“I’ve been here for a couple of hours actually.” Shit. She was closing in. “I’ll be back in ten minutes.”
“I don’t think so. Take that bottle to the bar and get to work,” Sean commanded, gesturing to the nearly empty Tanqueray in my hand.
Tegan shot a distressed look between Sean and me and then over his shoulder at the raven-haired beauty heading toward us. I weighed the situation quickly before making one of my infamous snap decisions. The kind that usually got me into trouble. What can I say? Some life lessons didn’t stick.
I unscrewed the top, lifted the bottle in a toast, and drained the contents like it was a beer bong. Then I swiped my mouth and angled my head toward the exit.
“It’s gone now. I’ll throw it out for you.”
Sean clenched his fists and pointed at the door. “You’re fired, Cuevas. Get the fuck out.”
“You got it wrong. I quit.”
I set the bottle at his feet, then winked before heading to the door.
The moment I stepped outside, I realized I’d forgotten my shirt and jacket in the break room. And it was cold. I couldn’t go back in, and I couldn’t ask Tegan to throw my stuff out here. Not yet, anyway. I thought about asking the bouncer, but he was busy talking to someone and before I could think of a plan, Xena was there.
She paused in the doorway and gave me a thorough once-over. I did the same. I hadn’t seen her since that night at Carmine’s, and I liked it that way. Though I had to admit, she looked great. Her red lips were her only concession to color. She wore a long, black flowing dress with combat boots. Her long hair fell in spiral curls over her shoulders. She reminded me of a Goth model in the middle of a photo shoot.
I felt woefully underdressed in my jeans and bare-chested state. But I bet any passerby would think we belonged together. Like the badass rock couple I’d once thought we could be when I figured looks and ambition could take us to the top. It was unsettling to realize how delusional I’d been.
Xena stepped into the shadow and folded her arms. “Hi, Justin. This won’t take long. I heard that you—”
Tegan barreled outside and quickly inserted himself between us before growling at me. “I cannot believe you just fucking did that.”
“Justin is always just doing things,” Xena huffed. “Save your lover’s tiff. It’s fabulous to see you both again, but I’ve got better places to be.”
“What do you want?” I asked. I was edgy, anxious, and call me crazy, but I didn’t want to hang out in the alley—after unceremoniously telling my boss to fuck off—with my ex and my bandmate…oh yeah, who also happened to be my boss’s lover.
Fuck, this was messed up.
“Sign the contract for the song and take the money, Justin. You need it and I need it. It’s the perfect way to end our former relationship. And if we’re lucky, we both end up with new careers.”
“What is she talking about?” Tegan asked irritably.
Xena wrinkled her forehead. “You didn’t tell your boyfriend the news?”
“He’s not my boyfriend. And there is no news.”
“Oh, that’s right. You’re fucking the songwriter,” she taunted. “Or so I heard.”
“From who?”
“Dec. He knows everyone. He’s a good person to keep close. Did he tell you we’re talking to an agent who thinks we can sign XenLA with a label?”
“XenLA?”
“Our band. We thought about going our separate ways, but my solo contract can help fund us. We have a new bass player and a drummer who can keep his dick in his pants,” she said, shooting an evil look at Tegan before continuing, “But everything is at a fucking standstill because you haven’t signed the damn contract. If this is about spite or greed, you’ve picked the wrong time to get even, Justin. Sign the fucking thing before we both lose out. You fucked me over once. Don’t do it again.”
I rounded on her with my teeth bared. “You got it wrong. You left me and the band and then—”
“And when I came back to get my stuff, I found you two were getting along just fine without me,” she hissed. “Declan can be a real asshole, but he did us all a favor that day.”
In a way, she was right. I hadn’t felt that way when Declan let Xena into my old apartment. We were friends, or so I thought. And well before I’d met Xena, Dec and I were lovers. The casual kind that didn’t stick around. But he must have wanted something more from me, because he’d been lurking in the shadows, eager to shine a spotlight on my every fuckup. Unfortunately, I gave him a lot of material.
“We were over. I didn’t cheat on you.” I annunciated each word and fixed her with a sharp, pointed look that unfortunately didn’t faze her in the slightest.