AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I’d spent a few nights at Lucy’s house in the past and I both loved and hated it. I loved how easily Layla Thornton had taken me under her wing and made me feel like one of her children. I hated it because it only made me ache for my own mother that much more. Layla had even offered to let me stay with the
m permanently.
It had taken every single ounce of willpower I had to turn her down. I’d promised my mother and I was going to keep that damn promise. But as soon as I turned eighteen, I was gone. Nothing could keep me in Scott Montez’s house a second longer than was necessary.
The rest of the drive to First Bass was uneventful for the most part. Marcus pulled to a stop in front of the club and handed the keys to the Range Rover over to the valet before helping Lucy out. I grabbed my guitar case and followed her. We didn’t even look at the huge guy standing in front of the velvet ropes, keeping people out. I gritted my teeth as more than one pap called out my name and then Lucy’s, but neither of us bothered to give them so much as a glance as we entered the club.
Normally on Wednesday nights we didn’t go up to the VIP floor, so when Tiny stepped forward as we started to pass the VIP entrance, we were both surprised. “Miss Thornton,” the big, delicious man with the scary-as-fuck voice greeted her. Even though she knew the guy, his sudden appearance startled her and she stepped back, instinctively moving toward Marcus. “Mr. Cutter asks that you join him in his office at your earliest convenience.”
She stiffened and I watched her eyes widen. I pressed my lips together. Harris had ignored Lucy for over a week now and suddenly he was requesting she come to him? Yeah, that shit wasn’t going to fly with Lucy. Even I knew that. I tightened my hold on her hand, offering her silent support.
Lucy straightened her shoulders and lifted her chin. “Thank you, Tiny, but please inform Mr. Cutter that I won’t be joining him in his office. If he couldn’t find two seconds to send me a text letting me know he was alive, I sure as hell don’t have time to visit with him now.”
I bit the inside of my cheek to keep from laughing when I saw the big man’s mouth actually drop open in surprise. Apparently telling Tiny ‘no’ didn’t happen often. I couldn’t help smirking up at the big guy in amusement, but before I could say a single word Marcus was pushing both me and Lucy forward.
He found us a table and I sat down while he took up his usual post several feet away. That was one of the many things I liked about Marcus. He was respectful enough to give Lucy some space and I knew Lucy was never afraid to be herself around him. His loyalty was to her, and he would never tell her parents anything unless it was something that posed a potential threat to her life.
While I got my notebook out that was filled with all the new songs I’d been working on, a waitress stopped by our table and I ordered ginger ales for both of us. Lucy looked like she was lost in a world of her own and I couldn’t keep from calling Harris Cutter a stupid sonofabitch to myself. Lucy had confided in me that Harris had kissed her the night we’d had a girls’ night out with her mother, sister and Aunt Emmie.
That had been more than a week ago and the douchebag hadn’t so much as called her or texted her. If I hadn’t known how close Lucy and Harris were, I would have said that he was just the typical dickhead who had gotten his taste of my friend and was giving her the brush off, but Harris was different. I’d seen the way he looked at Lucy Thornton. Seen the hunger in his aquamarine eyes and the love that seemed to radiate off him whenever they were near each other.
I’d had to twist her around my finger to get her to even agree to come with me and I could see she wasn’t exactly comfortable. I felt bad for conning her into coming, but knew that I wouldn’t have gotten past the front door without Lucy’s help. That didn’t mean I liked seeing her like that. She hadn’t been this uncomfortable about being in First Bass since the first time I’d come in to do an open mike night.
The waitress returned quickly with our drinks and set the first glass in front of Lucy. “Mr. Cutter would like for you to join him in his office,” she told Lucy.
Dark brown eyes lowered to her soda, but I wasn’t about to just sit there while Harris had his staff pass on messages and orders. “Tell Mr. Cutter to go fuck himself,” I snapped at the girl. “If he wants to see her so damn bad, he knows where he can find her.”
While the waitress’s mouth twitched and her eyes widened, I turned my attention back to my songs. Fuck Harris Cutter. If he’d hurt my friend he would have me to deal with. I’d cut his balls off and hand them on a platter for Lucy to do whatever she pleased with them…
I felt his presence long before his shadow crossed our table. My heart stopped for a second when I realized Jace was at the club, only to start racing when I felt his gaze on me. My fingers tightened around the pen I was making notes with to keep them from trembling.
Damn it.
I hadn’t let myself think about Jace that day—something that was nearly impossible ninety percent of the time. Other than one or two times, I hadn’t seen him since the night he’d sucked face with a random groupie. I’d done my best to ignore him since then, but that hadn’t stopped him from texting or leaving me voice messages daily. Until the last two days, that is. I hadn’t heard a word from him in the last two days…
I wasn’t upset about it.
Really.
So what if he had given up. That was what I wanted.
Really.
Jace paused at our table and I could feel his blue eyes drilling into the top of my head as I forced myself to concentrate on the song I wanted to sing later. It wasn’t perfect yet and I wanted to make sure it was before I got on stage.
I heard him blow out a harsh breath through his nose, but when he spoke it was to Lucy, not me. “Harris wants to know why you won’t come back to see him.”
“It probably has something to do with him being a dickhead,” Lucy assured him. “Better be careful, I hear it’s contagious.” She let out a surprised gasp and I lifted my eyes enough to watch her through my lashes. “Oh, wait, too late. You’ve already caught it.”
I couldn’t hold back the snicker that bubbled up. Fuck, I loved Lucy Thornton. She was the best friend any chick could have. That girl was just as protective of me as I was of her.
“Been taking lessons from Kin?” Jace asked and I could hear the grin in his voice.
I lowered my eyes back to the notebook, refusing to feel pleasure at the odd compliment I heard in his tone.
“Probably the other way around,” Lucy told him with a sass that had been absent over the last week. “If you want to sit with me while Kin preforms, that’s cool. When you aren’t trying to stomp on her heart and pride, I actually like you.”
My hand tightened on my pen, but I was quick to assure her I was fine. “Just my pride, Lu. My heart is no longer involved.”
