Rock Star Romance Ultimate Volume 2

by Mankin, Michelle

  But like the professional I knew I had to be, I forced a smile to my face and acted like I was enjoying it just as much as he was. When we finished, thunderous applause rang around us. “Thank you,” I murmured breathlessly into the microphone.

  All the loud whistling pierced my eardrums. I could see now why the boys wore earplugs. Garrett pulled me to him and planted a kiss on my cheek. “Thanks for giving our girl Abby such a warm welcome. I’m looking forward to working very closely with her over the next few months.” He then winked at me again, and I gritted my teeth to keep from twisting away from his too-close-for-comfort hug.

  “Thanks again! I’ll see y’all again in the next set!” I called before hurrying off the stage.

  Waiting in the wings, the boys launched themselves at me before I could hand off the microphone to the technician. Gabe pulled me into his arms for a big bear hug. “Way to go!”

  “Can’t. Breathe,” I muttered.

  “Oops,” he replied letting me go.

  I grinned at him. “But thanks.”

  Micah embraced me next. “Nice job, Baby Girl!”

  With a wide grin, Eli smacked me on the back and cried, “Abster, you nailed it!”

  “Aw, you guys were so sweet to come out and watch me.”

  “And this time it was all about sincerity. There’s two more songs to go before our set.”

  “What sweethearts,” I mused, pinching Eli’s cheek.

  “Hey now, don’t mess up my makeup!” he whined.

  “Such a pretty boy,” Micah muttered under his breath.

  “Speaking of pretty, wowzers that’s some more dress,” Gabe commented.

  “Yeah, I’m changing before our set.”

  “That’s good to hear,” Dad said behind me. I whirled around and felt warmth flood my cheeks.

  “I so did not have anything to do with this.”

  He stared at me a moment before a smile spread across his face. “It’s not what I would have picked, but you sure look beautiful in it.”

  “Really?”

  Mom nodded. “And you sounded wonderful, honey.”

  “Yes, you blew us both away,” Dad replied.

  “Thank you.”

  It was then Cari, the stylist, strode up to me. “Come on, Abby. I have another dress for you to try.”

  “Okay.” I turned back to the boys. “Good luck. See you in a bit.” I gave Mom and Dad a quick hug and kiss before trailing behind Cari to the wardrobe room.

  After I saw my new outfit, I decided that Cari was more of a miracle worker than a devil. She had found a slightly longer dress—this time with sparkly, spaghetti straps and a beaded bodice. It was deep purple. “That’s beautiful.”

  “Glad you like it,” Cari mumbled as she unzipped my torture-device ensemble.

  Now that my first performance was over, most of my nervousness had dissipated. There was only one person in the world I wanted to talk to. “Um, do you know what happened to my phone?”

  Pressing a button, Cari spoke into her headset. “I need Abby’s cellphone brought to wardrobe. Pronto.”

  “Oh, it’s really not that big of a hurry.”

  Cari rolled her eyes. “Trust me, honey. You have to talk one way to these roadies and technicians. If you’re not a bitch, shit doesn’t get done.”

  As if to illustrate her point, a knock came at the door. “See?” she questioned with a grin.

  I hurried into the dress while she went over to the door. Barely cracking it, she took it from the roadie and then brought it over to me. “Thanks!” I called.

  Once she had fluffed the dress and adjusted the straps, she sent me on my way. I quickly dialed Jake. He answered on the third ring. “Hey Angel.”

  “I had to call you and tell you I did it! I sang, and everything went great!”

  He chuckled. “I told you that you would. And once again, I’m always right.”

  “You’re always such a smartass,” I replied with a grin.

  “Deep down, you like that about me.”

  “Maybe.”

  “So what are you doing now?”

  “Stumbling along backstage before I go on with the boys.”

  “You aren’t still nervous, are you?”

  “No, I actually feel awesome—it’s like a total adrenaline high. I could so get used to this feeling!”

  “That’s what performing in front of a crowd will do to you.”

  “Speaking of crowds, they seriously loved me, and they loved mine and Garrett’s duet. Well, I did too except for the fact he got a little too into it.”

  A growl came on the other end of the line. “Yeah, you tell my man Garrett that the next time he wants to partially feel up my girl and practically dry hump her on stage that the least I’ll do to him is break his guitar hand!”

  “He wasn’t feeling me up. He—” I froze in the middle of the hallway. “Wait, how did you know he did that?”

  “Because I saw him.”

  My heart shuddered to a stop as I glanced wildly around. “Are you here?”

