Page 28 of Follow the Rhythm (Fairview City Omegaverse #2)

M y night, perhaps my whole life, felt ruined the moment the lift doors closed on Jess and Kieran. Jealousy, thick and bitter, coursed down my throat, corrosive like acid. I shoved it away before I could examine it too closely.

Bea and I were appearing at a bar that had just opened, some deal she had arranged with the owners, but I was in no mood to pose for pictures with fans.

“I almost feel sorry for her,” Bea said as we walked to the cab waiting for us in front of the hotel. “How long do you think he’ll keep this one around?”

“Don’t.” Kieran had certainly enjoyed himself on previous tours, but he hadn’t been with anyone since Michael died as far I knew. The thought of him treating Jess like some throwaway made me sick.

“Oh, I forgot, the little Omega is your ‘friend.’” Bea scoffed. “Maybe she’ll come crying to you when he breaks her heart.”

I didn’t trust myself to respond, so we rode to the bar in silence. The pathetic truth was part of me hoped he did break her heart so I could help put the pieces together.

I white-knuckled my way through the allotted two-hour appearance with the help of copious amounts of whiskey, provided gratis by the grateful staff. Bea took photos and videos for my online presence, the parasitic extension of my persona that bore absolutely no resemblance to reality anymore.

We made it back to the hotel before the inevitable explosion.

“Do you think they’re fucking?” Bea asked as soon as we entered the room. She was drunk and high, and her eyes, the pupils too wide, glittered with malice. “Should we ask to join?”

“I’m not in the mood for this,” I growled. I could picture Kieran and Jess together perfectly without her help.

“Pity they didn’t invite us,” she said, peeling off her false eyelashes in the mirror. “But maybe we could ask that nice Charlie if he wants to play.”

“Stop.” I sank onto the bed. The room was spinning unpleasantly.

“Do you think I’m stupid? You haven’t touched me in weeks, and I’m just not supposed to notice?” Her voice was rising slowly, and I knew we’d be screaming at each other soon.

I didn’t reply, trying to forestall the inevitable as long as possible.

“Poor Ellis. So desperate for a fairytale ending, even when he knows he doesn’t deserve it. Do you think Michael would have wanted to fuck the Omega, too?” Bea asked, blinking innocently at me from the mirror.

Grief and guilt hollowed out my stomach. But the self-loathing put me over the edge.

“Just go if you want to fight. I’m not participating,” I made a valiant effort to keep my voice calm.

Bea pretended to think. “No, I think I’ll stay.”

“Then I’ll leave.” I stood carefully, trying to keep myself steady. How had this waking nightmare become my life?

“I’m running out of patience for this, you know.”

“You and me both.” The pattern of being kicked out of my hotel room was getting tiresome.

“I thought you wanted to keep me happy,” she said with a fake pout. “Imagine the stories I could tell the press. It’s one thing to be the ‘bad boy,’ but I don’t think the fans would forgive you if they knew the nasty truth.”

“Tell the press whatever you want. I’m not playing this game anymore.”

She blocked my path. “Are you sure about that?”

Her beautiful face was cold and full of hatred. Whatever had once been between us was long gone, and it seemed so pointless to continue the charade.

“Yes. Now either get the fuck out of my room or get out of my way.” I gritted my teeth against my bark.

Bea’s smile was poisonous. “I could ruin you, Ellis Fox.”

“Then, please god, fucking do it already!”

She crossed her arms. “Fifty grand.”

“What?”

“Fifty grand and I won’t go to the press.” Her eyes had a new, desperate quality I didn’t recognize.

“Fuck off, Bea, your trust fund is ten times my bank account,” I said derisively.

She grimaced. “If you must know, Daddy’s recently run into some financial trouble.”

I considered this through the whiskey haze. She had been booking more brand deals, sponsored posts, and appearances lately. “What a shame. But also not my fucking problem.”

Bea let out a scream of frustration. “It’s the least you owe me for all the work I’ve done! No one would give a fuck about you if not for me.”

“ MOVE! ”

The word came out as a bark, and Bea flinched away, her body instinctively obeying the command. I regretted it immediately. I never used my Alpha bark. The look of betrayal in her eyes was almost enough to make me apologize, but I just yanked the door open.

“You’re going to regret this,” she promised from behind me.

