I’ve been on the treadmill for two hours. I even ran in the middle of the night. Noah’s been working nights, so I haven’t had a lot of time to talk to him. I know it’s gonna have to happen soon though because Henry is doing things to me that I never thought possible. Last night, after we talked, we sat in silence until it was dark. To be honest I kind of wish I never had to leave. Being there with him, near him, felt right.
When he walked onto the stage the other night dressed as Billy Idol, making a complete fool of himself for me, I felt like my heart exploded in the best of ways. He hates going to eighties night because of the dressing up. So, I know he was completely out of his comfort zone, like he said he was, performing like a fool in love, not even caring what anyone but me thought.
The treadmill isn’t helping at all. My phone buzzes on the coffee table in front of me. I hit the stop button and grab it.
Are you busy?
It’s Taylor. I’ve been nervous about this call. I sent her an email last weekend letting her know about my whole PDX Weekly snafu. I didn’t want her to think I’d forgotten about her. I plan to do a whole big piece on her when the site goes live. But the website won’t be ready until sometime Friday.
Henry’s been working on the site as well as trying to secure some early advertisers and sends me updates every day. Tomorrow I’m headed to his office to learn how to use it. I’ve never been more nervous to see someone in my entire life. Every time I see him that feeling gets more intense. In the best way.
I type back a response.
Nope.
My phone rings two seconds later.
‘Hi!’ I say, excited to hear her update.
‘Hi, Ambri. How are things?’
‘Things are great. How about you? Everything good?’ I ask, knowing full well exactly how good it’s going for her because I’m now glued to the show.
‘Everything is going fantastic. I’ve made it to the top two!’ she squeals, unable to contain her excitement.
‘I know! I haven’t missed a second of the show!’ I squeal back with a leap. ‘It’s so amazing. You are so gonna win this thing. I can just feel it. You know, I was at my parents’ house the other day and they are your biggest fans. They think you’re the most talented singer on the show.’
‘Really?’ she asks, as if it’s not possible. ‘That’s so nice. I dunno though. The girl I’m up against is a real powerhouse. It could easily go either way.’ I can hear the uncertainty in her voice. The seventeen-year-old pushing through her old soul.
‘You got this, Taylor. You’re talented, kind, and beautiful inside and out. You’re really the exact type of person who deserves to win this.’
My phone beeps with an incoming call. I glance at the screen, seeing only an unknown number flash across. I pull it back to my ear, ignoring whoever is at the other end.
‘Thanks. I actually wanted to ask if you’d be interested in coming to the finale? This is short notice, I know, but I can get you a couple tickets if you want to bring someone and you can get interviews with everyone on set.’
‘Really?’ A finale piece would really help pull everything I’ve got together. A plane ticket would definitely eat up part of my savings but I’m sure it’ll be worth it. ‘Taylor, I’d love to come. When should I be there?’
‘It’s being taped live on Friday night.’
The day after the Infusion show. I guess LA is only a few hours’ flight from here. I could leave in the morning and still get there in time.
‘I’ll be there.’
‘Perfect! I’ll email you all the info. I’m really excited to meet you in person!’
‘Same here. We’ll talk soon.’
A voicemail notification flashes when I hang up. I dial through to voicemail, clicking through the options.
‘Hi, Ambri.’ A man’s voice greets me. ‘I’ve got a story opportunity you will not want to miss. I heard about your new website, Sound Bites, and I think you’re the perfect journalist for this. Why don’t you meet me at Starbucks on west Burnside at eleven?’
I glance at the clock. Ten-forty. Who could this be? And who leaves a message asking you to meet them in the next twenty minutes? What if I had been busy or had a job? I change my clothes as quickly as possible, grab my bag and phone and head down the street to the Starbucks I used to work at.
I glance around the room as I walk towards the counter. Looking for anyone that appears to be waiting for someone.
‘Hey, Ambri.’ Lexi, one of my favorite baristas, greets me with a smile. She didn’t work here when I did, but considering I’m here nearly every single day, we’re on a first-name basis. ‘Want your usual?’
‘Yeah. Hey, have you seen someone in here that looks like they might be waiting on someone?’
‘Only the whole store.’ She laughs.
