Page 8 of SapphicLover69
My brow furrowed, and I tilted my head at her. “Why wouldn’t I?”
“Oh,” she said dismissively and waved a hand at me. “Romance authors don’t usually pay attention to us lesser beings.” She laughed in self-deprecation.
A thought occurred to me. Maybe trying to be sexy and picture-perfect came with a downside. I didn’t want the other writers to think I was a snob.
With a playful smirk, I responded, “I occasionally step off my pedestal long enough to recognize the existence of paranormal and young adult peons. But really, I don’t know many people here and am not above making new friends. What presentations are you planning to attend?”
“Yours, for sure,” Elaine answered bashfully, trying to hide her blushing cheeks. “Not that I write graphic love scenes, but I am curious.”
“Oh, you don’t have to write graphic details for a love scene to send heat through the reader,” I assured her. “There’s more than one way to catch a fish.” I gave her a look of appreciation. There was not even a hint of attraction brewing in me, and not because she wasn’t a total fox. I just got more of a sister vibe from her—way too wholesome and vulnerable. And yet she was the onewho had arrived to grant me comfort. “But more on that topic tomorrow afternoon.”
“Yes, well, I hope so,” she concluded before changing the subject. “What I mostly came for is to take the Haunted New Orleans tour, visit a voodoo shop, and collect information and inspiration for a new book. I was looking at the brochures in the hotel lobby, and there’s a walking tour from eight to ten o’clock tomorrow night that starts at a voodoo shop, so two birds with one stone. Have you ever been?”
“I’ve been to New Orleans but not on a haunted tour. It sounds like it would be fascinating.”
“Great! I’m looking for people to come with me because I don’t relish the idea of walking back from the French Quarter that late at night.”
Dare I resist the hopeful look in her eyes? While there wasn’t a conference function tomorrow evening—specifically so participants could spend the night on Bourbon Street or wherever—I had hoped to hook up with the “in” crowd of top-ranked romance authors. I had to undo the damage to my reputation caused by my stupid stalker. Although now that I knew she was here, there was a genuine possibility one of them was SapphicLover69. Maybe it wasn’t about rage over a fantasy breakup from a relationship we never had. It could be a jealous ploy to gaslight me and keep herself on top. In that case, either Selina Fowlerton or A.J. Taylor could be moonlighting as a trouble-making fan. Going out with Elaine might be the safest thing to do tomorrow night.
“There you are!” declared Winter as she strode up to our table and crossed her arms with a miffed expression. “Tammy and Beth are worried about you, and they sent me to find you. Oh, hi, Elaine.”
“Heya, baby girl.” Elaine turned her sunny smile on Winter. “I saw Aspen come out here alone and thought I’d check on her. She’s not pale anymore.”
Geez, how many people noticed me flee the lounge? And what are they all thinking about me? That crazy erotica author is having a breakdown—can’t handle the pressure. They’ll all want to show up for my masterclass just to watch me fall flat on my face!
“I’m OK,” I muttered and slumped my shoulders.
Winter commandeered the chair on my other side and stared at me with empathy. “Tammy said you got a text from that detestable SapphicLover69. I blocked her right after the first nasty thing she said about you.” The comical outrage returned to her face with her bottom lip puffed out in a pout. Though a smile formed in my heart, straining to be let free, I subdued it. I didn’t want her to think I was laughing at her. She was just so damn cute—a tiny lion rushing to my rescue. “There’s no reason for her to attack you that way.”
“Oh,” Elaine said in realization. For the first time, her cheerful countenance darkened. “I thought that was finally over.”
“So did I.” I suppose everyone in the sapphic reading world had heard about the debacle with Aspen Wolfe and SapphicLover69. Some ignored it, while others found it entertaining. A few took her side, and others took mine. Tammy told me her rants peaked right after I deleted Aspen’s accounts, but they died down and vanished when I didn’t come back online to read or respond to them.
The next thing I knew, Beth had wheeled in across from me and Tammy loomed over my shoulder like a fierce protector. “We aren’t fixin’ to let you out of our sight all weekend,” she vowed in a voice that could have come from Sam Houston himself. “No nut case is about to harm our Aspen.”
“Now you don’t worry about a thing, sweetheart,” Beth cooed. “Just focus on selling lots of books and giving a fabulous presentation tomorrow.”
“Coward won’t even say her peace to your face,” Winter brooded.
“Listen, the comedy show will start soon,” Elaine reminded us. “I think it’s just the thing to get our minds off a negative person whose goal is to stop you from having a good time here. A night of carefree laughter will foil her evil plan.”
I couldn’t help but laugh. I’d come here to mingle with glamorous best-sellers and here I was on the island of misfit toys. Still, my inner voice told me this felt right, and that I was exactly where—and with whom—I should be. Surely this crazed fan or envious foe would show herself tomorrow in the gallery. I would study every person who walked through the room to determine my adversary’s identity. Then I’d press her for her motives and apologize if I’d done anything to offend her.
“Elaine, you’re absolutely right,” I agreed and pushed myself up on steady legs. “By the way, guys, if you’re sticking with me all weekend, be advised there’s a Haunted New Orleans walking tour tomorrow night that Elaine invited me on.”
“The one from the voodoo shop on Royal Street?” Tammy asked with interest flickering in her eyes.
“Yep,” Elaine chirped with a grin as she and Winter rose to join us.
“It’s right around the corner from the Gumbo Shop, Beth,” Tammy said. “We’ll all eat there first and walk around the Quarter if there’s time. But we’ll need to buy our tickets in advance, just in case. There’s a limit to how large a group they’ll take.”
“I’ll reserve the tickets,” Elaine volunteered as she pulled out her phone. “Laugh tonight, get the chills tomorrow night. What could be better?”
Not having to worry about a stalker ruining my life,I thought as I broadcast an amiable smile and thanked my lucky stars for friends.
Chapter 6
The Book Fair
