Brooklyn & Beale (29 page)

“Just tell me.”

“The cameras, Reid. There was one pointed at you for the entire song. Actually, I’m pretty sure at one point there were four locked on you—”

“Yeah, so?” Reid interrupted, not understanding where the conversation was headed.

“—and one on Chloe,” Tom finished, his face expectant.

Reid remained silent as he processed what Tom had said. Before he could speak, Tom sighed.

“You didn’t even realize you were doing it,” Tom surmised. “Reid, you stared at Chloe almost the entire time you were on stage. And it wasn’t some innocent ‘she’s my band buddy’ stare. By the time the song ended, half the people in the audience were imagining the two of you having sex.”

Reid scoffed. “What the hell are you talking about? No one is thinking that. Don’t be ridiculous. I didn’t do anything wrong.”

Tom, apparently prepared for Reid’s denial, pulled out his phone and opened Twitter. After a quick search for Reid’s name, Tom grimaced and handed him the phone. Reid’s eyes widened and his heart hammered as he read the tweets on the screen.

If #ReidRyder looked at me like that, I’d probably come on the spot. #luckybitch

Do you think he pulls her hair when he takes her from behind? #hotaf #ReidRyder

I knew I shouldn’t have quit my violin lessons! I could be banging #ReidRyder right now!

I ship them! *dreamy sigh* #Chlid #Rhole #Reloe

“Holy shit,” Reid hissed. “What the fuck is wrong with these people?”

“They’re insane,” Tom said bluntly as he pocketed his phone. “But to be frank, you two eye-fucked each other on live television. And don’t bother arguing. Once you see the video, you’ll understand.”

Reid raked his hand through his hair. “What the hell am I supposed to do now?”

“Milk it. Use this to your advantage. Sell out the rest of your shows. Hell, add some more. You just gave people a whole new reason to come to your shows. People love to watch, and if you two play this to your advantage, you’ll have more voyeurs than you know what to do with.”

Reid nodded before a look of apprehension crossed his face. “Jess.”

Tom’s expression twisted with remorse. “If you suddenly go cold with Chloe, it’ll be obvious that what happened earlier wasn’t planned. Your best bet is to pretend it was all part of a plan to create a buzz.”

Reid agreed, even though he still felt torn. “You’re right.”

“Of course I am. Oh, and Reid, the longer you let this thing go, the more likely it will all blow up in your face.”

Without another word, Reid jogged over to the others and tried to put his conversation with Tom to the back of his mind. The truth was, Tom’s idea wasn’t a bad one. He also knew if they played their cards right, Chloe would never worry about landing gigs again.

Giving Drew and Greer fist bumps, he followed the others to where they would be lifted to the main stage behind their instruments. Alone in the shadows, Reid and Chloe stood side by side. His body thrummed with energy as he tried to figure out what to do. He bounced on the balls of his feet and moved his head from side to side. He should’ve moved to his own mark, but he couldn’t bring himself to walk away from Chloe.

“Are you nervous?” Chloe asked. Reid was sure she meant to sound joking, but it was obvious her nerves were starting to spike.

Reid scoffed. “What do I have to be nervous about? You’re the one they’ll all be staring at.”

Chloe pulled in a shaky breath, her hand trembling as she pressed her palm against her forehead. “That’s not funny,” she whined, squeezing her eyes shut.

Reid pushed his guitar behind his back and turned to face her. “Hey,” he whispered, tugging her hand away from her face. “I was only kidding. Don’t be nervous.”

“That’s easy for you to say. You just performed with Jack Green. This is nothing for you.”

Reid slid his hand to Chloe’s, gripping it tightly. He expected her to pull away, but when she didn’t, his shoulders relaxed and a feeling of calm washed over him. For once, he felt like she needed him. “I threw up before I went on stage,” he admitted with an embarrassed laugh.

Chloe’s eyes widened and her lips parted in shock. “You what?”

“Do you know why I’m always alone in my dressing room before every show? I can’t believe Inky hasn’t ratted me out.”

Chloe’s brows rose in surprise and her look of nervousness faded to curiosity. “Are you going to tell me something awesome?” she whispered, her voice laced with excitement.

