Page 26 of Ticket to the Stars: Part One

With that pearl of wisdom shared, she held her head high, turned around, and marched toward the door, leaving me alone.

Maybe all she and her friend needed was a good dicking by a toxic, red flag waving slut, but I, myself, preferred to steer clear of those red flags. And I definitely, one hundred and ten percent didn’t want to crush on a guy who was used to girls tripping over themselves for him.

Or a guy who couldn’t remember me, or a guy who was in a constant bad mood, for that matter.

So, basically, none of the guys in Black Sacrament were worth crushing on.

I tossed one last look at myself in the mirror before following her out. Who said I had to keep at this after my contract was done? If I hated pretending to be someone else, I didn’t have to keep doing it. I could do it for the experience, for the paycheck, and then go back to my old life. There was nothing tying me down here for longer than a year.

And that was why, when I walked out of the bathroom and saw Priest was on stage with Hailee, singing a duet from the eighties, it didn’t bother me. Not one bit.

I returned to the table, slipping onto my chair between Bishop and Deacon. Tara had gone to root for her friend near the stage, which left me alone with the others. This time, I didn’t let my gaze wander to Priest. I asked, “So, do you think I’m a good fit? I know you didn’t really have a choice.”

I would make a conscious effort to not let the fact that Bishop didn’t remember me hurt me, just like I wouldn’t take to heart anything mean Deacon might say or how flirty Priest was with any girl in his vicinity. I wanted to be friends with them, but if we couldn’t become friends, it wouldn’t be the end of the world.

“I mean, I was a little confused when Ramona told us about you,” Bishop said, picking at a spot on the table with his finger. His hazel eyes were sluggish in lifting to my face. “But after hearing you sing, I get it. It’s going to be a change from what we used to be, a different sound overall, but—”

“It’s not going to be the same,” Deacon huffed, shooting us both dirty looks. “Black Sacrament should’ve ended—” Bishop tried to shush him, but no one around us was listening; everyone was too engrossed with Priest and Hailee onstage. “What? You don’t want to hear it, but it’s true. We,” he paused to point between Bishop, Priest, and himself, “shouldn’t be here. B.S. should’ve broken up for good, because this isn’t going to work.”

“I’m not going to work, huh?” I asked, turning to face Deacon. Behind me, Bishop was trying to make apologies for Deacon and everything he’d said, but I dutifully ignored him. “Let me tell you something. If this doesn’t work, it’s not going to be because of me. It’s going to be because of you and your shitty attitude.”

Deacon scowled. “I don’t have a shitty attitude.”

“You do. You had one when we first met, you have one now, and you’ve had one all in between,” I told him, the sound of Priest and Hailee’s voice a backdrop for me standing up for myself. “I don’t care if you don’t like me or if you don’t think this is going to work, but the least you can do is try.”

“You don’t know what it’s like, watching everything you’ve worked for get pissed down the drain,” he hissed out.

“No, I don’t, but I know nothing good is going to come from that attitude.”

Deacon straightened out, and then he leaned over to me, practically on top of me while still on his own chair, somehow. He ignored Bishop’s warning as he leaned in close and whispered, “Who the fuck are you to say any of this to me? You’re nobody. And once you’re out of here, you’ll go right back to being a nobody.”

The way he said it, like he honestly believed it, made me angrier than I wanted to admit. Bishop had placed a hand on my back, and he was busy trying to get me to ignore Deacon, but I couldn’t.

Deacon might be used to running his mouth and saying whatever the hell he wanted to, but I wouldn’t let him continue his mean streak. Not without getting pissed on in return.

“I’d rather be a nobody than a drunk with a stick so far up his ass he can’t walk straight. I’d rather be a nobody than be cynical and mean like you. So, you know what,Devon?” I used his fake name, not to be confused with hisotherfake name. “You can fuck right off, and then you can keep fucking off until that stick finally falls out of your ass.”

I whipped my head around, looking at Bishop as I grabbed my glass of water and had another drink. Deacon had leaned so close to me, the hair-flip actually whacked him in the face.

Good. He deserved that and a whole lot more.

Deacon got up, his chair scraping as he stood, and then he wandered over to the bar, taking a seat on one of the vacant stools before the bar’s counter. He ordered himself more alcohol—because that’s what he needed. Booze to fuel his piss-poor attitude.

Bishop muttered, “Wow. That was… that was something else. I’ve only ever seen Ramona tell him off, but even then, whatever she says slides right off him. You really got under his skin.”

I wasn’t sure if that was meant to be a compliment or not, so I just shrugged and took another sip of water… and then I realized Bishop’s hand was still on my back. Although, now that I was facing him and not Deacon’s seat, the hand was now closer to my waist than my actual back.

And he didn’t seem to mind. Or realize it himself.

I wondered if I should say something, but the way he was looking at me with those hazel eyes made whatever comment I had ready die in the back of my throat.

“What’s going on? What’d I miss?” Priest spoke with a grin as he reclaimed his seat on the other side of the table. The two girls had chosen a song and now sang with each other on stage—probably for Priest, but he was too busy flicking his gray eyes between Bishop and me. He definitely noticed the location of Bishop’s hand.

“Oh, nothing. Angie here just told Devon off,” Bishop said. “It was something to see.”

“Damn. I’m sorry I missed that.” To me, he added, “He probably had it coming.” He held my stare for a bit too long before saying, “So, you guys really on a date or something now?”

“What?” Bishop’s brows furrowed, and it was only then that he looked down and saw his hand resting near my waist. Once he noticed, he pulled that hand off me like I was a hot potato he couldn’t drop fast enough. “Oh, shit. Sorry. I didn’t realize—”

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