CHAPTER ONE
Never before had a wedding made Tamera so miserable. Her seven a.m. flight out of Texas and back to L.A. couldn’t come soon enough.
Her eyes trailed around the crowded ballroom. This entire reception was ripped right from her virtual wedding vision board. The four-foot tall table centerpieces of white orchids with sprigs of jeweled crystals were almost identical to the ones she had admired online two years ago. The raised dance floor shimmered under the spotlights with painted glitter, just like she’d always imagined it would. The ice cream sundae bar even had chalkboard tags. Katie had stolen all of Tamera’s ideas, then made them gross by picking lavender as her primary wedding color.
She’d never believed Katie would take their sibling rivalry this far.
A heavy hand landed on Tamera’s upper back, and she looked up at her date. Drew’s dirty-blond hair hung halfway down his broad back in a loose ponytail, and his massive hand held out a glass of champagne.
“Thanks,” Tamera said, accepting the beverage.
“No problem.”
Drew sank into the chair beside hers, looking out of place in a suit and tie instead of his usual football jersey and jeans. He hadn’t wanted to come to the wedding, but Tamera’s begging finally convinced him. After spending nearly twelve weeks in each other’s constant presence, she’d learned Drew’s weak points and how to exploit them.
“How much longer until we can get out of here?” Drew asked.
Tamera took a long sip of the chilled alcohol, trying to cool the fury that had her seeing red at every stolen detail. The lavender silk of her maid of honor dress burned like hot oil. This was the trashier, tackier version of the day she’d always imagined having herself. Right down to the groom.
At least photos of her and Drew at the wedding would look great on social media. Her followers would eat it up.
“You promised you’d stay until the bitter end. You’re my arm candy tonight so I don’t look pathetic.” And Tamera knew without a doubt that photos of tonight would go viral on social media, whether she wanted them to or not.
Drew wiggled his eyebrows up and down. “Say the word, and we can make that agreement a little more permanent.”
Tamera rolled her eyes and tossed back the rest of her champagne. She and Drew had met over the summer on Eye in the Sky, a reality TV show where twenty contestants competed for a million dollars while locked in a glass house covered with cameras. The network had contrived a showmance between her and Drew, but it’d never been more than harmless flirtations on his part and reluctant flattery on hers. The sting of Caleb’s betrayal was still too fresh for Tamera to even consider a relationship. Still, she and Drew had allied themselves in the game and become close friends by the time they were both voted out near the end of the season.
“Friends only,” Tamera reminded Drew. She was pretty sure he was only interested in her because she’d said no, anyway. The quarterback of the San Antonio Vigilantes could have any girl he wanted, even if an injury would keep him benched for most of the upcoming season.
His arm landed heavily around her shoulders. “How about friends with benefits?”
She laughed and pushed his arm off. “In your dreams.”
“You sure know how to make a guy feel special.”
The words sliced through her, and she looked away so he wouldn’t see how they hurt. She had tried her hardest to be a good girlfriend to Caleb. Sure, they’d had their share of problems, but she’d really thought they were happy. How could he have carried on an affair—with her sister, no less—for an entire year without her knowing? She might as well have walked around with #oblivious stamped on her forehead. Followers had said as much in their numerous comments on her page.
The DJ announced that the bride and groom would now share their first dance. Tension spread down Tamera’s neck and over her shoulders. An overly romantic pop song crackled over the speakers, then pulsed through the room at a near deafening decibel.
No freaking way. Katie had chosen this song? And Caleb had let her? Tamera’s mind flashed back to a time when she and Caleb had danced to it at a nightclub, and she’d jokingly suggested it would make a great first dance. Had Caleb told Katie about that conversation? Is that why she’d chosen the song?
The betrayals just kept on coming. It would take a miracle to escape tonight without exploding. Or crying. That might actually be worse. The hashtags practically wrote themselves.
An acoustic guitar swelled through the speakers as Katie and Caleb clung to each other, his hand uncomfortably low on her waist. The couple turned in a slow circle and Katie caught Tamera’s eyes. The corners of her mouth curled up in a smirk as she pulled Caleb closer and placed a sultry kiss below his earlobe.
Was this another layer of payback for Tamera going to junior prom with Katie’s high school crush? She hadn’t even known Katie liked him until after the dance. The sisters had always been competitive, but things had turned vicious after that one event.
Well, Tamera was done. Her fingers curled around the flute of the champagne glass. You won, little sis. Enjoy your spoils. Not that Caleb was much of a catch.
“Hey.” Drew snapped his fingers, and Tamera tore her gaze from the dance floor. “Stop obsessing. You’re over him, remember?”
