“I don’t know. I mean…that’s dishonest,” I said.
Sebastian scoffed. “It’s business. This is Tinseltown. No one wants the truth. They want the glamour, glitz, romance.”
“We’re musicians.”
“So what? You’re still people. You have a story to tell. Use it to your advantage. And if you don’t like the truth the way it is…give it a little sparkle.”
“Zhuzh it up,” Charlie said cautiously.
“Exactly. I’ve gotta run. Good luck, boys.”
“Hang on. We need ideas!” Charlie followed his dad to the door and held his arms wide as if to bar his exit. “How long should we try this? When do we start? When does it end? Help!”
“Start after the holidays and make it last through the tour…then break up. How you break them is up to you. Spice it up. Maybe get a girlfriend for Declan. The general public has a very short attention span. You have to do exciting shit on the regular and blast it on every social platform available.”
“I know all that,” Charlie huffed irritably.
“I know you do. You’re in good hands, boys. Ciao. Good luck.” Sebastian waved at Dec and me, then kissed Charlie’s forehead and lifted him out of the way like a tiresome puppy.
Dec and I stared at each other like two deer stuck in twin headlights. Fake boyfriends? Holy fuck.
I pulled my knee away from his as I shifted in my seat and raised my eyebrows. “Well, it’s…interesting.”
Charlie bit his bottom lip and paced to the window. “We can think of something else. We agreed from the start that this is about the music…and it is. I just have to mull over non-douchey alternatives to combat that vampire.”
Silence.
“I’ll do it,” Dec blurted.
I cocked my head. “Really?”
“Sure. What do we do?”
Charlie widened his eyes comically. “Uh…gosh, I don’t know. Let me think. I’ll need photos. You look like you want to kill each other in every one that I have. This can’t appear manufactured. We have to make it an undercurrent. A leaked photo of you sitting closer than usual with a titillating caption on Instagram.…We can think about it over the holidays and maybe hint at inside intrigue before we go on tour, like on a trial basis. If you’re okay with being fake boyfriends on tour, we go with it.”
“What do we tell our bandmates?” Dec asked.
“Nothing for now,” Charlie replied.
“You’re not going to tell Ky?”
“Well, of course I am, but he’s mine. He won’t say a word. I’d rather not tell the others unless we think it will work. You two are very…volatile.”
True.
“So, the plan is to be nice to each other, take a few photos, and never bring up Xena. Is that correct?” Dec asked, moving toward the door.
Charlie nodded. “Yeah, that’s a good start. If it becomes obvious that you’re not faux-BF material, I’ll be ready with a plan B and C. And a bottle of scotch.”
I followed Dec out of Charlie’s office. He stopped in the middle of the corridor leading to the studio and hooked his thumb. “What happened?”
“I think we just got Charlied.”
He raked his fingers through his longish hair and sighed. “Huh. What d’ya know? I’ve never had a boyfriend. Be nice. I’m a virgin.”
I snorted. “Yeah, right.”
“Seriously. What do boyfriends do? Do they go to the movies, candlelight dinners? What’s the protocol?”
“There are no rules. But even if there were, you wouldn’t have to worry about them ’cause this isn’t real.”
“I’m surprised you agreed,” he said wryly before narrowing his eyes. “Why did you?”
Good question.
“You know the saying, ‘Keep your friends close and your enemies closer,’ ” I singsonged.
“I’m not your enemy.” His voice was soft, but the deep timbre moved through me like honey.
I swallowed hard and met his gaze. “I know. Believe it or not, I want the same thing you do. I want this to work. If that means going along with creative PR schemes, I’ll do it. I said I wouldn’t, but I’m not letting Xena use my mistakes against us.”
“Your mistakes?”
“Fine. All of ours…yours, mine, and Justin’s,” I said as I headed for the door.
“Where are you going?”
“I need some fresh air and—hey, I was gonna ask if you’re free to visit my mom sometime this week.”
“How about tomorrow afternoon?”
I nodded. “Okay. Tomorrow.”
Dec grinned. “Cool. It’s a date. Our first date. I might let you kiss me if you’re sweet.”
“Bite me.” I flipped him off, then headed for the studio.
His melodic laughter echoed off the walls and tripped a wire somewhere deep inside me. The corners of my mouth lifted in a stupid-ass smile I couldn’t control if my life depended on it. I wasn’t entirely convinced I was sane. “Fake boyfriend BS” sounded like a rom-com recipe for disaster. But for the first time in a while, Dec and I were on the same page, fighting some unknown phantom danger together. It was a good feeling.