Jax stepped forward again, mesmerizing the crowd with his honey laced lyrics, but Taylor didn’t care. Her eyes stayed glued on Cam as he moved to the right side of the stage, lost to the world as he continued to move his fingers so quickly that the sound blurred into Jax’s voice, almost as if they were one.
She hadn’t watched Chasing Ruin play in over a year and they’d come a long way from the dives they played in Southern California. Thousands of fans screamed their names and sang their lyrics. It was unbelievable.
“Amazing, huh?”
She turned her head and saw Bre standing next her. Taylor took in her long brown hair, her amber eyes and her flawless olive skin. She was effortlessly beautiful, and for a minute Taylor experienced a small twinge of completely unwarranted jealousy—not because Bre wanted Cam, but because Cam couldn’t let her go and Taylor didn’t know if he ever would. She was the girl who got away and no one would be able to compete with her memory. Her stomach twisted uncomfortably.
“Yes, they are,” she said turning to look at the band, her eyes lingering on Cam’s profile.
Bre didn’t notice. Her eyes followed Jax as he walked the length of the stage belting out the latest Chasing Ruin hit in his beautiful, smooth voice. Taylor studied Bre’s face looking for any hint of insecurity or jealousy as women tossed their unmentionables at Jax and grabbed at his legs, but she didn’t see anything but laughter and love in her eyes. She hoped she’d be lucky enough to have a relationship like theirs one day. It was the real deal.
The music softened, a ballad, not Chasing Ruin’s normal stuff, but the women in the audience loved it. There was something about a rocker singing about being in love that melted every woman’s heart and made her dream the impossible.
“So how are things with Cam?” Bre asked, grabbing Taylor’s hand and squeezing it momentarily.
“Good,” Taylor answered quickly, probably too quickly from the skeptical look on her face.
“I’m worried about him. He’s just so…empty,” Bre said without explanation, but Taylor knew what she meant. Part of her wanted to yell at Bre for hurting Cam, but she knew she couldn’t blame her for what happened. From what Alec had told her, only Cam could be blamed. He treated her like crap, and Jax…well, anybody with eyes could tell he worshipped her.
Taylor nodded; what could she say? She hadn’t talked to Cam other than a few words in passing before yesterday, but Bre didn’t know that. As far as she knew, they were strangers who barely tolerated each other.
“Is he giving you a hard time? Jax said he didn’t want you to take the job.”
“We have an arrangement. It’s working so far. I think we’ll be fine.”
Bre exhaled loudly. “I’m glad. If he loses the band…well, I don’t know. It’d be bad.”
“He’ll be fine,” Taylor said, glancing at Bre from the corner of her eye.
“I hope so. I don’t know what happened. The Cam I used to know was so sweet and considerate, but when he moved to California he changed and it’s just gotten worse.” She shook her head sadly.
“Hm,” Taylor said noncommittally, because she knew that Cam could still be the person Bre described. She experienced it first hand, but Bre didn’t need to know that. She shifted on her feet, not knowing what to say. She didn’t like talking about Cam with Bre. It made her feel inadequate and off balance.
The band stopped playing and the crowd screamed even louder, making any further conversation impossible. A cloud of smoke exploded from the ceiling and the guys faded from view. Taylor stared at the crowd riding high on adrenaline from the performance, throwing their hands into the air screaming for more.
“Kind of surreal,” Bre whispered.
“I understand why people think fame can be addictive,” Taylor said shaking her head.
“I know,” Bre said, twisting her bracelet. “The guys will be in the dressing room. Are you ready to go or do you want to watch the crowd a little longer?
“Yeah. Let’s go.”
Taylor followed Bre into the dressing room. Taking in the room, she realized the party had already started. Bottles of alcohol lined an improvised, unmanned bar in the corner and the guys were surrounded by partially clothed women. She couldn’t believe that many people could fit in such a comparatively small space.
“The after party can get crazy fast,” Bre said. “I could barely believe my eyes the first time I came to one of the post-performance gatherings.”
“Yeah, it’s like another world that most of the population never gets to experience,” Taylor commented as she scanned the scene unfolding in front of her.