‘Right.’ I laugh with her, pulling my wallet from my bag to pay when the door dings opened. I turn to look, taking a second glance when he registers. The colorful ink on his skin is what I notice first. Bare skin is barely visible from his fingers to his neck. The overgrown five o’clock shadow, flannel shirt on top of all the tattoos make him look like a lumberjack gone bad.
‘Oh. My. God.’ Lexi nearly drops a shot glass full of espresso to the ground. ‘Do you know who that is?’ she whispers over to me, but I can’t look away because I do indeed know who it is.
Brad Winston. Lead singer of Infusion.
He stops in the middle of the coffee shop, all eyes on him, as he looks around the room.
‘Ambri Jennings?’ He announces it like they do on the overhead speaker when a rogue child is found without their mother at the grocery store.
‘Holy fuck,’ I say out loud a little louder than intended. How on earth could he know I even exist?
He turns to me with a grin. ‘You must be Ambri?’
I nod, my mouth still hanging open from the shock of him saying my name. Brad Winston just said my name, twice. And he’s coming over here. Holy shit, he’s coming over here. Too bad I’m glued to the floor, too paralyzed to act like a normal human being.
‘I got this.’ He pulls a wallet from his pocket, sliding a twenty across the counter to Lexi and shoving his wallet back in his pocket. He takes the wallet from my hand, slides it back into my bag and leads me across the room with a hand on my back.
‘You can breathe. I’m really not that exciting. Just a normal guy.’
I giggle like I’m twelve. Maybe celebrities aren’t such a good thing for me to write about? I’m obviously not cool enough to keep my shit together. Like Rachel on Friends whenever Joey mentions Days of Our Lives. That’s me. The girl no one will invite to parties because I’ll go all crazy fangirl on them.
‘Are you nuts?’ I ask him with another giggle. ‘You’re about the furthest thing from a normal guy ever.’
He laughs. ‘I’ll take that as a compliment. Care to sit?’ He motions to the empty chair I’m now standing next to as he sets my coffee he’s now holding on the table.
I can only nod. The door dings open again and I’m afraid to look and see who else might be walking in. I look anyway. Henry. My heart does a flip as he walks my way, a smile on his face.
Holy shit, we’re meeting Brad of Infusion. He’s gonna die. Well… maybe he’s not as big of a fan as I am but I’m sure he’ll think it’s cool.
‘Oh, good. You made it.’ He walks up to Brad, shaking his now-extended hand with a smile, as if they’re old friends.
‘She might be having a stroke?’ Brad shrugs as he nods my direction.
‘Hey.’ Henry reaches up, touching my shoulder. ‘You OK?’
‘What is even happening?’ I ask, pulling him by the arm across the coffee shop with me.
‘How do you know him?’ I demand. ‘And why didn’t I know you knew him?’
He grins. ‘I met him in LA. Did some logo and website work for him and we kept in touch. He has a house here and I thought maybe he’d be the perfect thing for the site?’
‘You did this? For my site?’
‘I did this for you.’ He leans in, saying it right into my ear, sending chills through my spine. ‘Can you do this?’
I nod, forcing myself to take a breath and pull myself together.
‘Sorry about that.’ Henry makes his way back over to Brad. ‘I guess I probably should have told her before you got here.’ He glances over at me with an eyebrow raised, nodding his head in Brad’s direction, attempting to get me to move across the room towards him.
‘You’d be surprised how often it happens.’ He laughs. ‘I’ll never get used to it.’
‘I’ll be right back,’ I say, holding a single finger up, glancing at Henry, hoping he reads my mind that I need a moment and covers for me.
I make my way to the bathroom, immediately calling Claire.
‘Did you know about this?’ I say as soon as I hear her answer the call.
‘Know about what?’
‘Claire…’ I say in my most authoritative voice.
‘OK… I knew.’
‘Brad Winston, Claire. And Henry knows him? They’re out there shooting the shit like they’re BFFs.’
‘He did say he’d do anything for you.’
I stare at myself in the mirror. He did say that. A few times.
‘Does he…?’ I ask her, trying not to say the word that is doing the most damage to my already hesitant heart.
‘I think you probably already know the answer to that.’
I sigh. ‘I’m going to break up with Noah.’ I lean against the wall, my heart racing in my chest. ‘I hate breaking up with people, Claire.’
