Shattered Crowns (Broken Fairytales #3)

By Monica Alexander

As Liar’s Edge records a new album, goes on their second tour in six months and brings a new manager into the fold, the lasting power of the band will be tested. As the front man of the group, Zack Easton is the one left holding it all together. But when Zack’s relationship with his fiancée, Emily Cole, is tested, he needs his band mates more than ever as he prepares to fight to keep her in his life. Of course Zack knows that sometimes it doesn’t matter how hard you fight if the other person isn’t willing to fight for the same cause.

A year ago Andrew Bryce made a huge mistake when he met Cole Stephenson, and after letting his guard down for one night, he vowed to forget about Cole and move forward with his life. He never planned that what happened between him and Cole would come back to haunt him. When he sees Cole at a Liar’s Edge show, everything he felt, everything he tried to bury comes rushing back. But Cole isn’t who Andrew wants. He’s not gay. He can’t have feelings for another man. But he does, and they’re strong feelings. Sometimes you can’t help who you fall in love with, and what Andrew soon realizes is that he never had any control over the course his life would take, especially when it came to Cole.

Shattered Crowns is the third book in the Broken Fairytales series. It’s the story of two relationships, one band and what it takes to make it, not only in the music world, but also in life and love. And sometimes it’s the people you bring with you along the way who make it all matter.

*This book contains adult language, themes and situations, including a m/m romance

• Language: English
• Publisher: Monica Alexander
• Release date: Aug 15, 2013
• ISBN: 9781301355082

Monica Alexander

Monica Alexander is a writer of contemporary, new adult, and young adult fiction. In 2011, she turned her lifelong love of reading and books into a career when she published her first novel, "Just Watch the Fireworks". When she's not reading and writing, you can find her at the beach, in the mountains, or hiking through a city, soaking all the beauty of the world around her and turning her experiences into inspiration for her next book.

Book preview

Shattered Crowns

By Monica Alexander

Copyright 2013 by Monica Alexander

ISBN: 978-1-3013-5508-2

Smashwords Edition

Cover Image: (c) Lisa S. / www.shutterstock.com Stock Photography

This story is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or personals, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

All Rights Reserved

No part of this publication can be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without permission in writing from the author.

The information in this book is distributed as an as is basis, without warranty. Although every precaution has been taken in the preparation of this work, neither the author nor the publisher shall have any liability to any person or entity with respect to any loss or damage caused or alleged to be caused directly or indirectly by the information contained in this book.

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Epilogue

About the Author

Playlist

Chapter One

Zack

For a moment a band of thieves in ripped up jeans got to rule the world.

– Taylor Swift, Long Live

"And that was Jump, the song that launched the four guys sitting before me into the virtual stratosphere just two months ago when it became the number one song in the nation. Today it’s at number twenty-four in our countdown. Hey everyone, I’m Lindsay Hollenbeck, and I’m here with Zack, Leo, Andrew and Derrick, the super-hot foursome that is Liar’s Edge, the hottest band to hit the music scene this summer! In a few minutes, we’re going to play their latest single, Without You, but first we’re going to take some time to get to know who these guys really are. Lindsay turned to us then. Tell me guys, what was it like to suddenly have everyone know your names and your music?"

She watched us with anticipation, waiting for one of us to speak up and probably thinking we couldn’t have looked more uncomfortable. But to our credit, we were nervous. We’d done radio interviews all summer, but they were small time compared to a national broadcast in a major city that potentially millions of people would listen to. It was completely surreal.

The lingering notes of Jump were still echoing in my ears, and I couldn’t help the grin that spread across my face. Shit, hearing our songs on the radio still caught me off-guard. None of us had ever thought it would happen so quickly, but as soon as we inked our record deal, my cousin Molly, who was our manager, her friend Adam, who owned Live Ammunition Records, and my fiancée, Emily, also our publicist, had worked their asses off to gain us notoriety.

And they’d taken some pretty unorthodox routes in my opinion, but after the summer we’d had, I was convinced I didn’t know shit about promoting a band and sat back and just did what they told me to do since apparently they knew exactly what they were doing. Liar’s Edge had reached a point I’d only dreamed about when we’d been playing at small bars for so many years, loving the fact that there were thirty people in attendance who were singing along to our songs.

It’s fucking awesome, our drummer Derrick said, when no one else spoke up, earning himself a bleep as Lindsay turned to him.

