If I was going to do this, I was going to do it right.
And I was ready.
29
NOAH
I belted out the last “yeaaaaaah!” of “Love Rocket,” one of our lesser hits, and as soon as I did, I felt like collapsing into a chair and not getting up.
Not exactly the rock-star frame of mind.
Me and the boys were in my apartment studio, a massive soundproofed space where we’d recorded some of our biggest hits. Back in the day, this room made me feel nothing but excited, like all the boys and I had to do was hunker down with our instruments and some grit, and we’d be able to spin endless gold.
But at that moment I felt almost trapped. All I could think about was playing the show, knowing Pepper hated me and everyone who knew my name now, thanks to Moira, thought I was some kind of deranged perv.
“Was…definitely not feeling that one,” said Theo as he flicked his pick away like a coin.
“Yeah,” said Will, twirling one drumstick. “Not exactly blowing the roof off the place.”
No sense in hiding it—I was done. I dragged myself over to the nearest place to sit and plopped into it, shaking my head.
“I don’t know,” said Sophia, who’d been watching the whole thing from the producer’s booth. “I thought it was OK.”
“You know,” said Sean. “You could always…talk to her about it. Tell her what happened.”
“Yeah,” said Will. “Sometimes I feel like these situations just need, like, an actual conversation to get it all sorted out.”
“Tried that,” I said. “When it happened. But she wasn’t having any of it—she was gone before I had a chance to say more than a couple of words. Doesn’t exactly bode well for her wanting to have a nice little sit-down about the whole thing.”
Theo gave me a skeptical look.
“I’ve got a crazy idea,” he said. “Did you try to, I don’t know, call her and tell her what’s going on?”
“Of course I did,” I said. “But she’s either blocked me or is ignoring my texts and calls.”
“What about online?” asked Will.
“No go there either,” I said. “There’s nothing—a private Instagram account and a LinkedIn that looks like it hasn’t been updated since college.”
“But you know where she works,” said Will. “Just go there and explain what’s up.”
“And get a restraining order in the process,” said Sean.
I nodded and stuck my thumb out in Sean’s direction, indicating my agreement.
“Besides,” I said, “Moira told me that this whole leak thing was Pepper’s idea. Why the hell would I even want to make up with a woman who’d do me like that?” I shook my head. “Nah,” I said. “It’s done. It was cool at the time, but that’s it. Pepper screwed me over, she thinks I’m a cheater, and that’s that. No sense in making it worse.”
“I’m not liking this vibe, bud,” said Theo. “You’re not thinking about canceling the show, are you?”
“More than thinking about it,” I said.
“And why the hell not?” asked Will. “You were doing this for her, right? Well, that’s not the case anymore.”
“Yeah,” said Sean. “We’re kind of hot right now. I’ve been getting calls from venues all over the city—if it’s playing a show you want, then I can have that lined up in an hour.”
The guys sounded their approval. But there was one person in the room who clearly wasn’t on board. And it was the one person whose opinion I cared about more than any other’s.
Sophia. Her arms were crossed and her face was serious. “Dad,” said Sophia. “You can’t let that liar get the better of you.”
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“You give up just like this, and Moira wins. She straight-up lied about you, right? With that leak?”
“‘Lying’ is putting it nicely,” said Theo. “I read five freaking pages of that draft and knew it was all bullshit. Bullshoot. Sorry, Soph.”
“Yeah,” said Will. “And not even kinda true—straight-up nonsense.”
“I might’ve been in kind of an…altered state for a ton of time during those tours,” added Sean. “But even still I can tell it was all made up.”
“I know you guys are on my side,” I said. “But it’s still a matter of convincing everyone else.”
“Get Moira to fess up,” said Sophia. “Bet it’d be easy—just pretend you like her and record a conversation and bam.”
The boys looked impressed. Hell, I kind of was.
“Kid’s a schemer,” said Will.
“Nah,” I said. “Something tells me that kind of plan wouldn’t be as easy to pull off as it is in the movies. Just my luck I’d forget to hit record or something.”
“But you have to do something, Dad,” said Sophia, climbing into the chair and squeezing in next to me. “And this reunion’s the only chance you’re going to get.”
“But calling off the show would be something,” I said. “It’d be admitting I screwed up, that I knew better than to show my face in public after what happened. Maybe Pepper would even think I was doing the smart thing.”
“You’d be doing the scaredy-cat thing,” said Sophia. “And that’s not the dad I know.”
In spite of the little pity party I was throwing for myself, there was something about Sophia’s words that made me pay attention.
“That’s not the dad I know,” she repeated. “The dad I know isn’t afraid to sing his heart out to a hundred thousand people. The dad I know pours his heart and soul into helping out kids just because he wants to make the world a little bit of a better place. And the dad I know doesn’t give up when the going gets tough.”
I had to admit, I was moved. And judging by the looks on the rest of the guys’ faces, they felt the same way.
Fuck it. The show must go on, right?
Nothing else left to do. I pulled Sophia in for a tight hug before hopping out of the chair, grabbing the mic, and feeling like I was ready to take it from the top.
