Page 54 of Sing Your Secrets
“Me too. But I’ve got a good thirty-minute drive ahead of me, so I will be on my way as soon as I get a quick spray of your perfume.”
“Ah,” Quinn exhales. “This really brings me back to college when we lived together, and you’d steal so much shit out of my room.”
“Borrowed,” I insist.
“Borrowed would imply I got it back.” Quinn narrows her eyes at me. I suddenly notice she’s makeup-free, wearing lounge clothes, and come to think of it, her work laptop is nowhere in sight.
“What are you doing tonight?”
“Clearing out some closet space,” she says with a peculiar smile. “Cody’s moving in tomorrow.”
I widen my eyes. “Speaking of being proud of each other. Look at you, letting the Yeti slowly wedge his way into your icy heart.” I give her a glib smile.
“You guys call him the Yeti behind his back?”
“No. To his face too. He loves it.” We both laugh. There’s no other way to describe him. Cody is humongous, goofy, and sweet. He’s like a giant golden retriever and he’s so good for my friend. “So that divorce paperwork by the way…”
She winks at me. “Don’t worry about it.” Quinn walks out of the closet and returns just as fast with an iridescent purple heart-shaped bottle. “Go with the Vera Wang. It’s spicy but sweet.”
“Hm, in loungewear, not working on a Saturday night, and delivering unsubtle perfume metaphors. Will the actual Quinn be joining us this evening? Or, just this marshmallow-soft version of my best friend?”
“Hush it,” she says with a lazy hiss, pretending to be offended. “There’s nothing wrong with taking a night off.” I tilt my chin upward and open my arms as she spritzes me.
“Well, hey, since you’re full of good guidance tonight,” I say, tugging on the sleeves of her soft cardigan. I’m sure I’ll need to dry-clean this before returning. All Quinn’s clothes need to be dry-cleaned. So annoying—who has time for that? One time I just threw a little baby powder on her suit jacket and used a hot blow dryer to finish the job. “Can I ask your advice on something?”
“Of course.” She looks puzzled at my suddenly serious expression.
“Miles is a big fan of Petey.” She looks alarmed, so I clarify by saying, “As in the rapper.” I doubt Miles would be a fan of my asshole ex.
“Oh.” Quinn sinks down onto the ottoman next to me so we’re shoulder-to-shoulder. “What did you tell him?”
“Everything and nothing,” I admit. “He knows I know Petey. He knows my dad worked on Petey’s debut album, but…”
“Not that Peter Mills was once the love of your life and that he clearly wants you back?”
“Yeah,” I exhale.
“Question for you—did you delete those messages from your Instagram for our sake? You didn’t want to lose face in front of your friends?” Quinn wraps her hand around mine. “Because we all hate Petey for the way he treated you, but we’ll also love you and will be here for you no matter what decisions you make in your life. There are no conditions when it comes to our family, Reese.”
“Thank you, but no.”
I honestly didn’t want to read them. I had to go cold turkey to move on from my past with Petey. I don’t want any reminders seeping in as temptation because I don’t know how my heart would react. I don’t know if I ever healed from it… I just got over it.
But did I?
“I deleted them because I just want our worlds to stay apart,” I say.
I hated his world anyway. I was uncomfortable from the moment I moved East with him. When Petey first started getting some attention for his music, he was advised to look single. Sex appeal sells and a committed relationship is not remotely intriguing to a sea of fangirls. So, I’d be at all his big shows, hidden in the back. I’d leave the promise ring he gave me at home. I’d sit back and watch thirsty groupies throw themselves at him, stalk him at every show, and message him at all hours of the night. I kept my mouth shut, and a smile on my face, because Petey needed support, not drama.
I knew in the end it’d all be worth it. One day, the stage lights would fade and all he’d want is to come home after a long tour and just be together. We’d both enjoy the fruits of our shared labor. Supporting a musician is not easy. You’re high when they’re high, you’re low when they’re low. You share their wins but take the hits with them too. I was in it so deep and was so damn blinded, that by the time I came to and saw Petey for what he’d become…
Let’s just say I was alone for a lot longer than I realized.
“Atlanta isn’t a world away, Reese. It’s a three-hour flight. He could come see you whenever,” Quinn says.
“But he hasn’t, has he? He’s had years, and he never put in the effort to fix what he broke. Petey had bigger priorities, and I was always an afterthought. I didn’t understand why, until now. It took a long time, but now I have something to be excited about. Whatever this is with Miles, I’m excited. It took a really long time to feel this way again.”
“If you’re happy, what’s the problem?”
“I’m worried about Miles’s ego. How do you tell a guy, who is currently unsure about himself and is feeling a little lost in his life, that the girl he’s starting a relationship with dated his rich and famous music idol for almost five years?”
Quinn bites her bottom lip as she slowly shakes her head. “You don’t.”
Yeah. That’s what I was thinking too.