When We're Thirty by Casey Dembowski (beautiful books to read .TXT) 📕

fewer shows. One night after too many drinks and too many unanswered calls, there was this groupie—I hate to use that term—there was a woman, and I cheated on my wife.”

Wow. Hannah sucked in a breath. She hadn’t been expecting any of this. Leonard Nulty stuck to the music in a very dry and rigid way despite that his entire discography was autobiographical.

“I told Veronica right away, and I thought that was the end of things,” he said without pausing, barely noticing Hannah’s strife. “Could I have forgiven her for the same thing? I’m still not sure to this day. But my wife is a warrior and a goddess. It took a while—a lot of screaming and truth-telling and hard conversations. Our half-truths and omissions had led to resentment we didn’t even know was building. But we worked it out. We had Alicia.”

Hannah knew the time he spoke of—fans called it “the Blackout.” Leonard had gone silent—no tours, no music, nothing for nearly a year. Then Alicia appeared on his social media accounts—a small, squished-up version of her father—and they’d thought it all made sense. They’d been wrong. Hearing the story from Leonard colored all the music that came after. The album that followed the Blackout had been one of his best. It had left behind the mainstream sound of Lollipop Dreams and returned to his punk and emo roots. It had felt like a love letter to the fans. It was a memoir.

“Who we are now together is so much stronger than who we were all those years before,” he said. “Sometimes the way you fit back together after you’ve been broken is better than the way it used to be. Maybe that’s how it will be for you and Will too.”

“I hope so.” Hannah laid her pen down on top of her notebook. “Do

you want that off the record?”

A small smile played across his face. “Riley was right about you.”

Chapter 52Hannah

The Final Love Act: A Deafening Silence Exclusive with Wilderness Weekend’s Leonard Nulty by Hannah Abbott-Thorne.

Hannah reread the headline. Her eyes stopped on what she hoped would still be her name after this was all over. Hannah Abbott-Thorne. It was a suitable byline for Leonard Nulty’s goodbye and one of the few ways she had of letting Will know she wasn’t going anywhere.

She scanned the article, already edited and partially laid out. Leonard had agreed to a second round of photos with his family. Once those were in, the layout would be adjusted, and in a few more weeks, this baby would go live, setting off a whirlwind of response in Boston and hopefully throughout his fanbase. Hannah could use a bit of fame by association. It had been a while since she’d had a story this big.

Riley sniffled from across the room. Hannah nudged her with her foot.

“Hannah, this is amazing. It’s the perfect big headline piece we need to kick off Boston. When Leo told me he wanted to give us an exclusive, I never expected this. He gave me no warning. How did you keep it together? How did you get so much out of him?”

How indeed. Hannah hadn’t told Riley that he’d agreed to swap one of his truths for hers. It wasn’t that she had revealed anything scandalous, but it had been ingrained in Hannah since high school that reporters shouldn’t insert themselves into the narrative. They were the storytellers, not the story. Riley would understand. Hannah had been around for the Robbie Cooper and Riley Anderson show. It had ended with Robbie in rehab and Riley engaged to Danny. Okay, maybe the rehab had been a few years later, but Riley had had a personal hand in launching Robbie’s career with her in-depth interviews—in-depth because she’d had insights from the bedroom.

“We just talked,” Hannah said. “He knew I was a fan, so that was an in. Plus, since this is his farewell, he wanted to get it all out there.”

Riley sniffled again. The printout she was reading crinkled in her grip.

“Riles, why are you crying?” Hannah placed her hand lightly on Riley’s knee.

“It’s just—you don’t understand! This story, your work here. It’s like watching my baby grow up. I mean, you were my first intern in New York, and now you led the upstart of the Boston edition. And with an exclusive like this! Nate’s already agreed to run it on the cover in both New York and LA.”

“Are you serious?” Hannah had had plenty of covers before, but none of them ran nationally. A coast-to-coast cover was a rare gem in a pile of costume jewelry.

“So serious that Nate wants you to run the Boston edition.”

Hannah sucked in a breath. Run the Boston edition—be Riley. Riley had given everything to the magazine. Hell, she was spending three days in Boston away from her three-month-old daughter. Hannah hadn’t understood why she was coming up, but she didn’t mind the company. She’d spent the whole last week working on her article, going to concerts, and worrying over Will—nothing more, nothing less. But then Riley’s decision to make the trip to Boston sans baby made sense. It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that she got to offer to the intern she’d brought up through the ranks. Six months ago, Hannah wouldn’t even have hesitated. She would’ve left Brian, hugged Kate, and headed to Boston full-time. But life had taken an unexpected turn. Hannah Abbott-Thorne.

The last few weeks in Boston were everything she had ever dreamed of professionally. The assignment had taken everything she’d had. It had tested her abilities and proved to her that she deserved all the faith Riley had in her. But it had strained her relationships and pulled her away from the people who mattered. Hannah couldn’t give everything forever. She couldn’t be Riley. More importantly, she didn’t want to be.

Hannah wanted to go home. She wanted to kiss Will and work on her marriage. Talking to Leonard had given her perspective. As she told her and Will’s love