ALEXANDRA jumped when her smartphone rang in the middle of what would have likely kept her in bed with Bash all day. It took major effort for her to disengage from another one of Bash’s kisses—a kiss that made her toes clench and left her body quivering.

She gasped, coming up for air. “Hold that thought,” she said, sucking in a long breath as she jumped out of bed. She bent over her pile of clothes and dug out her phone to answer, expecting it would have been Eva. She didn’t want to give Eva the brush-off after she had taken the time to visit her in Tucson. It was only after hitting the accept call button that she realized it was Rick.

With mild irritation, she answered. “Hello?”

“Lexxi, big problem!” Rick sounded frantic.

“Rick. I’m kind of in the middle of something,” she groaned.

Bash sat up in bed, waiting with a guarded expression. After last night and this morning, she felt so close to him, yet wasn’t sure what he was thinking right now. There was still so much to talk about, more for his benefit than anything else. She shook her head, trying to be sensible.

Rick’s voice broke through the fray of thoughts. “No, no. I think you want to hear about this,” he said.

“Hold on a second,” she told him before slipping her hand over the phone to block out the sound. She turned to Bash. “I have to take this. One minute, okay?”

Bash leaned over and kissed her hair before getting out of bed. “Sure. I’ll be in the kitchen. I think we can use some coffee.”

“I don’t think this will be long. Wait for me and I’ll come down with you.”

“Okay,” he whispered. He pointed to his master bathroom. “I’ll be right back.”

She nodded to him and continued on the phone. “What’s it about, Rick?”

“Wilkes is on his way to Arizona.”

“Sorry, what?”

“A few internet websites posted pictures of you and Eva together in Tucson, and he’s looking for you!” Rick exclaimed.

Alexandra grabbed her forehead and sank back on the bed. “Are you serious?”

“Yeah, doll. That’s the thing when you’re signed to the same label as your ex. One of the executives texted me to give you a heads up. He’s on his way to you and he’s bringing the heat. I wouldn’t put it past him to have the press follow him around to get to you, either. Whatever role you’ve been playing, you have got to make it disappear.”

“Why?”

“You did a great job laying low while you took care of Max, but now that Lexxi Rock is back on the scene, the two of you can’t share the same body. If Wilkes is in town, he’ll stick closer to you than ever. His career is in shambles. You know he’d do anything to be relevant again, even if it makes you look bad. I don’t have to remind you what happened the last time!”

“Awww crap. This can’t be happening.” The words rang in her head, eerily similar to what Eva had told her, like she had some kind of premonition, except for the wrong man. With Bash, Alexandra was certain he would never do something like that to her, but with Wilkes, it was another story. He would sell his own mother if he thought it would help with album sales.

She swallowed hard. “I was really getting used to short hair, Rick, but I guess you’re right. Fine. Alex Roberts is dead. I’ll figure it out, so don’t worry about it.”

She hung up the phone. Turning at a sound beside her, she remembered Bash was around. He was leaning against the doorframe of the bathroom.

“Alex Roberts is dead? What’s that supposed to mean?”

“The media is about to invade Tucson, Bash. I can’t look like this around town anymore.”

“Like what? Yourself?”

“Exactly.”

“Are you hearing yourself right now, Alexandra?”

She gave him a pleading look. “They’ll be looking for me as Lexxi Rock. You know? Girlie, purple hair, dolled up—”

“Yes, I got it. I met her last night, remember?” He shook his head. “She was a little pretentious, superior and shallow.”

“What?”

“Never mind. That’s too bad, Alexandra. I think I liked Alex better.”

She waited expectantly for him to cross the room so they could pick up where they left off, but he didn’t. Bash threw on some sweat pants and left his room, heading down the stairs. She put on his t-shirt, the closest item of clothing she could find, and followed him down to the kitchen. He stood in front of the coffee machine, ready to turn it on. Stepping up beside him, she placed a hand on his back.

“Bash? What’s wrong?”

