I disentangle myself from the group, plastering on a smile. “I bet Liz has some champagne somewhere. I’ll go grab a bottle?”
“Hell yeah!” Blake says, clapping me on the back. “We’re celebrating tonight!”
I’ve made it out of the garage and have just started climbing the slightly mossy flagstone steps that lead up from the detached garage to the house when Amelia catches up to me, her black platform boots clomping on the ground. She links her arm through mine. “I’ll help you search.”
We enter the kitchen through the back door of the house and begin rummaging around, not only pulling out a bottle of champagne but also snacks.
“How are things at The Wild Mare?” Amelia asks, looking over her shoulder from where she’s pulling out some red solo cups. Liz has forbidden us from getting into her nice glassware after Taser shattered not just one wine glass, but two, in the same night.
“Pretty good,” I reply automatically.
“But you were still gonna take some time to travel, right? For your starmoon?”
I take in a breath. “I’m not so sure anymore. Not with the way the stone reacted.”
“Liz filled me in on what that fae councilwoman said.”
I nod. I figured she would. “It just seems a bit pointless now is all.”
“Well, what if you came to the festival with us?”
I look up from where I’m pouring a bag of chips into a large bowl. “Why?” I think of the wraith’s offer.
“You could take back your position as band manager. We could use you. You’re perfect for it, Bliss. You know us, and our music. You’ve always kept us in line and made sure we never turned into one of those cliche bands that drinks too much and is always late to shows.”
“Well, I think you could manage that yourself, you know, by not drinking too much and not being late to your shows.”
She waves a hand dismissively as if that’s not true. “Look, I know things didn’t work out well last time. But Jordan’s not around anymore, and we’re maturer and wiser.”
“Are we?” I ask, my tone all of a sudden having a bit of a bite to it. I look over to where I saw Amelia and Taser talking at the front door two days ago.
Could it really be this easy? I take up my old position, go to the festival, steal whatever from a sexy anonymous musician, get turned into a water nymph,andget my mate? Live happily ever after?
Amelia follows my gaze, her own narrowing. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“I heard you two talking.” I force myself to look at my sister, even though I want to look anywhere but.
She takes in a deep breath. “Bliss,” she starts, but I hold up a hand, stopping her.
“You both lied to me.”
Her voice pitches higher. “I didn’t know!”
“You might not have known beforehand, but you knew after.” I throw the empty chip bag in the trash, opening another and grabbing another bowl. “And you didn’t tell me.”
“What would have been the point, Bliss?” Amelia rips the cork off the champagne bottle, the carbonated contents erupting and spilling onto the floor, until Amelia redirects it into her cup.She sets the bottle on the counter and drains her cup in one go. “What’s done is done, and all you finding out about it would have done is made you feel like shit.”
“Are you okay with what he did?”
“You know what, Bliss? I am. I am okay with it. Because you needed help. I was scared. And I get why he lied to you. He cares about you too, almost as much as I do.”
“That doesn’t make it okay.”
“I don’t fucking care! You’re healed now and that’s what matters.”
I look away from her and take a deep breath. “This, this right here is why I can’t be your band manager.”
“What does that have to do with anything?”
