"We knew it was possible," Marcus replied, nudging her shoulder with his.
"You're not modest." Margo laughed, and the audience chuckled along with her.
Marcus grinned and shrugged in response. "I know talent when I see it!" he argued.
"Maybe your next calling is a talent agent." Margo winked before moving on to her next question. "What do you attribute your success to?"
"A lot of luck...and Kyle's hair, probably," Everly responded, grinning cheekily at Kyle as the crowd hooted and whooped with agreement.
"Kyle does have some incredible hair." Margo chuckled, her eyes dancing across the audience.
"Why thank you!" Kyle pretended to blush. "The secret is I barely wash it!"
"He's not kidding," Cam interjected, leaning forward slightly. The audience laughed again. Even I wanted to smile at their easy banter. The way they bounced off one another had the audience feeding out of the palms of their hands.
"So, what's next for Autumn Fields? Your tour is set for February?" Margo asked, her eyes sparkling. She was thoroughly entertained by them, even more so than some of her other guests. Yeah, I'd seen a few of her shows before. Usually unintentionally.
Everly and Kyle looked at each other again, and he smiled encouragingly at her.
"We were supposed to go on tour for this album, yes. But due to personal circumstances, I've had to bow out. We'll be taking some time off..." Everly answered hesitantly, looking at Kyle as if seeking permission. He nodded, squeezing her closer to him again. Everly swallowed hard, her jaw trembling slightly.
Pretty much all of the people in the audience groaned loudly in protest, but fell silent when Everly started to speak again. "The death of my sister has been difficult for my entire family, and I need to be with them."
Margo's hand reached out to gently squeeze Everly's. It was an emotional moment. Everly's eyes welled with tears at the gesture and the look on her face sliced into my heart. "I'm sorry to hear about your loss, I'm sure we all are. You do what you need to do girl, I'm sure your fans—and your band family—will stand behind you!" The audience hooted with agreement.
"Our fans are incredible." She nodded earnestly. She tried to blink away the water from her eyes. Her pain gutted me. I wanted more than anything to be the one holding her right now, but I wasn't completely pissed at Kyle for being there; I was surprised to feel thankful for his presence. It was obvious that he had done a lot for Everly...and for Cadence. Still, I wished I could be the one to take her pain away, but I couldn't. Not in that moment. All I could do was watch as Kyle held her closer to him and Marcus and Cam tried to lean forward to hug her as well. She took a moment to collect herself before speaking again. "It was an incredibly difficult decision, one that I do not take lightly, but the guys are in full support of it."
"We definitely are," Kyle remarked, smiling at Everly with affection. "We've been working hard the last five years, and we need a little break... otherwise our material will dry up!"
"So does that mean you guys aren't splitting up?" Margo arched a brow, a secret smile on her face.
"We'd never split up," Kyle answered assertively. "We're a family. We're interwoven into each other’s lives. Even if we aren't touring or in the studio together for sixty hours a week, we'll still be a band. We're still a family."
"I think you reach a point when you need to take a step back, get some new inspiration...experience life a little bit more," Marcus added quickly. Kyle, Cam and Everly nodded with agreement.
"Speaking of new material...would you guys care to perform for us?" Margo inquired, her voice getting completely drowned out by the cheers of the audience.
My eyes hungrily lapped up Everly as she moved across the stage. Somehow, during the interview, when my attention had been captivated by the banter between Margo and the band, three microphones and the band's instruments had been set up.
Everly approached the middle one, with Kyle beside her. He picked up his guitar. Marcus settled in behind the drums and Cam picked up the bass.
Everly's lyrical perfection rang out, making the hairs on my arms stand up. She was so beautiful and talented that I honestly ached to see her on stage knowing that she was stepping away from it. I closed my eyes, listening to the rhythmic sound of her voice as it washed over me.
I never meant to be gutless
I never meant to be thoughtless
I just wanted all of this
and I know what I've missed....
