“I’m so happy you’re here,” Bristol said as she hugged her mom and Reece. She was fresh from the shower, wearing a T-shirt and shorts. She assumed it was only family on the tour bus, but she was delighted to see Annie sitting at the table.

“Honey, you did such a great job. Those fans of yours are so loud,” Vanessa said.

Bristol noticed her mother’s voice was a bit loud for normal conversation. It would take several hours for the ringing in her ears to subside. She laughed and nodded. “You should have worn your ear plugs.”

“I know,” Vanessa practically yelled and pulled her into another hug. Bristol sank against her mom and felt tears well up. She needed this—to be around her family. Even her annoying brother was a sight for sore eyes.

“Now can we do a TikTok?”

“I was just thinking that it was great to see you, and then I remembered that you talk,” Bristol said. At her brother’s shocked look, she caved. “Fine.” Bristol rolled her eyes to seem put out, but secretly she loved making her family happy, even if it was doing stupid videos. “What do you want to do?” Her brother explained a new dance trend. She learned the moves in ten minutes. Reece started it, and Bristol jumped in behind him to finish it. It was a thirty-second video that ended with them crashing into one another because the space on the tour bus was too confined. Lucy recorded them and yelled, “It’s perfect,” then stopped recording.

Bristol untangled herself and helped Reece up. “Are you an influencer now or still just playing around?”

“Playing around. I told you I want to play for the Dodgers. That’s more of a career goal.”

“Your arm is only going to get you so far,” Bristol said. “Let’s sit and talk. I’m tired, and we’re hitting the road in a few hours.” As nonchalantly as she could, she slipped into the round padded bench beside Annie. “Thanks for spending time with my family.” Being so close to Annie that she could feel her body heat made Bristol’s insides twist with nerves. Annie’s eyes were bright and beautiful, and her curly hair was pulled back to offer some relief from the heat of the summer night.

“I’ll never get tired of watching you onstage,” Annie said.

When Bristol looked at Annie’s lips then back up to her eyes, she felt that exciting jolt that had been happening more and more when they shared space. “Thank you. It was a good night, wasn’t it?”

“What do you have to eat around here?” And the award for worst timing ever went to Reece. He slid into the booth beside her, bumping her into Annie. He cringed and apologized.

“Sorry about that. Apparently, my body is shutting down because I need food.”