Chapter 34: Smart Girls Make Friends

Thanks for waiting patiently.  You are rewarded with a nice long chapter. It is one of my favorites in the whole series. For the first time ever, I present to you...all the Soundcrush ladies, in honest harmony. I think they are gonna be a force to be reckoned with.

The song: Friends, by Meghan Trainor. Seems appropriate!

Marley

It's a little weird to me that Mac and Kat are stripped to their panties and trying on earrings together in a full length mirror while their spray tans dry. Mac is scrunching her nose at a pair of giant hot pink tassels that Kat is holding up to her ears. Kat swats Mac with the tassel.

"You're not in LA anymore, bitch. You can't tell me they don't wear these in Nashville, just like Atlanta."

"Yeah, but this is potentially a video shoot, and it's not a country music video," Mac says, flapping the earrings away and inspecting her naked body critically. She turns to the side, smooshing her boob flat and examining what I imagine might be some stretch marks, though I'm not exactly straining to see them.

She sighs. "Lennon is so worth it, but I'll never be able to wear a bra top onstage again."

"Shut-up," Kat says mildly. "You look exactly the same."

"I don't," Mac says flatly. "I've lost the weight but my body will never be the same." She turns and examines the slight cellulite on her butt.

"I have cellulite too," I tell her. "And stretch marks. I guess it does suck to have to worry about video of your stage appearances, but at least you know Adam is never going to look at those slight imperfections with anything but love. He loves your body because it grew his child. What really sucks...is to hook up with somebody relatively new, and you haven't told them about your half-grown kid, and they freak out when they get up close with stretch marks and realize you are somebody's mom."

Mac blinks as she pivots—naked boobs and all—toward me. Despite the fact that Kade and I had a couple of friendly double dates with Adam and Mac, she seems very surprised to see me in her inner sanctum. I prepare myself for a frosty Arabella-type reply—what are you doing in here?—but what's really surprising to me is that Ashlynn seems to expect it, too. And she moves closer beside me, a show of solidarity.

Mac proves us both wrong as she bites her lip. "Damn. You're right. I didn't think of it like that."

I give her a sheepish shrug. "You're right about one thing, though. They are totally worth it. I wouldn't trade Darius for all the scars of having him."

Mac smiles as she moves to the bed and slides into a floral kimono she doesn't bother to tie. "Bodie can't stop talking about what a prodigy he is. He's scared shitless the kid is gonna blow up on social and you're going to have a bunch of A&R guys show up to your house, wanting to make Darius a pop star."

Now it's my turn to blink. "He...Bodie said that...really?" He hasn't said a word like that to me. Does he really think Darius is so talented that he would get industry recognition just from YouTube content?

Kat is putting on a robe. "Which is weird, because Bodie isn't scared of anything. He never worries. Lately, he keeps Facetiming Trace, and they watch videos of Darius together. Trace grins and swears. Bodie shakes his head and swears, and then they switch up the head shaking and grinning. But they keep the cussin' pretty consistent."

"Same," Mac and Ashlynn echo in unison.

Irritation pinches me. Why in the hell is Bodie sharing his worries about our son with other people?

But then I think about the rest of what Kat said. She's wrong. Bodie is scared. He's scared of Cain Priestly's ghost. He's scared of going to jail again. He's scared of Daemon and what he might do if he found out the truth. Is it really surprising he's keeping other worries from me? He thinks I've worried enough on my own, all these years, I guess.

"Well, that's news to me," I say simply. I start toward the bathroom door.

"Wait," Mac says. "Let's see 'em."

"Huh?"

She grins, tugging at my tshirt. "Your stretch marks. I need to know what I'm in for...like if they get better or worse over time."

"Mac, not everyone wants to get naked in front of other people," Ashlynn hisses at her.

"And not everyone is a Pollyanna like you, either," Mac says airily, stalking around me, looking at my ass in shorts. I snort. She's just messing with me, but she doesn't know I have had much scarier women than her check me out.

"Ash isn't a Pollyanna," Kat says quietly, pulling on a tank top. "Mac, you should really be more sensitive. Not everyone is as body positive as you."

Mac gives Kat a mildly offended look. "Jeez-Louise, I was just teasing her."

"Well, you shouldn't tease people—"

"Well, you don't have to get bitchy—"

"Don't call me a bitch—"

"I didn't, but you call me a bitch all the time—"

Kat and Mac have hands on hips now. I watch, fascinated, as Mac tosses her wavy strawberry blonde mane. I swear it bristles slightly, like a cat in attack. Kat's eyebrows are raised in clear disapproval of Mac's tone.

