26. Kiss her
Kiss her
Seventy-two hours later, Hunter was being blinded by flash bulbs as he stood next to Mikayla on a burgundy carpet in front of a cinema in Westwood Village in Los Angeles.
It was so hard not to keep blinking and scrunching up his face in protest. Mikayla clung to him, looking like a goddess in a flowy off-white dress.
Margo had arranged a car service when he landed at the airport.
which had taken him directly to a hotel room in Beverly Hills, where a stylist named Knightley and a groomer named Mikki were waiting to get him ready.
Hunter had no idea groomers existed, and he tried not to panic about who was paying for all this, especially when Knightley gave him a designer suit to wear over a lush green velvet tank top.
He didn’t ask, though, because it felt like a rookie move.
Mikayla was getting styled in the same hotel, so they shared a chauffeured SUV to the venue.
And now here they were. So many people screaming his name—and hers—it was deafening.
A publicist for the network ushered them around, making sure they stopped in front of the right interviewers and gave everyone some time but not too much time.
And then Hunter found himself inside, where he tucked himself against a pillar away from everyone else to text Colby.
Sorry I couldn’t make it home first. You still coming?
Colby
Wouldn’t miss it. Just parking now.
Cool! I double checked and you’re on the list.
Colby
See you soon!
“Well, I haven’t missed this.” Chris’s voice cut through, and Hunter tucked his phone into his pocket. Chris was smiling, wearing a well-tailored pale suit and a less structured shirt, open at the collar. “All the screaming. And the hype.”
“It’s crazy.”
“It is, and everyone will forget it even happened if actual people don’t watch this thing tonight,” Chris told him. “But yeah, let’s all pretend this is important.”
The movie went live at midnight on the streaming service.
Chris was right, that would be the true test. Would the accolades last?
Would the public love it? Hunter started mentally cataloging all the movies that received critical acclaim but flopped at the box office.
Mikayla walked over and took his hand. Leaning into him, she whispered, “Relax, Law. You look like you’re doing math or something. ”
“Sorry.” People had started filing into the auditorium. The entire cast was milling about the lobby, including Eugenie, a broad smile on her delicate face as she talked with a man in a suit Hunter didn’t know.
“I’m not watching. I can’t see myself on screen again,” Mikayla announced. “I’m gonna stay out here and have a drink. I’ll sneak in before it ends. Care to join?”
“I don’t want to watch myself either but…” There was a flash in his peripheral vision. Curling golden brown hair. Hunter lost his train of thought the second his eyes landed on Colby.
He’d just walked through the doors with a bunch of other people, like he was just an average nobody who snagged tickets to this random premiere.
But he wasn’t. He was Colby Keaton, lead singer of a band everyone had started talking about—and listening to if music rankings were to be believed.
He was wearing a black mock turtleneck that was snug and clung to his torso.
The fabric was strange and made the shirt look glossy, as if it were wet, but it wasn’t.
It was tucked into a pair of black pants.
He had designer sunglasses covering his eyes and small but thick silver-colored hoops in his ears that Hunter hadn’t known were pierced.
“You okay?” Chris asked him.
Hunter nodded. “Yeah. My roommate…”
Colby’s head swiveled. His face exploded in a smile, his dimple on display. He tugged off his sunglasses, and yeah, his wide gray-blue eyes were locked on Hunter. He walked straight over, and Hunter took two steps to meet him. “Did you do the red carpet?”
“No. This is your thing. I scooted by in between a bunch of network suits. No one even noticed.” Colby grinned deeper and grabbed him by his shoulders. “This is amazing.”
“It’s… It is,” Hunter allowed himself to agree.
Mikayla cleared her throat and jutted her hand between them, toward Colby, who let go of Hunter to shake it. “Hey. Colby. I’m Hunter’s friend.”
“And roommate,” Hunter added for some stupid reason. Chris’s eyebrows lifted at that.
“Mikayla. And this is Chris.” Mikayla took her hand back and waved it toward Chris. “He plays Hunter’s dad, and I play the love of his life. The woman who defies medical science and gets him to feel passion again on a planet where that’s—”
“He knows the plot, Mikayla, he’s the one who found the script and told me to audition,” Hunter interjected with a laugh. He turned to Colby. “She’s amazing in this. So is Chris.”
