Page 56 of Into The Light

“Aren’t you just a pillar of society?” I chuckled.

“Come on, this way.”

Following him down the halls, we wound through the roadies, musicians, and groupies. Scantily clad women lined the halls, each no doubt waiting for their turn with the musicians. I figured Jeff lived the good life now with this arsenal of women to choose from every night. I hoped he and that ho Sheena were still together so this time she could be the one getting cheated on every night. It served her right. Payment for her shitty morals in sleeping with a man she knew had a wife. Pure karma.

The music grew louder as we made our way closer to the stage. The energy buzzed around us and I felt it moving into me. For a split second I wished things were different. That I’d be standing at Jeff’s side for this moment to see all our hard work, tears, and money pay off. An unexpected flicker of sadness shot through me that I hadn’t been invited to experience the end of the ride; the exciting plunge downhill at breakneck speeds.

It reminded me of a sledding hill I visited every winter during my childhood. Getting to the top was exhausting, climbing one slow step at a time through the snow until I reached the peak. But the exhilarating ride back down made the climb all worthwhile. With Jeff, I’d been the one pulling him up the hill, sweating and crying while he sat in his little sled twiddling his thumbs and asking me, ‘are we there yet?’ over and over. Then came the fun part, where we reached the top and I got to climb in the sled and feel the wind whipping through my hair as we rode at breakneck speeds down the hill, screaming our excitement. Instead, once we reached the top, he had pushed me down in the snow and threw some skank in the sled with him, leaving me to climb back down all on my own, without the thrill of the ride.

Anger started churning in my gut, but one look at Aiden and my stomach flipped over. Sometimes life had a funny way of working out for the best. Alone at the top of the hill, I’d turned Jeff’s betrayal into a golden opportunity. If I had ridden the sled down with him, I never would have met Aiden. And when comparing the two men, if Jeff was an apple, Aiden was a fucking apple orchard. He dwarfed Jeff in every way imaginable, and the thought made me squeeze his hand tighter. Jeff may have gotten the career, but in the end, I beat him down that hill and ran him over, leaving him laying mangled in a pile of snow. At least I would when Aiden finished with him tonight. I giggled to myself and wondered what malicious plan Aiden had to help me get my revenge.

“Emilia?” His voice sent a shiver up my spine, and not the good kind like Aiden’s touch did.

“Jeff,” I ground out the name. Aiden’s hand tightened around mine as we both turned to see Jeff standing behind us holding his guitar.

“Emilia! You’re here! I can’t believe it!” he shouted and stepped toward me with open arms and a clueless smile. Of course Jeff would be oblivious enough to think I’d be happy to see him.

Aiden stepped forward, eyes lowered while his chest expanded, and he seemed to grow in size. Even though Jeff wasn’t the brightest crayon in the box, even he didn’t miss the obvious display and stopped before taking a healthy step backward. Aiden’s possessive posturing pulled up the corner of my mouth in a smirk. The protective gesture made my little heart beat just a bit faster.

“Sorry, it’s just good to see you,” Jeff responded with a slight quake in his voice as he eyed up the intimidating man holding my hand.

His eyes then raked over me, and I noticed the admiration plain on his face. Thank God Mark had picked out my outfit and played dress-up Barbie with me tonight. Normally when you run into an ex you’re in sweats, have a zit the size of Mount Everest on your face, and bags bigger than my Birkin under your eyes. The Murphy’s Law of love gone wrong. I thought running into an ex looking amazing with a smoking hot man on your arm was an urban myth. Yet here I was, looking like a million bucks with a man who looked like a Greek God. This really was the best birthday ever.

After a pause, he let out a sigh. “You look amazing, Emilia.”

“You look like shit,” I spit out, realizing only after it came out how awful it sounded. I didn’t even mean it as an insult. He really did look like shit. Jeff wasn’t ever what one would call handsome before, but he wasn’t a complete troll, either. But not tonight. His long dark hair fell limp, he had bags under his eyes, he’d put on a good twenty pounds, and his skin looked like it had aged ten years. Drugs, partying, and this new rock-and-roll lifestyle had not been kind to him. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean that. You just look tired,” I said, cringing at the failed attempt to smooth over my abrupt comment.

“It’s... it’s a busy life I live now,” Jeff said, shifting awkwardly. “I haven’t gotten much sleep.”

“I bet. You’re about to play at Madison Square Garden. It’s your ultimate dream.” For a moment a sliver of happiness crept in. Why, I couldn’t explain. Lord knows he didn’t deserve to be here, seizing this opportunity on the back of my support and the destruction of others. My mother always said I was too nice, and this moment was apparently going to be one of them. Perhaps I shouldn’t let Aiden stomp Jeff’s dreams into the ground. Maybe I just needed to wish him well and walk away.

Be the bigger person. Get my closure without destroying his life. And then...

“Emilia? What the fuck are you doing here?”

A voice like nails on a chalkboard. Fucking Sheena.

Aiden and I turned in unison to face her and watch while she strutted up to Jeff’s side. She cocked a hip and put a possessive arm around his waist. Though admittedly pretty, I wouldn’t call her beautiful. In fact, her lack of model perfect looks pissed me off. If Jeff had cheated on me with someone stunning, his betrayal wouldn’t have been as insulting. And she looked exactly the same, except for her new hairstyle. She’d cut her dark brown hair into a trendy bob with chic straight-cut bangs that fell just above her glaring brown eyes.

“Hello, Sheena,” I snarled. She flashed a fake smile that showed off those oversized teeth.

Aiden leaned down and whispered, “That’s her? I’ll admit I thought she’d be much more attractive.”

The look on her face told me she’d heard his attempted whisper. I wasn’t sure if he’d meant to say it just loud enough for her to hear, or if it truly was an accident. When I caught the look in his eyes, I knew it was the former. God this man was amazing.

“Looks like you’ve been busy.” She eyed up my Birkin bag and the man holding my hand.

Seeing her standing next to Jeff reminded me what a shit he was, and that little bit of pity I had for him fluttered away on the notes of the music coming from the stage behind us. Aiden could have his way with him. Hell, maybe I needed to reconsider the throat-ripping-out thing.

“You’re up, baby,” Sheena said, turning her attention to Jeff. “You’re gonna blow them away, baby! This is it!”

Jeff hopped up and down and shook his head, trying to shake off the nerves. I’d seen him do that same move before many shows back when we were together.

“Emilia? Do I have your blessing?” Aiden whispered into my ear.

I turned and looked him straight in the eye. “Do your worst.”

His sinister smile deepened the dimples in his cheeks. He released my hand and walked up to Jeff, catching him as he headed onto the stage. They locked eyes, and I tried my best to read his lips. I couldn’t hear the actual words, but Jeff nodded his head. Aiden touched him on the shoulder and stepped out of his way. When Jeff marched onto the stage, I heard the roar of the crowd.