Happily Ever After

Cadeau stepped onto the porch, Sage’s strange behavior so far in the forefront of her mind that she couldn’t enjoy the smell of cooking burgers and the joyful atmosphere of the backyard. Blake smiled a greeting from the grill, and Cadeau pasted on a pretty smile. Saylor greeted her in passing on the way into the house, and Cadeau mumbled a greeting. Hayden cracked a joke, and she pretended to laugh. She feigned normalcy, hid the rapid cycling of her thoughts.

Sage had a crush on her. Maybe. Most likely. Cadeau had gotten pretty good at spotting these things in college, and she assumed she could still trust herself to read obvious signs. Sage had a crush on her, like Grayson did on Jolie. Jolie certainly didn’t understand Grayson’s crush enough to get excited, but she would one day. She’d feel the exact same rush of delight that would leave her lightheaded, her smile would leave her cheeks aching, and she’d want to skip and sing and hop and express happiness anyway she could. She’d feel exactly like Cadeau did in that moment.

But a shot of reality destroyed Cadeau’s high, a shot she hoped would never get in the way of Jolie’s happiness. Cadeau had Jolie, her child, her world, her tiny pride and joy that brought her hope daily. She couldn’t threaten her relationship with Jolie for a relationship with Sage, or any woman for that matter. She couldn’t risk Jolie becoming attached to Sage and the psychological damage that would result. She couldn’t risk Sage meeting Jolie because Sage would ask questions Cadeau didn’t want to answer, she’d want to know what happened, she would treat her differently, she would tell the band.

And why would that be a problem? Cadeau was about to sign the contract. She could tell the band about Jolie. Couldn’t she?

A flurry of nervous butterflies unleashed in her stomach. She couldn’t do it. She wasn’t ready to. She’d have to eventually, but not now. Everything would change with Jolie’s appearance. Cadeau wanted to keep things the way they were as long as she could. She liked the vague feeling of normality she got from interacting with the band.

How selfish.

“Cadeau,” a voice only familiar to her from multiple phone conversations broke through her thoughts.

Andy King. He walked up the porch steps, dripping wet from his dip in the pool, far friendlier smile on his face than the stern tone she’d heard over the phone indicated he could make. Another man followed him, hopping to some imaginary beat in his head.

Cadeau maintained her pretty smile and held out a hand to him. “Hi,” she said warmly, “Andy, right?”

He shook her hand firmly. “Yes. So nice to finally meet you in person.” He motioned to the man next to him, who was no longer bopping to imaginary music. “This is Davy. He’s—”

Davy cut him off, “The merch worker overlord.”

Slowly, Andy repeated, “… The merch worker… overlord…” He shook his head, his eyebrows drawn, his lips parted in disbelief.

Cadeau laughed at Davy’s victorious smile. He looked a bit familiar smiling like that with his vibrant green eyes twinkling. She vaguely remembered his name being thrown around at some point, probably during practice or from conversations with Reese. She knew she didn’t know him personally and hadn’t met him before. He just bore a resemblance to someone she knew. And Saylor’s return from the house, back onto the porch, forced her mind to recognize the similarities.

“You’re Saylor’s brother,” Cadeau blurted.

Wow, they did look alike.

“Half-brother,” Davy said.

“I see the resemblance.”

Their smiles, their eyes, their noses, their freckles. They could well have been full-siblings, and Cadeau wondered for a moment if Jolie would look so similar to any half-siblings she could potentially have in the future.

“No, you don’t,” Saylor stated and gave her half-sibling a look, one that spoke a secret and familiar message between the two, a message Cadeau was not privy to.

Davy returned her look with one of his own, and his hand rested on his cocked hip. “Are you sassing me?” To Andy, he said, “She keeps sassing me tonight.” His attention returned to Saylor. “I will have mom spank you.”

“I’ll have Hunter’s man spank you.”

Hunter’s man? A second mentioning of Hunter’s friend, boyfriend, friend-with-benefits, thing. Interesting. Cadeau thought Sage had just been retaliating against Hunter for interrupting the hug she had been savoring. Apparently, Hunter’s man existed, and he was here. Cadeau glanced over the expansive backyard to see the man who snagged the cynical Hunter. Her eyes landed on the person she didn’t know in the tiny group, who was laying with his bare bottom up on one of Sage’s poolside chairs.

“Is he naked?” Cadeau asked.

She got the feeling that the more time passed and the more alcohol was consumed, the more nudity there would be. Good thing she hadn’t thought to bring Jolie, not that it had been an option anyway. Her daughter was already scarred from the sex talk she heard a week ago. No need to expose her to real penises.

Andy smiled, but his attempt at expressing happiness or laughter was dampened by the frustration pinching his features. “Would you like a beer or a couple shots?” he asked. “I think I could use both.”

