Chapter 15
Alice
I was smiling the next day as I parked in our section of the lot at the Haven Arena. Unlike most times in the past when I’d dreaded coming into work, today I was happy. I knew Noah wouldn’t give me his grumpy shit. We were—dare I say it?—friends.
And remembering the look on his face when he stepped in the freshly that Lola had deposited in the play area made me laugh out loud. I was chuckling under my breath as I got out of my car and locked it. He’d been so pissed. Lola might’ve been a tiny Pomeranian mix, but she could poop like a Great Dane.
Which made me think of DJ. It’d felt like they’d made a connection. I was a bit sad that Noah left without a dog, but I understood. He needed to make sure he could commit.
“What the fuck, Alice?”
The voice came out of nowhere, but I’d recognize it anywhere.
Parker.
Shit.
I turned toward the voice, and it took everything inside me not to cower. He had me by almost a foot.
Pretty sure my mom had been a smoker.
The thought came out of nowhere and made me smile slightly. I didn’t even know my mom. Weird, the things your brain comes up with when you’re scared out of your mind.
“You’re smiling? You think it’s funny to get me thrown out of a fucking bar like an asshole?”
I shook my head. “I didn’t get you thrown out. They tossed you because of your actions.”
Parker staggered slightly, and I finally took in his bloodshot eyes and scattered appearance. He was drunk. Maybe high, too.
I tossed a look over my shoulder. I could hear vehicles, but there was no one anywhere near our corner of the parking lot.
I was all alone.
Oh god.
“I don’t know why you keep popping up like a bad jack-in-the-box, but I’ve got nothing to say to you.” I walked backward toward the arena as I talked. “We were together, then you dumped me. Years ago. What makes you think we have anything to talk about?”
Parker staggered after me. “Maybe I’ve got a job for you. You ever think of that?”
“I have plenty of jobs, Parker. I work here. I have the band. I volunteer.” Like hell was I going to tell him where—the last thing I needed was him popping up more in my life. “I don’t need another job. But thank you for thinking of me.”
I hoped my overly sweet voice would placate him.
That was way too optimistic of a thought even for Lark, let alone me.
“You don’t understand, Alice. I can’t write. I can’t hear the music. Ever since you left, it just all went away. And I can’t get it back. I need it back.” He raised his voice with every word until he was screaming at me.
I cringed away from him and staggered backward. “I, uh, maybe you should talk to someone? I think there are coaches or therapists or whatever for things like that. Maybe your record label could hook you up.”
I couldn’t take my eyes off of him.
“I had everything! I had the world at my fucking fingertips, and then it all went away. It all disappeared when you disappeared!” Spittle flew from his mouth. “I was a god, and now I’m a fucking joke! ”
Tires screeched behind me.
I turned. Noah leaped out of an SUV and raced over to us.
Relief swamped me.
I wasn’t alone.
Parker was already backing away with his hands raised. “I don’t want trouble.”
“Really? Is that why you have a woman cornered in a fucking parking lot?” Noah shoved him. “What the fuck is wrong with you?”
“I just wanted to talk! I need the words! I can’t find the words!” Parker’s shoulders heaved as he broke down and sobbed.
I would’ve felt bad for him—he looked so sad and pathetic—but he’d scared the crap out of me.
Noah stood there with clenched fists. Clearly he wanted to swing on Parker, but my ex just looked so pathetic all hunched over and sobbing into his knees.
What the hell had I ever seen in him?
Hyde, a huge hulking member of the band’s security, appeared and escorted Parker away.
“Shit. Are you okay?” Noah bent down in front of me, concern etched across his face. “Do you need a hug?”
“Will you think less of me if I say yes?”
Noah’s arms came around me just as I started to shake. I fought against the tears burning at my eyes. I wasn’t a crier. I wasn’t some weak chick who couldn’t hold her own.
I was vaguely aware of Noah’s arms around me and the comforting sound of his voice as he led me into the building.
I pushed weakly against his chest. “I’m okay. Really. I’m fine.”
I wasn’t okay. I needed a minute.
