Better than the Book (Charitable Endeavors #4) - M.E. Carter Page 0,8

your choice. Will that work?”

I’m not sure how it’s possible, but my jaw drops even further. I turn quickly to Carrie and point at her. “If you don’t marry this man, I will.”

She looks up at Matthew and makes what can only be described as googly eyes at her fiancé. “Don’t worry about that. I can’t wait to be Mrs. Matthew Roberts.”

He makes a sound that can only be described as a grunt, and then leans down to gently take her lips with his. And they kiss.

And kiss.

And kiss.

And as fun as it is to read about, standing two feet away from them while they make out is not the same.

“Okay, so I’m wildly uncomfortable now. I’m going to get another drink. You guys… just”—I wave a hand at them—“carry on or whatever.”

They don’t even notice when I walk away. Not that I expected them to. If he’s finally getting all the sex, I applaud their ability not to disappear in the middle of this party.

Sidling up to the bar, I wave the bartender down.

“I’ll take another pinot, please.” He nods at my request and turns away to hopefully fill the glass to the top this time. While I wait, I open my email app and sure enough, Matthew has already forwarded me a message from someone at the con asking for verification of my information for the VIP tickets.

I can’t believe I have scrimped and saved and spent three years trying to meet Hunter Stone. Yet Matthew sends one quick text and suddenly I’ve got the most expensive passes money can buy at my disposal.

Not that I’m banking on using them. The universe has a funny way of shutting me down at the last minute. So as excited as I should be, I’m not. I’ll believe this miracle when I see it.

Chapter Five

Hunter

When did I get this old? Or rather, when did I start looking this old?

The fine lines around my eyes, the same ones my mom says are from smiling, are more obvious than a year ago. If I lift my brows, my forehead crinkles and, while a few years ago they went away quickly, now, they linger. Maybe it’s exhaustion and not aging.

I’m exhausted. Beyond exhausted, actually.

For years, I studied and honed my craft. Learning from anyone who would teach me, asking questions, and taking any gig—paying or not—to put my efforts to work. Off-off-off Broadway, also known as dinner theatre in a former pizza place, may be where I started but it isn’t where I sit.

Now, I’m one of the most sought after actors around, thanks to my big break with Prince of Darkness. The announcement that our little television show was going to be turned into a feature film catapulted those of us who could still stop by the local market for a frozen pizza into pseudo stardom. That doesn’t include the film I co-starred in last year that’s scheduled to release for spring break. When I signed on, I had no idea our little action film we had so much fun filming would be touted as this year’s “Blockbuster to Beat.” The response has been overwhelming to say the least.

“Sir,” the chipper voice calls out, pulling my attention from the mirror. I turn to face the kid who has been assigned as my handler for the day. Dressed in a pair of skinny jeans the color of an eggplant, he’s sporting a pair of glasses that used to be popular in the eighties. Grinning from ear to ear, he’s also bouncing on the balls of his feet. When I first introduced myself to him he went on and on about my co-star, Penelope Warner. I can’t blame the kid, she’s gorgeous. A bit of a hard-ass but beautiful, nonetheless.

“What’s up?”

“I’ve been asked to tell you we’re only five minutes from your announcement.”

Nodding my head, I move toward the door to the small bathroom attached to the green room my co-stars and I are using as our “safe space” this weekend. My how times have changed. Three years ago at this convention I could have roamed the aisles like the attendees and used the public restroom like any average guy. Now, I’m hiding out in the green room until security is ready for us to move.

Taking the last few minutes of down time, I splash ice cold water on my face, hoping to reduce the puffiness under my eyes, and waking me up. It’s go time and it isn’t fair to the people who have