Page 145 of The Stalker

She berated herself internally for her slip of the tongue and was grateful when Harrison broke the silence left after her words. “It sounds pretty amazing from what Hayden’s told me.”

Tatiana nodded at him and turned to April. “So, you’re going to be in a movie?”

“Yeah, I am. I’m pretty nervous, actually. It’s my first film.” April gave an awkward laugh.

“You were really good on Saturday Night Live. Oh, Heather, you were good too.” Tatiana smiled at her.

Heather’s entire body tensed up, and she glanced at Harrison before replying with a smile back at Tatiana that didn’t reach her eyes, “Yeah. I’m a born actress.”

Did you really just remind Heather Fletcher of the night she was on Saturday Night Live with April Conway?!

Tatiana wished Hayden would come back because she was making a complete fool of herself in front of his friends, one of whom was someone she would previously have given an arm and a leg to even have a conversation with. She looked over Harrison’s shoulder, but couldn’t see any sign of Hayden’s return.

“Well, I’m sure you’ll be very good in your film. It’s a romantic comedy, isn’t it?” Tatiana asked April, trying to cover her slip.

“Yeah, it’s based on a novel from England, but they’re adapting it to be set in the US.”

“Feeling any better about your co-star yet?” Heather raised an eyebrow at April.

April wrinkled her nose and shook her head. “No. The guy’s a douchebag, but I have to pretend to be madly in love with him. Apparently, we ‘had chemistry’ in his audition.”

“Fake it ’til you make it,” Heather said.

Tatiana was immensely relieved to see Hayden walking toward them, and he smiled at their group as he said, “Okay, you want the grand tour?”

“I’ll just head to my room if you’re okay with your friends, Hayden?” Tatiana asked him.

He frowned at her and nodded. “Of course you can.”

She said goodnight to his friends, then turned and walked into her old room, closing the door behind her. She stretched out on the bed and opened her emails on her phone to read them. She’d been sitting there for about ten minutes when there was a quiet knock on her door.

“Come in.”

Hayden slid the door open and slipped into the room before closing it behind himself. “I told them you needed to talk to me about a security thing.” He crouched at the side of the bed next to her. “Are you okay with all of this?”

“You left me alone with April, and it was so painfully awkward.” She cringed at the memory.

“Sorry, I didn’t know Heather would bring April over to talk to you, preciosa. I did, however, manage to hide all of your things in my room. I didn’t think this through when I said they could come on the bus.”

Tatiana laughed. “You have a track record of not thinking things through when it comes to this bus.”

“Apparently so.” He leaned forward and kissed her quickly. “So, I might’ve done too good a job of hiding your presence in my life…” he trailed off and chewed his bottom lip.

“Uh oh, why?”

“Heather wants to set April and me up on a date. She thinks we would be ‘good for each other’ and that I ‘don’t have a problem doing long distance,’ so it’s fine that April’s going to LA, and I’m on tour.”

Tatiana laughed hysterically at how utterly ridiculous this evening had become. She was basically on the verge of revealing their relationship one minute, and her boyfriend was being set up on a date with her idol the next minute.

“Did you say yes?”

“I told her I’d think about it. I’ll tell her no in the morning,” Hayden said and leaned forward to kiss her again. “There’s only one woman I want to go on a date with, and I’m only allowed out in public with her if she looks like a friend or hanger-on.” He winked at her.

Tatiana considered it and frowned at Hayden. Heather’s behavior today with her visit to the dressing room, checking out Tatiana’s room on the bus, followed swiftly by Hayden’s, and then inviting him on a date. It was illuminated very clearly for her.

“She thinks we’re together, and she wants to force you to admit it,” Tatiana said.

“She has no proof, though.”

---