14. Raleigh
Raleigh
14
One tequila. Two tequila. Three tequila. More.
“Hit me again,” I say, pushing my little shot glass back toward the bartender who’s been keeping me company for the better half of an hour.
The poor guy stares at me, his brows furrowing with concern. “You sure, sweetheart?”
“Oh yeah,” I say. “If I’m still able to remember my name by the end of the night, then we didn’t do it properly.”
“Bad day, huh?” he asks, scooping up the shot glass and quickly filling it before sliding it back toward me.
I grab the saltshaker and pour it out on top of my hand. “More like a bad decade,” I inform him before picking up my shot and lifting it to my lips, only at the very last second, it’s stolen out of my hand, and I watch Madds pour it down her throat. She grunts through the burn and licks the salt off my hand before reaching across me and completely violating what’s left of my little slice of lime.
“Hey,” I whine.
“You snooze, you lose,” she says, dropping onto the stool beside me and coiling her arm tightly around my shoulders. She drops a kiss to my cheek, and before she gets a chance to pull away, I snake my arms around her and hold her tight.
“You have no idea how much I’ve missed you.”
“Right back at ya,” she says, refusing to let go.
She’s not home, but she’s the closest thing I have to it, and as she continues to hold me, I feel my eyes begin to well with tears. “Hey,” she says, pulling back and holding my stare. “There are no tears on your birthday. We’re celebrating your epic new job.”
I shake my head. “It’s not an epic new job.”
“Huh? What do you mean? A tour working under Louder Records for their new band.”
I glance toward the bartender, and without a word, he nods, takes my empty shot glass, and replaces it with two new ones filled to the brim. “There was no new band,” I tell her. “The whole thing was a ruse to get me to LA to straighten out Ezra.”
Her eyes widen. “Get fucked! Tell me you’re lying.”
“I really wish I could.”
“Shit,” she says, as we take our new shots and throw them back. She chokes on it as it goes down, but I’m well past that stage. It’s basically water to me now. “So, there’s no awesome job offer? You’re just going back to Michigan?”
“Oh, there’s a job offer all right.”
“Why don’t you sound thrilled about it?”
“Because the official title for it is marketing manager for Demon’s Curse. I’d have to go on tour with them for who knows how long with absolutely no way to avoid Ezra. I’ll be doomed to have to watch him drown himself in his bullshit rockstar lifestyle night after stupid night.”
“Ohhhhh,” she says, trying to sound as though this is the worst thing that could ever happen, but the undeniable excitement in her eyes is telling one hell of a different story. “That’s so terrible. Poor little sad girl has to go on tour with the most epic band in the whole fucking world that she practically founded with her even epic-er big brother.”
I give her a blank stare. “I hate you.”
“No, you really don’t,” she says, scanning over the drinks menu and ordering us frozen margaritas. Apparently, my troubles are not fitting with her birthday celebration vibes. “I’m struggling to see this as a bad thing,” Madds continues. “Yes, it’ll be hard being in Axel’s world without him there. You’re going to feel his lack of presence more than ever, but at the same time, you’ll be with the people you consider family, and maybe it might allow you a chance to reconnect with Ezra. I know you said you still felt that pull toward him at Axel’s funeral. Maybe there’s something still there.”
“I don’t know,” I tell her. “Not after what I saw today. He was a mess. I’ve never seen him so low. He couldn’t even walk straight, plus he was angry. Like a deep, profound kind of anger, not just pissed that I walked in and disturbed his peace. He’s broken.”
“And so are you,” she reminds me as though that thought hadn’t already occurred to me.
“Yeah, well, two broken halves don’t make a whole. It just makes an even bigger mess.”
“Cheers to that,” she says before noticing a candle at the end of the bar. Her brow arches and she rises from her seat like a magician and moves across the bar. She picks it up, holds it to her face, and sniffs for all she’s worth. “Ohhhh. It’s a good kind.”
I roll my eyes and watch as she steals the candle and brings it over to me before shoving it in my face. “Smell.”
“Ughhhh. You know, I haven’t missed your messed-up candle addiction,” I tell her, sniffing the damn thing because I know better than to resist.
“Don’t be silly. Of course you have,” she says, settling it between us and turning our birthday drinks into a romantic night for two with our new mood lighting. “Anyway, so because you’re not stupid and you’re obviously taking this job, I’m assuming this thing you have going with this dude will be coming to an end?”
I cringe, needing another shot. “Yeah . . . about that.”
“I FUCKING KNEW IT!” she says before I even get to tell her what’s up. “There is no guy. You made him up so I wouldn’t be worried about you. And as for that job promotion, there wasn’t one.”
My eyes widen. “How the fuck did you know that?”
“Because I know you, Raleigh Stone. I know when you’re actually excited about something, and I know when you’re just trying to placate me because you feel like your life is falling apart.”
“Why the hell didn’t you say anything?”
