by K. A. Linde
Her stomach dropped.
He turned the box toward her and opened the top. Inside was a slender silver chain holding a crystal-clear diamond haloed in another circle of diamonds.
Trihn gasped and put her hand to her mouth. “Oh my God…Damon,” she breathed.
“I saw the first deposit for my earnings from ‘We Never Met,’ and I couldn’t resist. It’s platinum. That was my only requirement. You’re my platinum girl after all. Rare and beautiful. You should be wearing it.”
Trihn laughed softly. Her eyes were wet. She couldn’t believe this.
“Allow me?”
She nodded and turned around. He removed the necklace from the box while she lifted her hair. He gently placed the diamonds around her neck where it rested against the center of her chest. Once he clicked the clasps together, he kissed her neck.
“Perfect. Just like you.”
“You’re incredible,” she said, moving into his arms. “Thank you. It’s too much.”
“Nah. It’ll never be enough for you.”
Trihn shook her head. How did I get so lucky?
“There’s one more thing I wanted to tell you before the madness happens back here.”
“Something else?” she asked, trailing her fingers over the new necklace.
“I got a call from my agent. They’ve been working to figure out what’s next for me while Chloe…heals.”
“That’s good. What’s the next big step for Damon Stone?”
“He thinks I should get a DJ contract in Las Vegas.”
“What does that mean?” Trihn asked. “Working clubs again?”
“Sort of. But instead of sporadically, I’d get a contract for a certain amount of time, and I’d be required to DJ there for so many shows a year. They think I could get a big club at one of the massive Vegas Strip hotels,” he told her. “More importantly, I’d be there with you and not away on tour unless I wanted to be.”
“That sounds incredible! When will you know if you’ll get a contract?”
Damon smirked. “Just got off the phone. It’s a done deal. I just have to sign the paperwork.”
“Oh my God!” Trihn shrieked. She jumped into his arms, and he held her there. “I’m so happy for you.”
“Well, I didn’t mean to make this day about me. I was just too excited that I would be back in Vegas with you that I couldn’t wait.”
“No, I’m so glad that you told me. It’s unbelievable.”
“It really is. And I can still write, record, and tour whenever I want as long as I meet the contractual agreements,” he said.
She kissed him and smiled. “The world is at your feet.”
“Just you. You’re what matters.”
“Attention, all designers, please report back to the stage,” a man said, walking around the room.
“That’s me,” Trihn told Damon.
“Knock ’em dead, love.”
Trihn got into line with the other designers and tried not to let the nerves get to her. She knew that most of the other students here had a lot more experience than her. But that didn’t mean she didn’t want to win. She could only hope for the best at this point.
She walked onstage with the other girls and waited as the judges announced the winner. Her eyes were fixed on the crowd bathed in soft light.
“And the winner of the thirty-seventh annual National Fashion Show and the grand prize of a spotlight feature in Glitz magazine along with a contract with Bloomingdale’s goes to…Tiffany Ryu.”
A short Asian girl two people down from Trihn collapsed into tears as her name was called. Trihn felt a pang of disappointment and jealousy as the girl walked forward to collect her prize, but she let it pass. She had more time to get there.
The other girls were ushered offstage, and Trihn walked right into Damon’s arms.
“Sorry, love.”
“It’s okay,” she said, brushing it off. “You win some. You lose some. There’s always next year.”
Trihn left Damon’s arms to help her assistant finished cleaning up her space. The girl just pushed Trihn away and told her to go see her family while she finished up. Trihn hugged the girl one more time for her work.
When Trihn walked back out into the audience with Damon on her arm, everyone was there—her family, her New York friends, her Las Vegas friends, and even their boyfriends.
“Oh, honey, I’m so sorry,” her mother said, pulling her in for a hug.
Then, her dad hugged her next.
“It’s okay. I didn’t expect to win. It was worth the experience.”
Lydia hugged her next. “You did great. I have a million pictures to show you later.” She hoisted her massive camera.
