A moment of stunned silence passes between us. Finally, Raelynn says, “Doesn’t matterwhodid it in the end, the only thing that matters is perception. Here’s what you’re going to do: You’re going to post a statement, say you were pressured, playthe victim. Then you’re going to keep your head down and let this blow over.”
“No.”
A beat passes. “Excuse me?”
“No,” I say again. “I’m not going to apologize for who I am. I’m not going to apologize for loving Kellen, Elliot, and Nolan, or for wanting my own life—and that includes wanting the music genre I want. If you want to drop me because of this, do it.”
She snaps her fingers. “If I drop you, Piper, you contractually owe me for the next album. You will be in debt for years.”
I close my eyes. “Fine. Whatever you want, Raelynn.”
There’s another long silence, and for a second, I have the foolish hope to think she might actually say something human. Instead, she just says, “Have it your way.” Then the line goes dead.
I lower the phone and stare out at the rain-streaked city. I have absolutely no idea what comes next. Not for me, not for the band, not for Kellen or for any of us. But as I glance over at Nolan, who’s pretending not to watch me while he texts Elliot at a red light, I feel the tiniest flicker of resolve.
“They’re not going to win. Either of them.”
Nolan doesn’t look up from the road. “No. They’re not. Already on it.”
His reassurance is the only confidence I need toknowthis will get better. It just may need to burn first.
CHAPTER 23
Nolan
The jet isat forty thousand feet and Piper is staring out the window with the thousand-yard gaze of someone who’s been shot, patched up, and shot again for good measure. I make a note of the color in her cheeks, which is only a shade better than corpse, and mentally mark her pulse under the skin of her neck as unacceptably fast. I’ve seen her hyped up, nervous, and even drunk on adrenaline, but this is none of those things.
This is defeat.
I fall into the seat next to her and pull her in close. I wrap my arms around her and am rewarded with a soft purr as she finally settles some.
“Can I get you anything?” I murmur.
She shakes her head against my chest. “This is what I need. Unless … you can get me off this plane and back to the rest of our pack as soon as possible?”
I weigh the pros and cons. “I mean, I can technically get us off this plane, yes, but I don’t think you’ll like the result.”
She chuckles and wraps her arms around my middle. “Look at you telling jokes. I’m proud of you.”
Deflections, all of it. “Like you yourself said, this isn’t goodbye.”
“I know. Doesn’t make the distance hurt any less, but…” She trails off and sighs heavily into my arms.
“But?”
She shrugs. “At some point, there’d be distance anyway, right? With Kellen being a prince and me having to tour.”
“This is different.” Somewhat forced. Absolutely unplanned.
She looks up at me. “Exactly. And like, I did it, right? I was the one who decided to leave.”
“It was the mature answer.” I kiss the top of Piper’s head. “Their minds wouldn’t have been swayed in that one conversation, and press will continue to be like today for at least another week.”
Her voice breaks when she asks, “Then why does it hurt so much?”
I hold her tighter and wish I could physically build a wall around my omega to keep her safe from everything. So that she would never hurt again. “I’m sorry, Piper. I wish it didn’t, but for what it’s worth, I’m hurting too. I was lucky enough to leave with you, but I do miss them.”
That makes her smile just a little bit. “Even Elliot?”
