When the last person in line had his picture with me and my signature, I turned to Mikey and glared at him. “Back room. Now.”
He smirked. “Whatever you want, baby.”
“I’m not your baby,” I spit out.
I jumped offstage and walked through the door where I’d seen Ryan and the other guys go through earlier. I looked around, expecting to see them there, but the room was empty. I turned when Mikey walked in and closed the door behind us.
“Where’s Ryan?”
“He had to leave, but I told him I’d bring you by the house later.”
“Not a chance on your life, asshole. I can’t believe you pulled that shit on me.”
“What did I do? Come on, Jade. Those people were excited to see you! Stop acting like you’re too good to sign a few things for them.”
“I’m not acting stuck-up! I don’t mind signing things, but this summer was supposed to be a vacation for me. Besides, you didn’t call me out like that for their benefit. You did it for yourself!”
He rolled his eyes. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Bullshit. You knew exactly what you were doing. You wanted the attention. You wanted them to tell their friends that I was here, so they would come to whatever bar you were playing at. I’m not stupid.”
“Look, it was a win-win for both of us. Yeah, it’ll help spread the word about the band, but you also got to meet some of your fans.”
“You’re a total and complete dick. I hope you know that,” I growled.
He smiled as he took a step closer. “I’ve missed you, you know. I forgot what a turn-on it is to see you all pissed-off and ready to kick ass.”
“Don’t,” I said as I took a step back. I wasn’t going to deal with his bullshit.
“Come on, babe. I know you’ve missed me. I missed you.”
“No, Mikey, I didn’t miss you at all. You’re an arrogant dick who only watches out for himself.”
“I might be an arrogant dick, but I’m your arrogant dick.”
He took another step forward and grabbed a strand of my hair. I pushed his hand away and took another step back until I was tight against the wall.
“I’m not kidding, Mikey. I’m really pissed off. If you want to keep your dick attached to your body, you’ll take a step back.”
He grinned as he leaned forward. “I’ve missed you, Jade. We used to be so good together. Don’t you remember?”
“No. What I remember is you trying to control me and boss me around.”
“Give me another chance,” he whispered.
“Not going to happen. I’m with Logan now, and even if I weren’t, I would never go back to you,” I growled.
“Bullshit. You know you’ve missed me. I’ve changed a lot since you knew me. I’m not as much of an asshole as I used to be.”
I snorted. “Yeah, right. I might have believed you if you hadn’t pulled that shit out there tonight. No, Mikey, you’re still as big of an asshole as you were when we were together.”
Anger flashed across his face. “And you think Logan is better for you? Come on, Jade, wake up. I’ve met him once, and I can already tell that he doesn’t fit into your world, our world. What does he do while you’re onstage? Sit in the corner and lift weights? No, he’s not what you need.”
“And let me guess—you’re just what I need.”
“I am. Think about it. We could take the rock world by storm. Bring me back to L.A. with you and introduce me to your manager. Help me get my foot in the door. Then, I could tour with you, and we’d never be apart. We’re perfect for each other.”
I stared at him, trying to comprehend what he was saying. He was a bigger asshole than I’d ever thought possible. He didn’t give a damn about me. All he wanted was to use me to boost his own career.
“You’ve got to be kidding me.” I laughed. “You’re a real piece of work. Well, let me lay it out for you, Mikey. You and I are nothing. Nothing. I’m not your girlfriend, and I’m sure as hell not the person who’s going to help you make it in the rock industry. Now, get out of my way, or I’m going to hit you so hard that Ryan will wake up with a black eye!”
He stared at me for a moment, his face turning bright red in anger. It was probably the first time a woman had ever told him no. He should have known that he couldn’t boss me around or control me the way he used to. I wasn’t a naïve teenager anymore.
I waited as he tried to control his anger. I knew he would fail though, and I smiled as I pictured the fit he was sure to have. Instead, he shocked me by grabbing me and pressing my body against his. His mouth slammed down on mine brutally. I shoved at his chest, trying to get him to release me, but it was like hitting a brick wall. I raised my knee to hit him in his jewels, but he blocked me.
