Chapter Ten – Asher
Something was up with Addison. I couldn’t put my finger on it, but anytime I came into the room, she had this wicked grin on her face. It had been there since our incredible date at the Indian restaurant.
Yeah, she was definitely up to something. My cock was hoping it was something that involved him, but my brain was sure it was something else.
The first week with her had passed quickly. I couldn’t believe I only had a few more days with her. There was a pang of festering guilt that weighed down on me whenever I thought about her father. He’d called me the other day while he was on vacation just to chat. He’d said Cassidy was at the spa and he was bored. I don’t know how someone could be bored when lying on the beach on a tropical island, but Harlan wasn’t a typical person. That’s probably why he was my best friend.
I’d almost broken down and told him everything, the shame eating away at me, but instead, I just told him that I was enjoying the peace and quiet.
I couldn’t tell him that I’d been fucking his daughter at least four times a day in every position imaginable. I’d even fucked her in that damn wooden fort. I may have left with a splinter in my ass, but it was worth it.
“Hey, I’m going to make some baked ziti tonight. Does that work for you?” I asked her. The fact that I could cook my own meals didn’t seem to surprise her, but then again, she’d known me most of her life. But the fact that I asked if she was okay with my choice seemed to knock her senseless. Apparently, her previous boyfriends had all been selfish assholes.
“Yeah. That sounds great.”
I went ahead and started gathering the ingredients and used a recipe I’d found online. A screen in the kitchen displayed the information, so I didn’t need to keep checking my phone.
An hour later, I was pulling out the dish from the oven just as my phone rang.
“Hello?” I asked, not looking at the screen before I grabbed it. And when the band manager’s voice greeted me on the other end, I knew I should have known better.
“Mr. Blake, so nice of you to take my call since you’ve been ignoring a hundred others.” Jason had been our manager since we made it big and he’d been the absolute best. But lost hours meant lost business. It didn’t help that he was one of the few people that knew about the problems I’d been having. I had it on good authority that the tour physician gave him a copy of my last check-up.
“Hey, Jason. Sorry, I’ve been resting and relaxing as the doctor ordered.”
“And that means not taking calls from your good ole pal Jason?”
“It’s called relaxing. You want me to work. So, yes.”
“Fine. Fine. When can I expect you back for the tour? The guys are already planning on arriving Wednesday.” I knew for a fact that Harlan and Ryker, and the rest of Exoneration, were not coming back until the day before. As for the rest of my bandmates, I hadn’t checked with them when we messaged each other earlier, but I knew they were itching to return.
“I don’t know, Jason. I was really enjoying the time off. And that’s something I want to talk to you about.”
“I want to talk about what we’re going to do with you.”
“What?” I exclaimed, my heart racing at the thought of being replaced.
“What do you want to do? What are our options? Can you play at all? Do we hire a new guitarist and you just do vocals? That’s money out of everyone’s paycheck. Do we replace you? Do we all just go our separate ways? What do the guys say?”
The silence on my end was deafening. I didn’t have an answer and that was because I was terrified of the outcome. What if the guys and I weren’t on the same page. What if the thought of paying an additional band member was too much? On top of our royalties we had to pay a lot of employees. We also had mortgages and car payments.
“Asher, please tell me you guys have a plan in place. What do they say?”
“Nothing, Jason,” I mumbled. “Nothing because I haven’t told them.”
“Whoa, boy. You better tell them and tell them soon because it’s more than just the band on the line.”
“Yeah. I know.”
“Get it done and I want an answer by the time we get back to the tour. And I want to see your ugly mug by Saturday.”
Jason ended the call without another word from me. He always did like to hear himself speak.
I glared at the screen as if it was the reason I was in this predicament in the first place and then screamed at the top of my lungs.
Everything was falling apart and I was losing control. And I had no idea how to stop my world from spiraling out of bounds.
Addison came rushing into the kitchen, a scared look on her face.