“Thanks,” she said. “What are you doing? Ready for practice today? How was therapy?” Leave it to my sister to bombard me with questions without taking a breath.
I shook my head, a laugh rumbling in my chest. “Breathe, Nat.”
She laughed. “Sorry. I’m all over the place this afternoon.” I know the feeling. “I had a phone conference with Allan on the way home.”
Allan was our rep at the label that had signed our band, Jaded Regret, a few years back after our tour with Halestorm.
“Oh? And?” I rubbed my short beard, waiting for her answer. I knew he was working with Natalie on our new tour schedule, which had been put on hold while Bex and Johnny had their new baby and spent time adjusting to being a family of four.
There was nothing like playing with Lennox and holding baby Jaden to realize there was still good in the world. To see Bex happy satisfied me like I never thought possible. That girl had had a shitty life, too, much like Nat and me. She was a bitch with a capital B before Johnny came along, and while they “dated,” or whatever you wanted to call that clusterfuck. Don’t get me wrong, she still had her moments when her inner bitch came roaring out, but Johnny had calmed her. Or maybe being a mom had calmed her. Whatever it was, it looked good on her. Her face was relaxed, and when she smiled, she lit up a room. She’d immediately become America’s Rock Sweetheart, and once she and Johnny were married and had kids? Hell, she was practically idolized.
It didn’t hurt she was married to Johnny, either. He had women falling at his feet in droves, but the only one he ever had eyes for was Bex. When he joined Jaded Regret after Ryver went back to Mexico to live with his mom, our popularity went even further through the roof. I guess the women thought he was hot or something and ate up their love story like their favorite romance novel. We’d been featured on the cover of Rolling Stone because of them. It was good PR, as Allan would say.
“Beau.” Natalie’s hand on my arm made my eyes snap to hers, and I realized she had been talking to me while I zoned out.
“Sorry. What did Allan say?”
Her brow furrowed. Natalie being the only family I had, other than the band, made her fiercely protective of me. She had been ever since I was twelve years old and she was fourteen and we’d been on our own in a foster care system that cared little about the children in it. “How was therapy today?”
“Nat.” She rarely got me to talk about it, which I knew was unfair because she was the one who had to deal with me more than anyone else. After we had become successful, I’d wanted her to get her own place, and she’d vehemently disagreed. She wanted to be here, or she felt obligated to be. I hated the fact she put her life on hold for me, and I knew she wasn’t without her own issues from our childhood, not that she would confide any of them in me. She was a beautiful woman and had not only dedicated her life to managing our band, but also taking care of her fuck up of a brother. She deserved her own happiness: a husband, kids, and a normal life.
“Did you take your meds?” Natalie flitted over to the counter to check the pill container she set out every week with my morning and evening meds.
“Natalie,” I gritted my teeth. “I’m fucking fine, okay?”
She whipped around so fast she almost gave me whiplash. “Don’t you start with me, Beau Oliver. I know what it’s like when you decide not to take your meds for a few days, so forgive me if I’m asking. Now, how the hell was therapy?” She crossed her arms in front of her chest and set her jaw, the look I knew meant Natalie wouldn’t take any more shit.
I sighed, reaching up and twisting the small ring in my nose. It was a nervous habit, and she knew it. “It was good, Nat. I’m sorry I’m a dick. We’re doing the new stuff at practice this afternoon, and I think I’m just preoccupied.”
She narrowed her eyes, reading me like only she could. “I have some great news, but I’ll tell you at practice with everyone.”
It was my turn to narrow my eyes at her. “What the fuck?”
She laughed, turning to pull groceries out of the bags I’d helped her bring in. “Payback is a bitch, little bro. Plus, it wouldn’t be fair if I told you and not everyone else.”
“Uh, yes, it would. I’m your brother.”
She wagged her finger at me, then turned back and put away her staples: salad mix and veggies. I swore the girl was going to blow away if she didn’t eat something more than rabbit food.
“One of these days I’m going to hold you down and force feed you a hamburger.”
She shook her head and laughed, but I was serious. While she was drop dead gorgeous, she was too damn skinny.