“Because you were too far away for me to push you on it and be there to get you blind drunk when you finally admitted it and then turned into a sobbing wreck, but now that you’re sitting right in front of me, those reservations no longer exist. You should have been honest with me since the beginning.”
“I know,” I say with a heavy sigh. “I’m sorry. I just didn’t want you to know how far I’d fallen. I’ve been so embarrassed about my situation. I’m barely hanging on, but I’m not your problem to try to fix anymore, and you and I both know you would have been worried sick if I’d told you the truth.”
Her shoulders sink. “Just how bad is it?”
“Trust me,” I whisper, taking her hand and giving it a squeeze. “It’s really best you don’t know. But if I accept this job with Louder Records, maybe everything will turn around for me. And even if it doesn’t, at least I would have had a chance to see—”
A noise at the door catches my attention, and I glance up in time to see Dylan and Rock striding into the hotel bar, looking more than ready to cause the best kind of havoc.
“To see who?”
“Those two,” I mutter, nodding behind her shoulder.
Madds glances back, and her eyes practically fall out of her head as she notices the boys striding toward her, and I can just imagine the scene playing out in her mind. This is her ultimate dream, only I’m sure there are a few key differences, say like in her dream, I’m not here, the bar is a bed, and everybody is naked.
“Be cool,” I warn her, knowing not a damn thing has changed with her unhealthy obsession with Demon’s Curse. “They’re just here to have a good time.”
“I am so cool,” she mutters, already swaying from the few shots of tequila.
The boys reach us, and within seconds, Rock is dragging me off my stool and pulling me into the warmth of his strong arms. “HAPPY BIRTHDAY!” he cheers, and without a doubt, I know it was Ezra who reminded them that today was my birthday, and while he hasn’t said happy birthday to me over the past eight years, I know it’s him who’s responsible for the texts I get every year from the guys. Axel was always terrible with remembering special dates.
I pull out of Rock’s arms and try to balance on my feet, but Dylan is right there, pulling me into his wide chest. “Happy birthday, Rae.”
“You’re on my shit list,” I remind him just in case it slipped his mind.
“I know, but I’m hoping we can get you drunk enough that you don’t remember what an asshole I am,” he says as Rock starts listing off drinks for the bartender to get working on while also taking a moment to let Madds fangirl over him.
“There’s not enough alcohol on the planet that could make me forget that,” I tell him as a wicked grin stretches across my face. “But I might consider forgiving you if you strip naked and do the chicken dance up and down the street.”
Dylan’s face falls. “You’re not serious.”
“I hope you’re up to date on your manscaping.”
“Fuck, Rae. Can I at least keep one hand covering the junk?”
“Oooh, I’ll give you one hand over the junk, but in return, I require you to move slow enough so that at least five people on the street have enough time to capture your full ass on their shitty camera phones, and they better be able to get all the angles.”
“And then you’ll forgive me?” he questions.
“Pinky promise.”
I hold my pinky out to him, and after a moment, he hooks his pinky around mine and we shake on our deal. “Shit, I better start drinking.”
I can’t help but laugh, but as Dylan releases my pinky and reaches for a drink, he smirks back at me. “Joke’s on you,” he tells me. “I would have done it just because it’s your birthday.”
I scoff. “More like joke’s on you, I was gonna cave and let you keep your little tighty-whities on, but you had to go and push for a hand covering the junk.”
“Ahh fuck.”
Two hours later, we stand out on the street, both Madds and I tucked under Rock’s arms as Dylan flies up the street, whipping his shirt around like a helicopter as he clutches his dick. I have to give it to him, he’s kept in amazing shape. He was always the one to get naked at parties as a teen, and I’m more than happy to report that his delectable ass is just as yummy as it’s always been, but it’s not the ass that always had my attention.
“Holy shit,” Madds laughs as Dylan races back toward us, and without warning, she scoops his jeans off the ground and makes a break for it, running as fast as she can as tears of laughter streak down her face. Though she doesn’t get far before Dylan is on her, using her body as a human shield as he tries to get his clothes back.
We all head back into the bar, and I have to admit, despite the way my birthday started, it’s the best one I’ve had in years.
The bar closed to the public a while ago, but the boys paid to keep the lights on just for us, turning it into a private party, which is the best present anyone could have gotten me. Being with these guys is incredible, but I can’t help but feel a longing for those who aren’t here.
“Fuck me,” Dylan sighs, dropping down in the booth beside Madds once he’s finally got his clothes back on. He slings one arm over her shoulder, and her cheeks flame, absolutely living her greatest dreams right now.
I scoop up a few more drinks and make my way over to the booth, setting them down on the table and watching everyone dive in.
“So, what’s it gonna be, Rae?” Dylan pushes as I wobble on my feet, almost certain I’m going to be tasting all the tequila again in the morning. “Now that you’ve officially forgiven me, are you going to join us on tour?”
“I want to,” I admit. “But I don’t think Ezra wants me there.”
“Oh, he wants you there,” Rock says as Dylan nods in agreement.
