The Winner Takes It All (Love in L.A. Book 3)

by Audrey Harte

  Annie glanced over at Avery, curious as to what the bar owner’s reaction would be. To her relief, he was grinning from ear to ear, his approval plain to see. When his eyes met hers, he winked and nodded his head as if to say, “Alrighty then, chick. Let’s see what you’ve got.”

  So show them she did. She shimmied and popped and grinded up against Erin and gave the bar quite a show. All of Casey’s crew was plastered up against the bar, waving dollar bills as they cheered and egged them on. They were quickly joined by the other patrons of the bar, both male and female alike, and in a matter of several seconds, the entire bar was singing and dancing along to Get Low. Annie and Erin pointed at each other and sang the chorus together, leading the bar through the popular dance moves.

  When the song morphed into California Love by Tupac, the southern Californians in the New York City bar went crazy, cheering loudly. Annie crouched down and hopped off the bar, quickly followed by Erin.

  “That was fun!” Erin gushed as she panted, trying to catch her breath.

  Annie gratefully accepted the two cups of ice water that Avery offered her, turning to hand one to Erin as she drank hers at the same time. “So fun!” was all she managed to get out before a hunky blond guy with warm hazel eyes, who was wearing black jeans and a black button-down shirt with rolled up sleeves, sidled up to Erin and introduced himself. Shutting up, Annie finished drinking her water as she listened avidly to their conversation.

  “Hey,” was all he said out loud at first, but Annie could clearly see that he was undressing Erin with his eyes as she spoke to her. Considering that he looked like something out straight out of an Abercrombie & Fitch ad, she was betting that Erin didn’t mind at all.

  “Hey,” Erin said nonchalantly, but her eyes were doing the exact same thing to him.

  “What’s your name?” he asked, his eyes never leaving hers.

  “Erin. What’s yours?”

  “Traver.”

  “Do you come here often?”

  Glancing around the bar and then back at Erin, Traver grinned. “Well, yeah. I just started working here kind of recently, so I’ve been spending a good chunk of my time here.”

  “Oh, that’s cool. Are you one of the bartenders?”

  “Yep. About to relieve my boss from duty, but I still have a few minutes. Can I buy you a drink?”

  “Um, sure, if you’d like.”

  Traver reached for the empty shot glass that was sitting on the bar next to her hand. He sniffed the glass quickly before setting it back down. “Another shot of Fireball for you?”

  “Know your liquor, do you?”

  He grinned at her. “Hard to miss that scent.”

  “Sure, I’ll take another shot. Can you have one with me, or is that against the rules?”

  Traver turned toward the bar and quirked a questioning eyebrow at Avery, who answered by setting out three shot glasses and pouring Fireball into them. Then he nudged two of the glasses towards Traver and Erin and picked up the third glass, raising it to cheer with them.

  “Does that answer your question?” Traver asked wryly before tossing back his shot.

  “You have a cool boss.”

  “Oh, I know it. Both of the guys who own this place are pretty awesome bosses, all in all. I consider myself fortunate to be working for them. They’re fair and pay good money. So what brings you to Halo tonight? You out celebrating or just unwinding after a long day at the office?”

  “We’re actually here celebrating the success of our first live recorded show… it’s for this talent competition we’re all in. Tomorrow night is the results show, but we’re partying it up tonight. I think we’re all feeling pretty good about the way the results show will go.”

  “That’s awesome. Do you live here, or are you only in town for the show?”

  “I’m just here for the show, but I’m not sure how long I’ll be here. It could be weeks, or I could be gone tomorrow. You never know how the audience will vote.”

  “Well, here. I’m going to give you my number. If you feel like doing something fun and spontaneous sometime, give me a buzz. For now, I gotta get to work before my boss gets upset. He’s cool, but I don’t like to push my luck. May I?” Traver asked, pointing at her iPhone.