“What the fuck?” someone shouted from behind him.
Mikey pulled away from me, grinning, and he turned to face the man who had walked into the room—Logan. If I’d thought Logan was angry earlier when Mikey had announced my presence to the whole bar, it was nothing compared to now. Instead of glaring at Mikey, his fury was now directed at me.
“Logan, it’s not—” I started to say.
He cut me off with a glare. “Save it, Jade. I should have known this would happen. Why did I think you’d be any different from Chloe? You’re just as much of a whore as she is! I trusted you! I’m such a fucking idiot. You were probably waiting for your chance to get back with Mikey, weren’t you? That’s why you wanted to come here tonight. It had nothing to do with Ryan. What the fuck is it about guys like Drake and Mikey that make women turn into sluts? I don’t get it!”
“No! That’s not it! This isn’t what it looks like!” I shouted, fear flooding my veins.
He couldn’t possibly think that I would choose Mikey over him. There was no competition between the two of them.
“Look, Logan, sorry that you had to find out like this. I know you care about Jade, but she’s been mine since before you even knew her,” Mikey said calmly as he tried to wrap his arm around my shoulders.
I shoved him away. “Shut up, Mikey! Logan, I would never cheat on you! I care about you. I would never do what Chloe did to you.”
“Bullshit. You already did it. Unfortunately, you got caught. I have nothing left to say to you. Just…stay away from me, Jade.” He turned and reached for the door. “I hope you’re both extremely happy together. God knows you deserve each other.”
“Logan, wait!” I shouted as I took off after him.
Mikey grabbed my arm and pulled me back.
“Let me go!”
“No. Calm down, Jade. You’re better off without him. Come on, let me take care of you.”
I jerked my arm free and slapped him. He stumbled back, looking shocked.
“Stay the fuck away from me, Mikey. If you ever come near me, I’ll make sure you never walk again. Stay. Away. From. Me!”
I ran from the room and out through the bar. I made it out to the parking lot in time to see the taillights from Logan’s car pulling out onto the main road. I cursed as I looked around the lot, trying to find a cab or another way to follow him. Of course, there was nothing.
Tears poured down my face as I watched his car disappear back toward our apartment. What have I done?
Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, I’m a fucking idiot.
Yeah, that just about summed up my life. I was a fucking idiot, no doubt about it. I glared at the TV for a few more minutes before shutting it off and tossing the remote down onto the table. I stood and walked down the hallway, passing Amber’s room and going into my own.
I’d been back in West Virginia for almost a week. I’d been confused when I realized that no one was around, but after a quick call to Amber, I’d found out that she was visiting her parents in Charleston with Chloe and Drake. Normally, I would have loved to have the house to myself. I loved Amber, but sometimes, she didn’t know when to shut up. Unfortunately, the one time I needed her nonstop chatter, she wasn’t an
ywhere to be found.
A week alone could kill a guy if he was depressed enough. Since I’d walked out of that bar, I’d spent every second thinking about Jade. I’d replayed the entire summer over and over in my head, trying to figure out when she’d decided she would rather be with Mikey. She’d fooled me as effortlessly as Chloe had—maybe better if I were honest with myself. I’d always felt like something was off with Chloe, but I’d somehow missed the signs with Jade. She had completely wrapped me around her finger.
Seeing her kissing Mikey had been like a kick to the balls. At least with Chloe, I’d never actually had to watch her cheating on me with Drake. I’d just heard about it later. With Jade, I’d had a front row seat. There was nothing quite like walking into a room and seeing the girl I loved wrapped around another guy.
How I’d let Jade fool me for so long was beyond me. She’d lied straight to my face, swearing that she would never hurt me the way Chloe had. Jade had known how hard it was for me to trust again. When I’d finally trusted her, she’d promised me the moon and stars, saying she’d never hurt me.