“Totally over him.” That’s what she kept telling everyone, at least. Tamera took a deep, shuddering breath. Thanks to her inability to keep it together in diary room interviews, pretty much all of America knew about the Katie and Caleb betrayal. The network had taken her confessions and ran with them, making it a plot point throughout the entire season. How could they not, considering the engagement had, in a round about way, gotten Tamera cast on the show?
“Good,” Drew said. “Now smile for the cameras. You never know what will end up posted online.”
He was right. As a pro athlete, Drew was accustom to the constant attention. Tamera was still getting used to it.
It was after midnight when the DJ announced the bouquet toss. Drew gripped Tamera’s hand and gave her a meaningful look. “You don’t have to go over there.”
Tamera glanced at her mother, who stood off to the side of the dance floor with stress lines permanently etched into her brow.
“It’ll make everything worse if I don’t.” Her mother would probably cry about how her only children were constantly at odds. The wedding guests would talk. Someone might tweet a snarky comment that would end up going viral. Pass. She was tired of being an internet meme.
Drew nodded and released her hand. “Then chin up, soldier.”
She dropped a peck on his cheek. “Thanks.”
Tamera walked stiffly to the dance floor, hanging out near the back of the pack of tipsy females. Caleb helped Katie onto a raised platform, his hand lingering at her waist. Bile burned Tamera throat, but she couldn’t look away from the scene. Katie’s white silk dress hugged her trim figure, plunging almost as low in the front as it did in the back. Her dark chocolate hair was the same color as Tamera’s, her petite stature and high cheekbones nearly identical. She caught Tamera’s eye and gave a dazzling cherry red smile—one intended for the entire room. But her eyes glinted with a challenge.
“Ready?” Katie asked.
She wouldn’t dare. Tamera kept her arms to her side, the fake smile she’d sported since early that morning making her cheeks ache.
Katie turned around and counted. “One . . . Two . . . Three!”
The bouquet arched through the air, and the lavender flowers plummeted right toward Tamera’s head. Disbelief warred with fury as she instinctively reached out, catching the bouquet in one hand.
Cheers erupted from the wedding guests. One of the bridesmaids clutched Tamera’s arm, giggling.
“You caught it!” she exclaimed.
Tamera stared at the bouquet, stunned. She heard a squeal from the stage—Katie.
What. A. Troll. Tamera imagined holding Katie down and forcing her to eat the stupid flowers while the wedding guests cheered.
A flash brought Tamera back to reality, and she blinked. The photographer dragged her toward Katie while Caleb stood nearby. His hands were shoved in his pockets, and he gave Tamera her favorite lopsided grin while his eyes roved over her figure. So gross.
Why did her heart still ache at the sight of him?
“Let’s get a picture of you two with the bouquet,” the photographer said, motioning for the sisters to stand next to each other.
Katie’s arm snaked around Tamera’s waist. “I’m so glad you caught it,” she said, her voice sickly sweet. “No one deserves this more.”
Tamera’s smile froze on her lips, her jaw clenched tight as she fought the urge to rip the veil right off Katie’s head. The last time she’d felt this angry, she’d gotten drunk while at a football game with billionaire Luke Ryder and started a fight with frat boys. That was the first time she’d become an internet sensation. She didn’t want a repeat experience.
The photographer snapped a few pictures, then lowered the camera. “Now let’s get the groom in there.”
Caleb stepped forward and took his spot on the other side of Tamera. She could smell his cologne, feel the heat of his body. He looked so good, with his shirt sleeves rolled up to reveal the skull and crossbones tattoo that was the logo for his rock band. Her pulse beat rapidly, echoing in her ears.
“A little closer,” the photographer said.
Caleb took another step, and Tamera tensed. Why had he rested his hand on the small of her back? A thousand memories assaulted her, more blinding than the camera’s flash.
His hand slid significantly south of her back. Tamera let out a gasp and jumped forward.
The photographer lowered her camera. “We’re good here.”
They most definitely were not. Tamera stared at Caleb. His short beard emphasized the lines of his jaw, hiding the dimple she knew lay underneath. He avoided her gaze and wandered off to talk to the best man.
Katie pulled Tamera into a tight hug. “I do hope you can be happy for us.”
Tamera was all too aware of the cameras snapping away. A guest even awwwed at the display of sisterly affection. If they only knew.
Had Caleb serious just felt her up? For the past year, there’d been nothing but radio silence from him. He’d ignored her at every engagement soiree, family dinner, and bridal party meet and greet. And now, on his wedding day, he wanted to get fresh?
She hated him more in that moment than she’d thought possible. What Tamera wouldn’t give for a time machine. She’d go back to the night she and Katie met Caleb, and let her sister have him then and there. They’d both been smitten by the bad boy with a leather jacket and guyliner. But at the end of the night, he’d asked for Tamera’s number.
