Page 1 of Fall or Nothing

ONE

Disappointed

CARTER JAMES MAGNUS

I droppedmy bags by the door, kicked off my loafers, and took three steps into the open-plan living room before I stopped cold.

“Sunshine?” She was on her side, the pot on its rim, soil spilled, and the crown of the African violet now lay splayed and wilting against the warm pane of glass.

Jack came barreling out of my bedroom, trailing a cloud of cologne, buttoning the cuffs of a pink shirt that was once mine.

“Oh, shit, Carter? You’re back so soon?” He grabbed his keys—mykeys tomyBentley—off the kitchen island without slowing down. “I thought you weren’t due until Wednesday.”

“It is Wednesday.”

“Oh. Right.” He checked his watch, er,mywatch. “Welcome back. Can’t talk long. I’ve got a reservation at Le Jardin in twenty minutes, and Loyra is not the type of girl who waits.”

“Jack, did you forget to water my plants?” I rubbed my temples.

“Hey. Favor. Big one.” He ignored and pointed the keys at me. “Can you get me into that Magnus Music rooftop thing tonight? Loyra’s obsessed with some indie band, Purple Gaze or something. I told her I had a connection, and...”

I pinched the bridge of my nose. My head was still singing from a rager of a party in Dubai, and my plants were dying on the windowsill.

“Unless it’s too much trouble,” he stammered.

A normal man would have told Jack to piss off. But, as a member of the famous Magnus Music family, my life was anything but normal, falling into the easy rhythm of concert-going and entertaining, and parties around the globe.

The life of a playboy had its perks.

Lately, those perks had been fucking exhausting.

I pulled out my phone while he waited, twirling his keys around his finger. I thumbed a text to Vanessa in concert operations and made the request on his behalf.

“Done. Give your name at the south entrance for the VIP tickets,” I grumbled and set my phone on the counter.

“Hell yeah, man. You’re a legend. By the way, how was Dubai?” He pocketed the keys, grabbed his coat, came back for his wallet, and spun in a circle in the middle of the room like he was missing something.

“People trashed my suite at the afterparty and left me with damage control. Which I’m sure I’ll be hearing about from my lawyer any day now,” I answered, not that he really cared.

“Cool. Cool.” He checked himself out in the hallway mirror, smoothing his hair back.

“And then Bella showed up.” I glared his way.

“Uh, yeah. She was texting me, looking for you. Said it was urgent and called you a bunch of names. I told her you were in Dubai.” He shrugged.

“Thanks for that. She showed up and broke things off.”

“Damn. Brutal.” His phone buzzed. “Hey, that’s Loyra. I’m really late now.” He paused at the door. “I’d invite you, but Loyra’s bestie is Bella and, well, she’s tagging along to the music thing later… you know how it is.”

“Go on.” I sighed and turned to the window, as the door slammed behind him.

Besides Sunshine, an entire row of plants sat in worse shape. Most yellow-edged and thirsty. Only Antonio was holding on, the rubber tree in the corner, because he was a tank and God himself could not kill him.

A yellow sticky note stuck to the window, in Jack’s handwriting, said:Did my best! Your watering instructions are too long. Sorry, dude.

“Fuck my life.” I tore my jacket off.

An hour later I had my spray bottle in hand and sat on a kitchen stool in front of the window, wearing nothing but my tight black boxers, because it was past midnight and the penthouse was warm and I always thought better unencumbered by clothes.