Haunted(13)

The third box contained a beautiful green dress, and the note read: Don’t worry; it’s not a real green dress.

“I don’t get it,” Phoebe said. “They seem like nice gifts, but they are so random.”

“They aren’t random. They’re in reference to a song,” I said.

Phoebe laughed. “Don’t tell me you finally found someone who loves your musical charisma.”

“Charisma? That’s your word choice?”

Phoebe looked as though she’d thought long and hard. “I think it is.”

I laughed.

“Do you love him?” she asked.

“More than I have loved any man.” I paused. “I miss him so much. You know I recorded a Phantom Unplugged special on Palladia. It was from two years ago, but I sat there and watched it over and over. I miss him so much, and when I watch him singing his music in an acoustic manner, I feel like he is right there with me.”

“Why let him go?”

“He would get bored and leave me.”

Phoebe looked around the room at the presents. “Sweetie, I think he must care for you very much. I love you and I don’t go to this kind of effort, even on your birthday.”

“Well, I don’t even have his phone number.”

“Let me get this straight. You have made love to this man, multiple times, and you don’t have his phone number?”

“Tate killed our phones when we were first abducted. I broke up with him at the hospital. There were no numbers exchanged.”

“Good grief. Eve gave him our phone numbers, but he didn’t have a cell at the time. He had to write them down on a piece of paper.”

“Has he called you?”

“No.”

“Has he called Eve?”


“I don’t know. If he has, she hasn’t told me, but she has been really busy with her new boyfriend. Maybe he has and we just don’t know.”

We both thought for a moment.

Phoebe asked, “How did he get your address?”

“I’m in the book? How else did the paparazzi get my address?”

“Money hungry bastards that they are. At least you never left the house and they gave up.” Phoebe smiled. “Okay, back to the problem at hand. Shit, I guess he wouldn’t be in the phone book, being a star and everything.”

“I shouldn’t call him.”

“Why?”

I started to say something, but I closed my mouth.

Phoebe asked, “What is it?”

“What if we do get together? He would cheat on me.” If he cheated on me, he would confirm my biggest fear. I wasn’t enough to hold him.

“Why do you say that?”

“Phoebe, look at me. I am a forty-one-year-old, size twelve, average woman. You see the girls who throw themselves at him. What if he cheated and broke my heart?”

“I get what you are saying. I really do. He’s a rock star. I would probably feel the same, but talk to him. Maybe he can convince you of why he wouldn’t. Be honest.”

“Well, maybe I would if I had his number.”

“I’ll go home and google Roman Reed to see if I can find a contact number, like a manager or something. I love you, Beth. I want you to be happy. After all, he is your dream come true. It’s like one of those romance books you read.”

“Yeah, but all the women are twenty-three years old in those books.”

“Maybe this is a book that you are writing and you can make the heroine be whatever age you want?”

“Maybe…”



Chapter 8 – Roman



I was waiting to go on stage in approximately three hours. We were relaxing in the lounge as the time ticked down. I had enjoyed the last couple of days on stage. I realized that being away from the group had been a good thing. Touring so much together was wearing on me. Our last show was tomorrow night in New York City. I loved New York, and we would be playing in Madison Square Gardens. What a send-off. Then after the show I was flying straight to Beth’s house. Shit, I was nervous. What if she told me to f*ck off? It wasn’t as though she’d called me to tell me she missed me or anything, but I had to try.

“Fifteen minutes until the meet and greet,” Heather yelled out to the band.

I wished we had canceled these meet and greets, but as Berg reminded me, that wouldn’t be fair to the fans. Even though Berg hired more security guys, I couldn’t help but admit the meet and greets still gave me a bit of anxiety. I took Xanax as needed, but I hadn’t touched the Oxy since Beth helped me go through detox. I’d thought about taking them again, because I was only human, but it would feel like a betrayal to Beth. That would be taking all her hard work and flushing it down the toilet. I took one day at a time. That’s all I could do. My back pocket vibrated, so I pulled out my phone. It was Eve, Beth’s friend.

Oh God, please let her be okay.

“Hello? Is Beth okay?”

“Well, hello to you, too, and yes, Beth is fine.”

Relief washed over me. “Did she get the gifts?”

“Honestly, I haven’t seen her in the last couple of days. I’ve been really busy, but I did talk to Phoebe today, and she told me Beth opened them today.”

“But I have been sending them every day. Why didn’t she get them before today?”