I needed privacy. I just needed to fall apart for a second, then I’d get it together.
Noah’s arms never budged from me. “You are fine. He’s an ass and won’t be anywhere near you ever again. I guarantee it. But I got you. You can lean on me for a minute.”
I gave in to his prodding and cried in his arms.
His hand ran comfortingly up and down my back. I couldn’t deny that it felt good to be held. It’d been so long since I’d had someone to lean on.
After a few minutes, once I was finally all cried out, I sighed and instead of pushing away from him, I squeezed my arms around his lean hips. “Thanks.”
“Anytime.”
Something pressed against the top of my head for a second then was gone. Tears burned at my eyes again as I realized that he’d kissed me. It was such a sweet, tender gesture.
“And you know it helped me to hold you.”
I pushed away from him slightly so I could look up at his face but still stay in his arms. “How’s that?”
“Kept me from earning a murder charge.”
I chuckled and rolled my eyes.
“But seriously, are you okay? Did he touch you?”
“No.” This time I did push out of his arms and took a step away. It was at this point that I realized we were standing in a ladies’ restroom. I walked over to a sink and took in my smeared mascara and red eyes. After grabbing a paper towel, I wetted it and dabbed under my eyes to repair the damage. “He just shouted stupid shit at me. Blamed me for not being able to write music. Apparently, him dumping me and stealing my songs was my fault.”
“Even that clueless asshole can see that he was stupid for letting you slip through his fingers.”
I snorted a laugh even as I wiped up my tears. “Yeah well, I’m not getting back with him. Or whatever his delusional mind wanted from me.”
“Clearly. You’re smarter than that.”
I dabbed a little more, then tossed the paper towel, and faced Noah. “All right. Let’s go to work.”
“Good try. You’re talking to the cops first. I bet Harper has them waiting in her office already. Come on.”
“They can’t do anything.” I trotted after Noah. “He didn’t touch me.”
“I’m sure Harper can convince them to charge him with something. At the very least, you need to apply for a restraining order. They can help with that.”
“I seriously doubt he’ll try again. You were pretty scary.”
“He’s got nothing to lose at this point.” Noah’s tone was firm and honestly kinda sexy. So different from the way he used to talk to me. But still, this felt like overkill.
“But—”
“We’re doing it. It’s nonnegotiable. Your safety is more important than whatever embarrassment or trouble you’re worried about.”
“It’s just pointless. A restraining order is just a piece of paper. It won’t stop him from coming back if he wants to.”
“It’ll give the cops a reason to arrest him if he does. But if he’s smart, he’s on the road already with Vegas in his rearview.”
“Parker isn’t exactly acting smart. I’m starting to think he never was.”
Noah stopped in front of the door to the executive suites and tossed me a grin. “You’re not wrong there.”
I stepped into the office as he held the door for me. “What are you even doing here this early? Soundcheck is two hours out.”
“I have a meeting with Harper.” Noah groaned.
I turned, assuming he saw something he didn’t like, but the usual sixty-ish receptionist sat at her desk with a professional smile. “What? I thought you liked Harper.”
The receptionist stood and gestured to the hall. “She’s waiting for you.”
Noah nodded at her, then murmured to me, “I do. But we’re picking another Win-A-Date winner, and I don’t wanna.”
“Aww, poor baby. I’ll help you if you want.” I was dying to see the women. Honestly, I really wanted to see what the reject pile looked like too.
What? I was a nosy bitch.
Noah tossed me an unimpressed look.
I guess my nosiness was apparent. “For real. I’ll be your advocate and keep the harpies away from your virginal body.”
Noah was still laughing as we walked into Harper’s office.
The two cops standing at the other side of the room had me freezing for a second. For so long, cops had been the enemy. The ones who could force me to go back to the foster home. The ones who had all the power. Even though that’d been years ago, it was hard to shake the mindset.
“Ms. Rose?” The one on the left asked.
I nodded.
“We were just explaining to Ms. Grey that we’ll look at the footage, but if the suspect didn’t touch you, there’s not much to hold him on.”
“He didn’t,” I whispered.
