Seal All Exits (Tangled Web #3) by Jade C. Jamison Read Free Book Online Page A

though.  She had no idea what she’d done for him over the past two years.  He’d thought she knew, but her reaction to him right now told him she had no clue.  She couldn’t find a way to look past their earlier indiscretion enough to remember that they were, in all essence, best friends.
    Or maybe she didn’t feel the same way he did.
    He tried to get into the game.  Some of the silly things his team members did to communicate their phrase to the rest of the team actually made him laugh once or twice, but he wasn’t really enjoying himself.  It didn’t help that all the alcohol had worn off and he was stone cold sober.
    But he wore the entertainer’s mask that he often did and no one knew any better.  The women (with their token guy Sage) won the game and Katie said, “Okay, potty break and then let’s do round two.  We can switch up teams if we want.”
    A few people meandered toward the kitchen area and a couple of others toward the hallway where the bathrooms were.  Mickey stepped outside, and Kiefer knew that was for a smoke.  He caught Heather walking to where Katie stood—not far from him—and heard her say she was going to bow out for the evening.  “I’m tired and I really need to check in with my students.  Do you mind if I tap into your Wi-fi?”
    Kiefer couldn’t hear Katie’s response, but the two women started walking toward the kitchen.  He sighed.  Once an outsider, always an outsider.
    Yeah, he was feeling sorry for himself as usual, but his friends expected him to be Mr. Sociable, so he decided to go outside to hang with Mickey for a minute and grab a breath of fresh air.  Out of all his bandmates, Mickey seemed to have the firmest grasp on the notion that Kiefer wasn’t the laidback party animal everyone else thought he was.  He never talked about it or even asked Kiefer to clarify, but he somehow knew that Kiefer wore a heavy mask most of the time…and so he often went easy on his friend while everyone else continued the masquerade.
    Kiefer realized he was as much to blame as anyone else.  He’d never said a word about his state of mind to his bandmates and, with their first album and long tour, he’d been in such a daze and been so appreciative that Johnny had given him a shot that he had no idea that shit still lingered deep inside.  That was how Heather had managed to be his salvation.  He knew from their short exchange in Katie’s great room earlier that Heather had no fucking idea.
    And that kinda broke his heart.  Made it worse.
    He was hoping to use this trip as a chance to get Johnny alone for a few minutes and see how the man would feel about Kiefer penning the lyrics on this next album, even if just for a song or two.  He’d been singing Johnny’s words for three years now.  He had nothing but respect for the man, but he felt like now he needed to not only contribute but sing his own heart and soul.  He wasn’t sure how Johnny would feel about it, and that was why he wanted to talk to the boss alone.  That way, if Johnny hated the idea or they hashed it out and he really thought it sucked balls, no one else would have to know.
    Something inside him told him it would be a relief to sing about the pain and emptiness, to let it out, because even though Heather had been a godsend, even she didn’t know the depths.
    Ah.  The chill air felt good going down his lungs…until he stepped into the cloud of cigarette smoke drifting sideways from Mickey.  Kiefer repositioned himself away from the breeze’s path and stood next to Mickey.
    “This place is pretty rad.  Look up there, man.”  Kiefer did as his friend instructed, looking up in the black sky.  “Look at all those damn stars.  I haven’t seen the sky look like that since camping with my dad as a kid.  I think Johnny’s got the right idea.”
    “Yeah, he just might.”  Kiefer was definitely impressed with the man’s taste, and he hoped to be that secure someday as well.  He’d already