Chloe stood frozen as Greer joined the rest of the group and headed out of the hotel. “I’m scared,” she whispered, only half joking.
Inky grinned and pulled Chloe’s bag from her shoulder. “So, what do you say? Wanna head to the festival and listen to music with the others?”
“What about rehearsals?” Chloe asked, noticing for the first time that Reid was nowhere to be seen.
“No rehearsals today,” Inky answered, leading Chloe out of the hotel. “Reid figured since this was the last show and you guys already played here once, it should be fine.” Her steps slowed as she turned toward Chloe, a knowing glint in her eyes.
“What?” Chloe asked, fidgeting.
“I just think it’s funny.”
“What’s funny?”
“That when Reid came downstairs, looking just like you do, he gave Tom the exact same excuse. I didn’t believe him any more than I believe you.”
Chloe dropped her eyes and cleared her throat. “I’m not lying. I did have too many beers last night. Although, right now, one sounds about perfect.”
“Chloe.” Inky reached out and placed her hand on Chloe’s arm. “What happened?”
Chloe’s eyes filled with tears. She swiped her thumb across her cheeks, her head still down. “Nothing.”
“Listen,” Inky said, pulling Chloe away from anyone within earshot, her voice compassionate, yet firm. “I’m no saint. As a matter of fact, I’m quite proud of some of the idiotic things I’ve done. I also learned a long time ago not to judge other people. I mean, I do judge them. I judge people all the time. Because there are some really stupid fucking people in this world. But I understand that things are not always black and white. Any idiot can see there’s something special between you and Reid. A spark. But he’s with Jess, and I don’t think he’ll ever leave her again. I’m not telling you this to be cruel, but you’re my friend and I don’t want to see you get hurt.”
Chloe sighed and finally lifted her gaze to Inky’s. “I don’t want him to leave her. This has nothing to do with that. I promise.”
Inky raised her brow and pursed her lips. “You know I don’t believe a word you’re saying, right?”
Chloe let out a soft laugh and smiled. It was small and tired, but genuine. “I know, but I promise I’m okay. I just need a little time to myself to get my head right. You know how it is on the road,” she said with a shrug. “Bones get confused sometimes. And dogs can be quite charming when they want to be.”
Inky nodded, a sly smile curving her lips. “True as that may be, they still lick their own ass.”
Chloe choked as her laugh stuck in her throat. “Oh my God, Inky,” she gasped. “You’re the best.”
“Only on days that end in ‘y.’ Now, come on. Let’s go listen to some jams and forget about this bullshit. You’ll be back in New York in a couple of days, and all of this will be forgotten. And if it isn’t, go out, find a fuckhot guy, and be his bone.”
“You realize I’m going to buy you one of those stupid dogs playing poker pictures for your birthday, right? As a matter of fact, don’t be surprised if every gift I ever send you from this point forward is a dog or a bone or a combination of the two.”
Inky laughed. “As long as the dog and bone aren’t joined, we’re cool. Actually, now that I think about it . . .”
“Inky!” Chloe screeched, her face red with laughter.
Inky waved her hand dismissively. “Fine, fine. Keep the porn to yourself.”
For the rest of the day, Chloe immersed herself in the excitement of the people around her. She danced, sang along with the crowd, and pushed aside all thoughts of the night before. It worked too, for a while. However, once dusk turned to darkness and the group made their way to the artist area to get ready for their set, Chloe could think of nothing else.
“All right, listen up, guys,” Tom said, holding up several sheets of paper. “This is the set list for tonight. Everything will be the same as last week except we’re adding two songs. Reid wants to open with ‘I Don’t Mind’ and ‘Last Time.’ We played these when the tour started, so there shouldn’t be any issues. Chloe, you’ll come in on the third song, and we’ll finish out as usual. Any questions?”
Chloe looked away. She hated how much it stung that he’d changed up the set list. It wasn’t that the songs were special to her in any way. It was the fact this would be the first show in months she hadn’t played from beginning to end.
“Why the switch?” Greer asked, moving next to Chloe.
Tom shrugged. “The fans. Apparently there was some hashtag thing on Twitter last night where fans were commenting on what songs they hoped to hear tonight. Those were the only two not currently in the set, so I convinced him to add them in at the beginning.”
Drew shrugged. “Makes sense. Those were his first two hits.”
Tom handed out copies of the set list and grinned. “Let’s rock this last show and get the hell back to LA. You guys ready?”