dr. Buckley.”
I nodded to him, a silent thank-you for his encouragement.
“You know what the great thing is about a lifetime achievement award? You’ve got nothing left to prove. You already did the damn thing.” I gave her hand a squeeze.
“I wish Hollis were here,” she said softly. “And my Annie.”
My heart collapsed a bit. Hearing her mention Mom was such a welcome reminder that I wasn’t alone in my grief, but it stung all the same. “I wish Mom could be here too. And Hollis.”
“Miss Stein, we’re ready for you,” called a woman from just off the carpet, which was black with red blood spatters. These people knew how to lean into a theme.
I watched as Ruby stepped out onto the carpet, and while it was nothing like the chaos of an actual Hollywood premiere, her eyes lit up the moment the first photographer called her name.
She fell into poses, saucy grins, and haughty pouts like she hadn’t been warming the bench for the last few decades.
In fact, I was so enamored by her that I hardly registered when the woman directing carpet traffic shuffled Eli and me in front of the cameras.
“No, no,” I said, “we’re here to supp—”
“Vera Stein, Ruby’s granddaughter, and her husband—” She motioned to Eli for him to fill in his name.
“Eli Buckley,” he supplied.
“Not my husband,” I called helplessly.
“Herex-husband,” Eli corrected, despite not a single person registering what either of us had said. “We should smile.”
