He hesitates. “It was me,” he says. “I’m Ryan Hannaway.”
Her eyes dart over to me, then back to him. “And you want to cancel your proposal?” she asks skeptically. She bends down in front of her computer and types something. She looks back up at me. “Are you Tina?”
Before I can answer, Oliver grabs my hand and interlocks his fingers with mine. I resist the urge to snatch my hand out of his. “Yes, she is,” he says. “We got engaged yesterday. That’s why I don’t need to propose on the jumbotron anymore.”
I force a smile. I squeeze his hand, trying to crush his fingers. He picks my hand up and kisses my knuckles. I turn to stare at him, shocked that he would do such a thing.
“If you’re already engaged, then what’s the big deal if you propose again on the big screen?” she asks. “How many times do you get to say you proposed on the jumbotron? You’re already here. Enjoy the experience.”
I don’t know how we’re supposed to continue arguing with that. I look at Oliver. He notices that he’s still holding my hand and lets go. It’s clear that he’s done playing the part. “I guess you have a point,” he says to the woman. “What time is that scheduled for again?”
She looks back at her monitor, then checks her watch. “It’s going up in about three minutes. You better hurry back.”
We leave the office the same way we came in—fighting our way through the doorway at the same time, shoulder to shoulder. I elbow him one more time once we’re through just for good measure.
“What now?” I ask.
“We need to get Tina out of the stadium,” he says. “But I don’t know how.”
“We’ll think of something on the way there. But we need to get there fast.” I take off, running back to our seats. Oliver catches up and runs along next to me.
By the time we make it back to our seats, I’m panting and out of breath. I don’t have time to rest, though. Ryan’s proposal is going to appear at any second, and I need to get Tina out of here.
“What’s the matter with you?” Tina says when she sees me. “Are you okay?”
I shake my head. I point behind us where Oliver and I just came from. “You need to come with me.”
She frowns. “Why? And why are you all out of breath?”
I rack my brain for a reason to get her out of here. “Taylor Swift,” I bark out. I point behind myself again. “Over there. In the concessions line. Quick!”
Her eyes widen. “Seriously?”
She stands up. I take her hand, pulling her with me. We push past Oliver and run up the steps.
“Slow down,” she complains. “I’m not wearing the right shoes for this!”
We make it to the concourse. “This way,” I say, leading her as far as I reasonably can from the view of the arena. My heart is pounding. I hope that I can keep her away long enough that she won’t catch a glimpse of Ryan’s proposal.
“Are you sure it was her?” Tina asks.
“It was definitely her,” I say. “She was in line over here. Just a little bit farther.”
We come around the bend to the next vendor. I point to the first woman I see with blond hair. “There! It’s her!”
Tina stops in her tracks. She looks at the woman, then at me, eyebrow raised. “That isnotTaylor Swift.”
“Are you sure?” I ask. “I could have sworn I saw her over here. Maybe she left. We should keep going this way just to be sure.”
Tina laughs, grabbing my arm to stop me from continuing on. “If you wanted to talk to me alone, you could have just said so.”
“What? I didn’t?—”
“Come on, Priss. You and Oliver disappeared without a word and you came back all out of breath.” She turns us around, keeping her arm hooked with mine like I might run off.
“I was running,” I insist. “I really thought I saw Taylor Swift.”
I try to slow down, but Tina’s legs are longer than mine, and she brings us back to the stadium in no time.