“All right, guys,” I said. “‘Love Rocket,’ from the top. And we’re not stopping until we get it perfect.”
The boys were ready as hell. And so was I.
30
PEPPER
The moment I stepped into the massive gymnasium where the reunion was being held, part of me was certain that I’d gotten in over my head. The place looked great—the old gym was done up in this ’80s synthwave style with tons of purple and red neon and pulsing dance beats filling the air. The girls were right there with me, of course, all of us dressed in teased-up eighties hair and tight, prom-style dresses. Up on stage Lover Boys’ roadies were getting the gear set up, three strapping guys in black jeans and black T-shirts arranging the amps and instruments.
It’d been more fun than I’d expected it was going to be getting all dressed in these totally corny, out-of-date clothes. I’d even managed to convince myself that the whole evening was going to be a breeze. A good time, even.
But that was before I laid eyes on George.
It was him, all right—I could tell by his short, stocky physique and dark, thinning hair. He’d always had what looked like a baby face to me, and when he laid eyes on me his expression was one of shock. And of course, his not-even-old-enough-to-drink girlfriend or whatever the hell she might’ve been was at his side, dressed in a revealing outfit that would’ve been more suitable for a camgirl.
And maybe she was—who knew with that one.
“Fuck,” I said. “There he is.”
“He looks fat,” said Shania. “More fat. Fatter.”
“And the less said about his girl, the better,” said Sam.
“You got this,” said Katy.
As cool as the girls were being about the whole thing, I felt sick to my stomach. Sure, now that the whole thing was said and done, I was glad as hell that I hadn’t married George—and not just because of the last-name thing. He wasn’t right for me, and I knew it. But that didn’t mean seeing
him didn’t put me right back into that sick, awful feeling I felt when I’d learned he’d wedding-day dumped me.
“Oh shit,” I said. “He’s coming over this way.”
“You want backup?” asked Shania.
“Nope,” I said. “I got this.”
As soon as I said the words I realized that yeah, I did. The girls left my side, and soon George and his girl were right in front of me. She was a pretty girl, all things considered. Trim and busty and kind of charmingly plain in the face. But she looked like a kid, giant boobs notwithstanding. And her makeup was a little much.
“Hey,” said George, looking and sounding extremely apologetic, almost pathetically so. “Good to see you, babe. I mean, Pepper.”
“Yeah,” I said. “You too.”
Be the bigger woman, I thought. No middle fingers or fits or anything like that. Just be…cool.
A beat of awkward silence passed before the girl pointedly cleared her throat.
“Oh!” said George. “This is Enji. She and I are—”
“Girlfriend and boyfriend,” she said snottily as she stuck out her hand. “For, like, a long time now. And please, George, you don’t have to introduce me—I think she knows who I am.”
She was trying to flex, but the whole thing was so high school I almost wanted to laugh.
“Nice to meet you,” I said. “I’m Pepper, but I imagine you know who I am too. Even though I’m not really into Instagram.”
Another beat of silence.
“Listen, Pepper,” said George. “I know things got kind of, um, weird back when...”
Funny way to put leaving me at the altar, but I let it slide. George was never all that eloquent. And as he spoke, I noticed that Enji’s attention was wandering—specifically to one of the roadies on stage. He seemed to notice she was staring, and flashed a smile right back.
“But for what it’s worth,” he went on, “I’m—”
“—much happier now,” said Enji, popping back into the conversation. “Right, George?”
He wilted right away under her tone. Whatever George’d had in mind to say, it was gone.
“Yes,” he said. “No hard feelings, right?”
Not too late for a slap across the face.
“Right,” I said.
“Cute reunion,” said Enji. “Now if you’ll excuse us…”
With that, she took George by the arm and led him away from the conversation, a pathetically apologetic look still on his face.
But really, it was more funny than anything. As burned as I’d still felt, seeing George get led away by some domineering teen was almost so funny that it made the whole matter seem kind of ridiculous.
I couldn’t believe it, but I actually felt kind of…good.
Sure, it’d take time to let the wounds heal, but it was a good start.
The buzz was killed almost instantly when I laid eyes on Moira. Surprisingly, she seemed a little scared to see me, like I was there to rip her head off.
Maybe I would.
I didn’t let this conversation come to me, however. No, I went right to her, ready to give this chick the business.
“Moira,” I said once I’d approached.
“Pepper,” she said right back.
Now that I was up close and personal I noticed something else—there was a little bit of a sway to her, like she’d shown up early and already gotten a head start on the open bar. In her hand was a half-drunk something with a lime twist.
“Sorry to hear about the book,” I said. “Must suck to have your work just put out like that.” As bullshit as it might’ve been. “Bet you’re in trouble with Penrose for that leak getting out.”
“Not too worried about it,” she said. “After all, I was the victim of a hack. I locked up my files nice and tight, but how was I to know that some die-hard Lover Boys fan was going to break in and leak the wrong draft?”
She was so…smug about the whole thing.
“And I hope things are great with you and Noah,” I said. “Hope you got just what you wanted, just like back in high school.”
