AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Lexie’s smile was sympathetic. “Let’s get you some breakfast and have a chat. I might have a solution for you.”
Before Cassie could ask what it was, Lexie started toward the catering truck parked at the far end of the lot. Sighing, Cassie followed her.
The catering truck was huge. It had to be to service over one hundred crew members supporting the tour. And the food was first-rate. Though they were surrounded by loud yells, the clang of metal against metal, and the rumble of trucks moving around, it was still pleasant being outside in the sunlight.
Cassie ordered a breakfast burrito and an orange juice, while Lexie, having already eaten on the bus, just grabbed a smoothie. They sat down at a table farthest from the noise.
“Do you really have a solution?” Cassie asked.
Lexie nodded. “I was wondering…” She paused and studied Cassie.
Cassie had picked up her burrito but stopped just short of taking a bite. “What?”
“If Charlie can’t find you a spare bunk, would you consider using the extra one on our bus for the rest of the tour?”
Cassie’s brows rose, and she put her food down on her plate. “I can’t stay on Fractured’s bus.”
“Why not? Because you’d rather just leave and be done with it, or because you’re worried about imposing?”
“I don’twantto leave. As much as I hate the thought of having to see Stella and Bryan every day for the next few months, quitting isn’t a great option for me career-wise. I hate the thought of my personal issues causing a problem, and obviously if I leave, they’ll have to organize a replacement tech for Zac. But I—”
A sudden thought occurred to her, and her stomach did a sickening swoop. “Oh, shit.” She looked at Lexie with wide eyes. “If there’s nowhere for me to sleep, there won’t be anywhere for a replacement, either. I can’t leave Zac in the lurch like that.”
“Don’t worry about Zac,” Lexie reassured her. “There’s no way anyone’s going to risk him being left without a tech. If you go and they need to fill your position, Charlie will just have to hire another sleeper bus.”
Cassie felt sick. Hiring another bus and a driver, not to mention all the logistics that went along with that, just for one person, would cost a fortune. There was no way she’d ever be hired again if she was responsible for that.
Lexie sat back in her chair. “Look. I know staying and having to face Bryan and Stella every day will be hard. I completely get it. But sometimes the hardest things to do are the ones most worth doing. Your career and reputation in the industry are important. Don’t let someone else’s selfish choices ruin that for you. You need a bunk. We have a spare one. Why not use it?”
“Because… because the band won’t want to have a random woman staying with them for the next couple of months.”
Lexie smiled. “I was once the random woman staying on their bus. It didn’t turn out too badly.”
Cassie choked out a laugh. “I don’t think it would end up working out quite the same for me.”
Lexie’s expression turned serious. “But you’ll still have your job, you’ll still have your reputation, Zac will still have you as his bass tech. And Bryan won’t have screwed you over any more than he already has.”
Cassie looked down at her plate. Lexie was right. As awful as the whole situation was, her staying was the best thing for the tour, and for her. She might not want to be a guitar tech forever, but until she figured out what she did want to do—or even what shecoulddo—it was her job. One she was good at. Staying made the most sense. She also wasn’t quite prepared to pack up and leave the tour, find a new apartment to live in—and potentially a new career if her leaving pissed people off—and start a new life all by herself. She wasn’t ready for that.
She wasn’t ready to be adrift and alone again.
A memory surfaced, catching her by surprise.
The hot sun beat down on her head. Her mouth was dry, but her sweaty hands left damp marks on her notebook as she wrote and wrote just to pass the time. A boy said hello from behind her and she turned…
Cassie’s breath shuddered out of her, and she quickly took a sip of her drink. She would have to figure out her life after this tour ended, but right now, she wanted to keep this job. Bryan wasn’t in her corner anymore. There was no one in her corner now, except her. And if she had to suck up her pride and accept help from Fractured, then that’s what she’d do.
She swallowed, then looked back up at Lexie. “Are you sure me staying on the bus will be okay?”
Lexie smiled. “I’m pretty sure the guys won’t have a problem with it.”
“Can you… can you ask them? I don’t want to get my hopes up and have them absolutely hate the idea.”
“I’ll ask them when they get back from their interview this morning. That way, at least you’ll know you have the option if Charlie isn’t able to find you anything.”
Cassie hated the thought of begging her boss to take her in like a stray dog. Even if that’s how she’d felt so often before. Desperate for someone to care about her enough to want to keep her.
She forced a smile. “Thank you, Lexie.”
