by Bryce Oakley
“One more crack out of any of you and you’ll be sorry,” Meg said with an impish grin, but she was pretty sure the others understood that she wasn’t joking about spraying them with ketchup.
After lunch, Meg and Collins spent some time together working on her solo. To Meg’s surprise, Collins came with specific suggestions for how she could improve it and was prepared enough that she was able to record and then replay each run through for Meg so she could really hear the difference. The fact that she wanted Meg to hear it and approve it made her hopeful that Collins had really heard the band about having a say.
“I want you to come in immediately after the verse ends, so right after the line ‘I thought your true colors painted my walls.’ And then without changing anything, I just want you to sing the chorus in your head while you play. So right into ‘If it’s nothing to you, then it’s nothing to me.’”
Meg nodded, singing the line in her head as she imagined playing it. She mimicked the motion, concentrating on the correct beats.
“You had a co-writing credit on this, right?” Collins asked.
Meg was surprised and a little flattered that Collins had remembered.
“Uh, yeah. I only helped a little, Billie and Dom did most of it,” Meg said, blushing. She was so new to writing any of the songs.
“Don’t do that. Don’t sell yourself short. If you hadn’t helped, you wouldn’t have been credited,” Collins said, almost sounded like she was scolding her, but when Meg looked at her face, she thought that maybe it was just Collins’ strange way of encouraging her?
“Cool, so, you ready to hear this with me singing in my head?” Meg said, desperate to get past the strange life coaching session she was suddenly a part of. It wasn’t exactly her normal flirtatious experience.
She played it through as Collins nodded along, recording and pointing and making intense eye contact that Meg couldn’t reciprocate for fear of getting distracted.
She hated to admit it, but Collins’ suggestions really did help. She could hear the difference when Collins played it back.
It was strange to be so attracted to someone who also irritated the fuck out of you. She simultaneously wanted to smack Collins… and kiss her. And yet, she held back from either, just hoping to make it through the week alive and without murder on her criminal record.
Meg didn’t exactly lie to the rest of the women when they asked her to join them for dinner. She simply said that she couldn’t stand being the seventh wheel and would have to pass.
She just didn’t volunteer where she was going.
She had received the promised text from Jake which included the oh-so-smooth Collins in all her 11th grade glory — the caption really was so incredible about young Collins being a baller. She saved the photo, sure she’d be cracking up about it for a long time.
Jake also invited her to join them tonight for his birthday dinner. They had explained to her the night before that the whole family got together for a big family dinner for each of their birthdays. She was flattered to be invited and thought of declining just in case the invitation had just been from politeness, but she got the impression that Jake was sincere.
If she was being honest, she wanted Jake to be sincere. And she wanted to see Collins again.
Sitting on her bed in her bathrobe, trying to decide what to wear, Meg was mentally kicking herself for agreeing to go. Seeing Collins was one thing — and that was strange enough — but Meg was about to hang out with Collins’ whole family.
What the hell was she thinking?
What the hell should she wear?
She was so nervous while getting ready that she had a nice large glass of wine to calm her nerves. That helped for a few minutes, until she started worrying that Collins’ family would know she had been drinking. This was Colorado, after all, nobody here drank — they all just smoked pot, right?
She decided to wear a simple outfit. They were going to go to a pretty casual restaurant for dinner, so she dressed in her favorite skinny jeans, a super soft cream-colored sweater, and some comfortable Chelsea boots.
She decided to wear her naturally wavy hair down and put on some light makeup.
When she could stall no longer, she finally went downstairs to wait for her rideshare, her nervous energy making her tap her foot on the ground.
What if Collins was upset that Meg was there? Had Jake told her he was going to invite her? What would Mr. and Mrs. Collins think of Meg? Why did she care? She definitely should have had a second glass of wine.
In the car, she decided to text her friend Isla. She was always good for an honest if not brutally honest opinion when Meg asked her for advice.
Meg: Do you think it’s bizarre or kind of hot when people go from hating each other’s guts to being attracted to each other?
Isla: Are you watching a rom com right now? Or did you suddenly decide to start fooling around with that producer you hate? Please say rom com!
Meg thought for a moment before she responded after she got in the car. She didn’t want to admit to either, actually.
Isla: You’re not seriously messing around with that woman you’ve been complaining about, are you??
Isla: ARE YOU?!
Meg silenced her phone and stuffed it in her jeans pocket. She would chat with Isla later. She would be arriving at the restaurant soon. She applied some lip gloss and ran her fingers through her hair. Sure, she probably looked to the driver like she was going on a date, but that driver would be wrong. Definitely really totally wrong.
“I’m heading to a friend’s birthday dinner,” Meg explained anyway, her nerves making her mouth move.
“Mmhmm,” the driver reached for the volume knob on the radio to turn the music louder.
See? She didn’t owe him or anyone any sort of explanation.
When the car pulled up outside the restaurant, she briefly considered changing her drop-off location or even just hiding in the car and refusing to get out, but thought better of it. If she were to take refuge in a rideshare, it would have to be with a nicer driver.
