Chapter 21
Holly
I probably should have gone easier on the guy.
But it was difficult being nice when you felt like a prisoner. Sure, my cell was awfully plush, but I couldn’t move freely outside of the suite . . . and I didn’t have too much freedom inside the room either.
There was nothing for me to do.
At least, for the next few hours until we could disembark.
I wondered what all the die-hard ReadySet fans would think if I leaked the truth that spending time with one of America’s most sought-after musicians made homework look interesting. Considering that I’m a straight-B student with a tendency to copy down my math answers from the back of the textbook, that said a lot.
Still, it wasn’t fair for me to take out my frustrations on my fellow captive. My parents would probably find that rude. Sometimes it seemed like my life would be a lot easier if I didn’t imagine them floating around, commenting on my every move. It’s sort of hard to tell your imaginary dead parents to shut up.
But I was really wishing I had kept things polite when Nick pulled up Jen’s Skype contact information on his laptop.
I hadn’t realized that by inputting it earlier Nick could contact my best friend whenever he wanted. Mainly because I didn’t think he would catch me talking to her in the first place.
No such luck.
Nick’s finger lingered over the phone icon. “I wonder what Jen will think of your drawing. She seemed to find my smile boyishly irresistible yesterday.”
Oh, yeah, I had noticed that too. Jen might be a total sweetheart who sees the good in everyone, but subtlety is not her specialty. I personally enjoy her frankness since she never keeps me guessing. If she wants to finish a romance novel at our sleepover, I know it. And if Jen has even the slightest interest in a guy, everyone within a fifty-mile radius finds out about it too.
Most of the time I consider her inability to keep her own secrets just one of her many quirks.
Then again, Jen had never swooned over the rock star I was pretending to date either.
Not that I thought she would ever betray me by making a play for Nick. Well, not intentionally. But she could make a fool of herself by gazing longingly at him. And accidentally flirting with him.
Jen could also be convinced to share my embarrassing secrets with Nick.
Probably.
I wasn’t willing to take that chance.
“Jen’s busy!” I blurted.
He raised an eyebrow skeptically. “How would you know?”
“She, uh, told me. Yesterday. She has . . . jujitsu.”
Nick didn’t look fazed by this information in the slightest. “That’s all right. I can call her later.”
“It’s a meet, actually. She’s competing,” I invented wildly. “Jen wants to become a . . . pink belt.”
Nick’s smug look made it clear he didn’t believe a word of it. Either I was a really bad liar or he was excellent at discerning the truth.
I had a feeling that my lying skills were sorely lacking.
“Then we have to wish her luck.”
“Oh, no! That might throw her off her game. Best to let her focus.”
A knock at the door and the standard call of “Room service” provided a well-timed distraction.
“I’ll get it!”
Not even giving Nick a chance to offer, I sprinted to the door. Except the room service tray wasn’t the only thing waiting outside the door. There were also notes littering the doorway. Some of them were cut out in the shape of hearts—and they all had the name Dominic Wyatt scrawled across the front in looping handwriting. The notes addressed to me weren’t quite as pretty.
Most of them included thoughtful phrases like Back off slut, he’s mine.
That wasn’t creepy or anything.
In fact, the notes more than anything else made it real to me that people were paying attention to my love life. And that while our fake relationship might help Nick’s reputation . . . it might also put me in danger.
Among all the fans who would do almost anything to date a member of ReadySet, there were probably a couple who wouldn’t mind physically removing me from the picture if necessary.
That was one terrifying mental image.
I dropped the lot of cards into Nick’s lap and he picked up a red heart-shaped one.
“You didn’t have to go to all this trouble, Holly. I know you find me irresistible.”
Joking around was all fine and good . . . usually. But since I had seen those cards I had some questions for Nick and I needed straight answers.
“How did you get used to all of this?” I demanded bluntly. “The fawning, the ass-kissing, the stalking, how did you adjust when it first happened to you?”
He shrugged. “I haven’t. I just don’t let my discomfort show.”
