Diamond in the Rough (7 page)

“Um, number one: People know that you have a secret life with real friends, Bee,” Penelope said.  “And number two: Tyler Chase is doing wonders for any rumors regarding your social life.”

“Yes.  Every girl in this world would kill for your social life, Bee.”

“That’s because they don’t know what it’s actually like,” Gemma muttered, gazing into the mirror.  Her naturally brown hair had been pumped up with extensions of different brunette shades.  She had wanted to keep it down that evening, but Penelope decided to pull everything up into a massive ballerina bun.

“Are we almost ready in there?” Mira called into the living room of the hotel suite.  “The cars are waiting.”

Cars
, Gemma thought with an inward laugh.  She had once traveled with a single vehicle of security behind her.  Now she traveled with four.

“Almost done!” Penelope and Armand called back in unison.

They were preparing for the premiere of
The Current
, an independent feature in which Tyler Chase had made his acting debut.  Despite sounding to Gemma like a surfer flick, the film was described as a tale of best friends growing up to work on opposite ends of the law – one as a lead detective and the other as a gang leader.  Tyler played the small role of Nicky, a drug dealer who crossed sides from his brother’s crew to become an NYPD informant.  As cheesy as the plot sounded, Gemma couldn’t wait to see Tyler on the big screen.

As soon as she slipped into her metallic suede dress and studded Louboutins, she rushed out the door, ahead of her entourage.

“Hey, slow down!” Mira called down the hall, chasing after Gemma with Penelope and Armand.  “You’re going to twist an ankle!”

“Nope!”

“You can’t go into the lobby alone!” Mira shouted, her voice fading away as Gemma gained distance on her.  A chill ran up her spine when she stepped into the elevator alone, the doors closing in her security’s face once they caught up.  So she would be mobbed by fans – what was the big deal? They loved her, they didn’t want to
hurt
her.

The solitude of the elevator was peaceful.  Gemma couldn’t remember the last time she was alone as Queen Bee.  She relished every second as she rode from the penthouse floor to the lobby.  She knew the doors would soon open to madness – to either an infuriated security team or a swarm of screaming fans.

Ding
.  It was both.  The crowd spilled into the elevator and Gemma quickly felt a bodyguard’s hand on her wrist.  As he pulled her out of the mob, Gemma blew kisses to her wailing fans.  She even managed to kiss a teenaged girl on the cheek, sending her into joyful hysterics.  Despite the pandemonium, her team joined forces with hotel staff and managed to create a path for her to exit through.

“Why did you
do
that?” Andro demanded when they reached the outside area safely.  Even he felt compelled to reprimand her, which meant that she was in for one hell of a tongue-lashing from Mira.  Gemma just smiled complacently as she caught her breath.

“I had to run,” she answered simply.

~

After the premiere of
The Current
at Tribeca Cinemas, attendees made their way to The Strathorne on Church Street.  The swanky boutique hotel was illuminated in the glow of spotlights and flashing cameras.  A brilliant red carpet rolled out from the hotel entrance to the edge of the sidewalk.  Roped off to the right was a large crowd of media and photographers.  To the left was the army of Tyler Chasers, covering half the block as they held up giant Tyler portraits and other memorabilia.

While her car waited to pull up, Gemma gazed out through the tinted windows.  The cameras flashed nonstop though Tyler had yet to arrive. 

“Who are they going crazy for?” Armand wondered aloud.

“Oh Lord have mercy,” Penelope squinted out her window.  “It’s Zoe Mercury and her crazy friend.”

Gemma immediately began searching the busy red carpet for the two girls.  She found them standing towards the hotel entrance, holding hands and posing towards each other for photographers.  Gemma raised her eyebrows at the transparent lace top on Harper’s dress.

“At least Crazy Friend has fantastic taste in lingerie,” Armand said.

Gemma was too busy gawking to notice a bodyguard standing outside her car door.  They had pulled up to the red carpet.

“What are you waiting for, Bee?” Penelope asked as the door opened from the outside.  “Go get ‘em!”

Gemma sat still.  She watched Zoe and Harper make their way into the hotel before taking her bodyguard’s hand and stepping out. 

“Bee! Queen Bee!”

Her name was called from all directions.  Gemma smiled for the cameras and posed expertly.  She was on Queen Bee autopilot.  It was perfect yet mundane.

