Page 26 of Faking Ties

“I don’t know. I guess more premieres?” There’s something in her voice that catches my attention. There’s a slight wobble to it. Her face has a panicked look to it as she bounces her knee up and down.

I place my hand on her knee and look her in the eye. “Is there more to the Jax story than I know?”

“No?” She looks at the floor, and my alarm bells go off.

“Did he hurt you?”

Her gaze flies to mine, finally catching on to my implied meaning. “No, nothing like that. He just broke my heart.”

I stare at her for a few beats more, trying to determine if she’s telling the truth. She’s hiding something, but I can’t tell what. “Don’t worry. We’ll get through this premiere together and the ones after that.”

“But what if they don’t fit your schedule?”

“I’ll find a way to be there,” I say firmly.

“Thank you.” She leans into me, as if taking comfort by that fact. I wrap one of my arms around her shoulders and pull her more firmly into my side. She fits perfectly into me, as if she belongs there. I trail my fingers across her skin, and she glances at me.

“Are you trying to distract me?” she asks.

“Is it working?”

“Maybe.”

“Good, because we’re team FD. And in a team, the captain predicts the needs of the others.”

“Who went and made you captain?” she sasses.

There she is. The Stella who put Evren in his place. The one who captured my attention with her witty tongue.

“I nominated myself,” I say.

“Shouldn’t that be up for a vote? Because if so, I demand a revote and nominate myself instead.”

“You think you can handle being captain? Predictingmyneeds?” I say it with enough innuendo that her pupils dilate. She looks from my eyes to my mouth and leans forward an inch before jerking away.

She tucks a piece of hair behind her ear. “We should save the PDA for the cameras.”

“Of course.” It makes sense. There’s no need to kiss her without anyone watching. We need to sell the lie to the media, not her bodyguards. Even if I’m curious how it’d be, her lips pressed against mine, her body under my hands.

“We’re here,” Brian says from the front seat. “I’m going to open your door now.”

“You ready?” I ask Stella. She glances outside and stiffens. I follow her gaze, searching for what could’ve made her freeze, but I don’t see anything besides the red carpet swarming with celebrities. When she doesn’t answer, I say, “Squeeze my hand once if you’re ready.”

She squeezes it twice.

“We need a minute,” I say to Brian.

“But we’re holding up the line.”

“Like I give a fuck,” I say to him before focusing on Stella. “What’s wrong?”

“I’m so nervous.” She glances outside.

“Eyes on me.” I wait until she follows my command before saying, “I’ve got you. Anytime you need me, you squeeze my hand two times. It’ll be our little code.”

“Okay,” she whispers before nodding to herself. “I can do that.”

“We’re ready,” I tell Brian.

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