“Babe, you’re holding a glass of wine,” Davy muttered.

“It’s not strong enough.”

Sage’s sharp exclamation of “I thought you said he wasn’t naked” drew Cadeau’s eyes to her, back to her ridiculously sexy bikini. She could well have been wearing nothing and been about as covered.

But she looked too good in that bikini for Cadeau feel an ounce of dismay at the less than family friendly situation she would one day have to bring her daughter to. Black, tiny, and littered in designs characteristic of Ed Hardy. It was expensive, and Sage probably had more in her closet. Cadeau had never been able to afford one, even before Jolie. She’d stuck to Wal-Mart bathing suit selections when picking out her only bikini years ago. Yet, she couldn’t muster jealousy over the bikini, just heated want to touch Sage a little more.

Besides, Sage’s ass was fantastic in it. Cadeau knew. She’d taken a peak on the way to the backdoor.

“I never said that. You just assumed he wasn’t,” Hunter returned.

“Hunter’s been planning on doing dirty things in your pool,” Hayden said.

“Saylor and I beat you to it,” Blake said.

Sage groaned in frustration, turned, and stormed back into the house before the teasing could continue. Laughter and chuckles followed her departure, and Cadeau stifled a smile. Sage made it too easy for them.

“Hayden’s money is as good as mine,” Davy said.

So they were placing bets on Sage and her reactions now?

“Contract,” Andy blurted. “I have your contract. Let me get that.”

And he rushed into Sage’s home, a ball of nervous energy.

“Poor baby thinks we’ll scare you away,” Davy said, smiling ruefully.

“And you don’t think so?” Cadeau asked.

“You handled Sage beautifully.” He draped an arm over her shoulders. “We’re like kittens compared to her.”

“I think I handled that beast the wrong way.”

She wasn’t even sure how it happened, but Sage had gone from hating her to wanting her. She hadn’t done anything to provoke her. Not intentionally. And while Sage was gorgeous, she was going to be her band mate, her coworker. Relationships like that were doomed to the worst kind of failure.

“So she wants to sleep with you. All things considered, I think that’s your best solution.”

“I’d rather her respect me.”

Respect her talent as a drummer, respect her as a person who had overcome struggles in her life to become a functioning member of society, respect her as human being and not a piece of meat.

“I’m going to be brutally honest with you,” Davy said, “Sage may never come to respect you. In this industry, there will be plenty of people like Sage who don’t respect you. You are in a world where people like you are the minority and misfits like us are the majority. The best thing you can do is keep going. Keep proving people wrong, and savor the taste of victory every time. I imagine it tastes pretty good.” Louder, he said, “Like Hayden’s money will in my pocket.”

“You haven’t won anything yet,” Hayden shot back.

“Like hell I haven’t.”

Hayden’s insults and Davy’s rebuttals disappeared under the swirl of thoughts. Maybe Davy was right. Maybe she’d never get Sage to respect her the way she wanted. She barely got Sage to like her, and that hadn’t even been entirely her doing. There would be more Sage’s in the world, more people who refused to believe in her. Was she ready for that?

Of course, she was. She’d fought through so much already. She wasn’t going to give up now. She would make a place for herself in this side of the music industry. She’d make everyone eat their preconceived stereotypes. Eventually.

Andy emerged from the house, contract victoriously raised in the air. “Got it.” He held it out to her. “Go ahead and look over it. If you’d like your attorney to check it out, feel free, and we can negotiate any issues.”

Cadeau took the papers and smiled to hide her discomfort. “I’m sure an attorney isn’t necessary.”

Code for she couldn’t afford one. Her money was best used elsewhere, like on basic necessities for her daughter. And she trusted Andy not ruin her life. At the very least, she would have Reese look it over. She trusted him to catch any issues.

Mindlessly, she flipped through the papers, glancing at each section to appease her curiosity until she could get home and scour the pages with Reese. Band mission statement, royalties, regulations, what to do in this situation, what to do in that situation, what was expected of her, an advance payment…

“That’s a lot of money,” Cadeau said, her eyes darting to Andy.

“Good drummers are hard to come by.” He smiled. “We want to ensure you stay.”

“I don’t… I don’t know what to say.” She glanced at the number again and counted the zeros. Damn. “Are you sure the company is okay with this?”

“Positive.”

Tears welled in Cadeau’s eyes, and she frantically blinked them away. It was just some stupid advance meant to keep her there for the band’s benefit. They didn’t know, Andy didn’t know, the label didn’t know how much that advance would do for her and her daughter. This was the beginning of something amazing. And all Cadeau wanted to do was go home and kiss and hold her daughter and know that she could finally give Jolie everything she deserved.