I took another deep breath, prepared to beg if I had to.
I just wanted to see her. I wanted to make it right. And this interview would be a chance to tell her all the things I just didn’t know how to say to her.
Tell her the truth. Whatever the truth is.
Jesus. Never would’ve thought I’d be taking relationship advice from Xander Rush.
“Would you please consider going with me? I know I don’t deserve it, but it would really help Courteney. She wrote an amazing book. I want to do it for her.”
Taylor was silent again for a long, long moment.
Then she said, “Just tell me when and where, Cary. I’ll be there.”
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Taylor
Live Wire
“Shhhh!” Danica hissed somewhere behind me. I knew it was her, because even when she hissed at people to shut the fuck up, she did it politely.
“Xan, quit breathing so loud,” Courteney whispered.
“Yeah, I’ll try not to breathe so it doesn’t bother anyone,” he whispered back.
“Shut the fuck up. You’re all too loud,” Matt whispered, accompanied by the sound of guzzling beer.
That was followed by the flick of a lighter sparking a joint. The smell of fresh, burning weed mingled with the crisp, November night air as I felt my way along the fence in the dark. A branch snapped and someone grumbled a nasty word. I heard shoving and a small squeal.
I tried to quicken my pace. Maybe I could lose them all in the dark.
“Quit stepping on my toes,” Courteney whispered.
“Who’s hand is that?” Xander whispered.
“You wish,” Ash muttered.
“Everyone be quiet, okay?” Danica whispered. “You’re making too much—”
Someone belched. Fucking loudly.
I turned on them and they all stopped. Danica, Courteney, and four rock stars, all of them wasted, creeping along in the shadows behind me like a bunch of rejects from ninja school.
“Who was that?” I demanded.
They all pointed at Dean. Cary’s former lead singer smiled his lazy, drunken smile at me.
“You seriously all didn’t have to come with me,” I informed them in a whisper. We’d been drinking at the bar tonight with a bunch of assorted people. Dean was in town and Xander thought we should all get drunk to celebrate. Beer circulated, shots were devoured, and the resultant, incredibly intense discussion between me, Danica and Courteney about Cary was unfortunately overheard by said drunk rock stars.
So now they ALL knew my business.
Advice—unsolicited—was doled out, support was offered, motivation was rallied, my praises were sang, and then for some reason when I decided to leave the bar, the six people hovering in the bushes with me right now decided to come with me.
We’d all piled into taxis, and while I’d hoped to lose at least some of them along the way, no such luck.
“Like we have anything better to do?” Xander whispered.
“Look, this is really more of a solo mission, you guys,” I said, just like I had back at the bar.
“But then who’s gonna boost you over the fence?” Ash whispered.
Good point.
I gazed up at the top of the fence. It had to be seven feet high.
Then I sized them up: four men, all in pretty great shape, minus the current level of intoxication. There had to be at least one of them capable of hoisting me up, drunk or not.
“We’re here for you,” Danica whispered soberly, though sober she was not. She placed a hand on my shoulder and gave me a firm squeeze.
“I’m touched,” I whispered back. “Now shut up.”
Matt put his finger to his lips and Ash made a zipper motion across his mouth with his joint.
“Is she always this hot?” Dean muttered to Xander, eying my nipple area through my puffer jacket.
“Yup.”
Courteney poked her fiancé. “Shush.”
I turned and proceeded through the trees along Cary’s fence, and they stumbled along behind me in the dark. We were in his neighbor’s yard, unbeknownst to his neighbors. Either that or they’d already called the police on our drunk asses.
Dean was our navigator on this mission, and I was starting to wonder if that was a piss poor idea. Though he had managed to get us onto the property—through the front gate that he happened to know was never actually locked—and into this dark stretch under the trees where we probably weren’t visible from either house.
“This is it,” he announced, and we all stopped.
“This is where you sneak over the fence?” Xander whispered.
“Yup.”
I looked up the high fence. “Okay. I think if you guys hoist me up I can do it.”
“It’s sturdy,” Dean informed me. “You’ve got a clearing on the