Chapter 6 #2
I wanted to pull her close and push her away at the same time. Tell her to not come to any more shows while asking her not to miss a single one. I wanted to tear her clothes off and… nope. I really did want to tear her clothes off.
Finally, her eyes fluttered open, and she inhaled sharply. “What happened?” Her voice still gravelly.
“You fell asleep.”
She blinked at me, trying to process why I was in front of her as she woke and why I was touching her.
Why was I still touching her?
Because I couldn’t stop my own hand from doing what it wanted, the traitorous bastard.
“Where are we now?” she asked as my thumb traced her jaw.
“Back at The Whiskey House,” I said, dropping my hand as if it weighed twice its weight.
She cleared her throat and straightened in her seat and stretched. As she exposed her neck and tried to warm up her sleeping muscles, I bit my bottom lip to keep me from groaning out loud.
Are you kidding me? What was the point of this type of torture?
“I should get Jade and head home. It’s late.”
“I’ll go in and send her out.”
“It’s fine. I don’t mind going in.”
She shocked me by opening her door and jumping out. I barely had time to follow as she walked barefoot into the bar, holding up the hem of her dress.
Scanning the mostly empty bar, we looked for Jade and the guys. They were sitting in a booth against the wall, laughing and carrying on.
“Cadence!” Jade yelled as soon as she saw us. “You made it back!”
“Of course, I did.” Her words were harsh, but the twinkle in her eye suggested otherwise. “Are you ready? It’s late, and I don’t want Elijah beating me home.”
Even though Colton stood and pulled Cadence into a side hug and his fingers touched her smooth skin, it was his name on her lips that had me clenching my jaw and seeing red again.
“Promise me that next time you’ll come see me play,” Colton whispered into her ear. She rolled her eyes but didn’t push him away.
I turned and walked toward Jade. “I hear I have you to thank for recruiting your sister to help us tonight.” Jade’s cheeks flushed, and I pulled her against my chest. “So, thank you.”
Jade melted in my arms. “O… Of course!” I looked over my shoulder and caught Cadence’s narrowed gaze.
Don’t worry, sweetheart. The feeling is mutual.
I pulled away to look at Jade. “Let me know when you get home safe.”
She grinned. “I will.”
“Bye, Jade. It was fun hanging out tonight,” Shane said.
“Yeah,” Jeremiah agreed.
“Next time, we are all getting drunk.” Hudson raised his empty beer bottle.
“Next time, Cadence has to join us,” Colton said.
Jade gave each one of them a hug goodbye and Cadence followed suit.
I turned toward Cadence and approached her. “Thanks again for tonight.” My words came out low and intimate.
“Yeah. No problem.” Her chin rose in defiance. Her tone clipped and nonchalant.
I was starting to adore that feisty nature of hers.
She tried to walk away, but I grabbed her arm. There was no way she was going to hug each one of my bandmates without allowing me to touch her. I didn’t forget how she’d felt the last time I’d had her in my arms, and I’d been anticipating repeating the experience since.
Feeling her against me, I finally nailed down her familiar scent: apples.
Michigan was known for its apple orchards, and my home state never disappointed.
There was a time just as the apples became ripe and ready to be picked that their tangy sweet smell would fill the air.
That was the essence of the scent she wore—fresh juicy apples with a hint of vanilla. It was mouth-watering.
“It’s my perfume,” she said against my chest.
I hadn’t realized I’d said anything aloud.
“DKNY’s Be Delicious,” she added.
I inhaled again. “Mmm. Delicious is right.”
But then she pulled away, too soon, in my opinion. “You’re not worried about me getting home safe?”
I grinned. “Is this your way of asking for my phone number?”
She scoffed. “Not a chance.”
This time I let her walk away. If only to admire that tight ass of hers in that tantalizing dress.
We were all exhausted when we checked in at the hotel and settled into our rooms. Since this was an unexpected expense, we split two rooms between the five of us. We made Jeremiah sleep on the roll-away bed since he was the newest one to join our band.
Seniority and all that.
I was happy I’d changed when I returned to the bus earlier. It meant tomorrow I didn’t have to put on dirty clothes.
