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“It’s number one in the UK, France, Australia, China, and, of course, in this country,” Liz declared, reading off the latest press release about Rein of Silence. “It’s number one here for the second weekend in a row, and, last weekend, it had the biggest box office opening of 2006! Autumn, you should be very proud of yourself.”

Autumn lifted a spoonful of baby food and attempted to feed it to Lily. “I am proud, Liz, but I’m trying to feed Lily at the moment. Come on, sweetie,” she coaxed. “One more for mommy?”

Lily shook her head vigorously, nearly knocking the spoon onto the floor with her flailing fists. Autumn grabbed her hands gently and held the spoon to her daughter’s lips. For a moment, it seemed as though Lily would keep her mouth shut, but she opened it enough to take the last bit of peas and carrots. Autumn wiped Lily’s face and, lifting her out of the high chair, set her onto the floor. Immediately, the baby raced off on tiny legs to her pile of toys, and Autumn slumped back in her chair.

“Feeding her is like fighting a war, huh?” Liz said, pushing a bottle of water to her. “Take a breath, pal.”

Autumn gulped down the water but kept an eagle-eye on her child. “I am. And she’s always a handful and a half. I’m just tired because of the constant traveling. I swear, I’m still on Aussie time. Which means that my system thinks it’s” she glanced at the clock and did mental calculations “two in the morning for me.”

“Well, whatever time it is, because of the hit this movie is, your face is becoming very well-known. You’ve been on the cover of Us Weekly, Entertainment Weekly, and, very shortly, you’ll be on People, too,” Liz reminded her.

Remembering all the interviews she’d done, Autumn shut her eyes. “Tell me I don’t have to do anything for the next week. I’m exhausted.”

“The bags under your eyes do need a little fixing,” Liz admitted. “I promise, though, you just have to go to the Radio Music Awards tomorrow night, present, and then you’re free for two weeks. If you want, I can book you a weekend at the spa, while I take care of Lily.”

The offer was tempting, but it would also mean more time away from her daughter, and Autumn was reluctant to do so after having spent nearly two months away while on the promotion train. “Thanks, but I think I’ll relax best when I can turn off the cell, take the phone off the hook, and unplug the television. Spending time with Lily’s my equivalent to a weekend at the spa.”

Liz shrugged. “Well, you know best. Anyway, I’ve gotta get going or I’ll be late for that meeting with Paramount. If they want to keep you for the next five years, I have to convince them to fork over what you’re worth, too.”

“You know best,” Autumn replied with a smile. “Thanks, Liz.”

“Hey, you pay me,” Liz reminded her with a grin. “I’ll call you later?”

“Yeah.” Autumn waited until she heard the door shut behind Liz before she began to clear off the table. With the sounds Lily was making playing with her toys as background music, Autumn washed her dishes and daydreamed about being able to move out of the cramped townhouse she was currently living in and buying a house near a quiet beach. “Once that paycheck comes in,” she murmured to herself, “then Lily and I will be set.”

Wiping down the counters, she twisted the kitchen blinds to shield from the harsh afternoon sunlight. In the den, she found Lily curled up by in an armchair, fast asleep. As it was routine for them, Autumn picked her up and tucked her into her crib before returning to flip through channels on TV. She was mentally and physically exhausted from the strain of traveling, promoting, and socializing for the purpose of making Rein of Silence as big as it was starting to become. The exhaustion, though, was nothing new, Autumn reminded herself.

Who else but her really knew how hard she’d worked in the past? Presented with all the obstacles she’d had since her parents’ death, it was a wonder she’d made it as far as she had. Whenever she thought of first grade, every memory was coated with the fear and uncertainty that had followed in the aftermath of the horrible accident that had destroyed her family. She’d spent the first year living with her maternal aunt before she’d been transferred from her hometown of Charlotte, North Carolina to a tiny town in Kansas to live with her father’s eldest sister.

Aunt Jan had not been the type to tolerate the kinds of dreams Autumn had had of acting. She’d expected nothing but top-notch grades and had chosen the profession of medicine for her niece. Autumn had found herself with no choice but to silently obey.

Until her chance to escape came with her aunt’s death. At the age of sixteen, she realized that no other family member would magically appear to help her make her wishes come true, so she’d struck out on her own. Seven years and hundreds of bumps and bruises later, Autumn had made it to where she’d always wanted to be: an actress.

When a familiar face appeared on her television screen, she snapped herself out of her reverie of the past and turned the volume up.

***

“Dude, how many times have you seen this movie?” AJ asked as he waited for Nick to grab a tub of popcorn at the concession stand.

“This is going to be the fourth time. Why? Do you have a problem with that?” Nick asked.

AJ rolled his eyes. “I think the word ‘obsession’ comes to mind.”

“The movie is good, AJ.”

“But not the actress in it?” AJ’s voice was teasing.

Nick sighed. “I never said she wasn’t good. Stop trying to mess with my head.”

“It’s working, isn’t it?”

