Chapter 33
33
I spend longer than normal helping Shonda and Trent pack up the remaining merch. I restack hats until I am shooed away from the booth, which is pretty rude in my opinion, but I’m sure my boss could tell I was stalling.
Taking the long way back to the bus, I wonder if I can somehow trick Jack into getting off to look for me so that I can sneak on. As I walk past the catering area, I hear an unwelcome but familiar voice.
“I’ve gotta say, for being country stars, these Ryder Brothers are pretty dull. Don’t get me wrong, the ‘daddy vibes’ coming off Declan are strong, but the man is a vault. I haven’t had to work this hard to get laid on a tour like ever,” Paris complains into her phone.
“It’s not even about getting hot gossip or bragging rights. At this point, a woman simply has needs.” She pauses as if to listen to whoever is on the other line .
“I tried that. I even wore my lucky top and no bites. Grayson hasn’t glanced my way the entire tour and while Jack has been a consummate flirt, even he has shied away from my advances.”
Jack has some standards, I guess. Not knowing what happened is killing me. Waiting for Paris to turn her back so I can sneak past, she says something that catches my interest. “Eliza was wrong about this tour.”
What did Eliza say to her about it? Did she lead her to believe she could get with one of the guys? That doesn’t sound like something a PR manager would want, but who knows what game she is playing. I’ve never been able to get a good read on the woman.
Risking being seen eavesdropping, I dart past the open door and make it outside to the parking lot. Steeling myself for round two, I get on the bus.
As anticipated, Jack is waiting for me in the lounge, elbows resting on his knees. When his face tilts up at the sound of my arrival, he looks more haggard than I have ever seen him. He has the audacity to seem annoyed at how late I was getting here.
“Took you long enough,” he murmurs.
“I think if we’re keeping score of who waited for whom the longest today, I’ll win.”
It’s a petty thing to say, but I’m feeling petty. I expect the comment to cause Jack to look a little chagrin, but aside from the slight tick of his jaw, nothing happens.
“Do you have anything you want to tell me?” Why do men keep asking me that today?
“About what?”
“About a phone call someone overheard earlier.”
I overheard Paris’s call like five minutes ago. How did he already hear about it? And what does it have to do with me? He can’t be mad that I haven’t mentioned it. I’ve barely gotten back.
“Um, I heard Paris talking about some plan she and Eliza had— ”
“Don’t try to sully her name right now,” he scoffs.
“Paris?”
Taking off his signature ball cap, he runs his hands through his hair, pulling at the ends in frustration. “No, Eliza. After what she overheard earlier, I get why you would try to discredit her, but I’m surprised you’d stoop that low.”
“What are you talking about? The only time I saw Eliza today was when I was searching for you, and she told me that you were with Kennedy.”
“I wasn’t with Kennedy, I was at Kennedy’s.” Seeing the confusion on my face, he continues. “Kennedy’s is a distillery in Boston. I was meeting with the owners about a potential collaboration opportunity.”
Relief washes over me, the missing pieces of the puzzle clicking into place. I almost feel silly for not putting them together myself, but I can’t help the instinct that Eliza purposefully misled me. If it was a business thing, shouldn’t she have known?
“Why didn’t you tell me?” A little communication could have saved us so much trouble.
“I’m not the only one keeping secrets,” he clips.
“What are you talking about?”
“The phone call you had with your dad earlier. Eliza overheard you two talking.”
“Oh.” I cringe. “Having to talk to my dad is bad enough but other people hearing our dysfunction is embarrassing. I still don’t understand what there is for him to be this upset about, though.”
“Were you ever going to tell me about the job in New York?”
“I-no.”
“At least you’re honest,” he mutters.
“There is no job in New York. I was only interviewing to humor my father. I had no intention of taking it.”
“The same father you promised to get hired on this tour. Is that why you agreed to come in the first place? I know you were reluctant. Did your dad convince you to come so he could be brought on later as our tour manager?”
“I never said that.”
“No? You didn’t tell him you’d talk to us?”
Okay, I did say that, but I didn’t mean it. “I did, but he’s been harping on me to do it for weeks and I haven’t. I wouldn’t have wanted him on tour. It would have cramped our style.”
“Cramped our style? What does that mean?”
“Just that my dad being here would have complicated our relationship. He was afraid I’d come on the tour and have a fling with a musician. And he wasn’t wrong. Lainey was barely gone less than two weeks before you and I were hooking up.”
Jack barks out a humorless laugh. His eyes are swimming with hurt when I meet them. “Is that all this is to you, Ellie? A hookup? A fling? A way to pass time before you get on with your real life in New York or wherever the hell else you’ve interviewed?”
His words sting, but they aren’t completely wrong. I have been thinking of this as a fling. Not because that is what I want, but because I thought it would be foolish to want more. “Is that what you want?”
“Us to be a fling?” I nod, voice clogged with emotion.
“If that’s what you think, then you aren’t as smart as I thought you were.”
His condescending tone riles my already frayed nerves. Moments ago, I thought he may have cheated on me. Now I’m the bad guy? For something I didn’t even do? The emotional whiplash is too much and I snap.
“What should I have thought, Jack? We’ve never once talked about the future. We’ve been living in the now. Neither of us knows what the hell we’re doing after the tour is over. We haven’t even told your sister about us. I went into this assuming it had an expiration date. I didn’t want to get my hopes up. I can’t bounce back like I’m sixteen anymore.”
His eyes harden. I don’t think I’ve ever seen them so cold. “An expiration date,” he repeats, nodding to himself as if he’s decided.
“You’re right, Ellie. We did have an expiration date. And it came early. I think it’s best if you leave the tour. I’ll have Eliza book you a ticket home for tomorrow.”
With that declaration, he leaves the bus, slamming the door on his way out. I stand there frozen. What just happened? It feels like I’ve been sucker punched when my brain finally catches up. Screw waiting for Eliza to get me a ticket. I can’t spend another night on this bus.
Running into the bedroom, I make quick work of packing up my shit. If Jack wants me gone, then I’m gone. As much as they care about me, I don’t think his brothers would fight him on this. And I wouldn’t want them to. I have no desire to be somewhere I’m not wanted.
I consider getting a car to take me straight to the airport, but it’s late and there won’t be any flights tonight. Thank God this happened in a city where I have family. I text Shana, the cousin I’m closest to, asking if I could crash at her place. By the time I’ve gathered everything important, she responds telling me her guest bedroom is ready and waiting.