34. Chapter Thirty-five
Chapter Thirty-five
Alec
“Do you think they will let everything slide? He assaulted me. Pointed a gun at you,” Summer whispers.
My blood heats the more I think about how after what her father had done, we were the ones escorted out of the police station.
I look at Summer, she’s holding back the urge to break by the way her voice shakes. It pains me that she has to worry about whether her father is going to be scolded for his actions or if it’ll be brushed aside like the other crimes he’s committed.
“I hope not.” I killed the ignition after parking in front of my apartment. We never discussed if she was coming back here, but I’d assume as much. She can’t go back to where her father sleeps after what just happened.
We both get out of the car at the same time. I jog around the front end, where Summer sighs and leans against the back door.
“But, say it does get pushed aside,” I tug my phone out of the front pocket of my jeans, sliding my finger to unlock it. The screen is exactly where I left it when we pulled out of the police station parking lot. “I have this.”
I extend my arm with the phone in my hand, passing it to Summer. Her eyes narrow, and she hesitates to take it from my hand. I can’t blame her. She had no idea of my plan. She glances down at the screen, and it takes her a few seconds to register anything.
“What is this?” she asks, looking back at me.
“Push play.”
She worries her bottom lip between her teeth and rocks slightly on her toes. Grabbing the phone, her thumb floats above the play button before she has enough courage to press down.
Relief and satisfaction slam into me as the voices play over. I watch Summer’s expression change drastically. Her eyes widened, bringing two of her fingers slowly to her lips.
Her eyes drift back to mine, baffled. “You… you recorded everything. How?”
My lip quirks upward, and I shrug. “It was easy. I started it before we even walked into his office.”
She doesn’t say anything. Instead, she looks back down at the screen and listens to the recording carefully. Her features morph into sadness.
“I wasn’t positive if it’d work. Granted, it’s slightly muffled, but it’s clear enough,” I continue.
“I… I don’t understand.”
“I had to do something in case your plan failed. It was a risk I was willing to take.”
Summer closes her eyes, stifling a sniffle. She shakes her head, holding the phone to her chest. Tears break through her closed lids, skating down her pale cheeks. My heart pulls.
“Hey. Hey. Don’t cry,” I coo, pulling her into my chest.
She sniffles again. “I’m not crying,” she says, and I can’t help but laugh because she is clearly crying.
“No?” I let go, tilting her chin up with my fingers and looking into her watery eyes as they peel into mine. “Then what are you doing? If you’re not crying, then what are you doing?”
She sighs, wiping underneath both of her eyes with her fingers. “It’s just… this was clever. Why didn’t you tell me?”
I shrug. “You were already nervous. I didn’t want you to have to worry about something else.” I pause for a minute. “I wasn’t expecting to catch everything.”
She hands my phone back, and I put it away. “But you did.” Then, her arms wrap around my neck as I hug her waist. “Thank you, Alec. Thank you. You have no idea how much this means to me. To my mother. Even to you.”
I shake my head. “Forget about me. It’s you I’d do anything for.”
She drops her arms, but I keep my hands on her waist. Her gaze flicks to my mouth. That tongue of hers slipping out and wetting her bottom lip. For some reason, I think of the way the tip of her tongue swirled around the head of my cock. My dick pulses beneath my pants from the vivid memory.
I breathe out slowly. “Let’s get you upstairs. We’ll figure out what we can do about the recording later.”
When we get into my apartment, Summer makes herself at home and heads into the living room. She rests herself comfortably on the couch. This sends a swirl of something inside of me – happiness, maybe. It’s the kind of feeling that ignites you, almost as though things are exactly how they should be.
I nestle beside her, wrapping one arm around her and pulling her closer. Her head lays against my shoulder as she plays with the hem of my shirt. She breathes softly, the sound so innocent and sweet.
“I don’t know what I would have done without you,” she admits.
“So stay here. With me.”
She looks at me with such a perplexed expression. “Like… live here?”
“Why not?”
She adjusts herself on the couch but stays close enough that my arm still comfortably wraps around her. “I don’t know.” She twirls her thumbs on her lap. “I… I don’t even know what I’m supposed to do anymore.”
I feather my fingers from the hand wrapped around her lower arm. “You get to do whatever you please. Whatever suits you and makes you happy. Because that’s what life is about—doing what fulfills your dreams.”
“What if I don’t know what my dreams are?”
I smirk. “It’ll come to you when the time is right.”
Silence falls as she takes everything I said in. Shortly later, Summer’s fingers come in contact with my arm. Her fingers skim upward, tracing the swirls inked into my skin. They don’t stop until her hand gropes my face. I shift my gaze down to hers. That rise of arousal glistens through her green eyes, warming my stomach and causing my dick to twitch.
Uncontrollably, I grab her face. Our teeth crash together aggressively. A low rumble groan falls from my lungs as she swings her leg over mine and sits on my lap, pressing into my hardening cock. She slips her tongue out, my mouth parting as her tongue laps against mine. The taste of her lips is sweet, reminding me of a hint of sweet oranges and pomegranate.
My hands slide down her back, stopping at her hips as she guides herself, rolling hard against the bulge in my pants. She moans, panting while she dry humps me through the material of our clothing. Her arms wrap around my neck, pulling me closer as if she can’t get enough.