I comb through my repertoire of de-escalating phrases for an appropriate way to stop a cat-fight. Why don't we take a time-out, will likely get ignored with these two hellions. Get your ass on up outta here, before I break your nose always worked in prison but might be a bit over the top for this situation.

Ashlynn beats me to intervention by dropping her towel and walking between her sister and her friend. "Stop." She holds her hands out toward each of them. "Kat is just trying to protect me. Because of this."

She turns. Mac and I get the full view of a terrible scar on her side.

It's like something out of an awful horror movie, or maybe a noir graphic novel. The letters cut into Ashlynn's skin look pink and shiny, but they feel as raw and gory to me as the day some sick person must have brutalized her.

"Oh honey."

Mac's face crumbles into tears as she stands on tip-toes to snatch Ashlynn to her in a tight hug. It's then I remember about her PTSD and feel slightly concerned that this might be a trigger moment for her. I watch both Ash and Mac carefully as they separate. They are both emotional, but I don't see any signs of anxiety or confusion.

"Leed has seen, obviously..." Mac's voice is high and tight as she wipes tears and offers Ashlynn her own robe.

Ashlynn shrugs into it, tying it slowly, methodically, not looking at any of us. "Yes."

Mac squints hard. stalking over to a suitcase and pulling out a what looks like one of Adam's dress shirts, buttoning only a couple of buttons.

She squares off in front of Ashlynn. "I know who did this to you."

Ashlynn looks up quickly, her eyes wide. They relax almost at once, and I see Ashlynn donning a mask not unlike the rock stars wear. "I know you think Grayson Puckett is an animal—"

"Puckett doesn't have the balls for that. That's not who I meant. It was whoever Varrick Von used to work for, before he bought our security firm."

Ashlynn has a good poker face. "Who?"

"Ashlynn, don't bullshit me. I saw Varrick Von come find you in a club at least half a dozen times and take you out. And Matt del Marco told Adam to think about using a company different than Sentinel for our Nashville security. He said he didn't trust Varrick Von or the guy he used to work for. Said there are rumors about an industry VIP whose kink fetishes get out of hand. But Matt wouldn't tell Adam who the guy was—just someone in the industry that you don't talk shit about."

I'm shocked by everything going on right now, but not least of all the news that Varrick Von might have been involved in trafficking vulnerable women to a sociopath. It seems at odds with his concern for Arabella. Then again, maybe Arabella is a vulnerable target for an abuser.

Ashlynn glides around Mac, like she can shirk off her words.

"Is that why Von left his old boss? Because of what the guy did to women?"

"Matt is very very right. You need to stop talking. And don't spread rumors about Varrick Von either. He's...honestly...I don't know if he's a good guy or a bad guy. Either way, he's a dangerous man."

Mac is pacing, throwing her hands out. "What does Leed say about this?" and before Ashlynn can even answer, "Please god, tell me you didn't tell him who did that."

"I can't."

"You are damn right you can't," Mac says fiercely, "He will probably get the guys riled up and together they will try to kill the bastard."

"I know," Ashlynn says hoarsely. "Look, I'm...I'm handling it."

Kat steps up, and pulls at Ashlynn's shoulders. "You're not handling it. You're just...denying it happened. You won't even talk about it. She won't even talk about it," Kat looks at me and I jump in my own skin.

Sheesh, for a second I forgot I was here. It was like I was watching from the outside.

Suddenly, I'm in this moment, and I'm not Marley. I'm Dr. Watkins. I'm the advocate for the person in need.

"Listen guys," I reach out a hand to Mac and Kat. "Trauma like Ash experienced...it's not an intervention situation. Not unless the victim is still in danger." I look to Ash

"I'm not," she says quickly. "And I do talk about it." She looks between the three of us. "I have a therapist. I can talk about it as easily as you talk about what happened to you, Mac."

Ashlynn surprises us all by swiveling on her toes. In seconds, she's thrown open the double doors to the living suite and quietly called Tamara inside.

"I need to tell you something, Tamara. I know you think I'm a cutter. I know you told Leed that, and I don't blame you for it, because you did see me cutting myself. But I don't have a self-harm problem. I want you to understand what you saw."

I've never heard someone speak so calmly and simply about an abusive relationship as Ash does, when she tells us all what happened to her. She never reveals her abuser, and her tale is told in a matter of minutes. When she shows Tamara the full scar, she ends up comforting Tamara, who cries in her arms.

I smile at the sight. Ashlynn is scarred but she's also healed. She's in a state of beautiful grace not many achieve. My only worry for her is I hope she understands that it's not Leed who has healed her, but her self-love.

It would be easy for her to get confused about that. She looks at that man like he hung the moon.

