Redeeming Kyle: 69 Bottles #3 (41 page)

**** ONE YEAR LATER *****

Next week, Emily and Logan turn one. I can’t believe a year has gone by so fast. But tonight, tonight is all about me. Well, sort of.
 

In January after the twins were born, after Talon and I had our talk about his future with 69 Bottles, I signed a record contract with Vicious Records and by March, inside of Talon’s studio, I recorded my first solo album. With a lot of help from Talon who became my writer and my producer. I’m musically inclined when it comes to singing, but I suck at writing music. So Talon has taken care of most of that for me. There was a time when I would have called you crazy for predicting what would happen, but in the middle of April when my first single, ‘Now and Forever’, hit the airways, it hit the Top 40 for more than six weeks. Reaching number two. Hey, what can I say, not bad for a first solo song, right?
 

When the single was released for sale, I made the Billboard Top 100, though I didn’t reach the top. I was actually kind of glad about that, I rather enjoy the fact that Talon and I together hit the number one spot with ‘To Be Free’.
 

Part of my signing with Vicious was that I wouldn’t go on tour until after the first of the next year. I needed Emily and Logan to be at least one and I needed them to be weaned completely, the upcoming tour gives me that excuse, though the twins will be traveling with us and I have a lot fewer appearances on my tour than Talon and the guys did on theirs.
 

So about tonight, I am attending my second awards show since releasing my first album and being with the band. The first one I walked the red carpet because I was picked to present and perform during the show. Which of course was awesome. No need to mention that Talon was my guitarist that night. No one knew, which tells me that there is a definite separation between me and 69 Bottles. Though they too performed at that award show. Tonight however, I am performing, presenting and lastly, a nominee. Well, Bryan Hayes is the reason I’m a nominee. Our duet has been nominated as Duet of the Year, Song of the Year and Video of the Year.
 

Everyone seems to think we’re going to win, but I’m skeptical, better to be that than expectant and lose.
 

Talon and Kyle walk the red carpet with me. Talon is in the vest, shirt and pants of a Brioni tux. Having ditched the jacket completely, his sleeves are rolled up and the top button is open. Regardless, he’s still sexy as hell. Kyle, on the other hand, is in an Armani tux, vest and all, looking amazingly handsome. I should mention that somewhere along the course of the last year people started putting two and two together that we were three and not two, it might be the fact that my name is Addison Carver-Black. We received some backlash for it, but in the end all was okay. I guess it helps that we try our hardest not to flaunt it in front of people. Kyle is mine and 69 Bottles’ full time manager now, which of course keeps him super busy, but he never complains and is constantly coming up with new ideas for both 69 Bottles and myself.
 

So back to the red carpet. They’re both with me tonight. Though they don’t kiss me or do anything to invoke the comments, other than have their arms around me for pictures. I stand there with my arms behind their backs too.

Now that you’re drooling about Kyle and Talon, I should tell you that I’m wearing a custom made Vera Wang, that is black, sleeveless and very short. I am rocking the purple hair again and I’m wearing my favorite purple suede platform pumps and my hair is cascading down my back, about two inches longer than last year.
 

As the awards ceremony gets started, I get ridiculously nervous and I am really sad to say that I will be backstage when the first award is announced, Duo/Duet of the Year, so I won’t have the privilege of hugging and kissing Talon and Kyle if we win. I will have just been on stage with Bryan singing the song. Which is another reason why I don’t think I’ll win.
 

Our performance goes perfectly. Though we hadn’t performed it very much together, we’ve done it a few times since recording and releasing it. We practiced a lot this week. Then comes the nerves. I could perform, have no problem doing that, but this makes me down right fucking nervous.
 

Bryan comes over to stand with me. “How you doing?”
 

“I feel like I’m going to puke.”
 

“Good, glad I’m not the only one,” he says with a laugh. “Great job tonight.” He smiles.
 

“You too.”
 

“And the nominees for best duet are…” I start bouncing in my shoes. I can’t stand here, argh, I want to fucking run around.
 

