Page 69 of The Enemy Plot
Epilogue
Alice
Tonight is Lola’s dance recital for the End of the Year Show, and I can’t wait to see her perform on stage. She’s been rehearsing a lot these past two months, even demonstrating a few parts to Deacon and me. But she didn’t want to give away the whole routine. Deacon and Lola’s relationship is still a little rocky at times, but they’re both doing their best to make it work.
I’m about to head out when Hayley squeals from her spot in the reading nook. When I glance at her, I notice she’s on her phone.
“Hey,” I call. “The reading nook is for reading only.” We don’t have many rules in our apartment, but that one is sacred.
“Exactly,” Emma chimes in. She’s sitting on the couch, drinking coffee and reading on her Kindle.
Hayley’s hand flies to her mouth. “Sorry. Iwasreading,” she says, shaking the paperback she’s holding. “But I just saw a notification. Believe me, you’re going to want to hear this.”
I put my bag down and hustle over to the couch. “What is it?”
“They just announced the cast for theVelvet Kissesmovie they’re shooting here this summer.”
That gets both our attention. After going over every single detail of that contract with our lawyer, Emma finally said it was acceptable. And because of the money and exposure we would get from it—not to mention the cool experience—we said yes.
“Get this,” she bubbles while glancing at us, her eyes sparkling. “The female lead is Madison White, and the male lead is Auston Buckley!”
“No way!” I squeal. They’re both really famous and have starred in several romcoms I love. I once saw the two of them together as leads, and they had so muchchemistry, it was explosive. Probably because they’re dating in real life. “I’m excited.”
“Same!” Hayley says, kicking her feet.
“Emma?” I turn to her with a frown. She hasn’t so much as moved since Hayley told us the news, and she’s looking at her coffee, her eyes unfocused.
“What?” she says, shaking her head and looking at me.
“What do you think? That’s huge, right? We wanted exposure for our store. It doesn’t get much bigger than this”
“Oh, yes. For sure.”
Hayley arches an eyebrow. “Why aren’t you freaking out with us right now?”
She shrugs. “It’s a movie. Not really my thing, you know? They’ll probably butcher it.”
I narrow my eyes at her. I’m not buying any of it. She was thrilled back when we decided to accept the studio’s offer—well, as excited as Emma can be, but still—so her behavior is definitely off.
“You do know who they are, right?” Hayley says. “Big actors. Madison starred inForever, and Auston—”
“I know who they are,” she cuts in. Her cheeks redden, and she shakes her fringe like she always does. “I just don’t really care, that’s all.”
I want to tell her that the shade of red on her cheeks says otherwise, but I’m going to be late for Lola’s show. So that conversation will have to wait. Besides, I don’t want to piss Emma off. Ever.
“Well, I gotta go,” I say with a wave. “See you later.”
When I get downstairs, Deacon is already waiting for me, a beaming smile on his face and a bouquet of pink roses in his hands.
“Hey, you,” he says, drawing me against him. Immediately, his woody, earthy scent forms a bubble around me, and I forget everything else.
“This,” he says, taking a single rose from the bouquet, “is for you.”
I frown. “For me? Why?”
“I don’t need a reason,” he says, kissing my temple. “In fact, I should have bought two bouquets.”
I shake my head, smiling. My boyfriend is quite the romantic. You know how he was a total grump before? Well, the romantic in him is double that. Of course, he’s still a little grumpy, but I love that about him. “You always buy me flowers. Not that I’m complaining—Mrs. Edibam’s flowers are always beautiful—but this is Lola’s night.”