“It’s done,” I say, shrugging my shoulders.
“Are you fucking kidding me?” Trent says, his voice cracking. “What am I going to do? What am I supposed to do now, Carter?”
“I’d suggest getting a job. Probably having a conversation with your wife about her getting a job as well.”
I feel no joy at the statement, just bone-weary defeat. Trent is an asshole, but I never wanted to screw him over. He gave me a job when I needed one. We got along…fine. But then he put so many people at risk just to protect himself. Even if I hadn’t felt compelled to expose his mistakes to save Kelsey from choosing between her morals and protecting me, Mitchell Security—and especially my time there—would have been through.
Now I just have to figure out what’s next.
Chapter thirty-nine
Carter
Islowlypushopenthe door to my mom’s house, knocking once to let her know I’m there. It’s only been seven weeks since I left, but it feels like a lifetime, and I’m not sure what to expect.
“Hi, honey!” my mom gushes, racing from the kitchen to throw her arms around me.
She looks the same: dark hair pulled back into a ponytail, dark eyes bright with joy.
I don’t know why I thought she’d look different, but with the news from Bill, I just expected a frail old woman. Logically, I know that’s not how my mom’s disease works, but logic and fear so rarely function together.
“Ready for dinner?” I ask, holding up a bag of groceries I brought with me.
Her smile is large, the energy in the room bubbly and light. There truly is nothing better than coming home.
“Yes! You must be exhausted. Sit down and tell me everything! I’ll get to work on the food.”
Iamexhausted. After confronting Trent and impulsively sending that email, we still had a concert left to work. Despite everything he’d been through that day, Jaxon did not disappoint with his final show. I thought the crowd was going to bring down the whole place with their chanting. Ignoring his security and logistics teams’ requests, Jaxon even played one additional encore song, his very first song ever released, solo with just him and his guitar. It sent the place into an absolute frenzy.
This morning, the NYPD came to Jaxon’s hotel room to take statements from everyone involved in the Bennie incident, so Kelsey and I were forced to move our flights back to this afternoon. Jaxon didn’t make any announcements about his long-term contract, and since I’m unsure of Mitchell Security’s ability to pay anyone’s wages, I offered to escort him to his plane myself. Kelsey, of course, decided to tag along. Jaxon told us on our drive to the airport that his lawyers are pressuring him to file civil charges against both Bennie and Trent. I didn’t ask him if he was going to, and he didn’t offer the information, but he did make it clear he was aware no one else from the Mitchell Security team was involved.
Jaxon’s assistant Annie informed me Jaxon has a small security team for his house on staff and assured me they were prepped to pick up Jaxon and guard him until a final decision is made about the long-term security contract.
Saying goodbye to Jaxon felt like closing a door on a possible friendship and time in my life that I wasn’t ready to say goodbye to,but we made some tentative plans to get together next time I’m in Tennessee, whenever that may be.
It all went smoothly, and with the time change, I was still able to make it home in time to drop Kelsey off at her house, grab some groceries, and make it to my mom’s in time for dinner.
Ignoring Mom’s request to sit down, I grab a slightly wilted head of lettuce plus two peppers and start washing the salad ingredients while my mom pulls out the large pan to brown the meat for the spaghetti sauce.
“How was the tour?” my mom asks, and it’s amazing how one simple question can make my heart happy.
I tell her about all the places we went, the dinners Kelsey and I went to, and the chaos that is life as a famous musician.
“Poor Jaxon. I always liked that boy so much. It’s such a shame.”
I chuckle. “You know he’s the most famous musician in the world, right? I don’t think you need to feel sorry for him.”
My mom waves her hand like that couldn’t possibly matter. “If I’ve learned nothing else in my life, it’s that being successful and being happy have almost nothing to do with each other. Oh, and speaking of the Harper sisters—”
“We weren’t speaking of the Harper sisters,” I say.
My mom smirks. “Well then, now that you bring them up, how is Kelsey? When does she get back? When are you going to invite her over for dinner?”
I can’t stop the smile that spreads across my face at the thought, and my mom’s eyes light up like a dog who’s seen a bone.
“Please tell me you’re dating that girl.”
“I’m dating that girl,” I say, keeping my eyes trained on the vegetables I’m cutting up.