I love your excitement, Derrick, but the FCC will have my head if you use expletives like that on the radio, she said, winking at him, and next to me I heard him mumble something to Andrew, our other guitarist.

I’m totally going to do her later, he said.

No, you’re not, dude, Andrew murmured back, shaking his head.

Zack, you’re smiling, Lindsay commented when none of us said anything else, and I could hear Emily’s words in my head.

Take the lead. When no one else speaks, you’re the lead singer, so you need to speak up.

I looked up and caught her gaze through the window of the studio, and she smiled as she waved her hand forward in a rolling motion to encourage me to speak. I took a deep breath and launched into the talking points we’d gone over.

Live with Lindsay Hollenbeck was the biggest radio interview we’d done to date, so we’d prepped a lot. The last thing I wanted to do was screw up. She’d called just the week before asking us to be on her Top 40 Countdown show that aired on Sundays. We were already going to be in L.A. for the week, so it was sort of a no brainer – especially when Molly and Emily told us the reason why. Lost Chances, the single we’d released at the beginning of August, had slowly been climbing the charts, and it was debuting that week in the number one slot.

Hell yeah!

We were also promoting our new single, Without You, which was airing for the first time on Lindsay’s show. It was off of our first full-length album, Devil’s Countdown, that was set to release in October. In June the label had re-produced and released our EP, Off the Outer Banks, that we’d been selling for a few years to local crowds. When they released it, though, they’d only included four of our older songs, in addition to Jump and Lost Chances. Since it had done so well, we were getting to release another album fairly quickly.

Thankfully we’d been recording songs for the new album intermittently during the summer, since Adam had pushed up the release date by three months, but we still had about seven more songs to go before it was complete. Adam had booked studio time for us to get everything finished, and after we left L.A. we’d be home for just a few days before heading to Charlotte to record for two weeks. It was going to be crazy, but that was pretty much our lives these days.

We’d just wrapped a summer long tour we’d done with a band called The Claws who we’d played with before, and just when I thought we might have a break so I could go home and spend some quality time with my daughter, Lily, who was two and a half, we’d hit it big. Not that I was complaining. No, what we were in the midst of was what I’d wanted and worked for since I’d been in high school. Playing in a band, making a living doing what I loved, writing music and performing it. It was at the core of who I was, and just that summer, practically everything I’d dreamed about since the first time I’d performed for an audience had come true.

I just wished my mom would have been there to see it. We were coming up on the year anniversary of when she passed away after a long battle with cancer, and although Emily and the guys were aware of the date, they hadn’t said anything. They all knew how hard I’d taken losing her, and I think they were waiting to see what that day would bring. And I had no clue. There were days when I’d think about her and let myself breakdown, because I still missed her like crazy, but there were other days when I lived life to the fullest because I knew it was what she would have wanted me to do. Losing someone you loved was never easy, but I also knew she’d have been so incredibly proud and happy to see all that I’d accomplished.

She’d passed away when I’d been going through one of the darkest periods in my life. I’d given up music, I’d ended things with Emily, and I drank a lot because it numbed the pain of watching my mother die slowly and painfully. But because she was a freaking angel, she saw the good in me and knew I’d do great things in life. It took me a little longer to realize it, but I was slowly coming around.

Lindsay leaned toward me and eyed me with a gleam in her eye as I wrapped up my standard talking points about how well we thought the EP had turned out, how excited we were to showcase our music to the world and how awesome the fans had been. I’d done more interviews than the other guys over the summer, so I was prepared and comfortable to speak to what I knew about, but the questions that I knew would come next always unsettled me. I wasn’t overtly personal with people I didn’t know, so sharing things about my life felt weird and unnatural.

Well, it’s a great album, Lindsay said, leaning even further forward.

She was into me. I knew that. Before Emily had reigned in my heart a year earlier, I’d been a pretty big player, so I could spot the signs that a girl liked me fairly readily. I knew Derrick was chomping at the bit to hit on the hot blond with the sexy, gravelly voice in front of us, but I also knew she’d never go for him. He was too out there, too much of a risk, too much of a bad boy. I was, as Emily liked to call me, bad boy light. And Lindsay was the kind of girl who wanted to take risks but only if they wouldn’t burn her. I could tell she thought I was a safe bet.

But I also wasn’t available. I’d asked Emily to marry me at the end of April and had put a giant ring on her finger that night after proposing on stage at Devil’s Hangout, the bar that Leo, our bassist, owned in Durham, North Carolina.

