Obnoxiously loud music starts to play from the interconnected penthouse living and dining rooms. Looks like our guests have arrived.
“What is that?” Latson asks.
“The party just started.” I roll my eyes. “Dean and the guys got excited about the space, so they invited everyone to our room tonight.” To be honest I’d rather curl up in the magnificent bed that’s calling my name. “Did you know penthouses can have six bathrooms? And three bedrooms? I still have to share with Roxanne, but whatever. At least the guys get to spread out.”
“I’m not worried about the guys,” Latson mutters.
I won’t let that comment slide. “What’s wrong?” I sink down on to the bed and pull one leg beneath me. “You know, when I found out we’d been upgraded, I thought you did it. I thought maybe you would be waiting to surprise me.”
He doesn’t respond so I add, “I miss you.”
“I miss you, too,” he says. “I’m working on next month’s schedule for Torque and booking the entertainment. Once everything is confirmed you’ll probably see me.”
“Probably?”
“You’ll definitely see me.”
Suddenly, the bedroom door flies open. Ariel shuts it behind her in a rush and leans against it. “There you are. I need your help.”
I’m confused and my face shows it. Latson asks, “Is someone there?”
“Just Ariel,” I say. Leaning away from the phone I ask, “What’s up?”
She makes a zipper motion across her lips and gestures for me to end the call.
“Uh … I gotta go,” I stutter.
“Why?” Latson asks.
Ariel hurries past me and toward the bathroom. “I’m not sure,” I whisper. “Ariel probably wants to talk.” I told him about last night’s conversation on the bus. “I’ll call you in the morning, okay?” Now that we’re in the same time zone it makes things a little easier.
“Okay,” he says, uncertain. “But, Jen …”
“Hmm?”
“Be careful. I don’t like knowing there’s a bunch of strangers hanging out in your room. Penthouse or no penthouse.”
“Yes, boss,” I say playfully. “Sweet dreams.”
“Only if they’re of you.”
I end the call and walk over to stand in the bathroom doorway. Ariel is leaning against the counter, fidgeting. “Are you all right?”
She shakes her head no, then lifts her shirt. A box is tucked into the waistline of her pants. She pulls it out and shows it to me. “I can’t do this by myself.”
My eyes consume my face. It’s a pregnancy test. “Are you sure?”
“Of course not.” Her expression twists. “That’s kinda the point of taking the test.”
I step toward her. “What I meant was, it’s a possibility?”
She scowls at the box in her hands. “Unfortunately, yes. For the record, Zach, one of my dancers, is not gay.”
I close my eyes for a second and then reopen them. “You had unprotected sex because you thought the guy was gay?”
“No! I didn’t think we’d end up sleeping together because I thought he was gay!”
She’s flustered, so I walk further into the bathroom and shut the door. “Are you late?”
“Ten days.” She bites her bottom lip. “I’ve also felt off. Emotional and exhausted.”
“You could just be stressed,” I say. “Traveling and performing aren’t easy.” I reach for the box and she hands it over. I read the directions. “You have to pee on the stick and wait three minutes. It doesn’t sound complicated.”
“No,” she says. “The complicated part comes after.”
I give her a resigned smile, and she takes a deep breath. “Okay. Let me do this and then I’ll need you to hold my hand.”
I give her the test. “Good luck.”
Her face falls. “Thanks.”
I leave the bathroom and head to the bed to wait. I can’t believe Ariel might be pregnant. I also can’t believe she feels close enough to share this with me. There’s no way she can jump around on stage and fit into a cat suit with a belly. My mind recalls our conversation from last night; this is probably what she meant when she said she needed to grow as a person. She could potentially be a mother.
Ariel looks pale when she opens the door. “Three minutes?”
I grab my phone. “I’m setting the timer now.”
She makes her way over to me and sits down. “Thank you. I had to tell someone. It was killing me.” I offer her my hand and she takes it. “I couldn’t say anything to my team. Not yet. If I’m …” She hesitates to say the word and sighs. “Changes will have to be made.”
We sit in silence as the music from the party pumps through the walls. I glance at my phone as the timer ticks down slowly. My stomach starts to knot for her and for us. Dean’s put so much stock into playing; he’ll be crushed if he has to cut things short.
Squeezing her hand, I ask, “How does that work?”
“What?”
“The changes.”
She frowns. “There’s a clause in my contract about medical conditions. Shows can be delayed or postponed, or, in the worst case, canceled.” Her shoulders sag. “I’d hate to do that to the fans. Or the crew. People depend on getting paid for this tour.”
I never realized that such a huge responsibility was placed on a headlining act. “So, you’ll keep it?” I ask. “Not that it’s any of my business.”
“I kind of made it your business.” Ariel looks down at her lap. “I don’t know. It’s easy to think you’ll do something a certain way until you’re confronted with it.” Her eyes meet mine. “What would you do?”
“Me?” I haven’t put much thought into it because I’m always careful. “I guess it would depend on my situation. If I could financially support a baby, and if the father wanted to be involved, for example.”
She gives me a tiny smile. “Well, if you slip up with Gunnar, you know you’re covered. He’s been dedicated to his nephew since the day Oliver was born. It’s part of why we broke up.”
I never questioned their reasons. “Really?”
“Call me selfish, but I didn’t feel like I could compete after he won custody and moved away. He was wrapped up in starting a new life, and I couldn’t give him the time or attention he deserved. We agreed it would be best to call it quits.”
At least she admits she was partly to blame.
Ariel leans over to check the remaining time on my phone. “Who would have thought one drunk night would lead to this?” She pauses. “Never mind. That was a stupid question. The probability is actually quite high.”
Before I can agree with her, the timer goes off. We look at each other and she lets go of my hand. “Here goes nothing.”
She straightens her spine as she walks away, and I stand in anticipation. When she disappears through the bathroom door, I start to pace. I feel bad for her. She made a bad decision, yes, but so did Zach. I silently wonder if he’s going to be supportive, or if he’s going to ditch her like Levi did Audrey.
When Ariel doesn’t reappear after a minute, I go find her. It doesn’t take that long to read one pink line or two. Peeking around the corner, I can tell by her expression what the outcome is without asking.
“Congratulations,” I whisper.
She gives me a sad smile before a tear rolls down her cheek.
~~~~
All I want is a bottle of water, I think as I weave my way around bodies. It’s been almost an hour since Ariel learned she was expecting and left the party. She said she was going to find Zach and break the news, so I decided to find the guys and make sure they were living it up. Little do they know all of this could come to an abrupt end, depending on how Ariel feels and what she decides to do.
“Excuse me. Pardon me. Sorry,” I say as I finally make it to the wet bar. Some random guy is behind it, having dubbed himself honorary bartender. “Can I get a bottle of water please?”
“One water comin’ up,” he says and flips a bottle behind his back and over his shoulder. He catches it and presents it to me.
“Thanks,” I say.
“Aww. Look, girls. The bitch is trying to come off as Snow White.”
My body tenses at the sound of Heidi’s voice. Slowly, I turn around and find her standing with her friends. “Well. If it isn’t the old hag here to hand out more poison.”
Her narrowed eyes bounce between me and the water. “Do you think you’re above us?”
“No. I think I’m thirsty.”