He’ll be canceled and branded a thief. A has-been.
His phenomenal talent—his gift—will be nothing but a punch line.
Stealing my song was a terrible thing to do, but he doesn’t need to destroy his dream over it. He can’t.
He’s the sun. He needs to keep shining.
Phoenix turns his attention back to the crowd.
I sprint across the stage, desperate to stop him…but it’s too late.
“That’s because she’s the one who wrote it.” He blows out a heavy breath. “And I stole it.”
Silence falls over the entire stadium…with the exception of Chandler who’s screaming his head off in the wings, and a few people in the audience who call out things like, “Are you taking the piss right now, mate?” and, “Bloody hell.”
Phoenix cocks his head, his intense gaze holding me captive. “Four years ago, I had to choose between all of this and you.” Emotion slices his face, and he drops the mic. “I made the wrong choice.”
My heart stops cold and time stands still.
He didn’t have to write those three words on my skin, because right now I feel them.
However, I won’t let him destroy everything he’s ever wanted—everything he is—just to be with me.
I won’t let him break himself like he broke me.
My feet move on their own accord, and I head backstage.
I have to figure out a way to fix this. I’ll need to sit down with Skylar, so we can come up with a plan to save his career.
Skylar’s expression is full of alarm when I reach her, but her attention is solely fixated on something behind me.
I barely have time to register that Phoenix is following me before a mob of people rush over and swarm him.
“What the fuck?” Chandler bellows.
Skylar points a finger at him. “Shut up.” Her eyes swivel to Storm and Memphis, who are noticeably livid. “No one say a single fucking word to anyone until I figure this shit out. Got it?” Her glare centers on Phoenix. “Greenroom. Right now.”
It suddenly occurs to me that Phoenix didn’t just screw himself…he screwed the people he considers his family.
Phoenix looks around the backstage area, but the moment his gaze lands on me, Skylar and Chandler usher him into the greenroom.
“Goddammit,” Chandler snaps, gesturing to his cell. “Vic’s already calling.”
And then the door slams shut.
I don’t know what I can do, but there has to be something.
I make a mad dash for the greenroom, but there’s a sharp tug on my arm.
When I glance up, I find Storm peering down at me. He looks so appalled—so upset—I want to wrap my arms around him.
“I didn’t know he stole your song.”
“I know—”
The sound of my phone ringing cuts me off.
I raise a finger when I see Mrs. Palma’s name flash across the screen. “One sec. I have to take this.”
For all I know, she might have gotten wind of what Phoenix did given how fast news gets around on social media.
After pressing the green button, I bring it to my ear. “Hey. I guess you he—”
“Lennon, honey,” she interjects, her quavering voice filled with dread.
My heart stops cold for the second time in ten minutes. “What’s wrong?”
Storm—who was about to walk away—stays put.
“Your dad…he had a stroke about twenty minutes ago. I called an ambulance and we’re here at the hospital.” Her voice cracks. “It…you need to come home right away.”
Blood drains from my face and the fear I felt before is nothing compared to right now.
“What happened?” Storm questions as I disconnect the call.
“My dad…I. He’s…hospital.” I can’t form cohesive thoughts or sentences. The only thing I know is that I have to get to him as soon as possible.
I brush past him, running as fast as I can out the door.
CHAPTER 74
LENNON
The steady hum of machines filter throughout the small hospital room and every time I hear one beep, my head snaps up.
I’ve only been here for three hours, but it feels like an eternity.
I was foolishly optimistic during the plane ride home and figured he’d be up and talking by the time I got here.
My heart folds in on itself as I zero in on the ventilator covering my dad’s face and the various tubes sticking out of him.
My dad was eating dinner at the kitchen table when he started complaining of a headache. Mrs. Palma went to get him some acetaminophen, but when she came back, his speech was slurred, and he started vomiting.
She was already dialing 911 when he collapsed.
The stroke he had was severe, and the doctors informed Mrs. Palma that his condition was critical and the outcome wasn’t favorable.
But they don’t know my father.
He’s gonna pull through this. He has to.
Come on, Dad. Wake up.
Mrs. Palma takes a seat next to me. “I’m so sorry.”
She keeps saying that, but this isn’t her fault.
It’s mine.
I should have been here. But I wasn’t.
Because once again, I got too close to the sun.
Only this time it was my own damn fault I got burned.
I try to inhale, but the guilt crushing my chest is asphyxiating me.
I should have refused to go to Europe. Then we would have had more time together.
My eyes sting and I swallow back tears. I shouldn’t have gone on tour.
Maybe then my dad wouldn’t be lying in a hospital bed, fighting for his life.
Reaching over, Mrs. Palma grips my hand. “You should try to get some sleep, sweetie. You must be exhausted.”
She’s right, between the time difference and the nine-hour-and-fifteen-minute flight home, I should be.
But there’s no way I can rest until I know he’ll be okay.
I shake my head. “I need to be here when he wakes up.”
Because he has to wake up.
And the more I repeat it, the more I’ll believe it.
Shifting in her seat, she frowns. “Honey—”
“Sir,” a feminine voice yells from the hallway. “This is the ICU. You can’t be back here.”
“What room is Lennon Michael’s father in?” Phoenix rumbles, that unmistakable melodic voice bouncing off the walls.
What the hell is he doing here?
“I’m not at liberty to give you that information. Please leave.”
Her refusal doesn’t sit well with Phoenix though, because he barks, “Fuck off.”
Shit.
Mrs. Palma and I swap flabbergasted looks before I get out of my chair. “I’ll handle this.”
When I step out of the room, I see him roaming the hallway with his hands cupped around his mouth. “Lennon!”
“Don’t make me call security,” the nurse warns at the same time Phoenix spots me.
Before I can blink, he’s barreling toward me.
I planned on sending him away, but the second his arms are around me, something deep inside me ruptures and I crumble.
Phoenix doesn’t try to cheer me up, encourage me to stay strong, or make false promises that everything will be okay.