Page 37 of Red Hot Harmony

The way he spoke about his overdose and his stroke—the self-deprecating and open manner of it—always rattled me a little.

“Here we go.” His soft whisper caressed my ear. “Incoming.”

I knew then we weren’t alone anymore.

Because he rearranged his expression into one I’d seen online so many times before. Carefree. Cocky. Fake.

“Dante. Long time.” A female voice came from behind me. Moments later, its owner’s silhouette swam into my line of vision.

She was suited up, hair gathered into an elaborate bun at the nape of her neck. I couldn’t tell her age, but an abundance of stress lines on her face were a sure indicator she worked in the industry. And she wasn’t the only one. The PR girls who handled the red carpet seemed equally tense. Actually, everyone I’d encountered who worked around celebrities seemed tense.

“Darlin’.” He whipped out his hand for a shake. “Long time indeed.”

The woman took it. “You look great, but I’m sure you’ve already heard that a thousand times today.”

“You know flattery never gets old with me.”

“I must have not told you how wonderful you were enough to keep you on my roster.”

“Nah.” Dante made atsk-ing sound with his tongue. “Just one of thoseit’s me and not yousituations.”

“I’ll take that as a plausible excuse only because it’s coming directly out of your mouth.” She finally showed some teeth and then snapped her attention to me, that wide smile lingering on her bright red lips just a second longer. “I’m sorry to spring on him like this. Linda Schwab.” She stuck out her hand.

“Ex-mama bear,” Dante explained.

“Camille Rockwell.” I slid my palm into the curl of her well-manicured fingers. The grip was firm and enthusiastic.

“Very nice to meet you. I take it your daughter didn’t make it tonight.”

The fact that the woman had just met me but already knew who I was shouldn’t have come as a surprise, but it did.

“You’ve been all over BuzzFeed this week,” Linda added, obviously noticing the shift in me. “Hazard of the job.”

“What’s that exactly?” I asked boldly, finally regaining my momentum. “Reading tabloids?”

“Oh, darlin’,” Dante said in a low voice. “She doesn’t read them. She makes them.”

“I’m his former publicist,” Linda supplied.

“Well then—” I simply smiled because I was lost for words. The woman was intimidating, which knocked me off my game. Usually, I was good with people I didn’t know. I ran a bridal boutique, for Christ’s sake, but here and now—among a sea of strangers who were, to some extent, responsible for ninety percent of all the media headlines—I felt inadequate.

“Anyway, I just wanted to say your daughter is very talented.” Finally, something genuine flashed in the woman’s eyes. “Dante has my number if you’re in need of a publicist.” Her gaze darted across the room. “Excuse me. My client is here.”

She said her goodbyes and took off.

“She’s scary,” I whispered.

“She can be,” Dante agreed.

“Why did you part ways?”

He sucked in a deep breath. “I guess I didn’t want any reminders of my old days. New start. New publicist... She’s still with Frank, though.”

“I can see why.”

“She’s one of the best.”

“You don’t seriously think Ally will need a publicist anytime soon?”

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