Page 144 of Five Summers

Ace, impatient as ever, jumps in. “Well, are you going to tell us, or do we have to be fucking mind readers?”

Reg opens his mouth, but then quickly closes it. I’m taken aback by his uncharacteristic silence. It’s rare to see him at a loss for words, so whatever he has to say must be significant. Finally, he breaks the silence, his gaze fixed on me. “You know that groupie you pushed to the floor yesterday,” he remarks, his gaze fixed on me, studying my reaction.

“You mean the groupie you set up?” I snap back, making it clear that I had absolutely no part in it. He did it, so he’s the one to blame. I want him to realize it all falls back on him.

He acknowledges my words with a nod.

“Yeah, what about it?” I ask, wondering what the fuck it’s got to do with me.

Taking a moment to gather his thoughts, he inhales deeply; the uncertainty written on his face.

“Just spit it fucking out,” I tell him. “If she’s saying I hurt her, then just pay her off.”

“She’s threatening to go to the media,” Reg yells, pacing back and forth. I can sense that something serious is happening.

From the corner of my eye, I notice Poppy sitting up, undoubtedly awakened by Reg’s loud outburst.

“So let her go to the press, Xander didn’t do anything,” Nate states.

“She is threatening to sell her story about how Xander kissed her.”

“I didn’t fucking kiss her. You-” I stand up from my seat, furious that I am being blamed yet again for something I never did.

“She's planning to sell her story about Xander mistaking her for a groupie, asking for sex, and then kissing her.”

“I didn't do any of that fucking shit. Why the fuck would I kiss her, damn it.”

“She was only fifteen,” Reg says, running his hands through his hair.

Ace hastily stands up, inadvertently jostling the table and causing coffee to spill from the mugs. I make my way towards Reg, intending to confront him, but Ace beats me to it.

Ace approaches Reg, his voice filled with fury. “Let me make sure I understand this correctly. You deliberately arranged for an underage groupie to approach Xander just to generate some media attention, and you didn’t even bother to check her age?” I recognize the familiar anger in his tone, the same rage he used to direct towards his mother’s boyfriends who would push his buttons. I know I have to intervene before things escalate like Ace throwing Reg off a moving bus. I can already envision the headlines: “Ace Roberts, Lead Guitarist of Broken Oasis, Kills Idiotic Manager.”

I step forward to intervene, but Nate beats me to it. “Come on, man. He’s not worth any of this. Remember what we discussed last night. That’s all that really matters.”

Ace takes a few calming breaths and nods.

“So, with this problem hanging over our heads, how do you propose to fix it, asshole?” I ask, fully aware that there’s no way we can possibly do the ten press interviews that Kit mentioned last night.

"She's threatening to go to the press, so I might as well try to win her over with some merch or free concert tickets in Melbourne," he says, grabbing his phone and heading back to his room.

Poppy rises from the couch and discreetly heads towards the rear of the bus. I suppress the temptation to follow her, but we must come up with a plan in case Reg cannot get this situation under control and everything goes haywire.

Chapter fifty-five

Poppy

I’ve been completely out of it all night, barely aware of what’s happened. Apart from Xander waking me up to give me water and a couple of pills that he somehow managed to find, I’ve woken up to a chaotic situation. The tension in the air is palpable.

Something has occurred, and it must be really bad because Reg and Ace are at each other. They’re not the united front they usually are. It’s about some incident involving Xander. I’m surprised Reg hasn’t asked me to stop being a lazy bitch and do my job, but he hasn’t.

I’ve never liked Reg, especially after the way he spoke to me on the day Alex broke his arm. If Xander hadn’t dealt with him the way he did, I would have told him to go fuck himself. I smileat the memory of Xander grabbing him by the shirt and throwing his ass off the bus. It was so fucking hot when Xander did that. I can see that fame hasn’t changed him because I still see glimpses of his old self.

I’m really angry at myself for what happened that morning on the bus. Whenever I’m around him, it’s like I easily slip back into our old routine. I crave to be with him and for him to love me. Deep down, it’s him I truly desire, but I know it’s an impossible dream. Although he may give off signals he wants me, I know it’s only temporary because I’m with the band on tour and our paths will soon diverge. He’s a true rock star in every way. Women are mesmerized by him, and I could never compete with that. Just look at how it affected my mother; she became distant and resentful, and I never want to end up like her.

As I pull the curtain aside on my bunk, I realize that yet another day has already slipped away. Those pills must have really knocked me out. My eyes immediately focus on Theo, who is standing there shirtless. The ink decorating his chest catches my attention. Magnificent wings span across his chest, accompanied by the words “freedom,” “hope,” and “loyalty.” When I lift my gaze, there’s a large grin on his face.

“Just let me know when you’re ready, Spitfire,” he playfully taunts with a laugh. “How are you feeling?”

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