Bull-fucking-shit.
She’d probably been fucking around with Mikey all summer, just waiting for me to figure out what she was up to. All those days with Bethaney had given her the perfect excuse to be away from me so much.
I just wasn’t sure why Jade had even brought me with her to begin with. Maybe she had cared about me at first, but after she’d figured out that she wanted Mikey back, maybe she hadn’t been sure how to dump me. She’d probably felt sorry for me.
Poor, pathetic Logan, always choosing the wrong women.
Yeah, I felt pretty fucking sorry for myself. I didn’t care if that made me a pussy. There was only so much heartbreak a guy could take before he lost his shit and had a pity party. I’d moved past a pity party though, and I’d dived right into a big bottle of Jack Daniel’s. I’d actually gone through a few bottles. I’d spent more than one night drunk off my ass.
Jade had tried to call me several times over the past week. I’d ignored every single call and deleted the voice mails without listening to them. I didn’t care what she had to say. Nothing she could say would change my mind or make me forgive her. Nothing.
Once a whore, always a whore. That was my new motto for the women in my life.
I grabbed the bottle of Jack off my nightstand and took a swig.
Fuckin’ whores.
“Logan? We’re home!”
I cringed when I heard Amber’s voice outside my door. My head felt like it was going to explode, and she wasn’t talking quietly.
“Great. Go away!” I said loud enough so that she could hear me.
The door cracked open. “Logan? Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. Leave me alone. I’m trying to sleep,” I mumbled into my pillow.
Instead of leaving, she walked into my room. “Hey, what’s wrong?”
“I’m hungover, Amber. Take a damn hint.”
“Oh…okay.” She walked back to the door. “You need anything?”
“Some silence would be nice,” I muttered.
I could practically see her rolling her eyes as she closed the door behind her. I’d missed her, but if she was here, that meant Chloe and Drake were, too. I really didn’t want to deal with seeing them in their marital bliss right now. My stomach couldn’t handle it.
Just as I was drifting off, I heard another knock at my door.
“Are you kidding me?” I grumbled. “What does a guy have to do to get some peace around here?”
“Logan, are you okay?” Chloe asked as she cracked the door.
“I’m great. Leave me alone.”
I opened my eyes to see her walking in and closing the door behind her.
Does no one listen to me anymore?
“Amber said you had a hangover. What’s going on?” She sat down on the edge of my bed.
“What do you mean?” I asked as I sat up.
She pointed to the almost empty bottle of Jack Daniel’s on my nightstand. “You rarely drink, and you never get drunk unless something is bothering you. What’s up?”
I hated that she knew me so well. She knew me better than anyone. I used to know her better than anyone, too—that was, until Drake had decided that he wanted to be a part of her life. Then, I had been pushed to the side, so they could have their happily ever after.
Go them.
I stared at her, willing myself to be angry with her, but I couldn’t. She was still Chloe, my best friend. No matter what happened between us, I could never be mean to her.
I sighed and ran my hand over my face. “I had a rough summer, okay? Let’s just leave it at that.”
She frowned and patted my leg. “You know you can tell me anything, right?”
No, I can’t. “Yeah, I know.”
She stared at me, obviously waiting for me to spill my guys. It wasn’t going to happen. Finally, she gave up.
“All right then, I’ll leave you alone. When you’re up to it, I’d like to talk though.”
I stayed silent as she stood and walked out of my room. I waited until she closed the door to drop back down onto my bed. She might want me to talk, but it wasn’t going to happen.
If my phone rang one more time, I was going to throw it out the window. I looked down to see Jade’s name flashing across the screen. I hit Ignore and tossed my phone down onto the couch beside me. Five seconds later, it started ringing again.
“Jesus Christ!” I shouted before hitting Ignore again.
“Who’s trying to get a hold of you so bad?” Amber asked as she walked into the living room.
Chloe and Drake followed her.