Another moon-hanger pounds on the door and yells, "Hope y'all are dressed!"

Trace pops his head in and loses his grinny expression to see us all in robes.

"Damn! Dudes—you won't believe this!" Trace throws open the doors to reveal his sexy bandmates, fully dressed in club clothes, just like him. He rolls a dramatic arm toward us. "They haven't even showered! They smell like spray tan. And they are crying!"

"Crying?" Leed yells, striding from the other side of the suite, straight into the room of women. He looks at Ashlynn, then his sister, then Tam.

His eyes settle on Ashlynn. "Alright, Sunshine?"

"Fine," she assures him.

Men aren't always beautiful, but Leed is when he smiles at Ashlynn. A silent exchange between them makes me think their understanding is as deep as couples who've spent years loving each other.

He gives his sister another perusal, and apparently satisfied with what he sees there, he wraps a loose arm over Tamara's shoulders. "What the hell, girl? These ladies are behind schedule, and you gotta get ready, too. I know you wanna make Ben drool."

"That's best accomplished undressed," she says smugly. Leed laughs.

"Okay, but what about the photo-ops? Your last day on the job and you're phonin' it in for us?"

Tamara fiddles with the set of Leed's shirt upon his shoulders. "The glam squad had to eat! I sent them to an early dinner."

"Well then you better get out here and do my hair," he says. "Cause we aren't waiting three more hours on you ladies to get ready. We're gonna head to the house and send the ride back for you."

Tamara spends a few minutes fussing over Leed's locks while Ashlynn and Kat play dueling hair-dryers over Trace's head. Mac pushes Adam down in a stylist chair and climbs atop him, but he's already styled his seemingly effortless undercut, so they are mostly teasing and kissing.

Bodie leans down in front of a stylist station, picking through the hair accessories, coming up with a tie and pulling the top half of his dreads back.

"How's that?" he asks, spinning, trying to catch a view of the back of his head, like a dog chasing his tail. I reach for a hand mirror and hold it up for him.

"Looks good," I tell him.

He puts his hand over mine, to adjust the mirror.

Every damn time he touches me, my blood thrills in my veins. I look up at him, and he's not looking in the mirror. He's looking at me.

"You didn't get your spray tan."

"We were having girl talk, but I think I still have time."

"Don't. I mean," he lowers the mirror, but he's basically holding my hand while I hold the mirror now. "Don't tan just because you think I like you like that."

"Maybe I want you to like me like that," I say, then bite my lip and close my eyes as I slap a hand to my mouth.

Bodie is chuckling. "Wow. Did you throw back a few shots in the limo during your drive around the park?"

I slap his pec. "Of course not, Bodie! I'm your sobriety companion."

He laughs. "Okay, okay. Jesus. No need to assault me. You're just acting a little...giddy."

"It's all you rock stars," I cut him off. "I think all your pheromones start competing when you get together."

He looks amused. "Ah. I see. Well...let me ask you something, Marley."

"What?" I reply rather stupidly, still staring at the way his lips curl over his perfect teeth.

"Whose pheromones are actin' on you?"

I lean in slightly toward his neck and breathe in long, letting loose a blissful sigh.

Bodie snickers and pulls me close, leaning his head on my shoulder as he shakes with laughter. "That's good to know, Mama," he murmurs where no one can hear.

His hands are gripping the back of my waist, his fingers tapping a light rhythm on the upper curve of my booty.

I am losing my mind over this man.

"Look at the hands on that rock star. They never fail to bring home the win." I look over to see Mac draped over Adam, both staring at us while she commentates our interaction like some kind of sexcaster. "Watkins gives him the opening and Jamison is one drive from the touch down."

Oh my god. What is wrong with her?

Wait...what is wrong with me? How can I forget where I am—who I am—so easily, every time Bodie touches me?

"MacKenna," Adam sighs in irritation as Bodie gives her a disgusted look and releases me. I step around him to put the mirror away.

"What's going on?" My least favorite voice whines. Arabella strides from the opposite bedroom in full glam. Wow, her team works fast. Then again, she did have four people working on her all at once.

"You would be the last person to know, Arabella."

Mac uses one dangling foot to block Arabella's path to Bodie, to whom she was making a beeline.

Mac and Arabella have a stare down. Bells, rigid in her four inch heels and body con, and Mac perfectly languid in the love of her husband and his favorite dress shirt.

Riley breaks the stand-off by swinging in from the hall, ushering nannies and babies.

Mac's attention switches from Bells like she is an insignificant fly, as she takes her daughter from the nanny's arms and plants kisses. She talks to Lennon about her nap, receiving her response in Lennon's happy coos and smiles. Adam plays with Lennon's feet and sings to her as he holds both his girls.

