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She adjusts her strap and prepares herself, closing her eyes as she strums the guitar. I’m not familiar with her song, but I can begrudgingly admit she has a solid voice. She plays flawlessly, her dark hair swaying along with her body, and when she opens her eyes, they land on me. Tightness settles into my chest as she sings, never breaking her stare. Ryan gives me a what-the-fuck glance like I’m a traitor, and my jaw works as I lean back against the sofa, acting like I’ve got a million better things to do.
Lilith finishes, and Colt finally says something after a long, stilted silence. “That was really good. Is it your song?”
“Yes.” She smirks. “I’m not just a pretty face. Believe it or not, I can write my own lyrics too.”
“Saucy.” Jimmy chuckles. “You better watch out for this one, guys. She has claws.”
Lilith rolls her eyes and glances in my direction. “So what do you think?”
“I’m not here to stroke your ego,” I answer like an asshole.
“Good. Because I’m not here to stroke yours.”
Our eyes clash, and the tension ratchets to an uncomfortable degree before Jimmy clears his throat. “Why don’t you guys talk lyrics. I’ll order some pizzas, maybe some beer. We’ll get things going on the right track.”
For the next four hours, we go back and forth with Lilith, accomplishing a fuck ton of nothing. The beer doesn’t help, and the pizza just makes the rest of the guys want to nap. I’m irritated and tired and want to call it a night, but I’ll be damned if I’m the first one to cave.
Lucky for me, Bianca calls, and I use it as an excuse to go outside and collapse onto the lounger. We video chat for about twenty minutes as she tells me about her day and any other little thing that comes to her mind. The conversation is interrupted when Lilith appears behind me, cocking a hand on her hip as she stares at my reflection on the phone.
“Are you going to talk to your girlfriend, or are you going to come finish what you started with me?”
I turn to glare at her. “I’ll be inside in a minute.”
“Don’t worry, sweetheart.” Lilith bends down and blows Bianca a kiss on the screen. “I’ll take good care of him.”
“Who is that?” Bianca scowls at Lilith as she slithers away like the snake she is.
“Nobody,” I grit out. “Just some other artist from the label I have to sing with. She’s going on tour with us.”
Bianca looks sick over the idea, and her voice betrays the emotions she shouldn’t have. “Are you hooking up with her?”
“Does it matter?” I ask.
She blinks at me, hurt in her eyes. Maybe it’s a dick move, but it’s the truth. “I don’t belong to you, Bianca. And you don’t belong to me. That’s the choice you made.”
“We’ll always belong to each other,” she whispers.
I’m annoyed at her and myself for even bringing this up. It’s a conversation that can’t lead anywhere good.
“You should get some sleep. I have to get back to work.”
“I don’t want to sleep,” she says. “I want to stay here with you. Don’t go in there, Madden. Please. Just talk to me a little longer.”
“I can’t,” I answer, my voice softer this time. “I’m sorry, but I really do have to go. Everyone’s waiting for me.”
She looks heartbroken as she nods. “Will you answer tomorrow?”
“If you call, I’ll answer.”
Chapter 73
Madden
The days since Bianca’s arrival at the compound have slowly bled into weeks. Every morning, I visit Birdie’s house. Sometimes I just sit in the driveway, thinking about what I should say. But the words don’t come, and Bianca’s rejections are wearing on me in a way that’s getting harder to brush off.
The first week, she refused to come out at all when I stopped by. The second, I caught her in the living room, and she was forced to acknowledge me. But it didn’t make me feel any better when she left the room a minute later. Over time, I’ve managed to get a few words out of her, but not many. She doesn’t want to talk. She doesn’t want to get to know me. She just wants to stay in the bubble she’s created for herself, and that’s it.
Birdie gives me progress reports, but they don’t contain any indication that things will change soon. I hired Dr. Woods to treat Bianca, and she comes every other day, but she can’t tell me how the sessions are going. All she tells me is I have to be patient.
I try to keep myself busy, visiting with Jackie and Zoe most of the week. They keep me sane, but it hasn’t escaped my notice that Jackie looks worse every time I see her. She’s little more than skin and bones at this point. I worry about leaving her and Zoe alone, but she refuses to come stay here. It was an argument just to let me hire a nurse to check in on her. She knows as well as I do the end is nearing, and she’s promised she’ll tell me when it’s time to take Zoe. I don’t want to think about those dark moments, so I try not to. But I have little else to do.
