“I think I am thirsty. Mind if I take you up on your offer for a cup of coffee?” she asked and I shook my head.

“Not a problem, babe. Let me fix you a mocha latte.”

Gracie and I went with Maysie back to Garrett’s house later in the day. My roommate had gotten up not long after I had made Maysie her cup of coffee and she had to launch into the entire story again.

Gracie was just as shocked as I had been. I was surprised that she hadn’t already gotten the scoop from Mitch. Typically she was the first person he would call when anything was going on. But her obliviousness to the situation made me wonder what was going on between the two.

Pulling up outside of Garrett’s home, I felt faintly sick. I wasn’t sure whether Cole would be there or not. And I hated to admit that my offer to hang out with Maysie there had something to do with my desire to see him. To make sure he was okay.

I couldn’t call him. I wouldn’t be weak enough to go by his apartment. But Garrett’s was neutral territory in a sense and I could feel less pathetic if I happened to run into him there as opposed to hunting him down.

Because despite everything that was going on his life, I had made the choice to cut ties. I’d feel like a bit ole’ pile of wuss if I caved in so soon. No matter what the reasons.

The three of us walked into the house and found Jordan, Garrett, and Mitch sitting in the living room playing video games.

Finding them like this, you would think nothing was wrong. A case of beer sat opened on the coffee table. Jordan and Garrett were cussing each other out as they tried to shoot each other while playing some combat role-playing game. Mitch was strumming one of Garrett’s acoustic guitars and none of them seemed overly concerned that their music career was set to implode.

But there was one major change in this familiar scenario. Cole was noticeably absent. Typically he would be right there with his best friends, shouting inappropriate commentary or getting wasted.

The void I felt by his absence was intense.

Garrett looked up when we entered and lifted a hand in greeting and then promptly let loose a string of curses when Jordan shot his character on the screen.

Maysie dropped her purse on the pool table in the corner and went to sit in Jordan’s lap.

“Hey ladies. Guess you weren’t expecting to see us around so soon,” Jordan said wryly, kissing the side of his fiancée’s neck.

I guess he was going to acknowledge the giant elephant in the room before it had a chance to trample us.

Gracie seemed oddly uncomfortable and I couldn’t help but notice the way she and Mitch purposefully didn’t look at each other. There was something definitely going on between the two and when I had a chance I would be finding out.

Gracie sat down on the Lazy Boy across the room and I made myself comfortable on the couch beside Garrett.

“Yeah, I was pretty stunned to find Maysie on our doorstep at ten-thirty on a Sunday morning. My first thought was she had wised up and left your sorry ass,” I teased, trying to lessen the tension.

“Not a chance in hell,” Jordan growled, kissing Maysie long and hard on the lips.

“Ugh, see what you’ve started, Viv!” Garrett complained, tossing the game controller on the coffee table and handing me a beer. I took it with a “Thanks” and gave him a pointed look.

“As if you and Riley are any different,” I challenged.

“I wish Ri would let me put my tongue down her throat in public!” Garrett joked, smacking Jordan on the back of the head, interrupting him as he devoured Maysie’s face.

“Maysie told us what happened,” Gracie said, her eyes flitting over to Mitch who was looking stanchly at the guitar in his lap.

“Yeah. We’re in deep shit right now. Even more if the label decides to not release our album,” Jordan muttered, releasing Maysie who slithered off his lap.

“So if Pirate Records decides not to release your record, what will happen then?” I asked.

“We have no f**king clue. Except that the music on that album will never be heard by anyone. Ever,” Mitch said bitterly.

“It’s bullshit,” Jordan said sharply.

“So what’s the next step then?” Gracie asked, accepting a bottle of iced tea that Garrett had thoughtfully offered her with a smile.

“We just have to wait and see what the label says next week. We’re flying up to New York next Tuesday. Until then we’re supposed to ‘sort our shit out,’” Garrett mimicked, obviously unhappy with the idea.

“And how exactly are you planning to sort your shit out?” I asked, noticing that throughout this entire conversation, not a single one of them had mentioned Cole.

Jordan shrugged. “We’ve got a lot to talk about. Things we have to work through. I’m not really sure where we’ll end up at the end of all this.” He said it lightly but I could tell he was worried. Maysie rubbed his back, leaning her head on his shoulder.

“Do some of the things you need to work through include Cole?” I asked bluntly. Sitting there in Garrett’s living room without one of the main players felt strange and more than a little wrong.

I was frustrated on his behalf. Hurt and secondary betrayal stung my veins. Not that he deserved any consideration on my part, but I couldn’t help it.

Here were his best friends, his bandmates, and they existed in their group as if he were already gone.

Garrett gave me a strange look. I couldn’t quite decipher his expression. Garrett was a hard guy to read. He hid his emotions behind a blasé demeanor. Until Riley came into the picture, I hadn’t been entirely sure he was capable of feelings it all. He had spent most of his time numbing them with weed and booze.