Page 11 of The Fangirl and the Playboy

As I walk up to the front porch, memories blast through me much stronger than I expected them to. So many months filming here with Julia as “Lucas” and “Aria” while they fell in love. Then later, climbing up to the second level to knock on Willow’s window.

It’s almost surreal, walking up to the front door.

Especially after that awkward scene with Willow at her shop this morning. I definitely saw that going better, and I’m honestly in no mood to do this.

But Pressley is in town for the weekend, and if I want to fulfill my obligation to Planter’s Vodka, I need to suck it up and put on a happy face. Pressley, Keegan, and I are filming our first BingBang video together tonight.

When I knock on the door, a tall, bearded lumberjack opens the door. It takes me a moment, but I eventually recognize him as Willow’s brother, Trace Bardin.

“Hey. I’m Trace,” he says, shoving a hand in my direction.

“Gavin,” I say, shaking his hand. “It’s nice to meet you.”

He grunts something unintelligible as he waves me inside. He seems grumpy, and I hope it isn’t because of what he thinks happened between Willow and me back in the day. Because of whatshethinks happened between us.

A feminine voice shouts my name just before a short, curvy blonde slams into my chest. Trace growls, making the hairs on the back of my neck stand on-end as I hold my palms up to show him I’m not hugging the woman back.

“Oh, my God. Lucas Lumin in the flesh,” she sighs, rubbing her cheek against my chest.

“Okay, Keegan. Give him some room to breathe,” Trace grumbles, and she turns her nose into my chest and inhales deeply before releasing her grip on me and taking a step back.

Giving me a soft smile, she turns her gaze on Trace, and that smile turns impish. “Sorry, Wolf Daddy. I got a little star-struck.”

My eyes flare wide as I look from Keegan to Trace. Wolf Daddy?Holy shit.He does look a lot like Roger Albright when he played my character’s father, Joseph Lumin, in the movies. The character was coined with the nickname by his female fans.

Trace just rolls his eyes and ushers his girlfriend deeper into the house. She calls back over her shoulder for me to follow, and we end up in the kitchen. The other blonde, Pressley, waves at me from behind the kitchen island, where she’s setting up a few bottles of vodka along with some containers of juice and soda.

I wave back, and she points to a man sitting on one of the stools, calling out, “Hey, Gavin. This is Bram.”

I take his proffered hand, shaking it. “Nice to meet you. You work at the tavern, right?”

He nods. I recognize him, remembering seeing him behind the bar the night Julia and I went dancing during the convention. Our agents thought it would be good to be seen out together even though neither of us really wanted to go. I spent the whole night wishing I’d miraculously run into Willow, and Julia spent the night wishing she was anywhere else.

It seems like the gang’s all here, but with one notable absence.

“I tried to get Trace’s sister Willow to come hang with us, but she had plans. Maybe next time. I think you’re going to love her,” Pressley calls out as if she’s read my mind.

Oh, Pressley. If you only knew.

What are these plans? Does she have a date? Is she seeing someone?

A rock forms in my gut as the questions scroll through my mind, but I can’t voice them. From the vibe I’m getting, it seems none of the people closest to Willow even know we’re acquainted, much less the truth of our history together.

Why hasn’t she told them? Am I a dirty little secret from her past she wants to keep buried?

That rock in my gut just grew into a boulder.

I push the negative thoughts away as Pressley calls me over to the bar. Keegan fiddles with the phone attached to a tripod with a ring light.

“So, the point is to have fun. You don’t have to be silly like us if it makes you uncomfortable. Viewers will sense it. So, just do your own thing, taste the drinks, and pick your favorites. That’s it,” Pressley says, and I nod.

I’m feeling a bit nervous, which is kind of ridiculous. I’m an actor. I can pull offfun, right?

Pressley taps the screen of her tablet, and a popular pop song from the nineties starts playing through its speakers. She hops from foot to foot like she’s warming up for a cardio workout, and Keegan joins us behind the island counter.

“You’ve got this,” she says under her breath, then grabs Pressley’s hands and starts to dance with her.

“Hey, party people! Tonight we have a special guest, the one and only Gavin Reese!” Pressley shouts while looking at the phone.

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