“Congratulations, Ryan.”
“Thanks, Mom.” He leaned down and hugged her.
“Ryan, you were so good!” Hope hugged him next. The tension between them that the discussion about their father had put there had gone, much to his relief.
A young couple approached. “Hey, are you that lead singer?” one of them said.
“Can I have a photo?” the other one asked.
“Sure.” He let them take photos and signed a piece of paper the woman dragged out of her bag.
“Do you hate that?” Hope asked him when they’d left.
“It’s just part of the deal.” He shrugged. “Talon wouldn’t be anyone without the fans, so you take that side of things. How you feeling today?”
“Okay. Just a bit tired.”
“You need to sit down? I’ll come with you.” He noticed the press closing in from the right.
“No, I need to walk, so I’ve been told.” She gave him a tired smile.
“She does. I’ve told her that will get things moving,” Mrs. C said, wrapping an arm around Ryan’s waist and hugging him hard. “The press is here,” she whispered loudly.
“I see that. You throw them off my scent?”
“Tried. Told them you were actually a fudge maker, but they weren’t buying it. Lydia then recited her apple pie recipe in detail. One of them wrote it down.”
“Nice.
“You look hot.”
He leaned in to kiss a soft cheek. She fluttered her eyelashes, and he saw the sparkling things attached to them. “In a sexy way, I hope?”
“Is there another way?” She made him laugh. “Let’s go; you can buy me fudge.” Mrs. C linked her arm through his and Hope’s, dragging them with her.
“You don’t need to worry about me, Mrs. C. I’m used to the press. It’s part of the deal.”
“Doesn’t mean we have to let them hassle you.”
“Who is hassling him?” Jake asked.
“The press is here,” Mrs. C hissed.
“Really? Why?” Fin Hudson said.
“He’s Ryan Lawrence,” Mrs. C said.
Fin looked at Ryan with a blank look on this face, then stuck out his hand. “Nice to meet you. Hope’s brother, right?”
“No one is that uninformed.” Joe Trainer arrived, friend to Fin and another of the Ryker Falls boys. “He’s one of the Talon band members.”
“I have no clue what you are talking about.”
“I sometimes wonder how we can be friends,” Joe muttered.
“All you need to know, Fin, is that Ryan is famous. So famous he played at the American Music Awards recently,” Jake said.
“Get out of here.” Fin whistled. “I know what they are. Once I saw the Eagles sing there.”