Homecoming Hearts Series Collection

by HJ Welch

  As the afternoon drew on, he accepted that he needed to let go of that childish idea and enjoy the rest of his day, no matter how much it hurt. He and Ellie Mae were part of the crew managing the stall between five and six, so Corey had time to fortify himself with slightly stronger liquor and get a good spot to watch Reyse perform on one of the screens. There was no way he was getting close to the front. There were some people who had apparently been camped out there literally all day.

  But that was okay. Corey didn’t want to seem like some pathetic stalker. He just wanted to see Reyse’s face again, to hear his voice for real, not through a TV. Corey still hadn’t worked up the courage to watch that interview on Kimmy.

  It was like he was doing his best to preserve the memories they’d shared during their short time together. How Reyse’s skin felt against Corey’s. The peaceful way he’d slept when they’d shared a bed. The feeling of the vibrations when Reyse had performed for Corey alone.

  He was in a complete world of his own when the sensation of something tugging at the hem of his jeans snapped him back to reality. Corey blinked, remembering he was back at the stall, although traffic had slowed and Ellie Mae and Jack had it under control. Looking down, Corey realized what had pulled him from his reverie.

  A small, fluffy dog had bit into the denim and was tugging at it with adorable little grunts. Corey assumed the dog was a ‘she,’ as she was wearing a sparkly rainbow bow in the fur on top of her head. But on a day like today, it was wrong to make gender assumptions…

  His brain suddenly ground to a halt. Hang on a second…

  His hands shot down, grabbing the small dog to hold in front of his face. “Foofy!” he cried in utter disbelief.

  “Hello?” a voice drifted over the crowd. “Has anyone seen a small dog? Yes, you. Have you seen a dog? She’s most adorable. Answers to Lady Bonniford Honeydew the Third. No? How about Foofy? Foofy! Here, girl!”

  Coldness swept over Corey as Foofy wagged her tail and licked the tip of Corey’s nose. Well, if he wanted a sign from the universe, he’d damn well got one. Now he just had to lay his cards on the table and see what life dealt him back.

  “Evangeline?” he called out in a loud, clear voice. Ellie Mae, Jack and Lucas, the rest of his colleagues and the people hovering around the stall all turned to look at him, still holding aloft the ball of fluff that was Foofy. But he didn’t pay attention to them. He just focused on the enormous sun hat that he suddenly spied bobbling through the crowd.

  “Who’s that? Have you found my dog?”

  Evangeline emerged from the throng like the parting of the Red Seas. Beside her was Reyse’s mom, looking healthier than when Corey had last seen her. Evangeline broke into a smile at seeing her dog held up. Then she slid her gaze to Corey.

  “YOU!” she bellowed.

  Corey cringed.

  Evangeline’s eyes went wide as she stormed over to the Rainbow Roofs stall with Clementine anxiously in her wake. Ignoring everyone else, Evangeline swished her long maxi dress as she rounded the corner before grabbing Foofy from Corey’s grasp.

  Then she threw her other arm around Corey’s neck so tightly and dragged him down to her that he thought he was going to either fall over or choke.

  “You scared us, Corey Sheppard!” she scolded him. She squeezed him once more then released him, both she and Foofy looking up at him accusingly. But she wasn’t angry.

  She was worried.

  Corey’s heart contracted as he processed that.

  “Corey!” Clementine squeaked. “I can’t believe it’s you! You just vanished. Where did you go?”

  “I – I thought it was for the best,” he began.

  “Well, you’re an idiot,” Evangeline chided with a sniff. Dear lord, was she trying not to cry? “It’s a good job I’m very fond of you and Ricky thinks you’re marvelous, otherwise I’d have to spank you.”

  “Who’s getting spanked?” Lucas piped up.

  “Shut up,” Ellie Mae cried in disbelief, rolling her eyes at Lucas. “Corey, sweetie, is every little thing okay?”

  “It is now,” Clementine said. She had her hands clutched to her chest and was standing by Evangeline, smiling at Corey like he was a lost treasure.

