Piper bit back a laugh. “Um, why?”
“Quinn is here.”
“Yes, I heard her.”
“I’m sorry, I know she’s your sister, but if I have to listen to her voice a moment longer, I’m going to murder someone, probably her.”
Piper stared at him, trying to figure out why he hated Quinn so much. Sure, she was a hard person to like, but there was terror in his eyes. “You slept with her.”
Drew’s silence was all the answer she needed.
But when? Quinn and Ben had been together since college before they entered the realm of superstars.
“I didn’t know Ben yet.” He pushed away from the door.
“She cheated on him with you?” How had she not known Quinn was cheating on Ben this entire time?
He nodded. “Not my finest moment, and I won’t make excuses.”
Piper sighed. “Has she said why she’s here? Where are the others?”
“They left on an early flight, thank heavens. We don’t need Quinn Hayes finding out about Rockstars Anonymous. She only arrived a few minutes ago. We made up some story about why I’m here.”
“What story?”
His grimace told her she wouldn’t like his answer. The pity in his eyes only confirmed it. “She knows you’re coming to work for me. Ben told her we’re seeing each other.”
Those words. They stole the breath from her lungs. Her and Drew? The same Drew Quinn told her would never look at a girl like her? “Seriously? You guys are something else.” She sat on the edge of her bed. “Do you honestly not know how that looks? What if she tells someone?” Why would Ben do this? “I’m trying to build a career, and you and Ben are only trying to protect your special support group.”
“What’s the problem?”
She stood to face him. “The problem, Drew Stone, is that if this rumor starts, I become the assistant who goes from working for my sister to working for my boyfriend. I become the cliché girl who sleeps with her rockstar boss.”
“I’m sorry. We didn’t think.”
“No, you did. You just thought like a man. You and Ben can do anything you like, and no one bats an eye, but as a woman in the music industry, I have to watch every step. And Quinn… do you want to know why I’m still protecting her after everything? Why I lied to the press and said they were still together, even though it nearly killed me?”
He shook his head.
“Because once the world finds out they’re through, the questions start. My sister has done some awful things, one of which is cheating on Ben. I hate her for it, but I also love her, and I refuse to have that be the only thing people remember her for.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Do you know how many famous men cheat on their girlfriends, their wives?”
“Uh, a lot?”
“Yes, and it never hurts their career. But women…” She sucked in a breath. “I don’t want to hear the things they’d call her, Drew. I can’t protect her from herself, but I can protect her from that.”
Piper yanked open the door, stopping as she almost slammed into Quinn herself. A flush rose in Quinn’s cheeks. “I was going to knock.”
“And instead, you chose to eavesdrop.” Drew brushed by them and stopped. “Play nice, ladies.” He descended the stairs, leaving them in an empty hallway with nowhere to look but at each other.
Quinn hadn’t changed. She never did. Flawless skin, covered in enough makeup to make it look like she wore none at all. Beautiful blond hair curled around her shoulders.
Hard eyes.
The fidgeting, that was new. Quinn wrung her hands almost like she was nervous, but she couldn’t be. “I was coming to wake you.”
Piper couldn’t look at her sister and not see her parents, she couldn’t separate their lives now from the two little girls who’d played together despite their age differences. She stepped forward, sliding her arms around Quinn.
Quinn stiffened, but she didn’t push her away.
“I missed you.”
It was like the words broke something in Quinn because her arms rose up to crush Piper against her. They’d never been the hugging type of sisters, but in that moment, Piper needed to feel close to someone, and she suspected Quinn needed the same thing.
“You really wanted to protect me?” Quinn asked.
“Always, Quinny. How much did you overhear?”
“Enough.” She pushed Piper back to hold her at arm’s length and scan her from head to toe. “What are you wearing?”
That didn’t take long. She stared down as Chase’s old shirt and shrugged. “Something comfortable.”
