Page 137 of This Side of Beautiful

I pulled out a phone and thought of catching an Uber. But in Austin, during this festival, I would get mobbed. “Ugh.”

I flopped my head back as the door opened. I glanced to my right, and Landon eased in the car. “What are you doing?”

“Just drive.” Landon looked at me. “Where?”

“This was your idea.”

“Your house?”

I folded my arms. “No. I have someone waiting for me.” It was Frankie, who’d traveled with me more for support than for my makeup and hair. But he didn’t need to know that.

He frowned. “You moved on already?”

“Haven’t you?”

“No. I told you that I would never get over you.” His hazel eyes blazed as he instructed the driver, “My hotel.”

Instant desire slicked my panties. “That’s not a good idea.”

Landon smirked. “Because of your man or because you’re scared?”

I jerked my head back. “Since when you get so cocky?”

“A lot has changed.”

“Tell me.”

Landon glanced at the driver and then at me. “We need privacy. My suite has a separate sitting area.” He smiled. “It’s your fault we can’t walk around or sit in a lounge and talk like normal people.”

“I’m not going to your hotel. It’s too much.”

“Is that why your performance was off tonight?”

“Fuck you. I don’t need you to tell me I sucked.” I bristled. Of coursehewould have noticed.

He sighed, reached into his pocket, and pulled out two crisp hundred-dollar bills. “Carlos, I need the car.”

“Got ya.” The driver pulled to the side of a not-so-crowded street and smiled at us as he took the money, got out, and walked away.

Landon took off his hat. “Move to the front from within the car, and I’ll get out.”

I maneuvered myself to the front passenger seat as he jumped in the front, unrecognized.

He started talking while he drove. “I wasn’t trying to insult you, and I don’t think you were using. You didn’t suck at all. The audience loved us, so you did your job. I’m asking what’s wrong.”

The concern in his tone broke my resolve. “It’s the meds. I’ve been on them consistently since Austin. It makes my mouth dry, and no matter how much water I drink, it affects the quality of my voice. Then my energy is flat. Good thing is that my mood has evened off, and I’ve been sleeping more.”

Landon smiled. “You just cursed me… You sure your mood is balanced?”

I punched him. “Where are we headed?”

“The nearest place we can park and talk.” He looked at the cell in my hand. “Need to call him?”

“No,” I answered. I wasn’t letting Landon off the hook yet. I’d seen The Hollow Bones’ IG posts, and he was definitely hanging out more, even at the bar. He hadn’t resisted when a couple of women who ran the club asked him to come on stage and play. Landon was all man, and though he may not be over me, that didn’t mean he hadn’t been sexual with another woman or women.

“What can you do about the meds affecting you?”

I shrugged. “Talk to my psychiatrist. I’m not going to jeopardize my mental health again. Just need to tweak more. I need to be hopeful, because I have to sing.”

---