Page 48 of Now Their Starlet

“Fan-fucking-tastic,” Ezra grunts, hanging up the phone and starting to drag me away from the ballroom.

My heart is threatening to beat out of my chest.

He checks something on his phone and turns.

Fear skates down my spine when he passes by not one, but two different bathrooms.

“Ezra, where’re you taking me?”

“To the bathroom,” he says, his voice low and his eyes darting about like he’s afraid we’re going to get caught.

He glances down at his phone one last time and turns down another corner. A women’s bathroom sign blazes on the wall.

“Okay, here we are,” he says, his shoulders slumping forward.

He knocks on the door, the pattern sharp and distinct. The click of someone unlocking the door from the inside echoes through the empty hallway.

My mind is spinning. What in the world is going on?

The door is jerked open, and a petite omega that smells like peach cobbler appears before us. She has shocking peach-pink dyed hair and piercing blue-grey eyes that strike me with an eerie sense of deja-vu.

“Come in, hurry!” she says, gesturing us into the bathroom. It’s a large rom, with a powder area containing large mirrors and a few plush-looking couches before leading back towards the stalls.

Ezra leans against the wall, tucking his hands into his pockets.

I stare at him like he’s grown two heads.

“What’s—what’s going on?” I stutter, my eyes widening even further when another omega appears, her face shockingly similar to the other, except instead of pink hair, it’s dirty blonde. Her sweet cherry cobbler perfume swirls around in the air with her twin sister’s, making the bathroom smell like a delicious bakery.

Something about their scents soothes my frayed nerves. Maybe because I haven’t had the opportunity to be around omegas whose scents don’t make me want to tear my skin off like my mother’s does, in a very long time.

“Were you... not told?” The pink-haired omega asks, tilting her head.

The other omega’s gaze cuts towards Ezra, her eyes narrowing.

“Didn’t have a chance to tell her,” Ezra grunts. “There were people on us like flies the entire time.”

“Oh, well, I’m Cleo,” the pink-haired omega says with a bright smile. “It’s nice to meet you.”

“I’m Juno,” the other omega says with a small wave, her own smile a little sad around the edges. “We’re so sorry it’s under these circumstances. We’re Ever’s younger sisters.”

“Everett’s younger sisters?” I echo, my voice trembling at his name, like even saying it is a hardship. “Is he here?”

“No, he’s not,” a familiar voice calls from further in the bathroom. “But I am.”

Cameron steps out of one of the stalls, his expression soft and concerned.

The world, which hasn’t felt real for weeks, snaps back into focus when I meet his gaze.

CHAPTER 12

Cameron

My heart is racing in my chest. I don’t think I’ve ever been this nervous sneaking into a place before. And I’ve snuck into plenty of compounds I probably shouldn’t have to speak to vulnerable omegas for previous projects of mine.

Maybe I’m so anxious because this doesn’t feel like a project anymore.

When did that change?