sacrifice the rest of us?”
“That’s not fair,” I protested. “Ariel has no one but me, and I can’t just abandon her now that things have gotten rough.”
“But like you said, no one asked us,” Bash said quietly. “Look, I don’t blame either of you for what happened. Darren was looking for any excuse to dump us once he realized we weren’t going to change our sound, but I’m worried about how far both Darren’s reach is within the biz to get what he wants. What if someone else is interested and Darren puts a bug in their ear? It’s all a good ole boys’ club in this business, and we both know it.”
“I need to think about this,” I said finally. “Give me a few days, okay? Tell everyone I’m sorry and I’ll be in touch.”
“Okay.” Bash sounded conflicted, but I couldn’t help that.
“Later.” I disconnected and stared down at my phone.
What the fuck was I supposed to do now?
28
Ariel
I’d just had the best massage of my life and was sitting in a chair getting a pedicure when I heard my phone buzzing. I lifted it out of my robe curiously, since only a handful of people knew the number, and saw that Lexi had texted me multiple times. I quickly opened the program, and my heart dropped.
LEXI: Did you hear the news?
LEXI: Are you there?
LEXI: Are you okay?
I quickly texted her back.
ARIEL: I’m at a spa with Casey. What’s going on? Isn’t it the middle of the night there?
LEXI: Almost one in the morning, but anyway, Whiplash passed on the deal.
ARIEL: Dammit. I’m sorry. This is because of me, right?
LEXI: Who knows? Maybe you were part of it, but at the end of the day they wanted us to change our style and we weren’t willing to.
ARIEL: I’m so sorry.
LEXI: Maybe it’s all for the best, you know? The guys are kind of bummed but I think we can produce an album ourselves. With no one telling us what type of music to play.
ARIEL: I know, but you guys needed that advance.
LEXI: I feel bad for Stu and Ford, but we’re going to figure this out.
ARIEL: I still feel terrible. This is my fault and we all know it.
LEXI: Again, maybe a blessing in disguise. I’m not too stressed about it but we need to have a band meeting. We might set up a video chat with Tyler.
ARIEL: That’s a good idea.
LEXI: Get back to your spa day. I’ll text you when I get up—I’m going to bed.
ARIEL: Sweet dreams.
I put the phone down and sighed.
“What’s wrong?” Casey asked.
I told her and Elen what had happened.
“That sounds unfair,” Elen said, frowning. “The band can’t fight it?”
“The record label has final say on whether or not they want to sign a band,” Casey said quietly. “And they put a lot of money on the table. If Nobody’s Fool wasn’t willing to play ball with what the label wanted, they had every right to say no.”
“You don’t think this is because of me?” I whispered, chewing the inside of my cheek.
“Maybe to a degree?” Casey met my gaze directly. “But not entirely. Darren’s had a thing for you for a long time. I think he’s pissed he didn’t get his way, both with you and with the band’s music, so since he can’t take it out on you, he’s taking it out on them.”
“That’s still my fault.”
“You can’t control what other people do,” Casey said gently. “You can only control you.”
“I know. That doesn’t make me feel better, though. They’re my friends.”
“Tyler and Bash have a lot more power than they think, but they’re a little spoiled.” She smiled. “They didn’t have to do anything with Pretty Harts. Show up, write music, and play. Period. I already had the deal, and Whiplash gave me the power to choose my band, so Jayson, Bash, and Tyler didn’t have to live through the pain of shopping for a deal, playing the club circuit, shit like that. Now they want it to be that easy again, and that’s not usually how it works. I’ll chat with them and talk them off the ledge. Don’t worry so much.”
“Thank you,” I said softly.
“You’re welcome. By the way, your meds were delivered yesterday. Did you get them?”
“Yes. Thank you. They’re still in a bag on the desk, but I’ll put everything away tonight. It’s a relief, having that taken care of.”
“Will you be staying in Limaj long?” Elen asked.
“I don’t think so,” I admitted. “My attorney wants