“I love you so much, Anson. I’m so glad you punched that reporter and went to jail.”
He laughed.
There was a knock on the door, and then Lanny called out, “Anson? The limo is here.”
“Lanny, could you come in, please?”
Lanny walked in and nearly ran over to me when she saw me crying.
“What did you do to her, Anson Meyer? I will kick your ass if you did anything to hurt her!”
Anson’s eyes went wide in shock as I laughed.
I held up my hand and showed her the ring. Lanny screamed, which caused me to scream. Then we both screamed together like middle school girls.
“This is amazing. We need to fix your makeup,” Lanny said. Then she turned to Anson and pointed at him. “I’m getting a raise. You’ve had my emotions all over the place, you jerk.”
Anson held up his hands in defense and said, “I’ll go let the limo driver know it will be a couple more minutes.”
Lanny turned and looked at me with a smile on her face so wide I thought for sure it would freeze like that.
“Oh, Bristol. Thank you. Thank you so much for putting that man out of his misery. Since the day I met him, I knew his heart was still with you. I’m so happy for you two.”
“Thank you, Lanny,” I said as we hugged.
“Let’s get you freshened up.”
Bristol
THE HIGH I had been on earlier was bound to be busted by something—or someone.
The party we were attending was a charity dinner and dance, or ball, as they called it. Everything was going perfectly until I excused myself to go to the ladies’ room.
My first problem involved trying to hold a several-thousand-dollar dress up off the floor of the bathroom to pee. The second problem was a blonde who walked in while I washed my hands.
She stopped at the sink next to me and leaned in to check her lipstick. Our eyes met in the mirror, and I smiled.
She smirked as she narrowed her eyes at me. “I have to admit, I always thought you were made up.”
“Excuse me?”
She scoffed and then pulled out her lipstick and put it on before she continued.
“You know, the girl behind all the love songs Anson writes. The one who broke his heart so badly he couldn’t commit to anyone else. The ghost who has haunted him for the last, however many years.”
“And you are?” I asked.
“I’m the girl he liked to fuck to try and forget about you.”
Her words hit me so hard, I nearly stumbled back, but I somehow managed to keep my face expressionless. Or at least I hoped like hell I had.
She sighed and then shrugged. “I won’t exaggerate what it was between us. I wasn’t his girlfriend or the one he took to the awards shows. Half the time he brought his mother or went alone. Sad, really. Rumors were starting to go around that he might be gay. But then, he wouldn’t be having an affair with his singing partner, Lindsey, now would he?”
I glared at her as she went on.
“I am, however, the one he fucked up against a building in downtown Nashville one night in his sad attempt to forget about you. Oh, he never mentioned you by name, but now the whole world knows it was Bristol Overmann. The little country bumpkin who broke poor Anson’s heart. How does it feel to walk right back into his life and take up where you left off? Except, now he’s done all the hard work and you’ll reap the rewards.”
Her eyes swept over me as she let out a humorless laugh. I’d had about all I could take of this girl’s obnoxious mouth.
I clapped my hands together slowly, dramatically, and then smiled. I shook my head and said, “Wow. I mean, wow. You must have been waiting a hell of a long time to say all that to me. Tell me, how many times did you rehearse that? Don’t worry about me, sweetie. Anson respects me enough to make love to me in his bed, not up against a wall outside. Now, if you’ll excuse me, my fiancé is waiting for me.”
The door to one of the bathroom stalls opened, and I froze when I saw it was Lindsey Ashton, one of country music’s most popular singers and the woman who had sung a few songs with Anson. Also, the woman who had been part of all the rumors.
Shit. Shit. Shit.
Why hadn’t I realized there might be other people in the bathroom? Embarrassment washed over me.
She started to applaud as she laughed.
“That was absolutely amazing. If I had my phone, I would have recorded it.” She walked up to the blonde and got in her face. “You just got served. Let that be a lesson for you to move along.”
Lindsey faced me and smiled, then motioned for me to follow her. I lifted up my dress and did just that. The moment we walked out of the bathroom, she wrapped her arm around mine.