Page 113 of The Sun and Her Star

He breaks away from his group of friends and walks a dozen feet to close the gap between us. The sea of bodies part for him, yielding to his broad shoulders as he strides toward us.

As he approaches, his smile widens, but he doesn’t grin or show any teeth. That smile is hisrealsmile. You’ll find it in every picture of Graham from the moment he was born until the moment his agent told him grins were sexier and sold more pictures.

These days,thissmile is just for me. It’s warm, genuine, and very quick. It never fails to make me feel like the most important person in the world.

That familiar thrill of anticipation right before he touches me leaps to life just as he reaches us. His big, warm hand slides around my waist to the small of my back. It slips under my silk, loose fitting tank top, brushing the skin at the small of my back for just a second before it comes to rest in between my shoulder blades.

“Hey, Sunshine.” His lips brush my ear. “You havin’ a good time?” I shiver a little bit at the contact, but that isn’t new. I’ve been shivering under Graham’s touch since the day we met. I slip my arms around his strong neck and hug him back.

“I’m so proud of you, Star. This is amazing,” I shout into his ear, trying to be heard over the music.

His grip around my waist tightens, and he says, not shouting but, loudly enough that I can hear the smile in his voice when he presses his lips to my ear, “I’m so fucking happy you’re here.”

He presses a featherlight kiss to my temple as I pull back and I want to throw my hands back around him. I can’t contain the slight gasp at the kick in the gut I feel every time I have to let him go.

The last few weeks have been an exercise in self-control. My defenses didn’t stand a chance. I knew that I’d surrender. I was nervous to come here. I thought seeing him in his element, surrounded by all of these fawning people, would just make me doubt him. But, it doesn’t. I look up at his smiling face, and I know he’s mine. I smile broadly at him, my joy sincere, even as I take one more step back.

“I sent Lucas a text. Told him I couldn’t do it anymore. To give him a heads-up before his mother sees pictures in tomorrow’s lifestyle section,” I say.

His eyes narrow. “Are you—”

“Apollo, don’t hog him all night,” Josiesneersat me before she turns her veneered, bright white smile on Graham. “I’m Josie.” She wiggles her fingers in greeting. He looks at me like “Who is this chick?”and then he flashes her his Graham Davis smile. “Nice to meet you, Josie.”

“You, too,” she preens.

When Graham grabs her hand and brings it to his lips for a kiss, she sways and teeters toward him as if she’s being lead. I roll my eyes.

“Would you ladies like to come sit in my section? We have table service, and you might be more comfortable.”

“Why yes, I’d love that.” She bats her eyelashes and I marvel at how brazen she is.

Graham cocks his dark brown eyebrows at me, his smile flirtatious as he says, “After you.” He lifts one of his long, muscular, pink velvet-encased arms and points in the direction of the VIP.

My purse vibrates. I fish around in it and pull it out of my small, gold-beaded purse.

I caress the dime size depression at the bottom of the screen with my thumb noncommittally but with just enough pressure to unlock it.

The picture we took a few weeks ago. It’s just our faces, pressed together, our smiles wide, our eyes dancing. I wish we were back there.

The notification for the text from Lucas glares up at me. It’s been sitting there for two hours, and I still can’t bring myself to read it. Besides the fact that I don’t think we have anything more to say to each other. I hadn’t wanted to let anything ruin my mood on Graham’s big night. I let the phone fall back into my purse and continue toward the corner where he and Josie had disappeared.

The thumping bass of the loud hip-hop music thunders through my body violently that I feel it in my bones. I don’t know how Graham spends night after night in places like this.

As I take the few short steps toward the very last place I want to be, my organs feel like they’ve turned to water and slosh around inside me, and I feel the burn of bile in my throat.

Graham is already seated, and Josie is practically sitting in his lap. She’s laughing loudly.

I’m going to kill Reena when I find her. She said Josie was new to the firm and needed to get out. As soon as she’d climbed into the Uber I’d ordered for tonight, she started talking about Graham. Now, Reena has completely disappeared.

“Apollo, come join us,” Josie shouts over to me.

“I’m fine here,” I sit down across from them.

Graham’s attention has already moved from Josie. He’s bent over his phone, texting, his face hidden under the long fall of hair. Josie leans forward, eyes dancing with excitement, her grin so wide, her teeth look like they’re trying to escape her mouth.

“Holy shiiiiiit,” she mouths as she shimmies her shoulders and points at Graham. As if I and the dozens of eyes trained on her don’t know that she’s talking about him.

I smile, pretending to be as excited as she is.

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