Freddie nods his approval and I want to smash his face in until it’s a bloody pulp. But I know Ruby won’t like that. So I smash it into my palm, snatch fleeting satisfaction in watching Freddie jump.
The second she’s out of sight, the meeting dissolves, Freddie storming off to call the execs. The band avoids my gaze as they file out, muttering low.
I hear Ruby’s footsteps disappearing down the hallway.
I stand and I follow.
Silently.
She ducksinto a guest room and closes the door but the good thing about fuck-off houses that cost millions is that there’s zero squeak when you open a door to eavesdrop on your woman’s conversation.
I ease myself into the room and I’m two steps away when I hear her voice—soft, strained.
“Hey, Mom… yeah, I’m okay. Just… tired.”
My chest tightens.
“I know I said I’d come home after the first month. I will. Promise.”
A pause then a brittle, fake laugh. “No, I haven’t lost my mind, I’m just… figuring stuff out.”
My pulse spikes.
“I know,” she whispers. “I know it’s crazy. I know I’m not built for this. It’s a good thing it’s temporary, right?”
She listens for a few minutes while a red haze rolls across my eyes. Then her voice lowers. “And I miss normal. I miss Oregon. I miss you guys.”
Something inside me snaps.
Quietly.
Dangerously.
Normal. I hate that fucking word.
And also…she’s thinking about leaving.
Planning to leaveme.
Imagining a world where she goes back home after this tour, where she trades this—us—for mediocre coffee shops and shitty, handsy landlords and a life that doesn’t have me in it.
The thought detonates something black and primal in my chest.
I step into the room.
Ruby jumps when she sees me, clutching the phone. “I—I have to go,” she stammers into the receiver. “Love you.”
She hangs up.
Silence burns between us.
Then…“You were listening to my conversation,” she says. Not a question. A verdict.
“Sure was. And I heard enough.”
Her eyes flare. “Jesus, Zane—do you ever not step over the line?”
“Only when my girl is talking about fucking leaving me.”