She should tell Katie what had just happened. Tamera stared at her sister, for a moment remembering her as an eight-year-old with pigtails and a Barbie obsession. They’d fought constantly about who got the Cinderella Barbie, but at the end of the day they’d loved each other.
“I guess Caleb had to date you to realize what he really wanted was me,” Katie said, that sickly sweet smile still on her lips. “I’m so glad it all worked out in the end.”
Ice filled Tamera’s veins. “You two are perfect for each other.”
Katie smiled, raising her voice so the guests could overhear. “We really are.”
Tamera shoved the bouquet at Katie. “You should keep this.”
“I want you to have it. So you’ll always remember this day.”
Tamera’s hand tightened around the flower stems. Like she could ever forget.
“Time for the garter toss, Katie,” the wedding planner said.
Tamera walked off the dance floor, spotting Drew immediately. He towered nearly a head above most of the wedding guests, and his muscled build was hard to miss.
Drew rested a hand at her waist and muttered some words that most certainly weren’t wedding appropriate. Tamera watched as Katie sank into the chair that had been placed in the middle of the dance floor. Caleb knelt in front of her, and Katie’s shrill giggles pierced the air.
Tamera was going to hurl. She turned her face into Drew’s chest, trying to block out where Caleb’s fingers were. The wedding guests hooted and hollered, and Katie’s giggled grew louder.
Tamera pushed away from Drew, fighting the urge to cover her ears with both hands. She walked toward the ballroom exit on unsteady legs, her nails digging into the tender stems of the flowers. So what if this ended up on social media? She’d officially reached her limit. Better a photo of her leaving the party early than one of her crying.
The ballroom doors swung closed, blocking out the noise of the reception. Drew’s hand caught hers and pulled her to a halt. “Hey.”
She buried her face in his chest, unable to stop a few tears from leaking out onto his white shirt.
His arms trapped her to him. “Let me take you to my place.”
That stopped the tears. Drew was rich, attractive, famous, and funny. But she was done with relationships.
She disentangled herself from his arms, putting some distance between them. “Thanks for being my date tonight, Drew. I couldn’t have done it alone.”
He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, trying to catch her gaze. “You know I’m here for you. I’ve got your back, in and outside the Eye in the Sky house.”
She nodded, quickly brushing aside a tear before it could fall. “Thank you. But I think I need to be alone tonight.”
“It’s your last night in Texas.”
“I know, but I wouldn’t be very good company.”
That familiar frustrated glint echoed in his eyes, but he nodded and pulled her into a hug. “It was good seeing you again.”
“Call me next time you’re in L.A.,” Tamera said.
Drew nodded and kissed her cheek. “Don’t be a stranger.” Then he strode out the front door. She knew he’d find someone else to spend the evening with in no time.
Alone in her hotel room, Tamera flung the bouquet onto a cluttered desk. It caught the edge of a file folder and knocked it to the floor, spilling pages of house listings she’d combed through for clients across the carpet. She struggled to reach the zipper on her dress, then yanked, snagging the fabric and leaving a two-inch hole. Good.
Ten minutes later, she was on a treadmill in the hotel gym, running for all she was worth. A crystal-studded bobby pin lost its grip on a curl and bounced to the floor. She ran faster, rock music pounding through her earbuds in a pathetic attempt to drown out her thoughts. Ten miles flew by as she ran until her legs felt limper than cooked noodles.
Katie could have Caleb. Instead of being Caleb’s wife, Tamera would become an award-winning actress—the kind that was married to her career. Thanks to her time on Eye in the Sky, she’d recently signed with a talent agent. Next week, she had an audition for a minor part in a movie.
Take that, Caleb.
Tamera blinked, her eyelashes sticking together as her mascara clumped with sweat. How was Caleb now her brother-in-law? His children would be her nieces and nephews, not her sons and daughters. She’d be forced to relive the greatest heartbreak of her life at every family get together for the rest of her life.
A sob tore from her throat, and she stumbled before regaining her footing. Crystal-studded bobby pins clung to the ends of her curls and littered the floor. Sweat coated her body and her lungs burned with exertion.
A flash of white caught the corner of Tamera’s eye and she glanced to the right, expecting to see a forgotten towel hanging from the free weights. A man stared back at her, his white T-shirt stretched across taut muscles.
Tamera jumped into the air with a scream. Shaky legs reconnected with the treadmill and collapsed. Her butt slammed against the still-moving conveyor belt, and she slid backward before being dumped unceremoniously on the hard floor.
Her heart pounded furiously in her chest while she gasped for air. The man rushed forward and crouched down beside her. He still towered over her, easily over six feet tall. Cappuccino-colored hair stood on end, as though he’d recently been sleeping. Dark eyes stared at her with startling intensity from a deeply tanned face.
“Are you okay?” he asked, his face lined with concern.
Holy crap. She knew who he was.
