All the Right Things (Love in LA)

by Harte, Audrey

  “Princess?” Alex asked as he arched an eyebrow at her and smirked yet again.

  Annie smacked his arm. “Shut up,” she mumbled.

  “Wow. I mean, like really… wow,” Keri said, still staring at Casey where he stood in line with his buddies.

  “Uh huh,” Annie agreed.

  Keri finally dragged her eyes back to them. “So uh, that’s who you’re dating then?”

  “Well…” Annie hesitated. They weren’t officially dating, yet, so she didn’t want to lie, but she also didn’t want Keri getting any bright ideas if she didn’t claim that they were. Thankfully, Alex saved her from having to say more by replying enthusiastically on her behalf.

  “Yup! Aren’t they the cutest couple? Annie’s flying to San Francisco next weekend to spend some time with him while he’s on tour.

  “Oh really? Well, that’s… nice,” Keri said, looking noticeably disappointed as she glanced back at Casey and his friends again.

  Annie’s eyes narrowed and she made a mental note to keep an eye on Keri until Casey was safely back on tour. Some girls had no shame, and she wouldn’t be surprised if Keri tried to make a play for him as soon as her back was turned.

  The next couple hours went by pretty quickly. There was more than enough entertainment to keep things interesting while they waited. There were all sorts of performers practicing in line, including other singers, dancers, an acrobatic balancing act, a juggler, and a guy who played drums using recycled materials.

  Keri and Annie started an impromptu sing-a-along at one point and others quickly joined in, including the drummer. They sang Michael Jackson’s Beat It, sounding surprisingly good for having never performed together. Alex whipped out his iPhone so he could record them, promising that he’d upload it to Facebook. Despite Annie’s initial reservations about Keri because of her apparent interest in Casey, she couldn’t help liking her, and they ended up exchanging numbers, promising they would hang out soon.

  When the line finally started to move, the butterflies started going crazy in Annie’s stomach. This was it. No turning back now. She lightly hummed her first song, popping in an ear bud so she could listen to the first verse again. The phrasing could be a little tricky, and she wanted to make sure that she nailed it perfectly. Alex gave her a little shoulder rub to loosen her up and help her relax.

  A tall, skinny, blonde guy with a clipboard and headset asked to see her ID and had her sign a release form before she was allowed to enter the building. Then she was given a bright blue piece of paper with a number on it and instructed to attach it to her shirt. So much for getting to show off her pretty blouse. Another half hour passed before she was ushered into a room along with three other girls, including Keri.

  There were three people, two men and a woman, sitting behind a table in front of a makeshift stage that had been equipped with camera lighting and a boom mic. The backdrop was a picture of the Hollywood sign with the show’s name, The Next American Superstar, blazing across in big, bold letters.

  The woman spoke first, explaining that she and the other two gentlemen sitting with her were some of the show’s producers they would be auditioning for. Then one of the men continued, welcoming the girls and explaining that they would be asked to sing a song of their choice.

  They had the four girls stand side by side in a line in front of them, and as each one took their turn, they stepped forward from the line and sang acapella for about thirty seconds until one of the producers held up a hand for them to stop. Then they stepped back into the line, and the next girl stepped forward for her turn until all four had sung. Annie personally thought Keri had done well, and that one of the other girls had potential, but was very young and sounded like she wasn’t quite ready. The other girl was beautiful and seemed to have a great presence about her, but unfortunately, she couldn’t carry a tune to save her life.

  The producers huddled together when they finished, talking to each other in hushed tones. The woman glanced up at one point, looking at the girl standing next to Annie, then at Keri, then looked back down at a paper in her hand. She shook her head slightly and leaned to the man on her right, whispering something as he shook his head at her. The other man then said something as he glanced up at Annie, then back at the paper in the woman’s hand.

  After what seemed like a long time, but was probably in reality only a few minutes, the woman finally cleared her throat and looked at the girls again.