She imagined what Quinn would say. Clothes weren’t for comfort. But the words didn’t come. Instead, Quinn pursed her lips. “Well, the reporter won’t be photographing you, anyway.”
“Reporter?”
She nodded. “Mel’s idea. She told me to come out here for an interview and fly back with Ben so we arrived together. The reporter should be here soon.” She cocked her head. “Are you sure you don’t want to put on something else? And maybe a bra?”
A laugh burst out of Piper. “Fine. I can change.”
She nodded, a smile playing on her lips. “After the interview, we’ll have an hour or so before we have to leave for the airport. Can we talk?”
Relief pulsed through Piper. “Yeah, Quinny. We can talk.”
Quinn turned toward the stairs.
“Quinn?” Piper called after her.
She turned. “Yeah?”
“Please don’t kill Drew.”
One corner of her mouth curled up. “No promises. You two aren’t really…”
“Gosh no.”
“Good. That’s good. I didn’t really believe it when Ben told me, but I want you to know, even if it was true, I wouldn’t have let Ben or Drew use that information in the interview. They might not get it, but I do. I think you’re going to do well working for him.”
Piper couldn’t remember the last time Quinn complimented her. She wanted to keep talking, to prevent Quinn from going back down to the boys. But as she stepped forward, the doorbell rang, and all sincerity faded from Quinn’s face as she snapped back into the role she had to play. Without another word, she left Piper staring after her.
Piper darted back into the room, finding a simple pair of jeans, bra, and tunic top. It wasn’t something Quinn would have chosen for her, but she wasn’t her boss any longer, only her sister.
By the time Piper got downstairs, voices filtered out from the living room. The first thing she saw was the woman who’d followed her after the kiss with Ben. Her eyes lit up in recognition.
“Hello, again.”
Piper didn’t respond as her gaze fell on Ben sitting on the couch with Quinn tucked into his side, his free hand intertwined with hers. He lifted his eyes, but there was no emotion in their depths, nothing to let on that only the night before he’d sat on the dark deck kissing Piper.
Drew gave her a sympathetic smile from his perch on the arm of the couch. An arm wrapped around Piper, and she looked up to find Julia on one side and Jonathan on the other, lending her strength.
The reporter stood at the front of the room. “I’m Maggie Ulman from the Rock Chronicle based here in Columbus. Ben and Quinn already know this, but we are a blog with tens of thousands of readers. Anything I write will be reposted across the internet.”
That was how the picture had spread so fast.
“I want you all to relax. Only Quinn and Ben really need to tell their story. There have been a lot of rumors and speculation about Fate and what the future holds for the band. Feel free to clear up anything you wish. I will not write anything you tell me not to. I respect my subjects.”
“Like you respected me when you chased me in the rain?” Piper crossed her arms.
Julia’s grip on her tightened. “Piper, why don’t you come help me fix lunch in the kitchen.”
Piper cast one more glance at Ben who pressed a kiss to the side of Quinn’s head and
retreated from the room for the sanctuary of the kitchen. Julia didn’t speak as she opened the fridge to remove a plate of deviled eggs. She held it out to Piper.
“Aren’t those for lunch?” Piper’s stomach rumbled as she smelled the bacon on top of the eggs.
Julia nodded. “But you need them. Deviled eggs make everything better.”
“Ain’t that the truth.” Drew appeared from behind her and took the plate from Julia. He jerked his head to the table, and Piper followed him. “I figured they didn’t need me nearly as much as the food did.”
Piper sat and rested her elbows on the table as she tried to rid herself of the image of Ben kissing Quinn.
“You know they’re only pretending, right?” Drew nudged her as he took his seat.
“I know.” Her head knew everything was fake, but her heart knew it didn’t matter if it was.
“Piper Hayes, you and I are leaving next month to travel the country. I know you’ve been on tour before, but you’ve never been on a Drew Stone tour.”
“Except when you joined Fate’s tour last year.”