Ollie begins to fuss at the sight of his parents and Tam drops her tools with a clatter, but Bodie puts out a hand. "Finish Leed's hair, I got him," he says, taking the baby and making bright faces and gentle sounds at him.

"Hey Cuz," he says mildly, holding the six month old easily with one arm. "Wanna go throw Daddy's sunglasses in the pool?"

He snatches up Leed's Marc Jacobs and hands them to  Ollie, who immediately snaps an arm off. "Oof, nevermind. You're deadly with these."

Bodie teases both pieces from him before he can stab himself in the eye and replaces them with a toy that the nanny is urgently thrusting at him.

"Payback's a wicked wicked witch," Leed warns Bodie. Then he grins as Bodie bounces his son. "Ollie, little man. You're killing me. You know that, Ollie? Killing me. Sunglasses don't grow on trees."

Trace claps his hands. "Okay, people. We've got to divide and conquer here. Ladies, please...be ready by the time we send the ride back for you. Men, let's mount up. We got pre-press at the band house."

"Wow, shall I just take the night off, then?" Riley says dryly.

"Well someone's gotta run this show. You seem more interested in playing nanny right now than managing. Hey," Trace says suspiciously, putting up a warning finger. "You got something to tell me?"

"I assure you, impending fatherhood is not the reason," Riley says dryly. "There was a security issue. I got a tip from hotel management that paparazzi were trying to get pictures of Ollie and Lennon from a balcony across the street. We're moving them to a more secure suite." He passes the parents out key cards.

"Thank you for that, Riley. Trace...shit...I'm sorry. I forgot about the pre-press."

"It's just a local thing. Don't worry about it, Mac. We'll tell them you're busy breastfeeding or something," Trace quips.

"More concerning is why I don't know about this," Riley says giving Trace a look of surprise. "Trace, press is Marcy's arena—"

"If you wanna give somebody grief, then bitch at that man," Trace points a finger at Bodie. "He set it up."

Everyone stares at Bodie. He's wearing his rock star face. "A friend of a friend has a new job covering the entertainment beat in Atlanta. Just bein' nice, is all. Just a fluff piece about how Soundcrush is making a home base in Atlanta with the band house, how we'll be recording here in the fall. Adam and I will handle most of it. Marcy will get a pre-release for approval before the reporter files."

I wonder who this friend of a friend is. Bodie hasn't mentioned anything at all about doing a reporter a favor.

My wonderings are interrupted as Ollie demands my attention with a series of sweet babbles because Bodie is making faces at him.

Bodie looks so natural with a kid in his arms, my heart can hardly take it. There's a huge part of me that is grateful for the circumstances that let Bodie escape becoming a father at sixteen. There's another part of me that thinks he was robbed of the role he was born for.

"You're pretty good with babies," I say softly.

"Tam's brothers and sisters have lots. I love 'em. Especially riling them up and giving them back to their parents when they cry. Here, you wanna enjoy temporary baby-bliss?" Bodie twirls Ollie toward me.

I reach out with coos to the gorgeous baby boy, and his eyes light up as I baby talk while I pull him to me.

Bodie watches me with an unreadable expression, and then he cups the back of Ollie's head. It's a sweet gesture, but the feeling it gives me is bittersweet. It feels good to lavish joint attention on this child—our son's cousin. It also feels sad that we never had the chance to share Darius as a baby.

"For the love of god, people," Trace is saying as the makeup and hair artists pour back in.

Bodie gives me a regretful grimace. "So...I'll see you over there."

"Yeah," I hide my mixed emotions by focusing on Ollie.

Bodie leans forward and kisses the top of Ollie's head, while he rubs my back. "There's security for the teen party. But if Darius beats you there...I'll watch out for him."

"Thanks. I hope your press goes well."

He nods silently, but he's rooted to the spot. His lips are pressed thin. Finally he tears his eyes away from Ollie and me.

He gestures for Arabella to precede him out the hotel door. I watch them go. He's careful not to touch her, but I know by the time I arrive at the party, they will have their hands all over each other.

Adam kisses Mac and Lennon with equal tenderness and chucks deuces at me as he passes me by on the way to the door. "Adam—"

He swings around, walking backwards with an easy smile. "I know what you're gonna say, Marley. But don't worry. You can take an hour to get ready. Bodie will be fine without you. We got him. And anyway, he already told you...he'll be looking out for Darius." Adam gives me a wink.

That's weird. Adam never winks at me.

Trace yells toward the bedroom. "KittyKat, I'm out! Love you!"

"Love you too! See you over there!" she yells back.

