When we arrived at the radio station, there was a swarm of people waiting outside. They were being contained on the sidewalk by thick velvet ropes while a couple of fresh-faced college kids wearing colorful lanyards around their necks walked back and forth along the other side of the rope—interns for the radio station, probably.
We all gaped at the assemblage as we watched Nick’s car pull up and drop Tory off. A second man exited her vehicle, grabbing two guitar cases from the back; the boys were going to play one of their songs live this morning, after the station debuted their single with Sienna.
“Are all those people here for us?” Evan murmured.
Nobody knew, so nobody answered him.
When our car pulled up and let us out, the crowd of women started screaming. It hurt my ears from inside the car. I couldn’t believe that so many people were hanging around a radio station at this hour of the day, just hoping to catch a glimpse of the D-Bags. When Kellan stepped out of the car, the earlier outburst was silent in comparison. My ears were ringing when I stepped onto the sidewalk.
Kellan held his hand out for me, his small act of rebellion since Nick hadn’t given him any warnings on PDA, but Tory pulled him forward before I could grab his hand. The front doors of the station opened at the same time, and Sienna walked out, flanked by her two bodyguards. Not realizing she would be at this interview, I was surprised to see her. I guess most of this crowd was here for her then. God, she wasn’t going to be on the entire promo tour, was she?
Kellan seemed surprised as well. Especially when Sienna flung her arms around his neck and kissed each one of his cheeks. Glancing around, I noticed the scores of cell phones capturing every moment of the “lovebirds” reconnecting. The crowd of girls jumped up and down in their excitement of watching this breathtaking couple in action. Farther back in the crowd, I noticed a man with a high-end camera. He had to be paparazzi or with an entertainment magazine; he had a satisfied smile on his face as he clicked photo after photo of Kellan and Sienna.
And Sienna, ever aware of her surroundings, gave him the money shot. Swishing her long dark hair away so her face was clearly visible, she leaned up and finished her greeting with Kellan by placing a light kiss on his lips. Kellan pushed her away as he stepped back from her, but the damage was done—I was positive the photographer had captured the moment. As Kellan started to scowl, Sienna pulled him into the building and away from the tittering public’s sight.
Feeling more like the band’s forgotten assistant than the lead singer’s wife, I hurried after the group. Kellan broke apart from Sienna in the lobby. “What was that?” he snapped at her.
Sienna patted his cheek. “That, love, was marketing.” Kellan’s frown deepened and Sienna’s full lips turned down. “Relax. It’s a harmless photograph to titillate the masses.”
Kellan shook his head. “Not on the lips. They belong to my wife.”
Sienna smirked, and maybe it was my imagination, but I swear she was thinking, They won’t be in a couple of weeks when you’re rolling around in bed with me. “Fine. How’s your voice? Ready to do an acoustic set to kick off our single?”
That took me back. I hadn’t realized that they’d be performing the new single this morning. By the blank look on Kellan’s face, he hadn’t been told about it either. The plan had been to play one of their album cuts once the station played the official recording of the duet. Guess Sienna had decided that she wanted a flashier debut of her sure-to-be-hot song.
Before Kellan could answer her, Sienna swept him away. Kellan looked back at me as I followed behind the entourage. I gave him a warm smile, letting him know I was fine. Sienna and her bodyguards practically shoved him into an elevator while the rest of the D-Bags got into a second one. When both sets of doors closed before I could get into either one, I sighed and waited for an empty car with some of the interns. They giggled and I heard one intern whisper, “Holy crap, Sienna’s boyfriend is hot!”
Not seeing Tory anywhere around, I told them, “They’re not dating.” Nick hadn’t told me that I had to be silent, although it was implied in every stare he gave me. I didn’t want to spoil anything for Kellan by outing that we were married, so I didn’t say anything else, but it didn’t matter anyway. The interns looked back at me with humoring eyes; they clearly didn’t believe me.
When I finally got up to the floor of the building that the radio station recorded from, Kellan and the boys were already in the room with Sienna, wearing headphones and making small talk with the disc jockeys. Their instruments were brought in and set up, and I quietly sat on a stool in the corner, absorbing it all.
The boys all introduced themselves. After Kellan said his name, the female DJ told him, “It really is a shame you are so unattractive, Kellan. It’s a good thing we’re on the radio, ladies, because you would all genuinely feel sorry for this man.” By the sarcasm dripping off her voice, the entire listening audience had to know she was joking.