Page 14 of Chronicles of a Rockin' Mess

Chapter 8

It’s the constant chirping of my phone that wakes me. I groan and look at the time. I still have thirty minutes before I need to be up. Today, I’m doing voiceovers for a radio commercial. Joe got me the gig a few weeks ago, and I’ve done a few since then. It’s not a ton of money, but it helps.

I’m about to place my phone back down when I see the chirping is from a bunch of text messages…from Kade Lewis.

“Fuck,” I groan. I’m about to place my phone back down when it rings. Kade Lewis’s name flashes on the screen.

“For the love of…” I know he won’t stop until I talk to him.

“What?” I answer.

“Well, good morning to you, too,” Kade says but there’s something off in his voice. I sit up in bed.

“What’s wrong?” I ask, suddenly feeling panicked.

“Calm your tits, nothing…OK, nothing horrible. We’re all alive.”

I take a breath. “Then why the fuck are you calling me at…seven thirty on a Friday morning?” I grumble.

He sighs. “I need to ask you a favor.”

Oh, this ought to be good, I think to myself.

“Well, make it quick, I have an appointment in an hour,” I say to him.

“Lincoln needs you back,” he says. I’m fairly certain that my heart stops beating for a moment, before my brain function catches up to his words.

“Uh, no,” I say quickly without even considering it. “Remember, I quit.”

He sighs again. “I know, but…listen, I wouldn’t ask this of you if we didn’t have a dire situation on our hands.”

“Meaning?” I ask.

“Meaning, Lincoln’s been a complete fucking mess since you left.”

“I thought Brittany was handling things. Last I spoke to her, she said everything was fine,” I say. Alright, that’s sort of a lie. She did point out that Lincoln is a pain in the ass. She also pointed out that Lincoln tends to use women as a means of hiding from his feelings.

“Well, I’m telling you everything is not fine,” he says. “At first, Lincoln acted fine, but then he started doubling down on women and booze. Then, he almost ended up in jail while we were over in Japan because he was a jackass and got in a bar fight. Needless to say, the label is not happy with him. I’ve tried everything…and…Brittany quit yesterday,” he adds quickly.

“Wait, what? She quit?” I ask. Suddenly I’m awake. While I’m still angry as fuck at Lincoln, I know he needs a PA. I start racking my brain for who might be available to help them.

“Yep. I guess she got tired of Lincoln treating her like complete shit and comparing everything she did to you and how you did it,” he says.

I roll my eyes. “Well, get Gwen to find a replacement.”

“Please, if I thought that’d work, I would totally do it, but we need you, not a temp,” he says.

“Kade…I…” I trail off.

“Listen, Harry and I will hire you. You won’t report to Lincoln. We’ll double your old salary and get you a car. Please, I’m begging you, Lark. We need you…the band needs you!” he begs.

“Kade, begging is really beneath you,” I say on a sigh.

“I’m desperate,” he says in a low voice. “Harry said not to call you, but, Obi-Wan, you’re my only hope.”

I can’t help the giggle that escapes my mouth. “Kade, seriously, that’s low, quoting Star Wars? You know I can’t say no to that,” I say. Our love of Star Wars is how Kade and I first bonded. He knows I’m a sucker for him when he quotes those movies. I really want to be annoyed with him, but he sounds so desperate, which is unlike him. That has me worried.

“Please! Even if it’s only temporary! We’re about to go on a short tour, just a few weeks, we need you, and then if you’re done, you’re done, but at least find a decent replacement before you go,” he begs.

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