Page 97 of Once Upon a Fake Date

Taking her position and parting the curtains just barely—enough to get a small peek—I saw what felt like an entire row of my teammates.

Here for opening night.

“Well, fuck.” I rubbed at my chest. “I didn’t expect that.”

She giggled, the sound melodic, drifting through the air.

“Positions, everyone!” Mary said, walking through and doing her last-minute checks. But I knew everyone was in place. She ran this place like a tight ship. The orchestra, the lighting team, the sound team—everyone was a finely tuned piece of the puzzle. And they were all necessary for tonight to go off without a hitch. Without every single one of them, there was no way for the performers on stage to shine or for my girl to absolutely dazzle the crowd.

“Happy opening day, Rosie Girl.”

“Happy opening day, Parker. Break a leg.” She winked.

And then we headed separate ways, the introduction music playing as the show was announced and the curtain opened.

I watched the opening number from the wings, unable to keep my eyes off of Audrey the entire time she sang.

My star, my everything.

CHAPTER 29

Audrey

Watching from the side stage as my friends—my theater family, really—performed was nothing short of magical. There were very few scenes in the show where I wasn’t on stage, so each moment of break I had involved some sort of costume change, modification, or switching out of props. We’d rehearsed each piece so much, from staging to running through it, that it was practically second nature now.

I couldn’t imagine doing anything but this with my life.

Maybe one day, after I was ready to settle down with someone, that might change, but I loved musical theater. My parents hadn’t quite understood at first. I knew Ella was in the same boat with her career. It wouldn’t be easy, but it was so fulfilling. Seeing the audience’s faces light up, the way the crowd reacted to each shift in music, all of it was exhilarating.

But the pride in my parents’ eyes as they watched me dance and sing meant more to me than anyone else’s. This wasn’t my first role, but it was my first leading one, and I was so touched to see them there. Cam was sitting beside our parents, looking surprisingly calm even though I knew my dad could be a little overbearing. Ella was in the back, helping with changes for the ensemble that had multiple roles.

Most people had no idea how much truly went into a production like this, even for college.

And Parker.

God, he was incredible.

I loved him more than I could even describe. Maybe he felt it, too. I hoped he did.

Technically, this was it. Our deadline. Because originally, we’d only agreed to fake date until the end of the musical. Even though we’d only been fake dating to get Duke to leave me alone. Not that it had worked until he’d been suspended. And yet, we kept up the ruse.

Except it felt like everything had changed.

What was happening between us? We hadn’t talked about it. Except for the last week, I’d slept in his arms every night. He’d confessed to me he’d been waiting for me, even when he didn’t know it.

I mean,swoon. How could that not make your heart melt?

All I wanted was to pin him down and have my way with him, but I knew the real reason we hadn’t gone further yet. There was something unspoken between us. Like we both wanted it to mean something.

Would he end it now that the musical was over? We didn’t need to fake date anymore. If I confessed how I was really feeling, would everything be different? I didn’t want anything to change.

Because I loved the way we were.

During intermission, my sister found me in the dressing room, wrapping her arms around me. I’d already started redoing my hair, fixing it for my second act dress.

“You’re so amazing up there, Ro. I’m so damn proud of you.”

“Thank you.” My eyes filled with tears. “But look around us, Ells. This couldn’t have happened without you.”

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