Page 41 of Stuck with a Billionaire Rockstar

“Mal?” I ask, then shake my head. “You shouldn’t be back yet.”

She scoffs and leans against the counter, her hands gripping the edge of it with amusement shining in her eyes. “What, you thought I’d stay there without you?” Mallory looks at her hands and picks nervously along her acrylic nails. “Plus, I wanted to make sure you were doing okay. Clearly,” she says, her eyes darting to the object in my hand as she tries to hide a smirk. “You aren’t. What the hell did you think you were going to do with that?

For the first time since I left the resort, I laugh until I can hardly breathe and let the umbrella fall to the floor. “Honestly?” I wheeze. “Not entirely sure, but it seemed like the best idea at the moment.”

We laugh for a few minutes, then catch our breath, and I clear my throat. “I’m great, by the way.” I walk over to her and bump into her side with a frown. “You didn’t have to come back.”

“It would’ve been boring without you there anyway,” she says. “Have you talked to Brent?”

My heart freezes in my chest, and I can’t get a single sliver of air into my lungs, so I simply shake my head while trying to fight the tears threatening to escape. The last thing I need is to be crying over her brother while she’s sitting right here. It was my fault for thinking he felt more for me than he truly did. My head grows heavy, and I finally suck in a lungful of air, then wait until I’ve got my breathing under control before asking, “Is there a reason why I should’ve?”

As far as I know, the band is about to start their tour soon, and I’m sure my drama is the last thing he wants to worry about. I’m glad he hasn’t tried contacting me; it’s best for both of us. He helped me in more ways than one, which is why I made the rash decision after boarding my plane to create a profile on some dating app.

Brent helped me become less awkward, so I’m hopeful that tomorrow night’s date will go smoothly and that he’ll be out of mind in no time.

Mallory coughs, then shakes her head with a sad smile even though her eyes are glimmering brightly. “Nope, just curious.”

She’s got something on her mind, but I don’t have the energy to ask what. It’s time to get all thoughts of Brent out of here and move on to the next best thing if there’s even such a thing. “I’ve got a date,” I blurt, my cheeks heating at the admission. Mallory stares at me as if I’ve grown a second head and I sigh. “I made a profile on a dating app, and someone matched with me. Figured I could take my shot, you know?”

“A date?” She asks, and I nod slowly. “So soon?”

It hurts that I’m trying to get Brent out of my system, but it’s the best course of action for me. “I need to get myself out there, and Brent really helped with doing that in St. Croix. I’m ready.” What I’m ready for is to find someone who blows Brent out of the water and I’ll never have to worry about crying myself to sleep over him again.

Wishful thinking, I know, but I don’t know how else to move on with my life.

Do I even want to if Brent isn’t in it?

22

Brent

I strum the same chords for the thousandth time as I sit beside the pool and stare at the other mansions sitting high on hills ahead, my mind drifting to thoughts of Julia and what she could be doing right now. Is she missing me as much as I’m missing her? Unlikely because I ruined everything when I opened my lying mouth.

A hand falls hard onto my shoulder, and Ryker sinks into the lounge chair beside me, sighing dramatically. “Haven’t been out with you lately. That should change.” As he knows, I’ve barely gone out of the house since coming back from St. Croix because my mind is too preoccupied with Julia to do anything but sit inside and write lyrics I’m not sure she’s ever going to hear. When I don’t answer Ryker, he groans and leans forward with a frown. “Come on, man, just come out for a bit tonight. We even managed to get Mack to come out with us, too, and you know how rare that is.”

He’s not wrong. The only times Mack has ever agreed to go out with us is right before we get ready to go on tour and to award shows that we are nominated for. I guess it’s his way of celebrating us, which is why it’s not much of a surprise to me that he’s agreed to go out tonight. In two days we head out on the road to start the tour and I’m dreading the entire thing.

I refuse to acknowledge that the only person I want to see in the crowd is the one who will never be there, and that’s exactly what going on this tour will make me do. “I don’t know, Ryker, just not feeling it.”

“You know the best way to get over someone?” Ryker asks, wiggling his eyebrows at me suggestively before opening his phone screen and shoving it in my face. “Misty Cress is going to be at the club tonight, posting it all over her socials, and she’d be the perfect rebound for you.”

“I don’t need a rebound, man. I’m not you. I can’t just go from one woman to the next – contrary to what the entire world might think.”

Ryker lifts from the chair and pats my back. “I know, just wanted to get the idea out there. But, hey, it can just be a bro’s night if that makes you more comfortable.”

“A bro’s night doesn’t sound too bad, actually.”

He heads back inside but turns around and points at me. “You won’t regret this, man. You’re a hermit and need a little bit of chaos back in your life.”

I follow Ryker’s trail inside and find Evan sitting on the living room couch, XBox controller in hand like it’s been since I got back, and he lifts his chin at me in greeting without taking his eyes off the TV.

I plant myself on the arm of the couch and clear my throat. “You going out tonight with us?”

“Ryker managed to convince me since Mack is going to be there, but I’ll probably end up heading out early.” He growls angrily at the TV and shakes his head, cheeks turning red from the anger. “Bullshit!” I raise a brow silently, my lips tipping up at the corners, and he glances at me before rolling his eyes. “They shot me before I even finished coming around the corner, there’s no damn way.”

I throw my hands into the air and chuckle softly. “Hey, no judgment from me. Carry on with the game, man. I’m going to get ready for the night because I’m sure Ryker will convince me to leave early.”

Evan’s the one who’s had it more rough in life and I couldn’t be happier that we all became as tight as we are. If it weren’t for our trio, I’m not sure where Evan would’ve ended up in life – it wouldn’t have been good though, that much I know. Ryker’s speakers thump through the ceiling as I push through my room, and I roll my eyes at the ceiling, knowing he’s up there having his own kind of party before we head out to the club.

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