Page 89 of Revel
TAYLAN
Lies hurt people, and the truth comes out eventually. I’ve always believed that and while I’ve been known to tell a little white lie here and there, none were ones that would destroy someone’s life or hurt them.
My dad, he did both.
The next morning, the news of the fight and Revel’s arrest hits every media outlet only to be shadowed by my dad, CEO of Ash Music Group, admitting to having an affair with Hensley Shaw. Publicly. Shocking? No, you knew that was coming, didn’t you?
Did I?
I’d be lying if I said I didn’t, even before last night. I saw the warning signs. Here’s the thing though. Whenever there’s a shocking headline regarding a sexual scandal, it’s never the man’s reputation that’s compromised. He’s never labeled the homewrecker. The finger will always be pointed at the woman. Okay, not always, but the majority of the time she’s going to be the woman who wears the scarlet letter.
And for Hensley, that’s exactly what happens when the truth comes out that she fucked the CEO of Ash Records, got pregnant with his baby, and then lost it. Though I didn’t know she had gotten pregnant, I knew the truth about their affair would eventually come out because karma, that bitch always comes back.
What I don’t see coming is my name tied into it. Me doing drugs, drinking, all of it, tied to what they think is me spiraling out of control because of my “daddy issues,” as they put it.
TMZ’s headline reads:
HAS THE PRINCESS OF POP HIT ROCK BOTTOM WITH THE ROCK GOD?
The twenty-one-year-old pop star was reportedly seen on Revved’s tour bus after the news broke about her straying father looking all sweaty and touchy with the bass guitarist, Hardin Helms. Is the princess taking off her church robe to take a ride on the darker side?
Not only had someone taken a picture of me on his bus, but they blew it out of perspective and had the timeline completely off.
It’s not Revel’s fight or Breckin being laid up in the hospital that’s the top of the news headlines. It’s me, reportedly doing drugs like I’m destroying my image.
“This is ridiculous!” I tell Leddy and Bella, who are patiently letting me vent. “Why am I the bad guy? I don’t even remember taking that crap.”
Leddy assures me it will blow over and I notice someone enter the room, the door closing softly behind them. Bella jumps up from the table we’re sitting at and disappears into the foyer. “What are you doing here?”
My stomach flops and flips, my heart thudding painfully in my chest as I wait for the gruff voice I think is going to follow. Only it’s nothim.
“I just want to talk to Taylan for a minute,” Hensley says softly.
“What makes you think she wants to talk to you?”
“I wouldn’t blame her if she didn’t, but I’d really like the chance to explain.”
Bella straight up laughs in her face. “Maybe you should—”
“It’s fine, Bells,” I say, loud enough for them to hear me in the foyer of the hotel suite.
I don’t care to see Hensley ever again. Nor do I care to see Breckin, but unfortunately, I suppose I can’t have everything. I wave Leddy and Bella into the other room, knowing damn well they’ll still be listening, but I give Hensley privacy, for what reasons I’m not sure other than I’m too nice.
Hensley looks awful when she comes around the corner. Her eyes are swollen, red, and mascara-smudged, and her usual short pink and purple is hair hidden behind a beanie hat. She starts immediately by apologizing, and then adds, “I knew he was married and I knew the connections he had, but he wasn’t the CEO of Ash Music Group to me. He made me feel better than I was. I’m not going to portray myself as the victim here, but please try to understand my reasoning.”
I don’t look at her. Instead, I stare out the window overlooking the snowbound mountain city I want out of. “I will never understand yourreasoning.”
“You can’t, because you’ve never been in my situation. You haven’t had to work for anything your entire life. Me? I had no family, no connections, but I had a voice and words that screamed inside my head. If it hadn’t been for Revel, I’d still be on the streets.”
Anger roots deep inside my chest. She’s basically insinuating I’ve never had to work for anything in my life, and in reality, I’ve worked harder than she can ever imagine just to live up to an image crafted by the one man who has let us both down. Sometimes that’s harder because the letdown is way worse. I think about what she’s saying and realize that everyone has disappointed someone they care about. We all mess up, we all let people down and make mistakes. It doesn’t mean we’re inadequate or inept. We’re imperfectly human.
I shift my eyes to hers, curious as to why she went for a married man. And all this time, through the news breaking, this is the first time my mom crosses my mind. I wonder, briefly, what she’s thinking today. Does she care? Did she know all along? Will she divorce him now? “So why my dad then?” I finally ask Hensley when she shifts her stance nervously. For someone who always appears so confident around me, she’s nothing like that now.
“He was a man, more established, older, kinder, and he swept me off my feet. It’s easy to make excuses, even though you know what you’re doing is wrong. I’m not proud of what I did, what I destroyed, but I own it. I ruined a lot of people’s lives in the process and lost my best friend. He will be my biggest regret.”
“Did you know about my dad offering Revel money to stay away from me?”
She nods. “I did. He didn’t want Revel to tell you about us. He didn’t take the money nor did he agree to anything.”
