Chapter 8
A Million Little Pieces
Sienna led Cole by the hand toward her bedroom, slowly walking backward the entire way. Their eyes remained locked on one another as the chaos surrounding them took a back seat for a moment in time.
He remained mesmerized by her beauty, watching as she pulled at the top of her towel, causing it to fall to the floor with one flick of her wrist. Her exposed body called to him like a love song—its tune now on autopilot and impossible to switch off.
Every kiss and caress felt as though it were happening in slow motion, only making their lust for one another grow more intense by the second.
Sienna took her time undressing him, slowly kissing his chest and making her way toward his neck. Cole's erection grew wild with anticipation, to the point that simply brushing against it made the tip secrete fluid.
Her beauty was unparalleled, and the sight of her sent a surge of energy through him. He lifted her swiftly into his arms, leaving every care in the world behind and giving in to the moment he'd secretly thought about since first meeting Sienna.
By the time he entered her, he felt nearly dizzy from the impact. She was exquisitely tight, creating the perfect amount of friction between them.
For a brief second, he grew still and caught her gaze, kissing her softly several times near the corner of her mouth. A smile appeared on her lips, melting his heart in the process.
He returned it and kissed the tip of her nose before plunging deeper inside her.
The force created such a buildup of warmth inside Sienna that she nearly exploded. Fire spread through her body, creating an exquisite ripple effect until she finally succumbed to the orgasm, crying out in lustful ecstasy.
For a few precious moments, nothing else existed.
Not the threats.
Not the tour.
Not the fear.
Only them.
Sienna eventually fell asleep beside Cole, completely unaware that by morning, everything in her life would change.
* * *
She woke to pounding on the hotel-room door.
Sienna opened her eyes slowly.
Her head felt heavy.
For several seconds, she couldn't remember where she was.
Then the memories returned.
Cole.
His arms around her.
Falling asleep beside him.
She turned.
The other side of the bed was empty.
Sienna touched the pillow.
Cold.
More pounding sounded from the other room.
"Sienna!"
Patrick.
She sat upright.
Something was wrong.
Very wrong.
Sienna grabbed her robe and hurried toward the door.
"Sienna!"
"I'm coming!"
She opened it so quickly Patrick nearly stumbled inside.
"Oh my God."
He looked frantic.
"I've been calling you all morning! I thought something happened to you."
Sienna tightened the robe around herself.
"What are you talking about?"
Patrick stared at her.
"And Pit—Jesus, Sen. He's in surgery."
Her stomach dropped.
"What?"
Patrick stopped.
His expression changed from panic to disbelief.
"You don't know?"
"Know what?"
"Sienna..."
"What happened to Pit?"
Patrick looked as though he didn't know where to begin.
"You need to sit down."
"No."
"Sienna."
"Tell me what happened."
He swallowed.
"Your dressing room was bombed last night."
"I know that."
"Pit went back to the arena with police."
Sienna's heart began pounding.
"They recovered footage from one of Cole's cameras that survived the explosion."
Patrick stopped.
Sienna stared at him.
"They identified whoever planted the device."
Every nerve in her body seemed to go still.
"Who?"
Patrick's face lost what little color remained.
"Keith."
Sienna blinked.
"No."
"Sienna—"
"No."
She shook her head.
"That's impossible."
"It's him."
"No, it isn't."
Her voice rose.
"I've known Keith almost my entire life."
Patrick stepped toward her.
"Sen—"
"There has to be a mistake."
"There isn't."
"Where's Cole?"
Patrick hesitated.
"I want to talk to Cole."
"He's at Memorial."
"Why?"
Patrick's eyes filled with something that frightened her more than anything he'd said.
"Keith shot Pit."
The room tilted.
Sienna grabbed the back of a chair.
"What?"
"Pit confronted him before Cole got there."
Patrick reached for her.
"He's in surgery."
Sienna pulled away.
"No."
"There is a manhunt underway. Police have shut down parts of the city. It's all over the news."
She stared at him.
None of the words seemed real.
Keith.
