Page 39 of From the Ashes
“Yeah. Tiny RV toilet and a shower where both my shoulders touch the walls at the same time isn’t ideal.”
“That’s why I told finance that you haddemandedhotel suites between gigs.”
“You did what?!”
“They weren’t gonna give me anything,” he scoffed. “It had to be your demand, or they wouldn’t listen.”
“And they agreed?”
“I played hardball with them,” he nodded. “And I won. I took a lot of negotiation classes in college. I’m pretty good at getting what I want.”
He flashed me a cocky grin and I rolled my eyes. But he was right. I’d never known someone who was so good at getting exactly what they were after. He was the only reason I’d gotten such a massive advance for my book. The guy knew I had a hit on my hands, and he didn’t take any of the first offers that were put on the table. It terrified the shit out of me considering I was living on borrowed time thanks to my parent’s money. But he assured me he would get top dollar, and he delivered. Tony might’ve been a bit of a playboy and a business bro, but he knew how to play the game and take care of his clients.
“So, what do we do with the other fivedays?” I asked.
“I figured you could go see your family. I heard you talking to your mom the other night and saying you’d visit. So, I bumped back the next signing by a few days so you can visit home. It’s been forever since you’ve been back, right?”
A cold twisting sensation filled my stomach. The last thing I’d planned to do was to visit home so quickly. I thought I would do all the signings, make some excuse for not making it home, and then just fly my parents out to Boston to make it up to them. But thanks to Tony and his good intentions, I was backed into a corner. If I told him I didn’t want to go back, he’d ask questions that I didn’t want to answer. Questions he’d already hinted at several times. And if my mother found out I hadfivefree days and didn’t come see her, she’d guilt trip me clear into the next life.
“Y-Yeah,” I replied at last, gritting my teeth. “It’s been over a year since I visited.”
“Any particular reason?”
He was prying already. Clearly, he’d noticed my hesitation.
“Yeah. Being poor as shit while I was waiting for you to get this book deal to go through!”
“Pretty sure an extra four hundred thousand dollars was worth waiting for, Phie.”
“Tell that to my butthole after I had to eat nothing but ramen for an entire month,” I shot back.
“Oh please. Didn’t you say you rode dicks across the south for an entire summer? Ramen was probably the thirteenth worst thing that’s been up there.”
I gave him a dirty look, but we both laughed, breaking the tension.
“Alright,” I sighed at last. “I’ll go home to visit. But you aren’t coming with me.”
“Sorry, buddy. But yes, I am.”
“What? Why?”
If I was going to be back in Creekside, the last person I wanted with me was Tony. He’d reeked of big city and he’d stick out like a sore thumb. Not to mention, he wasn’t exactlysubtleabout the fact that he and I hooked up on the regular. He was overly affectionate with me, physical, and I didn’t want anyone thinking we were together, especially my mother. And especially…him.
“You have fans all over the country, Phie. I have to be there when the local newspaper inevitably wants to interview you, or someone starts getting a little too pushy. I want to make sure you don’t say anything that’s gonna hurt the book.”
“You mean anything that’ll hurt your share of the royalties.”
“A man has a right to protect his interests,” he replied. “And while I do care about the money, you know I care about you too, Phie. You’re one of my best friends.”
I rolled my eyes at him again. “I’m your client.”
There was a look of hurt that flashed over his face. “I hoped we were more than that, Phie.”
I shook my head. “I know. I’m sorry. We are… I just… I’m not a big fan of that place and this is sorta sudden. I wasn’t expecting to go back so soon.”
Or ever.
“Don’t worry, buddy. I’ll be right there at your side. Everything will be fine. And, if you need me to, I’ll beat off all your old highschool bullies.”