Page 27

“I look forward to it,” Lissa said.

And Tessa was nearly mowed over by the awkward tension.

Yikes!

Chapter Twelve

Things only grew more awkward when Tessa found herself in one of the spacious dressing rooms with Damon.

“I guess there’s no way out of this,” Tessa admitted. “I’m sorry. I always open my big fat mouth and⁠—”

“Hey,” Damon said with a reassuring smile and gentle hand on her arm. “It’s all right. You did amazing. Maybe your future is in acting and not behind- the-scenes stuff.”

Tessa laughed. “I don’t know about that.” A few seconds later, she said, “But what’s with that Max guy? Is he always thinking about work?”

“Typical studio head,” Damon explained. “It’s always about the deal. Making a buck. Those guys eat, sleep, and breathe the industry. Do you see why I’m worried? Hey, if Lissa was really happy and with a guy who would treat her right, I’d move on. Might still hurt, of course. But I’d at least be happy for her.”

“No, I one hundred percent get it,” Tessa said. “That guy is totally just with her because she’s Lissa Keller!”

“Right? So you saw it!”

The two laughed as they looked into each other’s eyes.

“We’ve got to kick this into overdrive. I think she was a little jealous already,” Tessa told Damon.

“Really?”

She nodded. “Didn’t you see it at the end? The way she latched onto Max but kept looking at you, making sure you were watching?”

“That’s what she was doing?”

“Uh-huh. Come on. We need to strike fast!”

Damon bobbed his head in agreement. “Thanks so much for helping me with all this.”

“Of course.”

They stared at each other for another few seconds before Damon said, “Which, uh, diaper do you want to wear?”

“I’ll go with this one,” she said, grabbing one of the pink ones with smiling princesses on it.

After another long moment, Damon said, “Okay. I’ll just step out and let you get to it.”

“Thanks,” she said.

Why was she so nervous? He was leaving. Yet her nerves were so frayed she was nearly shaking.

Damon opened the door and started to step out but stopped, the back of him filling the frame and blocking Tessa’s view.

She had a good idea what was going on, though, because she heard him say, “Oh. Hey, Lissa.”

“Damon.”

Tessa winced.

Awkward. Yet again.

“Thought I heard someone knock.”