Page 12 of Shine For Me

I can tell Fox wants to argue some more, so I slip my arm through Violet’s and give her a squeeze. “Lead the way.”

It’s almost a relief, being surrounded by a throng of excited teenage girls. This is the stuff I can do in my sleep—smile, take pictures, answer questions about different celebrities and what it’s like to be on a film set. This is just another role I play, the script every bit as real as the ones I get from the studio. Be cool but approachable. Kind. Smile a lot. Make them feel like they’re the most important people you’ll talk to all day. Make your life sound glamorous and exciting, but not totally out of reach.

My grandfather’s studio pays public relations firms and media coaches a small fortune to drill this kind of stuff into our heads and it’s second nature at this point.

A hell of a lot easier than dealing with the strange ache that seeped into my chest pretty much the second we walked into this backyard. It’s not the first time I’ve seen the Ransomes interact with each other—Fox has brought me along to a few different family gatherings before. But there’s something about being here today, only hours after my grandfather’s party. The contrast between our realities is sharp. And I don’t like how that feels at all.

Giggling teenage girls, though? This I can handle.

I’m almost disappointed when Everly Ransome appears in the middle of the throng. “Okay, Violet. I think we should let June breathe a little.”

“I don’t mind—” I start to say, but Everly tugs on my hand.

“Me and some of the cousins are drinking margaritas in the garden,” she says. “We demand you come join us for some adult girl time.”

“It’s okay,” Violet says brightly. “Thank you so much for taking pictures and stuff.” Then she surprises me by throwing her arms around me. “I’m so glad Fox has you for a friend,” she says into my ear as she hugs me. “We were so worried everyone in Hollywood would be awful.”

Feeling strangely touched, I squeeze her back. “Most of them are,” I whisper conspiratorially, and she laughs before releasing me and turning back to her friends.

Immediately, I’m hugged again, by Everly this time. “Hi! I’m so glad you came!”

“Me too!” It’s impossible not to be infected by the overwhelming positivity of Everly Ransome’s sunshine personality. When I saw the first commercials for the reality show about the three cousins and their fashion line—a show I am now totally obsessed with, by the way—I’d thought Everly might be kind of a ditz. No one is that happy all the time, right?

But even though the show was probably edited to make her seem sillier than she is, it was evident very early in the first season that there was much more to her than that. She’s an amazingly talented fashion designer—I swear, I would wear her line’s stuff exclusively if there weren’t other brands I was contracted to promote. She’s also super smart and a kick-ass business woman.

All of that became even more clear to me when I met her for the first time a few years ago. My team approached FEA Threads about designing a gown for my engagement party and we met up a few times during the process. Then Fox and I started working together and I got to hang out with Everly in a casual setting, too. She’s funny and gorgeous and engaged to a man who completely worships her. I would be jealous if she wasn’t so nice. To be honest, I have a massive girl crush on her and I’m sure I act like an idiot trying to get her to like me half as much as I like her.

She’s always been welcoming to me and she’s super nice—Everly is nice to everyone—but she probably doesn’t need a socially-stunted, insecure wreck trying to befriend her. Everly has a ton of friends. I’m sure she sees me more as a business contact. I’ve had her design for me a bunch of times since that first dress.

Which was gorgeous, by the way. A far better dress than the party it was designed for or the relationship it was meant to celebrate.

Determined not to think about Adam again for the rest of the day, I try to concentrate on the steady stream of conversation coming from the woman at my side as she drags me across the lawn to a shady patch of garden. Lots of people turn to stare at me as we pass and I do my best to ignore it. Part of the job, right?

“Oh, good,” Alex calls out when she sees us approaching. “She saved you.”

“Sorry about my sister,” Rose says, wincing.

“It was fine.” I follow Everly’s lead and plop onto the grass next to the other girls. “She’s really cute. And her friends are all sweet.”

There are two other girls sitting with Rose and Alex. One, a stunning red-head, is familiar, and I feel my own fangirl moment coming on. Eva Lidell—better known as just Eve to her fans—is a totally famous recording artist who happens to be married to Fox’s older cousin, Will. It would probably be weird to tell her I’ve seen her in concert three different times, so I force myself to just smile politely.

The other woman is someone I haven’t met before, but I still know who she is. “You must be Jasmine,” I say, waving. “I’m Juniper.”

She blinks a few times. “Sorry,” she says, shaking her head with a sheepish grin. “I literally just watchedTowering Pineson TV last night. It’s super surreal that you know who I am.”

“Fox talks about you guys all the time.” Jasmine is married to Fox’s brother River, and is the mother of the baby Fox was holding when we got here. The same baby who made my ovaries basically explode to see Fox cuddle with.

I thought that man was hot enough just walking around doing his thing. But Fox holding a squishy, cuddly little baby? Andlookingat it the way he had—my poor little heart couldn’t take it.

But I can’t tell any of these women that. Obviously.

“Poppy and Harrison are so cute,” I tell Jasmine instead.

She grins. “Cute enough that it almost doesn’t matter when they’re little monsters.”

Eva holds up a hand. “We’re not talking about babies. This is a baby free zone.” She reaches for a pitcher of margarita mix and starts to dole it out. “My little boy is six months old,” she tells me as she pours. “My entire life right now is diapers and spit up cloths.”

“Better get used to it,” Alex says. “I heard your husband tell my husband that he wants another one next year.”