She might as well face the music.
As she opened the door and walked inside, she found Collins standing by the host stand just inside.
“Hello!” Collins greeted her with much more animation than she was used to, and she didn’t... hate it.
“Jake told me you were coming, so I figured I would wait for you here,” Collins said.
“Thank you, that’s uh, very considerate of you,” Meg smiled at Collins. She tried to look less nervous than she felt.
“I remembered what you said about you and your brother being super into Dolly Parton, so I got him a gift card to Etsy. There was too much Dolly to make the choice myself,” she said. She had also found a birthday card with cats on it. It just felt right.
Collins led the way to a large table with about twelve people already sitting and a few more seats waiting to be filled. With a bundle of nerves in her stomach, Meg held her head high and marched in to meet the fam.
After being introduced to Aunts, Uncles, Cousins, and Collins’ parents, Meg’s head was spinning with all their names. She sat down with Collins’ mom, Essa, on one side and Collins on the other. That wouldn’t get complicated at all.
She should definitely have had more wine.
Someone walked in with a balloon bouquet, there was a huge pile of gifts in the middle of the table, and everyone was talking excitedly.
“Are all family birthday dinners like this?” Meg asked Essa.
“Not at all dear, we don’t normally have a rock star in our midst,” she smiled the same beautiful and open smile as Collins and Jake. “We’re so glad you were able to join us tonight, it’s wonderful to meet someone that works closely with our Collins.”
Meg felt comforted by Essa — she seemed so sincere. Meg also noted that she called her daughter Collins, and felt even more affection for Essa.
“Collins is definitely a force to be reckoned with. She knows her stuff, that’s for sur
e. She’s absolutely terrifying, but she’s quite good at that, too, so it works out,” Meg joked and thankfully, Essa laughed right along.
“Hey now, what’s going on over there? I hope there aren’t any ridiculous stories being thrown around,” Collins looked to be only about half-joking.
“No worries, Sis, Mom was just telling her about the Labor Day incident,” Jake shouted from farther down the table.
Meg looked at Collins to see her reaction and was surprised to see she was blushing with wide eyes. Yep, blushing and also looking extremely uncomfortable.
“Meg, you haven’t heard about the Labor Day incident?” one of the cousins asked.
Meg watched Collins shift in her seat. Ugh, fine, she could be the better person and save Collins, but she was going to keep this favor in her pocket for payback. And also, she wanted to remember to get the Labor Day story out of Jake later. “I’m really excited to see you open that gift from Collins,” she said loudly, smiling at Jake.
Collins gripped Meg’s hand under the table and gave it a quick squeeze, and then, just as fast, she let Meg’s hand go.
Meg took this to be a gesture of thanks for changing the subject, but couldn’t completely tell, since Collins was steadfastly not looking at Meg.
After ordering their meals, the crowd turned their attention to Jake and his giant mountain of gifts. His favorite was obvious as soon as he opened his gifts from Collins. She had clearly put a lot of thought into it — she got him a Dolly Parton coloring book, a Loretta Lynn pop socket, and a button that reimagined Johnny Cash lyrics for... chickens. Naturally.
He loved every bit of it and the Collins siblings laughed hysterically together.
Meg was transfixed. She had always imagined that her family dynamic was the norm. Sure, the Rush sisters had invited her to spend plenty of holidays and events with their family, but that was also a thinly veiled dysfunction-fest. They loved each other, but boy was that group skilled in the art of passive aggression.
The Collins family was so different, and Meg relaxed into the positive feelings all around her. She chatted with Collins’ cousin Eric, a writer, and was very flattered that he was such a fan of The Shrikes — though he was admittedly a little strange. Every family had the occasional odd duck, right?
“No wonder Lacey is doing so well out there in California. Must be nice to have friends in such high places. I’m sure I’d be just as successful as her if I had connections with rock stars,” he said with a pointed look.
“Oh no, you’ve got that backwards. Collins works her ass off and terrifies all of us. But she terrifies us into some of our best work. She’s really fucking good at her job,” Meg said, a bit more aggressively than she had intended, but she wasn’t sorry for defending Collins’ work.
Collins’ father, Brandon, leaned across the table. “Meg, I have one very serious question that I need to ask you, and it is imperative that you answer it correctly.” He made intense eye contact with her in a way that reminded her of his daughter.
Meg gulped, blinking.
“Do you like cats?” He leaned forward in his seat as he asked.
Meg laughed, relaxing back into her seat. She had heard Collins’ talk about her cat, Ollivander, first when using it as a seduction tactic for Sienna, but a few times since. She had even noticed a picture of Ollivander was Collins’ phone’s background.
“Yeah, I like cats! I haven’t met the famous Ollivander yet, but I hear good things,” Meg smiled at Brandon’s reaction, which was a lighthearted pat on Meg’s shoulder.
She had clearly passed some kind of test.
He went on to chat with her about her life in California, why the Denver Broncos were underrated — he was astounded to hear that she did not care at all about the Rams — and most touchingly, he talked about how proud he was of Collins. Meg noted that both of Collins’ parents call her by her chosen name, and she appreciated the way that both of her parents had chatted with Meg in such a welcoming and open way.