The other cop shifted his weight. “We’ll still take your statement and give you some information on applying for a restraining order.”
Noah tossed me a look, and I rolled my eyes.
So we spent the next half hour or so talking to the police and filling out paperwork. I was exhausted by the time we were done.
And now I got to work a whole shift. Joy.
“You’re taking the rest of the day off,” Harper said as soon as the police left.
I opened my mouth to disagree when Noah cut in.
“With pay,” he added. “And I want to see what we’re paying her. I’m guessing it’s not enough, and she’s due a raise.”
Harper’s eyebrows went up. “That’s confidential information between Black Hat Productions and my employee. I can’t divulge it without her permission.”
I shook my head. Like hell did I want Noah to know what my paycheck was. Talk about demeaning.
“Fine. But give her a raise.” Noah lifted a hand before Harper could protest. “Take it out of my share if you need to.”
“Noah.” I shook my head. “You’re being ridiculous.”
“No, I’m taking care of my friend. And she’s going to need security.”
Harper nodded and shifted some papers on her desk. “Already done.”
“Wait. What?” I looked between them incredulously.
“Black Hat is paying for someone to escort you to and from the venue and your home. Non-negotiable. You were attacked in our parking lot and that’s not acceptable. I’ll be damned if anyone under my employ doesn’t feel safe working for me.” Harper’s voice hardened until she was practically spitting out the words by the end.
And then I remembered what’d happened to her over a year ago in London. One of the security guards attacked her in the restrooms after soundcheck. She’d found him doing drugs, and he thought the best way to get away with it was to incapacitate the witness—who also happened to be his boss.
Noah had been the one to save her then.
It was becoming a habit for him.
My eyes darted to his spot where he was sprawled out on a plush leather chair. He raised his eyebrows back at me. I had no doubt he’d arrange security for me if I managed to wiggle out of Harper’s safety net.
“Fine.” I sighed. “I just…I’m sorry I brought this to work. I never thought he’d follow me here.”
“Not your fault.” Harper’s voice was firm, but her eyes looked gentle. “Never apologize for asshole men. His actions are not on you.”
Tears burned the back of my eyes again, so all I could do was nod in agreement.
“Good. Again, I’m so sorry that this happened, Alice.” Harper gave me a sad little smile. “If you need more time off, just send me a text. And I can arrange it if you want to talk to someone.”
“Thanks.” I knew better than to complain at this point. They were just showing their support.
Harper went on, “Our lawyers will push through the restraining order on your behalf. I’ll need you to come in and sign the paperwork once they have it drawn up.”
I nodded my agreement.
“I know how it feels. If you ever want to talk to me, I’m here. Emotions will hit you later. That’s perfectly normal. Whatever you’re feeling is okay. It wasn’t your fault. Some guys are just assholes.”
I laughed wryly. “You know you don’t have to tell me that.”
“Sadly, so true.” Harper shook her head. “But please, take the day—or more if you need—with pay of course.”
“Thanks.”
She turned to Noah. “I think we still have some time before soundcheck if you want to go through your thing.”
“Oh, I’m staying for that.” My laugh was more of a croak, but I fought to sound somewhat normal. “Noah invited me.”
“I did?” He frowned.
“You did.” I stared back at him.
Harper’s eyes bounced between us like she was watching a tennis match. Judging by the smile on her face, she found us to be a really entertaining tennis match.
I did too. I loved needling Noah. He was such an easy target.
“Fine.” He groaned. “Let’s just get this over with.”
“All right.” Harper fought against the smile tugging at her lips. “I narrowed it down to five women. Two are elementary school teachers. One is a dancer for the local basketball team. And two work in hospitality at casinos in town.”
“Wait, they’re all locals? I thought we’d be picking from women from all over.”
“The teachers aren’t locals. I thought I’d tip the scales and give you a larger pool of locals to choose from.” Harper smiled. “Thought it might be more comfortable if you picked someone you could have a relationship with and not have to figure out the logistics of distance.”
Noah scowled.
And I knew without him even saying that he’d been hoping for a one and done kinda deal. That the temporary nature of dating a tourist would give him an easy out.
