Chapter 39
Icouldn’t sit still. I stood.
Sat.
Stood again.
Paced the room.
She’d been in the bathroom for over an hour. We weren’t late, not even close, but I was dying to see her. I’d fixed my coat a hundred times or more.
Shoved my hands in my pockets.
Considered knocking on the door… just to check on her.
But I’d refrained.
I deserved a fucking medal.
When the door finally opened…
Christ.
“Jesus, kid,” I breathed, low, reverent. “You’re… wow.”
She fidgeted… not quite meeting my eyes. “You bought it.”
“Yeah,” I said, a slow grin tugging at my lips as she stepped closer. “But you’re the one making it illegal to look at you.”
The dress was exactly how I’d pictured it on her — deep green, fitted through the bodice and flaring softly at her hips, with short off-the-shoulder sleeves that showed just enough skin to make me insane. She’d left her hair down, waves tumbling over her shoulders, and her lips — fuck.
She was fiddling with the clasp of her clutch, not even looking at me. Like she had no clue what she was doing to me just by existing in that damn dress.
“Junie.” My voice came out rougher than I intended.
Her head snapped up, eyes wide. “What?”
I stepped closer, letting my gaze roam over her shamelessly. “You’re—” I shook my head, grinning helplessly. “You’re gonna ruin me tonight.”
Color rose high in her cheeks, but her mouth curved into a small, pleased smile. “It’s just a dress, Barlowe.”
“No,” I said, reaching out to catch her hand in mine, bringing it to my lips for the quickest kiss. “It’s you in the dress.”
Her fingers flexed against mine, and for a second, I let myself imagine we weren’t about to walk into a room full of cameras and flashing lights. That I could just pull her back into the room, press her against the door, and kiss her until we both forgot our names.
I tried to rein my thoughts back in before I let myself imagine too far.
The dress on the floor.
My hands in her hair.
Her mouth on my —
I stepped back just enough to offer her my arm. “Ready to knock ‘em dead?”
She rolled her eyes but looped her hand through my arm anyway, squeezing gently. “Lead the way, movie star.”
The second the SUV door opened, the lights hit us like a freight train. Flashes. Shouts. A dozen voices calling my name, and — yeah — hers.
“Ansel! Over here!”
“Juniper, how long have you two been together?”
“Ansel — are you finally off the market?”
I felt her hand tighten on my arm. Just slightly — but I felt it. So I leaned down, my lips brushing her hair. “Eyes on me, kid. Just me.”
She tilted her chin up — brave, steady — while I guided her down the carpet. The cameras loved her.
Of course they did.
The dress hugged her just right; the color making her eyes look like goddamn jewels under the lights.
Every time someone shouted something about ‘The Way We Move’, or the pool photos, or my ex-wife, I ignored it. I just kept my hand warm on Juniper’s back, steering her gently like we were the only two people on that carpet.
At one point, I caught our reflection in a wall of glass — a perfect picture. Her on my arm, laughing up at me like I was saying something just for her.
They didn’t need to know I had just promised her every special edition book she’d ever dreamed of if we could sneak out the emergency exit and leave the Red Carpet behind.
“Keep smiling, Junie,” I murmured, leaning just close enough for the photographers to lose their minds. “You’re making me look real good right now.”
She huffed a laugh, eyes sparkling. “Shut up.”
“Careful, the paparazzi love a red carpet kiss, troublemaker. “
Juniper tugged on my collar, dragging my lips down to meet hers. I thanked whatever deity would hear me — I’m so glad I forwent the tie tonight, making it easier for her to hold me close to her. Her fingers curled tighter into me as I looped my arm around her waist, kissing her deeper.
The cameras went absolutely feral.
God help me — this felt too real. Like we’d stepped out of whatever lie we’d been telling and straight into the thing I wanted more than anything.
Her fingers slid down to lace with mine just as someone yelled, “Ansel, is she The One?”
I didn’t even blink.
“Yeah,” I called back with an easy grin. “She’s the one.”
Juniper’s head whipped toward me — eyes wide, lips parted — but the cameras flashed so bright, it felt like the world swallowed us whole.
Before I had time to check-in with her, we were swarmed by reporters wanting the scoop on ‘The Way We Move’. The questions overlapped each other quickly.
And before I knew it — I could no longer feel the steady pressure of Juniper’s hand on my arm. I turned, turned again, spinning in a circle.
“Ansel!”
“Ansel!”
“Ansel, over here!”
“If you’ll excuse me,” I started, trying to duck away. “I’ve lost my date.” I offered them a less-than-flattering has-been grin.
“She’ll wait — we want to know…”
The voice started up again.
But they were nothing but noise. My eyes found hers, wide and just the slightest bit terrified.
“Move.” I said, doing my best not to shove the reporters out of the way. The reporters — men — had pushed their way towards me. “Move.” I repeated, trying to keep my voice level.
I was failing.
“You’ve got two seconds to make way for my girl,” my voice had dropped low, fists clenching at my side, “before we start to have a problem, here.”
They parted like the Red Sea, and I shoved my way past them to get to her. I took her face in my hands. “Sorry, kid.”
She gave me a watery smile.
I pressed a kiss to her forehead gently before lacing my fingers back through hers. “Come on, darling. Let’s go watch a movie.”
“The One?” Juniper asked once we had moved away from the bulk of the lights.
All I could do was shrug, offering her a grin that I knew she wouldn’t consider a sufficient answer.