Chapter Twenty-One
Everly
THE AUDIENCE GAVE US a standing ovation as the last notes faded off. I smiled, bowing along with my bandmates. The adrenaline rush hit me the moment I stood in front of the microphone; the moment that Kyle started strumming on his guitar. My heart was still pounding as we left the stage, Kyle's large hand on the small of my back as he directed me. He dropped it once we'd reached the back stage section.
"That was incredible," he said, like he said every single time we performed. He shook his head as if he couldn't believe how talented we were. I smiled, Kyle's energy easily affecting me.
"Sure was." Marcus winked, jumping on Cam's back for a piggyback. It was amusing to watch; Kyle was two times bigger than Cam. Cam was taller, but lanky. He spent more time hanging out with his female admirers than Marcus did in the gym.
"Seriously? You're a heavy shit. Get off." Cam laughed, trying to shake him off. Marcus laughed and left him alone, shaking his head.
"You should probably focus on leg day a little more," he joked.
"Oh I focus on leg day, they just aren't mine...but they're usually wrapped around me," Cam joked back, winking.
I was going to miss moments like this; the easy banter between my friends after a performance. The excitement, the wonder.
As if sensing my thoughts, Kyle threw his arm around me while we continued our walk to the dressing rooms. "It's not forever, you know," he reminded me.
But it could be, I thought. I chose to smile my reply instead. Kyle didn't know where my head truly was. I didn't even know where my head truly was.
We hung out in the dressing room until the audience had cleared out and it was safe for the band to exit the studio without getting assaulted by a bunch of over energetic fans.
I was eager to see Grayson again and eager to get home. Maddie suddenly pushed open the doors, granting me my desire to see Grayson. She'd gone into the audience to grab him and the other guests of the band. Jenna was the girl that Kyle was almost ready to propose to. She was followed closely by her nice but sometimes overbearing friend, Crimson. I smiled at Jenna warmly. She was really sweet, and I enjoyed her company immensely.
Back then, we would play anywhere so long as we played for someone. When Cam's cousin called about a local charity fundraiser in Ottawa, we had jumped on it. It was my first performance after giving birth to Cadence, and I was a mess. Luckily, it hadn't shown—or so I'm told, anyway.
After the show, Cam's cousin had joined us, bringing along the girl he'd just started seeing. Lucas was a year younger than Cam. They'd essentially grown up as brothers, back when Lucas' family had lived in Kirby. I hadn't personally met Lucas, but I'd heard a lot about him from Cam. He reminded me of a hipster, but he was friendly enough.
The girl he brought was shy but kind. She'd had a beautiful smile and cornflower blue eyes. We'd naturally fallen into conversation with one another while the guys were busy being rowdy and ridiculous, the post-show energies at an all-time high while I suffered silently, longing for home; longing for Cadence and for all the other things I couldn't have. My arms felt empty, and my heart was even emptier. Unbeknownst to me, I'd been suffering from a severe case of postpartum depression. Jenna had looked at me with a certain recognition.
I didn't share my story with Jenna right away. That would have been foolish, and I was anything but. I was guarded, protective of my secret and the burdens I carried.
We didn't see Jenna again until years later, when Kyle invited her to another local show and sh
e came. I didn't know it, but Kyle and Jenna had stayed in contact throughout the years. She was no longer with Lucas and the chemistry between Kyle and her had been...intense. It made me ache to see it, with remembered longing of what it had felt like to be with Grayson. Kyle and Jenna had been together ever since, seeing each other whenever possible and constantly being each other's rock.
I didn't tell Jenna outright about Cadence; I think she sort of guessed. She came to visit Kyle one summer when Cadence and Julia were down. She took one look at the three of us and guessed the whole thing. Although she knew, she never admitted it. It was more or less that I had a feeling she knew, especially after she shared her story with me.
I shook my head, smiling at Grayson as he approached. It was obvious that he had only eyes for me. He paid no mind to anyone else in the room; he just walked up to me with those ice blue eyes appraising me wantonly and that dangerous smile upon his kissable lips.
"You were incredible," he said in a low voice when he reached me. His arms came around me, pulling me to his hard chest. His hands roamed the small of my back, igniting my skin in sparks of molten fire.
