Page 56 of My Song for You
Once we entered the gathering room inside the mansion, Jared picked up Logan so he could see and hear. And so he wouldn’t be scared within the crowded space.
“Whoa,” Logan said, as the walls started stretching upward, and we sank into the depths of the mansion. A short time later, we were sitting in a black buggy, listening to the recorded tour. Logan sat between us, his face with a continual expression of wonderment.
The rest of the morning went the same way. We laughed and joked with Logan, but not once did Jared give me any indication of what last night had meant to him. The kiss had been an accident, like the other time. But this time we had only kissed because of the horror movie.
I kept telling myself this as we waited in line for the Winnie-the-Pooh ride and then for the Pirates of the Caribbean. It was easier believing that than to face the truth: the kiss had been purely one-sided.
But what did I expect? The man had tons of groupies. It wasn’t like he’d spent the entire tour depriving the female population of those lips. If he had, riots would’ve occurred. That much I was positive of. Many girls had no doubt sampled those lips. I was just one of them.
We were standing near the lagoon, watching Peter Pan’s ship sail by and eating soft pretzels, when a girl my age stepped up to Jared. She could’ve been a model for a sports magazine, with her long blond hair, tight athletic body, and tan. Think beach volleyball, but instead of a skimpy bikini, she wore jeans and a fitted cotton-candy-pink T-shirt.
She smiled sweetly at him and kissed him on the cheek.
With a sigh, I grabbed Logan’s hand and walked off. I had no idea where we were going and I didn’t care. I just needed to get away. As it was, Jared had already been asked, while we were wandering around the grounds, to sign the breasts of another groupie. I knew his fans were important both to him and to the success of the band, but it would’ve been nice to spend one day without them always being in our face. Alexis had feared that this would happen, and more than ever now, I got why she had felt that way. How many pictures had already been taken of Jared and Logan together without us knowing about them? How many would show up on the Internet soon, with everyone speculating who Logan was?
“Do you want to go on a roller coaster?” I asked him.
“Big big roller coaster?”
“No, that one’s in the other park.” And Logan would be too small for it. “There’s one in Toon Town.”
Logan dragged me forward, even though he had no idea where Toon Town was located. “Is Jared coming?” he asked.
“I’m sure he’ll catch up with us.” Once he’d finished socializing with the fan.
A moment later, my phone pinged and I read Jared’s text, asking me where we were. I didn’t respond. I had no idea why I was so pissed at what had happened. Jared didn’t owe me anything. He and I had kissed, end of story.
A guy with messy blond hair and nerdy glasses, which made him look even hotter, checked me out. A shy smile slid onto his face. Logan was at the entrance of the nearby gift store, inspecting a toy, oblivious to the stranger.
The guy spoke briefly to his friends then walked toward me. It had felt like so long since a guy even noticed me, and vice versa, that my pulse fluttered in my veins. Maybe this was just the kind of distraction I needed right now.
Chapter 24
Jared
One minute I was watching the Peter Pan ship in the lagoon, the next some woman’s lips were pressed against my cheek. That wasn’t to say this had never happened before. It was a hazard of the job. People assumed that because you were a “celebrity,” fans had the right to push the boundaries when it came to acceptable behavior. If you saw a stranger on the street, you wouldn’t go up and kiss them. Right?
I backed away from the mystery kisser.
“I’m a huge fan of yours,” she said. “I’ve been learning to play on the guitar some of your songs from the first album. I’m not great at it. Nothing like you. I also sing and I’m hoping one day to land a record deal. Did I mention I also write my own songs?” She spoke so fast, I barely caught most of what she said.
“Nice to meet you.”Where the fuck did Callie and Logan go?They’d been right next to me a moment ago.
“Do you have any advice about getting into the industry?” she asked. Before I could reply, she squealed. “Oh my God, I can’t believe I’m actually talking totheJared Leigh.”
I scanned the crowded area for Callie and Logan while the girl continued talking nonstop. I don’t think she realized I was no longer listening.
“Sorry, I have to go,” I said, inching away. “It was nice meeting you.”
She grabbed my arm. “Could…could I have your autograph? It would mean so much to me.” Without waiting for a response, she whipped out a notebook from her purse and shoved it at me. “When’s the band’s next album coming out? I can’t wait to hear it.”
I took the book and pen from her. “The first single releases April fifth. The album is due out April twelfth,” I said, signing her book. I handed it back to her, and before she could launch into a new line of questioning, I said “bye” and walked off.
I wove in and out of the steady stream of people milling around the grounds. Once I was far enough from the girl, I sent Callie a text. She and Logan could’ve been anywhere. I wasn’t worried about them, but the point of today was for us to spend the day together. After our kiss last night, I found myself wanting to spend a lot more time with Callie. I just didn’t know in what context I wished to spend it. Everything was complicated between us. That kiss had made it more so.
I never should have kissed her. While the kiss had felt good at the time—more than good, incredible even—Logan’s unexpected interruption had been the splash of icy water I needed. Callie had lied to me with her omission about who his father really was. Was I ready to trust her fully after that?
I had no idea in which direction Callie and Logan were headed, but there weren’t a huge number of rides he could go on due to his size. I stalked past Cinderella’s castle. Callie still hadn’t responded to my text.