Reid gave her a wry smile. “The things I’m willing to do for you,” he mumbled low enough for Chloe not to hear. With a deep breath, he dropped his eyes to their joined hands and spoke. “During my first tour, I had a nasty habit of throwing up before every show. I tried to play it off like I’d had too much to drink, which was the truth sometimes, but never the real cause of my nausea. One night before a show, I decided it was time to man up. So I skipped my dressing room and walked straight toward the stage.” Reid grimaced. “I didn’t even make it to the side of the stage before I threw up all over some poor kid. It was awful. After that, I never tried again. I go to my dressing room, take a shit-ton of nausea medicine, and let what happens happen.”

“Oh, Reid,” Chloe sighed, hooking her finger under his chin. When he met her gaze, her eyes were soft, yet bright. She grinned. He frowned. His expression only made her smile widen.

“Why are you laughing at me?” he asked, fighting his own smile.

“Because you just made that entire thing up, you liar!”

Reid chuckled and flinched when she playfully kicked his shin. “Fine, fine,” he conceded. “I don’t throw up before every show, but it does happen sometimes. And it did happen tonight. Shit, Jack Green is one of my favorite musicians; that’s intimidating.”

Chloe rolled her eyes. “You’re a jerk. I thought I was going to get something juicy and all I got was a half-baked puke story. Lame.”

Reid smirked and pushed one of her fallen shoulder straps back into place. “Say what you will,” he whispered. “But this platform is moving and you’ve completely forgotten about being nervous.”

Chloe’s eyes widened and she tried to pull her hand free, but Reid held tight. “You’re not supposed to be over here! You’re supposed to be on the middle platform. Go!”

Reid released her hand to position his guitar. “Nah, I think I’ll stay here.” His eyes widened as he got an idea. “I’m going to do a little something different during the last verse of the song. Just go with it, okay? I’ll explain later,” he said in a rush.

Chloe’s mouth fell open. “Are you kidding me? You can’t change the routine! This is live television!”

“I can and I will. I promise, you’ll understand soon enough. Now, are you ready to show everyone what real music feels like?”

Chloe’s eyes were still panicked. “Yeah,” she exhaled, cradling her violin. “Let’s make them feel it.”

The spotlight flashed to the empty center stage before sweeping across to where Reid and Chloe stood side by side. He bobbed his head and grinned as Drew counted off and began to play. One by one, they joined in, and this time Chloe came in on cue.

Unlike his concerts where he would normally talk a bit, he had to go into the song right away. Chloe swayed her hips and wore a small smirk as she brushed her shoulder against Reid’s. He twisted his head to the side and grinned as he stared down at her. He wasn’t sure what it was about their current position that felt so intimate, but it was almost as if they were the only two people in the room.

He gave her a quick wink before twisting away and walking to the center of the stage. Cheers erupted, and if he wasn’t mistaken, a few sounds of disappointment. He didn’t know if it was real, or if he was projecting his own displeasure about moving away from Chloe. As he hit the chorus, Chloe slid to her mark beside Greer, the pair moving in sync as they played.

When the song began to slow, Chloe turned to move back to her platform, but Reid blocked her path at center stage. She kept her smile in place and continued to play, but Reid could tell she was worried about his improvisation. The truth was, he wasn’t sure about what he was going to do either. But he had an opportunity to tell Chloe how he felt with the last, whispered verse of a song, so he took it, on live television. Moving as close as their instruments would allow, Reid played his guitar softly, his head bent and his eyes closed.

I close my eyes to remember a time

when there was a chance you could’ve been mine.

I don’t deserve it, we both know it’s true, but God . . . how I miss you.

Come on, girl, give me your hand

Come on, girl, let’s play pretend

Let’s fool ourselves into believing that we’re only friends.

The stage darkened and screams erupted as Reid remained with his head bent and eyes closed.

“Reid,” Chloe croaked as the platform started to move. “Reid, look at me.” Almost as if coming out of a trance, Reid lifted his eyes to Chloe. Her face was clear, but he could see the swarm of emotions fighting to break free. “Please.”

