I clasped his hand with both of mine, clicking my wedding ring over his. “It’s different for you than it is for them. The label is asking you to do uncomfortable things. They understand. Well, Matt and Evan understand.” I gave him a small grin, hoping to lighten his mood.
The corner of his lip twitched up, then he frowned. Scrunching down so our heads were closer together, he lowered his voice. “It’s just so . . . fabricated. I don’t see why there has to be all this hoopla-crap about some sordid imaginary romance. I just wish that the record and the music were enough to stand on their own. If we’re going to make it, I want it to be because we’re good, not because people are enamored with . . . my personal life.” He frowned, like the idea of him being this ideal, desirable, rock-god dreamboat was absurd, like he still didn’t see why anyone would want more than a fleeting moment of passion with him. It wasn’t absurd. He was a desirable boyfriend, a desirable husband. But I did see Kellan’s point.
“And it will be about the music, Kellan. The high debut may be because of your celebrity status, but the album will stay there because you guys are amazing—one of the best bands I’ve ever heard.”
Kellan cocked his brow. “One of?” I rolled my eyes at him and Kellan glanced up at the other D-Bags. “They’ve stood by me through so much.” He looked back at me, sorrow in his eyes. “They were my family when I had . . . nobody. Literally nobody. And when I left everything in Los Angeles to move back to Seattle, they gave up everything we had down there to follow me, to stand by my side.” He ran a hand over his face. “I owe them so much.”
Dropping his hand, he stared at his lap. “We would have gotten signed ages ago if we’d stayed in L.A. I took this life from them once. I won’t do it again.” Sighing, he looked up at me. “I owe them the chance to be big, to really make it in this business. And Nick is right about one thing. It’s a packed industry, and Matt, Evan, Griffin—they don’t have anything else to fall back on. It’s this or nothing for them, so . . .”
Seeing where he was going, I murmured, “So . . . no comment?”
Kellan nodded. “I don’t want you to be offended, or worried, or hurt. And I’m not having an affair, or even interested in having an affair. If all I have to do to make a . . . splash . . . is film a video and keep my mouth shut during interviews, then I owe them that much.”
Inhaling a big breath, I considered the ramifications of Kellan’s silence. The world would think he was with Sienna. There would be so much gossip about them, I probably wouldn’t be able to escape it. I’d be bombarded with tales of elicit rendezvous, endless secret weddings, and a plethora of pregnancy rumors. But they would just be rumors. And Kellan wouldn’t be anywhere near her. Ignoring his scandalous public persona but still getting the warm, affectionate man behind it all seemed like a fair compromise. I’d never wanted to be in his spotlight anyway.
“I understand, and it’s okay.”
Kellan blinked. “It is? If someone asks me if I’m married to Sienna,” he lifted our laced together wedding rings for emphasis, “and I say nothing, that’s okay?”
I shook my head. “Being a celebrity isn’t as simple as it once was. It used to be that you had a talent, people liked it, and you excelled accordingly. Now, it’s almost more about being adept at traversing the social waters. You need talent, and the ability to sway the public. Nick is good at the manipulation part, and you’re really good at the talent part. You let him do his thing, you do your thing, and I’m sure everything will work out fine.”
Kellan gave me a grin that finally looked happy. “I can’t tell if you’re wise . . . or still na?ve.”
I lifted my chin. “I’m gonna say wise.” Kellan laughed while a thought struck me. “Oh . . . will we still be able to get married? With a ceremony and everything?” I chewed on my lip. “Because my mother will have an aneurism if I try to back out of it.”
Leaning in, Kellan kissed my cheek. “We’re still getting married, Kiera. He only told me not to say anything to the public.” Cupping my cheek, he whispered, “And I plan on saying ‘I do’ just to you.” He grinned. “And a few hundred friends and family.”
Groaning, I laid my head down on the seat. “Oh God.”
Kellan poked me in the ribs. “You’ll be fine. If I can do all this, then surely you can manage pledging your undying love, devotion and fealty to me in front of a small crowd.”
Pulling back, I snorted. “Fealty?”
Kellan gave me an innocent smile. “What? Isn’t that one of the vows?”