‘I know. But for now, just focus on one thing at a time. Right now you probably better get your ass out there and talk to Brad.’
‘Right.’ I stand up, glancing at myself in the mirror again. ‘I can do this. I can interview a mega superstar.’ I say it mostly to myself for motivation.
‘Of course you can! This is your life now, mingling with the local celebrities.’
I giggle into the phone. ‘This is so not the life I expected.’
‘Go!’
‘Bye.’
I tap the end call button and force myself to breathe. This is what I wanted. A contact that could get me a story that would get the site seen. Henry found it.
I walk back into the coffee shop. I can totally act like a normal human being while my heart both falls apart and falls in love. Should be no problem. I make my way back to the table, Brad and Henry now sitting and chatting like they truly are friends. I sit down across from Brad with Henry on my left.
‘Sorry about that. I had to compose myself. You kind of caught me off guard there.’
‘Not a problem.’ Brad smiles, clearly getting a bit of a kick out of this. I’m sure he had no idea how starstruck and tongue-tied I’d be when he arranged this.
I pull a notepad and pen from my bag.
‘You have a show here this week?’
‘Yup. Playing at the Crystal once again.’
I glance at Henry. I knew the show was at the Crystal but the fact that it keeps coming into my life with moments I’ll never forget is beyond my comprehension right now.
‘Listen, I’d love to have you guys come hang out with us for the night.’
‘That would be amazing,’ I say with an enthusiastic nod.
‘Perfect. I hate to cut this short, but I’ve got another meeting. Henry’s got my digits. If you need anything between now and then give me a call. I’ll see you guys soon.’ He and Henry both stand, me lagging behind a little trying to process everything.
I finally stand, holding my hand out, touching him for the first time, trying desperately not to let out another ridiculously embarrassing giggle. ‘Thank you.’
‘Thank your buddy. He’s a real stand-up guy.’
I nod, glancing over at Henry with a shy smile. ‘Yeah. Turns out he is.’
‘See you guys.’ He waves, stopping midway through the room and turning back towards me with a grin, a finger pointed my direction. ‘Totally a normal guy.’ He winks.
The giggle surfaces again. Not the kind of giggle you can hide but the kind that makes the room look your direction. Henry laughs, draping his arm over my shoulders.
‘I can’t even believe you’re that in love with the guy, still. It’s been years.’
‘I’m not in love with him.’ I laugh, jabbing him in the side with my finger. ‘You could have at least warned me.’
‘I actually thought I’d beat you both here. I got held up.’
‘You’re such a liar.’ I roll my eyes, glancing over at him. ‘Do you have any idea how much my life has sucked without you?’
He shakes his head with a grin. ‘Probably not as much as mine has without you.’
‘We’d probably need a photo finish to call it.’
‘How about we promise never to let it happen again?’
‘It?’ To tell you the truth, I’ve kind of been thinking way too much about it and everything that goes with it.
‘You have a filthy mind.’ He laughs. ‘Actually… I really enjoyed the it.’ He nudges me, a shy grin on his face, my cheeks immediately turning pink. ‘I meant how about next time the it happens, if it ever does, neither of us gets lost after?’
I only nod. He’s thought about that? Last night when he asked if I could ever feel that way about him, my answer was so much more than possibly, but, luckily, my head stepped in to protect my heart.
We both sit back at the table we were at when my conversation with Claire comes back to me. ‘I have to tell Noah,’ I say after putting my notepad back in my bag.
His face drops at the mention of his name. ‘You should. I’m sure he’ll be thrilled for you.’
‘Not about Brad, Henry. About this. Us.’ I motion between us. ‘About all the things I’m feeling again every time I see you. I can’t stay with him. It’s not fair.’
Henry reaches up, resting his hand on the back of his neck, probably trying to figure out how to hide the smile he’s got lingering. ‘OK.’
‘That doesn’t mean I’m ready for this.’ I motion between us. ‘Or the it we just spoke of to happen yet. I need to be able to hear myself think and I can’t do that while I’m lying to him about what I’m feeling.’
‘I understand more than you could know. I’m only a phone call away whenever you want to talk to me.’
‘I know.’
He leans back in his chair with the smile he can no longer contain.