Reid blinked and nodded, letting her know he understood. She wanted him to snap back from whatever place he’d gone. Forcing an over-the-top laugh, he smiled and faced the audience. He threw his arm over Chloe’s shoulder and waved as the platform lowered, acting as though what just happened was all part of the show. The moment they disappeared from view, Chloe backed away from him.

“What the hell was that?” she whispered. Reid shrugged, feeling ashamed for acting so impulsively. Before he could answer, one of the producers walked over to them.

“That was hot as fuck,” the producer said, handing them each a bottle of water. “That’s what that was. Congrats, you two, you just won tonight’s top spot for best performance.” Pausing, he looked from Chloe to Reid. “We sure hope we’ll see more of you two.” With that, he left the way he came.

Chloe cleared her throat. “Looks like your improv was a hit.”

“I don’t care about that. Do you know what this means?” Reid asked, moving in front of her.

Chloe shook her head.

“It means that your name will be on the lips of everyone who matters in this industry. It means that you’ll never have to worry about working again.”

“You did that for me?” Chloe whispered.

Reid averted his eyes. He was afraid she would see that he wasn’t being completely honest. That she would be able to tell there was more to it than just helping her out. “Remember what I said about never giving up on music? While that still holds true, it doesn’t hurt to have a little help from time to time either.”

Faster than he could prepare for, Chloe stepped forward and wrapped her arms around his neck. “Thank you.”

“Anything for you,” he murmured before returning her embrace.

“Oh my God,” Chloe groaned, covering her face. “Stop watching that.”

Inky peered over the top of her phone and raised her brow. “Would you rather I go back on Twitter? Because I’d be happy to.”

Chloe kicked Inky under the table and pursed her lips. “I thought you wanted to meet for breakfast to catch up, not mock me.”

Inky took a sip of her water and smiled. “Fine. I’ll stop watching the slow-motion gifs all over the internet of you and Reid eye-fucking each other.”

Chloe swore under her breath and looked around the diner. “I was not eye-fucking Reid.”

“But you admit the same can’t be said for him?”

Chloe rolled her eyes and grabbed her water. The truth was, that was exactly what he was doing. She would know; she’d watched the clip, along with their performance later in the show, nearly a dozen times. Even though it was her on the screen and she knew none of it was real, it still felt like watching an intimate moment between lovers.

“Can we talk about something else?” she asked, annoyed and embarrassed. Until the night of the VMAs, Chloe had done well keeping her distance except for rehearsals. The problem was, with each passing day, it became harder to keep him at arm’s length. He made her smile and laugh. Like riding a bike, she slowly slipped back into their familiar camaraderie. The night of the awards show, the buzz of excitement was infectious. She was a ball of energy. When she saw Reid on stage smiling like a child while playing next to one of his musical idols, she couldn’t help but beam at him with happiness. She just hadn’t expected the result to look so . . . indecent. Five days had passed since that night. She still couldn’t get it out of her mind.

“Sure,” Inky chuckled. “Let’s talk about the HBO Emmys after-party show.”

Chloe sighed and fell back against the booth. “That was nothing like the VMAs.”

“True. Although, it was cute of you to try to act like the night before was intentional by doing something similar. Did people actually buy that?”

“Some did.” Chloe shrugged. “The truth is, to an extent, it was planned. Reid knew what he was doing. He just failed to share that information with me ahead of time.”

Inky laughed. Loudly. “I’d bet my next tatt Reid didn’t fake a single thing about that night. I’m not saying it wasn’t intentional. I’m saying he took advantage of an opportunity. I’ve seen Reid on stage more times than I can count. He’s a good performer, but he’s not that good.”

“He has a girlfriend, Inky. There’s no way Reid would act that way unintentionally. I’m sure Jess knew all about what he was going to do.” Chloe looked at her hands to avoid Inky’s disbelieving stare. Chloe knew her argument was laughable.

“So I guess Jess flying out to LA yesterday has nothing to do with his little stunt. You know, because she knew all about it.”

Chloe’s eyes snapped to Inky. “She’s here?”

Inky raised a brow. “Yup. I stopped by the studio this morning to grab some inventory forms from Tom, and when I showed up, he was on the phone with Reid. It seems she flew out to surprise him.”

