“Yes!” I wrap my arms around his neck and squeeze him tight, bringing his mouth to mine for a too-quick kiss. “I can’t wait,” I say, pressing my forehead to his.
“Wait a minute,” Eli says from behind us.
We both stop twirling, turning to look at Eli, who’s watching us with his hands on his hips and a frown on his face.
Oops. I sort of forgot he was there. I bet Jackson didn’t even see him.
“What?” Jackson asks him.
“You’re going on tour again this summer?” Eli asks.
Jackson nods, smiling down at me. “Yeah. For longer though. And I’m bringing Ellie with me.”
“What about the groupies?”
I roll my eyes. “Eli.”
The guys love to give Jackson crap about the groupies.
“Fuck the groupies. I’ve got everything I want right here.” Jackson kisses me again, his mouth lingering on mine.
“Ha, I was giving you shit.” Eli shakes his head, his hands still on his hips. “You’re not coming back to school, are you?”
“I don’t know, man. I get the feeling my entire life is about to change, so maybe not,” Jackson says, that grin still stretching his mouth wide. Like he can’t stop smiling. I can’t stop smiling either. “They’re bumping up the schedule, too. We’re dropping the first single in two weeks.”
“Pink?” I ask excitedly.
“Yeah. They wanted me to debut with a banger. The ballad will come next.”
“I See You.” The ballad he wrote for me after what happened in the parking lot that night. It’s such a beautiful song, filled with so much emotion. It makes me want to tear up every time I hear it.
Jackson’s face lights up. “Oh and get this. Fucking Cupid’s Bow is opening for me through the summer.”
“No way,” I breathe, laughing. “I love it!”
“Remember how jealous I was over them?” Jackson shakes his head as he laughs too.
Of course I do. He was so down, and it was all for nothing. Look how well they’re both doing. Together. And with the same record company, too. Now they’re going on tour together. I love it.
Life has a way of working out perfectly sometimes, I swear.
“You’re really going on tour with him all summer, Ellie?” Eli asks me, pulling me from my thoughts.
Jackson finally sets me down on my feet, releasing me and I smile at Eli. “I am. I already warned my boss I was probably quitting. She promised me if I ever came back, she’d rehire me.”
“If?” Eli’s eyebrows rise.
I shrug, excited about the unknown. “Yeah. I don’t know what’s going to happen. I kind of like the idea of being the boho girlfriend of a famous rock musician. Going on tour with him. Traveling the country,” I say.
“Maybe the world,” Jackson adds.
“Yeah. It’ll be fun. We’re only young once, right?” I glance over at Jackson, smiling tenderly at him. He sends me the same look, and I remember the conversation we had last night, when the scheduled call with Rick still loomed over his head and Jackson wasn’t one hundred percent sure if we were touring or not.
“Promise you’ll come with me, El. I don’t want to do this life alone. I know school is important to you, but you don’t even know what you want to do yet. We have the rest of our lives to figure that shit out. Just—come with me. Be my support, my muse. Travel the country with me, baby. Let me see it all through your eyes too,” he said, his gaze never straying from mine.
How could I resist that?
I agreed. I’ll take a semester off. So will he. He won’t be playing football for the Bulldogs any longer, but it doesn’t matter anymore. He went after what he really wanted, and now he’s got both. His music career.