Page 36 of Revelation

Will and Carmen look at each other for a beat. “Um,” Carmen finally says. “Well, I’d love a family one day. But I think that’s a loooooong way off.”

Will laughs. “Good answer.” He wipes his brow comically. “Phew.”

I can’t bring myself to look at Josh right now and I’m not sure why. My skin feels electrified. “So what about you, Will? What does your future hold, ya think?” I ask, trying to deflect attention from my hot cheeks.

“Oh, I can answer that,” Reed says. “Will’s gonna be a mega-superstar.” He holds up his drink and everyone follows suit. “A toast. To 2Real—the next big superstar.”

“Hear, hear,” everyone says, clinking glasses.

Carmen leans over and kisses Will on his cheek and he smiles.

“My boy 2Real’s gonna be a household name, mark my words,” Reedcontinues.

“Thanks, Reed.”

“No need to thank me, man. I’m just telling it like it is. You’re a fucking genius.” Reed addresses the group. “After my party the other night, Will and Dean sat down with an acoustic guitar and started messing around, and within an hour, they’d written the bones for the most badass song you’ve ever heard in your life. The thing’s gonna be a smash hit.” He snaps his fingers. “And they wrote it just like that.”

“It’s totally awesome,” Carmen agrees. “I can’t get it out of my head.”

Will’s eyes are sparkling with sudden animation. “Dean and I totally hit it off—brothers from another mother. We’re planning to record it in L.A. next month after Red Card Riot’s tour ends.”

“I bet we’ll wind up making it the lead single off your album,” Reed says. “It’s just that good.”

“What’s it called?” I ask. “When I hear it on the radio a year from now, I wanna remember this conversation and say, ‘I knew him when.’”

“We’ll probably call it ‘Crash,’” Will says. “It’s pretty dope, if I do say so myself. Best song I’ve ever written. I can’t wait to get into the studio and get it down—I’ve got a million ideas for the instrumentation. I’m gonna do something really unexpected with it.”

Reed rubs his hands together. “I smell a hit.”

The waiter arrives to clear dishes and bring refills on drinks.

“What about you, Party Girl with a Hyphen?” Josh asks, breaking his long silence. “What do you see in your future?”

“Um...” I say. Josh didn’t answer this question earlier, I noticed, so I’ll be damned if I will. Although, if I were being honest, I’d tell him I’m beginning to see a future that includes him. “Well, I’d really like to own my own PR firm one day,” I say, opting for a safe but true answer to the question.

Josh looks completely floored by my answer. “Wow,” he says. “Really? That’s awesome. I had no idea. ‘Party Girl PR.’”

“Hey, I like it,” I say.

“Well, fingers crossed, maybe you’ll come into a million bucks one day soon and you can make that happen sooner than you ever imagined.” He winks.

I grin broadly. Crazy as it sounds, I’d actually forgotten aboutthe million bucks Jonas and Josh promised me if we’re actually successful in transferring The Club’s money tomorrow.

“Oh yeah, speaking of PR,” Reed says, “thanks for all your hard work on the campaign for my club, Kat.” He laughs. “Impeccable work so far.”

“Thanks for being my client,” I say. “Was it you who called my boss and charmed her pants off?”

“Yeah, I called her,” Reed replies. “And I couldn’t have been more insistent we had to have you personally. But I just picked up the phone. It was Josh who paid the bill—he’s really the one to thank, not me.” He winks at Josh.

I flash a huge smile at Josh. “Well, thank you both. I’m really grateful I’ve been able to hang out here all this time without losing my job.”

“Anything for Josh,” Reed says. “I can’t even count all the favors this dude has done for me over the years. Josh Faraday might have douche-y tattoos and a midlife crisis car, and he might think he’s one hundred percent right aboutHappy Gilmorewhen he’s dead wrong, and he might—”

“Okay,” Josh says emphatically. “I think she gets the point, Reed. I’m an idiot and a douche. Move on to the good stuff.”

“But,” Reed continues. “Josh Faraday is the best friend a guy could ask for and one of the best humans you’ll ever meet.”

“I’m not sure if I should kiss you or bitch slap you,” Josh says.

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