“But we only have one show here before we go on the road. Is she coming with us?” The idea caused Chloe’s stomach to roll. She didn’t want to see Jess. Not because she didn’t like her, but because she was afraid Jess would see how Chloe felt about Reid written all over her face. It wasn’t something she could hide, even though she tried constantly. The reminder caused a pang of guilt to swell in her chest. If the roles had been reversed and Chloe were in Jess’s position, she would have been hurt and angry by the reaction of the fans after the awards show. She also would have kicked Reid’s ass.

Inky shrugged. “I’m not sure. Maybe she’ll be at rehearsals this afternoon.”

Chloe tugged on the piercing in her lip. “I guess we’ll see.”

When Chloe arrived at the studio, Drew and Greer were lounging in the control room. She looked around, confused. “What are you guys doing here so early?”

“Don’t you mean on time?” Drew asked with a laugh.

Chloe smiled. “Exactly.”

“A buddy of ours wanted us to check out a track he recorded, so we came in early to listen.”

“That’s cool,” Chloe said, hopping up on the table. “Was it any good?”

Drew nodded. “We thought it would be dope to have Reid add some vocals. We’re going to see if he’s willing when he gets here.”

Just as Drew finished speaking, Reid appeared in the doorway. Chloe turned to say hello, but the greeting died in her throat when she saw his face. Dark circles shadowed his normally bright eyes. His clothes were rumpled and his hair was a mess. She’d never seen him look quite so disheveled. It was unsettling.

“What’s up, guys?” He addressed the group, but his eyes darted to Chloe, the side of his mouth lifting into a half smile.

“Damn, dude. Have you been on a bender? You look like shit,” Greer commented. Usually, Chloe avoided these types of exchanges between Greer and Reid, but this time she actually wanted to hear the answer.

Reid sighed. “No, I just didn’t get much sleep. Jess flew in yesterday.”

Greer waggled his brows and leered at him. “I see, I see. You were
busy
.”

Reid threw a cautious glance in Chloe’s direction, but she looked away. She didn’t want to see his face. She didn’t want to think of the reasons he hadn’t slept. It made her feel sick. It made her feel like an awful person for feeling that way at all.

Reid let out a humorless chuckle. “Not in the way you’re thinking.”

“Hey, man,” Drew cut in. “Tony had us listen to a track he recorded earlier. It’s pretty good. We wanted to see if you’d give it a listen and possibly lend some vocals. It won’t take but a minute then we can get started.”

Chloe breathed a sigh of relief and smiled at Drew. “I’d love to hear the song!”

After a moment, Reid nodded. “Yeah, sure.”

“Let’s hit the sound booth. Chloe, I’ll pump the music in here. Cool?”

“Yup.”

She moved to the chair Greer vacated and pulled her knees to her chest, her feet planted on the bottom of the seat. The guys moved into the sound booth, and after a few moments, their voices flooded into the room.

“Can you hear us?” Drew asked.

Chloe gave him a thumbs-up since they couldn’t hear her. The music started playing, and for the first time since talking to Inky that morning, she began to relax. She laughed when Reid smacked Greer’s hand away from one of the controls. They acted more like brothers than either of them would ever admit.

“Those two are something else, huh?”

Chloe jumped in surprise, her head whipping to where Jess stood in the doorway Reid just vacated. “Jess,” Chloe squeaked, her hand flying to her chest. “I didn’t know you were here.”

Jess smiled and moved to the chair next to Chloe. Like Reid, she had dark circles under her eyes and she looked like she hadn’t slept. “I stopped by the bathroom. Too much coffee this morning.”

Unsure of how to respond, Chloe turned back to where Reid, Drew, and Greer were bobbing their heads along to the music, wide smiles on their faces. Chloe couldn’t even hear the music because of the loud ringing in her ears.

Jess sighed and Chloe chanced a look in her direction. She’d expected Jess to be looking at her. Instead, she was focused on the guys in the booth, an unreadable expression on her face. Chloe followed her gaze, content to sit in silence as the guys did their thing. Just as she started to relax again, Jess spoke.

“Are you guys all set for the second half of the tour?”

Chloe let out a shaky laugh. “As ready as anyone can be when they’re about to spend months at a time with Greer.”