“You’re Wyatt James.” Her words tumbled over themselves in uneven gasps.
“Uh, yeah.” The smile vanished from his face, but he extended a hand.
She must smell worse than a football locker room right now. Tamera accepted the help up, all too aware of her sweaty skin and tear-streaked face. How humiliating.
His fingers closed around hers, and her breath hitched. His grip was strong and sure as he pulled her to her feet. The genuine concern in his eyes had her limbs turning liquid. Or maybe that was the ten miles she’d just ran.
“You’re okay then?”
She grabbed a tissue from the box on the windowsill and quickly wiped her nose, sniffing. “My ego got the worst of it.”
The concern in his soulful brown eyes almost made her lose it again. “Bad night?”
She laughed, fighting the urge to cover her face with both hands and sob. “That’s the understatement of the century.”
“Geez, I’m sorry. I hope I didn’t make it worse by scaring you. I thought the gym would be empty by three a.m.” He hopped onto the treadmill, but started it at a walking pace.
“You didn’t make it worse.” Tamera forced her rubbery legs to support her weight and got back on her own still-moving treadmill, setting it at a walking pace as well. She couldn’t believe she’d been caught crying by Wyatt James, the star offensive lineman of the San Antonio Vigilantes.
He glanced at her again, his brow furrowed in concern. “Are you sure everything’s okay?”
Tears burned her eyes once more, and she blinked quickly. When she spoke again, her voice was a little shaky. “My sister got married today.”
“Oh.” His muscled arms swung gently as he walked, and his brown eyes asked the unspoken question.
“To my ex-boyfriend.”
“Oh. Oh!” He ran a hand over his closely-cropped hair. “Wow. I’m really sorry.”
“Me too.” She waved a hand rapidly in front of her face, trying to combat the tears. “It’s kind of ironic I ran into you, since I just sent one of your teammates home. Drew was nice enough to be my date tonight.”
Silence filled the room. Tamera glanced over at Wyatt, wondering if he hadn’t heard her over the whir of the treadmill belts.
“How do you know Drew?” His tone was flat, all the warmth from before gone.
She blinked. Was she imagining his cold attitude? “We were both on Eye in the Sky.”
“The reality show. Right.” Wyatt increased the pace on the treadmill, keeping his focus straight ahead.
“I’m surprised to run into you at a hotel. Don’t you have a house here in San Antonio?” Drew owned a palatial mansion worth seven figures, and she assumed Wyatt probably had the same. Tamera and her business partner, Landon, had been trying to break into the high-end real estate market for almost a year. The commission from a single sale would allow her to spend months focusing only on auditions.
“They’re doing some renovations on it. I’m at a hotel for a night or two.”
Didn’t he have a teammate who would let him crash on the couch? She opened her mouth to ask, but he’d pulled out his earbuds and placed one in his ear, the other dangling down near his massive shoulder.
He wanted to run alone. She could relate to exhaustion over fan questions. Her calf was starting to cramp anyway, and she had to leave for the airport in three hours.
“I’d better go,” Tamera said, surprised at how much she wanted to stick around.
His shoulders relaxed and he nodded. “I hope you have a better day tomorrow.”
“Thanks.” She turned off her treadmill and picked up her phone, running a finger over the case. Her agent’s voice practically screamed at her to get a picture before leaving. Right now, her biggest asset was her social media presence, and celebrity encounters were the type of photos that got lots of engagement. “Can I get a picture with you before I leave? My followers will love it.”
Wyatt looked uncomfortable, but stepped off the treadmill, leaving it running. “Sure.”
She grinned and opened up the app. Wyatt stood next to her, his body posture stiff. She could feel the energy coming off him in waves, and it made her entire body tingle.
Maybe she shouldn’t have asked for the photo, whatever her agent would say. Tamera knew what it felt like to wonder if she could force a smile one more time. Oh well. It’d be awkward to take it back now. Instead, she held out her phone and positioned them in the frame. “Smile.”
His entire face transformed, and she instantly recognized the “fan face” she’d seen in pictures online. She had that face, too. Landon pointed it out to her when she returned from Eye in the Sky.
After a few clicks she dropped her phone, and Wyatt immediately stepped away. Cool air rushed in to brush her skin where his had almost touched hers moments before.
“Good luck on the upcoming season,” Tamera said, trying to act unaffected by his presence.
“Thanks. It was nice to meet you.”
“You, too.”
Wyatt tucked both buds into his ears and increased the speed on the treadmill. Tamera stood in the doorway, admiring his long and even stride, before shaking her head and leaving. She pulled out her phone, fingers flying as she posted the best of the five photos to social media. Met Wyatt James tonight! she posted. #celebritysighting #footballforever
Within seconds, she had over fifty impressions. And for the first time, the weekend didn’t seem like a total loss.