“That doesn’t count. It was small beans compared to what you’re in store for. Full arenas for every concert. Not being able to go anywhere without people screaming for us. Unlike Benny boy, I can’t hide behind makeup and contacts when I’m on stage. Which means, I’m just about the most recognizable face on the street.” He grinned.
“Doesn’t that get old?”
“Nah. My fans are the best. But this won’t just be my fans. It’s a dual tour with Noah and Jo. You have never experienced wild until you’ve been on tour with Noah. My assistants aren’t just employees, they’re family. Matt has been my best friend for years, and I have a good feeling about you. I’m going to make a vow to you.”
“If you propose marriage, I’m clunking you over the head with this egg tray.”
His smile widened, and he put a hand over his heart. “I, Drew Stone, will do everything in my power to help you move on from Ben.”
“Move on? Not forget?”
“I know from experience there’s no forgetting. I have a past too, Piper. But it’s just the past.”
“Listen to him, honey.” Julia set a bowl of fruit salad on the table.
“A lyric without the notes,” she whispered. She understood it now. Love was what made the song have meaning, the words that invoked a feeling. But the notes, the rest of the music, that was everything else. A belief in the relationship. A choice to make it work. Friendship. Hard work. Dedication. Sacrifice.
Love alone wasn’t enough.
As laughter came from the living room, Piper closed her eyes. If neither of them was willing to craft the notes, all that was left to do was let go.
A smile tilted her lips as she nodded. “I’m ready for something new.”
“Heck yes, you are!” Drew thumped her back, jolting her forward. “Get ready for the best year of your life, Piper. You and I are hitting the road.”
24
Ben
“How would you describe your relationship?” Maggie leaned forward as if she could pull the secrets right out of Ben.
He looked down at Quinn who’d folded herself against him. Once, he’d have wrapped her in his arms and not let go. Now, it felt wrong.
Everything was wrong.
The look in Piper’s eye when she saw them.
His mom’s disappointed frown.
Drew’s constant tracking of Piper as if he was the only one who cared about her, the only one who’d been her friend.
But this was what she wanted, for him to go back to his life and her to get on with hers. He replayed the kiss from the night before in his mind as Maggie repeated the question.
Quinn dug her nails into his thigh to bring him back to the moment. She gave Maggie a bright smile. “Trusting.”
That was one word for it.
“Trusting.” Maggie held her phone closer, trying to record every word.
Quinn nodded. “We left Florida because it wasn’t bringing us the inspiration we needed to work on the new album. I needed to go back to L.A. to work on my lyrics, but Ben wanted something quieter. It never crossed our minds we couldn’t trust each other in our time apart.” She pecked his cheek. “My guy is the best.”
Maggie smiled at the cuteness, and Ben wished he could pull away. “And you, Ben? How would you describe it?”
Shallow? Non-Existent? Something told him those answers wouldn’t go over well, but he was a rockstar. He’d learned quickly how to lie to the media. “Understanding. There’s no one who quite gets me like Quinn.” He rubbed his eyes, irritated at the contacts. When he pulled his hand away, a smudge of black streaked over his finger.
He’d been so long without the makeup, the contacts, the tight clothes that he’d forgotten how much he hated it, this persona he had to play.
Maggie turned her body so her full attention was on Ben. “Tell me about the kiss with Quinn’s sister. It’s what the world wants to know.”
Ben sighed. They’d discussed what to say. Claim they’d been drinking, that he hadn’t known what Piper was doing until it was too late. She was young and infatuated. But the words stuck in his throat.
Before he could stop her, Quinn spoke. “I love my sister.” He waited for the moment she turned Piper into a fool for the world. A moment that never came. “I don’t talk about my family with the media, but I think it’s time I start. When Piper was ten, our parents died in a car accident. I left for college soon after, but Piper moved into this house to live with Ben’s parents and his brother. They became a family while Ben and I left to chase our dreams. But that changes a person, shapes them. It’s easy to grow attached to people. Piper and Ben have been great friends recently, and I forgive my sister for anything that happened. Hurting me was not her intent. She’s the best person I know.”
