Our friends lost their collective minds when Tara was picked second from her group. The women screamed and leapt from their seats, and Silas clapped me on the back, as if I had anything to do with it. I grinned anyway.
“You’re going back to New York!” Elena shouted in disbelief. She looked so fucking thrilled for her friend.
Tara was all smiles.
Yes, we were going back to New York. While she was at practice, I’d meet with our literary agent. We’d submitted the first half of the book five weeks ago and turned in the final when she’d come home from selection week.
There was a six-figure advance coming our way, plus offers for movie rights.
And we’d told no one.
Well, except for Joseph and Julius. It was to protect the club they’d built and run. We let them read it and change what they needed to, covering their clients’ identities, starting with setting the book in New York instead of Chicago. I couldn’t help but wonder . . . would Julius’s business suffer when the book came out? Or would the subtle publicity help? He’d lose some clients, but people loved being part of something infamous.
We were able to get him alone in a quiet corner after the show ended and update him on the book’s progress. He listened, not saying a word.
Tara bit her bottom lip. “I know you’re not thrilled we’re doing this, but—”
He lifted one of his hulking shoulders. “Would my life be easier if you weren’t? Yeah. But it’s not all bad. You’re just pushing up my timetable.” He gave half of a smile. “I’ve been planning a move and an expansion, and the Feds want to upgrade the systems.”
“Oh, wow. That’s good. But about the,” she lowered her voice, “FBI. We kept them out of the book, but I have a condition. I need you to come clean about them with everyone at the club.”
Julius’s brown eyes filled with concern. “I’m not supposed to and you gotta understand—they offer all of us protection.”
Her eyebrows tugged together. “I get that, but you can’t keep them in the dark. They deserve to know, and you need to let people decide for themselves if they want to keep working for you.”
His expression went firm but before he could say anything, she set her hand on his arm in a calming gesture.
“If the FBI gives you shit about it, tell them it was the deal you had to make to keep their cover.”
He sighed and put his fists on his hips. He didn’t like being challenged, but it was clear as he considered his options, he saw he had none. If we put the FBI’s involvement in the book, it would doom his club.
“Fine. I’ll tell them, but you’re lucky I like you,” he grumbled.
She rose up on her toes and planted a kiss on his cheek. “You like everyone, Julius, and they like you because you’re a great guy.”
The party went late, and afterward, Tara and I snuggled together in the back of a cab. She laced our hands together. “I made a decision.”
“Yeah?”
“No pen name. Anonymous.”
We’d gone back and forth on the author name. It was her story, and she’d slaved over every scene, helping me fill in details. I’d done the bulk of the writing, but she wanted us to share credit as equals.
We’d been pitching pen names to each other all day, but it quickly devolved into jokes. “You don’t want to be Harry Balls?”
“Tempting, but no. I like being anonymous. I thought it was kind of fitting.”
I pressed my lips against her hairline, breathing in the scent of her fruity conditioner. “How’s that?”
&nb
sp; “We spent so much time trying to be seen, and now we’re willing to walk away from it.”
“Uh, people are going to be seeing you. Or did you forget you’re on a television show now?”
Her knowing smile was lit by the neon lights of a store as we sped through the heart of downtown. “You know what I mean. This might sound stupid, but it’s like, I just needed one person to see me. Really see me. And now that I’ve found that person, I’m good. I don’t need anything else.”
It made my chest tighten to hear her say that. As if my heart was suddenly a little too big to fit comfortably inside it. I gave her the biggest smile I had. “I feel the same. I don’t need anything else.” I squeezed her. “Just this.”