Fine By Me: Chaos Novella (A Songbird Novel) Read online

  Fine By Me

  A Chaos Novella

  Melissa Pearl

  © Copyright 2017 Melissa Pearl

  http://www.melissapearlauthor.com

  All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the author.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, places, businesses, characters and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, actual events or locales is purely coincidental.

  This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to your preferable retailer and purchase your own copy.

  Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  Contents

  Fine By Me Soundtrack

  1. Jenna

  2. Jace

  3. Jenna

  4. Jace

  5. Jenna

  6. Jace

  7. Jenna

  8. Jace

  9. Jenna

  10. Jace

  11. Jenna

  12. Jace

  13. Jenna

  14. Jace

  15. Jenna

  16. Jace

  17. Jenna

  18. Jace

  19. Jenna

  20. Jace

  21. Jenna

  22. Jace

  23. Jenna

  24. Jace

  25. Jenna

  26. Jace

  27. Jenna

  28. Jace

  Epilogue

  Dear reader…

  Fine By Me Soundtrack

  (Please note: The songs listed below are not always the original versions, but the ones I chose to listen to while constructing this book. The songs are listed in the order they appear.)

  BRAND NEW

  Performed by Ben Rector

  SONGBIRD

  Performed by Eva Cassidy

  HONEY, I’M GOOD

  Performed by Andy Grammer

  HOW LONG WILL I LOVE YOU?

  Performed by Askil Holm

  FRESH EYES

  Performed by Andy Grammer

  SOLDIER

  Performed by Gavin DeGraw

  WHEN YOU FALL IN LOVE

  Performed by Andrew Ripp

  SMOOTH CRIMINAL

  Performed by Alien Ant Farm

  YOUR GUARDIAN ANGEL

  Performed by The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus

  FINE BY ME

  Performed by Andy Grammer

  I WISH I WAS A PUNK ROCKER

  Performed by Sandi Thom

  SOMETHING JUST LIKE THIS

  Performed by The Chainsmokers

  NEVER GONNA BE ALONE

  Performed by Nickelback

  DON’T YOU WORRY CHILD

  Performed by Swedish House Mafia

  BELIEVER

  Performed by Imagine Dragons

  ALL WE KNOW

  Performed by The Chainsmokers

  PERFECT

  Performed by Ed Sheeran

  To enhance your reading experience, you can listen along to the playlist for FINE BY ME on Spotify.

  For my Songbirds

  Thank you to all the amazing readers who have stuck with this series and fallen in love with the Songbird world…and the music :) This novella is for you.

  #loveultimatelywins

  And thanks to all the people who helped make this novella possible:

  Lenore, Cassie, my team of proofreaders, and Kimmy.

  And a special thank you to Dorothy for writing that awesome song.

  I love working with each and every one of you. You seriously make this job a million times better.

  1

  Jenna

  It was a hot night.

  I wiped the back of my hand across my forehead and rearranged my white shirt before grabbing the large tray loaded with champagne flutes.

  “You can take your break after this rotation, Jenna.”

  “Thanks, Gabby.” I grinned at the lady in charge before slipping out the wide kitchen doors.

  As soon as I breached the kitchen, the noises changed from sizzles and utensil clatter to the steady beat of music and the tinkling of laughter. I wove around the first clump of wedding guests, stopping to offer them drinks.

  Some of them acknowledged me, most treated me like the invisible waitress.

  I didn’t mind so much. It made me feel safe somehow. I could be standing in this crowded reception hall and no one would even know I was there.

  Swiveling to my left, I subtly stopped by a trio immersed in some kind of gossipy chatter.

  “I can’t believe the way he just busted into the wedding.” The woman’s brown eyes bulged.

  She took a champagne flute and gave me a tight smile before turning back to the man with jet-black hair.

  “Who was he, anyway?”

  “Apparently he’s in love with the photographer and he thought she was the one getting married.”

  A short woman with round cheeks took a champagne glass and started laughing. “It’s too funny. How does that even happen?”

  “Well, certainly makes for a great story. I’m dying to know if his ploy worked.”

  “I’m dying to know the backstory.”

  I moved away as the man started searching the room for the blue-haired photographer. I saw her crouching down near the dance floor, snapping photos of a cute girl with blonde ringlets. She was standing on her father’s feet and giggling up at him.

  My heart cracked a little, memories swamping me as I pictured my giant father with his dark brown eyes and big bear hugs.

  I missed him so much.

  “Excuse me, could I have one of those?”

  I turned and presented the tray to a short guy with sandy hair and his stunning wife. She looked like a supermodel in her designer dress, her luscious hair draped over one shoulder as her keen blue eyes stared across the room.