I kiss and nip at her neck, her head falling back for better access. Our breathing syncs, quickening as our bodies grind against each other effortlessly. Warm hands skim along my chest. Summer grips the end of my shirt, sliding it up. Our lips part as she tugs it off my head, crashing back together shortly after. Warmth radiates between us. Head emanating from her body as she presses harder against me.
“So eager for my cock, aren’t you?” I tease. Her cheeks brighten. A small smile playing on her lips.
“I just want you. All of you.” she pants.
“Mmm, that’s what I like to hear.” My arms wrap tighter around her waist, and I lift her to head into the bedroom. Her legs wrap around me with a firm grip on my lower back.
Just as I reach the door, a loud knock comes from the kitchen. I sigh aggravation tight around my bones.
She looks over my shoulder through the doorway of the kitchen. “Are you expecting anyone?”
I kiss the crook of her neck. “No.”
Hesitantly, she kisses me again, but the knock grows louder. “What if it’s important?” She drops her legs, and I gently let her down.
Placing a hand on the doorway, I suck in a large amount of air. “It’s most likely the guys. I can ignore that.”
Summer’s eyes narrow. She shakes her head. “I’ve come between you guys a lot lately… I think you should answer it.”
Fuck.
I don’t want to answer, but I haven’t spoken to them since the concert. The show I left immediately without a single word of my whereabouts.
“I’m so sorry.”
A soft laugh comes from Summer. “Why are you sorry?”
I brush a strand of her hair out of her face. “You deserve my full attention.”
Her hand rests against my chest. The warmth is exhilarating. “And I have your full attention, but you also have a career you must keep alive.”
Goddamn, she’s right.
“Go answer the door, Alec.”
Groaning, I run my fingers through my hair and walk into the kitchen. Summer follows me but keeps a little distance between us as I peek through the peephole. Sure enough, I was right.
James, Samantha, and Tyler are all on the other side of my door.
I swing open the door, reminding myself of what Summer said. My career has always been important to me, and I can’t push it aside more than I already have. Leaning against the door frame with my arms at my chest, I raise a brow.
Samantha walks past me, letting herself into my apartment. James and Tyler follow. James’s case of beer in his hand doesn’t go unnoticed. He helps himself to the fridge, placing the beer inside.
“I would’ve called, but,” Samantha pauses as her eyes fall on Summer, who bites onto her bottom lip. “Hi,” she says to Summer. Samantha turns to me. “We can come back…”
“There’s no need,” Summer says before I can agree. “I… I actually wanted to apologize to you—to all of you. What happened; What I said... It was rude, and I shouldn’t have assumed such a thing without speaking to Alec first. Or even you.”
Samantha’s eyes draw in, and she slowly turns her head to me before returning to Summer. I know what she’s thinking. She had her own vision of Summer plotted out in her mind, just like I had.
Samantha nods. “It’s OK. I don’t blame you for lashing out the way you did.”
“Sam,” Tyler cuts in, catching her attention. There’s a slight impatience in the way he said her name.
“What is it?” I drawl.
“I don’t know if it should be discussed,” Samantha shrugs. “You know.” She nudges her head toward Summer.
Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Summer’s arms tighten around her stomach. A slight buildup of anger rises in my chest.
She must have noticed because she cut in. “It’s fine. Really. I’ll just go wait in the other room.” Summer swings her thumb over her shoulders, pivots on her heels, and heads into the living room.
James chuckles. “Way to make that awkward.”
Samantha glares at him for a second. “Alec, Chase came to me after the show, and I was going to call you, but I knew you needed time to sort,” she said, waving her palms in a circular motion toward the living room, “all of that out.”
My head tilts, the anger inside of me increases. “What did he have to say?”
She draws in a deep breath. Tyler pulls out a beer from the fridge and passes it to Samantha. She pops open the twist top and hands it to me. Something tells me this isn’t going to go over well. I take the beer from her hand. She takes another from Tyler, popping the cap off that one, too.
“He received a call. I guess someone higher up had reached out to him.”
My eyebrows pull tight. “He quit. Why is anyone reaching out to him?”
James cuts him. “He never removed himself as our coordinator.” He hops onto my countertop and pulls down an unopened bottom of Jack. “Mind if I?” he asks.
“Nah, go for it,” I respond, returning my attention to Sam. “So, what? Now that someone has reached out to him about our band, he wants to continue to work with us?”
“I’ll take some,” Tyler butts in, speaking directly to James.
James nods, hopping down from the counter, and helps himself by pouring two glasses of whisky and handing Tyler his.
Samantha takes a sip of her beer. Her free hand slips into the pocket of her leather pants. “Chase wants to schedule a meeting with us to discuss other potential offers. The new songs were a bigger hit than we’d anticipated, and I think we should consider it. Truthfully, he was the best thing this band had. We should hear him out.”
I take a quick swing of my glass bottle and think for a second. I look at the doorway where Summer walked into. My heart rises as I remember her words from a short moment ago. They repeat over and over in my head. You also have a career you must keep alive.
A curve pulls at the corner of my lip. The answer is simple. “We should definitely negotiate with him.”
Samantha smiles, relieved at my answer.
Tyler taps me on the shoulder. “We knew you’d say that. That’s why we brought the beer. Let’s celebrate what was the best show we’ve ever had.” He raises his hands, the glass of whisky in one, as he walks backward into the living room.
“I think we have that blonde of yours to thank,” James says.
Yes, I guess we do.