Michael’s house is surprisingly modest—for a bassist in a super famous rock band. It’s in Valley Village, northwest of Downtown Los Angeles. Dex pulls into the driveway, where a glossy white Mercedes is parked. The white Cape Cod–style house has a two-car garage and a small well-maintained yard. I step out of the Range Rover and try not to get fingerprints on the shiny black door as I push it closed.
Sebastian, Dex, and Lucas are already heading around the corner and up to the front door, but Michael hangs back to walk with me.
“My wife’s name is Jordan,” he says as we head toward the front door, which is now standing open. A golden retriever waits in the doorway, and as soon as Michael steps up onto the porch, the dog bounds outside to greet him. “Hey, girl.” He gives her scratches, and then she turns to me for more attention. “That’s Nala. She’s friendly.”
“I can tell.” I reach down and scratch her behind the ear, and she spins in excited circles and covers my hands with kisses. A big smile stretches across my face as I give her a little doggy massage down her spine. “I love dogs.”
“You and Jordan will get along, then. She runs a big rescue.”
My head snaps up. “Really?”
I’m not sure why that surprises me; maybe I assumed the wife of a rock star would spend most of her time lying by the pool or getting her nails done. It makes me realize with a start how judgmental I’ve been of them all from the beginning, and I feel a bit ashamed.
“Yeah, she’d love to tell you about it. Come on in. I’ll introduce you.”
We step through the door, and my gaze sweeps across the foyer. The hardwood floors are a pale blond, and a big quarter-turn staircase stands in front of us, leading up to the second story.
Nala bumps my legs as she runs past me and down a hallway, where voices are carrying from.
The guys left all their shoes on a rug beside the door, so I take my old boots off and set them next to the expensive Nikes they all wear.
Michael hangs his shoulder bag in the closet, and then he leads me through the foyer. To our left is a formal dining room with modern furniture, where a big picture of Michael and Jordan on their wedding day hangs over the table.
We head down the hallway, which opens up into the kitchen and living room. Everything is cool grays and whites, and the space is impeccably clean.
Sebastian has already tossed himself onto the big gray couch, and Lucas sits in a plush chair, a petite dark-haired woman—who I assume is Alisha—sitting on his lap.
A blond woman stands in the kitchen, leaning against the marble island countertop, engaged in conversation with Dex. When we walk in and she turns toward us, her eyes go wide.
“Jordan, Nora. Nora played strings on ‘Ghost,’ ” Michael explains to her.
“Of course, welcome!” She holds out her arms and pulls me in for a hug. Her hair is soft against my cheek, and she smells like lavender. “Mike told me how talented you are. It’s great to meet you. Alisha! Nora’s here.”
The woman in the living room looks over, and her dark eyes light up when she sees me. She pulls out of Lucas’s embrace and stands up, slapping his hand away when he reaches out to grab the waistband of her tight black shorts.
“Hey!” She pulls me into a hug, and she’s so short that I have to bend down a bit. “Sorry you’ve had to deal with these guys on your own. They’re a pain.”
“Aw, Alisha, you’re gonna hurt my feelings,” Sebastian whines from the living room.
Alisha tosses her waist-length braids over her shoulder and tips her head. “All you’ve got is feelings. Toughen up.”
Sebastian pretends she shot him in the heart and falls back onto the couch with a thump.
I quickly scan Alisha’s and Jordan’s outfits and feel majorly self-conscious. Alisha’s wearing short shorts that show off her gleaming brown legs and a baggy Lakers tee with thin layered necklaces and gold earrings. Beside her, Jordan’s long legs look amazing in a pair of tight black jeans with a tiny black tank tucked into them. She has a single silver necklace around her throat and a chunky diamond ring on her left hand.
And then there’s me: basic jeans, a tee and jacket I picked up from Target, and my mousy-brown hair pulled back in a braid.
They look like they’re ready for a night out on the town; I look ready to go on a walk with Nala. Maybe I should just stay here and do that instead.
Jordan must notice me scanning her, because she says, “The guys sprung this on you at the last moment, didn’t they?”
I give her a shy smile as Michael opens the fridge and starts to rummage around. “Yeah, kind of.”
“Come on.” She waves for me to follow. “You too, Alisha.”
Dex looks my way as we head out of the kitchen, but his expression is blank, unreadable. I don’t understand it.
We walk back into the foyer, then take the big staircase up to the second floor. Nala follows behind us, her nails tippy-tapping on the hardwood floors. Turning left, Jordan leads me into what I assume is the master bedroom. It’s full of sleek modern furniture, still in the gray-and-white color scheme. Then we walk through the huge bathroom and into an equally huge walk-in closet.
“You don’t have to borrow anything, but you’re totally welcome to,” Jordan says.
I glance around the closet, which must be almost as big as my bedroom back home. “A-are you sure?” I ask. Everything looks so expensive; I can’t imagine she’d be okay letting me borrow anything.
“Of course! What style do you like?”
“Um, I don’t know. I don’t really have a style.” I laugh, and Alisha smiles at me as she walks past us and takes a seat on a fluffy white rug in front of the floor-length mirror.
“Go with something feminine,” she says to Jordan. “I think it’ll suit her.”
Jordan starts flipping through hangers, and I let my gaze wander, taking in all the shoes, skirts, dresses, and accessories.
“Ooh, how about this?” Jordan pulls a hanger from the rack, and dangling from it is a tiny black minidress. Seeing it, my breath catches.
“Oh, I don’t know,” I say. “I’m not sure that’ll fit me.”
Alisha looks between me and the dress, seeming to study my body shape. “I think it’s perfect. You should try it on.”
Jordan hands me the hanger. “Come on, Alisha. Out.”