Ben couldn’t speak as he stared at Quinn, wondering if she meant the words she said. Her expression betrayed nothing of what she felt.
Maggie smiled. “Piper told me you two are in love more than ever. That night, she claimed she was just a crazed fan.”
Ben shook his head. “No. She’s family.”
“Good. Good. So, we’ve established that the sweethearts of rock are still very much in love. What’s next for Fate?”
That was an easy one to answer. “We’re heading to L.A., where we’ll meet up with Conner Brooks and finish writing our album. Next month, we head into the studio.”
“I’m sure your fans are excited for new music. It’s been two years.”
Ben laughed, but it sounded false to his ears. “Hard to write on a world tour. When we weren’t performing or meeting fans, we mostly slept.”
“And Piper, she was your assistant?”
Why did she keep bringing up Piper? Ben’s fist clenched, but Quinn took it in her hand to hide the reaction. “She was my assistant, but she always ended up working for the entire band. She’s one of the reasons we made it through the tour. I couldn’t have done it without her.”
“Me either,” Ben breathed.
Quinn looked up at him with a sad smile. “But she’s not ours anymore. Piper is about to leave on tour with Drew Stone. A step up from working for her sister.”
Maggie asked a few more questions before asking them to stand out in front of the house for a picture. Quinn pressed her lips to his for the camera, but the kiss was cold, calculated. Had all of their kisses been like that?
They said goodbye to the reporter, but neither moved to go in quite yet as they watched her drive away, both knowing it was almost time to leave the one person they’d miss most of all.
Quinn went inside first, leaving Ben to stare up at the house he’d grown up in, the one that held most of his childhood memories.
And now some of his most cherished adult memories.
With a sigh, he pulled open the front door. He didn’t head for the noisy kitchen, instead trudging up the stairs to the bathroom.
Bending over the sink, he gripped
the porcelain and looked into the mirror, not recognizing the man staring back at him. But this was Ben Evans, Fate’s front man.
He turned on the faucet and splashed water on his face, scrubbing to get every bit of makeup off his skin. Bending forward, he ducked his head underneath the icy cold stream of water, reaching to the shelf next to the sink for the shampoo. He scrubbed until the gel no longer left its greasy shine in his locks.
When he lifted his head, water streamed down the back of his neck, soaking his shirt. Black streaked along his cheeks, remnants of the eyeliner. He retrieved cotton balls and lotion, wiping away the excess proof he was someone he didn’t want to be.
Someone who didn’t exist.
Last, he took out the contacts and retrieved his glasses. After changing his shirt and towel-drying his hair, he went back downstairs to face his family as himself once again.
His dad smiled when he entered the kitchen. “Look who’s returned to us.”
His mom snapped her husband with a towel. “Don’t make him feel bad about wearing makeup.”
Chase—where did he come from?—grinned through a mouthful of food. “Bro.”
“When did you get here?” Ben scanned the room, finding both Piper and Quinn missing.
“Taking a long lunch from work. Mom texted saying there’d be food.” He leaned in and dropped his voice. “No one told me Drew Stone would be here.” He looked over his shoulder.
Their dad laughed. “You wouldn’t believe how many famous people slept in our house last night, son.”
Chase’s eyes widened. “Do tell.”
Drew sat next to him, completely oblivious to the fan-boying going on. “It was just Noah, Dax, and Jo.”
Chase closed his eyes. “Do not tell me you mean Noah Clarke, Dax Nelson, and Jo Jackson.”
“Yup.” Drew stuffed a roll into his mouth.
Chase punched Ben’s shoulder. “Jerk.”
“Ow! What did I ever do to you?”
“Bro, I led the paparazzi on a chase through rainy streets, and you can’t so much as text your brother telling him all your famous and super-hot friends are having a sleepover.”
Love is a Lyric (Rockstars Anonymous) Page 17