I just laughed and closed the door.

There was no hotel bar, so I contented myself with the minibar in my new hotel room, booked by the poor night clerk at the front desk, whom I tried my best to be polite to.

I couldn’t sleep. It wasn’t just the fight with Bea keeping me up, but the dread of what the morning might bring.

The sight of Jess in Kieran’s arms, perfuming for him, had settled over my brain like a thick fog.

Every time I closed my eyes, I saw them.

They deserve to be happy , I reminded myself. You don’t .

I didn’t. I didn’t deserve to even look at Jess, let alone touch her.

My body disagreed. I was hard at the memory of her perfume, which just added to my self-loathing. I considered seeking Charlie out. He’d used me to handle his frustration over Jess; maybe I could return the favor.

But no, I didn’t deserve Charlie either. I wouldn’t drag him down with me.

I lay awake, burning, until the sun came up.

Soundcheck was a disaster. I kept drinking to keep the hangover at bay, but with the lack of sleep, everything felt muddled and unreal. Kieran looked tired, too, but also happier than I’d seen him in over a year.

The first song dissolved under my fingertips. The chords were dragging, and the whole thing unraveled. It was entirely my fault, but I blamed it on Grace.

“What the fuck was that?” I snarled at her.

“Oh great, this Ellis is back,” Grace said sarcastically. “I missed our little talks. That was obviously on you, dude.”

The instinct to defend myself reared up. “Remind me which of us wrote the fucking song? It certainly wasn’t you.”

“Chill out. Let’s just run it again, okay?” Grace picked up her sticks, poised to start the song over.

“Why? Have you become less incompetent in the last thirty seconds? Somehow, I doubt it.”

“Ellis. Stop,” Kieran said, warningly. I ignored him.

“You’re nothing,” I spat at her, saying the words I meant for myself. “You’re fucking worthless, like I knew you’d be from the beginning.”

A tiny body barreled out from the wings, and Jess planted herself in front of me like an angry pixie. She pushed me in the chest, emphasizing her words, her face incandescent with rage. “No. You don’t talk to her like that. Don’t ever talk to her like that.”

I withstood her attack. “This doesn’t concern you.”

Grace stood up, her face white. “Leave it, Jess. Let him have his fucking tantrum. Kier, let me know when he’s calmed down.”

Jess looked at me with pure contempt and followed Grace offstage.

I watched them leave, feeling a sick sense of accomplishment. I was dimly aware of the techs and stagehands muttering in the wings.

“You need to sort yourself out, mate,” Kieran said angrily. “That was uncalled for.”

“Sure, take her side. I know where I stand,” I said.

“What are you on about?”

“So, what’s the plan, huh? Did you just want to get your knot wet? Or has your new little Omega changed you?” I pushed into his space, getting in his face. He towered over me.

“Don’t you fucking talk about Jess,” he growled.

“Why not? You know Charlie fucked her first, right?”

A new and horrifying idea occurred to me. Were they going to form a pack? Ride off into the sunset for their happily ever after while I rotted away to nothing?

“ STOP ,” he barked. My jaw clenched against the words I wanted to hurl at him. “I don’t know what the hell is wrong with you today, but it ends now.”

The hole in my chest was expanding.

“What would Michael think of you choosing some pussy over us? I thought we were supposed to be brothers. But you get a whiff of Omega cunt, and off you go.”

Kieran’s fist slammed into my jaw. Lights popped in my eyes. I wheeled backward and landed heavily on the stage.

“Whoa, whoa, hold on,” Charlie’s voice called. Jess must have summoned him. “Kieran, stop.”

Kieran was advancing on me, his fists clenched.

“Do it. I dare you,” I taunted.

Charlie intervened, putting himself between us, a hand stretched in each direction. “Take a breath, man,” he told Kieran.

Kieran glared at me. There was nothing but cold fury in his eyes.

“I’m done,” he said, looking at me, and then at Charlie.

“Wait, what? What do you mean?” Charlie sounded panicked.

“We’re done. I’m done. I won’t deal with his shit anymore, and Grace certainly doesn’t deserve it,” he said, pointing at me.

Charlie looked over his shoulder, his warm brown eyes concerned. I felt lower than a worm as I dabbed blood from my cut lip. “Hold on. Everyone just needs to calm down. I’m sure we can figure it out.”