Jess snickered and covered her mouth with her hand. “I don’t know how you did it. I would go crazy being trapped with that man-child as long as you were.”

“Who said I’m not crazy? The fact that I’m getting ready to do it again should tell you about my mental state. Clearly, I’m not capable of making rational decisions.” Chloe wasn’t sure what to make of Jess’s attempt at small talk. It seemed normal enough, but there was a weight hanging above them and Chloe knew it was going to come crashing down sooner or later.

“Very true.” Jess grinned before her face fell. “Reid’s really going to miss you guys once this tour is over.”

A cold feeling crept up Chloe’s spine, causing her to shiver. She wasn’t certain why, but she felt like wherever their conversation was going, it was nowhere good. “They’ll see plenty of each other, I’m sure. Reid will be writing and recording songs again in no time.”

Jess turned to Chloe, surprised. “Didn’t he tell you? He’s finally broken through his wall. He spent nearly his entire time in Memphis writing song after song.”

Chloe swallowed around the lump forming in her throat and tried not to let her hurt show. “No, I didn’t know,” she whispered. “Other than rehearsals and shows, I haven’t talked to Reid. But that’s amazing news. Looks like he really won’t have time to miss the guys.”

Jess shook her head. “He’s not going to record them. I honestly don’t know what he plans to do with them. Sell them, maybe?”

Chloe’s eyes widened. “What? Why on earth would he do that?”

“Because after the tour, he’s done.”

“Done?” Chloe’s brows pulled together in confusion. “Done with what?”

Jess shrugged. “Singing. Recording, Touring. Living in LA,” she said with a relieved sigh. “I’ll be so glad. I can’t wait to have him back in Memphis for good.”

Chloe’s head swam as she tried to process what Jess was saying. The problem was, none of it made any sense. Reid would never give up his career. He loved music as much as anyone she’d ever met. He was born to be center stage, not living a normal life back in Memphis. “I don’t understand. Reid is giving up music?”

Jess laughed. “Oh God, no. He’d die. He’s just switching gears. Songwriting and whatever else he can do without having to live in LA and be on the road all the time. Who knows, maybe one day he’ll record another album, but it won’t be any time in the near future. We’ve already lost too much time.”

Chloe nodded but couldn’t speak. She wasn’t certain why, but she felt betrayed. Lied to. For months, all Reid talked about was his love for writing and recording music. His love for being on stage and feeling the energy of the crowd. To find out he had no intention of continuing smarted. He pushed so hard for her to move to LA. He set her up with contacts, and after their performance at the VMAs, he made certain she would be noticed. Her lips parted as everything slowly came into focus. He had set her up so she would continue to be successful after he left. While she was grateful, she couldn’t deny the sting of disappointment burning under her skin.

“Chloe, what did you think?” Drew asked, snapping Chloe out of her thoughts. She blinked, her eyes moving over to the guys. When she locked eyes with Reid, his expression was fixed with a deep frown.

“It was great,” Chloe lied. She hadn’t heard a single note.

“Cool. We’re done here, so grab your stuff, and if Reid wants, we can get started.” Drew looked to Reid, who nodded but still had yet to take his eyes off Chloe.

Looking away, Chloe stood and faced Jess. “Looks like it’s time to get back to work.”

“Of course.” Jess smiled. “Maybe we can catch up later. Grab a drink or something.”

“Absolutely.” Chloe slid past Jess and grabbed her case. While Jess hadn’t said or done anything that Chloe had any right to be upset over, she’d rather wear Greer’s dirty underwear on her head before enduring another awkward conversation with Jess.

As soon as she entered the rehearsal room, Chloe pulled out her violin and set about going through her checklist. She turned her back to the others in hopes of making it clear she wasn’t interested in chatting. Reid didn’t seem to get the message.

“Are you okay?” he asked, moving in front of her.

Chloe glanced at him before returning her attention back to her violin. Distracted, she answered. “Me? Yeah, sure. I’m fine.”

Reid leaned closer and lowered his voice. “You don’t seem fine,” he pressed.

Chloe shook her head. She couldn’t look at him right now. She felt raw, exposed, but most of all, she felt like an idiot. Her eyes started stinging and she had to blink several times to clear the evidence of her emotions.