It had been right before we’d started touring, and I was leaving Emily for a month since she was wrapping up her senior year at UNC. I hadn’t wanted to go without something concrete holding us together, since we’d had a rocky relationship from the start. So I’d gone all out and asked her to marry me even though we’d only been back together for about four months. I didn’t care. I knew she was the one, and I wanted her to have that security too. After what I’d done at the start of our relationship, I felt like I owed it to her.

Thanks, I said in response to Lindsay’s reference to our first album.

We’d been playing most of the songs we’d included on Off the Outer Banks for a few years, but our fan base had been limited to the places we’d played in North Carolina. It was a little unbelievable that essentially the whole world now knew our music.

Zack, you’re the songwriter of the group, right?

I nodded, then remembered that no one could see my response if I did that. I am, along with Andrew.

I wanted to give my band mates credit where it was due. Most people who interviewed us only wanted to speak to me since I was the face of the group. They didn’t know that Leo was really our leader and the one who kept us all in line or that Andrew had collaborated with me on a lot of the songs or that without Derrick keeping things fun, we wouldn’t have taken a lot of the risks we had along the way. The four of us made up Liar’s Edge, not just me, and I wasn’t about to let anyone forget that.

Lindsay grinned, but she didn’t move her gaze away from me. Your lyrics are incredibly romantic. Do they reflect who you are in real life?

Next to me Derrick snickered and Leo, who was on my other side, coughed out a laugh. I elbowed them both simultaneously.

Leo, you don’t agree? Lindsay asked, turning to him before I could answer. I noticed she was ignoring Derrick, and it was making him pout.

Leo shook his head and laughed. Zack is probably the least romantic person I know. If he wasn’t so good looking, he’d never score any chicks.

I looked up and caught Emily’s gaze, and she nodded. How she could be okay hearing that was beyond me, but it was her idea. She wanted to play up the angle that I was hot and available, even though it was a total lie. I hadn’t so much as looked at another girl in over a year.

Oh, I don’t believe that for a second, Lindsay said, grinning at me. Zack seems like the brooding, introspective type who’d sweep a girl off her feet if given the opportunity.

I shook my head, doing my best not to show any emotion. I did not need to encourage her or make her think that she had a chance in any way, shape or form. No, Leo’s right. I kind of suck at romance from an execution standpoint, but I can write about it.

Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Emily grinning and shaking her head. She of all people knew how cheesy and romantic I could be since she’d experienced it firsthand when I’d been trying to win her back after I’d royally fucked up and let her go. But she was the only girl I’d ever been romantic for, and it wasn’t like it came easy. I’d had a few botched attempts before I finally figured out what to do.

Molly, who had joined Emily at some point outside of the sound booth, smiled at me and shook her head in disbelief. We’d been close our whole lives, so she’d seen me as a complete womanizer and then as the totally love-struck idiot I’d turned into after I realized Emily was the one.

She’d also been there pretty much since Emily and I had first met. And because she knew me so well, she also knew before I did how hard I’d fallen for the sweet, innocent blond who we both knew was way too good for me. But despite our differences, Molly knew from the first time she saw Emily talking to me that we were going to end up together. Of course she didn’t tell me that. She let me see it on my own. She didn’t push me, because she knew me well enough to know it wouldn’t have done any good.

Em and I had met the summer before when her family had been vacationing in the Outer Banks of North Carolina where I lived with my mom. I’d been in a pretty dark place then, and she’d caught me at one of my lowest moments. My mom was dying of cancer, and I was having a hard time wrapping my head around it. Hell, it was still hard sometimes for me to come to terms with the fact that she was gone. But had it not been for Emily, I’m not sure where I would have ended up. Because of her, I didn’t let everything go and slip over the edge. Somehow, she just made everything more bearable.

But it wasn’t like that at first. Initially, I was intrigued by her. I found her to be ridiculously hot, but she was also so incredibly naïve and inexperienced, which made me want her that much more. She told me she was just looking to have some fun. She’d flirted, and she even kissed me, which I could tell put her so far out of her comfort zone, but it also kind of made me want her that much more. I figured she saw a guy who was a challenge for her, dangerous and unpredictable, and so different from her preppy boyfriend back home. And even if that wasn’t really an accurate description of who I actually was, I’d figured I could be that guy for her.

