Snapshot (40 page)

Right now he could care less where they lived. He’d get to be with Marti!

“Marti, why don’t you go say goodbye to your father. I’ll go pick up some clothes for you and be back in an hour or so. Does that sound okay?”

“I don’t know what to say,” Marti said. “Would it be okay if I hugged you?”

His mother stood and held her arms open. “That would be lovely.”

Adam watched as his mother embraced Marti. His heart burst with pride and hope for the future.

“I’ll meet you back in my room a little later,” Marti said. He saw excitement dance in her eyes. They would be together! This was better than his wildest dreams.

Marti left, and Adam and his mom walked across the patio.
 

“Mom, why are you doing this? Don’t get me wrong. I’m totally happy you are, but you were against me coming to see her and now you’re bringing her with us? I don’t get it.”

His mother adjusted her purse strap. “I’ve made mistakes in my life. For example, when Peter’s girlfriend Libby went through hard times, I could have stepped forward and helped. I could have saved that poor girl a lot of heartache, but I didn’t take the time to find out what was really going on. I did nothing. I’ve felt terrible that I let that happen.”

She paused and then continued. “If something terrible happened to you or one of your brothers, I would hope someone would step up and lend a hand. I think we’ve become too callous and self-centered in our world. An occasional random act of kindness is good for all of us.”

“I love you, Mom.”

“I love you, too.” She put an arm around his shoulder and gave him a squeeze. “But don’t think you’re off the hook for your behavior in New York. You have a lot of explaining to do, and your father is very upset. Your actions reflected badly on all of us.”

“I know.” And he did. He never should have left like that, but he didn’t regret it for a second and never would. Even so, he knew there would be hell to pay.

Chapter 24

Marti woke up disoriented. She glanced around the room at the smooth beige walls and slate-blue bedspread. It took her a minute to realize it was early afternoon, and she’d been napping in a hotel bedroom after a red-eye flight to Boston.

She wiped the sleep from her eyes and looked in the mirror. She wore makeup, and her clothes were selected by Adam’s mom, all the way down to her bra and panties. She never felt so vulnerable.

After quickly washing up, she ventured into the main hotel suite to face Adam’s family. While Marti was ecstatic to be with Adam, and she was grateful to his mom for her help, it still felt weird relying on them for everything.

Adam hunched over on the sitting room couch looking as if he recently woke up too. His face lit the moment he spotted her. Her shoulders relaxed and she felt so much better, as if she’d never be alone.

“Hi, Marti,” Peter said.

She turned. Peter and Libby sat on the leather loveseat facing Adam. “Hi! I didn’t see you two,” she said. Marti liked Libby a lot and was glad to see her again.

Libby came over. “I’m so happy you’re okay! I couldn’t believe it when I heard about the fire.” Libby hugged her.
 

“Thanks, it was pretty horrible.”

The door opened. Adam’s mom and two guys entered. Marti assumed by the way they frowned at Adam they were Adam’s dad and his other brother.

“Oh good, everyone’s here!” his mom chimed.

“You must be Marti, I’m Jett, Adam’s father.” The older man smiled kindly, a look very different from the angry frown he gave his son.

“Nice to meet you. And thank you for letting me stay with you, Mr Jamieson.”
 

“It’s our pleasure. We all feel terrible for you and your father. It’s a real shame, but I’m told he’s going to fully recover.”

“Yes. He has some minor burns and a broken arm, but that’s about all.”

“Hi, I’m Garrett.” Adam’s oldest brother gave her the once over and walked away.

She studied him as he crossed the room. Garrett stood a little shorter than Adam and lacked the genuine warmth of his brothers. His straight, dark hair framed his serious expression. His eyes matched Adam’s in color, except they were a little too close together. He was definitely her least favorite of the three brothers.

Garrett came up behind the couch and squeezed Adam’s shoulders. “Adam, you finally bothered to come back!” Garrett acted casual, but Marti noticed his knuckles turn white as he gripped Adam’s shoulders. Adam jumped up from the couch to break the vice-like hold.

“Yeah, ‘cause I missed your obsessive, controlling ways.” Adam joined Marti on the other side of the sitting area.

“Hey! You ever pull an asshole move, like ditching a performance, again, and I’ll break your neck.” Garrett pierced Adam with a threatening glare.

The mood in the room plummeted to glacial silence.

Marti wanted to slink away, out of Garrett’s sight. Adam’s body tensed.

“Just because I’m here doesn’t mean I’m coming back to the band,” Adam said, his jaw set.

What!
Marti hadn’t heard anything about that!
 

“Of course you’re in the band!” Peter interrupted in a calm voice. “No one’s quit anything.”

“Adam, I’ve had enough of your behavior. You’d be wise to hold your tongue,” his father warned.

Marti didn’t know what to do with all the hostility flying around. She and Grandma never fought. At her dad’s, she just disappeared when things got ugly.
 

Mrs. Jamieson interrupted. “Marti, can I have a moment with you? There are a couple of things we need to go over.”

Marti checked with Adam. He shrugged. She nervously joined his mom at the polished mahogany table, hoping she hadn’t done anything wrong.

“I thought you’d like to go buy a few things for yourself. Libby offered to take you, and I think that would be a lot more fun than having me around.” She dug in her purse.

Libby joined them with a friendly smile on her face. “There’s a mall not far from here.”

Adam’s mom held out a shiny card. “Here’s a debit card in your name.”
 

“How did you get that?” Marti asked. She wondered how Mrs. Jamieson had gotten it so fast. She couldn’t let them keep paying for her.

