Page 50 of Forever Flames: Padraig & Stevie
Not until now.
Why? Because it wasn’t their place. It was mine.
It all hits me at once.Fuck. I failed to stand up for my girlfriend.
“Shit. I fucked up,” I admit.
Liam sucks in a deep breath. “Sometimes you are so fucking thick. Look, I love the girl. I’m not always the best at beingsensitive to you and Stevie playing house, but she’s like a sister to me. Dar, she looked gutted.”
I know.
God, what’s happened to me? I used to be the kind of guy who protected the people he loved. If something was wrong, I’d be the first to call it out.
For the past few years, I don’t have the stomach for it. I’ve done everything in my power to keep things smooth. Calm. Sometimes it feels like if I step wrong, everything will come apart again.
“I didn’t mean to leave her hanging,” I finally eek out a wimpy excuse. “She’s mad, though.”
Liam meets my gaze. “Remember. She doesn’t need you perfect. She needs you in her corner.”
“I get it. I didn’t want any confrontations. We’re weeks out from recording and the meeting was important to get through.”
He clicks his tongue and paces toward the window. “So you decided it was okay for Felicity to piss on Stevie to keep the peace? How in fuck does your brain work? Who are you keeping the peace with?”
“It’s not that simple.”
“It fucking is.” He points at me. “Miss Diva’s got everyone walking on eggshells. Linus can barely wrangle her anymore, and he managed Alt-J during their UK Tour.”
I laugh under my breath, more out of nerves than humor.
Liam doesn’t mince words. “I think we should push the EP, fire Felicity and get a new singer.”
“What?” I’m shocked because recording an EP is all he and Linus talk about. All day. Every day. “Are you serious?”
He turns, hands in his pockets. “Dead. I spoke with Linus last night and convinced him. We want to rethink the sound. Strip it down. Get it right.”
“You and Linus are making creative decisions for the band now?” I’m genuinely unnerved by this entire discussion.
“Yeah. He’s got great instincts and was trained by the best.” Liam drops onto the couch beside me. “You’d know, Dar, if you ever actually looped in to a business conversation about Fireball.”
I sit up straighter. “Don’t start.”
“Start what?” He leans back, one arm over the cushion, watching me like he’s waiting to pounce.
“Acting like I’m not participating. You and Linus are always off scheming about what comes next, and I’m the one trying to hold things together while everything cracks.”
His brow lifts. “I’m not scheming. I’m working hard on building something that’ll outlast us if we do it right.”
“So am I.”
He doesn’t blink. “Are you?”
The pause grows teeth. I glance at Liam’s guitars leaning against the wall.
“You used to have a take on everything.” Liam puts his hand on my leg. “You, me, Stevie. We made the early calls together. Every song, every gig, every post. Now she offers her opinion and Felicity slices her down midsentence. And you let it happen rather than standing your ground or offering your own thoughts.”
His voice dips low. “It’s gone on too long and I hate watching you fade out.”
I shake my head. “You’re not being fair.”