“But if you don’t want to go that way, I can dive back into the pool. Either way, we need to get going on this. The last girl’s posts are still getting traction. We need to change the narrative.”
“Fine.” Noah sighed. “Show me who you picked.”
Harper grinned as she turned her laptop around on the desk, displaying the screen. She came around the side of her desk and clicked through the screens.
“Bachelorette number one is a front desk clerk at the Desert Island.” Harper pulled up a picture of a beaming, slender redhead in a bikini standing poolside at Vegas dayclub. “She’s twenty-four and has a degree in hospitality from UNLV. She grew up in Minnesota and wants to be a stay-at-home mom one day.”
“She put that in her application?” Noah asked incredulously. “That she’s looking for a sugar daddy?”
“I…didn’t take it that way,” Harper finished in a mutter. “Shit, you’re right. Okay. Moving on. Bachelorette number two is a blackjack dealer at the Medina. She has a six-year-old—”
“And is wearing a wedding ring.” Noah leaned toward the screen. “Is that a recent photo?”
“Should be. I have that copy of Vegas Variety.” I pointed at the table behind the pouting brunette. “It came out last week.”
“That looks like a wedding ring.” Noah pointed at the huge rock on the woman’s hand. “Is she married?”
“Oh my god, we can’t have you going out with a married woman. That’s the last kind of publicity you need.” Harper scowled then clicked to the next photo. “Fine. Bachelorette number three is a dancer for the Vegas Lights. She’s going to school part time for civil engineering. She’s twenty-five and doesn’t have any visible marital jewelry or blatant sugar baby aspirations.”
I snorted with laughter then tried to muffle it behind a cough when Noah turned to scowl at me.
“Enjoying this little nightmare, are you?” His jaw flexed as he no doubt ground his teeth.
“Little bit.” I grinned unabashedly back at him.
Noah grunted and turned back to the screen. “I like that she’s around professional athletes and still going to school. Means maybe she’s not into the whole lifestyle. What else does it say on her application?”
Some of my enjoyment leached out of me the longer Noah looked at the screen. This woman was the definition of gorgeous. Long, slender legs. Flirty little skirt in the Lights’ bold red and purple colors. Tousled blonde hair that looked silky smooth. Plump lips and even plumper chest that somehow matched her lithe physique.
Everything I wasn’t.
And apparently, everything Noah wanted.
She had that vixen-girl-next-door look down pat.
“She lives in Vegas now, obviously, but she grew up in California—LA, I think…yeah. She came to Vegas for school and has been dancing for the Lights for three seasons. She also works part time as a server at Desert Island’s dayclub in the off season.”
I would’ve thought that would count against her, but Noah nodded. “Good. I like her hustle. And that apparently she is doing it all on her own. What are her socials like? Does she have a huge following?”
He was clearly remembering the fallout from the last contestant.
Harper toggled between the screens. “Nothing huge—a couple thousand. But you know that won’t guarantee her posts won’t go viral if she chooses to talk about you.”
“Can we do an NDA then?” Noah groaned, rubbing his face. “Keep her from talking?”
“That kinda undermines the whole point. We want people to talk about you, talk about the band.” Harper shrugged and pulled the dancer’s picture back up. “We’ll do a thorough background check before we make contact. But I don’t think an NDA is a good idea. She could refuse to sign then tell everyone we asked for one which wouldn’t be a good look either.”
Noah nodded tightly, his eyes focused on the gorgeous woman on the laptop screen.
Harper tilted her head. “Do you want to look at any of the other applications I pulled?”
“No. Let’s go with her, assuming she passes backgrounds.” Noah sat back and drummed his thumb against his leg in a rhythm only he could hear. “I think you’re right about the whole local thing. I wanna find someone for myself.”
I felt a little pang in my chest that I really didn’t want to name.
“Good.” Harper’s eyes twinkled along with her grin. “I like this, Noah. I’m feeling optimistic about this one.”
He grunted. “At least one of us is.”
I didn’t want to label what I was feeling.
But it was weird and wrong.