“Your father had his business manager set an account up for you at a bank here in Boston,” Mrs. Jamieson said. “There is a significant balance on it, so be sure not to lose it. Your birth year is the PIN number. Your father wants you to replace the belongings you lost in the fire. Insurance will cover everything, so don’t feel bad about spending the money.” She laughed at Marti’s stunned silence. “Don’t try to buy everything all at once. Just pick up whatever you feel like today.”

“Wow! That’s really nice.” Overwhelmed didn’t begin to express her emotions. But thank god she wouldn’t have to keep asking for favors.

“There’ll be lots of time to shop during next few days.” Libby added with a smile.

“One more thing,” Mrs. Jamieson said. “Your father’s business manager will be calling you tomorrow at ten a.m. to go over a few things, including getting you a new phone.”

Marti suspected Mrs. Jamieson was behind all of this happening so quickly. Heck, her dad was probably still flying high on pain killers. He likely gave Adam’s mom the go ahead, and she took over from there.
 

“While you girls are shopping, we have some family business to handle, so take all afternoon if you like.” Mrs. Jamieson snapped her handbag shut.

Marti turned to Libby, feeling like she won the lottery. “You want to go shopping?”

“Oh yeah! We can have some fun with that thing.” Libby pointed at the shiny plastic card in Marti’s hand.

She turned to go get her purse, but remembered she didn’t have one. One more thing to buy.
 

Adam walked her to the door. “Looks like your day has been planned. Sorry about that.” He wore a sheepish smile, probably embarrassed by his family.

“I guess so, but I really do need stuff, so this is okay.” Her mind skipped ahead to thoughts of mascara and a bra that fit.

“Have fun.” He hesitated. She knew he wanted to kiss her. She wanted a kiss too, but as long as his family was around, it didn’t seem like a good idea. She offered him a tiny wave and a playful smile as she turned and left with Libby.

Adam closed the door to the hotel suite, glad to see Marti out of his family’s line of fire. When he turned around, Garrett’s eyes lingered on the spot where Marti had stood.
 

“You didn’t tell me she was such a hot piece of—”

“Garrett!” their mother warned.

“I’m just saying.”

Adam glared. He wanted to knock the smirk off Garrett’s arrogant face.

“Can you boys control your tempers while I step away for a minute?” His mother disappeared into the master bedroom.

Adam sank into a cushioned chair. He knew this wasn’t going to be pretty. The time had come for him to pay for escaping New York.

His father sat on the couch and removed his glasses. He pinched the bridge of his nose. Garrett plopped down on the other end.

“So, you want to explain yourself?” his father asked.

“Not really,” Adam said.
 

His father’s expression switched from mild annoyance to severe irritation.
 

“However, if I have to, I’ll just say that everyone in this family has a voice in the band, except me. You all decide every last detail.”

“That’s bullshit, and you know it,” Garrett said.

“No, what’s bullshit is the way I’m shoved around without an ounce of respect. Garrett wants to do an international tour, so bam! We’re in Europe! Peter wants to move to Boston to be near his girlfriend, and the next thing I know, here we are, and Mom is shopping for new curtains!”

Adam turned to his brother. “Sorry, Pete. I’m glad you got what you wanted, but it sucks for me!”

“For the record,” Peter said. “I never asked them to follow me. I just wanted more space to do my own thing. I didn’t expect Mom and Dad to move the whole machine here.”

If Peter could have what he wanted, why couldn’t he? It was only fair. Addressing no one in particular, Adam asked, “so, what about what I want?”
 

“We aren’t discussing what you want. We’re discussing your irresponsible behavior,” his dad barked, his face red with frustration.

Garrett piped in. “You left Peter and I high and dry for a live, televised performance! It was SNL, you asswipe! You know how stupid we looked missing our lead guitarist?”

“It wouldn’t be the first time you looked stupid, dickwad!” Adam said to Garrett, then turned to Peter who was always more reasonable. “So what
did
you do?” He wondered how that went, but had been too busy with Marti to ask.

Peter answered, as if there wasn’t a family war waging. “They had a guy from the house band fill in. He was actually pretty good, but he couldn’t play any of the riffs you do.”
 

“Adam!” his father interrupted. “Walking out on a gig is not how this band or this family operates. I need your word that you will never abandon a commitment like that again.” His stern voice boomed across the room.

Adam thought about what he wanted to do. After his time at camp, and the last two days with Marti, freedom looked pretty damn good. “You know what? I’m not even sure I want to be in the band the way it’s run right now.”
 

His father furrowed his brow.

Garrett clenched and unclenched his fists. “You don’t get to quit. Jamieson is not like playing Go Fish!, where you get to throw your cards on the table and walk away when you don’t win!” Garrett said.

“Unless a whole lot changes, I sure as hell do!” Adam spat back. “Bands break up all the time.” He leaned back and crossed his arms.

Peter watched closely, but stayed silent.

Their mom returned and sat in the chair near Adam. She crossed her legs and looked expectantly at each of them. “So where are we?”

“Adam’s pouting about the move to Boston. He’s having a temper tantrum and threatening to quit the band.”

Adam wanted to shove Garrett’s face in a toilet, but settled for a sneer.

“Is this true?” his mom asked.
 

He shrugged, not trusting himself to speak.
 

“Peter, do you have anything to add?” she asked.

Adam couldn’t wait to hear what Peter thought.
 

Peter sighed. “Adam’s got a good point.”

Garrett rolled his eyes.

“Go on,” his mother urged.

“When we started Jamieson four years ago, it was Garrett and me that wanted the band. Adam was a natural on the guitar. Hell, he’s a natural at whatever he tries. But we never gave him a choice. I don’t think he wanted to be in the band back then.”

His mother contemplated Peter’s words and looked at Adam. “Is that true?”