“I’ve never even met the dude, and even I know he wants you there,” Madds says. “You’ve heard his songs, right? And I don’t just mean the ones from the first album. I mean the ones after he started missing you. They are deep.”
I cringe. “I uhhhh . . . actually haven’t.”
“WHAT?” Dylan screeches, his eyes bulging out of his head in shock. “You’re fucking lying. You haven’t heard our songs? What the fuck, Rae? Do you live under a rock? I don’t know if you know this, but we’re kind of a big deal. Our music is literally everywhere. I can’t even escape it.”
I scoff. “I don’t live under a fucking rock,” I throw back at him. I just live out of the back of my car and am oddly specific about what music I allow myself to be around. You know, in case of any unwanted mental breakdowns. A girl can only be too careful.
“Songs aside,” Dylan says, clearly over his horror. “I meant what I said this afternoon. You’re his backbone, but more than that, you’re the glue that’s going to keep us together. It’s not just Ezra who needs you. We need you too. Before Ax . . . you know, we felt like a family. Every time we stepped out on that stage, we were united, and now without him, we don’t feel like a family unit anymore. We’re scrambling to keep our heads above water, and I think you’re the missing puzzle piece that can bring us back together.”
“I’m not the missing puzzle piece,” I murmur, a heaviness weighing me down. “Ax is. And having me there isn’t going to magically save you from missing him. I’m not a replacement for Axel.”
“No, we’ve got one of them already, and he’s a fucking idiot,” Rock mutters under his breath.
“Look, I just . . . I’m happy to try, and clearly we all know that I’m trying to play it cool at the moment, but it’s literally my dream job. I just think you’re all hoping that I can press a button and fix him, but I don’t think I can anymore. We’re both different people now. We’ve been through shit and have our own trauma to deal with.”
Madds reaches across the table and takes my hand, gently squeezing. “Don’t you think it’s worth a try, though?” she asks. “Bottom line is you get to go on tour with an amazing band and be with your family again while doing a job you love. If there’s progress between you and Ezra, and you’re able to see just a sliver of the guy you remember, then consider it a bonus. Besides, you know Lenny’s going to hit you with that big baller money.”
I roll my eyes, but there’s no denying the wide grin that stretches across my face. “Okay, fine,” I finally say. “I’ll do it.”
“Yeah?” Dylan asks, his eyes widening for the millionth time tonight as his phone starts exploding with notifications as his ass goes viral.
“Yeah.”
“FUCK YES! I’ll drink to that.”
After countless drinks between the four of us, we are blind drunk and having the time of our lives. “Here,” Dylan says a moment later, holding his phone out to me. “It’s Lenny. Do you want to tell him the good news, or should I?”
A beaming grin rips across my face as I pluck his phone out of his hand and hold it to my ear. “Hello?”
“Raleigh,” Lenny says. “I trust you’re enjoying your birthday.”
“Sure am,” I tell him. “But you know what would make it even better?”
“What’s that?”
“If you take that contract that’s sitting on your desk with my name on it, and add an extra zero to the end, because if I’m expected to deal with Ezra Knight and keep a smile on my face, then Sir, you better make it worth my while.”
Lenny laughs. “Okay, Raleigh. Consider it done. Are there any other negotiations you’d like to make?”
“My hotel room while on tour. I want the good rooms with the pretty city views and food packages. Like, I wanna eat well on your dime. Actually, I wanna eat well on Ezra’s dime,” I amend, feeling all too proud of myself. Take that Ezra! “Oh, and those skanky dancers, they have to wear more clothes around the boys. This is a professional setting, after all.”
Rock groans beside me, clearly enjoying the way the dancers like to keep their tits hanging out. Hell, I know Ezra did. “Anything else, Miss Stone?”
“Uhhhhh . . . drugs.”
“You want drugs?” he questions, clearly confused.
“No. The opposite. I want no drugs. But if you want me to somehow snap your lead singer into gear, then he needs to have no drugs. The occasional drink is fine, and maybe something to help him relax every now and then. But he’s not falling down the addict rabbit hole on my watch.”
“Understood,” he says. “Does this mean you’re in?”
“I’m in,” I say. “Consider me your new favorite marketing exec.”
“Sure thing,” he laughs. “Be ready to leave for Europe in two days.”
“Wait. What?”
My eyes widen, not having realized just how soon the start of the tour is, but before I can ask anything else, Lenny ends the call, and I’m left with a chorus of deafening cheers around me. As I hand the phone back to Dylan, I grin at the boys. “You want the good news or the bad news?”
“Hit me with the good news first,” Rock says.
“I’m basically going to be like . . . one of your bosses,” I tell them.
Dylan laughs and shakes his head. “That’s really not how it works, but it’s your birthday, so I’m gonna let you have it,” he says. “But go on, give us the bad news.”
I stand from the booth with a laugh and scoop up one last shot of tequila, throw it back, and slam it down on the table, grinning at the boys. “You two assholes are officially in charge of breaking the news to Ezra.”
“Fuck.”