Page 47 of Get Undressed With Me

She had been talking on her stream about her upcoming collaboration with Champagne, some company Gus only heard of in songs or on red carpet coverage. She grimaced at the question.

“Yeah, I’m trying.”

“Why the face?”

“They’re not liking my designs so far. And they’re asking me to redo them all by Monday.”

“What did they say was wrong with your first designs?”

“They were aimed too much for my current audience and not enough toward the richer, more sophisticated buyer that Champagne usually aims for. I have no idea how I’m going to have time to sketch and swatch between now and Monday.”

Gus had no idea, either, considering what he knew of her schedule for the rest of the convention. But he didn’t mention it,since she already seemed to be stressed out. He glanced at the clock, calculating the times between her panels.

“If you want, there’s a fabric store near the convention center. Hole in the wall, family owned, the guy is grouchy as fuck, but they have a lot of interesting things to sell. People send them their scraps from the cosplay outfits and everything, so they tend to have a variety of things.”

Brittany blinked at him. “That would be perfect.”

“It’s not super close, but we may be able to slip away after your panels and hit it before it closes. Depends on the owner’s mood.”

“Gus, you’re amazing, thank you.”

He glanced away, not ready to make eye contact when she was complimenting him and checked the time on his phone.

“We should get going. The lines are going to be even longer today.”

She grinned at him, knowing he was trying to deflect from himself.

“You really gotta learn to take a compliment, Gus.”

He ignored her, pointing at the time on his phone. “Leaving in five. No heels.”

In five minutes on the dot, they were out the door, Brittany moving slowly with her ankle but otherwise claiming to feel much better than the day before. On the street, Gus took her hand, telling himself it was only to make it easier to keep her close in the crowd. They made it through the entrance of the convention center and were pushing toward the panel rooms when they heard someone shout. Brittany yanked on Gus’s hand to stop him, and they turned to find three women heading their way.

“Oh my god, it’s you! BrittKneeSocks! We’re huge fans!”

Brittany smiled at the women, who immediately asked for a picture, one of them stepping out of the way for the other two.Gus kept one eye on Brittany and scanned the room, keeping his senses alert. A crowded public area like this was the perfect place for a stalker to blend, and Gus was itching to get Brittany out of there.

“Are you her boyfriend?” He looked down to find the one woman who wasn’t a fan had moved toward him, flipping her hair as her eyes scanned him up and down.

“No,” was all he offered, checking on Brittany, who was still smiling through a photoshoot’s amount of selfies.

“Are you enjoying your Kickoff so far?” she asked, clearly not getting the hint that he wasn’t interested in a chat. Gus really looked at her. She was cute, with dark eyes and dark hair, olive skin. Her shirt proclaimed her love for superheroes, and if this were a week ago, her cheek dimple and obvious interest would’ve intrigued him.

Gus glanced up at Brittany, catching her eye. She had been watching them, and she quickly turned away. He turned back to the brunette.

“It’s going well. You?”

“It just got much better.” She winced after she said it. “Sorry, that was a cheesy line. I’m terrible at this.”

Gus couldn’t help but laugh. “You’re doing better than I usually do.”

She brightened, and Gus wished he felt a flicker of anything for this woman. Even a hint of the fire he felt for Brittany and he would be done.

But he didn’t.

“Ready when you are.” Brittany’s voice was light but was laced with tension. She had finished her photos with the other two women, who pulled the brunette to them and waved goodbye, the brunette giving Gus a regretful look.

Gus waved back and turned to find Brittany was already moving, faster than she had been before, and he strode to catch up.

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