No Chance by Lisa Suzanne

CHAPTER 50: BRETT

Four Months Later

After I finish signing the contract, I set the pen down on the table. We may be confident in our decision as a band, but that doesn’t make these choices any easier. And to allow cameras into our lives to film what we do on a daily basis was not an easy decision—and one we had to get everyone who’s a part of our band, including women and children, on board with.

I still can’t believe how everything fell into place.

It wasn’t that long ago that Tyler agreed to go on one of Ashmark’s competition reality shows as a way to get some press for our band. He never wanted to win the competition to replace a bassist of another band; he just wanted Capital Kingsmen to find a wider audience. It was mostly Tommy’s idea, and it worked. We’re household names now, none of us more than Tyler...something that pisses Tommy the hell off. He wants to be the household name. And he is, but Tyler still has that element we don’t have since the rest of us weren’t on that show.

It created bad blood between Capital Kingsmen and MFB, the band running the competition and producing the reality show.

But our label stepped in and smoothed things over, and here we are.

They want us to appear on the next season of Rock on the Road, a reality show that follows bands from the inception of an album through the tour promoting it.

Tommy campaigned hard to get us here. He befriended Dax Hunter, the lead singer of MFB. He explained that Ashmark was the one who approached us about the idea to compete on their show. He took him out for drinks and charmed his way through their first few meetings and somehow, by the grace of God, they agreed to a season featuring us.

Obviously it shows they’re the bigger men. It shows they’re mature enough not to hold grudges. And it’s going to give Tyler a chance to redeem himself to the public.

Now that three out of the four of us have women and kids in our lives, Ashmark wanted to highlight the angle of touring with small kids on the road. And they’ll still get the bad boy vibe, as they called it, from our front man, so as a band we have all the elements to create a very successful season of the show.

Dustin signs it last, and he pushes the paper across the table toward Mark Ashton, CEO and founder of our label and lead singer of Vail, pretty much the biggest band in the universe. Every time I’m in this office, I’m awestruck. Not by the platinum and diamond records adorning the walls, but the sheer energy, power, and confidence of the man behind the desk.

“That’s it,” Mark says. “You’re in.”

He stands and reaches across to shake each of our hands, and a thrill runs through me at what sorts of doors this could potentially open for us. We’re already at the top of our game, but as Tommy always reminds us, there’s still room to move up.

Mark pours us each a glass of whiskey plus one for himself from the decanter set in his office, and it’s all so classy. Shit like that’s usually only in the movies. I’ve never actually seen one like this in a real person’s office except here at our label.

We toast to the future, and I can’t help but feel excited about where all this is going.

I hitched a ride here to the office with Tommy from his place so we could talk on the way. Tyler’s taking Danielle out to dinner and Dustin had to head right home. I want to get back home to my girl and my kid, but Tommy already reserved my time for the evening.

I’ve not been a good friend lately since I’ve spent all my time with Hannah and Chance, so I agreed to hang out tonight. We’ll get drunk and play video games and maybe hit a bar...not so I can hunt—there’s nothing to hunt for when I have everything at home—but so I can play wingman to Tommy.

I laugh at the thought. As if he needs it.

He navigates Los Angeles traffic as we head back to his place.

“You excited for the show?” I ask. He shrugs, and my brows dip. “That’s your reaction after you campaigned the fuck out of getting us on?”

He blows out a breath. “It’s what’s best for the band.”

“Are you backing out?” I turn to look at him.

He keeps his eyes focused on the road. “Nah, man. We signed papers. I’m all in.”

“Then what’s this about?” I press.

“What’s what about?” he asks, and his tone is exasperated.

“What’s going on with you?”

“My brother texted me just before our meeting started,” he says quietly. “He and his family are going to Disney and they’re hoping we can go to dinner while they’re in town.”

He talks all the time about how his family’s fucked up, but he’s never really gotten into specifics about how or why. I know his family is originally from Seattle and he moved to Los Angeles when he was teenager with his dad. His parents are divorced and it was hard on him, and I know he’s got a brother, but that’s the extent of it. He never talks about his brother. I don’t even know who’s younger or older.

Even now as I sit here, I realize I tell him everything about myself and my own messed up family, but he doesn’t tell me much. I always think of him as my best friend...but who’s his best friend?

“I take it that’s not a good thing?” I ask.

He presses his lips together and doesn’t answer, and I feel like he’s sort of opening the door for this conversation. He wants to talk but he wants me to pull it out of him. That’s just how he is about some things while other things he won’t shut the fuck up about.

“You’ve talked about how your family is messed up, but you’ve never said how,” I point out.

“It’s complicated,” he says. “You know how once you make a little money, things change? I paid off my dad’s mortgage with our first fat check and it wasn’t enough. He wanted a bigger house when I bought my mom one. It’s just a shit situation.”

“I know the feeling of never doing anything good enough for your parents. I still haven’t introduced them to Hannah. I just don’t want them trying to talk her out of being with me since they’ll see I’m not good enough for her. Or even worse, that they judge her in some way.” I shake my head. “I couldn’t take that shit.”

“I feel like if I’ve learned anything over the years, it’s that you can create your own family, like we did with CK.”

I nod. “I feel that. But what about your brother?” I ask. “Isn’t he married?”

He keeps his eyes focused on the road, but something shifts in his face when I bring up the brother. “Yeah, and they have a kid.”

“You like his wife or is she a money grubber too?”

He clears his throat and doesn’t answer right away. “Do I like her?” he repeats softly with a short huff of a breath. We get to a stoplight, and he glances over at me. “You know how the second you met Hannah, you wanted to walk down a different path than the one you were on?”

My brows dip. “Yeah...”

He nods. “Should I spell it out for you?”

“You’re in love with her?” My brows shoot up in surprise.

He presses his lips together as his eyes return to the road. “Only woman I’ve ever been in love with.” His voice is soft as he makes this confession, and it sort of feels like it’s the first time he’s said these words aloud. Maybe even the first time he’s admitted them to himself.

And I have no idea what the hell I’m supposed to do with that information. “Does she know?”

He shrugs. “I don’t know. And I don’t know how she feels about me. That’s why I stay the fuck away and just live my life. You know me, man. I don’t want to hurt anybody, but I also don’t know if I’m strong enough not to.”

“Will you see them while they’re here?”

He raises his brows. “I don’t know, man. If I don’t, I’m the asshole who refuses to see family. But if I do...” He trails off as he tries to figure out the end to that statement. “I don’t know how I’ll stay away.”

We’re both quiet a while as he loses himself in his thoughts, and then he asks, “When are you doing it?”

My brows dip. “Doing what?”

“Proposing,” he says flatly.

I grin. “Soon.”

“Before or after she meets the parents?” he asks.

“Definitely before. Hell maybe I’ll even marry her before that so they can’t talk her out of it.”

He laughs, but I’m not kidding. “Nah, man. It may be a fucked up relationship, but you still want them there, don’t you?”

I smile as I think about Hannah and Chance.

It’s going to take a hell of a lot more than judgmental parents to break us up. In fact, after everything we’ve been through...there’s no chance anything will ever tear us apart.