“Nah, mate, I’m done.” Kieran loomed over me. “You’re going to help me buy out the contract option with Echelon. I’ve been trying to have patience, to be the bigger man. You can play the damaged rockstar all you want, but I’ll be on the first flight out.”

I had run out of steam. I watched him go in silence. And I would buy out the contract, of course. No matter how much I wanted to hurt him, I wouldn’t let Reward see the light of day. I just wished he’d called my bluff earlier and saved everyone the trouble.

“Shit,” Charlie whispered. “What the hell am I going to do?”

I rolled to my feet; I had some drinking to do. I patted him on the shoulder. “You’ll figure it out.”

Hotels never made it as hard to get on the roof as they thought. Even while pissed, I could usually find my way up. It was hot, so I tucked myself into a corner with some shade. I looked out at the skyline that could have been anywhere. I didn’t even remember what city we were in.

I brought a bottle of whiskey with me. It was nearly empty.

My phone buzzed a few times, but I ignored it. I needed not to feel.

Time slipped. I must have dozed off, and Jess’s scent haunted my dreams.

“There you are, you fucker,” her voice said, as sharp as her scent. Not a dream then. “Come clean up your mess.”

I opened my eyes. I was reclining against the wall behind me. The sun had slipped lower in the sky.

“Is the show starting?” I asked.

“There is no show. Charlie cancelled it when you disappeared,” she said, glaring at me. “You can’t even stand up, can you?”

I scoffed. “‘Course I can.” I didn’t move, though.

She sighed and sat down next to me, wrapping her arms around her bent legs so she folded into a tiny ball. Her scent curled towards me, the spicy ginger more prominent than usual. It cleared my mind just a little.

“How did you know where I was?”

“The roof was always the best place for brooding,” Jess said wryly. “What the hell was that? I thought you were done with the temperamental bullshit. You made Grace cry.”

My heart sank. I didn’t reply because there was nothing to say.

“Kieran wouldn’t tell me what you said to piss him off. I had to convince him we should even look for you, so I’m guessing it was awful. What’s going on? Did Bea leave again?”

I scoffed, but my eyes burned with unshed tears. “Everything is wrong.”

“You’ll have to narrow it down a little if you want some help. I can’t fix ‘everything.’”

She paused. “Is it because of Michael? Kieran told me that what happened wasn’t an accident.”

The truth, like all the worst secrets, wanted to come out. I could feel it climbing up my throat. Would it feel better to tell someone? Maybe it would be like exorcising a demon or cutting out the rot at its root. A surgical excision of the worst thing I’d ever done. Would that absolve me?

The sun was shining through the curtain of Jess’s hair that fell over her shoulder, bringing out a warmer tone. Her scent had mellowed as her anger faded, turning sweeter again. Those wide, dark eyes locked on mine could surely see the depths of my soul.

But no, burdening Jess wouldn’t help anyone.

I sighed. “It doesn’t matter. It’s better this way.”

“I don’t think you being alone and drunk on a rooftop is better for anyone. If you just come down, talk to Kieran and Grace and grovel a little, they’ll probably forgive you.”

Would I be groveling for the rest of my life?

Stuck in a cycle of hurting people and then begging for forgiveness until they finally left for good?

“Do you want to know what I said to Kieran? Why he did this?” I tongued my split lip.

The wound opened up again, but I didn’t care; I already had blood on my shirt.

Jess eyed me. “Not really, but I have a feeling you’re going to tell me anyway.”

“I reminded him of his old habits. A few years ago, there would have been a new girl on the bus after every show. You’ll notice none of them are still hanging around.” I raised an eyebrow at her. “Do you truly think he’s changed so much?”

Jess paled and then shook her head. “You’re deflecting.”

“Of course I am. It’s what I’m best at, darling,” I said, looking out over the skyline. “And I will not grovel to anyone. It’s probably best for everyone to move on. Make a clean break and stop dragging things out.”

“So that’s it? You’re just going to disappear again?”

I shrugged.

Silence stretched between us. I wouldn’t look at her; I couldn’t, or my heart would truly shatter.

“Nice to know where I stand. I’ll let Charlie know you’re not dead.”

She left. I didn’t watch her go.