Page 11 of To Bring You Back
“All those girls.”
One hand still on her arm, he freed his phone from his pocket. “Those girls wouldn’t give you a moment of peace, and from where I’m standing, that’s the greatest need. I’ll call Tegan.”
“And if she can’t?” A silly question, since Tegan had been lounging around the house when Adeline left, perhaps exactly what Adeline should have been doing. But she’d made such a mess of her life, of Fitz’s, that she needed to do good where she could.
Drew lifted the phone to his ear. A short conversation later, he put the device away again. “All set. She’s meeting us at the trailhead. Go on and take care of yourself, okay?”
She nodded, averting her face from the van, where undoubtedly all those pairs of eyes were watching her. Weak. She was weak for being so thrown by Gannon’s appearance. And angry. What gave him the right to come in and upset her life like this?
Drew gave her a quick side hug. At the scent of his cologne, she realized they’d never touched before that day, let alone hugged. As a single, attractive pastor, getting close to the females in the congregation could start rumors. His choice to risk such a thing now meant she looked pitiful.
She gulped back another splash of guilt as Drew climbed into the driver’s seat. He started the engine and, with a wave, drove a wide circle around her to the exit.
If Gannon didn’t takecare of his voice and his body at a time like this, stress would leave him hoarse and useless.
Been there, done that.
Holding the phone in place with his shoulder, he picked an herbal tea and dropped it in his grocery basket. The light box bounced off the honey and settled next to the eggs.
He headed for the checkout counters, keeping the brim of his hat pointed toward the ground. He’d driven half an hour to this grocery store in hopes that people wouldn’t be looking for him here.
“I don’t understand why you don’t do more to curb his behavior.” His mom’s voice through the phone sounded small, but she’d been going on about Awestruck’s bassist long enough to convey how much the bad press was getting to her. “What Matt does reflects on you. On your message.”
“I know.” But Awestruck wasn’t a Christian band. Though he, John, and Matt had started out claiming the same faith, Matt had given his up years ago. The Christianity card wouldn’t stop his partying.
“You should fire him.” Her clipped words brought back the way she’d scolded him in high school when he’d snuck out for a gig while he was grounded. “He couldn’t afford this lifestyle if Awestruck weren’t funding it.”
“He gets paid for being part of the band, like John and I do. And like me and John, he gets to decide how to live as long as he keeps up his part for Awestruck.”
“And does he?”
Not as well as he should. Matt tended to miss interviews and rehearsals, but at least he arrived in good enough condition to play shows. “If he ends up broke, he’ll be in even more trouble. Lack of funds won’t stop an addict. This way, we can keep an eye on him.”
“Doing things for him you wouldn’t do for others, making allowances that make it easier for him to continue his addictions—that’s called enabling.”
“Was it enabling when we convinced him to go to rehab?”
“The trip to the ER did that, and a year later, he’s back in the tabloids. It sounds like it’s not just alcohol anymore.”
It’d never beenjustalcohol. Matt’s life was a blur of women, drugs, fast cars, and bar fights. But firing him wouldn’t cure his addictions and turn him back into the active and fearless guy he’d been when they’d first moved to LA.
More likely, firing him would do what it’d done to Fitz—lead to his ruin.
Regret stirred in Gannon’s chest. He couldn’t have any more blood on his hands. “Do us both a favor, Mom, and stop reading the tabloids. They always make it out to be worse than it is.”
Although, in this case, only marginally.
“I don’t have to read anything. As soon as anyone hears anything about you, they ask me what I know. Like every time they see something about you and Harper.”
“Nothing. Happened.”
“That doesn’t stop everyone from asking.”
Gannon didn’t have to ask who these curious people were. His dad had left back before Gannon had been born. Young, scared, and alone, Mom had turned to the church. They’d helped her practically and emotionally through her pregnancy and eventually led her to Christ.
He owed that community everything. His faith. The fact that he and Mom had a support system during his childhood. Even now, most of Mom’s social circle involved people from church, and as his first fans, they were uniquely invested in him and his career.
Gannon neared the self-checkouts and slowed to scan the headlines. They featured little besides the latest royal baby and an ongoing celebrity divorce. People back in Fox Valley must be watching carefully to dig up a story about a partying rock star.
