Page 6 of Wild Tonic
“What? What’s happened?” Parker’s immediate thought was that something had happened with the band. He was aware of how quickly things appeared in the public domain, true or otherwise.
“It’s Nate.” Poppy’s fingers flew over the tablet, clearly searching for something.
A feeling of dread settled over Parker. “What is it?” His chest tightened and he leaned forward ready to react to whatever was coming.
“He’s got some bimbo new girlfriend.” Poppy’s voice was strangled.
“Is that it?” Parker laughed in relief. “For a moment there I thought you were going to say something dreadful had happened to him.”
“It’s not funny!” Poppy shoved the tablet at him. “Look!”
Parker scanned the story onThe Goss’ website. It showed a picture of Nate, seemingly at a wedding, with his arms around a blonde woman in a lemon-yellow dress. She was kissing him on the cheek. They looked happy, perhaps laughing at something that only the two of them knew. It was a great shot, carefree, untroubled. After everything that had gone on, Parker couldn’t help but believe Nate deserved a bit of happiness.
Clearly, Poppy thought otherwise.
“So what?”
“She looks about twelve!” Poppy sat back on the sofa, her arms folded and her mouth crimped into a disgruntled line.
“Again, so what? He looks like he’s having a good time, that’s all.” Parker passed the device back to her. “What was the call about anyway?”
“It was one of their journalists alerting me to the fact.” Poppy quoted her fingers around ‘fact’. “Wanting me to make a comment. I can think of plenty of things that I want to say, most importantly, how did they get my number?”
“As the manager of Blood Stone Riot, I would advise you against that.” Parker reached over and brushed a strand of her red hair away from her face. “And as your boyfriend, I would definitely advise you against it.” He followed it up with a soft kiss on her lips. “It’s none of your business who Nate goes out with now.”
She remained unmoved. “But she’s young. And pretty. And I bet she doesn’t have stretch marks.”
He suppressed the laugh bubbling up in his throat. “You don’t know the context of the story, Poppy. It might simply be a fan who got a candid snap.”
“Hmm, a fan who happens to be part of a reality TV show and regularly appears inThe Gossarticles? Nice try, Parker, but I don’t think so.”
“Promise me you won’t call that journalist back? You don’t need the backlash that might come with this, and if Nate has found true love, he won’t want you sticking your nose in.”
Poppy sighed. “Okay. I won’t. I just wish that Nate had told me himself.” She got up. “I’m going to go and check on India.”
Parker stared at frozen close up of Jennifer Anniston’s face on the TV screen. He hoped Poppy would be true to her word and not get involved. The last thing he needed was another Blood Stone Riot press frenzy. Billy Walker’s death and Richey Mason’s cocaine addiction had given him enough to deal with over the past couple of years.
He reached for his phone and scanned Lexi’s messages instead. Certain words jumped out at him. ‘Sex tape’. ‘Threats’. ‘Money’. ‘Career ending’.
He put his head in his hands. Just when he thought he’d escaped one scandal, it seemed another was there to take its place.
Chapter Five
Nate stared out of the train window as it travelled towards London from North Ridge. Anticipation bubbled around his stomach. He hadn’t been this excited about seeing someone in a very long time. Not since he first met Poppy, in fact. Although it had only been a few days following the wedding in Leeds, he and Clem had been messaging each other regularly during that time. On a whim, he suggested they meet for a drink and Clem readily agreed.
Twenty-five minutes later, the train arrived into Paddington. They’d arranged to meet at Smith’s in Sheldon Square, as Clem had a meeting close by and it was an easy place for Nate to find.
He made his way around the back of the station and out by the canal. It was a pleasantly warm evening and there appeared to be a good crowd around the bar, no doubt taking advantage of after work drinks. He looked about the area noticing a high percentage of high-rise buildings containing offices—that explained the early evening drinkers. He saw Clem sitting at a table outside, sheltered by a large umbrella. She had a large glass of wine in one hand and was talking on her phone. She caught sight of him and put her drink down to flutter her fingers at him. Nate motioned that he was going inside to order. He muscled his way past a group of men in suits who were already drinking and waved at the barman.
“Pint of San Miguel and a large Sancerre please.”
A couple of moments later the two drinks were ready. “That’s eleven pounds please.”
Nate winced. It certainly wasn’t as cheap as the drinks he could get in The Indigo Lounge. He headed back outside, squinting against the late evening sunshine and wished he’d brought his sunglasses. Finding Clem again, he placed her drink in front of her and leaned over to kiss her on the cheek, even though she was still chatting.
“Won’t be a minute,” she mouthed.
As she continued to talk, he studied her. Her blonde hair was pulled back into a messy half ponytail and she wore a simple white cotton blouse over deep blue jeans. A tailored striped linen blazer was draped over the back of her chair. She looked like she could just have come from work at one of the nearby offices. He sipped his beer, trying to eke it out. The last thing he wanted was to get drunk too quickly. He would only end up feeling like shit when he had to get the slow train back to North Ridge if he missed the last fast one.
