CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
Later that morning Billie, Tyler, and Curtis along with a large bodyguard arrived at the convention center and were led through a crush of costumed attendees that appeared to be having the time of their lives. Their outfits were imaginative and elaborate and Billie couldn’t help but be impressed. These people didn’t do anything halfway and that was a trait she’d always admired. Tyler had it too.
Lately there were many things she admired about her husband to be. Today it was how his jeans fit. After last night she was hyper-aware of every little thing that made him Tyler. His easy grin. That dimple in his cheek. The way his hair sometimes fell over his forehead, or even how he used his hands when he spoke. The tension between them was high but she was determined to act as casually as possible today. This was business.
“Tell me again why the Thunder movies come to these events?” she asked Tyler as they turned a corner and saw a group of superheroes getting their photo taken. “It’s not based on a comic book.”
Tyler shrugged as a flash from a camera temporarily blinded both of them. “More than comic book movies come to these things. Any type of theme movie or series come here to debut their trailers, especially if the movie has characters that are unique or interesting. Just wait, you’re going to love it. It’s really fun.”
Billie would have described what she was seeing as organized chaos but it all seemed to work for the most part. There appeared to be a line for everything. Autographs. Pictures. Panels. Souvenirs. Food and drinks.
The massive security guy ushered them into a small room where Sam, Nate, Max, and Kirby were already waiting. “It will only be a moment and you can go through those doors and out to your panel. If you need anything, please help yourself.”
There was a table of snack foods, water, and soda. The bodyguard had disappeared somewhere, leaving them with a chatty and rather hyper young man who appeared to work there.
“Okay, you’re going out in just a minute,” he said, grinning from ear to ear. “Now are the ladies going to stay back here or would you like them seated in the audience?”
Good question. What was she supposed to do while Tyler was working?
“If it’s alright with the ladies they can watch from the wings,” Sam stated with authority.
Nate nodded. “Right, I don’t want Paige out in the audience without security.”
Billie’s brows shot up. Why on earth would Paige need security?
Tyler and Max both agreed and the three women were stationed just out of the audience’s view behind a curtain as the men filed onstage to the screams and applause of their fans. Carrie’s eyes widened and she placed her hands over her ears as the decibel level rose alarmingly.
Paige groaned and leaned close to the other two women so they could hear. “This is why our men strut around and think they’re God’s gift. Nate is going to be insufferable for a few days until I get his feet back on the ground.”
Indeed, the men were giving the fans their best Hollywood smiles, waving as camera flashes went off in the crowd until the boys had to be blind. If Tyler hadn’t been cock of the walk sure of himself before this moment, he certainly would be now. He was eating up the adulation with a giant spoon, although to be fair all the men were.
The panel began and the happy go lucky moderator named Steve opened with a question about the Thunder movie being their last – for most of them – and the interview was off and running. The hour was halfway over when the moderator asked Tyler about being engaged.
“It seems like the single men of Thunder are dropping like flies,” Steve laughed. “Was there something in the water during the last shoot? Since you wrapped filming, Nate and Max have both married and Tyler, you’re engaged. Of all of you, I have to say I never thought I’d be talking about you as a potential bridegroom. What happened?”
“That was a shitty question,” Carrie whispered, her nose wrinkled in disgust.
Yes, it was but Billie had been expecting it.
Tyler’s gaze swept the audience before turning back to Steve. “Billie is the most amazing woman in the world. It was that simple.”
A chorus of awws was almost drowned out by boos that were just as loud. The crowd was split as to whether Tyler’s engagement was a good thing. Now Billie understood why Nate didn’t want Paige in the audience.
However, Tyler’s declaration had been quite sweet and he was totally selling it to the crowd. He held up his hands, his smile wiped away, and shook his head.
“Hey, that’s not nice. Billie is a wonderful woman.”
“I love you, Tyler! Marry me!” yelled a fan from the back of the room. A cacophony of other women joined in exhorting all the men to dump their women and marry them. Soon Steve had to quiet the crowd again with a threat that he’d clear the hall if it continued.
“Feel the love,” Paige said sarcastically. “Jesus, I hope we don’t get shanked at this convention.”
“I think I’m going to stick to the bodyguard,” Billie replied, eyeing the restless crowd, over half of them female. They looked riled up about losing their men to marriage.
When the noise quieted down, Steve continued. “Correct me if I’m wrong, but you’ve known Billie Oliver for many years. When did you realize you were in love?”
Rubbing his chin, Tyler pretended to think about the answer. Or maybe he was thinking up a quick lie. Because he didn’t love her. Not that kind, anyway.
“I’m not sure when the exact moment was but it kind of just snuck up on me, and now she’s the most important thing in my life. I couldn’t survive a day without her.”
He was so convincing Billie almost believed it. And she knew what the deal truly was. But damn if he didn’t have a lovesick expression on his pretty face and his eyes had gone all puppy dog. He really should win an Oscar.
“That is so sweet,” Carrie said. “You and Tyler are such a cute couple.”
“Thank you, but Tyler’s the cute one.”
Paige chuckled. “I think that’s debatable.”
The panel went on for awhile longer, both Nate and Max getting to wax poetic about their own wives, much to the chagrin of the ladies in the audience. Some fantasies had clearly been shattered today. Eventually the discussion circled back around to the movie and some of the men saying goodbye to their characters. When the panel was complete the burly security guard magically appeared again and escorted them to the autograph signing area.
