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“So are you and you know it.”
“Now kiss me.”
And I do.
twenty-eight
Birdie
We’reonthetourbus to Nashville after spending a few days in Atlanta, then two nights in Alabama, then two in Mississippi. Our show is tonight, and tomorrow we have our first full free day since New York City, which is long overdue.
After this we’ll head to Little Rock before Louisiana where Ben and Wren will meet us. I’m exhausted and in need of a shower after a long week on the road.
I’m also in need of Liam. Even though he’s on the tour bus with us now, I’ve hardly seen him since our time in Atlanta. We got another creepy note from the stalker sent to the hotel in Jackson. So between Liam doing his job and me doing mine, time is hard to come by. I mean, I do see him, but only when he guards me or at night when we’re both so tired we fall asleep almost immediately. Though I admit being held by him is very nice.
“Check,” Liam says.
I glance over at him and Kevin, still engrossed in a game of chess. I’m working on a new song with the rest of the band. Kevin chimes in once and a while, but mostly he’s focused on beating Liam.
“What if we repeated the chorus here but you did a key change? We could add some sweet harmonies for you,” TJ, one of my backup singers suggests. My other backup singers Jenny and Lorraine readily agree.
I look over the song we’ve written on sheet music and grin. “That’s a great idea actually. We could have the entire band swell underneath.”
The women clap at the idea. “Oh, this is going to be good. I bet if we work on it in the next few rehearsals, we could play it in Louisiana.”
Though I’m not super keen on the idea—only because that means more time is taken away from Liam and I—I nod in agreement since they’re all so excited. “I’ll have Eric run it by the label.”
“Sweet,” the rest of the band agrees, even Kevin, who I guess is still half-listening.
“Hey everyone.” Shea walks out from the back of the bus, her voice thick with sleep from a nap. The entire crew greets her, minus Liam. I watch as he clenches his jaw, not even turning to acknowledge her. Instead, he’s focused on a chess piece like it’s going to come alive and jump off the board. I still haven’t had a chance to ask him what’s going on between them, but it seems like it may have gotten worse.
I turn my gaze toward her as she sits in the empty space next to Jane. “Have a nice nap?”
She shrugs. “Once I turned off my brain, but I’ve been coordinating all these interviews for the Teen Choice Awards at the end of the tour. Everyone wants a piece of you.”
“That’s because Birdie is the greatest!” Jane adds, winking at me.
“She is,” Shea agrees, but notice her voice sounds a little off when she says it. Am I missing something here? Did Liam and Shea have a thing? When I look back at Liam, I find he’s watching me.
My stomach turns. I’m probably being stupid, but now I really want to talk with him alone, find out what’s going on with Shea. I’ve never had any issues with her before, she’s always been a perfect assistant. I also hate that I feel jealous.
Just as I’m about to tumble into my thoughts, my phone alerts me that I have a new text. When I look down, surprise colors my face.
“Everything okay?” Liam asks in a concerned tone.
I smile. “All good. It’s my mom actually. She wants me to call.”
Shea sidles up to me, “Your mom never texts you.”
My face burns at her words. Except for Kevin, my band doesn’t really know my family history. Just that Mom’s a hippie living in Arizona with her boyfriend. I did mention to Shea once that she wasn’t around a lot when I was a kid, but it was an off-handed comment one night when we’d had too much wine. After I left Michigan, I left my past behind… well, minus Wren, Ben and Liam. But Liam came with me in song only, until recently.
I slide my phone into my pocket. I’ll have to call her later when I’m alone. It’s strange that she’s texting me during the week, but not strange enough that it makes me concerned. Mom and I have an easy-going relationship. We see each other mostly when the tour stops in Arizona. She’ll come to my show, and we’ll hang out. But otherwise, she prefers to stay close to home these days. Which I still find hilarious given how much she was gone when I was young.
I turn my eyes to Liam. He’s still watching me with a curious look on his face. For a moment I think about what would’ve happened if Mom hadn’t left me alone all those years. Then I wouldn’t have gotten so close to Liam. Who knows, maybe it’s fate. Or maybe we just both had semi-shitty parents. Either way, I’m glad it brought us together. I wouldn’t change any of it for the world.
“What did she want?” Shea asks. It’s a strange question for her to ask, and it puts me on edge.
I shrug. “She probably wants to know about the show in Phoenix coming up.”