Meg found herself wishing she had more family for the second time in as many days. Maybe it wasn’t that she wished she had more family, she wished that hers was different. Or maybe she just wished she had this particular family.
Watching the way Collins interacted with everyone, and the way she seemed to constantly be listening to make sure Meg was doing alright made her feel really valued.
During the meal, Collins sat very close to Meg, their legs brushing and their arms touching, and Meg felt warm all over.
She was glad she hadn’t had that second glass of wine before coming, and she was anticipatory to feel that the attraction from last night was still there. She was very far from figuring it all out, but she was excited to try.
Chapter Fifty-Seven
Collins
Collins watched Meg chat with her family and couldn’t help feeling more and more affection for her.
She watched her shit talk her weird cousin Eric, then laugh and joke with her dad. She kept up with every conversation, and it was a little scary to admit it was kind of nice to have someone with her at a family dinner.
She’d brought other women around her family before, but her habit of dating airheads hadn’t exactly endeared any of them to her family.
Meg was different. She was smart, confident, spunky, unafraid, and damn, was she sexy when she was defending Collins’ honor. Collins couldn’t help herself leaning closer and closer to Meg during dinner.
She hugged her parents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and Jake goodbye, promising them that she’d come back soon.
The family was on the guest list to see the show on Saturday and kept telling Meg how excited they were to know the band now. Meg, for her part, was kind and fun and seemed just as excited to know them back.
When they left, Collins quietly suggested to Meg that they go over to a whiskey bar near their hotel since the night was young.
Meg agreed and they shared a car. Collins didn’t miss the knowing look Jake gave her on their way out. He clearly approved of her figuring things out with Meg, since he was the one who invited her out, after all.
In the back of the car, riding to their destination, Collins took the leap and laid her hand on Meg’s thigh. Meg didn’t flinch. Instead, she covered Collins’ hand with her own as she stared out the window.
It felt so normal and natural, and yet, it made her fingers burn. She was excited and nervous, not at all her normal attitude while out with a woman. Collins was always confident. She always knew she was going to get the girl.
Meg was a completely different type of girl to get.
She thought back to that night at the bar when she and Meg were both hitting on the same woman. How stupid that was, and how competitive she had felt. Of course, she didn’t want anything to do with a woman so willing to make two other women fight over her. But Collins just didn’t want to lose.
How strange after that night that she would be in the backseat of a car with Meg. How stupid she had been to overlook her before. She’d always found her attractive but the last 24 hours had shown Collins that she also could really like Meg, more than just physical attraction. She respected her and enjoyed her humor, and damn, was she sexy.
They sat down in a booth in the far corner of the dark bar. Collins grabbed them each a heavy pour of her favorite whiskey and sat down next to Meg instead of across the booth. She felt like a giddy teenager, but she wanted to be close to Meg.
She wanted more.
And she was confident that Meg did, too.
“You did very well with my family,” Collins said to Meg in her best attempt to calm her nervous energy and to settle the excitement that kept bubbling up inside of her.
“They’re all awesome. I didn’t have to work very hard at all. I’ve never really been around a family like that before. So thanks for letting me come,” Meg replied, sipping the glass of whiskey.
“It was Jake that invited you, not me,” Collins joked.
“Oh, is that so? Because I could always just
go now?” Meg joked, reached across Collins to grab her jacket.
Collins laughed, grabbing her arm to hold her close. They locked eyes and Collins’ heart pounded in her chest.
Collins tilted her head and leaned in, hesitating in a pause just before she reached Meg’s lips. She was helpless in the way her body yearned to be close to Meg’s, to breathe the same air, to brush against her leg or arm.
Finally, Meg closed the distance and took Collins’ mouth first in a searching kiss. The warmth of Meg’s lips was intoxicating, but not because of the smoky taste of the whiskey. She slid her hands up to Meg’s waist, over her shoulders, and held Meg’s face tenderly, returning the kiss that left her completely powerless.
For someone so used to being in control, it felt nice to leave her body for a moment and revel in the moment.
Meg let her take the lead, which she liked, and before long, she had Meg pinned against the wall.
Meg grinned against her lips. “What if someone sees us?” She asked.
“Then let them see us,” Collins said, feeling reckless. She couldn’t think of anything but having more and more of Meg.
Meg moaned against her demanding mouth as Meg clutched at Collins’ shirt.
Everything Collins did in life was so calculated — it was a breath of fresh air to do something without completely thinking it through.
“Come with me,” Collins said, watching the shocked expression on Meg’s face as she took her hand and pulled her out of the booth.
Collins led the way down a hallway leading to the restrooms, but walked past both bathroom doors and turned another corner. They were in a long hallway that seemed to lead to a rarely used back supply room. She knew the bar well — not because she was often making out with women in the back hallway or anything.
She wanted Meg. And she couldn’t wait.
They stopped around the corner of the back hallway. It was likely that they would be undisturbed there, but there was a chance of someone stumbling around that corner at any moment.