Paige immediately took charge. “I don’t know about you but I can’t imagine sitting here for the next three hours watching Nate sign his name over and over until his fingers are numb. How about we go get some lunch and then walk around a little bit? These costumes are incredible.”
“I could eat,” Billie piped up, her stomach growling its approval. Breakfast seemed a long time ago.
“Me too,” Carrie said, elbowing her brand-new husband. “We’re out of here, Hamlet. See you back in the room.”
“Wait,” Tyler said, catching Billie’s arm. “You’re just abandoning me here at the mercy of this crowd?”
He was smiling so he wasn’t really upset. Once he started interacting with his fans he would have forgotten she was there anyway.
“Absolutely,” Billie replied, keeping her features solemn. “I’m throwing you to the wolves. Curtis will protect you.”
The younger man who had been keeping a low profile this whole time smiled, his chest puffing up with importance.
“Heartless woman.” Tyler’s arm wrapped around her waist. “Then I want some sugar before you leave.”
He was laying it on a bit thick, but then after last night she wasn’t all that opposed to getting another kiss. After all, that was what she’d been thinking about all morning. How it had felt to be in Tyler’s arms. Dinah’s voice echoed in her head.
Enjoy it.
Bending his head, Tyler captured her lips with his own. The kiss was lingering and possessive but not overtly so in light of the audience they had – friends, security, volunteers, and a few hundred fans in line for an autograph. It was only when they broke the kiss that she heard the catcalls from the crowd who approved the display.
“This is definitely going to end up on Instagram or YouTube,” Billie said in a scolding tone.
“Let them be jealous.” Tyler’s blue eyes had deepened to almost black. “I’ll miss you.”
Her entire body shook as if she’d touched a live wire. After last night, their relationship had experienced a tectonic shift and now he wasn’t bothering to mask the simmering desire in his gaze. If panties truly could turn into dust and disappear with just a look, her undies would have been history.
“I’ll miss you too.”
How she managed to casually walk away she didn’t know but she did, not allowing herself even a glance over her shoulder even though she could feel his eyes on her ass.
“Holy shit,” Paige marveled as they melded into the crowd, the bodyguard discreetly trailing behind them a few feet. “The air vibrates with sexual tension whenever you two are within a foot of each other. I think I need a cigarette and I don’t even smoke.”
“Chocolate,” Billie stated firmly. “We need chocolate and lots of it.”
She didn’t smoke or drink. She only had one vice left. Sugar.
* * *
Normally Tyler was all about work. He could lose himself in it with a single-mindedness that amazed his coworkers. Today, however, he found himself thinking about Billie when he should have been concentrating on the hundreds of fans that had lined up since early in the morning to get his autograph and a selfie. Anyone who went to that much trouble and aggravation to meet him deserved his wholehearted attention.
Buckling down, he worked through the line one by one. The volunteers kept it moving, making sure that each fan didn’t take more than their share of time. The encounter followed a simple routine. He gave them a big smile, said hello, and asked them their name. Then he’d sign whatever they put in front of him and finally he’d ask if they wanted a picture, all the while trying to chat with them. He would ask various questions such as which Thunder movie was their favorite or what other booths and panels they’d visited so far. Sometimes they’d have a great costume on and he’d compliment it. His goal was to make the meeting memorable for the fan. This was their time with him even though it was short.
In between people, he turned to Curtis who had been hovering in the background handing him fresh Sharpies in different colors like a well-trained pit crew at Daytona and asked him to grab some water bottles for the guys. The convention center was warm and Tyler was working up a sweat. When he turned back, he wasn’t expecting to see two ample breasts at eye level but there they were.
Their owner was leaning on the table, her hands braced on either side of him, and she was way too fucking close. She might be attractive but she was in his personal space. As surreptitiously as possible, he slid his chair back a few inches to put some distance between them.
“Hi, what’s your name?”
Her long honey blonde hair fell over her shoulder and she gave him a coy smile.
Ah, I’ve been here before.
“Amber.”
“Nice to meet you, Amber. What would you like me to sign today?”
She leaned forward a little farther, her breasts even more prominent, and then pulled a black Sharpie from her back pocket.
“Me.”
Shit.
I’ve been here before too.
There were always one or two female fans every year that wanted him to sign their breasts or their ass cheek. And he always did it much to the delight of everyone around him as they snapped pictures or took short videos. The women received the attention and admiration they were looking for and he made a fan happy. A win-win.
But that was all before he was an engaged man. Now it just seemed wrong to be that close to another woman’s boobs even if it was only business. He was beginning to panic when Max tapped him on the arm and pulled him aside.
“Just take the pen and hold it toward the end near you,” Max directed. “Keep your hand and arm away from her body and tell her to keep still. You can do this. It might be easier if you stand up.”
God bless Max. That was exactly what Tyler did, managing to sign his name across Amber’s ample bosom without touching her even once. Then they took a selfie with her tank top pulled down showing off the signature before a volunteer hustled her away and the next person took her place.
“Thanks, man,” Tyler whispered to Max. “I didn’t know what to do there for a minute. This married man stuff is more complicated than I thought.”
“Rule of thumb,” Max laughed. “If you even think for a moment you shouldn’t be doing it, then for the love of God, don’t do it.”
Billie had been right. As always. Things really had changed.