“Okay.” I nodded, trying to wrap my head around all of it. “That might work for you, but what happens to me after the cruise? Do we pretend to stay together in LA? Do we ‘break up’ before New Year’s? After New Year’s? Holy crap, you don’t need me to go to any big parties with you, right?”
Great, I was babbling.
“What am I thinking? Of course it’s not going to last that long. Right, Nick?”
He rubbed his forehead and fingered another heart-shaped note in the pile. “It shouldn’t take that long. Then again, there’s only one way to find out.”
He clicked on to Google and typed ReadySet drummer, Dominic Wyatt into the search engine. Then he selected one of the first news articles to appear.
Drummer Denies Domestic Violence: ReadySet Tries to Repair Their Image
ReadySet drummer Dominic Wyatt stunned fans by revealing that he was in a secret relationship hours after reports leaked that he was dating fourteen-year-old Cynthia Ridgley. However, it was the picture of proclaimed “girlfriend” Holly Dayton being yanked away from the door by an aggressive Mr. Wyatt that has really shaken up his fans. While Mr. Wyatt claims never to have hurt Ms. Dayton, the photographs paint a very different picture. According to relationship expert Dr. Harris Van Bueller, “It’s highly unlikely that Ms. Dayton hasn’t recently been in extreme distress. Her red-rimmed eyes indicate prolonged weeping and her ashen discoloration suggests panic and potential trauma. Mr. Wyatt’s furious facial expression combined with his forceful removal of Ms. Dayton makes a persuasive case that she isn’t with him willingly.”
How have the other members of ReadySet reacted to their drummer’s recent scandal? Charity work. At a last-minute benefit to raise money for orphanages, lead singer Timothy Goff stated, “Dom is a great guy. He and his girlfriend, Holly, should be able to go on vacation in peace.” Bass player Christopher Forester added, “They are very much in love. These rumors of abuse are just that: rumors.”
According to other travelers on board the high-profile couple’s cruise, the pair have been ordering in for every meal since their first (and only) major moment of PDA.
The real question is: What are they doing inside the suite?
My mouth had fallen open somewhere in the first paragraph and I stared at Nick in horror.
“Let me guess,” I said at last, struggling to pass it off as no big deal, “this isn’t the news you were hoping for.”
“No. It’s not.”
That was all he appeared willing to say. I didn’t know if I should be relieved that he wasn’t glaring at the screen . . . or concerned by how calmly he was handling it.
Truthfully, I was freaking out. The press was making me out to be a victim of domestic abuse, which twisted my stomach into tiny ringlets. The worst part was that if I denied the claim, I would look like I was in denial.
And my supposed willingness to stay in an unhealthy relationship made me feel like an absolutely terrible role model for other girls. I didn’t want anyone to think sticking around with an overly possessive jerk was okay because, hey, the girl dating rock star Dominic Wyatt did it.
But while the media was practically sending me directions to the nearest rape crisis center, the notes outside the door had been utterly vicious.
Some of the comments beneath the article were even worse:
I LOVE READYSET! Dominic rules! I bet the slut deserved it.
I read somewhere that she made him really mad and kept bitching and complaining until he snapped.
Dominic Wyatt can lock me in a room with him anytime.
It hurt.
Not just the slut part, although that didn’t exactly make me feel good. But the idea that I was somehow responsible for any cruel treatment Nick had dished out . . . it hit me harder than Dominic Wyatt’s alleged blow.
Because nobody deserves abuse.
I didn’t want to leave the room anymore. Going out in public and having people scrutinize me for any signs of assault scared me. What if Nick rested his hand on my shoulder, but because I didn’t expect it he startled me a little? Would I see: Rock star’s girlfriend avoids all physical contact the next day online?
I sure hoped not.
“Here’s the good news,” Nick said slowly. “A few photos on the beach and we should still be able to break up on schedule.”
“And the bad news?” Something had to be coming.
“Lots of PDA. Hand-holding. Dancing. Kissing.”
Well, when he put it that way . . . maybe that part of the situation wasn’t terrible.
I just wouldn’t share that opinion with Nick.