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“He also had a really long time to build that trust with Warren. I don’t want you to feel like you need to rush. That happens with time. There’s nothing you can say or do that’s going to make him trust you right now.”
“Gee, thanks.”
“What I mean is that if you stick around and he gets to know you naturally, that’s how he’ll end up trusting you. You can’t make that happen overnight.”
“I get it.” I exhaled. “Okay, here’s what I propose. It’s been too damn long since I’ve spent some quality time with my parents. You said you were going back home in a couple of weeks. Why don’t I drive us out there, but I’ll stay with my folks. My mother has been bugging me to come home for a long time. Then I can drive you back and maybe sneak in some time with you there, too.”
“You don’t have any gigs scheduled that weekend?”
“I’ll let the band and our manager know that those days are blocked off for me. It’s non-negotiable.” Showing her I meant business, I took my phone out. “Matter of fact, I’m gonna text them right now to let them know that time is off limits.”
After Lala took out her calendar and confirmed the three days she’d planned to go home, I sent a group text to my bandmates and manager, specifying the dates I’d be home in Pennsylvania.
Within a minute, I got a text back from my manager.
Daisy: I’m sorry. You can’t take those dates off. We just received word that Seal Records wants you guys to go back out to L.A. and record a demo. Those days overlap with the dates they booked the studio. Sorry!
A rush of adrenaline hit me as I typed a response.
Holden: There’s no flexibility on the dates?
Daisy: Nope. Studio is booked solid otherwise. We don’t want to fuck around with these guys by acting like a bunch of divas off the bat. Non-negotiable.
I stood there frozen, looking down at my phone incredulously.
“Holden, what’s wrong?”
“Sweetheart…I’m so sorry. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I can’t go to Pennsylvania.” My stomach ached.
“What happened?” She blinked.
“Daisy just told me one of the record companies wants us to go out to California again to record a demo. They booked the studio during the time you’re going to Pennsylvania.”
She leapt toward me and wrapped her arms around my neck. “Oh my God. That’s amazing!”
Sure, that was great news, but it wasn’t even fazing me. Grasping at straws, I asked, “I assume you can’t go any other time?”
“No. We have that Monday off—some sort of government holiday I’ve never heard of, which is the only reason I can take that long weekend. Since I’m already behind, I really can’t take any other time off.”
I gritted my teeth. “I’m so fucking pissed right now.”
“It’s okay.” She rubbed my arm. “Please don’t stress.”
I wanted so freaking badly to prove to Lala that I could be there for her. But how could I let my band down after we’d worked for years to get to this place? It was literally the opportunity of a lifetime.
My gut told me if I thought I could seriously pursue this music career and be the kind of man who’s good for Lala, I was probably kidding myself.
CHAPTER 26
Lala
“And our next subject evaluation will occur in sixty days. If you look at the last page of your presentation, you’ll find a schedule of all of the various checkpoints, including hormone-level testing, cognitive assessment, and overall health evaluations.” I paused and looked at the five members of the National Institute of Health grant-compliance team. All of the faces were new except for Dr. Reston, who had been part of the team that had approved the funding for my research grant. “Does anyone have any questions?”
They all shook their heads and looked at each other. Dr. Reston smiled. “Not surprising. Normally when I listen to a proposal, I have a laundry list of questions when the presenter is done. I didn’t have a single one when Laney pitched her study to us. She’s incredibly thorough.” Dr. Reston closed the binder on the table in front of her. “I’m going to make it a challenge to myself to think of a few questions you haven’t already answered next time we meet.”
I smiled. “I’m always available by email or phone if you think of any after the fact.”
Everyone got up. It was already after four o’clock, so one by one, each of the members of the team said their goodbyes, except for Dr. Reston. She helped me clean up the coffee cups and papers scattered around the conference room. After, she extended a hand back toward the chairs where we’d been sitting. “Do you have a minute, Laney?”
“Sure, of course.”
We took seats across from each other.