“I can’t wait to see them. I’m glad you all could make it.”
Renée and Ian both congratulated her on being in the fashion show.
“I want that black dress though,” Renée said. “I’ll send you my measurements.”
Trihn laughed. “Done. I’ll start taking orders.”
“Speaking of orders,” Maya said, coming up behind her, “I still need that skirt.”
“And holy shit, what is that?” Bryna said. She snatched up the diamond necklace around Trihn’s neck and was staring at it. “Tiffany’s?”
Trihn nodded. “Yeah. Damon got it for me.”
Bryna whistled low. “Diamonds and platinum. Good choice.” Her eyes turned to Eric. “I’m in need of some glitter, Cowboy. Make this happen.”
“You have enough diamond jewelry in your closet to buy a small island in the South Pacific,” Eric said.
“And?”
“And you’re ridiculous. Congratulate your best friend.”
“Congratulations on choosing a real winner, Trihn. You’re practically on my gold-digger level at this point,” Bryna said with a wink.
“You’re a real bitch, you know that, right?” Trihn asked with a laugh.
“I know it.” Bryna hugged her tight. “Congrats, babe.”
“Ah, congratulations from me, too!” Stacia said, wrapping her arms around both of them.
“You two are too much,” Trihn said.
Stacia stepped back into Pace’s arms, and Bryna returned to Eric. Even Maya had Drayton with her. It made Trihn’s hearth happy. Everyone who mattered in her life was here. So, it didn’t even matter that she’d lost because she seemed to have won so much more.
“Trihnity Hamilton?”
Trihn turned to face a tall, skinny woman with blonde hair in a black designer dress and Jimmy Choos. “Yes. Can I help you?”
“It’s nice to meet you. I am Patricia Young, and I represent a New York–based client. May I have a word with you?”
Trihn’s mouth nearly dropped open before she remembered herself. “Of course.”
Trihn was glad that she had opted for her favorite Louboutins that day as she followed the woman to a more private location.
“I’d like to get straight to the point, Miss Hamilton. I’m a buyer for a New York–based boutique, and I believe you have exactly what we’ve been looking for, a fresh new style that captures a new vogue in fashion.”
Trihn’s eyebrows rose. “Wow. Thank you.”
“Do you have interest in selling the line?”
“I…” Trihn murmured, speechless. “Yes. Yes, I do.”
“Wonderful. We’re interested in purchasing it, and we’d like to speak with you further about it. How much longer are you going to be in New York?”
“My family is from here. I can stay as long as needed,” she said. Her heart was pounding, and she was trying not to show her utter disbelief.
“Perfect. Let’s schedule a time to meet. Here’s my card.” Patricia pulled a crisp card out of her wallet and handed it to Trihn.
They talked for a few more minutes and agreed to meet and go over the rest of the details. Trihn was overflowing with excitement by the end of the conversation.
“It was a pleasure to meet you, Trihn. I think this will be an excellent match.”
“Thank you so much.”
They shook hands, and then Trihn walked on air with her head floating in the clouds back to her friends.
“What was that about?” her mother asked first.
“I just got an offer for a New York boutique to buy my clothing line,” she gasped.
The noise of everyone screaming and congratulating her all at once nearly knocked her off her feet.
She laughed and reeled back. “I have a meeting with the company next week to discuss everything.”
“We must go out to celebrate,” Linh said.
“I have to agree with that,” Bryna said.
“Drinks are on me,” Damon agreed, wrapping an arm around Trihn and kissing her temple.
The entire group stood around, congratulating Trihn, until they finally left the ballroom to find a restaurant and bar for drinks. Trihn and Damon lagged at the back of the group. He had his arm casually looped around her waist, and she leaned her head against his shoulder.
“So, another week in New York?” Damon asked.
“Mmm, yes, it seems like it. I guess you’ll actually get the real tour you deserve.”
“I want to see everything with you. Where will you take me?” he asked.
“Everywhere,” she breathed.
