I drop him at his apartment, only remaining long enough to change back into my other clothes. He walks me to my car, looking guilty. “Bria, I want …”
I wait five whole seconds for him to finish his thought. “It’s okay. You’re right. We both need sleep. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
He pinches the bridge of his nose. “Text me when you get home.”
I see him in my rearview mirror watching me as I pull out of the parking lot. And on the way home, I write a song in my head about the mercurial man I think I might be in love with.
Chapter Twenty-six
Crew
It’s our last day in the recording studio, and we’re putting the finishing touches on our second album. Bria’s in the booth, re-recording some of her parts. We lock eyes as she sings the lines we wrote together. Damn, she’s good. Bringing her onboard is the best thing we’ve ever done. We killed it this week. Bria and I sound better than ever.
Sometimes I wonder why she puts up with me, though. It’s been two weeks since I called her by Abby’s name. Neither of us has mentioned it. She’s figured out Abby was a big deal to me. I’m pretty sure Bria realizes that when I fuck things up, it’s not because I don’t like her. But tension is growing between us, and not in a good way.
“We’re going to get rich from this,” Garret says, coming up behind me.
Garrett always says that, which is strange, considering he has a trust fund waiting for him. But I hope one day it will be true. Money would be nice, but I just want to be on a stage, singing to thousands of people, and I want Bria right up there with me.
“You good with that?” Jake, the sound engineer, asks Ronni.
“Yes. We can break for lunch now.”
It doesn’t slip past me that Ronni rarely gives Bria a compliment though she raves about the group as a whole. It must be a woman thing. They’re both beautiful but in very different ways. Maybe that’s intimidating to them.
Ronni takes me to the conference room, where a catered lunch is spread on a table. “There’s a charity benefit in the city next Thursday. I’d like you to go with me. It would be good exposure.”
“I’ll check our schedule and make sure everyone’s free.”
“I’m not inviting Reckless Alibi. I’m inviting Chris Rewey.”
I give her a sideways look. “Why would we need exposure for me and not the band?”
“I’m looking out for you,” she says. “You have a big future in the music business.”
My bandmates are digging into a pile of sandwiches, and I wonder when Bria will show up. “Ronni, I’m part of Reckless Alibi. We’re a package deal. I don’t have a future without them.”
“I think you’re wrong, but don’t come as a singer then. Come as my date.”
Liam overheard Ronni. He stops eating mid-bite.
“Maybe Jeremy didn’t tell you, but I’m with Bria.”
Her lips curl in disgust. “You and Brianna? No. That’s a train wreck waiting to happen. I forbid it.”
Everyone in the room is listening to our conversation, and I’m glad Bria isn’t here yet. I reach for a plate. “It’s not a train wreck. We’ve signed papers protecting the band if anything were to happen.”
She addresses Jeremy. “Is that what the addendum was all about? You should have been up front with me. I’d have advised against any personal relationships among band members.”
“I advised them against it too, but do you know what happens when you tell someone they can’t do something? Forbidden fruit, Ronni. I took measures to protect the band, that’s all. There’s nothing more we can do.”
She growls and turns to me. “How serious is it?”
“I don’t know,” I say, taking a sandwich. “We go out sometimes. It’s no big deal.”
“No big deal, huh?” She scowls.
“That’s right.”
Bria comes in, and everyone looks at her. “Did I suck or something?”
“You were great,” I say. “Wasn’t she great, guys?”
Everyone agrees. Everyone but Ronni.
All through lunch, Ronni sits across the room, appraising me, appraising Bria.
“Brianna, you need to cut your hair,” Ronni says frigidly.
I protest mildly, “I don’t think that’s necessary. Guys dig chicks with long hair.”
“It’s true,” Liam says. “We do.”
“It’s unkempt,” Ronni says.
Bria looks offended. “Are you calling me sloppy?”
“Your hair is perfect,” I whisper to her. “Don’t listen to her.”
“I have to agree with Crew and Liam on this,” Jeremy says. “We want men and boys