  Corey bit his lip and looked between the two women. “He…thinks I’m marvelous?” That was such an alien word for him to use, but it was what Evangeline had said and he was too afraid to paraphrase her.

  Evangeline huffed. “Do you really have to ask that? Yes, he didn’t leave his apartment for three days solid after that damn interview. He was so convinced you’d come back to him. Where have you been? He’s missed you!”

  “The interview?” Corey asked, his ears ringing.

  “The one on Kimmy Kovac,” Clementine prompted, as if there could be another interview.

  Evangeline’s cherry-red and glossy lips popped open as her jaw fell. “You haven’t seen it, have you? Dear heavens above, what am I supposed to do with such thickskulled boys?”

  “Hold on,” said Ellie Mae. “You don’t mean…” Her eyes darted over to Corey, as if seeing him in a new light. “Oh lordy! Do you mean the Reyse Hickson interview? Corey Sheppard! You tell me right this instant if you’re the boy he was so brokenhearted over! The one he thought he’d lost!”

  Corey looked defensively between his coworkers and Reyse’s family. “You guys never said he said anything about the guy!” he yelped. “You said Reyse came out because he got caught out in the lie!”

  “Holy fuck!” Jack exclaimed, grabbing his hair. “The guy in the photos – are you him?”

  Corey opened and closed his mouth like a goldfish. Did he admit that he was? Was it his place to reveal that?

  Evangeline huffed loudly and spun around on her heels, Foofy in her arms. “Come along, before you cause any more trouble.” She did wink affectionately over her shoulder at him, though.

  “Where are we going?” Corey asked as Clementine smiled and looped their arms together.

  “I find it best to do what she says when she gets like this,” she said sweetly, patting his arm. “She’ll look after you. You do look great, honey. It’s so nice to see you again.”

  “You, too,” Corey said faintly. But he looked back at his colleagues. “I can’t-” he began.

  “You only have ten minutes left of your shift,” Ellie Mae scoffed. “We can cover for you! Now scooch! Before I grill you to within an inch of your life!”

  She was sure to still do that later. But for now, Corey was free to go with Clementine and Evangeline.

  He allowed himself to be steered from the stall, waving to his bemused-looking colleagues as he left. Then they marched purposefully through the crowds until they reached a security fence.

  Corey suddenly realized where they were probably going. He stopped dead in his tracks.

  “Oh, no, no,” he stammered.

  Evangeline also stopped walking and turned to face him. But again, she wasn’t angry. Her expression was actually one of complete concern.

  “Sweetheart, what’s wrong?” she asked.

  Panic made a lump rise in Corey’s chest. “I can’t…” he said, trying to voice his fears. “What if he doesn’t want to see me? He’s going to be on stage in half an hour!”

  Evangeline’s face changed from concern to pure sympathy. “Oh, darling,” she said, stepping closer. Her eyes flicked from side to side as she studied his face. “You actually believe he wouldn’t want to see you. Okay, we won’t do anything until after the show. But I promise you”- she cupped his face and rubbed his cheek with her thumb, like a mother might do -“he’s going to be so happy to see you.”

  Corey wasn’t completely convinced that was true. But he believed that Evangeline believed that. So he nodded as security gave him a lanyard pass, then walked through into the VIP area with the two women, his heart in his throat.

  He was going to see Reyse again.

  He just wished he knew what to expect when it happened.

  31

 
; Corey

  Corey felt like he had a neon sign flashing above his head blaring ‘I don’t belong here!’ But he stuck with Evangeline and Clementine as they passed through another security checkpoint and entered the VIP area of the festival.

  Apparently, Evangeline saying “He’s with me,” was not only enough to get Corey a VIP pass, but also into wherever she went. They walked by a bank of trailers with handwritten signs saying ‘Hair and Makeup’ on them, heading to an area with a few dozen picnic tables, projector screens set far apart and a bar serving food and drink.

  Evangeline must have spotted Corey looking anxiously around. “He’s not here,” she said as they headed toward the bar (Corey expected nothing less from her).

  “He’s…” Corey said.

  Evangeline smiled. “I got him a shot and sent him on his way. He’ll be backstage by now. But don’t worry, we’ve got plenty to keep us entertained.”