“And the winner is… ‘Never Kiss Goodbye’, Bryan Hayes and Addison Carver-Black”
 

At that moment my entire world fuzzes. I’m not sure I can tell you what happens next, all I know is that Bryan escorts me back to the stage. I spot Talon and Kyle standing in the third row and everything balances back out. They hand Bryan and I our trophies and Bryan takes the envelope. And steps up to the microphone. “How you doin there, Addison?”
 

“Oh my god,” I squeal.
 

“Me too.” He turns back to the microphone. “Thank you all so much for this wonderful honor. I’d like to thank Addison for joining me on this project along with…” He struts spouting off names of people at his label and those that helped us with the song before handing me the microphone.
 

“Oh my gosh, I didn’t, oh dear. I need to thank Bryan for coming to me for this duet, it was so much fun working on this project with you. I’d also like to thank Cami and my crew at Bold, along with Talon and Kyle for helping me through all this…” yada yada and like a dutiful professional, I thank a lot of the people I worked with at Bryan’s label and the fans for loving the song and I manage to do it without getting cut off.
 

When we get backstage, Bryan hugs me. “Congratulations Addison.”
 

“No no, thank you, and congrats, you deserve it.”

He smiles, “So do you.”
 

“Hardly, you wrote it, you came to me, I just sang along with you.”
 

 
“But we wouldn’t have these if you didn’t do that.” We have to give back our trophies and because of additional nominations we’re being returned to our seats. Thank god. But I will have to walk the press line eventually.
 

When I get back to my seat Kyle and Talon are positively bouncing with happiness for me. They can’t take their hands off of me. The song ends up winning video of the year also. I don’t claim that trophy, I’ll get one, but I had no part in the video production, which is who accepts the award. The ceremony continues through group, male and female vocalists to get to song of the year and then finally artist of the year, which Bryan is also up for. At least this time I get to hold Talon and Kyle’s hands through the process. Thank god.
 

I can’t stop bouncing, it sucks, I’m so damn nervous. Then it finally comes to the nominees and I magically settle down, knowing that cameras are on me and Bryan who is sitting in front of me.

“And the winner is…’Never Kiss Goodbye’, Bryan Hayes and Addison Carver-Black.”

I turn first to Kyle who stands me up in his arms. Then turn to Talon who whispers into my ear, “I am so proud of you.” I quickly hug and shake hands on my way out of my row to find Bryan ready to escort me to the stage. Bryan and I go through our rigamarole of thanks once again, and I add a couple of people I forgot the last time, then throw in kisses for Logan and Emily. One day they’ll see this.
 

Bryan turns around and wins the Entertainer of the Year award too. All in all he walked away with like five trophies and on my third duet, before my first album was even in my mind, I’ve won three.
 

I don’t get to see Talon and Kyle for some time as I walk the press gauntlet backstage. Bryan is right behind me, since we were the last winners and we pose occasionally for pictures together. At the end of the press gauntlet I am handed two bags. One contains packaged trophies, engraved, from what I’m told and the other is a rather expensive Louis Vuitton weekender bag. It’s ridiculously heavy and I didn’t expect that.
 

When I’m finally done backstage, I go in search of Kyle and Talon, who are both standing in front of a bank of reporters. I can’t hear what they’re talking about and my entrance isn’t a surprise because all of the reporters start shouting for me, but I don’t care. I make a beeline for both of them and they stop what they’re doing and wrap me up in a huge hug. Talon lifts me off the ground and kisses me. Then Kyle takes over, repeating the process. The flashbulbs go nuts and Kyle takes all the stuff from my hands.
 

We stay in the press line a little longer and I answer some questions before we finally make our dash to the limo. We have two after parties to attend tonight.
 

When we’re in the limo they both attack me with kisses and praise and everything short of fucking my brains out on our way.
 

“It so surreal,” I’m finally able to say aloud.
 

“I can only imagine,” Talon says.
 

