Page 42 of The Glittering Edge

She’s wearing a fake beard.

“Iconic!” a performer shouts.

“I love it,” says another, blowing Penny a kiss.

Penny tugs self-consciously at her facial hair. “I wasn’t sure if it fit the aesthetic.”

“Of course it does!” says one of the performers. “Your mama would be proud.”

There’s a gasp. Ron has stopped in his tracks, one hand fluttering to his chest. His eyes are shining with tears.

“Penny, get over here,” he says with a tight voice. “We’re taking photos.”

Penny groans. “But, Ron—”

“Your mother will disown me if she can’t see photographic evidence of this, so you get your cute little butt over here right now.”

Alonso appears beside Ron like an apparition. “I’ll take the pictures.”

“How very accommodating,” Ron says, eyeing Alonso before he reluctantly hands over his phone.

That’s when Corey notices it.

Alonso takes photos of Penny and Ron, then Penny with a bunchof the performers. But when he’s done, Alonso’s eyes stay on Penny, even after he gives Ron’s phone back.

Corey looks from Alonso to Penny to Alonso again. Alonso must be staring at somebody else. Because there’s no way Alonso and Penny—

Ron claps his hands right next to Corey’s head, and Corey flinches as his ears ring.

“Everyone, we’re starting in five!” Ron says. “Princess Androgynous is up first, with Georgia Peach on deck. Remember, ladies, we need to keep these transitions snappy. We’ve got a full roster tonight.”

Everyone is distracted, doing final prep for the show. Corey’s eyes find Penny again. She’s slightly apart from the crowd, fidgeting with her beard.

Corey weaves through the performers, letting himself be pulled toward her. “You okay?”

“Yeah.” She glances at him. “Sorry about all this.”

“Sorry about the laptop.”

Penny shrugs, and they fall into an uncomfortable silence. This is the perfect time for Corey to bring up the curse. That’s the whole reason he’s here—because even though the curse is unbreakable, there’s a tiny part of him that wants to believe otherwise. He glances up, and sure enough, Alonso is glaring daggers at him. They definitely can’t talk about the curse when he’s around.

“Ron should’ve kicked him out,” Corey mutters.

Penny pulls her beard down so she’s wearing it like a necklace. “Actually, do you have a minute?”

“Sure,” Corey replies, but he immediately regrets it when Penny gestures at Alonso. “Seriously?” he says as Alonso saunters up.

Penny tries to smile. “Let’s use the office.”

Once they’re sequestered inside, Corey crosses his arms. “The show’s about to start, so we should make this quick.”

Alonso smirks. “You’re real excited to show off our costumes, huh?” He nods at Penny. “You told her everything. I’m in disbelief.”

“She deserves to know. What she doesn’t deserve is to see your pasty ass. Did it ever occur to you to stay home?”

Alonso’s mean smile disappears. “I know you think I’m a sociopath, but I didn’t want this to happen. Not to Penny’s mom, and not to anyone else. I never have.”

“That’s bullshit.”

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