  “Isn’t it neat back here?” Clementine enthused, still holding protectively on to his arm.

  Corey had to admit it was pretty nice. He spotted a few celebrities, but he was more impressed with the relaxed environment. Even though the event was only for one day, someone had taken the time to wind fairy lights around all the trees, just about visible now the evening was starting to set in. The sound was well balanced, so you only heard what was going on from whichever screen you were closest to. It lost some of that live vibe, but it made up for it with comfort and easy access to amenities.

  Once Evangeline had stocked up on Champagne and glasses, she carried her supplies and Foofy effortlessly over the grass to a group of three men occupying one of the picnic tables. With them was a double stroller containing a little boy sleeping inside, and one of the guys had a young girl of about four or five in his lap looking at a picture book. Corey noted that the children were Asian, even though none of the men were.

  The guy with the little girl was an all-American hunk. Handsome, dark haired with big muscles and a picture-perfect smile. But the way he was cradling the girl as he talked with the other guys was immediately endearing. Corey didn’t find him threatening.

  Next to him was a Latino dude and a slim white guy. Although the closer Corey got, the less he was certain the last guy was actually a guy. He wore a flowery, lacy top over a flat chest with his jeans as well as cork wedges. His lip gloss sparkled in what was left of the afternoon sun.

  “Look, boys,” Evangeline cried as she, Clementine and Corey approached their table. “I have found us the most wonderful surprise.”

  The three guys – Evangeline had called them that so Corey felt okay using male pronouns for now – turned and looked their way as Evangeline dropped onto the bench and immediately began pouring Champagne for them.

  “Hi,” the guy with the young girl said, offering out his hand to Corey as he smiled. “I’m Gabe.” Apparently, Gabe didn’t need to know much about someone to be nice to them. It put Corey at ease as he and Clementine also sat down.

  “Nice to meet you,” Corey said, shaking hands. “I’m Corey.”

  “Oh shit!” the Latino guy cried while the lip gloss guy gasped and covered his mouth. “You are? Evangeline, where on Earth did you find him?”

  “Foofy found him, actually,” she replied with a smile. “Oh, Corey. Don’t look so worried. This is Elion and Ashby, Blake and TJ’s husbands. Gabe sitting with Jia Li there is married to Joey. And that’s little Hai in the stroller. Say hi, Hai!”

  The baby yawned and continued to snooze.

  Corey looked at the guys staring at him. Holy crap. These were all of Below Zero’s other halves. Well, almost all. One was missing. “You know who I am, then?” he asked nervously.

  “Naturally,” Elion cried.

  But Ashby shook his head. “No, actually,” he said with an English accent, arching a blond eyebrow. “We’re very confused. What actually happened between you and Reyse?”

  “And are you here to fix it?” Elion asked, a sparkle in his eyes.

  “Guys,” Gabe said with a slight warning tone. He bounced Jia Li on his knee and turned the page of the picture book she was looking at with him. “Don’t interrogate Corey.”

  “Yes, he’s here to fix it,” Evangeline announced to them all. “It was all just a terrible misunderstanding.”

  “So, does Reyse know you’re here?” Ashby asked in concern.

  “Um, no,” Corey admitted. He felt too sick to drink, so he just toyed with the stem of his glass.

  But Elion’s face brightened up. “Oh, excellent,” he said. “A surprise. He’ll love it.”

  “Will he?” Corey asked. “I ghosted him. I walked away because I thought I’d ruined his life and left him to deal with all this crap by himself. I gave him no way to contact me and I was too scared to contact him. He probably hates me!”

  He didn’t realize his voice had been steadily getting louder until he shouted the last words. The rest of the table stared at him.

  “Sorry,” he mumbled.

  It was Clementine who reached out and took his hand in her own. “We all make mistakes, honey,” she said kindly. “What’s important is how we deal with the consequences. Do you want to see Reyse?”

  Corey bit his lip. He swore he wouldn’t get emotional, but his eyes warmed with tears. “Most than anything,” he said thickly. “I…I never saw the interview. You were right, Evangeline. Did he really talk about me?”

