Chapter 8
Emalyn
The soccer player is nodding along eagerly to whatever Ronan is saying. She’s a professional athlete herself and still has stars in her eyes as she looks at him.
Who wouldn’t though?
Big shot NHL player with a heart of gold— Ro’s a catch.
I continue to direct my assistants to move and set up equipment to get the perfect shot. Once everything is set, the director begins to, well, direct them.
At first, they look out of sync and slightly awkward. When Ronan is told to put his hand on her hip, he looks scandalized. I fight to hold back a giggle.
When she puts her hand on the space between his shoulder and neck, the director tells Ronan to look down at her. She smiles up at him and I snap the first shot. The fan blows her hair back as she gazes into his eyes. His lips pull into a small smile at whatever she says.
The pang to my heart catches me off guard. I don’t even realize I’m not taking the photos like I'm supposed to. The director shoots me an annoyed look, making me duck my head and get back to work.
What was he about to say in the makeup room? And to think I just ran out of there like an idiot. What did I even want him to say? I shake my head, trying to reset my thoughts.
Thankfully, the shoot seems to go by rather quickly.
As quick as a four hour shoot can. Vanessa seems to know her angles.
I can tell this isn’t the first time she’s been the subject of a sponsorship photoshoot.
She’s gorgeous, and kind. She even has the same magnetic charm he does.
They look like Barbie and Ken with their golden blonde hair and perfect smiles.
Finally, they’re able to head back to their own dressing rooms and get changed. Releasing a breath, I take my memory card and put it carefully into its slot in my case. I’ll be going over those with the editor soon.
Strong arms wrap around my waist from behind, lifting and spinning me in a circle. A rare carefree laugh escapes me. I’m set down as his hands settle on my waist and spin me around towards him.
“Oh—“ I stammer, “Kade, what are you doing here?”
Over his shoulder, I see Ronan walk by without saying goodbye. His phone is to his ear and I vaguely hear him say, “I don’t know yet. Give me a few days.” as he passes by. I force my eyes back to Kade who has his eyebrows raised expectingly.
“I’m here for you. I’m taking you out.” He grins, not holding back his excitement. “Come on, baby.”
He pulls me by the hand in the same direction Ronan just went. I see him speaking to Vanessa, saying something that makes her entire face light up. Ronan’s eyes meet mine as we pass. Time seems to slow.
Then resumes again when he looks away.
I go with Kade. He finds us a quaint little diner. One with floral tablecloths and twinkly lights. The tables have candles lit in the center. It’s adorable.
I try hard to listen to what he’s saying. Something about a day trip… fishing? I don’t know. My mind just drifts to the photo shoot. That smile he gave her.
I stir the honey into my tea, watching the liquid swirl in the cup. I don’t even hear the dainty bell above the door chime. I don’t notice the people sitting next to us. Not until I hear her voice saying my name.
“Hey, Emalyn, right?” She smiles at me expectantly. I blink as my brain comes back online.
“Yes! That’s right. Great work today.” I give her an awkward thumbs up and adjust the clip in my hair. I feel Ronan’s eyes on me. I don’t look at him.
I wipe my hands on my jeans, then gesture between Vanessa and Kade.
“Kade, Vanessa. Vanessa, Kade.” I say with a breathless chuckle. Why am I being so weird? I groan internally. I don’t dare glance at Ronan. He knows me too well. He’ll see right inside and then ask questions like are you okay? Why are you so sweaty?
“Nice to meet you.” Kade says to her before turning to Ronan. “What was your name?”
“Ronan. Good to meet you, Kade.” Ronan says, reaching across the space between the tables to shake his hand. Kade glances at me curiously. He’s probably wondering why I didn’t introduce him.
“Heard a lot about you.” Kade says.
Noo. Why would you say that?
“Been talking about me, Emmy?” Ronan’s head slowly turns to me, a slow smile creeping up his face. That nickname sends an electric bolt through my body. It’s one I’ve heard before… one very specific time before.
“You wish.” I shoot back, rolling my eyes. Sass is my deflection. I can’t help it.
“Did I have the honor of being today’s topic of conversation?” He asks, cocking his head, resting his chin on his fist.
“No,” Kade coughs an awkward laugh drawing our attention back to him. “We were just talking about taking a fishing trip. Nothing crazy, just a day trip.”
“Fishing?” Ronan asks, brows rising to his hairline before adding, “I’m a great—no, fantastic fisherman.”
He puts his palm on his chest, looking genuinely pleased. He hasn’t gone fishing a day in his life. I know this to be true because it makes him terribly sad to see them hooked. His heart is so big. He apologizes to inanimate objects.
“Since when?” I cross my arms and stare him down.
“That’s great! Maybe we could make this a group thing.” Kade says. I narrow my eyes on Ronan, trying to convey to him without words to call this shit off. I don’t need him making future plans with Kade, especially ones that involve me. Not when I was planning to let Kade down gently.
The waiter comes over to take our orders.
Ronan blushes as he realizes he hasn’t looked at the menu.
Not to mention, he doesn’t frequent this place nor does he have the menu memorized.
This place has a large menu with a fancy font as well, so I know he is going to struggle.
His eyes track the same line more than once as his brows crease.
“Are you ready to order?”
“Yes, we are.” Kade offers without checking with anyone else. He orders his food and some specially made drinks.
“Oh, the roasted chicken looks really good.” I say a little louder than I need to. I know Ronan likes that dish. I pretend to scan the menu a second longer.
“I think I'll go with the baked ziti, though. A side of the garlic bread too, please.” I say, smiling politely to the waiter.
“Roasted chicken, please.” Ronan says as he passes his menu back. I don’t miss the flustered way he folds and refolds his napkin. Vanessa orders before excusing herself to the bathroom.
The waiter sets out drinks down in front of us.
Kade takes one sip and grimaces.
“Oh, ugh. I need to ask them to fix this.” He says looking at his drink with disgust. “I’ll be right back.”
I watch Kade walk up to the bar before turning to Ronan.
“Tell him you are a terrible fisherman and you’re not going.” I narrow my eyes on him.
“No. I won’t. Because I’m not.” Ronan says, turning his nose up at me. I scoff. “Really. Fishing has been my hyper fixation recently. I’ve watched a lot of youtube videos.”
“You watched other people fish and now you think you’re a fisherman? What about the hooks?” I rub my brow. Of course he does, this is so on brand for him.
“Oh, I usually skip that part. So sad.” He pouts. I don’t bother telling him you can’t skip forward in real life, though it doesn’t sound like such a bad idea right now.
“Look, I don’t want you to go.” I stammer the words out through my frustration.
Ronan’s eyebrows drop and his mouth parts. A look of hurt flashes across his face before he buries it.
“Fine. You’re right. I’ll tell your boyfriend nevermind.
” He says softly and takes a drink of his water.
Guilt settles over me. I open my mouth to tell him it’s fine.
To tell him the reason I don’t want him to go is because I don’t want to go.
Of course, that’s when Vanessa comes back to the table with her lip gloss touched up.
My eyes drop to the table.
“Hey. Emalyn I wanted to ask you…” She keeps talking about the photoshoot and other sponsors I've shot for. I try to follow, but my mind strays. The rest of the outing, my body goes through the motions but my heart isn’t in it.
Ronan is my closest friend and I hate that I hurt his feelings. Even if he was being a bit pushy.