“No one important,” I muttered.
She dropped down onto the couch beside me. Drake sat down in the chair across from me, and Chloe made herself comfortable on his lap.
My phone started ringing again. I grabbed it and hit Ignore, but not before Amber saw Jade’s name flashing across the screen.
“Jade? Why aren’t you answering her?” Amber asked.
“It doesn’t matter. I just don’t want to talk to her.”
Drake and Chloe both frowned, but Amber shrugged.
“Okay then. Anyway, we’re thinking about going out. Do you want to come with us?” Amber asked.
“Where are you going?” I asked.
“To Gold’s. Drake promised the owner that he’d perform with the band playing tonight.”
I almost rolled my eyes. “I’ll pass. My head is still killing me.”
Amber, Chloe, and Drake had been home for two days. I’d stopped drinking once they came home, but my headache had refused to leave. I swore to myself that I would never drink again.
“Come on, please?” Amber begged.
I shook my head. “No, th—” My phone started ringing again. “Are you fucking kidding me?”
I pressed Ignore again, and then I shut off my phone. I was tired of Jade calling me every five minutes. I would think that she would have taken the hint after I’d been ignoring her for over a week. She was nothing if not persistent.
“Logan, what’s going on with you and Jade?” Chloe asked.
“I told you, I just don’t want to talk to her.”
“I call bullshit. You haven’t been acting right since you came back. What happened when you guys went on your road trip?” Chloe asked.
“We didn’t go on a road trip. We went back to her hometown. She wanted to reconnect with her little sister and deal with some…issues.”
“What? I didn’t even know she had a little sister,” Chloe said, looking shocked.
“Yeah, there’s a lot you don’t know about her,” I said.
“Is she okay?” Drake asked in a serious tone.
“What do you know?” I asked hesitantly.
While I was pissed at Jade, I wasn’t going to tell Drake all of her dirty secrets. Her past was hers and hers alone. If she wanted to tell Drake and the rest of the band, that would be her choice.
“I just kn
ow what Eric has told me, which isn’t much. Her stepdad was an abusive prick, and her mom wasn’t much better.”
I nodded. “That about sums it up. She’s fine though. She did everything she wanted to do while she was there, including reconnecting with her ex.” I couldn’t keep the bitterness out of my tone when I mentioned Mikey.
“Mikey? Eric said he was a dick,” Drake said.
I laughed humorously. “I thought so, too, but apparently, he’s not so bad.”
“Logan…were you and Jade together this summer?” Chloe asked hesitantly.
“Yeah, we were together the whole summer, except when she was with her sister,” I said, dodging her question.
“No, like together, together,” Chloe said.
I shrugged. “Yeah, but it doesn’t matter now.”
“What happened? And don’t say nothing. Tell us the truth.” Chloe frowned at me.
I shrugged again, pretending like I didn’t care. “It was the same thing as last time. I was with a girl I really cared about, and she chose a cocky, asshole rock star instead of me. Oh, and she cheated instead of just telling me to get lost. I must have dumb fuck stamped across my forehead.”
Chloe’s mouth dropped open in shock. I’d never spoken to her like that.
“Logan—”
“Save it, Chloe. I’m going to go lie down. My head is killing me.” I stood and walked out of the room. “Have fun tonight, guys.”
I walked back to my room and closed the door behind me. I sat down at my desk and stared out the window. I couldn’t help but feel a sick sense of satisfaction over saying those things to Chloe. Yes, we’d talked about everything, but she’d had no clue how I really felt. She’d had no idea how long it took me to get over her. And I really was over her now—whether I’d realized it or not. Jade had helped me move on…only to fuck me over the exact same way Chloe had. The two of them with their lies were enough to turn a straight man gay. Women weren’t worth the time or effort.
My door swung open. I turned to see Chloe walking in before she closed the door behind her. I knew from the determined look on her face that I was in for the biggest ass-chewing of my life.
Toxic: Logan's Story Page 17