“The world is at your feet,” he said with a smirk.
Trihn deeply kissed him, not caring that they were trailing so far behind the rest of the group.
“Just you,” she breathed, repeating his words. “You’re what matters.”
And they walked, hand in hand, down the New York City street with their entire lives spread before them, secure in the knowledge that, at the end of the day, at least they had one another.
Eight Months Later
THE LIMO HALTED directly in front of the red carpet. The tinted windows obscured the celebrities hiding within the posh climate-controlled vehicle bursting with champagne and Hershey’s Kisses. The press was waiting on the outside, anxious to get the first glimpse of the stars before they made their long walk down the red carpet and into the Staples Center in Los Angeles where the Fifty-Eighth Annual Grammy Awards would commence.
Trihn leaned against Damon in the backseat and fiddled with the diamond bracelet on her wrist. “I cannot believe this is actually happening,” she said.
“Me either. The Grammys…that’s huge,” he said with a shake of his head.
His hair was perfectly in place, and it was strange not to see it messy from being under a baseball cap all day. Someone had cleaned him up all nice, but he still looked like her man—utterly delicious.
He pressed a soft kiss to her cherry-red lips. “You look gorgeous.”
“You don’t look too bad yourself.”
“Are you ready?” he asked.
She nodded.
Damon knocked on the window twice, and then the door opened from the outside. He stepped out first to an outrageously loud cheer. He turned around to help Trihn out next and kissed her hand once she was steady on her four-inch Louboutin high heels. They both smiled for the cameras, knowing that this was going to be how much of the next hour of their lives would go.
Once they were through the first group of people, it only marginally calmed down. The crowd would go crazy every time Damon walked by, and Trihn couldn’t blame them. He and Chloe had been nominated for six awards combined, including the hotly contested Record of the Year and Album of the Year.
When the nominations had come out, they had all been floored.
Chloe had flown in from Los Angeles to party with them. Her stint in rehab had been more than good for her. She’d returned a new person. Her panic attacks had subsided for the most part, and she had taken time to focus on closer personal relationships. Her next three songs on her self-titled album had come out in the past couple of months, and it felt as if they were the only things on the radio.
But her increased fame also rose Damon’s. His club in Las Vegas was packed for every show, and he had started working with other artists on an album that was set to release later that year. It was hugely anticipated, and the preorder numbers were through the roof.
“Damon Stone, can we do a quick interview?” a man said for E! Entertainment.
“Absolutely.” Damon smiled and walked with Trihn over to the red-carpet hosts.
He shook hands with Ryan Seacrest, who plastered on a smile.
“Hello, everybody watching at home. I’m here right now with Damon Stone, the celebrity DJ who took the world by storm with his hit single, ‘We Never Met,’ with superstar Chloe Avana.”
“Yes. Hello, Ryan. Hello there at home,” Damon said in his sexy British accent.
“And who are you accompanied by tonight?”
Damon put his hand on Trihn’s back. “This is my girlfriend, Trihnity Hamilton.”
“Excellent. I’ve recently heard a lot about your girlfriend in the magazines,” Giuliana Rancic said. “You’re a fashion designer with Clothes by Trihn. Are you wearing your own design tonight?”
She looked at Trihn’s floor-length emerald-green dress. It had a sweetheart neck before sweeping into her tiny waist and then dropping down to the floor with a small train. There were sleek cutouts to the dress from the back of her ribs, down across the sides of her waist, and over her pelvic bone, making her appear taller and slimmer. Her hair had been blown out and styled into supermodel waves that hung down her back. She was obsessed with the look and was certain only a hairstylist could perfect it.
Trihn smiled. “Yes. This is a one-of-a-kind Trihn.”
“Just Trihn,” Damon corrected. He gestured to his black tuxedo. “This is a Trihn design as well.”
“A well-worn suit to women is like lingerie for men,” Giuliana said with a wink.
“Damon, you’re up for four awards tonight for your hit with Chloe Avana. What did you do when you found out that you’d been nominated for so many?” Giuliana asked.
