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“At least your son isn’t tap dancing on my bladder today,” I said, putting a hand on my belly.
“London,” Timothy was suddenly in front of us. “They want pictures of us together.”
“Of course.” I took his arm and let him lead me to where several members of the press were waiting. “You look nice tonight.”
“So do you.” He smiled, the expression once again easy with me.
Oddly enough, I had Tomma to thank for Timothy and me finding our chemistry again. Without her to cause drama, Timothy and I had quickly found back to the sparks from the early days.
“I hear Lily is doing well,” I said to Timothy as we posed for pictures. Lily was my new understudy, taking over my part until after my delivery.
“She is,” he said. “Not as good as you, but headed in that direction with a little more polish.” He glanced at me. “How are you and Spencer doing?”
I couldn’t stop what I knew to be a wholly besotted smile. “We’re great.”
“Remind me, when are you due?”
“October sixteenth,” I said. “Less than a month.”
“Well, you look good.” Timothy offered me his arm again and took me back to where Spencer was waiting. They nodded at each other before Timothy excused himself and returned to his date, a preschool teacher from Queens who looked a little overwhelmed by the attention.
I made a mental note to have a word with her at some point this evening to help ease her nerves. She seemed like a sweet woman, and Timothy, despite his arrogance, was a decent man. She might even temper that bit of him.
Spencer and I made our way past the press, stopping every so often to answer a question or pose for a picture. By the time we reached our seats, my feet were killing me, and I was more than ready to sit down.
“Are you all right?” Spencer asked, concern on his face. “We can leave. I’m sure everyone will understand.”
I shook my head. “I’ll just slip my shoes off and hope I remember to put them back on when the show wins Best Musical.”
“I’m sure everyone will forgive you if you forget when you win Best Actress.”
I laughed as I took off my shoes and tucked my feet under the seat in front of me. “We all know Bebe Neuwirth is going to win tonight. And she deserves it.”
“Maybe,” Spencer said. “But you’re wicked good too.”
I reached over and took his hand, smiling as everyone settled around us. The music played, and excitement chased away my discomfort. I was here at the Tonys, sitting behind Aaron Tveit, about to watch the opening number.
Then, before I knew it, Myles Frost and Rob McClure were announcing the nominees in my category, and Spencer had my hand gripped tight in his, waiting for the inevitable moment.
“And the winner is…London McCrae!”
For two heartbeats, I couldn’t react. My brain refused to process what I heard because it couldn’t be real. Then the crowd’s applause broke through, and there, underneath it, was Spencer’s voice, telling me that he was proud of me.
And to put on my shoes.
I clung to his arm as he helped me up and to the stage, not releasing him when I reached the stairs. With a smile, he got me the rest of the way, then stood aside to let me step up to accept the award. A moment later, I was at the microphone.
“Um, wow. This is…this is….” I shook my head. “Sorry. Usually, when I’m on stage, someone else has already written the words for me to say.”
I heard laughter from in front of me, but the familiar sound of Spencer’s chuckle grounded me and allowed me to gather myself enough to continue speaking.
“First, I have to say what an honor it is to be nominated with such an amazing group of women. I know people say all the time that they didn’t expect to win, but I really didn’t. I need to thank my parents, who always believed in me, and my siblings, who know why I don’t list you all by name. Thank you to my friends, as well as the cast and crew. And, of course, thank you to Spencer.” I looked at him and held up the award. “This is the second-best thing this show has brought to me. The best is you. I love you.”
My throat closed with all the emotion flooding through me, but that was okay. I’d finished my speech.
By the night’s end, I felt like I was walking on clouds. Besides my win, we also won Best Musical. Mercedes was practically giddy. Our phones had been blowing up with congratulations all night, but it wasn’t until Spencer and I got back into the limo that I even looked at it.
“Mum says Gin’s going out to get some more champagne,” Spencer said. “They want to make sure we have enough for the toast when we get to the party.” He glanced at me. “Sorry, sparkling cider for you, luv.”
