“At last,” I said. “Now that’s sorted, who fancies Thai food?”
Both women nodded enthusiastically. I put an arm around each of their shoulders, and we left the control room and headed for the reception area. A smattering of snow lay on the ground, and the clouds overhead promised more. As we crossed the car park toward Aspen’s car, I caught sight of a mop of black hair across the street, standing with his shoulder propped against a wooden arch in front of a deli. As soon as he saw us, he looked both ways and jogged over the road. I saw him before either Erin or Aspen did.
“You’ve got some balls, kid.”
Aspen stiffened, and Erin’s hands curled into fists. I squeezed both women’s shoulders in a show of comfort and solidarity.
“I wanted to apologize,” Presley said, his chin tucked and head bowed. “To all of you.” He looked at each of us in turn. “I don’t know why I did what I did. I’ve let down my parents and my brother, but most of all, I let you down, Joz. And you, Aspen. You both believed in me, and I ruined it.”
“I suppose I was just the collateral damage side piece, huh?” Erin spat.
Presley swallowed. “If it makes a difference, I did like you. Genuinely.”
“Hmm.” Erin tapped her fingers to her lips. “Let me think. No, it doesn’t make a difference, you fucking arsehole. I hope you stub your toe every time you get out of bed and there’s always a stray hair in your food that gets caught in your throat.”
I held my sister tighter. “You could have had it all, kid. Maybe you should talk to someone, get to the bottom of why you did what you did, because that’s some fucked-up shit.”
“I thought you’d punch me,” Presley said.
I snickered. “Believe me, it’s tempting as hell to break your nose, but you’re not worth it. Take this as a warning, though: if you ever touch my woman or my sister again, I won’t just punch you, I’ll put you in the fucking ground.”
We walked around him. As we reached the corner across the street, I glanced back. He’d gone.
“I’m so proud of you,” Aspen said. “I know that couldn’t have been easy.”
“No, it wasn’t. But a night in the slammer for putting him on his arse is a night away from you, and I don’t plan to spend any more time away from you than I fucking have to.”
Erin shoved her fingers down her throat and made gagging noises. “Remind me not to order dessert. You two are sickly sweet enough. Now, can we go and eat, please, before I decide to gnaw off my own arm?”
I wrapped my arm around Aspen’s waist and pulled her close. She nuzzled into me, resting her head on my shoulder. Erin made a retching sound, but her smile reached her eyes, and she nodded as though to say, “You did good, bro.”
Yeah, this time, I did.
Chapter 32
Joz
The best day of my life bar none.
Seven months later…
Heat from the late afternoon sun licked the back of my neck as I looked out into the vast crowd gathered in Hyde Park for the first concert on my upcoming world tour. I loved playing outdoors. There was something freeing about it, and if I could, I’d play every concert in the open air.
I glanced behind me to where Aspen was standing to the left of the stage. The breeze lifted her purple hair, blowing it across her face. She pushed it away, hit me with a bright smile, and stuck both her thumbs in the air. My sister and mother stood to her left, with Arthur and Kate on her right. Every single person who meant something to me was here to watch me play to a sell-out crowd.
Arthur had fallen in love with Aspen from the moment he’d laid eyes on her, and in the last couple of months, they’d become tighter than he and I were. He texted her daily. Sometimes,I’d walk into the living room, and they’d be FaceTiming one another, his giggles making my chest clench.
A year had passed since I’d met the love of my life, and what a year it had been. Sometimes I had to pinch myself to make sure I wasn’t dreaming. I still didn’t fully believe I deserved to be this happy, but I was working on it, with Doctor Houghton’s help. Despite living an entire ocean away, and the challenge of time zone differences he assured me weren’t a problem, I video called with him once a week, like clockwork.
Oh, I forgot to mention. Aspen and I moved in together two months ago. If it weren’t for Arthur, I’d have emigrated to America, but my woman was as selfless as they came. She’d assured me it was easier for her to live here than for me to upend my entire life to live in New York. She still flew back regularly, but the beauty of her job was that she didn’t need to be stuck in one place to do it brilliantly.
The press had finally stopped reporting on my drug relapse and on the diary Presley sold his soul, and his career for. No one in the industry would touch him after the news leaked of what he’d done to Aspen, although the police dropped the charges due to lack of evidence.
When that news had come through, I’d punched the fucking wall. Aspen had taken the news in stoic fashion, which had raised my anger to boiling point, especially when she’d added that the world still wasn’t ready to believe women. It’d taken a good few hours for me to calm down.
My band kicked off the opening song, and the crowd roared. The moment I strummed the first note, the music enveloped me, and everything else faded into the distance. The set included a mix of new songs and some old favorites, and by the time it was over, I was on the kind of high heroin had never given me.
Then the nerves kicked in. I could be making a huge mistake, but when I’d run my idea past Erin, she’d told me if I didn’t do it, she would never forgive me.
