Page 31 of Not My Fault

“I’m your lover.” I wiggle my eyebrows seductively.

“I can’t, okay.” She laughs. “I don’t know if we’re going to make it through the park without laughing.”

“So we’re a couple who just discovered legal marijuana. You’re my old lady,” I tease.

We walk out of the storage room, and we get a ton of looks from security. If we weren’t on our way out, I think there would be someone stopping us and asking where we were going. Security lets us out, and thankfully I remember my ID, or we might have some issues later. Emily takes my hand, and I’m shocked we don’t get any looks on the way to the park. But this was New York, and honestly, as long as you weren’t walkingslow, you were ignored. No one gives a shit what anyone else is doing in this city.

The streets were crowded because it’s a beautiful and sunny day out. So we’re dodging tourists who are stopping to stare like they’ve never seen a building that tall before. Emily and I slip in between people, and a man running with no shirt almost runs into us.

“Hey man! We’re walking here!” Emily yells in an old lady voice I’m not expecting. I’m shocked how committed she is to the bit.

“Baby, are you okay?” I ask loudly in a deep voice as I pull her close.

“Oh, hold me, Charlie!” She lays her head on my chest to hide the fact that she’s laughing. I press my lips to her hair to hide my own. We get a few looks from on-comers but for the most part, people just pass us by.

FIFTEEN

Emily

“You really don’t have time to be hanging out withfansbefore the show.” Viv groans.

“Yes, I do. I’m dressed, and we’re done with rehearsal. I’m going to see them, and as a reminder these are Gus’s friends, so it only solidifies what we’re doing here, right?” I remind her.

“Fine.” She sighs and angrily waves me off.

I slip past her and bring along security with me. I’m not crazy; sneaking into the VIP section before a show is a little risky. But I want to meet Gus’s friends again. I knew how much they mean to them, so I think it is a good next step in our sort of relationship. Not that any of this is real. I don’t know why I’m so nervous as I get closer to them. Gus is waiting at the door to backstage, and my stomach is in knots the second I see them. Their hair is slicked back with gel tonight, different than how I saw them just a few hours ago. They’re wearing my face on a concert tee, which is actually adorable as fuck.

“Wow. You look amazing.” Their jaw drops as they see me. Their eyes rake me over, and I blush as they take their time with my body.

“Thanks, it’s a lot more makeup than I usually wear.”

“I didn’t even notice the makeup. That outfit is going to make every woman in the audience jealous. And the enbies too.” They wink.

Fuck, there’s that feeling again. Why am I feeling this? I thought I could stick to the rules. It’s clear what this is, yet here I am stupidly falling for the one person I know I can’t have.

“My friends all made it backstage, but I was afraid they’d ambush you. So I thought it was safer to wait here,” Gus explains.

“Thank you. Did Cari come?” I don’t know why I sound bitter when I ask. That’s part of why all of this is happening. I’m supposed to be helping Gus make her realize what she wants.

“She did.”

“Good, we’ll have to put on a show then.” I reach for Gus’s hand and they smile.

We walk toward the VIP box. There are only six fans besides Gus’s friends who are there tonight. I’ll have to take photos and talk to them too, but I made sure they didn’t come through yet. I’ll see them after the show for their meet and greet.

“LULY!” River cheers and runs over to hug me as soon as she sees me.

She’s wearing this hella cute outfit of ripped fishnet tights and a long T-shirt with my face on it, cut to show off this bright red lingerie she has under it. Her wife, Aspen, is standing behind her with a similar outfit on. She was memorable from her birthday party, but even more so because she was one-half of the very viral, iconic lesbian photoshoot she and River did before they were back together. Those photos were everywhere for months and are still the most searched photoshoot these days. I have to admit, the steam between those two is immense.

“Hey girlie.” I smile.

“This is so exciting!” River has been a fan from the beginning, which makes seeing her here an easier experience than meeting one of Gus’s friends. “You remember my wife, Aspen.”

“Of course. I’m LULY, but you can call me Emily.” I shake Aspen’s hand.

“This is my best friend, Cari.” River introduces a blonde woman with gorgeous curves. Why couldn’t she have been ugly? She’s wearing bubble braids with glitter sprinkled all over her head and cheeks. Her outfit is similar to River’s—a cropped T-shirt of my face and a pair of black leather shorts.

“Hey.” I force myself to smile. I don’t want to let on to my distaste. It isn’t like Cari has done anything; she’s just a woman who likes someone. And I’m an idiot with a crush.

---