Breaking Ties by Tracie Puckett Read Free Book Online

so they were the only ones willing to provide the space. But since his parents lived out in Desden, it wasn’t practical for the group. Between unloading, setting up, and reloading all the equipment, the boys wasted a lot of time and energy. Henry, Zak, and Shawn—Jones’s bandmates and roommates—all grew up and lived in Sugar Creek, so it made sense. Jones moved out here for the band, anyway. They wanted to be together, and moving one was a lot easier than moving three. Their biggest struggle was finding places to practice. But Bailey took care of that one.
    They finished up their song, the number ending with a dramatic drum solo on Jones’s part.
    The tension in my head broke at the silence. Sweet, glorious silence.
    “How’s it sound?” Jones asked, standing. He twirled his sticks around his fingers, trying to impress his already impressed girlfriend.
    “Perfect,” Bailey bounced on her heels.
    I couldn’t quit staring at her. It was remarkable, and it amazed me how quickly her demeanor had changed. How could she go from being the ice queen one second to being the bubbliest person on the planet the next? She had some serious hormonal issues going on, and I prayed, if I was lucky, maybe Dad’s mood might’ve changed to my favor this evening, too.
    “You guys are gonna rock the house next week,” Bailey said.
    “You think?”
    “ Of course , ” I nodded because his gaze trailed to me for confirmation. “It’s a great set. You’re gonna blow ‘em away.”
    Jones smiled. The Sugar Creek dance finale was going to be their biggest gig yet. It’s probably why they were focusing so much on rehearsals. But they didn’t need the practice. These four guys knew what they were doing, and they did it very well.
    “All right guys,” Jones said, sinking back onto his stool behind the drum set. “Last number.”
    The guys repositioned, and with Jones counting them down with each click of his drumsticks, they eased into their final song. And I was certain everyone in the neighborhood would be thankful when they were done.
    “So…” I gave my sister a hard look. “What’s going on?”
    “What do you mean?”
    “A few hours ago you hated the world, and now you’re acting like nothing ever happened.”
    “Don’t worry about it,” she said, shrugging a shoulder. “I gave it some thought.”
    “You gave it some thought?” I asked. Simple as that? Whatever was bothering her was easily fixed with something as simple as a little thought? I wasn’t buying it.
    “I gave it some thought and decided I was over it.”
    “ It being?”
    “Don’t worry about it,” she said again, reaching into her back pocket to retrieve her vibrating phone. She remained perfectly stoic as she checked the call, and I glimpsed down at the busted screen to see that she’d missed two calls and a text message, all from the same number—a 310 number—a Los Angeles number.
    “Mom?” I asked, certain that she would confirm what I already suspected.
    “Who else?”
    My stomach hollowed at her confirmation.
    So there it was.
    Bailey’s behavior suddenly made a world of sense. If Mom had tried contacting me , I probably would’ve gone off the deep end, too. I probably would’ve skipped the whole pouting, woe-is-me, throwing stuff scenario and headed straight for punching holes in walls. Mom had that effect. She had a way of bringing out the ugliest in people, especially the family she abandoned.
    But after all this time, after years of silence on her part, it didn’t make any sense that she’d start contacting one of us out of the blue. She hadn’t had time or a place for us in so long, so why now? Why was she trying to get in touch with my sister? Why hadn’t she tried contacting me?
    Because you hated her more than anyone when she abandoned the family , I reminded myself. I wouldn’t have given her the time of day. If she needed something, she could at least hope she had a chance of getting through to Bailey. Mom was