Chapter Sixteen
I was cryingwhen I left that dressing room. I sobbed the entire way to the car too. It was so beyond mortifying. The looks people were giving me as Tate escorted me out, his jacket shielding my shame. It was one thing for my ex-boyfriend to have heard that, but now the world was also privy to our bedroom.
Tate and Ronny had let everyone go on without us, and shortly before coming to save me from Tierney’s rage, they called a car for the three of us. It was waiting by the back exit.
I stayed under Tate’s arm until we fully exited the venue. I straightened then and wiped my cheeks and blinked away the frustrated, shameful tears. There was absolutely no going back from here. Tierney had gone so far over the line it was baffling she thought it was okay to even come tonight. The drugs paired with her pain caused her to do something that was unforgivable.
“Come on, baby. Let’s go home,” Tate whispered gently in my ear. He placed his hand on my lower back and rubbed in slow circles. “You don’t need to be here.”
My nostrils flared and my eyes filled with a quick flash of rage. I couldn’t stay but she could? I knew that he didn’t mean it like that though, so I nodded and dipped into the car when he opened the door. The driver asked where we wanted to go. Tate told her our address as he slid in beside me. Right away his arm went around me. I leaned into him and sighed heavily. The driver gave us a sympathetic smile and then put the car into drive.
I glanced at the building through the window and my chin trembled. She was still in there, so smug about what’d she done to me. To Tate. To my career, my future. Just because of a stupid party.
“Don’t,” Tate warned. “She doesn’t get to make you cry anymore.” His hand cupped my arm and squeezed comfortingly. I took a large breath and snuggled closer to him. I closed my eyes and tried to get my thoughts in order. Thankfully, our driver wasn’t a chatty one. She let us be, taking us right home.
I realized as we got to the apartment that Ronny wasn’t with us. I asked Tate about it, and he shot me a look.
“He uh, stayed behind. He’ll get home alright,” he smiled assuringly. I wanted to be concerned and push the topic more, but my mental energy was so completely drained and destroyed, I let it go with a nod.
I got up to our apartment and my legs collapsed under me. Tate was quick and managed to catch me before I hit the floor. With ease, he lifted me up completely, carrying me in his arms to our bedroom. I shifted to rest my head against his chest, inhaling his scent. Sweat, cologne, and Tate.
When he placed me gently on the bed I curled up in a ball and rolled over. I wasn’t usually this tired after a show, but Tierney’s appearance and revelation had weakened me so much more than any performance could have. My body ached as if I had been on stage for six hours, rather than one.
Tate didn’t hesitate in reaching for me and rolling me back out. He took my legs and began unlacing my boots and getting me undressed. His hands were gentle and tender as he worked. I was so numb to everything he got my shoes, socks, and stockings off before I realized I should help. I sat up and finished undressing, not bothering with pajamas. I slid under the blanket and pulled it over my shoulders.
I watched from the bed as he undressed himself. His shoulders were slumped. His forehead was creased and his eyes showed exhaustion as well. He didn’t bother with anything either as he joined me under the covers. He pulled my cold body into his warm one.
“What are you thinking?” he asked me.
“I just can’t believe it. It’s real, but it’s not. She said it already has been listened to thousands of times. She posted it only a few hours ago. How is that even possible?”
“Money. She’s got a label behind her that can reach people we can’t. She has hundreds of thousands of followers on her social pages. All she had to do was post it and let them at it.”
“Is it even legal? Can we get her to take it down?”
“I have no idea. It’s us, but technically Ronny had it, and she had access to it. I’ll call my parents and see if they’ll get their lawyer on it. They deal with stuff like this on a regular basis.”
“They do?” I turned slightly and he took the opportunity to sit up a few inches to kiss my forehead.
“Yep. I mean, in their line of work you’d have to assume some people are going to try to use stuff like this against people.”
I relaxed again and snuggled my back closer to him. His desire throbbed against me.
“Sorry, it’s involuntary,” he chuckled. I closed my eyes, knowing that Tate was almost an extension of myself. My own body craved the connection with his, but my mind wasn’t in the right place for it. I didn’t need to tell him that though. He shifted his middle until his body relaxed again enough to press against me without any pressure. He wasn’t demanding or needy, he was just- here. I closed my eyes and thanked the powers that be that I found Tate.
With his arms wrapped around me, he traced lazy circles over my upper arms. It was soothing, and I found myself starting to drift off. As my brain started to turn off for the night, I heard Tate whisper something that told me without a doubt that I had picked the best person to share my life with.
“And even if we can’t get her to take it down, we’ll find a way to turn it, embrace it, and make it even better.”
* * *
“Honestly, the song is shit without you two screaming and moaning all over it,” Dallas commented the next day. I scowled. He raised his eyebrows and hands. “What? There’s not much I can say. I only listened to it the one time, and not by choice.”
“Has he heard anything from the lawyer?” Ronny asked us. I glanced across the rehearsal room. Tate was pacing while talking on the phone. His brow was furrowed, and he kept running his hands through his yellow hair. He’d been like this for almost twenty minutes. It was making everyone in the room anxious.
“I think he’s on the phone with him now. Or his parents. I’m not entirely sure.”
I gave Ronny a sad, half smile. He was just as angry about the whole situation as we were. He had had no idea that Tierney was still accessing all of his stuff long after they’d broken up. He gave her an earful last night, according to him.
