Free RANE: A Rockstar Stepbrother Romance by Vivian Lux Page A

right?"
    "Yup. As friends. I promised, didn't I?"
     
     

Chapter Fourteen
    Madeline
     
    I had been around long enough to not be surprised by the size and scale of Rane's enormous mansion. What was making me hesitate was the noise.
    How many people were in there? One hundred? Two hundred? Five hundred? From the end of the winding drive, I could hear the voices bouncing all around me. It was like being inside of a stadium right after the home team scores.
    I should go home. I'm not ready for this.
    No, you can handle this, you're recovered. Besides, aren't you the least bit curious about what it looks like inside? Plus, you'll see Rane again.
    Yeah, that's what I'm afraid of.
    I hovered at the edge of the party in an agony of indecision, when out of nowhere, I heard a familiar voice.
    "Hey there!" Harlow called, blowing her smoke straight up like a chimney. She had been crouched, texting and smoking with equal fervor, on the long front porch that overlooked a swooping lawn that ended in a rather sharp drop to the road below. The sun was setting behind me, lighting the white mansion so it glowed like a moon.
    I waved to her, feeling myself tense and relax at the same time. When Rane had invited me, I didn't know what to think. As I left the shoot, the sounds of his brother haranguing him drifted over the parking lot, allowing me to hear every sarcastic word. "Have you lost your goddamned mind?" Keir had asked.
    I was wondering the same thing. Had I lost my goddamned mind, coming here? But Harlow was clearly comfortable here.  She was still dressed in her black crew attire, but I could see the strap of a teal bikini poking out from under her top. She tucked her phone into her pocket and ran up and hugged me like we were old friends, enveloping me in the toasty smell of her clove cigarettes. "I'm really glad you came!"
    "Me too," I answered, startled into shyness. I stared at the blazing lights of the huge house up on the hill, lit up like a jack-o-lantern. Music and loud shouts of laughter spilled out from the inside to join the sounds of splashing and friendly insults wafting from the back lawn. "Sounds like a hell of a party."
    "Drizzle always goes all out for these things," she explained, linking arms with me and dragging me in through the front door.
    The huge front room was nearly bare of furniture, save a low, modern looking sectional and a few huge, drippy-spattery paintings on the wall. It was also bare of people, save for a few clumps of quiet wine drinkers I thought I recognized from the prop crew.
    "Most everyone is already out back getting loaded by the pool." Harlow was leaning hard on my arm, sounding pretty loaded herself. "I'd change into your suit and hide your phone, because a few girls have already gotten tossed in."
    "Did you get dunked?"
    She scoffed, running her fingers through her perfect bangs. "They wouldn't dare." She pointed. "Bathroom's over there. Knock first. Last I saw, Twitch was trying to maneuver one of the craft services chicks into it."
    "Thanks for the warning." I knocked once, twice, and hearing nothing except the echoes of laughter from the backyard, I summoned my bravery and pushed in to find it blessedly empty.
    "Poor Twitch. He's got literally no game at all," Harlow slurred, shaking her head. "I'll stand guard for you."
    "Appreciate it." I hurriedly stripped and tied on my swimsuit, glancing at my phone only four separate times. Studio heads were notorious for working late. It was still early enough that I could hear from them today. This music video had been a welcome distraction from waiting for news about Skyline Drive 's casting, but now that it was over, I was back to biting my nails and hoping.
    "Cute suit." Harlow smiled when I emerged, grabbing my arm. "Green suits you. Makes your hair pop. You should totally keep it short by the way. I was looking at old pictures of you—wait, sorry if that totally sounds stalkerish, but it was for work, I needed to find your colors—fuck,