Leed has no qualms about a tender public display with Ashlynn. He grabs her roughly, dips her wildly, and pulls her into a dramatic kiss.

"You can't be late like this tomorrow," Leed warns her between a series of kisses and giggles. "We have a flight to Costa Rica to catch."

"Okay. But if I can't be late, you can't be hungover."

"Deal." Still, he lingers with his forehead pressed to hers. "You sure you are feeling okay?" he asks. "We can postpone Costa Rica..."

"We are not postponing. I'm headache free for ten days now, baby," she says patiently.

"Bodie and Adam can handle the pre-press. You want me to hang out while you get gorgeous?" Leed asks, twirling a silkly strand of her hair and sliding his other hand up her the silk of her robe.

"Get in the bloody elevator mate." Riley claps Leed hard on the shoulders. "You'll see Ashlynn in a bit. Christ, you're not going off to war."

I snort. That's exactly what I was thinking. Leed lopes out, giving Ashlynn a regretful backward glance.

"Go," Ashlynn laughs.

"Jesus Christ Leed!" Mac whispers yells from the couch where she is nursing Lennon. "Are you a puppy or a rock star?"

He summons his rock star, giving Ashlynn the sexy chin tip and Mac the finger as he sails out the door.

Tam takes Ollie from me to feed him, and I feel a little pang of regret, which surprises me. I'm not usually big on holding other people's babies. It brings back the memory that for the first year of his life, I held Darius exactly one time a month, when Pat and TJ brought him to visit.

"Go tan. Now," Tam encourages me.

By the time I am sprayed, dried, showered, and installed in my makeup chair, the nannies have taken the babies. Mac, Ashlynn, and Kat have their hair set in huge curlers.

My two artists introduce themselves, and getting camera ready gets serious. It's a little weird, to have people circling me and commenting on my hair and cheekbones like I'm not even there.

I just go with it, and in the end, I'm glad I did.

Their work is unbelievable. When they step back with hands pressed together, waiting for my opinion, I'm shocked. The girl staring back at me in the mirror looks about fifteen years younger than I feel.

She looks like the girl Bodie used to know, minus the braids, and sexed up for sin.

"I don't know what to say..." I murmur.

That causes the girls to bat away their own stylists and crowd around me.

"How about...Yes, Bodie. Oh Bodie, yes, yes, yes!" Mac squeals. Then she stops the squeals and pats me on the back. "Practice now, so his name just rolls off the tongue later tonight."

"Mac, for the last time, I can not get involved with Bodie. We have a working relationship."

"Yeah, that's exactly what I always told Adam. In bed. Right after sex. We can't do this again, Adam. We work together." She snorts. "Word of advice...just skip the protest and let Bodie know you care. Guys like Adam and Bodie feel used when you fuck 'em and pretend like it was a mistake."

"Leave her alone, Mac," Ashlynn laughs. "Waiting on the right timing can be a good thing, too." Ash is circling me. "Marley, do you feel beautiful? Because you are always beautiful, but I have a feeling you might be the most gorgeous girl at the party tonight."

"Be quiet," I say, smiling at the girl whose light eclipses us all.

"Of course she feels gorgeous—look at her!" Kat says. "Girl, you need a stripper name."

I laugh. "I sort of...already have one."

"Adam told me you were a bartender at the Lunar Lounge. I knew you were a stripper," Mac punches me. "Get up, show us your moves."

I roll my eyes at her. "I danced for one week," I say. "But I had the name before that. I...ran away from home as a teenager, and I went by another name for a while. But you're right...I did use the name that week I danced," I concede to Mac.

"Knew it! You're a bad girl," Mac teases me. "Wait...what did you do about the stretch marks?"

"Silicone primer and pancake makeup."

"Good idea," Mac snaps.

"But what was your stripper name?" Kat asks.

"Jasmine Jones."

A clatter, then shatter turns all our attention to Tamara. She's standing amidst the shards of a broken hand mirror, her jaw dropped open in shock. Then she flaps both hands without touching her face and laughs hysterically. "Oh my god! You're the girl Bodie lost his virginity to!"

I try to play it off. "What? No."

"Don't lie! It was you! He got drunk and told me all about it! Jasmine Jones!"

Mac whips around peering in my face. Unconsciously, I blush. Her face morphs into evil glee.

"Holy shit!"

It's unbelievable how loud four women can be when they all shriek at the same time. I try to cover my face against the cacophony of squeals, cursing, and maniacal laughter.

Tam steps over the broken mirror and  jerks my hands away from my face. "Don't you dare mess that up!" She pulls me from the chair and barks, "Dresses. Everyone. Now. We'll hear the story in the limo."

"Oh no you won't," I say.

