Chapter 19
CHAPTER 19
C ass searched Tilly’s features for a sign of strain. The sound of a band crew member tapping the microphones on stage echoed loudly in the Bell Center arena as she did her line check.
It was Halloween night, and they were both psyched to be working together on his last gig before his parental leave, after one easy day spent leisurely driving around Briac Falls to show her the area and capped with an early evening.
“You don’t have to do the whole show if you don’t want to,” he noted.
But she looked right in her environment, sitting at her laptop and surrounded by mixers and screens below the harsh lights of the venue before the concert. She had pulled her hair into a messy bun above the large silver headphones resting on her neck and hid her baby bump under an oversized black sweatshirt with his tour logo printed at the front. His Celtic cross resting upon her chest made him smile.
They were early and for now, it was just the two of them in the mixing station at the back of the arena’s main floor.
“It’ll be fine,” she reassured him. “I’m above the crowd. I feel fine.”
“Manu will be right there to assist you if something doesn’t feel right.” He’d made sure to keep their current band engineer on hand tonight, just in case. “He can take over. And I’ll have Raphael with you. Evan, too. He’s also one of Mag’s vampire bodyguards.”
Mag had been as freaked as Cass about Tilly’s abduction, and insisted they also take Evan to watch over her if she were to work this concert. Both vampires were patrolling the arena as staff loaded equipment on stage and were getting everything ready for his 8 pm start.
“Thanks for letting me do this.” She looked truly happy as she swiveled from her console, beaming with a smile that carried all the way to her deep blue eyes. “I do miss it.”
“You’re really doing this for me,” he said, truthfully. “You’re the best I’ve worked with.” While a part of him was delighted to do this last show with her, he also wanted to make sure she was up for it.
“Maybe. But this,” she reached for his hand, her expression serious as she took in the multitude of seats in the arena all around them that would soon be fully packed, “what you do. It’s all you, Cass.”
“Us,” he corrected her. And right there he saw the true possibility of them being together as a couple. Beyond the wild nights of Hyannis and beyond the responsibility of shared parenthood, they truly were partners. She was crazy to think he’d ever relegate her to the background of his music career.
And there was no denying the closeness they’d experienced the night before. When she had kissed him first, he thought he’d finally gotten through to her. That she wanted him as much as he wanted her.
But she’d ended up not answering him on the marriage proposal.
So, he had to do the gentleman thing and stay well away from her until he was sure of what she wished. It had been almost impossible for him to tear himself from that bed. His shower had been frigid and long.
But right now, she was a complete puzzle. He had to wait.
She wanted safety from him, sure. For her and the baby. But did she want any more?
His heart swelled to hear her repeat his word with a nod. “Us, you’re right.”
And he was back to focus on her safety.
“You’ll be perfectly safe. Griff is coming right now and will stick to you like glue. The center is completely shut. There’s only my entourage and the arena’s staff here right now. No one else can get in without any of us knowing.”
“Got it,” she told him with a firm nod.
“If anyone, Marjo, Raphael, or Evan sees anything weird during the concert, they’ll tell Griff.”
“I’ll be fine. We got this. It’s only a few hours.” She nodded and returned her complete focus to her laptop in front of her.
She looked so happy as she checked everything on her screen that Cass could tell she had really missed the live mixing. She had looked like a fairy queen at the gala, but here, she was the strong, capable engineer he’d fallen for eight months ago.
He watched her for a moment as she studied the pulses of sound grow on her monitor to make sure all the inputs were live.
And right there, it hit him.
There was no doubt.
He was absolutely head over heels in love with her.
A ping strummed his heart remembering their kiss. At how passionate she had been for him. And how relieved she’d been to see him when she’d woken from her nightmare. Like he was everything to her.
Dammit, he did want to marry her.
Live with her forever.
Whatever forever meant for them.
She was carrying his child but more, she held his heart in her hands. And he hoped in her own heart.
He loved how she’d been so supportive of his talent in front of his brothers yet could see right through him when he wasn’t entirely real. She was the absolutely no-nonsense counterpart to his people-pleasing personality. He loved that she was fiercely independent, almost to a fault.
The thought that anything could happen to her filled him with incredible dread.
He wanted to tell her. Right here. I love you, Tilly.
There. Done.
But she hadn’t been ready to marry him last night.
She was so afraid of letting someone in, that telling her how he felt might just push her away.