The man who'd been beside her since before fame changed everything.
Keith, whose mother had supposedly died.
Keith, who had left Atlanta grieving.
Keith had planted a bomb.
Keith had shot Pit.
Sienna rushed toward the bedroom.
She needed her phone.
Needed Cole.
Needed someone to tell her Patrick was wrong.
Behind her, the television came on.
A reporter's voice filled the suite.
Sienna stopped.
Slowly, she turned.
The arena appeared on the screen surrounded by police vehicles, fire trucks, and yellow crime-scene tape.
Then Keith's photograph appeared.
WANTED
The word stretched beneath his face.
Sienna couldn't breathe.
Another hard knock sounded at the door.
She startled so badly her phone slipped from her hand.
It hit the hardwood floor.
The screen shattered.
Glass scattered at her feet.
A million little pieces.
Patrick hurried toward the door.
Before he reached it, Cole entered.
Sienna's relief lasted less than a second.
He looked terrible.
His shirt was wrinkled, his face exhausted, and there was blood near the bottom of his clothing.
Sienna's body began to tremble.
"Is that Pit's?"
Cole didn't answer.
He looked past her toward Patrick.
"We found Keith."
Sienna stared at him.
Cole continued.
"His mother didn't die."
"What?"
"She's alive. She's been living in a memory-care facility since 2017."
Patrick looked stunned.
"A staff member recognized him from the news and called police."
Sienna shook her head.
"I don't understand."
Her voice cracked.
"What is happening?"
Patrick moved toward her.
Cole's eyes finally settled on Sienna.
They were colder than she'd ever seen them.
"Was there ever anything between you and Keith?"
The question confused her.
"What?"
"You heard me."
Sienna stared at him.
"Was there ever a relationship?"
"No."
Cole stepped closer.
"Never?"
"It wasn't a relationship."
Something shifted in his expression.
"Sienna."
She looked away.
"We were kids."
"How close?"
"Cole—"
"How close?"
His voice was sharper now.
Patrick looked between them.
Sienna's throat tightened.
"We slept together."
Silence.
"A long time ago."
Cole looked as though she'd struck him.
"We were teenagers," she continued. "It happened a few times. It meant nothing."
"Nothing?"
"Cole, I didn't even think about it when you were asking me for names."
"You didn't think it mattered?"
His voice rose.
Sienna flinched.
Cole immediately saw it.
But anger and fear had already taken hold.
"We asked you repeatedly if there was anyone in your past who might have been obsessed with you. Anyone you'd rejected. Anyone who could've believed there was something between you."
"I didn't know!"
"Pit is in surgery."
"I KNOW THAT!"
Her scream filled the suite.
Tears streamed down her face.
"Do you think I wanted this?"
Cole froze.
"I've known Keith since I was a child! He was family to me."
Her entire body shook.
"How was I supposed to know he was doing this?"
Nobody answered.
Sienna looked from Patrick to Cole.
Then everything blurred.
Her knees gave out.
Patrick caught her before she hit the floor.
* * *
When Sienna opened her eyes again, she was in bed.
For a moment she had no idea how she'd gotten there.
A man she didn't recognize stood near the doorway speaking quietly with Patrick.
Patrick noticed her moving.
"Hey."
He hurried to her bedside.
"Sienna, this is Dr. Martin."
The doctor approached.
"You fainted."
Sienna closed her eyes.
Of course she had.
"You were extremely distressed," he said gently. "I gave you something mild to help you rest."
Her head throbbed.
"What time is it?"
"Almost six-thirty," Patrick answered.
Six-thirty.
Hours had disappeared.
"Are you hungry?"
She shook her head.
"I need a shower."
"Sienna—"
"And privacy."
Patrick stopped.
She sat up carefully.
"Please."
He looked toward the doctor.
Dr. Martin nodded.
"We'll give you some space."
Once the men were gone, Sienna sat alone.
The silence was unbearable.
Then she remembered her phone.
Broken.
She pushed herself out of bed and searched through her purse.
Makeup.
Wallet.
Keys.
Receipts.