  “Okay, ladies. One-twenty-four and one-twenty-six—thank you both for coming, but unfortunately, you aren’t quite what we’re looking for today.” The two girls standing on either side of Annie thanked the producers for the opportunity. Both of them had tears shining bright in their eyes as they left the room. That left Annie and Keri standing there, wondering what was coming next.

  One of the men addressed them next. “One-twenty-three and one-twenty-five, we’d like to hear something else. Do you have another song prepared?” Keri and Annie exchanged glances and nodded at the producers. “Okay great. One-twenty-three, if you can please step to the side. One-twenty-five, please take the center stage and begin whenever you’re ready.”

  As Annie moved to center stage, the cameraman sprang into action and pointed his lens at her. Trying to ignore him and the fact that she felt like she was about to puke all over the stage, she began to sing the Sara Bareilles song she had practiced, starting at the second verse. Letting the emotions show through the inflections of her voice, Annie closed her eyes for a moment as she let herself get caught up in the melody. This time, they let her finish the rest of the song without interruption.

  When she finished, they asked her to step to the side while Keri took her turn. She had chosen to go with a classic, Son of a Preacher Man, and Annie fidgeted nervously as she listened to Keri sing. The girl had some mad vocal skills, and Annie started to worry that she was going to be cut next. As Keri sang the last note of her second audition piece, the three producers were already huddling again and whispering furiously amongst themselves.

  Finally, the woman addressed them both. “Ladies, thank you for coming today. We’d like you both to continue to the next round. Go ahead and follow Jacob here who is going to take down your information. We’ll need you to return later today, so please report back here at two PM sharp.”

  Annie and Keri thanked the producers and followed Jacob out of the room. After providing the necessary contact information, they were given passes that would guarantee them entry back inside when they returned later that afternoon. As they walked out of the building, the girls started to bounce up and down excitedly and gave each other a big hug.

  “Oh my God, I can’t believe we made it to the next round!” Keri squealed, dancing from foot to foot as she did a pirouette.

  “I know! I can’t believe it either, but I am so stoked. This is the best day ever!” Annie said happily with the biggest smile threatening to crack her face in two. She spotted Alex who was a little ways down the sidewalk, chatting with a cute guy who was still waiting in line. She walked over to them and decided to tease him a bit.

  “Hi, honey,” he said as she approached. “How did it go?”

  Annie looked at the ground and sighed, doing her best to look utterly defeated. “Well…”

  “Aww, that bad?”

  “Yeah… I hope you don’t have anything else planned today, because, well…

  I got through to the next round and I have to be back here at two PM sharp, so don’t plan on getting home anytime soon!” she finished in a rush, unable to hide her excitement any longer. Alex let out a whoop and swept her forward in a gigantic bear hug.

  “That’s my girl! I knew you were gonna knock their socks off!”

  “Well, we’ll see about that. But at least I made it to the next round!”

  “I’m so proud of you,” he said with a smile. He turned back to the guy and said he’d call soon, then winked before turning back to Annie. “Come on, honey. Let’s go find some lunch so we can get some nutrition in
that body of yours before you have to be back here.”

  “Okay, sounds good to me!” she said. Linking arms, they walked down the street, heading back to Annie’s car.

  The afternoon auditions didn’t take as long as Annie had anticipated, and she was already back home by early evening, enjoying a celebratory glass of wine with Alex. The producers told her that she would receive a phone call within the next week, notifying her whether she had qualified to move to the next round of auditions in New York City.

  “So now that the audition is over with, are you looking forward to your weekend getaway with Casey?”

  “Yes and no.”

  “No? Why no?”

  “I don’t know. I’m just so paranoid that I’m going to fuck it up somehow. Like I always seem to give up the goods too soon.”

  “Well, I’m not one to talk, but yeah, sleeping with someone the first time you meet him is probably not the best way to get and keep a guy.”

  “So you see my quandary.”

  “I do, but you just have to be strong and stick to your guns. Besides, there are a lot of things you can do without going all the way.” Alex winked at her suggestively, making Annie choke on the sip of wine she had just taken.

  “I think that would kind of defeat the purpose of not sleeping with him right away, wouldn’t it?”