  Glancing down at her phone and then back up at him again, she nodded. “Oh yeah, sure. Go for it,” she said, handing it over to him. It only took him a couple of minutes to input his name and number into her contacts, then he handed the phone back to her and winked. “Bye for now, Erin. I hope we get to hang out soon.”

  As he turned to walk away, disappearing behind an Employee Only door, Annie smacked Erin’s arm. “Shut the front door. Oh. My. God.”

  “Christ on a cracker,” Erin practically shrieked. “Did a gorgeous man just come up to me out of nowhere and put his name and number in my phone? Did that shit really just really happen?”

  “Did you really just say ‘Christ on a cracker’?”

  “Shut it. Focus, lady. Hot bartender just gave me his digits. What the hell am I supposed to do next?”

  “Well, play it cool obviously. If you look too interested, he’s going to lose interest fast. You have to keep things interesting and play a little hard to get.”

  “That’s just it. I don’t have time for playing games right now.”

  “Doesn’t matter, trust me. You have to play the game. Everybody does, so you have to, too.”

  Erin sighed and grumbled under her breath. “Fine, but that doesn’t mean I like it.”

  The results show went better than Annie could have hoped for. She was the first contestant that was declared safe by Kyle Atkinson as he read the results of the previous evening’s vote, beating out another female vocalist from Chicago. Pure Flow was declared safe not long after her, beating out the East LA Dance Crew, and although she wasn’t announced until almost last, Erin also pulled through to the next round, beating out a male vocalist from Seattle.

  Choosing her next song was difficult, as Annie’s first instinct was to go with something she felt comfortable singing. But she knew this wasn’t the time to play it safe. It was time to take risks and push her limits, and she had a full week to rehearse, so there were no excuses for not being ready to give an incredible performance the next time she hit that stage. After listening to dozens of songs, she finally settled on one of her favorites by Florence and the Machine, Dog Days Are Over.

  That week of rehearsals was intense, but Annie embraced it. She thrived under pressure, giving every performance one hundred and ten percent. And just when she thought she had nothing left to give, her vocal coach would ignite something inside her, and she would put her previous performances to shame.

  By the time the next show rolled around, she was on fire, more than ready to take on all the other finalists and blow them away, leaving them coughing in the dust behind her. It only figured that in the midst of her basking in the applause that thundered around her as she finished her song, she would see the one person who could ruin the entire evening for her. Kayla Miles.

  What the fuck is she doing here?

  Annie was furious. She couldn’t believe the nerve of that girl. After the show was over, she looked for Casey, only to find him chatting with Kayla, an easy smile on his face as he listened to the pretty pop star gush.

  “Damn, Casey, you’ve got some skills. A girl has to wonder if all that hip action translates to other areas as well.” Kayla’s not so subtle innuendo was loud and clear. “But really, you were amazing out there. I mean, I already knew you could dance, obviously, but you really impressed me out there.”

  “Thanks, Kayla. It means a lot that you came out here to support me. I appreciate you taking the time out of your busy schedule.”

  “Like I’d miss a chance to see your sexy ass tearing up that stage?”

  Casey coughed as his cheeks reddened, and he glanced around, his eyes meeting Annie’s as she glared at him pointedly from across the room. “Well, like I said, thank you for showing up. If you’ll
excuse me for a minute, I need to speak with someone. I’ll be back shortly.”

  Kayla gave him a tight smile. “Of course, don’t let me keep you. Do what you need to do. Just hurry back now.”

  “I will,” he assured her and winked before moving away through the crowd of people.

  The bitch was alone. This was her chance to give the blonde tramp a piece of her mind. Taking a deep breath and steeling herself for a catfight, Annie approached the pop star.

  “Hi,” she said.

  Kayla just looked at Annie and rolled her eyes, like she couldn’t even be bothered to respond.

  This incensed Annie even more. She couldn’t stand the way that Kayla looked at her, like she was nothing. Like she was gum on the bottom of her shoe. “Look, lady. I don’t know what your problem is, but where I come from, you don’t try to steal another woman’s man from her right under her nose.”