"Oh yes we will!" Kat thrusts a demanding finger in my face.

"Most def. Or I will extract every pain-staking detail from Bodie. In front of the guys." Mac beams, skipping—literally skipping-into the bedroom.

"What have I done?"

"You've opened up Pandora's box of sex secrets, girlfriend," Ashlynn says, companionably wrapping an arm around me. "They bugged me for weeks when I wouldn't come across with details about sleeping with Leed. Eventually they got them from him."

Kat is shimmying into her dress. "Oh my god, it was classic!!!! He said he has visions of pink mandalas the exact color of her nipples while he's sexing her!"

"Also, that she gives the best blow jobs he's ever had. And he's had a lot, so you know she has to be the BJ Queen," Mac smirks.

Ashlynn sighs. "So you see, Marley? It's probably better that you control the narrative. Otherwise Bodie will give them endless fodder with which to torture you."

"Oh Jesus," I moan, and she laughs.

The trip down memory lane I'm forced to take in the limo is beyond embarrassing. Mac asks such graphic questions it's nearly painful. I completely refuse to imitate the face Bodie made during orgasm. I mean, I don't remember him making a weird face. I was too caught up in my own shock of sex feeling like...more than just sex.

I don't tell them that. I mostly focus on the vaguest facts—that Bodie was incredibly sweet and surprisingly confident. That he was only my second sexual partner and he made me feel more beautiful and more valued than the first. That we were only together one time.

After two glasses of champagne, Kat blurts out, "So did Bodie know?"

"Know what?" I ask, as Ashlynn pours me another glass of sparkling pomegranate juice.

"About Darius."

Silence reigns in the limo. Everyone looks at me like the thought hadn't occurred to them.

Kat drinks from the champagne bottle. "I mean, that's the big secret motivator that has one-eighted Bodie's life, right? He's completely different than he was six months ago. He's disciplined, he's patient, he's steady. It's because he found out Darius is his kid, right? He didn't know before?"

I don't know what to say. I just stare at Kat. She's the youngest of the group, but scarily like Leed in her intuition. And her annoying belief that the truth should be bluntly brought to light at all times.

As the silence drags on, the truth settles into the void.

"Oh my god," Mac whispers. "Is Kat right?"

"No," Tamara says. "No. Bodie would have told me. He told me about her one night when we got drunk together. He would have told me if there was a baby."

"Because he didn't know, obviously." Kat says again, like they are all slow.

"You...kept it from him? All these years?" Mac whispers. "How could you do that?"

"No!" I hiss. "I didn't keep it from him! I would never do that. I didn't know! I thought the father was someone else!"

The story comes tumbling out of me. Kat is constantly patting my eyes to keep my tears from running.

I can see their dubiousness when I explain about the DNA test, but that fades when I pull out my phone and show them both a photo of the test and the pictures of Darius and Bodie's grandfather. When I show them videos of Darius, they all hold my phone up to Tam's face and exclaim over and over about the similarity of their eyes and brows and foreheads when they talk and smile. We compare baby pictures of Darius and Ollie. Mac and Tamara need their makeup dabbed at that point.

I tell them everything except Cain Priestly, which isn't my secret to tell. But everything else pours out. I can't stop myself. I've been holding this all inside for far too long. In a rush, I share with them my fear of Daemon, and how I mostly fear for Bodie if Daemon learns the truth.

When I finish, Tamara is hugging me tight and Ashlynn is holding my hand.

Mac runs from furious over Daemon's abuse to gleeful over Darius' existence. "Well, clearly we've got to do something about Daemon. We need to put Riley on that. But oh my god, Darius is going to be at the party, right?" She beats the seat. "We get to meet Baby Butters! And he's a prodigy. I can't wait to see him play! This so awesome!"

"But listen, we can't let the guys know we know about Darius," Kat warns. "They would be so hurt that Bodie didn't tell them first."

"That's true," Mac says. "I'm hurt. But I get it. I mean, I believe he's Bodie's son, but there isn't DNA evidence, right? And I get why you don't want to have Darius tested right now, and have to explain."

"So we are keeping the guys in the dark, and waiting for Bodie to tell them?" Ash asks for confirmation.

I bite my lip. "Well, maybe it's just a guilt thing, but I got the feeling that maybe he already told them. Or at least Leed—"

"No way does Leed know, we would all know," Tam says. "Leed is a terrible secret keeper."

"Mmmmm...I'm not so sure about that," Mac says mildly. "He's a pretty good actor when required. He just hates being on the other side of secrets."

"Yeah, but it's like the Universe tells Leed shit that it wants to be made public," Tam protests. "Your false baby-Daddy will find out for sure, if Leed is in on the secret."