"Thank you," I murmured, bringing my own hands up around his neck. He kissed me in a way that made my toes tingle and a blush creep up to my cheeks. I couldn't even muster the ability to push him away and scold him for making me forget all the extra eyes on us.
Grayson chuckled, pulling away as if he'd known all along that I was helpless against him.
"Are you two going to stand there all day exchanging saliva, or would you like to come out for lunch with us?" Kyle asked begrudgingly, eyeing Grayson with distaste.
"You need to come with us!" Crimson pleaded with her wide, innocent eyes. "I haven't seen you in forever, Everly! Besides, we're going to Heavenly Slices!"
My mouth started to water at the mention of my favorite restaurant in LA. It was an understated mom and pop pizza shop that the guys and I had accidentally discovered after spending the day in the studio recording. They had the best pasta and pizza I had ever tasted, and better still—they weren't known by other celebrities so the paparazzi didn't camp out front like they did in other establishments.
"It would be nice to catch up," Jenna added, giving me a hopeful smile.
"Only if you two keep your tongues in your own mouths while I'm eating." Kyle frowned. "Seriously. Soft-core porn is great and all, but it's slightly nauseating coming from you two."
In response, Grayson tugged me against him, his lips feasting upon mine in a more explicit manner than they had before. My mind almost melted into a puddle of goop, and had he not stopped it when he did, I was pretty sure I would have let him have me then and there.
***
We took two cars over to Heavenly Slices, accompanied by the label body guards Creed and Landon. Maddie tried to insist that we take a limo, but I wasn't the only one completely opposed to that idea. If we had shown up in a limo, we likely would have attracted the attention of the paparazzi and ruined our quiet lunch.
Maddie had pursed her lips at my refusal, but accepted it for what it was, especially after Kyle backed me. I knew that she wanted me to be seen around LA, preferably in the company of Kyle even if we weren't actually in the company of one another.
I was happy she relented. I didn't mind being spotted out in public, but I definitely preferred the quiet luncheon to the celebrity hot spots. It was easy too, with Grayson by my side. He had this wordless way of making me feel safe. That, coupled with the body guards that I knew were outside waiting, I felt pretty optimistic that we could have a semi-normal lunch without anything dramatic happening.
The restaurant wasn't full, but it also wasn't empty. Luckily, the locals were accustomed to seeing celebrities around town, and aside from a few whispers and a lot of looks, we were basically left alone.
The tension between Kyle and Grayson was still detectable, but through the grace of Crimson, Jenna, and the other guys in the band, conversation around our table still flowed. We talked about the most memorable shows, the most embarrassing moments on the road, and what we were going to do with our time once we went on break.
Kyle and Jenna had exchanged a secret knowing look then told us that they were going to do some traveling. Marcus confessed that he would likely head back to Newcastle to spend some time with his family—I knew Aubrey was also included in that equation. In fact, I was pretty sure she was the main reason. Cam told us that he still wanted to stay in LA for a bit, maybe try and get some acting under his belt.
As lunch wore on, Kyle's scowling tapered off as his attention focused more and more on Jenna. He sat beside her, his knees angled to face her and his eyes constantly on hers and shining. Soon, he forgot all about scowling at Grayson.
Grayson seemed to ease up a little too. He held my hand when we walked in and pulled my chair out for me. Then he put his arm around the back of my chair, brushing against my shoulder and discreetly touching the nape of my neck every now and again, as if to reassure himself that I was still there. The electric current that shot through my body at every brush of his fingers against my skin made my lashes flutter every single time.
The public displays of affection made my heart swell. Grayson wasn't like that in high school. He was closed off and guarded, afraid to show his true feelings. I had been deeply in love with Grayson back then—so much so that even when I walked away, every part of my body and mind had continued to crave him with the same intensity as the very day I left. Now though, I was falling even more in love with him, and I hadn't at all thought that was possible. But it felt different, this time. This time...I truly felt as if he'd catch me. I didn't feel consumed by my love for him; I felt hopeful, on the same page. I knew that he would catch me because he was allowing himself to fall, too.
Everything was perfect until we went to leave, and then everything changed. Reporters swarmed the front of the restaurant, cameras poised and flashes exploding before my eyes. They rushed us in a swarm. Creed and Landon were nowhere in sight.