  “What are you even babbling on about?” Kayla asked in a bored tone, giving Annie an irritated look.

  “Casey, the dancer you came to see, and my guess, to try to steal from me.”

  “First of all, I don’t steal. I don’t need to. Men leave their wives and girlfriends for me all the time without my asking. Casey’s a big boy and can make his decisions for himself.”

  “Fuck off, lady, he’s mine. And you’d better start getting that through your thick skull.”

  “Or else what? What are you going to do about it? Do you think Casey would be happy knowing his whore of a girlfriend was running her mouth off to his boss and jeopardizing his job? First, she competes against him. Then she tries to make sure that not only does he lose, but that he has no job to go to when this thing is over, so he’s left with no choice but to depend on her good graces.”

  “Who the hell are you calling a whore?” Annie hissed, incensed by Kayla’s insult. “I’m not the one trying to steal someone else’s man.” Her voice was a little louder than she realized, making her mentally wince.

  “What the hell is going on? Annie?”

  Casey had returned, and as Annie looked up at him, her heart sank. He looked furious. A dark scowl marred his features, making her drop her gaze in embarrassment at being caught. Kayla just gave her a smug smile.

  “Your girlfriend doesn’t seem to appreciate the fact that I flew out here to show my support.”

  “I’m sorry, you’ll have to forgive Annie. Sometimes she doesn’t think first before she does things,” Casey said apologetically, glaring at Annie again as she stood there silently, shifting her weight awkwardly from foot to foot. “If you’ll excuse us for just a minute please,” he said, grabbing Annie’s elbow and dragging her off to the side where he could speak with her privately.

  “What the fuck were you thinking, Annie? Seriously? You have to get your jealousy under control. This is my livelihood you’re messing with now.”

  “I can’t believe you just let her gush all over you and then let her talk to me like that.”

  “Look, you put yourself into that situation. You should have just stayed the hell away from her. You know I love you, so why won’t you just freaking trust me already?”

  “Because she’s trying so hard to take you from me—”

  “No, she’s not.”

  “Are you kidding me right now? She flew all the way from where again, just to be here for your show?”

  “They were in Vancouver last.”

  “Yeah, Vancouver… which is not even remotely close to New York. She’s gunning for you hardcore, and you’re not exactly discouraging her from doing so.”

  “I’ve already told you before. She is my boss, I work for her. I dance for her. That’s where it ends for me.”

  “But it’s definitely not where it ends for her—that much is crystal clear to me. And it doesn’t seem crystal clear to her that she can’t have you.”

  “So what? What does it even matter? You should just be able to trust in me and not give a shit whether some chick is trying to throw themselves at me. Chances are that this isn’t the last time that’s going to happen, so you’d better start getting used to it.”

  “I can’t believe you just said that to me,” Annie said in a hurt tone.

  “I’m just keepin’ it real, princess. Now I need to go smooth things over with Kayla. I suggest you stay out of trouble, stop trying to cause problems for me, and find someone else’s life to ruin tonight.”

  Annie gasped in outrage as Casey turned and walked away from her, returning to Kayla’s side.

  Who is this asshole, and what has he done with my sweet, loving boyfriend?

  She couldn’t believe the way he’d just spoken to her. If this was any indication of how things might be later, she may have made a huge mistake in pursuing a relationship with him. This wasn’t her happy ever after. This wasn’t what she had signed up for. Not by a longshot.

  It was as if everything was moving in slow motion during the next few moments. Annie watched Casey return to Kayla, appearing to apologize to her as he tried to smooth things over. When Kayla responded, she glanced at Annie, frowned, and then shook her head at Casey. It took every bit of Annie’s willpower to not fly back across the room to slap the shit out of her. Then all of a sudden, Kayla wasn’t frowning anymore. She was smiling like the cat who ate the canary. When someone came up and started to talking to Casey, he turned from Kayla, who took the opportunity to look straight at Annie and give her the finger, an evil smile spreading across her lips.