He half-turned to her. “I think last night…maybe I expected too much too soon. I’m sorry.”

“What are you trying to say?”

“Look, there’s no way for me to fit into the life you have as Lexxi Rock, okay? So, let’s not—” He stopped himself midsentence.

Let’s not go any further?

Let’s not keep getting to know each other?

Let’s not try?

She would ask, but the look on his face said it all. He moved off from her and walked toward the hallway, only stopping to turn back and say, “Let’s just not.”

* * *

Alexandra went back into the guest bedroom feeling numb and weary.

“What in the hell just happened?” she asked herself, biting back a sob as she ran her forearm across stinging eyes.

She refused to cry.

I brought this on myself.

I should have left well enough alone instead of sleeping with him.

Lexxi Rock and Sebastian Sullivan have no future together.

She sighed, realizing it was time to get back to reality, but not before she took a moment to mourn the fantasy. She plopped down on the bed and rolled over. Raising the t-shirt just high enough to touch her nose, she inhaled Bash’s scent that clung to the fabric. Last night up in his bed had been so…perfect.

She was going to miss Bash almost as much as she would miss being Alex. It had been so easy to be herself around Bash when she was pretending to be someone else. He said he liked Alex. It was crazy, but when she really thought about it, she knew exactly what he meant. She had missed the point, until now. Strip away the deeper voice, the slouching stroll, and the baggy clothes, and Alex Roberts was the real Alexandra Storme. That’s what Bash had been trying to tell her last night, and that’s why he was ready to let go today.

Alexandra sat up and cursed the day she ever invented the Lexxi Rock persona. Even Eva had warned her about it last night. Lexxi was nowhere near the real her, and that was the part Bash probably felt he couldn’t have, which in all honesty was completely true. Knowing Rick, by the time she made it back to LA, she would have a full schedule for months to make up for this time away. Releasing the album alone would have made it hectic, so playing catchup for this time away was bound to make it that much worse.

There would barely be time to keep up a long distance relationship, especially with someone who wasn’t in the industry. She had seen the horrific results countless times before, and up close and personal too when Eva had tried with Jared, a friend they both knew from college.

Things had started off nicely enough, and even Alexandra was rooting for it to work out between them. Eva loved him dearly. They were great together, and in the beginning, Jared had no problem accommodating her or restructuring his life around Eva’s schedule. All of a sudden, poor Jared received a promotion at his startup consulting firm, which moved him from Los Angeles to Silicon Valley. They tried to make it work, but even that short distance apart chipped away at their time together.

Alexandra wouldn’t forget how it came to a head that night on the red carpet. Someone had asked her who was the ‘nobody’ with Eva, and he overheard. Alexandra stood up for him, but the damage was done. People treated him like he didn’t count. She could just imagine what it would be like with Bash. Some reporter would probably ask him, “Yeah, it’s cool and all you’re a firefighter out there saving lives and shit, but what’s it like dating Lexxi Rock?” Bash would be trivialized and marginalized. They would rarely see each other, and not at all while she was on tour. If there was any hope for them working out, he would have to leave Arizona or she’d have to leave LA, and the odds would still be stacked against them even if they were both willing. Basically, she met the one guy who had the potential to make her so happy, but that happiness came at the expense of one of their careers. The prospect was a fading mirage—and that was why Bash preferred to let it go.

So why did I still go ahead and sleep with him?

Letting out a breath, she got up and began to pack. As she gathered up the remnants of her discarded life as Alex Roberts, she came across a slip of paper on the top of the dresser. Bash had written down the names and contact numbers of several construction companies for her to phone for repair quotes next door.

So much for refusing to cry.

She couldn’t hold back the dam. It was another example of his selflessness and kind heart. Even after treating him like crap after the Aileen episode, Sebastian had still gone ahead and did what he could to help Alexandra with what she needed. The hot, salty tears rolled silently down her cheeks as she stared dejectedly out the window.