  “I’m going to go talk to him.”

  “Kelly, no.”

  His words were lost as she left his side and sped around the dance floor. I followed her path and noticed her approach an awkward-looking guy hovering in the back corner of the room.

  He must have been the wedding crasher.

  My lips twitched with a smile. I had to force my eyes the other way and focus on my job, although a part of me was dying to know what she was saying to him.

  The heavy tray was slowly getting lighter as I got rid of the drinks. The toasts would be coming soon, and everyone needed to have a glass at the ready.

  Casting my eyes across the dance floor, I saw Evan standing nearby with his nearly empty tray. He had stopped moving and was letting dancers approach him. I didn’t really want to do that. My feet were killing me, and break time was beckoning.

  Nearing the stage, I quickly tried to offload the rest of my champagne by circulating around the people who wanted to be close to the beats but not necessarily boogie on the dance floor.

  They seemed grateful for my detour, and my tray was nearly empty as I brushed past the speaker and nearly got bowled over by the music as Chaos started playing “Brand New.”

  It was a great cover of the Ben Rector song and I couldn’t help bobbing my head as I moved back to the kitchen.

  I’d never heard Chaos play live before and it was a real privilege. Imagine that. An internationally famous band playing at your
wedding. I didn’t know who the bride and groom were, but they must have had all the right connections.

  The wedding was all class with no expense spared. It was a far cry from the small backyard affair my parents had.

  They got married when I was nine.

  I still remembered it with crystal clarity. It would always be one of my favorite days ever…made even more precious by the fact that neither of my parents were around anymore.

  Soul-crushing memories that still felt heavy and debilitating tried to push me through the floor. With sluggish steps, I made it to the kitchen and put my tray down.

  “Okay, take your break, sweets,” Gabby called to me. “You’ve got twenty minutes. Mikey’s got a snack for ya.”

  I followed her pointing thumb and took a small plate of finger food out the back. A couple of other waiters were sitting at the round table in the break room. I didn’t know any of them, so I decided to slip out the back door and eat my meal under the dusky sky.

  It was a beautiful night. I breathed in the fresh scent of flowers…and my eyes began to water.

  There’d been flowers at Mom and Dad’s wedding too. The backyard was overflowing with them.

  Picking at my food, I walked toward the shadowy trees and found a little perch on a large rock. The darkness usually scared me, but I felt safe and alone. There was nothing to fear.

  Breathing in through my nose, I closed my eyes and tried to bolster my spirits.

  I was in LA. I had steady work. I’d just spent the evening listening to one of my favorite bands play. I should have been over the moon, but that low-lying sadness I could never flick off seemed to be growing in my chest.

  I wanted my parents back. I wanted to rewind life and change everything.

  It’d been three years since they were suddenly taken, yet sometimes the pain still felt like yesterday. I’d been eighteen at the time…a lost, scared kid who couldn’t cope with the tragedy.

  So instead I’d…

  Snapping my eyes shut, I warned myself not to go there. I clenched my teeth and practiced breathing, forcing my mind back to that flowery garden and the beautiful afternoon when I got to watch my parents finally tie the knot.

  The warm sunshine bathed our faces as we stood on the grass, holding bouquets and giggling. Mom had been just as giddy as me and my sister. She’d let us help her plan the wedding and pick out her dress. We’d been so much a part of the special day.

  Dad couldn’t stop staring at her, with more love and affection than I’d ever seen.

  “For you…” I started to sing, smiling as I remembered the song we’d sung as my sister and I performed for their first dance. Dad had held Mom close and smiled down at her. She was the only woman in the world in that moment, and I’d captured a glimpse of what real love looked like.

  Too bad I’d never know it for myself.

  A lump formed in my throat, but I forced myself to sing over it. My voice rang into the night air, the lyrics of “Songbird” still as beautiful as they were that sunny afternoon in Trenton, New Jersey.

  2

  Jace

  I rubbed my eyes and headed out the side door. The reception room felt hot and suffocating, and although the rest of the guys were sitting down to grab some chow, I just needed a little fresh air.

  Oh man, what a day.

  That guy Nixon busting into the wedding was a trip. My heart had lurched into my throat when Cassie tried to pull out, but Troy with his usual calm saved the day.

  His speech was epic.

  I’d love to talk to a lady that way, but I still hadn’t found a girl worth saying those kinds of things to.

