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Chapter 13

Jason

♪Make You Mine | Public

Icouldn’t get Sloan out of my head, which was unfortunate, because I also couldn’t get her on the phone. She didn’t return my good-morning text until 1:00 in the afternoon, and when she did, all I got was a quick smiley face.

I unpacked and did laundry. Had a phone call with my new publicist, Pia, to schedule a meeting. I had a ton of media to do before my upcoming tour. TV, radio, magazine interviews. Sirius XM wanted an a cappella recording by the end of the week for its Coffee House channel. Saturday Night Live was biting, and I had to audition a drummer for the tour. The one I’d used on my album wasn’t able to travel. Then I’d have to do rehearsals right up until hitting the road.

The next few weeks were going to be exhausting. Today was such a waste. I had nothing scheduled and I could have been with Sloan the whole day.

It had taken me twenty-nine years to meet someone I was this into, and when I finally did, it could not have come at a worse time. In three weeks I’d be gone for four months.

I’d meant what I said, that she should come see me on the road. But I knew even now that it wouldn’t be enough. Yesterday hadn’t been enough. I was already used to talking to her and texting her constantly and neither held a candle to seeing her now that I’d met her. Going cold turkey today felt like withdrawals.

I played with Tucker for an hour, sitting on a reclining chair by the hot tub, tossing a tennis ball into the pool. He seemed depressed, and I actually debated taking him to Starbucks for one of those puppuccino things to cheer him up. I think he missed Sloan, a sentiment I was quickly beginning to share.

I shot a text off to her with a picture of Tucker looking sad, his head on his paws. She didn’t reply for over an hour.

Sloan:Awww. I miss him. Give him a kiss for me.

I typed, smiling.

Jason:He says for ME to give YOU a kiss from HIM. So what are you doing today?

Sloan:Just running errands.

It didn’t feel like errands. She was too distracted today, almost evasive.

For a brief moment, I wondered if she was dating someone else.

Instantjealousy.

We’d never discussed whether or not she was dating. She’d been so opposed to dating me I’d just assumed she wasn’t on the market. But what if I was wrong?

Jason:What kind of errands?

She left me on read.

I used the gym in the pool house, trying to distract myself from my wandering thoughts about Sloan dating other people. Now I was shamelessly grateful she found my stage persona so impressive. I needed all the advantages I could get.

A few hours later I was sitting on a lawn chair in front of my trailer trying out a new capo on my guitar when Ernie made his way across the yard.

“How’s my favorite squatter?” He tossed me a beer and plopped in the chair next to me.

Tucker was so depressed he didn’t even raise his head to greet him.

Ernie loosened his tie. “Spent my morning with the bloodsucking lawyers. She wants her alimony adjusted.”

I opened the beer with a pith. “Which wife is this?”

“Four.” He grinned. “But I brought wife number five with me just to piss her off.”

I chuckled.

He pulled his shoes and socks off and put his feet in the grass. “Excited about the tour?”

The funny thing was, I had been excited about it. But now?