  “Maybe so. Honey, if I’m not getting any, you need to so I can live vicariously through you.”

  “Just go to a club and pick up a new boy toy.”

  “Too much effort.”

  “Wow, you have been holed up at home too long. Go get dressed. We’re going out tonight.”

  “What? Are you serious? I’m not going anywhere unless it’s back to my place to pass out.”

  “Uh uh, I mean it. Go take a shower, douse yourself in some sexy cologne, put on your favorite dancing shoes, and meet me back here in an hour. We’re going out to celebrate my success!”

  “No clothes?”

  “Clothes would be good. Make sure you look hot and sexy so you don’t embarrass me,” she teased.

  Groaning, Alex grudgingly put his glass down and got to his feet, mumbling under his breath in Spanish as he walked out the door.

  “I heard that,” Annie called after him.

  “Yeah, but you don’t know what it means,” he retorted, sticking his tongue out at her.

  “Maybe not, but it sounded dirty. Something about Ben Gay and a ho…”

  Alex burst out laughing and just shook his head, closing the door behind him. Just then, her cell phone rang, startling her. Checking the caller ID, she saw that it was Casey.

  “Hey you,” she said, answering on the second ring.

  “Hey, what are you up to?”

  “Just got home from the callbacks not too long ago… was having a glass of wine with Alex.”

  “Nice. So obviously your first audition went well.”

  “Yeah, it was good. Now I’m waiting to see whether I made it to the finals.”

  “Ah, baby girl, that’s awesome news.”

  Annie grinned at the use of her favorite term of endearment. “Thanks. How about you?”

  “Same here. Killed the audition, made it to callbacks, and we’re waiting to see if we made it to the finals.”

  “Hurray!” she cheered, excited that she was going to get to share this experience with him.

  “Thanks,” he said, chuckling. “Yeah, the crew is stoked. Actually, we’re having a little get together at my place tonight. I don’t know if you can make it or not, but I’d love to see you.”

  “You’re still here? I thought you had to fly back to Denver for a show tonight.”

  “Kayla, the artist I’m working for, has the flu. Apparently, she’s been throwing up all day, and they had to cancel both tonight’s show and tomorrow’s. We’re not scheduled for another one until Tuesday night in Seattle, so I’ve got a couple of days before I have to meet back up with the tour.

  Annie’s heart sped up and did a little flip as she realized she was going to get to see him again that night. “Well, in that case, text me the address.”

  “Already did, check your texts.”

  She laughed. “You’re a little too sure of yourself, mister.”

  “Nah, just optimistic.”

  “Ha… well, alright then.”

  “Oh, and are you busy tomorrow?”

  “No, I don’t have anything special planned.”

  “Great. Pack a change of clothes. You can crash at my place tonight, and then we can spend the day together tomorrow… if that’s okay with you.”

  “Hmm, where will I be sleeping?”

  Laughing, Casey assured her he didn’t have evil designs on her. “Well, my bed is the most comfortable, but don’t worry—I’ll keep my clothes on.”

  “Okay,” she agreed. “What are we going to do tomorrow? Like what kind of clothes should I bring?”

  “Just something casual. I thought we could go to the Grove and have lunch, maybe see a movie, and you can shop if you want.”

  “Music to my ears. Sounds perfect.”

  “So hurry up and leave already. I’ll see you soon?”

  Barely stifling a happy giggle, Annie agreed. “Okay, fine. Give me five minutes to pack an overnight bag, and then I’ll start heading over.”

  After she hung up the phone, she quickly called Alex and explained to him what had just happened. Thankfully, he was only too delighted to take a rain check and didn’t give her too much shit about cancelling their usual Sunday dinner date. Before hanging up, Annie made him promise that they would go out another time soon; she was still determined to get him out of the apartment for an evening on the town. Quickly she packed a bag with her cosmetics and toiletries, a change of clothes and a cute pair of Victoria’s Secret pajamas.

  Pulling up in front of Casey’s apartment building about half an hour later, Annie checked her make-up and put on some fresh lip gloss. She grabbed her things, and then locked the doors before starting up the walkway to the front gate. After locating his name on the callbox, she dialed the number and waited as the phone rang once, twice, then finally someone picked up on the third ring.