I honestly could have just slept with her and walked away, but I realized fairly quickly that she wasn’t like other girls I’d been with. I couldn’t just sleep with her, even though she was offering me something totally casual. She was dealing with her own crap at the time, on the brink of ending a five year relationship, and had wanted to try a one night stand. I was cool with that, but then I couldn’t stay away, even though I tried.

Maybe it was because I was dealing with so much shit, and she was so sweet and kind and vulnerable that I felt like I could open up to her. Or maybe it was the fact that she didn’t want anything more than what I could offer, which wasn’t a lot. Or maybe I just knew subconsciously back then that she was the girl who would make me never want to be single again.

Either way, we started out casual, but we definitely didn’t stay that way. Something about her sucked me right in. We never talked about it, and I think we both pretended we were casual, but in truth we were insane for each other for most of the summer. Of course, me being the dumbass that I am, I didn’t let her in all the way. I kept her at arm’s length. Sure, she met my family, and I talked to her about my mom, but I didn’t let her in completely. I lied about my music and the band, and I didn’t tell her about the most important girl in my life – my daughter, Lily.

And that was my heart’s way of protecting itself, I think. I knew my mother was dying, and I knew with that came a level of uncertainty about life in general that I wasn’t ready to face. I also knew that in the end, I had obligations to my family that Emily wouldn’t want to be a part of. And I had zero direction in life. I was a twenty-four year old single dad, bartender, who sometimes played cover songs for tourists. I was a serious mess, and I knew she wouldn’t want my baggage, so I didn’t lay it on her.

Emily was strong and driven and had a plan for her life. And I wanted her to live out that plan and achieve the things she deserved. I didn’t want to hold her back, but she made life lighter and easier to tolerate, so I didn’t push her away in the beginning like I probably should have. I let our feelings for each other grow, and then when I realized I had no way out, I just ended things. I left her, crying on her front porch, wondering what she’d done, and I felt like the biggest asshole ever.

I was the biggest asshole ever.

But in that moment, I couldn’t be with her. I knew I couldn’t measure up. I’d never be good enough for her. But worse than that, if she knew I’d failed to tell her something as monumental as the fact that I had a daughter, she’d be done with me anyway. Breaking up with her was the only option I could see – avoid the inevitable before it happened, because I knew once she found out about Lily, she’d end things with me anyway.

Worst. Mistake. Ever.

I realized fairly quickly that my life without Emily was a half-life. She’d been a light in the darkness that I needed, and because I was scared, I’d pushed her away. Once I realized how I felt about her, there was no way I wasn’t going to be with her. So I’d spent the entire fall doing what I could to win back both her trust, since once she found out about Lily she did kind of hate me, and her heart. And after a few failed attempts to tell her how I felt – when I tried and failed to make romantic gestures – I finally blurted it out one night, and we’d been together ever since.

And that was when she got to see my romantic side.

What’s the worst romance attempt Zack’s ever had? Lindsay asked then, her eyes darting to the other guys who were suddenly wracking their brains to come up with the most embarrassing story they could find about me. Douchebags.

I hoped they wouldn’t tell any Emily stories, since I knew there were a few, but I had a feeling they knew how raw that whole situation still was, so they wouldn’t go there. The guys knew me well enough to know that I protected certain things in my life. They’d use discretion. But they also wouldn’t hold back from sharing things in my past that I didn’t care as much about. So they were still douchebags.

I’ve got one, Andrew said then, speaking up even though I knew he hated interviews. He was the quietest of our group, and I truthfully wouldn’t have been surprised if he hadn’t said a word during the whole thing.

Then I wanted to kick his ass when he started to tell some bullshit story from my freshman year in college about me serenading a girl outside her dorm that was only half true, but Lindsay was laughing, so I figured I wouldn’t disturb the mojo of the interview. I’d just beat his ass later.

Lindsay shook her head. I don’t know. If I was that girl, I wouldn’t have closed the window. For all you ladies out there who think you’ve seen pictures of Zack Easton online and wondered if he was as hot in person, let me tell you, he’s hotter. I wonder if that girl is kicking herself now that she knows what she passed up.

I felt my cheeks get hot, not really loving how thick she was laying it on. And I didn’t want to tell her that I’d slept with that girl a year later after Liar’s Edge had made a name for itself on campus. I hoped the guys wouldn’t bring it up either since Em didn’t know that story. She knew I’d slept around before meeting her, but I didn’t like reminding her of it since it couldn’t make her feel good. She’d only slept with one other guy before me. Besides, it was a moot point now anyway since my number wasn’t going to get any higher.

