Page 103 of Love on Tour
“From what I can remember, it was amazing. But then he stopped and said he couldn’t do it. In hindsight, I’m guessing it’s because of Cait. He left the room to get my pillow and blanket. And that was it. Although he did stay with me all night. I kind of passed out.”
“How did you handle it the next day?”
“I immediately apologized for my drunken behavior and told him how embarrassed I was, and that I hoped he realized I’d have never done that sober.”
“Let me get this straight. You basically told the guy you have a crush on that the only reason you came on to him was because you were drunk and high.”
“Huh?”
“Christine. Think about how that sounded to him.”
“I didn’t want him to think I was a slut.”
“But is that what he heard? Or did he hear, ‘I’m only worth making out with if she’s not in her right mind’?” Julianna said.
Christine slumped back on the sofa. She replayed all the things she had said that stated just that. “I never thought of it that way. I told him I just wanted to forget the whole thing and pretend it never happened.”
“Just what every man wants to hear a woman say after they’ve had an encounter.”
“Shit.”
“Yep.”
“I wonder if I can ever make it right,” Christine said as much to herself as to her friend.
“I’m sure you can. One day, the opportunity will present itself. Don’t let it pass.”
“I won’t.”
Christine lay awake in bed, thinking about everything she’d said to Matt. It all pointed to exactly what Julianna had said. She beat herself up so long into the night she was amazed not to wake up and find herself bruised and battered.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
By early summer, Christine’s career was on fire. Lynda recorded two of the songs Christine had pitched her. One had been released as a radio single and rose to the top five on the charts. She had also met with two mid-level artists who had each cut a song from her publishing company. Rumor had it that one of those was being considered for a radio release as well.
The only time she had seen Austin in recent months was during pitch meetings when they were in a room with his producer and label A&R rep. Otherwise, she pitched him songs via email, and he sent some for her to hear. But that was it. No more Austin meant no more cyberbullies. Most importantly, her stalker had gone away.
She missed being on the road with Matt but saw him from time to time at the dojang and decided that would have to suffice. They hadn’t kissed again, but she always hoped it would happen. It gave her something to look forward to.
“Life is about balance, Julianna. You have to weigh the good and the bad. The good of Austin was great. But the bad was getting too bad.”
“I get it. Sure do miss riding the coattails of your life with him, though. We’ll be talking about those stories when we’re eighty,” Julianna said.
“Now I have a chance to live that long.”
Later that night, Christine was scrolling through email in her condo and stopped when she saw an odd Facebook alert. And then another. And another. Numerous high school classmates were talking about her on a group thread. Someone had tagged her, so she logged in to Facebook and read from the beginning.
Austin Garrett is coming to our hometown. Think Christine will be with him?
Probably. Aren’t they best buds now or something?
Think she can get us backstage to meet him?
If she’s as close to him as we think she is. I’m going to private message her and ask.
Christine opened the inbox for her Facebook messages. The requests for meet-and-greet passes topped fourteen. She had a vision of herself hosting a group of former high school acquaintances as they all swooned over Austin Garrett, vindicating her geeky high school years. She wondered,Do the teen years ever disappear, or do they live on in some time warp to forever circle back and haunt you?
Christine had avoided looking at Austin’s schedule so she wouldn’t be tempted to go to a show, but now she googled it, and sure enough, he was due to play in central Pennsylvania. He was headlining a tour and was booked at a downtown theatre.Herdowntown theatre, where she had gone to concerts as a teen, dreaming that one day she’d be a part of country music. She loved that old theatre with the red velvet curtains and box balcony seating. She would close her eyes and envision men in top hats and coattails and women in long fancy dresses. She could only imagine the number of performances, concerts, and plays the old theatre had seen. And now, she could be a part of one. Her lifehad come full circle and she couldn’t imagine missing this. Had enough time passed that her stalker believed she was no longer involved with Austin?