He’d have to trust that everything would be okay. That having this child would bring them together.
He would take all precautions to ensure that their future would be the happy one she had foretold, the one that didn’t carry tragedy.
As he watched Tilly continue to set up his sound, her headphones now over her ears, he couldn’t help but let his mind daydream a little.
He would sing to his baby while she sat next to them.
He would teach their child how to ride his first bike. Under the tree canopy of a nice long private drive that would lead to the property they’d build in the woods of the Domaine-Lassalle mountains. He would play catch with the kid in the summer and make snowmen in the backyard of their estate during the cold months. Teach their child piano and guitar and more. He would take his offspring to the watering hole of Briac Falls to meet his little friends, take them all out for ice cream in the village before sunset.
Yes, the area was the perfect place to raise their child. With the secluded wolf pack discouraging outsiders, they would have some privacy. And family. He’d found the place boring occasionally but now it was full of promises for their life together. He was a different man now.
A family man.
As soon as tonight’s concert was over, he’d talk to Justin and Ren to see where on the St-Amand land he could build and get Marjo to arrange for a contractor to get started. They could be in their new house by the time their child turned six months.
He patted Tilly’s shoulder to get her attention and grabbed her neck to give her a propriety kiss on the top of her hair. “I need to check in with Karim.”
“Huh?” She took off her headphones.
“I need to go.” He spotted his brother hike up the few steps to the mixing station. “Griff’s here.”
“Sure. We got this here.” She gave him a content smile.
“Griff?” He hated to delegate her protection, but Griffon was the best there was.
“I got your back, bro.” His brother stood behind Tilly, his posture loose.
“It’s her back I want you to watch,” Cass insisted.
“Of course.” Griff raised both palms up with a small shake of his head at Cass’s doubts.
It would have to do. He glanced one last time at the woman he loved, completely absorbed by the mixing console before stepping down to the main floor.
He was walking toward the stage, fantasizing about the music room he would have built in their new estate for him and his child, when Karim came bolting toward him, a concerned look on his usually pleasant Middle Eastern features.
“Shit, man.” His manager pinched his lips with frustration as he shouted over the loud sound check. “It’s Osh.”
“What now?” Cass clenched his teeth, prepared for the worst.
“You need to come,” Karim urged. “Get some sense into him.”
As they walked around the stage, past the band’s packing crates and into the backstage area’s catering room, Karim filled him in. “He’s completely wasted. He can’t go on like this.”
“Fuck.” Cass had wanted this last show to be perfect, both for his fans and for Tilly.
His irritation mounting, he razored in onto his bassist slumped in a chair next to a folding table covered with red linen where catering staff were arranging various dishes meant for everyone’s dinner.
“Hey, brooo! Whassup.” Osh looked like he hadn’t bathed in days, with his dirty white T-shirt frayed under the beaten, studded leather jacket. His low-slung, oversized jeans with the tarnished chain hanging from the right pocket were covered in brownish stains.
His hand rested on the butt of a girl Cass didn’t know. She stood beside him in a black leather mini-skirt and high-heeled thigh-high boots.
Her eyes were vacant, and she appeared as wasted as Osh was, a half-empty vodka bottle dangling from her hand. At least this one seemed of age.
Two of Osh’s regular entourage were right behind him. One was built like a mountain with a bulldog face under his shaved skull and the other was a nervy kid with a gray hoody covering most of his face and scrawny body. They were snacking on bags of chips and watching him with a vacant expression.
“Fuck man.” Kit was standing above Osh, his fist tight with repressed fury. “You’re a mess.”
“Here, drink this.” Maya had poured coffee from the large silver vat on the bar into a giant paper cup and was now offering it to the intoxicated bassist.
Marjo was with the caterers, nervously looking at the scene, while Karim started to give directions to the roadies unloading supplies for the production office at the other end of the room.
“I don’t want your fucking coffee, bitch.” Osh sneered and wiped his nose with his forearm, ignoring the cup in front of him. “I wanna party.”
“Hey, this is my girlfriend you’re talking to.” Kit was ready to punch the guy but managed to stare back at Cass while Maya sat the cup on the floor and backed away slowly with a shrug.
“He’s fuckin’ high. He can’t play.”
Cass took a long, steady exhale as he glared down at Osh, sprawled on his chair.
“Fuck me, man,” he spat at his bassist. “What the hell is this?”
Osh grabbed the liquor bottle from his girl and took a large swig of it. “M’fine, bruh. What’s your problem?”