He didn’t look like this back then, Derrick chimed in, and if anyone knew what a dorky, scrawny freshman I’d been it was the guy who’d shared a dorm room with me during our first year of college.

Everyone laughed. At my expense. Awesome.

Zack, are you seeing anyone now? Lindsay asked, and I looked up and met Emily’s gaze. She shook her head slightly, as if to remind me of what I already knew, and I gritted my teeth.

She wanted me to lie. She knew how the outside world viewed me, especially our female fans, and she knew we’d be more marketable if I was single. I hated it. She was my fucking fiancée. As soon as I could, I was going to marry her, but she was adamant that I lie about us at least for a little while.

And I’d done just that all summer until the week before when I’d slipped up. We were playing at a small bar in Tampa as a favor to one of Emily’s friends, and I’d let the crowd know that I’d written Without You for her. She’d smiled in the moment, but as soon as the show was over, she’d reamed me for five minutes about my image and the image she was trying to build around the band. And because I knew she was right, I promised I’d watch what I said going forward – even though I hated doing it.

No, I’m single, I said, the word tasting sour on my tongue.

Lindsay gave me a weird look. "I read somewhere recently that you said you wrote Without You for your fiancée. Is that not true?"

I shook my head, going over the story Emily and I had talked about. No, it’s true. I proposed with that song, but we’re not together anymore, I said, shrugging.

Interesting, Lindsay commented, steepling her fingers under her chin. Then she turned toward her microphone. Did you hear that, ladies? Zack Easton is available. I call dibs.

Then she winked at me, and I chanced a glance over at Emily whose eyes had narrowed. I watched her finger the four carat princess cut diamond on her left hand and wondered how much longer she’d be able to handle me telling people I wasn’t with her. But I knew she took her job as our publicist seriously, and she was going to stand firm on her decision to keep our relationship under wraps until the album dropped and the tour we’d be going on in October and November was over. At that point, we all hoped Liar’s Edge would have a strong enough fan base that it wouldn’t matter if I was taken or not. The music would sell the albums for us.

So, you guys dedicated Off the Outer Banks to Zack’s mom, Lynne Easton, who passed away last year, is that right? Lindsay asked, thankfully changing the subject, even though this was another topic I hated.

That’s right, Leo said almost immediately since he knew I wouldn’t be able to talk about my mom on the radio without getting choked up. I wasn’t there yet. He’d been covering for me all summer when we’d gotten asked that question, which I appreciated.

She was your aunt, right, Leo? Lindsay asked.

That’s right, and she always supported our music and Zack and my decision to start a band. She was an amazing woman.

I caught Emily’s gaze again and saw that she was fanning her watery eyes. She loved my mom. At least they’d gotten to meet before my mom passed. My mom had loved her and knew before I had that she was the girl for me. Knowing that made it a little easier to get past the fact that when we did get married my mom wouldn’t be there to see it.

Thankfully Lindsay chose that moment to close the interview and introduce Without You. I looked up at Emily and winked at her as the opening chords of the song – our song – started. She grinned back and gave me a thumbs-up for the interview. We’d done what we needed to do, and hopefully the single would land high enough up on the billboard charts when it dropped on Tuesday that we’d make the label proud. After all, it was what all the craziness we’d been living was about.

We stayed in the studio as the song played, and when it ended. Lindsay spoke into her microphone.

"That was the kick-ass new single from Liar’s Edge, Without You. A big thanks to Zack, Leo, Andrew and Derrick, the hotties from Liar’s Edge, for hanging out with me today. They’ll be back a little later today to introduce another song, but for now, we’ll get back to the countdown. At number twenty-three this week, here is Fight On by Funkgroove."

As Lindsay played the next song, she turned back to us.

Thanks guys, really. It was so great to meet you all, she said, as she stood and gave the guys standard L.A. cheek kisses, saving me for last. Mine came with a grab of her hand as I felt something being thrust into it. Then she let her lips linger on my cheek just long enough for it to be uncomfortable.

Call me if you’re in town tonight. We can get together for drinks – or whatever.

I pulled back and looked at her, shaking my head slightly. Sorry, but I leave for North Carolina tonight.

I figured it was the best excuse to give since it was true, but it definitely wasn’t the reason I wouldn’t be sleeping with her.

She shrugged. That’s too bad. You could always stay an extra night. I have a condo on the beach.

