Bad Boy Read Online Free

asked. Tracie gave Laura a discreet kick in the ankle. When Laura had gone too far with Tracie’s wicked stepmother (known to them always as W.S.M. and never Thelma), Tracie had used the same editing system. No one had hated her stepmother as much as Laura ‌ —not even Tracie herself.
    As if dealing with Laura, Phil, and the skank wasn’t enough, Allison drifted over, too. Just because she had to work with Allison at the Times didn’t mean she had to introduce her to anyone.
    p. 19 “Hi, Tracie,” Allison said.
    It was the first time Tracie could remember Allison saying hello to her or anyone. She wasn’t even nice to Marcus, and he never gave her deadlines.
    In a way, Tracie knew she should feel complimented and she did. Phil was so attractive and had so much presence. His height, his clothes, his hair, and his attitude all worked. Hey, they had worked on her, and she had snagged him, and she was thrilled every time she looked at him. But, other women were constantly being snagged as well and she had to be ever vigilant regarding her potential rivals and Phil’s attitude toward them. Luckily, he was so used to female attention that he usually ignored it. Tracie sighed. She would have to introduce them. “Laura, Frank, Jeff, Phil, this is Allison.” And even though she knew she shouldn’t, Tracie looked at Phil and said, “And this would be . . .”
    “This is Melody,” Phil said. “She needed a ride over here.”
    “From where? Your apartment?” Tracie asked, and then wanted to bite her tongue.
    Laura shifted slightly in her seat, so there was no room for anyone else at the banquette. Tracie had to hand it to her friend. Phil still ignored Laura as he tightened his embrace around Tracie’s shoulder. “You look like a warm stove on a cold night,” he whispered into her ear. “See you later, babe,” he said to Melody, who was then forced, albeit reluctantly, to melt into the crowd.
    p. 20 Tracie eyed the girl’s back as she left.
    “Unchained Melody,” Laura muttered with satisfaction.
    “Righteous Brothers. 1965. Phillies label,” Jeff said.
    Best to just ignore her and what might have gone on, put it away, like a sweater at the back of the closet in summer. Not that she wouldn’t hear all about it from Laura later. “So, are you playing tonight?” she asked Phil.
    “Yeah. Bob is letting me do the second show.”
    Bob led the Glands, but not for long, if Phil had his way. “Great!” Tracie said, distracted. She looked back into the crowd to see if Melody was hanging around. She didn’t seem to be, which was a relief. Tracie trusted Phil, but only within certain parameters. She’d better stay the whole night, then. When you mixed music, alcohol, and Melody, you were outside the parameters. “When is Bob arriving?”
    “Well, there’s the question,” Phil said with a frown.
    “Which Gland is he?” Laura asked. “The adrenal? The pituitary?”
    “The asshole,” Phil said.
    “Oh. Then that would more properly be called ‘the anal gland,’ ” Laura said smoothly.
    Though Phil was the newest member, he was already jockeying to be leader. But why he would want it, Tracie could not fathom. It seemed like a lot of work: begging for unpaid jobs with club owners, making endless phone p. 21 calls about rehearsals, begging vans from friends to schlep equipment ‌ —all just to pick the lineup of songs. Big deal. She supposed picking the lineup would be fun, but she couldn’t imagine Phil organizing everything else. She thought, There must be a responsible side to him after all.
    “You know,” Jeff said for what had to be the three hundredth time, “I’m not so sure about our name.” Tracie looked up to the ceiling and sighed. When the guys weren’t fighting with one another or rehearsing or drinking, they spent their time arguing over the band’s name. Tracie had managed to do a feature about them ‌ —overcoming a lot of resistance from Marcus ‌ —and she’d used the