Page 51 of Hollywood Undercover
“It’s none of your concern, so stop right there. The bottom line is, Wilkes, we’re through. We had a nice start, but you screwed it up. So don’t even try to win me back now. And please, forget my number and don’t callback.”
She hung up the phone again and turned it off. That would keep him away for a while. She took a few minutes to calm down before taking her dishes back into the house. She peeked in on Dad and Rosa after putting her plate in the dishwasher. Rosa sat next to his bed, her glasses perched on her nose. The two of them shared a book, each filling in a Sudoku game. Alexandra was pleased Dad had someone special at his side now. Rosa looked happy too. The cozy couple didn’t seem as though they needed a third wheel. She went up to herbedroom.
“I can’t believe he had the nerve to call me back to say he bought me an engagement ring,” she huffed. “Like that could change anything betweenus.”
She turned her phone back on. If he called again, she would send him to voicemail. She couldn’t afford to miss other important calls. It was too early to phone Evangeline and fill her in. Alexandra could already imagine her reaction. As soon as the phone screen loaded, she saw a new textmessage.
“God Wilkes, don’t be a nag,” she said, already expecting it was fromhim.
When she checked the message, she saw it was from her manager. Rick’s text said,“Another week gone, Lexxi. You’re losing relevancy and momentum. Need you back here.Now.”
She felt the anxiety rise up inside her. She was being pulled back, whether she wanted to leave or not. Rick made it clear—her career was on the line. With Dad improving so well, he didn’t need her anymore. Rosa was back too. She didn’t have a reason to stay in Tucson. Well, she had one reason, but it wasn’t as tangible as a family illness. She didn’t want to go back to the Wilkes and Ricks ofLA.
In large part, it was due to what was waiting for her—the long days, the demanding work load, the feeling she was selling out and not creating the music she wanted to, the concerts, tours, media appearances, making and promoting albums. It was all too much right now. There was also the question of Bash. She could barely resist the man, but more importantly, she liked him. She liked herself when she was withhim.
She needed to wake up and face reality. Her friendship with the sexy firefighter was a shit storm waiting to hit the fan. Who knew how he would react when he found out she wasn’t the cute boy next door. She should get back to LA before things got more intense with Bash and ‘Alex’. She could make trips home more frequently to keep an eye on her father now that he was out of thewoods.
The decision deflated her. She sat on her bed and pulled out her tablet. It was time to book her flight and get back to the real world. Spending time here with her family and the new neighbor in Tucson was great, but it came at the expense of her career. She needed to find some balance, and until then, it was time to get back towork.
She hit the Book Flight button on her tablet and steeled herself for the blitz of goodbyes ahead. The one person she would miss most was the person who likely would cut himself out of her life completely once she went back to being LexxiRock.
