Page 35 of Wish We Were There

Parker’s heart skipped a beat. “Sure, what’s up?”

“I... I made an appointment to get this cast off, finally,” he replied. “It’s for next week, and, uh, I was wondering if you’d maybe take me there.”

“Yeah!” Parker exclaimed far too quickly—he wasn’t even sure what his schedule was going to be like next week. But Taylor was important; he’d move his schedule around if he had to. “Yeah, for sure. I’ll take you. Just tell me when, and I’ll be there.”

Taylor let out a faint laugh, crackly over the speaker. “Thanks. I really appreciate it.”

“Of course,” Parker replied. “Anything you need, seriously.”

Taylor was quiet for a long moment before answering. “I—I know. Yeah. Anyway, uh, how was your trip?”

Relief squeezed in his chest. At least he didn’t seem to be pulling away anymore.

“It was good,” Parker replied. “Had some interesting interviews. Nashville’s always fun.”

“Anyone I know?” Taylor asked. It was the most normal conversation that they’d had in weeks.

“Uh, probably not,” he replied with a laugh. “Actually, one of my interviews was for my podcast, this up and coming trans country singer. He’s gotten super popular in the past six months or so. Might be good to keep him in mind when you start booking for the Caesura Room. William Kaye. I was listening to his stuff on the plane ride over, it was really good.”

“Yeah, send me the link. I’ll give it a listen,” Taylor replied.

They were both silent for a moment, then Taylor continued, “I, uh, I’ll let you go. I can tell you’re driving.”

Parker chuckled. “Okay. See you soon.”

Dinner was at a small, new gastropub downtown that Parker had never been to before. He gave Kylie’s name to the hostess, and she led him out to a small balcony with only a few tables, one of which was occupied by Kylie, Dean, and Angie. There were only four chairs at the table, so he stepped toward the empty one.

“Hey,” he greeted them, hoping Taylor would arrive soon. With any luck, Dean wouldn’t be as weird to him as he had been last time.

“Hey, Parker!” Kylie chirped as he sat down next to her. “Glad you could make it.”

“Thanks for the invite,” he replied, smiling nervously. All three of them were looking at him; Kylie’s expression seemed somehow overly cheerful. Already, something didn’t seem right. “What’s, uh, what’s the occasion?”

“No occasion, really,” Kylie replied quickly. But Parker caught the way Dean and Angie glanced at her as she spoke, like following a cue, which only made him more unsettled. “I’ve heard this place was good and figured this was as good an excuse as any to check it out, you know?”

“Sure,” he said, shrugging. A waiter came by to get their orders before he could say anything else; he thought they might wait for Taylor, but the others ordered drinks, so he ordered a beer, too.

They sat there in silence for a beat after the waiter left, then Parker offered, “What have you guys been up to since last time?”

Dean only shrugged; he was looking down at the table now, not quite ignoring Parker, but not looking at him now either. Angie replied,

“Not much, to be honest. We’ve been putting out feelers with some people we know who are making music to see about starting new projects, but honestly, it’s kind of been nice to be taking a break from it all. I just finished PT for my ankle, too, so that’s been a relief.”

Kylie was biting her lip as Angie spoke; before Parker could reply to her, though, Kylie interrupted,

“What about you, Parker?”

Parker blinked owlishly; it was an innocuous enough question, but something in her tone made it seem... more than just that.

Did she know about him and Taylor? Cold sweat beaded on the back of his neck; if she did know, what was she trying to get at, asking him such an open-ended question? What did she want him to say?

“Uh, the usual,” he replied, trying to sound casual. “I just got back from doing some interviews in Nashville. Oh, did I tell you about the interview I had with Jason Daugherty? He’s putting out a new album with Synesthesia—”

“Shit, really?” Dean asked with a surprised laugh, the first words he’d spoken to Parker, which only threw him off more. “How did that go?”

“Surprisingly well,” he replied with a nervous chuckle. “He’s sober for now, and it seems like it might stick this time, so...”

“That’s cool,” Kylie said, still looking at him intently, obviously not finding what she wanted to hear. She had to be fishing for something about him and Taylor, but what? And why now?

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