DRASTIC (Book 4 of the Soundcrush Series)

Chapter 68: Drummer Boy's Plan Take A Very Unexpected Turn

So many of you have been waiting anxiously to see how Row's hand gets hurt and why Riley blames Bodie for it. Something happens here in this chapter that shifts Bodie and Row's dynamic from friendly acquaintances/beer pong opponents  to conspirators. This begins to draw Row more into Bodie's sphere...and their new camaraderie will eventually lead Row to her hand injury...read on because how it begins? It's a shocker! Or maybe it's not so shocking, considering these crazy rock stars....

Bodie

I thought, when Adam traded off with me backstage before soundcheck—I made my way to Evangeline and he intercepted Arabella—that Bells had gotten what she came for—a face-to-face about her album.

Adam told her he will book the studio time to produce her album in Nashville right after the tour—before Soundcrush is set to start recording our third album in the fall. Adam is all about Bells' sessions now. He says being in the studio with her will prime his creativity for our own work. It's been almost two years now since our sophomore effort and he's eager to be more involved with producing our sound than he was the first two times.

Mac and Trace are also good with Adam being tied up with Bells for a month. Mac is planning to bring Lennon and her entourage to Atlanta and spend the month with Trace at the Atlanta bandhouse. We've got a catalog of new songs we can lay down, but they want one more shot at their magic songwriting cauldron before we get down to business on the new album.

And now that I've verbally settled with Evangeline—she'll have a contract and be at a songwriter's workshop in LA by the end of the week—and Darius' first professional performance killed—he made Gwen cry, he's definitely getting some age-appropriate action there tonight—and Soundcrush performed to expectations in our set—which is to say we set the bar pretty damn high for those old men in Skid Marcs—and I'm chillin' in the green room, waiting to go back out for our encore with Skid Marcs—I'm surprised when Bells makes her way back to me with maybe the sweetest, most genuine smile I've ever seen her wear.

"You look...amazing," she says gesturing vaguely at me. "You look really healthy and really, really happy."

"I can't complain."

I can. I totally can. About Daemon, Connor, bad dreams, and cravings. But I won't. Not to Bells, who has her own demons.

She sighs. "Now that I'm here...I'm not sure I should do this."

Uhhhhm...I don't like the sound of that. Is she bailing on our Dharma deal? Or is it worse than that. She's not going to make a bid to get back together, is she?

I find myself taking an unconscious step back from her.

She catches my drift and laughs, putting out a hand to stop me. "Don't worry, I'm not going to jump you."

I grin, embarrassed. "Shit, girl. Any man...or woman...would be lucky. We had some good times back in the early days, but I'm...really in it with Marley, you know."

"I know." She looks me square in the eye and I can see from her pupils that she's on a little something but she seems perfectly sober, so it must not be much.

I touch her face, putting a thumb beside her eye to indicate I can clearly see her high. "I wish you wouldn't, Bells."

"Well, I'm nervous," she shrugs. "This isn't easy for me, either."

"What isn't easy?" I ask. "What's going on?"

Her lips part, but just then Leed unwraps himself from Ashlynn and yells, "Bodes! Go time!"

"Look...let's talk after the encore, okay?" I say.

She shakes, "No, this is better in private. I'm staying tonight. Marley got me a room. I'll see you back at the hotel, okay?"