Not bothering to pretend he didn’t know what AJ was talking about, Nick paid for his popcorn and moved away from the counter. “No, it’s not working. I’m just hooked on this movie. Besides, it gives me an excuse to get away from the camera crew because none of the other Carters want to see the flick again.”

“Uh-huh.” AJ wasn’t convinced. “So it has nothing to do with spending two hours staring at the glorious Autumn Evans, right?”

“If you think she’s so hot, why don’t you date her?” Nick hissed as they entered the theater.

AJ poked him. “Duh. Because I’ve got a girl, remember?”

“Vaguely. Now shut up,” he whispered back. “It’s starting.”

***

It was like watching a train wreck, she decided. A very blonde train wreck. Except for Angel, since she was the brunette. Of course, she was still very much a blonde on the inside the way she was acting.

And that’s what the whole thing was, she realized. Whether or not some of it was real reaction, the show was practically scripted. If she hadn’t been an actress herself, she was sure she would have believed the whole thing to be reality, but it wasn’t. The Carters were a showbiz family, and they’d learned to act as well as any Oscar winner. Their arguments, their fuzzy family scenes, and everything in between was just a little too perfect to be true.

And Nick. Autumn watched his facial expressions and found that she couldn’t quite see the frustration he’d told her he felt with the whole show. He appeared to be happy and at ease when he was surrounded by his siblings. If what he’d told her was the truth, then somebody needed to nominate him for a Golden Globe, she decided, because the man’s acting skills were superb.

As the end credits rolled, she sat back and contemplated what she knew of Nick Carter. With his background as a Backstreet Boy, he was a veteran in the industry. Everything that she was currently experiencing with the press, cameras, and glitz were everyday occurrences for him. Autumn knew she hadn’t quite figured out how to exude confidence in her success in the limelight, but, from what she’d seen, Nick certainly had. True, there had been the slip during the slight altercation with Paris Hilton, but he’d handled himself better than she might have had she been in his shoes. But then, he knew how to pull the shields down and protect himself from the rabid curiosity of the public eye.

“And I could certainly learn from his example,” she said to herself. Hadn’t she watched all the E! True Hollywood Stories and VH1 Behind the Music specials where stars had succumbed to the cutthroat competition of the entertainment world? One day, you were a star, and the next, no one really cared who you were.

While she’d only just begun her journey through the fascinating world of glitz and glamour, Autumn also knew that the faster her star rose, the more easily it could be crushed. So she’d do well, she thought, to develop that thick skin that kept stars like Nick from slumping permanently.

Besides, it wasn’t to protect only her, she reminded herself as Lily’s cries echoed from the monitor by her side. She had her child to think of. For Lily, she’d do anything.

***

“Wow.” AJ let out a low whistle as they emerged into the late afternoon sunlight. “I don’t think I know of any other word to describe it.”

Nick nodded smugly. “See? I told you it’s the movie that I’ve been coming to see, not Autumn.”

“Dude, it was just amazing. I mean, the story was sad, but damn if I didn’t cry during that scene where her dad dies,” AJ confessed, unabashed. “I wonder how she did the scene without bawling through the whole thing. You’ve gotta have solid nerves to do it.”

“It’s acting. That’s the breaks,” Nick said simply. After all, he was learning how important it was to act despite your feelings in a situation.

AJ took the last handful of popcorn from the tub in Nick’s arms and tossed out the container. “I’m bringing Kaci back,” he said through the kernels. “I could definitely watch it a hundred times without getting tired of it.”

“If you take her, remember to bring the tissues,” Nick said with a sly grin. “You know how these movies make women.”

AJ nodded. “I know how they make me cry, too.” He dusted his hands off. “So, I’ll see you tomorrow night?”

“Tomorrow?” Nick frowned before he remembered. “Right. The RMAs. Yeah, I’ll see you there.”

AJ grinned. “Great! I hear Kevin’s supposed to be coming, too. Maybe we could all chill together afterwards. I’m sure Kristin’ll be happy to see you.”

Nick smiled as he thought of Kevin’s wife. She was one of the more sincere friends he had, and she’d practically become his older sister. “Yeah. That sounds good.”

Just as good, he thought later as he climbed into his car, as maybe seeing Autumn again. He wondered if she’d be at the awards show. Her name had been tossed around in the media quite a bit over the past couple months, so the probability of her being there was good. He wanted to just hang out and talk to her again because he’d felt more like himself there. He didn’t have to act around her as he did with a good amount of other people he spent time with.

Including, he thought as he glanced down at his ringing phone, the friends he’d be playing poker with that night. Though part of him didn’t want to be at the game, Nick knew his fear of rejection was too great for him not to go. He didn’t want to lose his friends, such as they were. He hated to admit his lack of self-confidence, but it was hard to shake off even after so much success.

With one hand on the steering wheel, he flipped open the phone and answered. Sighing as he listened to the babbling on the other end, he suddenly wished there was another way to be happy.