I stood frozen. Colton, of course, was grinning as though the universe had handed him a gift.
"Don’t say a word," I warned.
He held up his hands. "Didn’t say anything. But... this is going to be fun."
I groaned. "This is going to be a disaster."
He leaned against the doorframe, still smiling. "Please. I’ve survived worse than tuxes and speeches. You’ll be fine. Probably."
"That’s it. I’m throwing you in kennel four."
He laughed, and I realized—with mild horror—that I was laughing, too.
Ten minutes later, I was pacing in the small break room, the phone still in my hand, panic buzzing in my chest like a trapped hornet.
Colton planted both hands on the counter, leaning in with a smirk. He was watching me like he was trying to figure out whether I was about to faint or bolt.
"You okay?"
"No. No, I am not okay. I can’t do this, Colton. Public speaking is my actual nightmare."
"You face down aggressive dogs daily."
"Yeah, well, dogs don’t stare at you silently and judge you with their eyes."
He held back a laugh, but just barely. "All right. Come here. Sit."
He reached out, gently grabbed my hand, and pulled me down to sit on the old couch beside him.
"A wise person once told me to just say what I feel," he said.
I narrowed my eyes. "Who was that idiot?"
"You, actually. That was you."
"Well, that was different."
"Riley, I don’t see how it’s different."
"Because this is me standing up in front of a crowd with a microphone and probably sweating through my dress."
"Okay. Deep breath. In through your nose. Out through your mouth."
I did it, mostly just to shut him up.
"Now," he said, still holding my hand, "what are three things you want people to know?"
"Can I tell them I hate public speaking?"
"Honestly? That’s not a bad opening line. It’s funny, it’s real—it’s you."
"Seriously?"
"Start with that. 'I’d like to thank everyone for helping me face my greatest fear—public speaking.' Everyone will laugh, and you’ll loosen up."
I blinked at him. "You’re... good at this."
He grinned. "I’ve been media-trained multiple times. Might as well put it to good use. Okay, so that’s one. What else?"