“What do you think? Is Tyler Chase a future Oscar winner?”

Gemma forced a laugh with her interviewer.  “He has
my
academy vote!”

“Of
course
he does.  We know what a
special
relationship you two share.”

Gemma pursed her lips into a fairly convincing smile, praying that someone from her team would whisk her away from the interview.  Just then, she felt an arm wrap around her waist and pull her towards the middle of the carpet. 

“Why don’t you come with me, Bee?”

Gemma turned to see Tyler holding her, smiling at her with both his eyes and his lips.

“Hello you,” Gemma giggled. 

“Hey.”  Tyler looked at her devilishly.  “Do I dare?”  Before Gemma could ask what he meant, he planted a kiss on the corner of her lips.  The response was immediate.  A buzz quickly circulated the carpet and his fans howled at them – in either approval or disappointment.  Gemma figured it was both, but mostly the latter.

“You can’t go kissing me in front of your crazy fans,” Gemma hissed at him playfully.

“It was your cheek,” Tyler said innocently.  “Kind of.”  He broke into a grin, helping Gemma forget about whatever anxieties she had just minutes ago.  He held her to his side and they walked up the length of the red carpet. 

“Have you met Zoe yet?” Tyler asked as they were ushered to the event space.

“I haven’t had the pleasure,” Gemma smiled. 

“She’s been telling me to back off of you and let
her
take you out sometime.”

“You guys are friends?” Gemma asked.

“Yeah, we’ve kept in touch since I did that guest spot on ‘Outta This World,’” he said.  “She’s cool.  She’s just a lot to handle when she’s with Harper.”

“Which is always.”

“Lately, yeah.  I’m pretty sure Harper’s a cool girl too, though,” Tyler said.  “But I wouldn’t know for sure ‘cause my people won’t let me near her,” he laughed.

Despite Tyler’s efforts to stay at Gemma’s side all night, he was eventually herded elsewhere for interviews.  Gemma tried not to look visibly disappointed as she watched Penelope approach from across the room.

“Hey.  Perfect chance for me to fix your eyelashes,” she said, nodding towards the VIP room.  “I thought that punk would never let go of you!” she joked.  Gemma smiled weakly and let Penelope walk her away from the party.

She studied the mirror when they got into the room, finding nothing wrong with her makeup.  She couldn’t help but feel like the dork with the overprotective parents.  “What are you even fixing?” she asked Penelope.

“Do you not see this feather coming off?”

“Not really,” Gemma muttered.

“Well I do,” Penelope said tersely.  “And since I let you go without a veil, you need to let me fix the one thing that counts as your disguise.”

“You
let
me go without a veil,” Gemma snorted.

Penelope glared.  “Yes.  I did.  Your aunt wanted one, for your information.”  She applied the finishing touches with the eyelash glue and then held her hands in the air.  “There.  I’m done.”

Gemma glanced into the mirror.  “Big difference.”

Penelope narrowed her eyes at her before heaving a sigh.  “Do not sass me.  I’ll call Armand in here and whip your ass with his skinny tie.  Not even kidding.”

Gemma cracked a smile. 

“See, you laughed.  Now let’s go.”

“Let me just hang in here for a bit?” Gemma asked, taking out her cell phone.  “I’m just gonna call Lucas real quick.”

“Ooh, how sweet.” Penelope made a smooching noise before excusing herself from the room.  Once the door closed, Gemma slipped her phone back into her clutch and plopped down on a chair.  She heaved a sigh, staring into the mirrored walls and enjoying the silence.  Unfortunately, it didn’t last very long.  She soon heard urgent hissing coming from down the hall.  It was accompanied by the sound of dragging heels.

“Hurry up! Hurry
up
, I think he saw us!”

Gemma stood up instinctively, though she wasn’t sure what to do next. 

“
Ouch
! Come
on
, just stand up.”

Gemma inched towards the door and put her hand on the knob.  Just as she creaked it open a few inches, two bodies came barreling through, knocking her over.

“Shut the door!
Fast
!”

Gemma struggled to her feet and quickly pushed her body against the door.  Only then did she turn to see who had crashed into her.  It was Zoe Mercury and Harper Gunn – a heavily intoxicated Harper Gunn.

“Omigod! Hi, it’s so crazy to meet you.  Did I hurt you? Ugh, God, I’m so sorry,” Zoe rambled, trying to drag Harper’s dead weight towards a couch.  “Her dad’s like two seconds from sending her to rehab and he can’t see her like this.”