"Everly! Is that the mystery man? Can you tell us about your new man! Kyle! How do you feel about Everly moving on so quickly, aren't you reeling from the breakup? Everly, tell us why you lied about your daughter!"
The questions flew out at us in a rush, but the last one knocked the wind out of me. "Pardon?" I inquired, my face turning an almost sickening pallor.
"Enough questions," Kyle demanded, trying to push past the crowd of paparazzi so we could get to the street. I finally caught sight of Creed and Landon, stuck on the other side of the swarm and trying to push their way through to us. I felt Grayson squeezing my hand, tugging on my arm as he tried to lead me away from the spot where I was firmly rooted.
"I said, why did you lie about your daughter? You told your fans that she was your niece!" The speaker was a man in his early-thirties. "A source close to you says that you are her mother and that he is the father," the man added, pointing at Grayson with a smug look on his face. There was something about him that I vaguely recognized. The other reporters fell silent, eyes wide and cameras poised and trained on me, waiting for my response. I swallowed, my throat suddenly as dry as sandpaper.
Grayson growled, releasing his grip on my hand as he stomped over to the man. The anger rolled off his shoulders in waves, he looked downright menacing.
"You!" he snarled, grabbing a fistful of the man's dress jacket and yanking him forward. The man dropped his camera and his eyes widened with shock at the sudden contact.
"Grayson, no!" My hand shot forward, trying to grab him. Everybody in Hollywood knew that acting out violently toward the paparazzi was a big mistake. Of course, Grayson wasn't a part of the Hollywood scene; he didn't have a career to worry about or a manager to contend with...but I did. I also knew how easy it was for the reporter to turn around and press charges.
"Stay the fuck away from us, got it?" Grayson roared, his eyes hard as stone.
Kyle, Marcus, and Cam all rushed forward to grab Grayson. He put up a good fight, determi
ned to get back to the man. Kyle and Cam held his arms back while Marcus tried to grip his waist. Creed and Landon were still shoving their way through the bodies, trying to get through.
"You're going to regret that! I'll get you. I'll ruin you!" the man shouted, rubbing his neck and glaring at Grayson.
"Not if I get to you first," Grayson growled. He ripped his right arm free from Cam's grasp, his fist connecting hard with the reporter's face. His nose crunched and he fell back, blood exploding out. Grayson had broken his nose with one, almost effortless hit.
Cameras flashed left right and center. The chaos that ensued was mind numbing. Creed and Landon finally broke through, putting themselves between the guys and the reporters.
"I'm calling the police!" someone shouted.
"Grayson, what the fuck?" Kyle yelled, his eyes sharp with anger.
Grayson looked even more enraged. "What the fuck what? That fucking asshole deserved it. I've seen him around town and I chased his ass after he fucking took pictures of Cadence through my living room window and terrified the shit out of her!" Grayson's voice was raised, drawing the attention of several bystanders.
Kyle's expression changed from angry to confused. He looked at me for confirmation. I was shaking so hard that I didn't think Kyle could even tell that I was nodding, remembering the night at Grayson's when Cadence had woken up terrified after seeing a man in the window. I looked back at the man on the ground. His nose was still bleeding profusely and several fellow reporters were trying to help stop the flow. I had a sickening feeling that I knew him from somewhere, but I couldn't remember from where.
"I didn't see him, but Grayson did..." My hands were trembling, my whole body was trembling. Jenna stepped up, wrapping her arms around me. Crimson's face was pale, and for once, she was silent. Her usual steady stream of words was blocked by her shock over the situation.
Sirens were roaring and blue and red police lights were flashing, reflected in the windows of the shops behind us. A police cruiser and an ambulance pulled up haphazardly in front of the restaurant. I noticed for the first time that the remaining people inside the restaurant were watching from the windows, and the crowd on the street had grown to include more curious bystanders. I swallowed hard, keeping my chin up. I knew the situation we were in was bad, but I wasn't about to break down in front of all these watching people.
Reckless Abandon (Damaged #2) Page 22