Damon laughed. “I was on my way to pick up Trihn when I got the call about it, and we both just sat in my car. Honestly, we were in shock. I called Chloe next, and she screamed in enough excitement for the both of us.”
“Speaking of Chloe for a minute, she helped skyrocket you to this fame, but it was your song and your lyrics that truly shone. We’re all excited for some more of that,” Ryan said.
“Absolutely. I can’t wait for you all to hear the new album. The first single with Ed Sheeran should be releasing in the next week. He, I might add, is just the most amazing and talented person to work with,” Damon said.
“Ed is a great guy all-around,” Giuliana agreed.
“One last question before you have to go,” Ryan said. “How does it feel to be up for Best New Artist?”
“Incredible. It’s an absolute pleasure to even be nominated alongside such other talented artists. Everyone’s work truly speaks for itself. I can’t wait to get in there and see how it all pans out.”
“Thank you so much for your time,” Ryan said, shaking Damon’s hand.
“We’re all ready to see how it pans out, too. Best of luck,” Giuliana said.
Damon and Trihn both smiled and then walked out of the way as another couple came to take their places.
“I told you,” Damon whispered in her ear as he threaded them through the crowd.
“What?”
“That, one day, I’d be on the red carpet, and when someone asked what I was wearing, I’d tell them just Trihn.”
“You’re ridiculous, but I love you.”
“I love you, too,” he said before kissing her hair.
They weaved their way down the red carpet and finally made it out on the other side. They both took a breath, and Damon took her phone out of his suit pocket and handed it to her.
“It’s been going off like mad.”
Trihn checked it and saw texts from all her friends. All the girls were at home, glued to the TV, hoping to see her at the Grammys red carpet preshow. They’d all caught the plug for Clothes by Trihn on E! Live
from the Red Carpet, and they were freaking out. She knew that it was killing Bryna not to be here, but tonight was really for Damon.
Trihn texted back to her friends to let them know that she wouldn’t be able to respond much after this.
Bryna’s response was instantaneous.
Have a great time, you lucky bitch, and tell Gates I said hi!
Trihn laughed.
Gates was apparently seeing someone new right now, and Bryna didn’t approve. But she and Eric were doing amazing, all things considered, so she couldn’t meddle—or at least she couldn’t openly meddle. Eric was trying to convince her to move in with him, and she claimed she needed her independence. Trihn had a feeling that she and Stacia would lose her to him next year, but it would be all right. Bryna was a better person with Eric.
Unlike everything going on in Stacia’s life.
Stacia had spent half of the football season torn between Marshall and Pace, and that was probably because the team had spent half of the year deciding which quarterback to use as their star. When Marshall was selected halfway through the season, Stacia had made her pick. She and Marshall were…something else. He was almost too nice for her. Bryna liked to see Pace pissed off, so she didn’t say anything about Stacia’s relationship with Marshall. When Pace started sleeping with Stacia’s friend from home who was a freshman cheerleader at LV State, even Trihn had let it go.
The football season had gone all right after that, but they hadn’t made it to the playoffs, leading to another year of disappointment. Marshall had elected to go to the NFL draft, ignoring the advice from the coaching staff. When even Eric had yelled at him, Trihn had known it was a dumb idea. Eric only yelled when it was directed at Bryna or when he was as pissed off as psychotic drunk Bryna. But the draft wasn’t for another couple of months, and Stacia was over the moon that she’d get to go with him to the draft in Chicago.
Luckily, Maya had gotten accepted to graduate school to get her masters in creative writing, so she and Drayton could continue dating without a long- distance relationship.
Trihn’s friends had diverse lives, but she loved being there for them through it every bit as much as they loved texting her while she was at the Grammys.
Damon and Trihn were escorted to their seats at the front of the room. They weren’t seated long before Chloe bounded over to them with her current man, some backup dancer she’d met on her last tour, who would also be in her performance tonight.