“How are y’all doing?” he drawled, sliding off his sunglasses and giving them his best smile.
“You’re here.” A teen with pink hair, a nose ring, and a brightly colored tattoo sleeve started sobbing. “You are really here.”
Since there wasn’t much to say to that, he winked and took the pen and notebook being shoved his way.
He posed for at least a dozen selfies. Sawyer handed over a second permanent marker when he’d made it halfway from the exit to the car. He scribbled his name on autograph books, shirts, a shoe, and several arms by the time he reached the car. With a final wave and smile, he climbed into the black suburban—to find both of his sisters sitting on the opposite seat.
“You made it.” Krystal said, glancing through the darkly tinted windows. “For a minute there, I thought that soccer mom was taking you down.”
Travis had to smile. “You know how partial I am to soccer moms.”
Sawyer climbed into the front passenger side, his gaze flitting to the rearview mirror. Clearly, he hadn’t expected to find the other two members of Three Kings aboard or he wouldn’t be wearing that look. For Sawyer, the slight eye-narrow headshake combo was about as close to surprise as it came.
“Yeah. Surprise?” Travis sighed. “As my bodyguard, shouldn’t this sort of thing not happen? Not without you knowing about it, anyway.” He ran his fingers through his hair. “That way, I don’t know, you could stop them?”
“Sawyer knows we’re not dangerous.” Emmy Lou leaned forward to pat Travis on the knee.
Sawyer’s eyebrow shot up.
Travis laughed.
“What?” Emmy Lou asked.
“Nothing.” Travis shook his head and stared out the window at the blinking lights and crowded sidewalks of the Las Vegas Strip. “Why, exactly, are you here?”
“We have a family dinner tonight, remember?” Emmy Lou answered quickly. “Brock should be here soon.”
Travis and Krystal groaned in unison.
“Does that mean we’ll be talking wedding talk?” Krystal slumped back against the black leather seat. “Don’t get me wrong, Em, I’m super excited for you and Brock and the wedding. It’s just…it’s such athing.”
“Harsh.” Travis shot Krystal a look. The “Wedding of the Decade” stuff was taxing, but it was worth it. Emmy Lou had never been this happy. He’d keep eating cake samples, offering his opinion on bridesmaid fabric, and look at pages and pages of potential place settings if it kept that joyful smile on Emmy Lou’s face.
And, selfishly, this wedding couldn’t have come at a better time. Emmy Lou had more followers than…anyone. Her wedding and every little thing related to her impending nuptials trended regularly on social media—taking the attention and pressure off of him and his parents’ rapidly declining marriage. How could the third wheel of Three Kings’s return to the stage or another celebrity divorce compete with the wedding of country music darling Emmy Lou King and football star Brock Watson?
“No.” Emmy Lou smiled. “No wedding talk. I promise. Weallneed a break.” She rested her head on Krystal’s shoulder. “I’m just glad he’ll be here. I miss him when we’re apart.”
Krystal took Emmy Lou’s hand, her green gaze meeting his. Krystal wasn’t the hard-ass she tried to be. She guarded her heart from the world—save a select few. At the top of that list was her twin. Hell, when it came to Emmy Lou, they were both fiercely protective. “You know you can still change your mind.” Krystal said it at least once a day.
“I know. I won’t. But I know.” Emmy Lou glanced up at her sister. “I also know that we’re in Las Vegas and there are a million wedding chapels around and you and Jace—”
“Emmy.” Krystal cut her off. “Let’s take one wedding at a time, okay? Besides, we are now way off track.”
Emmy Lou sat up and, together, his sisters turned all of their focus his way.
“I thought this was about dinner?” Travis asked.
“It is.” Emmy Lou smiled. “Partly.”
“How much longer is this car ride?” Travis ran a hand over his face. “If this is about Loretta Gram, I only have one thing to say. Her not liking me thing? Well now, the feeling is mutual.” They had one other thing in common too: both of them couldn’t wait for tomorrow night and their collaboration to be over.
Chapter 3
“The brandy first? And the peacock for the performance?” Juliette Rousseau, her stylist for the awards show, asked. “Then again, the brandy colorismore somber?”
Loretta nodded, staring at her reflection in the floor-to-ceiling mirror of her suite. “I agree. The brandy dress for the performance.” The peacock gown was lovely, but not right for an “In Memoria” performance. Loretta prided herself on simple fashion, nothing over-the-top or too flashy. The peacock dress was a classic ballgown of near-weightless silk, sleeveless with a gentle V neckline that didn’t reveal too much skin. But when she moved, the pleats of the skirt parted to reveal vivid jewel tone silk inserts with peacock feather embossing. “It’s one of the most beautiful dresses I’ve ever worn, Juliette.”
Juliette stood back, gave her head-to-toe assessment, and nodded. “You look elegant and feminine and every bit the country music star you are. Head up, shoulders back, and you will own the red carpet.” She plucked a pin from the pincushion her assistant was holding. “One day, you’ll let me put you in a real statement dress. You’re so young, Loretta. With that figure and my magic, you’d make an entrance no one would ever forget.”