  “Hello?” a female voice said.

  Taken off guard, Annie paused for a moment before saying anything. “Hi, um, I’m sorry. I think I dialed the wrong number.”

  “Are you looking for Casey?” the girl asked.

  Feeling a knot beginning to form in her stomach, Annie said, “Yeah, it’s Annie. I’m here for the party.”

  “Who?”

  “Annie,” she repeated.

  “What?”

  “An-nie,” she said again, slowly and loudly drawing out the two syllables.

  “Oh, right. Annie. I’ll buzz you in. Here’s Casey.”

  “Hey babe.” Casey’s voice came on over the line.

  “Hey, I’m at the front gate downstairs, but she—whoever she is—buzzed me in. Where do I go from here?”

  “Oh yeah, that was Trisha. Okay, you’re going to take the elevator up to the third floor, go all the way to your right and then all the way to your left. I’m the corner unit at the end of the hall.”

  Who the hell is Trisha?

  Pushing the jealous thought from her mind, Annie headed for the elevator. When she reached the end of the hall and knocked on the door, it immediately swung open. Casey stepped out and reached for Annie, pulling her firmly toward him as his mouth slanted down across hers. He kissed her like a man who was dying of thirst, yet still savored her lips like they were a fine wine.

  “I’ve wanted to do that all day,” he confessed, nuzzling against her neck as he hugged her tight, then stepped back to look her over from head to toe.

  “Me too,” she said, smiling shyly at him.

  “Mmm… so damn cute. Makin’ me crazy, girl,” he said as he gazed down at her, then pecked her on the lips again before pulling her inside the apartment after him.

  “Hey everyone, this is Annie. Make her feel welcome.”

&n
bsp; She grinned at all of the various greetings coming from different directions as they walked in.

  Casey took her bag and ushered her over to sit down in an empty spot on the couch while he disappeared down the hallway. She assumed he was going to put her bag in his room and would be back shortly, so she tried not to panic when the roomful of people started to introduce themselves to her. How was she ever going to remember everyone’s name? She was sure she was going to embarrass herself by the end of the night.

  After a few short moments Casey returned, bending close to ask what she’d like to drink. She asked for a Sea Breeze, and he disappeared again. When he slid the requested drink into her hand, Annie smiled up at him gratefully, and then gingerly took a sip. It slid easily down her throat, making her hum softly with appreciation. The proportion of vodka to cranberry and grapefruit juice was perfect, making the fruity cocktail refreshing and enjoyable. Raising her eyebrows, she looked up at him and smiled before inclining her head.

  “Not bad, not bad at all.”

  “Oh yeah, Casey is a great bartender,” the guy sitting next to her said. She was pretty sure his name was Chris, if she remembered correctly.

  “Had to be. Couldn’t always afford to support myself on dance alone.”

  “He’s only that great because I taught him everything I know,” the girl sitting across from her interjected, smiling coyly at Casey. She then flicked a glance at Annie as if she was an afterthought and gave her a very fake smile. Annie immediately identified Trisha by her voice when she spoke. “He was such a good student.”

  Casey had just taken a swig of his beer as Trisha spoke up, and he choked as he swallowed, wiping his mouth against his arm as he tried to compose himself .

  “Trisha, behave,” a guy leaning on the wall behind Trisha admonished in a low voice, making her visibly bristle for a moment before rolling her eyes. But then she leaned back in her chair and redirected her attention to the guy sitting in an armchair next to her.

  Great. Again—who the hell is Trisha?

  Shifting uncomfortably in her seat, Annie quickly drained the rest of her glass. The rest of the evening was going to be interesting. She got up and asked Casey if he could show her where to make another drink, and he beckoned for her to follow him with a nod of his head. Annie’s eyes widened as he led the way into a bright, spacious kitchen which was fully furnished with every convenience a gourmet chef could possibly wish for. A full bar was set up on the middle island with a bag of opened ice sitting in a stainless-steel sink next to it.