  My shoulders gave an involuntary shudder as Tiffany—the psycho stalker—sped through my mind. She’d wanted me to whisper all kinds of sweetness into her ears. I blinked, still reeling at how that had turned into such a nightmare. It started with one sweet fan message, which I dutifully replied to, but within a couple of months imploded into death threats that still haunted me at times. Thankfully Torrence Records had managed to keep it away from the media, but I still dreaded the day when Tiffany got out of the psychiatric facility.

  A crunch of gravel made me gasp and spin. My shoulders sagged with relief as I snickered at my ever-watchful bodyguard.

  “Hey, Gavin.”

  He nodded and scanned the area. The guy was the size of a Mack Truck—broad shoulders, bulky muscles, and a shaved head. He was kind of conspicuous, but apparently I needed a guy just like him trailing me everywhere.

  “You know I’m probably fine out here,” I murmured.

  “I’ll keep my distance.” His voice was low and gruff, telling me I wouldn’t win some kind of ‘leave me alone’ argument. The guy was with me every time I left the Chaos mansion. I hated it at first, but Gavin was a good dude, and I couldn’t deny the fact that if it wasn’t for him, Tiffany, and most likely a myriad of other girls, would own decent-sized handfuls of my hair.

  Tucking my shoulder-length locks behind my ear, I contemplated yet again if I should cut it. Torrence would kick my ass. They’d practically branded me on my hair. It didn’t matter that my real job was to play drums; I’d become something else entirely—Jace, the sexy drummer boy with long hair and pouty lips. I was hardly ever allowed to smile in photoshoots. They wanted to push my mysterious edge and get the girls swooning.

  It was all such BS.

  Marcus, our manager, warned me it probably wasn’t worth the fight, and since I was a peace-not-war kind of guy, I just went with it.

  Sliding my hands into my pockets with a heavy sigh, I moved away from Gavin and rested against the side of the building. The night sky was clear, the bright stars already starting to shine.

  A smile spread across my face. Nothing better than nature to calm the soul.

  The peace worked its way inside of me, relaxing my shoulders and helping me breathe.

  As I exhaled a soft voice caught my attention.

  “For you…” she sang.

  I jerked off the building and stood tall, straining to figure out which direction it was coming from.

  Her sound was beautiful—pure and sweet. She owned that song with the same grace and power as Eva Cassidy. Unable to stop myself, I moved toward the sound. It had a deep richness to it. She was a natural singer, whoever she was, and I needed to see her face.

  Slowing my steps, I crept softly, hoping she wouldn’t hear me and stop singing.

  The young woman was just kicking into the second verse when I finally spotted her. She was a shadow at the edge of the garden, but I could make out a murky image.

  Her head was covered with thick spiral curls that nestled around her shoulders. She had the front section tied back off her face, which gave me a glimpse of her gorgeous dark skin and high cheekbones that no doubt protruded when she smiled. Her lips were full like mine, her mouth beautiful as she formed the words.

  The moon worked like a spotlight, illuminating her as she stood and belted out the words. She closed her eyes, wrapping her arms around her slender waist as if reliving a moment in history that was magical.

  I couldn’t take my eyes off her.

  A smile pulled her cheeks high as she opened her eyes and watched something from her memory. “And I love you…” she sang, turning toward me and jolting to a stop.

  Her gasp was soft but sharp as she stepped back.

  I quickly raised my hands. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to frighten you.”

  Her gaze flickered either side of me, like she was looking for an escape route or something.

  I stepped back, hoping she’d understand that I was no threat.

  She stilled, eyeing me carefully while throwing off this deer-in-headlights kind of vibe.

  I gave her my best, most relaxed smile. “I didn’t mean to interrupt you. I just heard your voice and had to find out who was singing. It’s a great song, and you just made it so much more beautiful than it already is.”

  Her lips twitched. “Thank you.”

  It was barely a
whisper, but I took it as a good sign and stepped forward with my hand extended. “I’m Jace.”

  She stared at my hand for a second before giving it a tentative squeeze. She waited until her hand was tucked safely behind her before finally speaking. “I recognize you. You’re the drummer from Chaos, right?”

  I tipped my head, wishing for a second that I wasn’t. Couldn’t I just be a guy meeting a pretty girl?

  I couldn’t help a chagrined smirk as I shook my head and muttered, “Well, don’t hold it against me.”

  She smiled, showing off her straight white teeth. “You don’t like being famous?”

  “I don’t think anyone actually likes being famous.” My nose wrinkled.

  She tipped her head to study me, then softly said, “Let me guess, fame makes you feel permanently like a girl walking past construction workers.”

  My laughter was low and husky. I cleared my throat and nodded. “Brad Pitt quote, right?”

  “Yeah.” She smiled. “I read it in a magazine the other day.”