Page 70 of Once Upon a Boyband
“You know all the moves, don’t you?” Adam calls. He jogs over, stopping right in front of me. “I did warn you,” he says, reaching for my hand.
“Come on,” Freddie adds when I hesitate. “It’ll be fun.”
“You are in so much trouble,” I say to Adam, but I let him lead me into the middle of the room anyway. He positions me right in front of him, his hands on my hips as he leans close to my ear. “Ready?” he asks, his breath fanning across my cheek.
“Absolutely not,” I say, but I’m grinning as I lift my arms, mimicking the position the other band members have already assumed.
When the music starts, muscle memory kicks in and I hit every mark through the opening sequence of moves. I am not a dancer by any stretch, but I didthisdance a million times. Always alone, usually in my bedroom while wearing my Deke shortie pajamas. Which, I’ll be honest, it kinda makes this whole moment feel full circle.
This time, when the song ends, the guys all clap for me. “You know what, you should just take my spot,” Adam says.
“For real, Laney. You knew every move,” Leo says.
Adam grins. “Laney might have had a tiny thing for the band when she was in high school.”
Freddie gasps. “Were you a Midnighter?”
“Okay, now we’re done here,” I say. “Don’t you guys have another song to practice?”
Adam wraps his arms around me from behind and kisses my cheek. “That was fun. Thanks for being a good sport.”
I move back to my chair while the guys shift to the other end of the room. Leo sits down at the piano and Adam picks up his guitar while Freddie and Jace settle onto a couple of stools.
I am very excited about the possibility of Midnight Rushplayingas well as singing, and I pull out my phone, turning slightly so I can take a selfie with the band in the background.
I’m about to send the picture to Percy, but then a woman with short dark curls and a stern expression drops into the chair beside me.
“So, I hate to be that person, and I totally trustyou,” she says, offering me a kind smile, “but I don’t trust whomever you might want to send that selfie to, so I would super love it if you didn’t share.”
“Oh! Right. I totally get it.” My face heats with embarrassment. Idotrust Percy, and I doubt very seriously he’d ever send the photo to anyone, but I’m pretty new to all this. Like, less than an hour new—so what do I know? I quickly pocket my phone. “Sorry. I won’t send photos to anyone.”
“It’s so annoying,” she says. “It’s just life, you know? But any little thing we can do to help them maintain their privacy is worth it.” She holds out her hand to shake mine. “You’re Laney, right? Deke’s fiancée? I’m Freddie’s assistant, Ivy.”
“Adam,” I correct. A fiancée would do that, right? “And yes! I am Laney. It’s good to finally meet you. I feel like Ialready sort of know you after all the logistical texts and things you’ve had to send over. You are juggling a lot.”
“Right! Adam. Sorry. I have to make that click in my brain.”
“How long have you worked for Freddie?” I ask.
Ivy looks up at the ceiling like she’s counting back in her head. She has to be close to my age. Her skin is flawless, and her eyes are big and brown. “Four years…going on four hundred?” she says, and I grin.
“That long, huh?”
She smiles. “I swear, that man has taken years off my life. I mean, don’t get me wrong. He’s amazing. Just completely insufferable.”
“That bad, huh?”
She waves a dismissive hand. “Not really. I’m too hard on him. He’s just very good at getting what he wants. The man could convince a dairy farmer to buy manure. He’s that charming.”
“He seems to use it for good, though.” My eyes shift to Adam, who is laughing at something Freddie said. “Everyone loves him.”
She turns her gaze to look at the men. “Yep. Everyone does.”
Her tone makes me wonder if there’s something going on between them, but then she gives her head a little shake. “Especially women. Which is why I’m so protective of his privacy. If they can find out where he is, they literally show up in packs. Ready to do or say or be anything he wants.”
“Really?”
“It’s the ugly side of show business,” she says with a shrug. “We get annoyed when celebrities are spoiled or entitled, but then we obsess over their every move, give themanything they want, and demand so much that paparazzi are literally willing to ignore every ethic to steal a photo. It’s a wonder anyone stays in this business.”