Then she found it.
Cole's business card.
The same card Patrick had given her before she'd ever met him.
Before everything.
Sienna walked to the hotel phone and dialed.
Cole answered on the fifth ring.
Neither spoke.
Finally, Sienna forced out the question.
"How is Pit?"
A long pause.
"He made it through surgery."
Sienna closed her eyes.
"He's stable."
She exhaled shakily.
"The bullet came dangerously close to his spine. Doctors think he'll recover, but it's too early to know what that looks like."
Tears filled her eyes.
"I'm so sorry."
Cole said nothing.
"Keith was family."
Her voice broke.
"We were so young, Cole. I never thought—"
"Your pictures were everywhere."
Sienna stopped.
"What?"
"In his apartment."
Cole sounded exhausted now more than angry.
"Photos. Magazine covers. Tour posters. Things going back years."
Sienna gripped the phone tighter.
"He was obsessed with you."
"I didn't know."
"You should've told me about your history with him."
"I know."
"I needed everything, Sienna."
"I know."
Cole's voice dropped.
"Pit almost died."
The words hit harder than shouting ever could.
Sienna leaned against the nightstand.
"I'm sorry."
Silence.
"I should've remembered. I should've told you."
She wiped her face.
"But I didn't know he was capable of this."
"No one said you did."
"Then why does it sound like you're blaming me?"
Cole didn't answer immediately.
Because some part of him was.
And he knew it wasn't fair.
He was terrified.
His best friend was lying in a hospital bed.
The woman he'd been hired to protect had nearly been killed.
And the person responsible had been standing beside them almost the entire time.
Cole exhaled.
"I'm angry."
"I can tell."
"At Keith."
Another pause.
"At myself."
Sienna closed her eyes.
"And yes, I'm angry that we didn't know about the two of you."
Tears slid down her cheeks.
"But that doesn't mean this is your fault."
Those words nearly broke her.
Sienna covered her mouth to keep from sobbing.
Cole continued more quietly.
"Keith was creating the threats."
"Why?"
"He wanted you afraid."
Sienna's stomach turned.
"Why would he want that?"
"So you'd need him."
She went still.
Cole continued.
"Then I showed up."
Everything suddenly made terrible sense.
Keith had spent years beside her.
Always available.
Always trusted.
And when fear hadn't driven her toward him—
She'd turned toward Cole instead.
"Oh God."
Sienna sank onto the edge of the bed.
"I should've seen something."
"You couldn't have known."
It was the first gentle thing Cole had said since entering her suite.
She clung to it.
"I'll pay for everything Pit needs."
"Sienna—"
"Hospital bills. Rehab. Anything. Whatever he needs."
"This isn't about money."
"I know."
Her voice cracked.
"I just don't know what else to do."
Neither spoke.
Finally, Sienna asked the question she'd been afraid to ask.
"I'm never going to see you again, am I?"
Silence answered first.
Her eyes closed.
Cole's voice eventually came through.
"Atlanta PD needs your statement. Patrick has the information."
That wasn't an answer.
Which meant it was.
"I'm staying with Pit until he's released."
"Cole..."
There were a thousand things she wanted to say.
About last night.
About the way she'd felt waking up believing something beautiful had finally happened between them.
About how quickly everything had fallen apart.
Nothing came.
"Goodbye, Sienna."
The line went dead.
She remained there holding the receiver against her ear.
Eventually, the dial tone filled the silence.
Sienna slowly lowered the phone.
Hours earlier, she'd fallen asleep in Cole's arms believing something in her life had finally gone right.
Now Pit was in the hospital.
Keith was a fugitive.
Cole was gone.
And Sienna had no idea who she could trust anymore.
She walked into the bathroom and turned on the shower.
Then she stepped beneath the water and finally stopped trying to hold herself together.
She cried for Pit.
For Cole.
For Keith—or at least for the person she'd believed Keith was.
For herself.
For everything she'd lost in less than twenty-four hours.
All she wanted was to disappear.
And unlike most people, Sienna Carlisle had enough money to make that possible.