Rae said.
“What’s everything else?” I asked.
“Come on, Abby,” Jess said.
“About Reed? I mean, FILTHY LINE?”
“Yeah,” Sasha said.
I shook my head. “Believe me, it’s nothing. It’s history.”
“Tell us about it,” Rae said. “You obviously have feelings for Reed. I’m sure you slept with him. At the very least, tell us what that’s like. A rock star? Fuck me…”
“Rae, stop,” Jess said. “What if those feelings are beyond him being a rock star?”
“Oh, shit, do you love him?” Rae asked.
“Love?” I yelled. “No. Never. Not a chance. Love him? Love Reed? No. No way.”
“Okay then,” Sasha said.
I downed the rest of the first drink and went to work on the second one.
“Look. It’s simple. My mother played her life safe after my father passed away. She wanted my brother and I to live a good and simple life. Joe became a lawyer. I took off to Nashville. I talk to Joe maybe three times a year now. I talk to my mother maybe six times a year. Do we all hate each other? Nope. I’m just the outcast. I loved that role. I was good. Popular locally. Things were happening. Then I met Reed. The band was just getting popular. He and I had… a thing. I don’t know. Nothing was official.”
“Friends with benefits?” Rae asked.
“Sure. Call it that. I gave up some gigs for him. I thought things were going somewhere. Maybe in the back of my mind I thought I could rise with the band. Not as part of the band, but on my own. I just loved singing. And then everything went bad. I don’t want to talk about it. Being in the studio now… it just brings it all back.”
Rae reached across the table. “Sorry, Abby.”
“I didn’t realize,” Sasha said. “So singing with us must be torture.”
“It’s not,” I said. “I mean, it’s a pain in the ass, but I kind of like you.”
“But it’s not what you want,” Sasha said.
“And you want this?” Jess asked.
“I’m running my own business,” Sasha said. “I’ve considered expanding. Bring in more singers. Finding bigger events. I was going to talk to you all about that. Maybe try to move from the gimmicky stuff to something else. Or maybe we can keep the gimmick and do covers.”
“Dress up like famous singers?” Rae asked.
“Yeah,” Sasha said.
“I like that,” I said. “But we should also do our own thing too.”
“You’re the one with the connections,” Jess said with a grin. “Get us into a studio.”
“Oh, bang Reed again,” Rae said. “Then maybe…”
She gasped.
“What?” I asked.
“Your face is red,” Rae said.
“No it’s not.”
“You slept with him again?” Sasha asked.
“Stop,” I said.
“Is that why you’re so mean today?” Rae asked. “Was it not good? Or did something happen?”
“You know what?” I called out. “I could be out with someone right now.”
“Who?” Jess asked.
“Forget FILTHY LINE… I’m talking about RAUNCHY RECKS…”
“What?” Rae asked.
“I got Ven’s number,” I said. “He saw me at the studio and stopped to ask me out.”
“What shampoo do you use?” Sasha asked.
“Why?”
“All you do is attract rock stars,” she said with a smile.
Jess rubbed her shoulder against mine. “There, I rubbed against her. Maybe I can sleep with Nash.”
“Nash?” I asked.
“Oh, he’s my guy,” Jess said. “He is the hottest man ever in the world. I don’t care if he’s with someone. I want to-”
“Save it for later,” Sasha said to Jess. “When you’re alone.”
“Oh, I will. But I won’t be alone.”
“She has a friend,” I said.
“A friend who you pretend is Nash?” Rae asked.
“He doesn’t need to know that,” Jess said. “A woman has to come somehow, right?”
We all laughed.
“Are you going to call Ven?” Rae asked. “He’s crazy hot. And crazy too. If you don’t call him, can I have his number?”
They all stared at me.
I had the number in my phone from when I texted him.
It was tempting.
Very tempting…
More than anything else, it would make Reed insanely jealous.
I waited outside for Ven.
My heart danced all over my chest.
Though probably for the wrong reason.
I looked at my phone and switched between Ven and Reed.
The whole notion of them both being rock stars really didn’t matter all that much to me. That was more of a fantasy thing. I had dealt with rock stars many times in my life.
To Sasha, Rae, and Jess, this was such a big deal.
Again, the fantasy of it all.
For me… what the fuck was I actually doing?
In a way I wanted to chase Reed’s memory away for good.
Seeing him again, hitting him, being near him, talking to