24—Pittsburgh （J-Dawg’s Buddy’s House）
“Where are we?” I ask as Travis pulls up in front of a small townhome.
“My buddy’s house,” J-Dawg says from beside me.
Should I be concerned I’ve been kidnapped by my own security detail hours before a show? Probably. But I trust these two more than my own family at times. (Not that my family would ever hurt me on purpose, but their decision-making can be suspect at times.)
“Your buddy is a big fan?” I ask skeptically.
He shoots me a smirk. “The biggest.”
“Sure. Seriously, guys. What’s going on?”
“You’ll see,” Travis says. “They asked us not to say anything until you were here and we agree it’s better that way. Go check it out and make sure we’re good,” he directs to J-Dawg.
“You got it, boss,” J-Dawg says as he climbs out of the SUV.
My knee bounces enough to shake the entire vehicle as we wait for the all clear, but I don’t even bother pumping Travis for information. If my pleas, pouting, and threats haven’t worked thus far, nothing will.
“You can trust us,” Travis says. “I promise, it’ll be worth it.”
My glare must need work because all it does is draw a smile from my bodyguard. Come to think of it, my “threats” could probably use some training as well. It’s not my fault being mean is so hard.
Thankfully, it doesn’t take long for J-Dawg to return from the house with the green light. (Not only am I inpatient for answers, I was three seconds away from offering Travis a packet of almonds which would’ve severely wrecked my “mean” cred.)
After securing my hair under a ball cap and slipping on oversized sunglasses, I follow J-Dawg toward the house. Travis brings up the rear, and I sense their urgency to get me out of sight as quickly as possible. They were also more insistent than usual that I disguise myself. J-Dawg doesn’t even knock before pushing through the door and leading me inside.
The second I see him, my heart bursts.
“Val…” I breathe out.
A door closes behind me. Other people say stuff. Time probably continues. I even think I spot Nash leaning against the wall, but none of it matters as stunning green eyes rest on me.
His lips tip up in a smile I’ve been craving, and I rush toward him.
He laughs softly as he squeezes me against him, and I cling hard to absorb as much as I can.
“I’ve missed you,” he says quietly.
“I’ve missed you too. Where have you been? Why can’t you talk to me?”
“It’s…” His voice fades, and I feel the heat of his breath on my hair as he kisses me.
Whatever. All questions for later. Right now, I just want to get lost in the familiar scent of spicy forests and feel the soothing warmth of his body.
I rest my cheek against his shoulder as his arms tighten around me.
“We’ll give you some time,” Travis says.
“Thanks again, man,” Val replies, his voice rumbling against me. “I owe you.”
“No problem. You did us the favor. She was about to slip our protection and go hunting for you. This is way easier on us.”
I smile and pull back just enough to send Travis a grateful smile.
He returns it and follows everyone but Nash through the open doorway to the neighboring room.
“What about me?” my friend says, crossing his arms. “You didn’t miss me? Where’s my hug?”
I shoot him a mock glare. “Of course I’m glad to see you. And I’ll hug you in a minute. I’m still working on this one.”
He chuckles and moves to an armchair in front of the TV.
Val leads me to the neighboring couch and pulls me down beside him. He slides his arm around me, and I nestle into his side. I’m aware of Nash’s amused look as I draw Val’s other hand to my lips, but so what? With everything going on, who knows when I’ll get to see my boyfriend again, let alone be close to him? What if this is it?
“I’m so sorry for all of this,” Val says. “It’s not what we wanted, but we didn’t know what to do.”
“Can you tell me what’s going on now?”
“Yeah,” he says through an exhale. “And we know you don’t have much time until you have to go back, so we’ll make this as efficient as possible.”
“Thank you. I’m listening.”
His chest rises and falls in a deep breath. “I, uh, got kicked off the tour.”
“What?!” I shriek, bolting up.
He shrinks with a sheepish smile. “Yeah, so, that’s why I haven’t been around.”
“Heck no! Absolutely not. Is this Jarvis’ doing? It is, isn’t it?”
I yank my phone from my pocket, but Val tugs me back to the couch.
“And that’s why we didn’t want to tell you until we could do it in person and talk through it,” Nash says, waving over me.
“Talk through it?! What’s there to talk through?” I snap.
“Hey, don’t kill the messenger,” Nash says. “This is your boyfriend’s show.”
“Thanks, dude,” Val mutters.
After way too many seconds, my boyfriend shifts in his seat to face me.
“I saw something I wasn’t supposed to see yesterday. We’ll explain it all in just a second, but the immediate issue is that yes, it’s Jarvis’ doing, but he has the full support of Rena and Lakebend Records. In fact, Rena is the one who kicked me off and threatened me in every way possible to keep me from communicating with you. If they find out we’ve been in contact, things will go very badly.”
My limbs don’t seem to know what to do as I absorb this information. They want to punch one person, hug another, climb something (anything), kick more things, run a marathon… well, half marathon. Or just watch a marathon. I don’t know, the point is, what?!
Val takes my hands and mercifully gives them something to do.
“What kinds of things? How did they threaten you?”