“Is he here?” Gemma asked.  She knew Harper’s dad, Hudson.  During the school year, she had many times come home to find Hudson in her house, cooking dinner for the family.  Despite being a celebrity chef, he seemed to stay away from media attention as much as possible.  It was hard to believe that Harper was his daughter.

“Yes he’s here and he’s –
wait Harper
!” Zoe shrieked, pushing a retching Harper towards the trash can.  Harper heaved into it. 

“Oh my God,” Gemma reached behind her back to lock the door.  “Should we take her to the hospital?”

Zoe looked up quizzically.  “No? She’s just puking.”

“Oh.  Okay.”

“I just need to get her home without the stupid paps seeing,” Zoe mumbled, watching Harper lay down next to the trashcan.  “There’s a back exit right?”

“But there are people there,” Gemma said.  She had heard her own security team discussing the matter on the red carpet.

“Shit.  So what do we do? How do you usually sneak away from your people?” Zoe asked, biting her lip nervously.

Gemma blushed.  “I don’t.”

“Really?” Zoe widened her eyes and laughed.  “Well we’re going to have to fix that tonight, girly.”

Gemma smiled.  “So… are you here with anyone else who can help us?”

“Nope.  I mean, people would totally help if I asked, but I wouldn’t trust them not to sell the story.”

Gemma thought hard.  “We can go through the back door first and distract the paparazzi.”

“Yeah but who’s going to carry this crazy bitch out?” Zoe nodded towards Harper, who mumbled something unintelligible.

“I mean ‘we’ as in me and Tyler.”

Zoe cocked a dark eyebrow.  “
Huh
, Miss Queen Bee,” she grinned.  “So it’s true what they say about you guys.  He won’t tell me a thing.”

Gemma laughed.  “Nothing they say is true.  We’re just good friends.”

“Yup, don’t believe you at all,” Zoe said, tossing her dark hair back.  “I’ll get you to tell me eventually.  But in the meantime you need to find Tyler and help us get out of here.”

Gemma soon found herself back in the party, trying to locate Tyler.  He found her first.

“Hey, you disappeared,” he said, putting his hand on her back.  “I needed you to save me.  These interviewers ask the weirdest questions.”

Gemma laughed.  “Sorry.  Speaking of saving people though, I need your help with something kind of crazy.”

Tyler stopped in his tracks.  “I’ll do it.”  He smiled at her look of disbelief.  “Don’t act surprised.  You knew I’d do anything for you.”

“Well,” Gemma bit her lip back sheepishly.  She did.  “Even if that weren’t true, I’d still ask you over anyone else.” 
If Lucas weren’t around
.

Tyler smiled with satisfaction and took Gemma’s hand.  “Well whatever it is, let’s do it.”

~

It was impossible to sneak away from the party attendees, even when the point was to do a bad job of it.

“So when no one’s looking, run to the back exit?” Tyler clarified.

Gemma giggled.  “Precisely.”

“You know no one is ever
not
looking right?” Tyler laughed.

“Well, I’m satisfied with the amount of people not looking
right now
,” Gemma said, grateful to the waiter who shattered a champagne flute at that very moment.

“So what are you saying? Go now?”

“Yes.”

“What?”

“
Go
!” Gemma hissed.  She ran to the back exit with Tyler’s hand in hers, both of them laughing uncontrollably.  Hollers of excitement and wonder quickly followed them, and by the time they burst through the back door, the paparazzi had already positioned themselves to get a shot of whomever it was coming through.  They hooted upon identifying Tyler and Queen Bee, running away from the party together.

“Tyler! Bee! Are you eloping?” they called after them, following the two around the side of the hotel.  Gemma ignored them.

“Are you okay running in those?” Tyler asked her in amazement, eyeing her five-inch pumps.  Before Gemma could answer, he scooped her up in his arms, carrying her like a lifeguard would.  Gemma shrieked and covered her mouth in shock as he continued to bolt forward like an Olympic sprinter. 

“
Are
we eloping?” she teased.

“If you want,” Tyler panted.

They finally reached his SUV, where his bodyguard stood outside the passenger door.  He opened it for them, slamming it shut once they were safely in.

“I wish I had a cool bodyguard who would let me run away from my own parties,” Gemma said, pouting.