“Mind if I hop in the shower?” Shane asked.
“Nah, you go. I gotta call Violet.”
“She’s still up?”
“Yeah. She said she’s having a bit of insomnia with all her new medications.”
“Damn. Give her my best.”
I leaned back onto the bed I’d claimed and pulled out my phone. Bringing up FaceTime, I called my sister. She answered just before I thought the call would end.
“Hey there, Rascal.”
“Hey yourself, you old bag.”
“That’s not any way to treat your elders.”
“You’re not old enough to be considered an elder.”
She laughed at that one, which turned into coughs. I took the chance to look at her. She’d been admitted to the hospital again yesterday afternoon. The cancer was back and more aggressive than before. It had spread into both of her lungs now and her liver.
Her skin was ashen and her eyes bloodshot. She looked like hell with the nasal cannula wrapped around her face. The wires from the IV machine hung over her shoulder, disappearing behind her.
Her hair had finally grown out to the length she wanted after her last round of chemo. But now, she’d have to shave it off again.
“How is life on the road this time?” she asked once she caught her breath.
“Eh, same. Not much has changed since we got signed.”
“So, what you’re saying is, you still haven’t made those millions yet?”
I chuckled. “You act like we don’t talk almost every single day. And no. I haven’t.”
“No girlfriend then, either.”
“Don’t start with me.”
“One day, you’ll find someone who gives you a run for your money.”
“Well, I hope I’ll be loaded at that point.
That way, I can throw that money at her to keep her walking.
” Violet was constantly nagging me about finding a girl and settling down.
But she had been the one who helped me through all the stuff that happened with Vanessa, and she understood why I wasn’t interested.
It still didn’t stop her from pushing the subject though. “How are the kids?”
The line between Violet’s brows deepened. “They aren’t thrilled that their mom is sick again.”
“I can imagine.”
“I just don’t know what to do, Damien. I don’t know how to be there for them. I might not even make it out of chemo this time.”
Suddenly, my throat became thick, and I found it hard to swallow. The thought that I could lose her made it feel like an elephant had taken up residence on my chest. “You will,” I mumbled.
You have to.
“Everyone dies. It might just be my time.”
I couldn’t talk about this. I couldn’t face the possibility.
“You could be right about that, but then who would tell me my chicken and dumplings were best served in the garbage can?”
“I only said that because mine are better.”
“Eh, I beg to differ. We both use grandma’s recipe. Potay-to - potah-to.”
She laughed again, only to begin another fit. This was how all our conversations went. She’d start coughing and I’d feel guilty for keeping her on the phone. “Vi… I gotta go jump in the shower. It’s late, and I need my beauty sleep.”
“I don’t think it’s gonna help, Damien. But give it a shot.” Her words held no malice, and I smiled.
“Love you, Vi.”
“Love you, too.”
She ended the call and I let my arm fall next to me. I stared up at the dark ceiling as the muted sound of running water echoed from the bathroom.
No one would know by looking at me, but I was a hurricane of mixed emotions.
I worried about my sister more than anything.
Her and the kids, and what would happen if we lost her.
But on the other side of that coin, I had enjoyed being with Cadence tonight.
Our back-and-forth banter and the way she was both sexy as fuck with an air of naiveté, had me hard all over again.
Which seemed to happen to me a lot when Cadence was around.
The two halves of me were pulling at each other, fighting for dominance.
Having fun and living my life felt like a betrayal to my sister. Besides, I wouldn’t see Cadence for a while. This tour was ending, and I didn’t know when we’d be back in South Carolina.
But none of that really mattered. I had no romantic interest in her or any other woman. I’d learned my lesson about how manipulative women could be, and I wasn’t about to make that mistake again.
She had her boyfriend, anyway.
Still, as I pulled my shirt over my head, I swore her scent clung to the fabric.
Faintly, but it was there. Apples. I let myself fantasize for a moment about what it would be like for her to be mine.
To run my tongue along every part of her delicate skin.
Hear her moan my name over and over. Make her laugh while I held her when the world tried to tear her down. To protect her.
To be with someone again, both in body and spirit.
But that’s all it was, just a fantasy.
She’d never be mine.