I had it all—fame, money, talent—but the thing I craved most always seemed just beyond my reach.
Suddenly, I couldn’t wait to get back to the life Breeze hated. Maybe it wasn’t what she considered ideal, but it was mine and I wouldn’t make excuses for it.
Ducking into the tent, I rolled my exhausted body onto the mattress and closed my eyes on the day I wished had never been.
* * *
Sleep provided no relief. I tossed and turned for hours, nightmares tormenting my subconscious mind. A patchwork of traumas. Dogs nipping at my ankles. Fangirls carrying Breeze away.
And the fire.
More than once I’d slipped beneath the veil, only to come to with a start, flames licking my skin.
I hadn’t had one distressing dream until now—the night her warm, honeyed body wasn’t pressed up against mine. Breeze was my security blanket. The reason I wanted to wake up in the morning and smile. Reaching over, I touched cool sheets where Breeze should have been.
If that’s how she wanted to play it, fine.
I had stadiums full of admirers ready and willing to take her place. Women who were comfortable in the spotlight and would proudly stand by my side even when things got a little hairy. My nickels. They’d been there since the start. Did it really matter that they’d fallen in love with the character I played on stage?
I grimaced, sullen.
Yeah, it mattered.
I wanted my dime. Breeze. The woman who, in only a few days’ time, knew me better than anyone before her… and I’d just let her walk out of my life.
I could no longer deny the similarities between Breeze and Beth -not only in their impassioned energy and blinding light, but also in their dual, crushing abandonments. Both had claimed to love me – no, bothhadloved me. That much I was certain of, yet both had left for reasons beyond my control.
The difference was I’d been only nine-years-old when Beth left. Powerless. She’d disappeared from my life simply because I’d lacked the maturity and strength to bring her home. But I wasn’t that helpless child any longer. It was time to fight for what I wanted.
History would not repeat itself.
* * *
My father did a double take as I strolled toward him in the hotel lobby with Tank in tow, but no Breeze.
Before he could ask, I held up my hand. “She dumped me.”
His reaction was swift and comical, like a cartoon character with eyes popping from the sockets. I patted his shoulder. “You alright there, bud?”
“Areyou?”
“Yep.” Pinning on a smile, I snagged a banana from the gigantic fruit bowl in the lobby. “Fine.”
Because I knew it wasn’t the end for Breeze and me. Not by a long shot.
“All right, well, that’s… surprising.” Tucker rubbed the back of his neck, eyeing me carefully. “You just seemed so hooked on her. Maybe I was misreading things.”
“No, you weren’t. I think I might actually be in love with her.”
I peeled the banana, then chomped down while my father continued to gape, further imitating the caricature I imagined in my head.
Through a mouthful of mushy fruit, I asked “Can you please not make eye contact with me while I’m eating a banana?”
Tucker looked away, chuckling. “So, let me just see if I have this straight. You might love this girl, but she dumped you, and now you’re eating a banana without a care in the world. Am I missing something?”
“Yeah, you’re missing the part where I vowed to get her back. Trust me, old man, I’m not going down without a fight.”
My father finally returned to his human form. “Honestly Bodhi, I don’t know who you are anymore… but I kinda like it.”
