One Temptation

Contents 1234567101112131415Epilogue One TemptationRosemary Cooper Copyright © 2022 Rosemary Cooper Cover Art: Rosemary Cooper Cover Photo: Harsh Gupta via Unsplash All rights reserved. ISBN:ISBN-13: 9798848590050No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without express permission in writing by the author. The only exception is by a reviewer who may quote brief excerpts in a review.This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. For Joshy who has always believed in me and is my constant light.And for Lauren, who helped me get back here… This book is a work of fiction and has insta-love. A short sweet spicy love story. If you don’t like insta-love you’ve been warned 1GraceSeattle summers mean conventions and the city filled with nerds cosplaying as their favorite characters. Starbucks drinks in hand and elf ears on means the party is just getting started, nothing beats con season, and seeing friends you only see once a year at the con.“I can’t believe we’re finally here!” I say with a squeal, grabbing my best friend, Lacey.“Could the year have been any longer? It always takes way too long to get back to con season?” She says.She’s dressed in her cosplay of Belle, with her long brown hair done up in curls. She looks the part. We spent weeks working on her shimmery yellow ball gown; we altered it to make it more comfortable for cons. It falls around her knees so she can walk easier. She put on a cute pair of boots. She looks like a cross between the movie Belle and a bad-ass Belle.“Girl, you’ve been waiting months for this, and we’re able to snag tickets for you to get a photo with Tobias!”“That alone was a challenge. Ever since Stranger in the Stars landed, he’s been so popular. VulcanTok isn’t helping either so many new fans. Which he deserves, but man, those tickets went quick.”Tobias Howells is one of my major celebrity crushes. I’ve had a thing for him since he was in the first Jupiter movie. He plays Jupiter’s brother Vulcan, who started as a villain but since his show landed last summer; it looks like he may have a redemption arc finally.“We have a few hours before we need to stress about lining up. I saw SassyKat had a table art artist Alley and I know how you feel about her sexy Tobias Art.“You’re right. I’ve been dying to get my hands on one of her prints. Then I can have her sign it too.”Cons aren’t just some conventions for nerds, it’s a way of life the atmosphere is intoxicating. Booths, as far as the eye can see with everything you can want as a nerd. As we walk to the show floor, I glance around and make a note to hit up the Doctor Who and Lord of the Rings booths later in the show. I’ve been hunting for a Tenth Doctors Sonic, and this seems like the best place to get my hands on one. We pass people dressed in their cosplay. I can’t help the laugh that escapes as I watch a Maple and Dipper Pines walk past me and I kick myself for not bringing my Mable sweater. There are only four days of the con, so it makes it hard to narrow down which cosplays to bring with me every year. I’ve been coming to this con in Seattle for the past ten years and I count down to ticket sales every single year. I adjust my Ita bag on my shoulders so it’s hanging lower, reminding myself I should look for an enamel pin of Tobias so I can add it to my ever-growing collection that I keep pinned in this bag.“Artist Ally is upstairs this year.”Lacey hands me the con pamphlet that shows where all the booths are located, I map out the convention center mentally making a note of how far all the con stuff is from the hotel where the signing and photo sessions are.“Should we do a loop down here and then go up to Artist Alley?”Before Lacey answers, I spy a booth for my favorite plushie company. I grab her hand and drag her toward the booth.“Look, they have the corgi plush I’ve been looking for!”I can’t help the way my voice raises an octave. Thankfully Lacey also collects these guys, so her voice raises to match mine. They have shelves set up lined with the larger size plushies, as well as three big bins just filled with plushies of all styles and sizes. We both dive headfirst into the bin, hunting for today’s plushie choice. These soft squishy guys always sell out fast, but we both know we will probably pick up a new plushie every day. We like carrying them around the con with us. Yes, we are full-grown adults who still find comfort in plushies.“I found a rainbow octopus I’m getting today.”Lacey holds the plushie in one hand straight up in the air while the rest of her is still buried in the bin. I can’t help the laugh that bubbles up. She always makes these conventions better. We pay for our new buddies and head towards the escalators that will take us up a floor towards the indie comic book section. I want to spend some time walking this section and chatting with the authors, but that will have to wait till after my photo session and signings are done.We reach the top floor of the convention center. The entire floor spans the first half of the building, goes over the sky bridge and covers that building, too. It’s massive and lined tightly with artists.“This is going to take several days to get all the way through,” I say with a grin.I cannot