“You,” Cass barked, taking one step closer, the stench of booze and unwashed skin making him gag. “My fucking problem is you.”
Osh’s huge pal threw his bag of chips on the floor, rolled his shoulders, and moved one step forward in Cass’s direction.
“Hey, bro, fuck you!” Osh attempted to stand on feeble legs and sat right back down, holding on to his girl’s hip for balance. She tottered and nearly fell but managed to hold onto the back of the metal folding chair.
“Show starts in a couple of hours, man,” Kit said. “You can’t play like this.”
“You don’t tell me what to do.” Osh jerked his head back, his face flushed with raw outrage.
“Hey cool it, Osh.” Karim raised a palm at him as he walked by them, calm and collected in his black business suit and starched white button-down.
“He’s a mess, he can’t go on like this,” Cass told his manager. “You need to call backup.”
“Who’re you calling a mess?” Osh shouted, a large vein pulsing at his neck.
Cass’s annoyance was rising into anger fast.
This was his last concert for a while. And with Tilly on the sound, it was very special to him.
And this shithead was ruining it for everyone. Not just for Cass and Tilly, but for the band and fans alike.
“You, asshole. You’re a goddamn waste.”
“Hey, watch what you’re sayin’,” Osh’s bony mate protested.
“You’re a fucking pussy, man.” Osh dropped the vodka bottle on the floor. It shattered and splashed everywhere, including on the black jeans Cass had chosen for the show. He stood from his chair, more steadily this time and drew a six-inch survival blade from his belt.
“Oh shit, Osh. Slow the fuck down.” Cass took a step back and plastered his so-called shit smile on his lips. He was raging inside, his fangs humming, but didn’t want to cause a scene with the crew and caterers there. “Let’s talk, bro.”
His cronies were right behind him, fists at the ready.
“I’m gonna kill you, man.” Osh was shaking with rage, the knife right in front of him, ready to strike. “You’re always on my back. Garnishing my wages like this for the hotel room. You’re a fucking control freak, I hate you.”
Marjo ran from the room.
The tension was thick with strain. Karim, Maya, and Kit held their breaths. The caterers—pros to the end in their pristine black aprons—were steadily going about their business, staying away from the drama.
“Hey, girl,” Maya softly called out to the intoxicated woman by Osh’s side. “Come here. Get away from them.”
“Yeah, let’s get you out of this,” Kit added.
The girl zeroed in on Osh’s knife then took a few steps toward Maya. Kit caught her gently by the arm and they whisked her away from the catering room and into one of the attached dressing rooms.
“You don’t want to do this, kid.” Cass was eying the knife, trying to reason with Osh before anyone got hurt. “Let’s sit down. Go to the bar, finesse something.”
“And what?” Osh snickered. “You’re such a little bitch, can’t party, never had a fight in your life.”
“Just stand down, man,” Cass continued to keep his tone friendly, but meant business as he stared him down.
“No fucking way.” Osh waved the knife around, becoming more agitated. “And you got your knocked-up bitch with us now. What the hell is that about?”
It took every ounce of his control not to lunge at Osh and sink his fans into the jerk’s throat. No one insults his Tilly.
He bit the inside of his mouth instead and glanced at Karim. Any move would be all over the media in an instant.
For the first time, he wished he was not such a celebrity and could retaliate, let the vampire out, without creating repercussions.
His fists tight with frustration, he took in a very long breath, held it, and finally let it out. Fuck this. This was it with Osh.
“Your fired, asshole.”
He heard Karim’s sharp inhale behind him.
“Karim, can you get somebody this short notice?”
“I’ll try,” Karim said, eying Osh with disgust before scrolling on his phone. If anyone could find someone at this late hour, it was his manager.
“Text Tommy and his team,” Cass added. “Get that asshole out of here.”
“You can’t fuckin’ do this!” Osh’s eyes became crazed. He held his knife out further. “I’m the best here!”
“Everyone, step way back!” Cass ordered. Someone would get hurt. He didn’t want to fight but might have to if Tommy didn’t get here quick. He just didn’t want the press to run with this.
“Put the goddamned knife away, Osh.” Cass was done with this shitshow. “You and your pals, just get the fuck out of here.”
“Fucking loser, you’ll get me back my fucking money,” Osh raged.
Cass barely had a chance to get out of the way before his knife-wielding bassist lunged.