Alexandra tried to pull herself together, but it was so hard. She had experienced her fair share of heartbreaks. The only difference here was she and Bash didn’t even get the luxury of being in a relationship before they ended it. It just played out in theory in both their minds, and now it was over. She scoffed, because even then, she was lying to herself. That wasn’t the real difference and she knew it. The real difference was she cared about him deeply. He had been an amazing friend to her.

It never hurt this bad before because everyone else had either been a poor fit, a misconnection, or an outright jackass like Wilkes. It was easy to forget about the rest of them, because she saw no real future with them in the first place. This time, she could see a future without Bash, and knew exactly how empty it would be. It brought her full circle to the reason she had kept up the Alex Roberts ruse for so long—being Alex had allowed her to be close to Bash.

After collecting her things, she forcefully shook herself out of moping. “Get it together,” she said aloud.

With Rick’s warning about Wilkes, there was still a lot to do. She started by phoning four of the contractors and made appointments for them to come by later that morning and afternoon. After that, she had a shower and got dressed. She also phoned her father’s room at the hospital. Rosa answered.

“Hi Rosa. How’s Dad doing?”

“Hi Alexandra. He’s great. Do you want to talk to him?”

“Sure, thanks.”

“Hold on. I’ll put him on.”

Alexandra took a breath and straightened up in her seat. She needed to be strong for this conversation.

“How are you doing, Lexxi Rock?” her father asked. He sounded light-hearted and upbeat. “Pink suits you, you know, but the ball cap look was good too.”

“Hi Dad. So you know?”

“I have a television in my room here at the hospital. Your face was all over the local news.”

“Sorry, back up. What did you say about the ball cap?”

“I saw the coverage with you at dinner, and a few channels also showed some pictures of your friend, Evangeline. You were at the hotel with her as Alex, weren’t you?”

“Oh, that. Yes. You noticed?”

“Of course I did. How is Evangeline, by the way?”

“She’s great. I think she’s still resting at the hotel.”

“Good. Well, it’s a wonder no one has put the images together. You had better hope they don’t. Not that it matters, but if they do, that costume will be a complete waste of time.”

“It’s too late for that, Dad. Actually that’s why I called. I need to do a few appearances here in Tucson as Lexxi for a while. Can I come by the hospital to see you?”

“Oh, so you mean you and the traveling media circus, right?”

“Kind of. I won’t stay for long.”

“There goes the neighborhood.”

“Sorry, Dad.”

“It’s all right. They’ll only sniff around while you’re at your dear old daddy’s side. After you leave they’ll be back on your trail.”

“True. It will only be for a few days.”

“All right.” He was quiet for a while, and then asked, “How is Sebastian?”

“Fine, I guess.”

“So was I right?”

“About what?”

“That he knew.”

“Yes, Dad. Why didn’t you tell me he was one of the Sullivan boys from next door?”

“How could you not know that? He’s got the same name, same address as when you lived here.”

“I didn’t realize he was the same person.”

“That’s probably because you spent half of your mental energy being someone else, kiddo. Either that or you forgot your roots…in any case, now it’s all in the open, you can focus on what matters. He’s a good man, Alexandra. The two of you would be good for each other.”

She didn’t know what to say. “Well, I’ve got to head out now, Dad. I’ll see you soon.”

“Have fun, kid.”

Grateful her father didn’t push the issue, she hung up and looked for the number of the hotel where Eva was staying. She needed to book a room before any of the paparazzi got to Bash. After her room was confirmed, Alexandra phoned Eva.

“How did things go?” Eva asked.

“I don’t want to talk about it yet. I have a few appointments here and after that, I’ll be on my way back to the hotel. Can we meet later for drinks? I know it’s hours away but I don’t think I’ll get much sleep tonight with the way I’m feeling.”

“Of course,” she answered, already sensing Alexandra’s pain.

“Is your driver able to pick me up this afternoon?”

“Definitely. I will set it up, darling. See you soon.”

Eva didn’t press to talk about it, thankfully. Alexandra hung up, took her things with her, and headed next door to wait for the contractors.