Page 69 of Now Their Starlet

Beck nods eagerly, clearing his throat. “The last thing we’d want is for Andi to stress out about us.”

“She has enough on her plate to worry about,” Cameron adds softly, his notebook balanced on his knee. We’re not allowed our phones out during the proceedings, and it seems his journalist background is rearing its head.

The doors swing open, and the five of us fall eerily still.

Gina Sterling marches into the room, her stiletto high heels making the veins in her feet stick out. She’s wearing an impeccably tailored white pencil skirt and matching blazer. I’m sure it’s supposed to exude innocence and confidence, but I can’t help but feel like the belt and accent earrings she’s wearing are tacky.

Following behind her is a whole team of expensive lawyers. I know they’re expensive because the first thing I did was hire a private investigator to research the team Gina has put together to try to keep Andi locked away.

They’re a money-hungry group prepared to represent any case as long as their astronomical fees are paid.

Eli shifts from beside Beck at the end of the pew, and I have to shoot him a sharp look. The last thing we need is him losing control and launching himself across the room to tear her apart.

Though to be completely honest, I’m sure all of us are thinking of some variation of that fantasy right now. Even Beck.

Gina’s clacking footsteps falter the moment she catches sight of Edison. Because we’re so close to the main floor of the courtroom, we can scent the sour, cloying twist of her wine perfume from here. There are so many layers to her scent, it’s hard to pick apart her emotions, despite the intensity. But all of them are negative.

Edison, to his credit, keeps his expression as neutral as he can. There’s a profound sadness around his eyes that I’m sure can only form when the omega you thought was your soulmate turns out to be evil.

Gina makes it to her seat, along with her lawyers. She starts whispering sharply to them, gesturing wildly.

“She seems upset,” Cameron murmurs.

“More like she’s throwing a temper tantrum,” Eli snorts, his voice low.

This is the closest I’ve ever been to Gina Sterling, but from the sounds of things, these sorts of emotional outbursts are pretty par for the course. Honestly, compared to the video Andi sent over, this seems rather tame.

“Did she not expect Edison to be here?” Leo comments softly, his foot tapping rapidly against the floor.

“Maybe she didn’t expect him to actually show up,” Beck says.

“That’s a definite possibility,” I add. “If she surrounds herself with yes-men like I’m pretty sure she believed, this would be an open and shut case. I hear from Charles that she even threw a tantrum when he showed up to help escort Andi to the hearing.”

“When will Andi show up, by the way?” Beck asks, wringing his hands in his lap.

“Soon,” I say, keeping my eyes on the doors at the back of the courtroom.

No sooner than a minute after I spoke do the doors open once more. I catch sight of Charles’ white hair as he holds the doors open for someone following behind him.

Andi.

My breath catches in my throat at the sight of her.

Despite the lingering effects of Gina’s torture, Andi is holding her head high and her shoulders back. The navy blue pantsuit is a little loose on her, but it still makes her look put-together and confident.

I’m normally better at gauging clothing sizes in person than I am through photos. Especially photos where she’s standing next to people I’m unfamiliar with, so I don’t have a good reference point.

“Getting her clothes was a great idea,” Cameron murmurs, his eyes locked on Andi as she makes her way up the aisle with Charles to the main floor of the courtroom.

“It was Leo’s idea,” I say, my eyes also locked on her.

“You chose the outfit, though,” Leo says.

“Spend enough time around my sisters and you’ll pick up a thing or two about omega fashion,” I shrug.

And then Andi’s eyes meet mine.

Something settles into place in my chest. I’ve known something has been wrong for as long as she’s been gone, but I don’t think I realized just how wrong things were until now.