She was glad the lighting wasn’t too bright and she could slink around the edges of the building while she looked for Anna. She bumped into a few people, but she had placed her name tag on her skirt so that she wouldn’t immediately be recognized. Finally, she noticed a familiar head of brown curls and made a beeline for Anna. She was only standing with one person, a man on her right, and Daphne sent up a small prayer. At least she didn’t have to deal with too many people and she could just say hello to her friend.
Maybe after a little catching up she could plan a day with Anna and bolt from this homecoming hell before she had to deal with anyone else. She smiled, closing in on her friend, when someone placed a hand on her bicep, stopping her in her tracks.
“Daphne. Daphne Brooks?” The male voice jarred her, just like his hand on her arm. She recognized his voice from the entryway, and knew that he was the same man that had stood up to Tiffany. She was hesitant to turn around, but it was obvious she wasn’t being recognized as Maggie, so maybe it wouldn’t be so bad. Straightening her spine, she twisted to face him. And then she saw his face. Trent f-ing Bradshaw had snagged her arm, and it was just her luck. The past 15 years had been so nice to him. Her knees began to shake, but of course that always happen when he came near.
Standing in front of her, he was dressed simply in light jeans, a crisp white dress shirt and a dark, blue dress jacket. The lights were dim and she could barely see his face. His hair had been brown back then and his eyes had once been so green they glittered like emeralds and lit up when he smiled. She almost swayed into him.
“Yes. I am Daphne Brooks.” She wasn’t sure how to play this out. So she went the simple way and waited for him to volunteer the information.
“I knew I recognized you. You’re a model correct? I know I’ve seen you in a copy of a magazine somewhere.” He looked confused for a second like he was trying to think of which magazine, but she was pretty sure she knew which one. She smiled and hoped she could just finish this conversation as Daphne and not have to bring Maggie into it. Hell, he probably didn’t remember Maggie at all, which was more than okay with her.
Maggie was a different life for her. After working her ass off, literally to shed over a hundred pounds, a few rounds of plastic surgery, a name change, and a new city, Daphne Brooks had been born. She was finally in the life and body that she knew fit her not the person that fit into this high school 15 years ago. So she squared her shoulders, as she had been taught by her agent, and smiled at Trent.
“I think we both know which Magazine Mr...?” She smiled at him and slipped into the mindset that was much easier to her. She was fun and flirty Daphne, not insecure and shy Maggie.
“Trent. My name is Trent Bradshaw.” He had a funny look on his face that she couldn’t place but she didn’t want to question it. She put a hand on his shoulder and looked up into his gorgeous green eyes. It really was unfair how good time had been to him.
“Well Mr. Bradshaw it was nice to meet you. If you’ll excuse me, I’m here to meet someone.” She winked at him and pulled away to go in search of Anna. However, Trent snagged her again and she recognized his now-familiar, warm, male touch.
“Now Maggie, where did you think you were really going?” His voice and words went straight to her knees, which threatened to buckle beneath her. She turned to see the smile on his face, and her control snapped. She opened her mouth to say something, but turned on her heel instead. Her cheeks were flaming and she knew she had made a fool of herself again in front of Trent.
Her Jimmy Choo’s clicked on the pavement as she walked to her Camaro. When she heard footsteps behind her she tensed but kept walking. She hoped she could make her escape before whoever it was reached her.
“Daphne? Daphne, it’s Anna.” When she finally heard the sweet voice through her thoughts, she stopped. She couldn’t hear any other footsteps other than Anna’s. She figured she was safe. She could feel her heart pounding against her rib cage and her palms were sweaty, but she didn’t dare wipe them on the satin skirt. She sighed, trying to calm her racing pulse, and then turned to face her old friend.
“Anna, it’s so good to see you. I’m sorry about running away like that.” She tried to explain but she still wasn’t exactly sure why she had run away from Trent. Anna waved her explanation away and opened her arms to give her hug. Daphne smiled and returned her embrace.
Anna was an average looking woman with brown hair and brown eyes. She stood at about five feet even, maybe five foot two with the small heels she had on. But that was incredibly short to Daphne’s five ten frame, which was over six feet in the heels. Anna hadn’t been in the popular crowd or the geeks and fat kids that had been picked on. However, Daphne and Anna had been best friends since they were small. So she had stuck by Daphne’s side during the hellish years of high school.