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now that he’d shaved off the goatee, his dimple was clearly visible. When he added a wink, the reporter blushed slightly and fumbled over her next words.
    Oh, good Lord. Spare me the simpering females
. Women had been falling all over themselves since Connor hit puberty, but the maturation of his features and body combined with his fame and charm…Vivi might understand the reaction, but she was still ashamed of her entire gender.
    But she had to admit that Connor had done well dodging the impertinent question.
    Unable to get a good answer out of Connor, the reporter had no choice but to cut to the graphic listing the upcoming events and direct people to the Saints and Sinners website.
    The camera turned to the station’s meteorologist for the weather report and Vivi unhooked her mic.
    Making all four local morning shows in two hours meant that their schedule was very tight, and there was no time to waste in idle chitchat. Connor, however, had decided to stop to sign autographs and pose for pictures. Vivi bit her tongue and waited with what she hoped looked like patience.
    Finally, though, she had to step in and break up the love-fest. “I’m so sorry, y’all, but we’re going to be late for our next interview if we don’t leave right now.”
    Connor fell into step beside her as they exited the building. “Thanks for the save. It’s hard to get away sometimes.”
    “You can’t do that at every stop this morning or we’ll never make them all. I know you just hate to tear yourself away, but there are other people’s schedules to consider.”
    “And
there’s
the mood swing to the Vivi I know.” He sighed dramatically. “I knew that perkiness was too good to last.”
    Damn it
, she’d already forgotten her pledge to be gracious and polite. “It’s six o’clock in the morning. I need to save all my perkiness for the cameras. Sorry.”
    The driver had fresh coffee from a nearby shop waiting for them in the car. She nearly hugged him in gratitude—both for the caffeine and the chance to gather her thoughts and adjust her tone as she took a few sips and settled in.
    “However, I don’t have the skill set necessary to be your bouncer, so you’ll need to either provide one yourself or else learn how to extract yourself from the fawning adulation of your fans.”
    Connor leveled a look at her across the backseat. “Without those people I have no career. They support me. So the least I can do for them is sign an autograph and smile for the camera. Mock me all you like, but don’t
ever
mock my fans.”
    The words were hard and cold, and that combination gother attention. She’d never heard Connor speak like that. “You’re actually serious.”
    “As a heart attack.”
    Vivi felt about two feet tall. “My apologies, then, for insulting your fans.”
    Connor nodded his acceptance of her apology, then pulled his phone out of his pocket and began to tap at it. Vivi was glad for his distraction; she needed a moment to process. She’d seen Connor’s posing and autographing as glory-mongering—something to feed his ego. She hadn’t expected Connor to get so passionate about it. It made sense, though. He
wouldn’t
have a career without fans, so he should be appreciative of them.
    She just wouldn’t have guessed that he would be.
    Connor didn’t look up from his phone. “By the way, good job deflecting that question and reframing. You’ve had media training.”
    The terminology gave him away. “As have you, it seems.”
    “I learned the hard way that performing onstage and doing an interview are two totally different things. I only had to screw up once before I swore I’d never make that mistake again. What made you do it?”
    Was he being intentionally dense? “About the time I won Mississippi River Princess I realized I really needed it.” She paused, but Connor didn’t make the connection. “I had my sights on Miss Louisiana and Miss America. I had a platform to promote, a title to represent and a