Page 78 of Wandering Wild

Hype is one word for it.

I gape at the sight of so many people—so many fans. They’re all here for a glimpse of Zander, the enormity of his celebrity hitting me like a bucket of ice water. This is his life, hisworld. I can’t imagine what it must be like, living this reality day in and day out.

“Now we know why Scarlett couldn’t come to us,” Zander mutters, his lips pressing together as if he’s angry at himself.

But this isn’t his fault—he didn’t ask all these overzealous fans to come here, nor did he ask them to block the driveway, making us crawl forward at a snail’s pace to keep from mowing them down. My patience is growing thin, but our slow speed lets me read more of their signs, surprise hitting me when I see my name.

WE LOVE YOU, CHARLIE!

CHARLIE & ZANDER 4 EVA!

#ZARLIE HAS MY HEART!

“Zarlie?” I wonder aloud, before a quiet snort from Zander has me realizing, with no small amount of embarrassment, that we’ve been allocated a ship name. Our episode hasn’t evenairedyet, and they’re already rabid for us.

“At least they didn’t go with Chander,” he says, chuckling. “That sounds like something a cat might vomit up.”

I send him an incredulous look. “How can you laugh at this? They’reshippingus, Zander. As in,romantically.”

His eyes are dancing as he replies, with unmissable meaning, “They’re not the only ones.”

My cheeks flame as I hold his gaze, our near-kiss blasting to the forefront of my memory. But before I can replay the moment properly—or return us to it in real time, now that there’s no incoming helicopter to interrupt us—the car rolls to a stop.

Zander glances past me out my window, his face turning serious. “Quick paparazzi lesson: head down, eyes ahead, don’t panic. In a different situation, I’d say you can answer any questions you’re comfortable with, or use ‘no comment’ for anything else, but since we’re in a rush to get to Scarlett, best to ignore them today. Okay?”

I barely get a chance to nod before my door is opened by a muscled hulk of a man, one of his hands indicating for me and Zander to exit the vehicle, while the other is stretched out to hold the crowd back. Another equally large man is doing the same just beyond the first.

The screaming reaches fever pitch as I leave the car, and it becomes impossibly louder when Zander slides out beside me. There are only a few feet between us and the front doors of the hotel, but the shrieking horde makes it seem like miles. Bright flashes go off, blinding me, and there are microphones being shoved in my face with reporters shouting questions. I can’t make out anything they’re saying, my mind freezing. My body, too. But then Zander’s arm curls around my waist and I turn to him, feeling instantly soothed by his presence. He smiles encouragingly at me—prompting even more flashes and squeals from the crowd—and guides me forward while the bodyguards clear our path.

It feels like hours but is really only seconds before we’re through the doors, the screams and shouts immediately muted, leaving my ears ringing in their wake.

I’m panting as if I’ve been running, and I wheeze out to Zander, “Your paparazzi lesson could use a few more warnings.”

“Are you all right? I know that was overwhelming?—”

“It’s fine, I’m okay,” I say, surprisingly meaning it. That was intense, but it was nothing I couldn’t get used to if we?—

My thoughts stumble to a halt when I see Scarlett standing in the center of the empty foyer waiting for us. There’s an odd, tentative smile on her face, but I ignore the alarm bells her expression raises in me and grab Zander’s arm, hauling him toward her.

Before we can make it two steps, a blur of motion has me looking to the left just in time to be tackled by my best friend. I stagger sideways, only managing to keep from falling because I slam into Zander.

“I’m sorry!” Ember wails, her arms so tight that I’m nearly choking. “I swear I had no idea! You nearly died! And Zanderdiddie! I promise, I didn’t haveany?—”

“Em, what are you—” I don’t get to finish before I’m interrupted by another voice, this one deeper, and nearly as tremulous as my best friend’s.

“Charlie.”

I pull away from Ember, gaping at the sight of my stepdad standing before me, his green eyes welling with tears behind his glasses, his graying hair looking like he hasn’t brushed it in days.

“Jerry?” I’m too shocked to articulate more than his name.

The next second, his arms are around me.

“I’m so sorry, baby girl,” he whispers in my ear, holding me close. “I didn’t mean to make you feel like you were all alone. I should have dealt with my grief better, not made you think I couldn’t stand to look at you. I have a lot to make up for, but you have my word that I’ll spend the rest of my life making sure you never feel abandoned like that again.”

I’m so stunned by his declaration—and his presence—that it takes a moment for me to realize there is something very wrong with what’s happening here. My alarm bells from when I first saw Scarlett are turning into blaring sirens as Ember’s words belatedly process, because what she said?—

I gasp and draw away from Jerry to ask her, through numb lips, “How do you know Zander died?”

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