He shakes his head. “Lots of ways, but we don’t have time for that. What matters is that you know the truth about what’s going on, especially since it’s going to be a lot harder for us to help you now.”
“Wait, did they ban you as well?” I ask Nash.
“Oh yeah. They confiscated my all-access pass so hard.”
“Okay, but… hang on.”
Val tugs my hands to draw my attention back to him. “We’ll be fine. What we need to tell you is why we got kicked off. We were right about everything, Larinda. Jarvis has been plotting against you since the beginning. Actually, based on what we discovered yesterday, this goes back before the beginning.”
His expression is dark and tortured when it lands on me, and I brace myself for battle.
“At least we know what they’re up to,” I say. “Let’s hear it.”
Val and Nash exchange a look before his gaze settles on me. “Okay, well, remember that notebook I found in Jarvis’ dressing room?”
The next half hour involves a deluge of information. Most of it is painful and hard to stomach. It would be easy to get knocked down, so I call on the newly accepted version of myself to stay calm and practical. There will be plenty of time for grieving and freakouts later. For now, it helps to sort the information into two main categories: learn and confirm.
Learn: there’s been a breakup song about my engagement in existence longer than the engagement itself.
Confirm: Jarvis is a jerk-hole.
Learn: Lakebend Records is in on the betrayal and probably planning to drop me.
Confirm: Jarvis is obsessed with belts.
Learn: Val is willing to do anything (including wear a costume) for me.
Confirm: Jarvis is a jerk-hole. (Same confirmation from a different piece of evidence.)
Learn: Lakebend Records is also a jerk-hole.
Confirm: Val is amazing and Nash is a great friend.
I’m not sure what to say as the ugly story draws to a close. On the one hand, my heart is bursting that Val and Nash risked so much for me. On the other, everything else.
Val draws me against him as I stare at the far wall, everything they said swirling around in a painful, confusing vortex. I’ve been betrayed plenty in my life, including by the man at the center of the current one. But this…
“I’m so sorry,” Val whispers. “It was nearly impossible not to punch him in the face right then.”
“I really wish you had,” I mumble.
His gentle laugh is too much and releases a few of the tears that have been threatening for a while now. His arms tighten around me as I bury my face in his shoulder.
“We’re going to fix this,” he says.
“How?”
His silence is the only answer I need. Exactly. How do you fight one of the top artists and labels in the industry when they team up against you?
“And now we can’t even be together? When will I see you again?” I ask.
“I don’t know.”
“Wait.” I pull back and search his face. “Pittsburgh. We’re in Pittsburgh.”
“Yes.”
“That thing with your parents! Are you doing it?”
He lowers his gaze, and my stomach tightens.
“You are,” I say quietly.
“I have to.” His eyes lift to me again. “They’re not going to stop until I hear them out.”
“Val…”
“Paige is going with me.”
“I tried to go too, but he won’t let me,” Nash says.
“Yeah, because they hate you too. This is about deescalating a situation.”
I fan my palm over Val’s cheek to draw his attention back to me. “Are you sure about this? You’ve already been through so much over the last few days.”
He shrugs with a weak smile. “Exactly. What’s one more punch in the gut, right?”
I give him a hard look. “Yeah, well, I’m tired of watching you get punched in the gut.”
“I’ve been dealing with this shit my whole life. I’ll be fine.”
Will he? He always says that and I always know he’s not, but there’s no point wasting time arguing.
I slide my arms around him instead. “I love you, Val Andrews. No matter what happens, know that in my head, I’ll be holding you like this all the time. Don’t ever forget it, okay?”
“Only like this?” he teases. “I mean, we can do a little more than this in your head, no?”
“Oh, trust me, we’ve done way more than this. In fact, remember that time you?—”
“Annnd I’m out,” Nash says, jumping up from the chair.
Val and I snicker as he takes off to join the others in the kitchen.
Val’s gaze turns serious once we’re alone. “Look, I know this is bad and the odds are stacked against us, but we’re going to find a way. I’m not sure what that is yet, but I’m not giving up.”
I trace my fingers along his jaw as his words sink in. I trust him. At least, I trust his will to solve this dilemma. But what if it’s bigger than us? I’ve never been a believer in “willpower.” I’ve seen what this big ugly world can do when it turns its wrath against you. You can fight all you want, but at the end of the day, all you really control are your thoughts, feelings, and actions. I’m not sure that will be enough to solve this one, and right now I have a very ugly obstacle in my direct path.
“I don’t know how much longer I can pretend with Jarvis,” I say, searching Val’s eyes. It can’t be easy for him to see me with another man, especially one as awful as this one. “I can’t even stand to look at him, let alone be engaged to him.”
“I hate it too,” Val says before his frown tips up in the slightest smile. “But I guess it helps that he doesn’t want to be engaged to you either.”
I bite back a snort at the absurdity of that statement. Gosh, it captures the essence of this mess so perfectly.
“Do we have anything else important to discuss?” I ask in a sly tone.
“A lot, actually.”
I lean close and brush my lips over his. “More important than kissing me?”
His grin breaks. “Nothing could ever be more important than that.”
“Yeah? Prove it.”