Falling out of Hate with You: Hate - Love Duet Book One by Rowe, Lauren (novel books to read txt) 📕

“I had classes with your older brother, Sebastian!” Kai says to my musician, Tate, connecting the dots.

“No way!” Tate replies.

“Is Sebastian still playing for Alicia Keys?” Kai asks.

“No, not anymore. Right now, he’s playing in the house band for Sing Your Heart Out. He’s been doing that for the past three seasons.”

Kai laughs. “Holy shit! Is that a cushy gig?”

“Super cushy. No travel. Easy songs and arrangements. Sebastian could do it in his sleep.”

“I bet.”

Everyone at the table joins in with questions and comments about the show, with Titus rolling his eyes and calling it the most “cringey-ass show ever.”

“Yeah, it’s cringey as hell,” Tate, my musician, agrees. “But a massive gravy train. My brother’s salary from the show itself is shit, total shit, but he gets so many side gigs from the contacts he makes on the show, it’s turned out to be a goldmine. Now that the show had its season finale last night, he’s getting ready to go on tour with Hugh Delaney’s band. Who, of course, he met on the show.”

“Good for him,” Kai says. “Although I’d sooner shoot myself than play Hugh Delaney songs, night after night.”

“Hey, it’s a steady job,” Tate says. “They’re not always easy to come by for a musician.”

“Oh, of course,” Kai says, quickly backtracking. “I know it’s tough out there. Any musician would leap at a regular gig on a popular TV show. Good for him.”

“I watched the final performances last night,” Ruby interjects. “I can’t wait to find out who won in the big reveal tonight. I’m hoping Deanna.”

“I saw the finale, too,” my musician, Tate, says. “Did you see Aloha kick the crap out of Hugh?”

“I saw that!” Ruby says, laughing. “I thought both contestants did such a great job. I think it’s so fun to watch people trying to make their dreams come true, any way they can.”

“I agree,” I say, my heart thumping. As this conversation has worn on, I’ve felt internal pressure to mention I’m going to be on the next season of the show. The lineup hasn’t been announced yet, but that’s not why I haven’t mentioned it to this group. Obviously, this is a highly trustworthy crowd. I think I’ve held off because I’m a little embarrassed to admit I’ll be appearing on a show half these people think is “cringey-ass.” Testing the waters, I say, “In my opinion, the only thing that’s really cringey about the show is Hugh Delaney.”

“I agree completely,” Ruby says. “But even then, watching Hugh pretend to be some kind of down to earth everyman, when everyone knows he’s secretly the biggest prima donna on the show, is super entertaining to me.”

“To me, too!” I say, laughing.

“What does your brother say about Hugh?” Kai asks.

Tate chuckles. “My brother says Hugh is a flaming cunt.”

Everyone laughs uproariously while I shift my weight in my chair. If I don’t say something now, I feel like it will seem weird later, when my name is announced and everyone realizes I sat here and said nothing.

“Titus and I used to watch the show every week with our mom,” Ruby says.

“You watched with Mom,” Titus says. “I never did.”

“Yes, you did. Remember, you were obsessed with that one contestant . . . Kikuko?”

Titus grins. “Oh, yeah. Kikuko. She was hot.”

Everyone laughs, except Savage, who hasn’t laughed once during this entire conversation. At this point, I’m not sure if he’s even capable of laughing.

I clear my throat, still mustering my courage. “I used to watch with my mom and sister every week,” I say, looking at Ruby. “And guess who’s always been my mom’s favorite?” I snort. “Hugh.”

Everyone chuckles. Again, everyone except Savage. And I suddenly realize this is it. My last chance to mention that I’m going to be appearing as a mentor on the next season. If I don’t say it now, the conversation will shift and I’ll lose my chance. I take a deep breath. “I’m actually going to be on the show next season. Just one episode, as a mentor for Aloha’s team.”

The table explodes with congratulations and reactions from everyone except Savage. Most notably, Titus apologizes for calling the show “cringey-ass” earlier.

“No need to apologize,” I say. “It is cringey-ass.”

“But that’s its charm,” Ruby interjects. “Congrats, Laila. That’s awesome.”

“Thank you. The best part was telling my mom. She shrieked with joy when she found out.”

“Yeah, and I bet the paycheck won’t suck, either,” Titus says.

“Actually, the pay for mentors is almost nothing,” I admit. “Only a couple thousand bucks—just enough to meet union minimums.”

My musician, Tate, says, “Yeah, my brother says they’re cheap-ass bastards to everyone but the judges. The judges make millions per season, while everyone else makes peanuts.” He smiles at me. “I’m sure it’ll be well worth your while, for reasons other than the salary.”

“My label head and agent both think so. Honestly, I’d have said yes for no money at all. Just for the exposure.”

Savage scoffs and, for the first time, deigns to enter the conversation. “Never do anything for free, unless it’s for charity. But definitely not for a cringey-ass TV show that’s making money, hand over fist, for everyone but the talent. Always know your worth, Laila. If you don’t, nobody else will.”

I furrow my brow in surprise. I’m not certain if he was intending to compliment me, or chastise me, with that comment. All I know is it felt like the latter. “There was no way to push back on the money,” I insist. “They’ve got a waiting list a mile long of people wanting to be a mentor. Plus, like I said, Reed and my agent, who’s one of the best in the business, both said it was worth it to take the gig, so that’s what I did. But, regardless, it’s one day of work to make my mom extremely happy. And that’s enough for me.”

Savage rolls his eyes. “Never mix emotion and business, Laila. That’s a recipe for disaster.”

What the fuck? Who does he