A strange, almost panicked look flashed on her face before she regained her usual calm. “Noah is… Noah’s fine,” she said.
Weird. Weird on top of weird.
“Listen,” I said. “I know I should rip into you and take you to pieces like you deserve. But let me just say this—more than anything else, I just feel sorry for you.”
Her eyebrows went up. “Sorry for me?” she asked. “Why the hell would someone like you feel sorry for someone like me? I’m the one with the soon-to-be-bestselling book. And you’re the one who couldn’t even manage the project.”
“Because you’re not happy unless you’re taking something that isn’t yours,” I said. “All the way back in high school, it was the only way you could feel better about yourself. Back then it hurt, especially when I was the victim. But now, it’s just…sad.”
She scoffed, clearly beyond tipsy, actually.
Then I remembered something she’d said. “Wait,” I said. “And how are you so sure that the book’s going to be a hit?”
“Because it’s all everyone can talk about. Sure, it was just a draft, but the stuff that was in there was…mm, oh-so juicy.”
“And made up,” I said.
“Sure,” she said. “But I can say I’m going to change it before the final release. In the meantime, however, the fake stuff will still be on everyone’s mind, and they’ll be curious as hell to see what else is in there.”
“All it cost was Noah’s reputation.”
“Please,” she said, waving her hand through the air. “Guy was such a Boy Scout, I was doing him a favor.”
She shook her head, as if totally impressed with herself. Moira was confident, and not the good kind—the kind you get when you’ve had one too many and think nothing can touch you.
“I mean,” she said, “I can’t help but think what a stroke of brilliance it was for me to spice up that book. Cautionary ‘tale’—” She scoffed, shaking her head. “Who the hell wants to buy a cautionary tale these days? What is this, Dickens?”
I kept my mouth shut, letting her go on.
“I’m part of the creative team,” she said. “And it’s my job to be creative. So, that’s what I did. I turned a book that would’ve ended up in the pulp mill in a year into something that people aren’t going to be able to put down. Hell, watch them make a movie out of it.”
“And it just happened to get leaked,” I said.
She shrugged, a crafty smile on her lips.
“Hey?” she said. “I don’t have any control over these things, do I? A die-hard fan can’t wait for the final draft, then how’s that my fault?” She wrapped her lips around her straw, giving me a wink.
A wink that blew away any doubt as to whether or not a freaking “hacker” was behind this.
“And you know what?” she asked. “It’s even going to be better for Noah.”
“How do you figure?”
“He’ll get to see that his fans love the bad-boy side that he’s been trying to pretend doesn’t exist. And he’ll drop this goody-good charity shit, get back to his real self.”
I knew in that moment what was going on. She’d leaked the story, and when she’d told Noah she’d almost certainly made a move, one that there’s no way he’d have been in the frame of mind to reciprocate.
I wasn’t about to let it slide. No way—not with everything on the line.
“You leaked it,” I hissed. “You leaked it, and now you think you’re going to get off scot-free.”
“What are you even talking about?” she asked with a smile.
“I’ve known you since high school, Moira,” I said. “And I know how you work. You scheme and manipulate to get what you want. And if you think there aren’t going to be consequences…” I was letting her have it, letting her have it in the way I’d been wanting to since high school.
But she was still all tipsy confidence. “I suppose we’ll see who�
�s still standing when this all shakes out?” she asked. “And who ends up with the man of the hour.” She flashed me another sly smile as the house lights began to go down and turned her attention to the stage. Moira was screwed—I was going to make sure she got what she deserved.
What Moira deserved was to catch hell for this. And she would. But instead of going over just how badly she was going to get screwed for breach of contract, I knew I had to see Noah.
But with the lights down, I knew it was too late.
“Ladies and gentlemen!” shouted the DJ. “The band you’ve all been waiting for—Lover Boys!”
31
NOAH
The boys had been building me up, sure. And Sophia being backstage cheering me on was a nice boost.
But truth be told, my heart wasn’t in it. I loved playing music, I loved being the front man, and I loved tearing it up with the mic—always would. That didn’t mean that everything didn’t just feel so…hollow.
The guys and I were in full gear—leather and open shirts and garish makeup. On the outside, I was ready go.
On the inside, however, that was a different story. I wanted Pepper, and she was gone.
Oh well. The show must go on, right?
The MC called out our names, and that was that. We strolled out onto the stage, the crowd going wild as we arrived. I put my game face on, feeding off the energy of the crowd as I had done those last few shows when Lover Boys were together, when I knew deep down that we were about at the end.
“He-llo, Buena Vista High!” I shouted out, causing the crowd to go wild again.
And then I spotted her. Right in the center of the crowd was Pepper. And she looked good as hell.
More than that, she looked conflicted, like she wanted to do something but didn’t know whether or not it was a good idea.
Then, before I had a chance to say or do anything else, Pepper did it. She burst from the middle of the massive crowd of people, a look of something like mania in her eyes. It was something I’d seen before, but usually the context was a crazed fan trying to jump up on stage.
Dream Lover Page 19