I turn to him, “You’ll get your chance, trust me. Besides, I don’t necessarily feel like these are really mine. I mean, Bryan is huge and the reason for the nominations.”
 

“Don’t say that, mama. It’s not true. You worked just as hard on that song as he did.”
 

“I know, but still. It doesn’t mean I’m not ridiculously happy about it, it’s just, I don’t know. Ask me tomorrow when I’m at home, playing with the kids then I might have a better idea about how I really feel about it.”
 

They both smile and agree to do so. I call Nadia, our nanny to check on the kids, who are sound asleep already, but I figured that. She said they did great going to bed without us, which is not something we do very often. We’ve always been very good about having at least two of us there to kiss them good night, except on nights like this. I miss them terribly.
 

The after parties are a blast and I leave with more stuff. Talon makes some new contacts in the business and I think his prospects are looking up.

**** Another Year Later ****

Emily and Logan are turning two and let me tell you what a wild ride this last year has been.
 

This year was Talon’s and 69 Bottles’ year. They released two albums and toured twice. My first solo tour started this last February, though it wasn’t entirely solo. I opened for 69 Bottles. Most cities we played two nights because tickets sold so fast they had to add more. The twins came with us in a new bus designed specifically for our family with only two bedrooms. One for us and one for the twins.
 

Though now it is obvious to me which one belongs to whom because they each have features that are distinctively Talon and very distinctively Kyle. Ironically, Talon had wanted boys when we played that game two years ago and Emily is his and Logan belongs to Kyle. Though I know they both know whose is whose, there is no difference in the love and attention they give both kids.
 

After the tour was over we returned to LA. I recorded my second album and Talon and the guys recorded their fourth. Which ironically enough, Vicious released them a week apart. We traded spots on the Top 40 charts, both of us dancing with numbers one and two for over three weeks. I took number one the first week, because my album came out first and 69 Bottles took the next week. Again we danced. Now eighteen weeks after that, both albums still remain in the top 100. Who would have thought.
 

Our next music awards show we all went together, all as nominees. I took all but one of my awards and 69 Bottles took all of theirs. It was such a rush.
 

When we got home that night, we made love for hours, thank god for Nadia, oh and my mom.
 

Dex and Raine got married this year and they’re expecting their first child. Dex has grown up so much, you almost wouldn’t recognize him. Now that gay marriage is legal across all fifty states, Mouse and Peacock married also. They are searching for the right surrogate. It breaks my heart a little because I would have loved to do it for them, but I can’t.
 

Jess, bless her beautiful heart, and I have become extremely close friends over the last year or so. She’s constantly hanging around with Mouse and Peacock. I tease her all the time about her own little threesome relationship, but she swears it’s not like that at all. “I’m going to do it,” she tells me one day.
 

“Do what?” I ask her as she helps me get beers and drinks flowing for everyone.
 

“Be their surrogate.”
 

“Oh my god, Jess. That’s… are you sure?”
 

She laughs. “Absolutely. I’d do it for you too, if you ever wanted to you know…” She lets the thought trail off.
 

“I’m so happy you’re going to do it for the guys, they deserve it, they need it. But Talon, Kyle and I have decided that the twins are enough for us. Part of that is because of the fact that neither one of them can decide on who the father would be.” I laugh. Those argument were quite fun. Watching them argue about it. “What happened with Logan and Emily is a miracle, and we wouldn’t want to put a surrogate through twins.”
 

“I’d do it,” she says with a warm reassuring smile.
 

I hug her. “You’re the best, you know that? Why don’t you get through it with your guys first, then we’ll see.” I smile.
 

“Sounds great.”
 

“Oh and Jess?”
 

“Yeah.”
 

“If you need anything at all, call me, I’ll be there.”
 

She smiles wide and we go out to join the rest of our guys.
 

Tori and Rusty are together and Beck finally has a woman of his own. Mills on the other hand is meant to be the bachelor of this group, but he’s perfectly happy about that.