“My other qualities would more than make up for the fact that this pussy has a better voice.” He looks down to his groin while jabbing his thumb towards Kitt.
“Gross,” I mutter. “Are we anywhere near Stockholm yet?”
Milo snorts. “Tex, we left Norway five minutes ago.”
“Then, can we chuck Cooper off?”
“Seconded,” Jimmy says.
“You shits always pick on me, and you know why?”
We all wait.
“Because you’re jealous,” Cooper says.
Laughter drowns out the sound of the road.
“We certainly wouldn’t want to be here without you, Coop,” Dad says, slapping Cooper’s back.
I blow him a kiss. “No, we love you and your delusions. Really.”
On the table, my phone starts to flash with a notification, and then they come every few seconds. Oh, great.
“Looks like the article is out there,” Kitt says, wrapping his arm around my waist, much like he did in the photo. “Ready for the crazy?”
I give him a look. “I’m always ready for the crazy, so bring it on.”
The world can do its worst. We’re stronger than anything they have up their sleeves.
KITT
FRIDAY, JUNE 5
STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN
Since the photo of Tex and I was released, the whole world has gone fucking crazy. How can people be so invested in the lives of strangers? But they are. Everyone is obsessed with us being a couple—whether they love or hate us. My critics say I’m not good enough, and Tex’s critics say she’s not.
It’s a good thing we don’t care what anyone else thinks.
Our Facebook and Twitter pages have exploded. There’s something new online every minute, and it’s the first question the paparazzi fire at us. They want confirmation, one way or another.
We’ve upped security for Tex now because the level of harassment is insane. It changed overnight, and I’m on edge every time she goes out in public.
It’s been amazing for our record sales and catapulted the album up to number five in the charts, but I hate how much the extra attention is bothering Tex. It’s shit like this, which is why Mark didn’t want her with someone like me. I get it, too. Finally, I fully understand why he was against her being with someone in the spotlight. He wants to protect her as much as I do.
Mark spends his life trying to extinguish the media fire around Texas, and here I am, adding fuel to it. But I’m too much of a selfish bastard to let her go, not that either of us would allow someone else to influence our relationship.
Not even her dad.
The only people who know the truth are on tour with us, and they’d never talk. I think Peyton knows, too.
Mark has been watching me like a hawk, even more than before, judging how I’m dealing with the unwanted attention. He’s not mentioned anything or given me any advice, so he either thinks I’m doing all right, or he’s keeping his mouth closed and letting me work through it with Tex.
I feel like I’m on fucking trial. It’s almost like he’s waiting for me to screw up, and I’m downright petrified that, under his constant scrutiny, I will. It’s a lot of pressure. I’m drowning under it, but I remind myself of what this is all for—Texas. My mind overworks, dreaming up every eventuality, and I stress over every little thing from a single line in a new song to being dropped by the label to Texas having enough.
Then, she smiles at me or says she loves me, and everything else turns to white noise.
“Anal?” Texas says, snapping me right out of my thoughts. We’re sitting on the sofa together.
“What?” I blink. “What?”
“Ah, welcome back. No, by the way, to anal. I just wanted your attention. Tomorrow, you guys are on TV at seven a.m., so no partying tonight. I’ll let you tell Coop.”
“Thanks. Why seven? Couldn’t you have booked it later?”
“Right, I control the breakfast show. Just because you’re a rock star, Kitt, doesn’t mean you get to make all the rules. Plus, I didn’t book it. I, for sure, would have gotten it later because I’m the mug who has to try getting your hungover arses to places on time.”
“You manage us better than Jodie.”
“She’s super busy with a much better artist.”
I narrow my eyes, and she laughs.
“I’m joking. You guys are getting bigger, so I think she’ll soon get someone else to manage you guys full-time. She needs to concentrate on her train-wreck singer. That chick needs an intervention.”
Jodie’s other client is pop star Elody Wild, who’s been in the industry since she was fucking conceived. The meltdown was coming, and she did not disappoint. Elody’s breakdown means that Jodie is unable to be here the whole time. But Jodie was only ever our temp manager.
It’s a good thing Tex is here because there’s no way we’d make appearances on our own.
“I’m glad she’s not here. She’d only moan about the volume of alcohol entering our bodies.”