Total pages in book: 198
Estimated words: 186242 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 931(@200wpm)___ 745(@250wpm)___ 621(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 186242 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 931(@200wpm)___ 745(@250wpm)___ 621(@300wpm)
“You wrote that football song, didn’t you?” Amos asked in that tiny voice that felt like a kick to my sternum.
My heart fell, but I nodded at him.
His nostrils flared, and his cheeks went even more pink. “You told me my songs were good.”
What? “Because they are, Am!”
My teenage friend looked down, and his lips pressing together so hard they went white.
“I’m not lying,” I insisted. “They are good. You knew about Yuki. I told you I’d written things that people had recorded. I tried to hint at it. But I just didn’t want you to be nervous, that’s why I—”
Without looking at me or his dad, Amos turned around, walked toward the car, and got into the passenger seat.
My heart crashed to my toes, and I forced myself to glance at Rhodes. “I’m sorry—” I started to say before he met my gaze, that stubborn chin a hard point on his face.
He blinked. “How much money did he give you?”
“Ten million.”
He flinched.
“I told you I had money saved,” I reminded him weakly.
One of those big hands came up, and he scrubbed at his head through the knit hat he’d put on. He didn’t say a word.
“Rhodes . . .”
He didn’t even look at me as he turned around and got into the car.
Fuck.
I swallowed hard. There was no one to blame but myself, and I damn well knew it. But if I could just explain. I just hadn’t told them Kaden’s name or been specific about how much songwriting I’d done . . . at least for who. I’d hinted. I’d never lied. Was it so wrong that I didn’t want to admit I hadn’t written anything new in forever? I didn’t even worry about that anymore. I didn’t think about it.
We were just going to need a little time. Once they stopped being mad, I could explain all over again. From the beginning. Everything.
It would be fine.
They loved me and I loved them.
But even having a plan didn’t help when neither of them said a single word to me, or each other, the entire ride back to Pagosa.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Clara was looking at me as I sighed and rubbed my eyes.
“What’s wrong? You’ve looked sad today,” she said as I reorganized the shoe display for the third time. It still didn’t look right. It made more sense to have the taller winter boots at the top than at the bottom, but the whole thing still looked off.
“Nothing,” I told her, hearing the weariness in my tone and reminding myself I was a bad liar. I had slept awful last night, worse than the nights the bats had terrorized me. But instead of taking the day off like I’d originally requested, I had decided to come in and not leave her shorthanded instead.
She had to have heard the BS too from the expression she made that was all concern. Part of me expected her to let it go, but she didn’t. “You know you can tell me whatever’s bothering you, right?” she asked, slowly and carefully, trying not to tread on my toes but obviously concerned enough to risk it.
And that’s why I set the shoes down and looked at her and then sighed so deeply, I didn’t know how I still had air left in my lungs afterward. “I fucked up, Clara.”
She came around the counter, walking right past Jackie, who was renting some tubes out to a family, and walked over to squat beside me, her hand resting between my shoulder blades. “If you tell me, I can try to help. Or I can just listen.”
Love and tenderness filled my entire soul, so much of it that it almost made up for the ache I’d been feeling since last night, and I found myself hugging her close for a second before pulling back and saying, “You’re such a good person. I hope you know how much I appreciate everything you’ve done for me, but even more for your friendship.”
It was her turn to hug me back. “It goes both ways, you know. You’ve been the best thing to happen to me in a long time, and we’re all so glad you’re here.”
Wasn’t that nearly word for word what Rhodes had said once?
When he was talking to me.
When he wasn’t ignoring my text messages like he had that morning. All I’d wanted was to talk to him, to explain better. I still hadn’t gotten a reply though.
I sniffled, then she sniffled, and I told her the truth. “I hadn’t told Rhodes or Amos about Kaden, and they found out last night. I feel terrible, and they’re so mad at me.” What I didn’t say was that they hadn’t even tried to stop me when we’d gotten back, and I went into their house to grab my things and go back to the garage apartment.