Listen To Me - Kristen Proby Page 0,1

will you please run over to Starbucks and get us more coffee?”

“I forgot my wallet,” he replies with a scowl. I reach into my bag and pass him a twenty. “You got it.”

“Thank you.”

“Oh, and one place you might look for a musician,” he adds as he steps away from the table, “is the open-mic night at Crush this Saturday. There are usually some good acts there. I’d bet you’d find what you’re looking for.”

I grin at my sexy boyfriend and blow him a kiss. “Thank you.”

He winks and saunters out of the restaurant. When the door closes behind him, Mia shakes her head at me. “Seriously?”

“Open mic night is a brilliant idea,” I inform her.

“That’s not what she’s talking about,” Cami says. “Jeremy is a douche bag.”

“He is not.” I roll my eyes and sit back in my chair. Okay, maybe he has douchey moments. “He’s sweet. And sexy.”

“And mooching off of you. His wallet was in his back pocket,” Mia argues. “And I’ll bet all of this month’s chocolate budget that he’s staying with you too.”

“His roommate moved out, and he couldn’t afford his place alone.”

“Addie.” Cami reaches for my hand. “You are not a doormat.”

“He doesn’t treat me like a doormat.”

“Yes. He does.” Mia sighs and takes my other hand. “You deserve so much better.”

“I love you both,” I begin, my stomach heaving. “I know you just want to protect me. Jeremy is a good guy. I like him.”

“Okay.” Cami sips her coffee, then shrugs one slim shoulder. “But when he breaks your heart, we’ll be here.”

“Let’s talk about this open-mic night. Who’s going with me?”

Mia and Cami exchange glances.

“I’ll be working,” Mia says. “I have some new Saturday night specials I want to try.”

“I don’t want to,” Cami says honestly. “I trust you to find exactly what we need.”

“I’ll take Kat.” I chew my lip, ideas already swirling in my head. “She’s a good judge of these things.”

“Good idea.”

The door opens again.

“Oh good. Mr. Wonderful is back,” Cami mutters.

“HOW DO YOU do that to your hair?” Riley asks from her perch on my vanity stool, eating Chunky Monkey ice cream from the carton as I twist my hair into chunky ringlets. I’ve streaked it with purple tonight.

“It’s not hard. It just takes practice, but once you get it down, it goes fast.”

“I like the purple,” she says with a grin. “And the painted-on jeans. You have a great ass.”

I grin and turn to the side, eyeing my ass in these jeans. She’s right. My ass isn’t bad. I could do without the hips, but what are you gonna do?

“Should I wear a jacket over this top?” It’s a flowy, black camisole, showing off my cleavage, but not hugging my problem areas.

“No. It’s hot. You’ll either find a hot singer for the restaurant, or a date.”

“I have a date.” I glance up to the heavens. “Give me strength.”

“Jeremy isn’t a date,” Riley replies as she scrapes the bottom of the ice cream carton. “He’s someone to fuck.”

“Riley!”

“Truth,” she says with a shrug. “And nothing wrong with it either, as long as you know the score.”

“Well, the sex doesn’t suck.” There’s a sharp knock on my bedroom door, and then Kat walks in, looking tall and gorgeous and freaking badass. Her red hair is pinned up. She’s in a sleeveless top, showing off her awesome ink, and she’s in mile-high pink stilettos.

“It should be illegal to look that hot,” Riley says with a sigh. “You’re both hot.”

“Why aren’t you coming with us?” Kat asks.

“Because I have a new marketing plan to come up with for this new music act.”

“Excuse,” Kat says, watching me apply my makeup. “And speaking of a hottie, hello, bombshell.”

I grin at her in the mirror. “You’re the hottest date I’ve had in a long time.”

“Back at you.” She winks. “Okay, what are we looking for tonight? Addie, this is your show, I’m just here to help.”

“It’s our show,” I reply.

“The front of the house is yours, and you do an awesome job with it.” Riley slicks some of my lipstick on her full lips, checks herself out, then vigorously wipes it off. “I can’t do lipstick.”

“I want to find a one- or two-person act.” I tease my hair, until it falls just the way I want it to. “Someone with a sexy voice. I’m thinking Gavin DeGraw–ish.”

“Hot.” Kat nods in agreement. “How much can we spend?”

“Let’s try to keep it around five hundred a night,” Riley replies. “Cami said that’s how much we can