I shook my head, trying to keep my expression as passive as possible. Sorry, but I have plans tomorrow.

I had plans with my daughter, who I hadn’t seen in weeks, and there was no way, even if I was single and looking to get laid, that I would forsake time with her for some random hook-up. Lily meant too much to me, and I’d gotten to see her so seldom in the past few months that I was going through withdrawals. Emily and I were taking her to our house in the Outer Banks for a long weekend. I knew her mother, Jen, who was also dating Andrew, would want some time alone with him, and since she’d been playing mommy one hundred percent of the time since I’d been gone on tour, I was giving her a much needed break.

Of course I wasn’t going to tell Lindsay Hollenbeck any of that. I didn’t make it public information that I had a daughter and that I’d written Jump because of her. The last thing I wanted was for Lily to be brought into my public life and for people to ask questions. Jen and I hadn’t been together when we’d conceived Lily, so it was an awkward story that was no one’s business but ours. I loved my daughter, and it didn’t matter the circumstances that brought her into the world. And if anyone ever passed judgment on her for it, I’d have their fucking head.

Well, keep my number, Lindsay offered. There’s just something about a guy with a southern accent that gets me all hot. You’ve got an open invitation whenever you’re in the city.

Thanks, I mumbled, really just wanting to get away from her.

Thankfully the song was ending, and she needed to get back on the air and introduce the next song in the countdown. I was also needed, because we were going in to record the intro to Lost Chances that they’d insert into the show later to announce the new number one song.

Which was our song, that I’d written. It was freaking number one on the billboard charts. We’d had two songs go to number one in the past two months!

Holy shit.

It was an equally bizarre and awesome feeling, and I still hadn’t completely wrapped my head around it.

Emily met me at the door to the studio to walk me down to the room where the other guys already were. As much as I wanted to grab her up in my arms and hug her, since it was hard not to touch her whenever she was near, I kept my hands to myself, playing by the rules she made me follow when we were in public.

She hit on you? she asked, already knowing the answer.

Yeah, I said gruffly, my mood suddenly plummeting.

Emily had better not get mad since she was the one who told me to lie about our relationship. I wanted to tell everyone, but she had pushed back really hard, and I’d relented. Mostly because she’d worked her ass off all summer to promote us and had done an amazing job. She knew what she was doing. I just didn’t like it, and deep down I knew she didn’t either.

She nodded. I figured she would. She was checking you out during the whole interview.

Yeah, well, she thought I was single, I said, not hiding the snark in my tone.

Good, Emily said then, crossing her arms over her chest. I narrowed my eyes at her, and she rolled hers back at me. Listen, Zack, I know you hate this. Trust me, I’m not a fan either, but you as a sex symbol to girls who think they have a chance with you will sell tickets to your shows.

I shook my head. I know. I get it, I said, the annoyance I felt coming through loud and clear.

I just wished the music would sell tickets on its own, and I knew it would, but for now we had to promote our assess off. It was why I’d agreed to let Glimpse be used in a commercial and Jump to be used in a movie trailer. I never thought I’d sell out like that, but I had, and truthfully, it had worked better than promoting our music the old-fashioned way.

Baby, Emily said, looking up at me with those big brown eyes that had sucked me in more times than I could count.

What? I asked, trying to stay mad, but I just couldn’t. I loved her too damn much. I reached for her hand, but she pulled it away. That succeeded in darkening my mood again. Whatever.

I stalked away from her, pissed that I couldn’t even hold my own fiancée’s hand. It was bullshit, and I was pretty sure I was done with it. Telling the crowd that I’d written Without You for Emily had felt incredible and real. It wasn’t like this shit that made me feel like an asshole for lying about my life. Screw that. I was done. The next time someone asked if I had a girlfriend, I was telling them I was engaged to Emily Cole, because it was who I was, and if people only bought our albums because I was a sex symbol, well shit, I didn’t need them as fans anyway.

Zack! she called after me, as her heeled sandals clicked on the tile floor behind me. She was upset.

I paused outside the door to where we were recording the plug for Lost Chances to catch my breath and calm down. I was way too agitated, and I needed to get under control before I faced the guys. I heard Emily stop behind me, the noise from her shoes echoing in the hallway before everything fell silent. Without thinking, I spun around and faced her. She was looking up at me in frustration, because I wasn’t playing nice. Usually she had to deal with defiance from Derrick who wanted to do all sorts of things that made Emily have to work overtime to spin them so they