  Before she could move, an arm snaked through one of hers and held her fast. “Whoa, lady. Where do you think you’re going? You look like you’re about to go all Kill Bill on someone, and I’m guessing it might be Miss Kayla Miles.”

  Annie gave Erin a withering look. “What tipped you off?”

  “She isn’t worth getting kicked out of here or worse, off the show.”

  “Ugh, I know. You’re right. But I’d still love to rearrange her face. You should have seen the smile she gave me after he said something to her, and I’m dying to know exactly what that was.”

  “So ask him later. You need to get out of here now. Let’s go. I’ll buy you a drink.”

  “Fine,” Annie snapped as the knot in her stomach grew tighter.

  After many rounds of Fireball at Halo, Annie drunk dialed Alex, desperate to talk to her BFF and have him sympathize with her about Casey and Kayla.

  “Hey, Mami.”

  “Hey.”

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Kayla’s here in New York, and she’s ruining everything.”

  “Kayla as in Kayla Miles? What is she doing there?”

  “She came to see Casey.”

  “Interesting. What are you going to do about that?”

  “I tried to give it to her straight, but Casey just got upset with me for jeopardizing his job.”

  “Well, I can understand that.”

  “Hey, whose side are you on?” Annie asked.

  “Yours, baby girl, yours,” Alex assured her. “I’m just saying I can understand why he might have been upset with you for meddling.”

  “I wasn’t meddling. I was staking my claim, showing her my territory.”

  “And how far did that get you?”

  “Shut up.”

  “Uh huh.”

  “Come here please,” she begged.

  “To New York?”

  “Yes, to New York. Come here to New York and watch me sing next week! Well, if I get through, that is. We’ll know after tomorrow night’s results show. I need you here with me right now.”

  “Um, okay. I mean, I wanted to come anyway, but I was going to wait until it got closer to the finale.”

  “But what if I don’t make it any farther than this?” Annie protested.

  “You will. You’re going to win this thing, remember? But okay… let me talk to Katie and get back to you, okay? She was going to come with me.”

  Annie squealed into the phone. “Yay! My two besties here with me in the big NYC!”

  After she hun
g up with Alex, Erin pushed another shot of Fireball towards her and raised her own glass up.

  “To best friends who are always there for each other,” Erin toasted.

  “Cheers,” Annie replied, raising her glass up to Erin’s.

  “So anything new happening with Traver?”

  “No, you told me to play it cool, so we’ve just been texting a bit. I try not to respond right away and make him wait a bit before I text him back.”

  “That’s good. What have you guys talked about?”

  “Not a whole lot. Just like basic exchange of info so far. Like he’s from Detroit, and he used to play basketball, but he moved here to pursue his acting and modeling career. I told him I’m from Hawaii originally and moved to L.A. when I was eighteen to pursue my acting and singing career, but until now, I’d pretty much given up on the idea of ever attaining my goal to do either as my full-time career.”

  “That’s cool. Are you going to try to hang out with him soon?”

  “Probably, but I’m kinda getting over Mike still, so I dunno.”

  “Well, what better way to get over him than to distract yourself with a yummy guy like Traver?”

  Erin nodded as she grinned at Annie. “Totally, I know. You’re right. How is this even a question?” She immediately started typing a text to Traver. Not even a minute after she hit send, her phone buzzed with his response.

  “What’d he say?”

  “He said he’s working tonight and tomorrow, but he’s free on Thursday.”

  “Perfect. What are you going to do?”

  “I’m asking him if he wants to grab coffee after I get done with rehearsal.”

  “Nice. Just take it slow.”

  “Yes, Mom.”

  “Hey! I’m just looking out for you.”

  “I know—I’m just giving you shit.” Erin stuck her tongue out at Annie. Just then, Traver appeared over Annie’s shoulder, making Erin blush bright red as she clapped a hand over her mouth.