Page 33 of Fame & Obsession

“Ty said you’re telling Helena.”

I lean back in the chair and smirk. “Ty didn’t give me much of a choice.”

“For what it’s worth, we all agree with him,” he says, offering himself a seat in the chair beside me. “When are you gonna get it? We’re family. We’ve been through a lot of shit together. Even Tanna, brother. She’s never tried to replace Lam. The girl just wants to fit in, and she’s done a damn good job in case you haven’t been paying attention.”

“Don’t worry about Tanna.”

He drops his head in his hands. “Jagger...”

“Oh, for fuck’s sake, Z. I’m not poking Tanna.” I slam the posters onto the table. “Jesus, she’s a kid.”

He glances up, the relief on his face obvious. “Thank Christ. I didn’t think so, but, come on, your track record with women the last year hasn’t been selective.”

Might as well come clean.

Pushing out of my chair, I pace the floor. “After you left last night, I went to find somewhere to crash when Vivian showed up and cranked the shit factor up to an eleven.”

“Viv showed?” He throws his head back with a groan.

“Yeah, that was pretty much my reaction too.”

“What did she want?”

I narrow my eyes.

He chuckles. “Right. ItisViv.” Grabbing the posters off the table, he shuffles them in his hands. “What happened?”

“I told her to go blow someone else—preferably a few states away.”

“Smooth. I’ll bet she she took that well.”

“If you consider threatening to tell Phoebe all about Lam, then yeah, it went smooth as shit.”

Zane raises his chin. “Wait, who?”

Fuck.

Once I realize what I’ve said, I turn away, hoping he’ll let it go. An inquisition concerning my newfound obsession with Phoebe Ryan isn’t on my agenda for today.

“Shit, is this about that chick from the bar the other night?” When I don’t answer, he groans. “You found her?” When I still don’t respond, I hear him toss the posters back onto the table and stand. “Maybe after what’s happened, it’s not a good idea to jump from the crazy pan into the psycho fryer.”

Rooted in place, I clench my jaw, staring out from the front of the stage to where masses of people will soon be huddled together for our big moment. My mind isn’t where it needs to be for such a huge milestone.

“Fine, just call her,” he says.

God, if only it were that simple. “I can’t—not yet.”

“Why not?”

It’s a valid question that deserves an answer. Unfortunately, I don’t have one.

The truth is I have to make sure Vivian will leave Phoebe alone before I bring her into my batshit stalker world—even if itisfor my own horny needs.

I glance over my shoulder. “What if she tells me she hates me?”

There’s a challenge in Zane’s hard stare. “What if she doesn’t?”

There it is.Everything I don’t want to admit to myself—now validated. I’m a fucking coward.