Page 86 of Cherry Beats

He did as I asked, and I heard Mum shuffling closer.

“Tessa, my baby!” she cooed. Cooed. My mother. What the hell? I scowled immediately, wondering if she was being sarcastic or if she was genuinely happy to hear from me. It had been a while, I guess. I tended to live my own life now, in my own apartment, working my own job, not really bothering with their world unless Freddie called me, or it was one of their birthdays.

“Uh… hey, Mum.”

“Whereareyou?” she asked, full of enthusiasm. I heard Dad groan in the background. “Freddie is phoning everyone, telling them what’s going on.”

“Going on? What do you mean?”

“Darling, apparently your face is all over the Internet. Freddie is tagging you and his friends in a picture of you and that handsome drummer holding hands this evening.”

“This evening!” I cried. “That was… that was barely even an hour ago. Oh my God. Oh shit. Oh…”

“So, itistrue!” she squealed, and I heard the way she clapped her hands together. “Oh, Tessa, this is amazing news. You’re going to be famous, which means we’re going to be famous, which means we’ll have—”

“Enough!” Dad barked.

“But, Seth—”

“I said enough, Lisa. Nobody around here is getting famous; do you hear me? We don’t need any more attention bringing on this family. We do not need anyone lingering around here, trying to disrupt our way of life.”

“Don’t be so dramatic,” she said through a soft giggle of excitement, while all I could do was stare at the carpet beneath my feet and forget how to blink.

How had that picture been leaked so quickly? Who had taken it? Was it a fan? The press? Fuck… Just fuck social media and all its constant, intrusive bullshit.

Dad already sounded angry, probably in a panic that Mum was going to get her head turned before anyone even knew who they really were. Mum sounded genuinely thrilled for the first time in my existence. She hadn’t even been this enthusiastic about me and my life when I told them I was moving out of their home.

I closed my eyes and rested my free hand on my forehead.

“Guys?” I called, but they were bickering among themselves now, the rest of the world fading out of Lisa and Seth’s mind—just the two of them alone again, because really, no one else’s voice ever mattered. “Guys? Guys?Guys!” I shouted, and that seemed to catch their attention. “Listen to me. You obviously know who I’m with right now, and I can assure you, it’s brand new to me, too. I don’t know what the hell is going on or how to even think about handling it, but I need you to promise me one thing. One thing. That’s all I’m asking.”

“What is it, Tessa?” Mum asked.

“Do not speak to anyone about me or our family. Nobody. Not even people you think you can trust. And tell Freddie he has to stay silent, too. Because if you speak or say anything out of turn, this is going to turn into a real shitstorm. Every bit of past you want to stay down will be dragged up for the world to see. Think about that. Think about who you are and the benefits you’ve been receiving your whole life because you’ve somehow managed to stay under the radar. All of that could go, and Dad could get in serious trouble.”

I wasn’t the guy’s biggest fan, but the last thing I wanted was to see my old man being dragged off to prison.

“See?” Dad interrupted, clearly aiming his accusatory tone at my mother.

“Promise me you won’t say a word.”

But neither of them promised in the end. Not really. Dad grumbled, and Mum muttered something that sounded like she was brushing me off. When I ended the call, I dropped my phone to my lap and watched as it slid down my legs before it landed on the carpet next to my feet.

Did any of it even matter? The press was going to write what they wanted to write and say what they wanted to say anyway. I’d only been in this life a couple of days, and I was exhausted beyond all reason.

How the hell had Presley done this on his own for three years?

My eyes drifted to the mini bar, the need for temporary relief calling to me. That’s when I knew the answer to my own question, and at that moment, I also knew I needed the relief just as much as he did.

Chapter Twenty-Six

Iwalked back into the bustling activity of the main suite, needing the distraction and noise of other people. Everything I thought I’d known, every assumption I’d made, all the times I’d seen his music videos and watched the way his eyes lit up behind a drum kit… none of it compared to the reality of life in the band. It was hectic. The schedules were crazy. There was no time to think, breathe, pause, or even pee. I was in danger of getting whiplash, my neck was turning in every direction, watching the mass of people as they came in and out of the suite like they’d paid for it. Not one of them bothered to ask me who I was or make small talk; I guess they already knew or at least thought they knew. The accusing glares and raised brows were silent questions with a look rather than a voice.

My hand went to my chest like that could help calm my racing heartbeat, when a cool, delicate palm slid over my forearm and squeezed tightly, snapping my attention to the left where Julia was standing with a reassuring smile on her face and a clipboard in her arm.

“You look like you need a strong drink.”

“Already had one,” I croaked, still feeling the burn of the shot of vodka I’d thrown down my neck.

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