Page 82 of Not Another Rockstar
“Sheen never showed?” Phoebe asked.
Axel couldn’t believe Sheen had played them.
“Did you try to call him?” Phoebe continued, and he hated the worry in her voice.
“The number was out of service.” Axel hesitated on the basement steps as he heard Nick’s sharp tone coming from the kitchen.
“Fucking liar. We shouldn’t have trusted him,” Phoebe said, and Nick scoffed.
“Sheen isn’t the only one who’s been lying.”
The comment caught Axel off guard. Phoebe didn’t reply, and Axel’s stomach dropped.
“Cat got your tongue? Anything you want to say to me?” Nick asked his sister.
Axel regretted sleeping in so late. He hadn’t set his alarm—since Phoebe had climbed into his bed in the middle of the night, he’d figured they could both use a lie in. With Nick going to meet with Isaiah and Sheen, he’d thought they wouldn’t be caught.
“Other than ‘Did you eat the last of the cookie dough?’ Because I remember hiding a tub in the freezer.” The sound of ice crunching told him she was going through the freezer.
“No, that’s not it. As your big brother, I don’t want to talk about this. In fact, I don’t even want to know, but given all that’s going on, all our sanity is hanging by a thread. I didn’t expect to learn you’ve been lying to us,” Nick lectured.
“You’re being weird.” Phoebe tried to brush him off.
“We agreed no more lies, and last night I saw you going down to the basement,” Nick said sharply. “Sneaking around is beneath you, and I don’t know if this is some fuck you to Cillian, or the world or a quarter-life crisis, but sleeping with Axel?”
“I’m not having a quarter-life crisis! What I do and where I sleep is none of your business. I say this with love, big bro, but keep your nose out of my business,” Phoebe stated.
Axel wanted to back her up, but this was a conversation between family. Still, he stayed close in case she needed him.
“It is my business when it affects all of us. You went to Italy with Axel without telling any of us—just snuck off—but we were understanding.”
“I told you I went to clear out the villa,” she pressed, and Axel smirked. It wasn’t a lie; they had cleared the villa. He did hate that they’d been lying since then, though.
He cursed himself that they hadn’t been more discreet, but with her nightmares, he wasn’t going to let her sleep alone, and since his room was furthest away from the others’, it only made sense that she stayed with him.
“That’s not all you did! You’ve been sleeping in Axel’s room since you both got back from Italy,” Nick said accusingly, and Phoebe went quiet. “Anita showed me the pictures she bought from the paparazzi. You both looked very cosy. I suspected Axel had feelings for you when he wouldn’t leave your hospital room and when he kept volunteering to check up on you. I neverthought he’d act on his feelings—and you should be careful. I thought you said you’d never date another rockstar again.”
Axel wasn’t offended; Nick was just being protective of his younger sister. Nick had told him he didn’t want her dating another rockstar, which was understandable given how the last one had treated her. Not to mention how the public would react to them being together. Thankfully, Anita had thought to purchase the photos, so there hadn’t been any press coverage, but Axel still couldn’t understand how they’d been found so quickly.
“My feelings for Axel have nothing to do with Cillian,” Phoebe argued. “I didn’t do this to spite him. I think we both know I lost Cillian a long time ago. We were clinging to something that didn’t exist anymore.”
“So, you aren’t denying it? You’re with Axel?” Nick huffed.
“I’m happy. Can’t that be enough?”
Axel listened to her pacing.
“Not when it’s only going to result in heartbreak.”
Nick’s words stung; he had no intention of breaking her heart. He was far more concerned with her breaking his, but any memories they’d made so far would make the pain worth it.
“Why do you think Axel will hurt me? Do you have so little faith in all your friends?”
“Depends on whether you’re planning on dating all my friends,” Nick snapped.
“I know you’re upset, but that was uncalled for,” Phoebe said. “We didn’t plan this, and we didn’t tell you because we were worried how you’d react with everything going on. Clearly we were right.”
“You can’t keep dating my bandmates.”