  “Not by name,” said Evangeline. “But it was obvious.”

  “It really was,” Elion said sincerely.

  Ashby nodded. “He was dreadfully upset. I’m sure he’ll be thrilled to see you now.”

  An immense cheer in the air caught all their attention. Corey joined them in looking at the main screen. His heart skipped a beat. Reyse had just appeared on stage.

  “What shall we do?” Clementine asked anxiously. “Watch here or go backstage?”

  “I think we’ll get in the way backstage,” Gabe said dubiously.

  “Here’s fine,” Corey said, probably a little too tersely. It was crazy, having been heartbroken over the possibility of never seeing him again. But Corey couldn’t face Reyse yet, not while he was midperformance. It might throw him completely. Corey had no idea what he wanted to say and he was sure Reyse didn’t either.

  This was a bad idea. He should go. It was never going to work. He and Reyse were from different worlds. Corey had let him down. They had no future together. He needed to get out of here before these guys put Reyse in an awkward position.

  “Oh my god, you’re him!” another British accent rang out, distracting the table from where they’d been watching Reyse speaking to the crowd. Corey barely had time to look around before he was engulfed by a pair of long arms and a squeal that sounded directly by his ear. “You made it! I so hoped you would!”

  The woman let him go, and Corey realized he’d just been hugged by acclaimed actress Bella Dalton.

  Bella Dalton knew who he was.

  “Um,” he stammered.

  “Well, budge up, budge up!” Bella cried, making room on the picnic table for her and the guy she was now holding hands with. “It’s Corey, right? Ahh, Reyse is going to be so thrilled to see you! Does he know you’re here? No, of course not, he’d have said something.”

  “We’re going to wait until the end of the show,” Evangeline said, rising gracefully to her feet, leaving Foofy standing on the picnic table. Jia Li cautiously reached out and patted her head. Foofy wagged her tail. “I’ll get some more drinks. Everyone relax, have a good time. This is going to be great fun, I’m sure.”

  Corey tried to chill out as Below Zero suddenly appeared from nowhere, giving the audience a surprise reunion. They heard the insane screaming from the other side of the stage. Everyone in the VIP area was enthralled watching the show, so Corey tried his best to concentrate and join them. But he couldn’t really focus whenever he saw Reyse’s face and his heart ached.

  Had he already fucked this up beyond repair? Would Reyse forgive him for doing
what he thought was best for Reyse’s career?

  “I’ve texted Blake,” Elion announced after a while of general chitchat while watching the concert. “That Corey’s here,” Elion clarified when people looked at him expectantly.

  “Oh, good,” Ashby breathed out in relief. “Because I messaged Trent and I wasn’t sure if I should have.”

  “Oh,” Corey said, not sure what to think. His stomach immediately twisted with nerves.

  Gabe leaned in. Jia Li had dozed off despite the nose around them, and Gabe had her sprawled across his lap. “Saying what?”

  Elion shrugged. “Just that he was here. Oh!” His phone pinged and he looked up to the screen. Blake was not currently on stage. Sure enough, it was him who’d texted Elion. “He says once the medley of Reyse’s songs starts to head backstage.”

  There was a general chorus of agreement. But Corey found he couldn’t speak. “What is he going to do?”

  Elion looked at him in surprise. “Oh, babe,” he said, reaching out and offering his hand to Corey. Aware everyone was watching them, Corey paused, then slipped his hand into Elion’s. “He won’t do anything to mess with you, I promise. He knows the kind of things that can go wrong on TV. I think he’ll just want to help out one of his best friends.”

  Corey looked at this guy he had just met, at all these people he’d just met.

  There was kindness in their eyes. Bella freaking Dalton rubbed his back and smiled at him. Ashby and Gabe nodded in agreement with Elion’s words. Foofy trotted up to him and headbutted his chest until he petted her.

  Corey was so used to people not giving a damn about him, it was difficult for him to imagine complete strangers would. But Evangeline and Clementine were also looking earnestly at him. Corey thought of his colleagues who had worked so hard to make him feel welcomed, especially Ellie Mae, who seemed to have appointed herself as his personal bodyguard.