Page 53 of Spark

We all cackle with glee.

“You’re so smart,” Kendrick says, beaming a smile at me. “You’re actually kind of scary.” Clearly, he means this as high praise.

Eli says, “For what it’s worth, I’d strongly advise you to include at least one line in the new song that couldbe interpreted as a ‘fuck you’ to Cooper, even if it’s a stretch. Do that, and the song will go ten-times diamond.”

“I’ll think about it,” I say, as Kendrick waggles his eyebrows at the suggestion. “But first things first, get us that performance slot. Tell them if they won’t do that, my answer is no.”

“I’m sure they’ll agree. I honestly predict they’ll go batshit crazy for this idea.”

“Just tell them it’ll be a new single that we’re in the midst of writing now. No specifics, okay?”

“Gotcha.”

Kendrick clears his throat. “Hey, Eli, do you think the producers might want Ruby and me to live together, like they required of Savage and Laila their first season?”

“Nah. That made sense for Savage and Laila because they were judges. With two guest mentors, I doubt they’ll want to pay all the extra expenses to make that happen. I’m sure they’ll be thrilled with you two looking cozy at the press conference, and then again during Mentor Day and at the finale.”

Kendrick exhales. “Okay. Cool.” He presses his lips together. “That’s a relief.”

“I’m guessing I’ll have an answer for you within an hour. Don’t tell anyone about this yet. Wait for the deal to be finalized.”

“Can I tell Savage and Laila, so I can thank them? We’re all headed to the airport in a few minutes.”

“Yeah, you can tell them, since they’ve already signed an NDA with the show.”

“What about Titus? I swear he won’t say a word.”

Eli chuckles. “Tell the whole band, Ruby Duby. That’s fine. But that’s it.”

We say our goodbyes, and Kendrick disconnects the call.

“Thank God you’re going to be there with me,” I say to Kendrick on a sigh. “With Cooper there, I doubt I would have said yes, if not for you.”

Kendrick smiles and bites his lip. For a moment, his eyes drift to my mouth. Ever so briefly. Or maybe I’m imagining that. “I’m gonna head to my room to shower and pack before they come get us for the airport.”

“I need to do all that, too. Thank you again for everything.”

“Anything for you, Ruby. Always.”

He slides out of bed and saunters toward the door. But as he opens it, Titus is standing in the doorframe, his fist raised like he’s about to knock.

“Oh!” Kendrick blurts, as both men take surprised steps backwards.

“I know what this looks like,” Kendrick says quickly. “But nothing happened last night between Ruby and me. We crashed right after we got here.”

“Okay,” Titus says. But his raised eyebrow makes the word sound more like he’s saying, “Bullshit.”

“It’s true,” I say. “Not that it’d be any of your business, either way.”

“I never said it’s my business. All I said was I didn’t wantyou two doing something shitfaced you wouldn’t have done sober.”

I vaguely remember Titus saying something like that, now that I think about it. But last night is kind of a blur for me, thanks to the copious amounts of booze and weed in my system. The only two things I remember with perfect clarity from last night, now that I think about it, are the following: one, I definitely kissed Kendrick last night, as a ‘fuck you’ to Cooper, and, two, somewhere in there, while my lips were still connected with Kendrick’s, I thought:This is the best kiss of my life.Sadly, I don’t remember the physical sensations that prompted that shocking thought. Honestly, I don’t remember what it felt like to kiss Kendrick at all. But now that I’m remembering I had that surprising thought, I can’t deny I’m deeply curious to kiss Kendrick again—while sober the next time—to try to find out exactly what prompted it.

15

KENDRICK

“It’s official!” Ruby shouts, looking down at her phone. “They accepted my demands. I’m going to be Laila’s mentor!”

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