Chapter 4 #9
Kylee shook her head, walking over to the mirror and pulling her hair out of its clip. “It’s crazy. I have to get back to Idaho. School starts. The kids need me. And this? This whole thing it’s not real life.”
Kelly rolled her eyes and took another sip. “So what if it’s not? That’s why it’s magic. Come on, Kylee. You’ve been playing perfect wife and mom for years. Just soak this in for once. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime thing.”
Kylee turned, folding her arms tightly across her chest. “This is what these famous guys do. They find the bitch of the weekend, they sleep with her, maybe fly her out once if she’s extra fun, and then poof onto the next one. I’m not that type of girl.”
Kelly blinked, mock-offended. “Damn. That’s what you think of me?” She snorted, then started laughing. “Well shit.”
Kylee’s eyes softened. “I didn’t mean it like that.”
Kelly waved her off with a smirk. “Relax. I’m not offended.
Honestly, this weekend? Worth every second.
Plus I now have the best two truths and a lie.
‘I fucked a famous rock star drummer, I stayed sober for Mardi Gras, and I got arrested in New Orleans.’” She wiggled her eyebrows. “No one’s ever gunna guess right.”
Kylee couldn’t help but laugh, her shoulders finally relaxing as she fell back onto the bed beside her. “This trip…” she said softly, looking up at the ceiling, “has completely wrecked my reality.”
Kelly chuckled “Good. Maybe it’s about time.”
Kylee stood at the bathroom sink, slowly removing her makeup under the soft hum of the hotel fan. Her reflection stared back at her smudged eyeliner, flushed cheeks, lips that still tingled from almost kissing Rio. She dabbed gently at the corner of her eye, then sighed.
The room behind her was quiet now. Kelly had passed out mid-scroll on her phone, one leg kicked over the comforter, snoring. Kylee padded quietly to her bed, pulling the sheets back and sliding beneath them, the cool fabric brushing her bare legs.
She stared at the ceiling, her mind a mess of emotions.
“What a weekend.” she mumbled She should be exhausted, but her thoughts raced, spinning between flashbacks of Rio’s smoldering eyes watching her in the crowd, the way his hand had felt in hers on the ride back, the smoothness in his voice when he asked her to stay.
And still… Jake had her stomach twisted.
How had it been so easy for him? To fuck Rachel. To lie. To look her in the eyes like nothing happened. And meanwhile, she had been surrounded by temptation all weekend, a rock star flirtation, the heat, the music, the buzz in her veins and she still couldn’t do it. Not fully.
Even though Jake didn’t deserve her loyalty, she hadn’t been able to cross that line.
“Why?” she whispered to herself.
She missed her kids. She was excited to get back to Idaho, to their messy hugs and sticky hands and loud breakfast chaos. But Jake? She didn’t feel anything when she thought about seeing him. No warmth. No butterflies. Not even anger anymore. Just… emptiness. Maybe that said everything.
Kylee rolled to her side, pulling the covers tighter around her. Her heart was heavy, but there was also something else, a strange sense of power. She hadn’t broken. Even with everything.
But that didn’t mean she wasn’t tempted to. If Rio asked again… would she keep saying no?
The morning sun crept through the sliver in the hotel curtains, casting golden lines across Kylee’s face. Her eyes blinked open slowly, adjusting to the light and the weight of reality settling back into her chest. It was over. New Orleans was over.
She sat up in bed, glancing across the room where Kelly was still asleep, tangled in the sheets with one arm flung dramatically over her eyes. A soft smile tugged at Kylee’s lips.
It had been a whirlwind wild, unexpected, intoxicating. Now, it was time to go back to Idaho. Back to being a Mom. Back to Jake.
She exhaled heavily and stood, padding toward her suitcase and quietly beginning to gather her things.
The concert outfit she’d worn was tossed over the chair.
The heels that made her feel sexy and dangerous were kicked by the door.
She folded everything neatly, like packing away a version of herself she didn’t want to let go of just yet.
She jumped up and went to the bathroom, washed her face and tied her hair into a loose bun. No makeup this time. Just her. Kylee. Thirty-five. Mother of three. Wife to a man who had betrayed her trust. And a woman who had, somehow, resisted the one thing she’d wanted most all weekend.
Just as she zipped up her suitcase, there was a knock on the hotel door. She opened it, puzzled, and was greeted by a hotel staff member holding a stunning bouquet of white lilies and soft peach roses.
“For you,” he said with a polite nod, handing her the arrangement.
Heart pounding, Kylee brought the flowers inside. Tucked within the petals was a small cream-colored card. Her hands trembled slightly as she opened it.
“I didn’t say goodbye last night, I didn't want to. I’ll never forget you, Idaho.”
There was no name, but she didn’t need one. Her chest ached with a strange cocktail of longing and heartbreak. She stood there a moment, the flowers pressed to her chest, eyes closed, breathing in their soft scent.
Kelly stirred behind her. “Are those from who I think they’re from?” she asked sleepily.
The rest of the morning moved too quickly, checking out, climbing into the uber waiting downstairs, watching the city blur past the window. Each street held a memory. A piece of her. She watched it all disappear as they pulled into the airport.
At her gate, Kylee waited in silence, the hum of travelers around her sounding distant and hollow. When she boarded the plane and took her seat by the window first class again, a last-minute gesture from Jake she leaned her head back, heart heavy.
New Orleans was behind her….