Mac puts out her hand. "Okay, so a pact. The guys can't know that Darius is Bodie's son, and Bodie can't know that we know. It's just the easiest way to help Marley keep her son safe."

To my surprise, Ashlynn grasps Mac's hand firmly. "You're right. Sometimes secrets are necessary to keep the people we love safe." She smiles at me.

Tamara puts her hand on next. "If we need to keep it on the DL for a while, I get it. I don't want to put anyone in danger. Especially not my new little cousin. But I think you should get the DNA test. Just to be sure."

Kat flutters her lips. "In my experience, secrets are a really bad thing. I don't like keeping things from Trace. We've done enough of that to one another."

Ashlynn puts an arm around Kat. "I love Leed, and I don't want to keep things from him either. But you probed a situation that wasn't our business and got an emotional confession that maybe Marley didn't plan. And this isn't our secret. We have to respect Marley's wishes."

Reluctantly Kat nods. She looks me straight in the eye. "I don't love keeping things from Trace, but I won't betray your confidence, especially since I sort of forced it from you."

I smile at my new, beautiful young friend. Her life is so different than mine was at nineteen, but in some ways Kat is a lot like me. She grew up fast and she's torn between her own ambitions and someone she loves. A love that's maybe too much too soon. In my case it was my son. In hers, it's Trace.

"Thank you, Kat."

Her smile is just like her sister's. Then it falls. "Oh, shit. We're all keeping a secret from you, Marley." She looks around. "We should tell her. I mean, what if Bodie's wrong and it's not going to be a happy surprise?"

"What are you talking about?" My hearts speeds a little. I can't imagine what surprise Bodie might have planned for me.

Mac smacks Kat on the back of the head. "Dammit, Leed Junior! That was a fun secret, and you ruined it!"

"What?" I demand.

Ashlynn puts an arm around me. "Bodie...he's been worried that you maybe don't have enough friends. He hates that Arabella is mean to you and that Mac could go for the jugular at any minute if Adam laughs at one your jokes."

"Which I could easily do, so watch yourself," Mac winks at me.

"Of course he couldn't predict...all this..." Kat picks up the story, tipping her champagne glass in a circle to indicate our little bonding session. "Anyway, he asked somebody named TJ about your girlfriends and TJ said you really only ever had one close friend, but he thought you weren't as close as you used to be. Some girl named Stephanie?"

I feel my smile on the inside. "Stephanie Scoresby? My old college roommate?"

Kat snaps. "That's it. She's the local entertainment reporter they invited to pre-press."

I blink. "Well that's a happy surprise, but she used to cover sports. I haven't talked to her in a couple of years, since she moved to New York..."

"Well, now she's back in Atlanta, covering entertainment. Bodie dug her up, gave her a big scoop, and set it all up to surprise you!"

I feel tears rising again. "That's so sweet. He's so sweet, you know?"

"We know," Mac hugs me. "But really I think he's trying to distract you from the fact that he has to pretend to be into Bells tonight. How do you feel about that?"

I concentrate on the bubbles in my sparkling juice. "Bodie is free to do what he wants. We aren't involved. I told you that."

"You really aren't together?" Mac grabs my chin, forcing me to look at her when I answer.

"No, really. I'm his sobriety companion."

"Well, that's just..." Mac makes a frustrated noise. "Stupid. He's your babydaddy. You love him don't you?"

"That's not the point."

"Do you?"

I trace the outside of my glass. "Maybe, but that's the stupid thing. I don't even know him. We were kids before."

"You guys have been interacting for almost a year now. And you been living together for months," Tamara muses. "I knew I loved Ben within three weeks of our first kiss. It just felt...so much more real...than anything I had ever experienced." She shoots a look at Ash. "I do love Ben, you know. It's just..."

"You love Leed, too. Not romantically, but...a lot." Ashlynn sighs. "I know, Tam. I'm glad you and Leed have love for each other. For Ollie's sake."

"It's like you love Trace," Kat muses. "Like he loves you. You shared something that bonded you, like Tam and Leed share Ollie."

I blink at Kat. Wow. She's really a very perceptive girl.

"Yeah, I guess so," Tam smiles at Ashlynn. "I'm sorry I was so jealous of you. I know it was really selfish and unfair. I'm still jealous a little, but I know I have to work on letting Leed go and embracing my future with Ben."

Ashlynn tears up. "Oh not you, too," Kat dabs at her face.

Mac claps her hands. "Focus people. We are trying to drill down to Marley's feelings here, we are not dishing up a BLT with a side of Little Sister Scandal." Mac turns to me. "So, Marley. In this time you've been living with Bodie, you are honestly saying...no sparks?"