“Chris leaned forward, pulling himself off the side of the bar he was leaning on, and shook Colby’s hand. “You an actor?”
“Musician. I’m in a band called Tidal.”
Mikayla’s eyes widened. “Shit. Your music is so good. I love ‘Uncomplicated Ending.’”
“Thanks.” Colby beamed with pride, and Hunter wanted to as well. How weird was that? He needed to rein in his emotions, they had clearly gone haywire.
“So, shall we?” Chris motioned toward the auditorium doors, which were held open as people wandered in.
Colby slapped his hands together. “I can’t wait to see this!”
Hunter led the way. There was an entire row reserved for cast and crew who made the trip.
But since Mikayla wasn’t coming in until the end, Hunter told Colby to sit next to him, on the aisle, so he could get up and sneak into a different spot easily when Mikayla showed up.
Chris had bent the unofficial rules and had Marc tucked in beside him, too.
“Thanks for inviting me.”
“Of course,” Hunter said quietly. “You’re the only person I wanted here.”
Colby grinned again. “Are you coming home tonight?”
“Yeah. I miss our place,” Hunter said, and he felt exposed, like he was admitting to something embarrassing. Yeah, his emotions were really fucking haywire. “Did you drive my car here?”
“Yeah. I still haven’t bought one, and it feels nice to drive the old girl, like old times.” Colby winked.
Hunter grinned and wondered if they could show the movie in double speed so they could get out of here sooner.
The lights dimmed, and the movie started.
Hunter hated watching himself on audition tapes, but watching himself in a room full of people was next-level awkward.
He’d felt like tearing his own skin off in Toronto, but it was easy this time.
Mostly because he just focused on Colby.
Every sound he made, every move, the way his breathing sharpened or slowed depending on the scene.
Occasionally, probably more than occasionally, he snuck a glance.
Colby looked riveted, which had to be a good sign.
Once again, like in the first viewing, it was weird to watch people watching him, especially in the love scenes.
Hunter didn’t have full frontal nudity, but his bare ass had a close-up.
He snuck a glance at Colby for that scene and caught him smirking in a way that made Hunter’s dick stir.
Fuck. It wasn’t supposed to do that anymore.
At one point near the end, after a big dramatic scene between Hunter’s character and his dad, Hunter could have sworn Colby wiped away a tear.
He couldn’t be sure, though, because Mikayla picked that moment to slip into the theater and claim her seat.
Colby moved to a seat across the aisle, one row back.
When the movie ended, the crowd gave them another standing ovation. Hunter and Mikayla stood humbly, and Colby wolf-whistled, making Hunter blush and laugh—until he caught Chris staring at him with a face full of concern. So Hunter clenched his jaw and flattened his smile.
The after-party was at an Italian place in Beverly Hills.
The network bought out the entire place, and waiters floated with mini pizzas and Limoncello Spritzes.
The cast was being fawned over by everyone in the room, Hunter more than anyone.
He ended up with fourteen business cards shoved in his pockets—everyone from agents to managers to lawyers to stylists.
He was flattered and overwhelmed. He had taken a rented SUV over with Mikayla.
The network had ordered it for him. Colby showed up a little later, after driving himself, and stuck to Hunter’s side, which calmed the anxiety spinning inside him.
He was enjoying himself, but he really just wanted to go home and catch up with Colby.
He had also noticed that people were recognizing Colby.
Not a lot, but some, and that was new. Colby looked like a rock star, too.
His outfit was way more badass than his usual vintage band tees and jeans.
He wondered if he had a stylist now, too.
As the night started to wind down, Hunter found himself tucked into the corner of the restaurant.
Colby was beside him, leaning against the wall at the end of the bar.
There were still a ton of people milling about, including Eugenie holding court at a booth with network bigwigs and Mikayla, Chris, and Marc, who were at the far side of the room, laughing about something.
He turned his back on the room and focused on his best friend.
Colby held his gaze, eyes soft and full of pride.
“You did it, Hunter. That movie is going to change everything for you. It was incredible.”