I groan. "Are you kidding? I can't even be alone with my thoughts. Like at all. Or else I start fantasizing about him. And every time he touches me...I feel...seventeen again. And he touches me a lot. We have all these rules, but I let him break them. I'm basically a horny seventeen year old arguing with the licensed psychologist in my head all the time."

"Yay!" Mac claps and bounces up and down on the seat. "I'm so glad you are hot for Bodie and not my husband."

"Ok, we're doing this," Kat rubs her hand together. "First step—"

"Get rid of Arabella, obviously," Tam drones.

I groan. There's no getting rid of Arabella, because Bodie feels responsible for her, and I can't fully make them understand why, because I can't tell them about Cain Priestly.

"Look it's not even about Arabella, really. Bodie has made it pretty clear to me he doesn't have romantic feelings for her anymore. It's about Darius. How can I just throw caution to the wind and get involved with his father? What if it doesn't work out between me and Bodie? It might kill the chance for their relationship."

"So you're in love with the father of your child, but you don't want to truly be a family with him because it might hurt your chances of being a family with him?" Kat asks dubiously.

"Well, I know it sounds crazy when you put it like that..."

"It's not crazy," Mac says quickly. "I felt exactly the same way when I found out I was pregnant, and Adam and I were hardly even a couple. I was terrified of messing up the thing I wanted most."

I stare at her, amazed at how perfectly she understands. "Yes."

She beams at me. "And you didn't help, Dr. Watkins. Seeming like the perfectly reasonable sane girl Adam should be with, in contrast to all my crazy. When really you were just projecting your feelings for Bodie on Adam, who allowed you to get close to Bodie. Goddamn! I'm so fucking happy you are a hot mess, too!" She slaps me on the knee. "So let me tell you what I learned: the best thing for your child is a loving family. If there's a good chance of that with you and Bodie, and you get mad love with the deal too, you have to be brave enough to try."

"I think you've had too much therapy," I grumble, feeling distinctly uncomfortable beneath the weight of her eerie analysis.

"Dr. Maneater now seeing patients," Kat high-fives Mac.

"Okay, so what are we saying, here?" Ash interjects. "Do you want us to help you through your obstacles so you can be together?"

"No. Bodie needs to focus on his sobriety right now. Plus Riley will fire me if I sleep with Bodie."

"Bullshit he will. He's sleeping with his own client," Mac scoffs. "He just hired you so that you have power in your relationship with Bodie. Bodie is a like a bull in a china shop. So much energy and enthusiasm. He can be reckless. The job is...a harness Riley gave you."

"Yaasssssss!" Kat nods at Mac. "Marley just needs to reign Bodie in and ride him."

Ashlynn and Tamara dissolve into giggles. I try to cover my face again and Tamara holds my hands while she laughs into my lap.

Wow. I never had girlfriends before. Except for Stephanie. And she was pretty crazy, but not like these girls.

Looking around at these girls, memory prickles of warning. What if Stephanie gets too chatty tonight and tells one of these girls—or even worse, Bodie or Leed—what we did the night we crashed the Soundcrush House Party all those years ago?

Oh god, I probably should get ahead of that story, because it's pretty bad...

"Listen, please...just let Bodie and I figure things out in our own time, okay?"

"Booo," Mac says and then gives me a shoulder bump. "But okay. You're right. It took Adam and I four years to figure things out." The other girls nod in agreement.

"So listen...there is one more thing. Speaking of secrets, I have one to confess to you guys."

"Really?" Kat perks up.

"Well, it involves all of you, except Tam. You weren't around back then." I frown at her. "At least, I don't remember seeing you that night..."

"What night?" Ashlynn asks.

"Uhhhm...I don't remember the date, but it was four and half years ago in Athens. At the Soundcrush house. There was a party. Leed cut his finger and Ashlynn fixed it, Trace got Kat drunk—"

"Yep, first time," Kat says proudly, raising her champagne bottle.

"—and Mac and Adam made out in car that wasn't theirs..."

Mac sits up. "Actually we had sex in that car but how do you know that?"

"Because it was my friend Stephanie's car."

Ashlynn peers at me hard. "You were there that night! You were the girl making out with the other girl in Bodie's room that helped me find the superglue for Leed's finger!"

"That was Stephanie, my roommate, but we weren't making out. We just panicked and said that."

"Why?" Mac asks.

"It's a long story," I sigh.

Mac points to the standstill traffic on I-85. "Looks like we've got time."

"Yippee! Flashback Friday!" Kat yells and pops another champagne cork.

Next up: The tale of Stephanie Scoresby and Marley. What in the world did they do at that party they crashed?