  He laughed. “I wish I was, Angel. I would have especially liked to see you up close and personal in that naughty little red number you wore.”

  “But how—?”

  “I had one of the technicians send me a live feed.”

  “You did that for me?”

  “Hell yeah. I didn’t want to miss your first performance for anything in the world, especially after our rehearsal.”

  “Oh Jake…that’s so sweet.”

  “I’ve tried telling you before how sweet I can be for you,” he replied with amusement vibrating in his voice.

  “I know.”

  “You’ll think I’m even sweeter when you get back to the bus and find the flowers I sent you.”

  “Really?” I squealed.

  “Well, some of them are from all of us guys, but there’s a special dozen just from me.”

  My heart swelled in my chest to where I feared it might burst right out. “Oh wow, that’s so sweet and thoughtful. Thank the guys for me.”

  “I will.”

  “You’re amazing too.”

  “I know.”

  I giggled. “Such an egomaniac.”

  A roadie waved at me to get my attention. “Five minutes!” he called.

  “Oh Jake, I have to go,” I lamented.

  “Wait, I need to ask you something.”

  “Sure. What is it?”

  “I wanted to see if you would come with me to my sister’s Sweet Sixteen party in two weeks. Since the guys and I are playing, we’re making a big weekend out of it. Brayden’s wife, Lily, is flying in with the kids. Do you think you can make it?”

  Oh wow. Jake was inviting me to something that involved meeting his family. This was huge…and fast. Breathe, Abby. “Um, yeah, sure.”

  “If you need to soften the blow with your brothers about running off with me, you can tell them I plan to take you into the studio to record I’ll Take You with Me.”

  “Holy shit!” I exclaimed.

  Jake chuckled. “Does that mean you want to come?”

  “Yes, I definitely want to come. I just can’t believe you still want to record with me.”

  “Of course I do, and one of my favorite places to record is in Atlanta.”

  “Wow, this is still so unbelievable.”

  “Well, believe it. There will be a plane ticket waiting for you back at the hotel. My people have taken care of everything, including the hotel. It’s all on me.”

  “That’s too much. I can’t let you do that, Jake.”

  “Yes, you can, and you will. It’s my trip, so it’s my treat.”

  “You’re so bossy.”

  He laughed. “Yep and you better get used to it.”

  “Okay, okay, I’ll accept.”

  “Glad to hear it, Angel.”

  When the roadie reappeared and beckoned me to the stage, I sighed with frustration. “I gotta go, Jake.”

  “All right. I’ll talk to you later tonigh
t, and then I’ll see you in two weeks.”

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  * * *

  Jake

  Standing in front of the lighted hotel mirrors, I adjusted my black, silk tie. Even though I’d barely had it on five minutes, it was already choking me to death. AJ groaned beside me. “Remind me again why we have to wear suits?”

  I rolled my eyes. “Cause this is my baby sister’s Sweet Sixteen we’re playing, and we’re not going to look like a bunch of rocker hoods.”

  AJ tilted his head at me. “But I thought we were rocker hoods?”

  With a laugh, I replied, “Not tonight. We’re going to blend in with the normal stiffs aka the elite of Atlanta.”

  Rhys shuddered next to me. “I thought I had escaped all the high-society bullshit when I left home. I swear, if someone tries to ‘present’ their daughter to me as a suitable marriage candidate, I’m outta here.”

  I thumped his back. “I think you’re fine, man. Sorry for inducing some flashbacks of your horrible youth spent in the country clubs and finest social circles of Savannah.”

  Rhys scowled. “Okay, so I’m a douchebag for whining about growing up rich, but dude, high-society people are as cutthroat as ghetto people sometimes.”

  “Whatever,” I murmured as my phone buzzed at my side. One glance at the ID, and I was grinning like a fool.

  “Dawww, iz Abby messaging her hunny-bunny,” AJ teased.

  I flipped him off as I started reading. Hey baby, I’m ready. Want me to come down and meet you guys?

  Sure. I’ll be in the lobby. Can’t wait to see u.

  Be there in 5.

  The last two weeks had been a dizzying flurry of different tour stops and cities. But one thing remained consistent and true, and that was my feelings for Abby. Any downtime I had, I spent with her via text messaging, calls, Facetiming, or Skype. It was long-distance dating in the 21st century at its finest.

  “You guys ready? I gotta go meet Abby.”

  “As ready as I’ll ever be to go play to a room with a bunch of screaming, horny teenage girls, most of them if I even look at, I could get arrested,” AJ replied with a grin.

  “You’re a douche,” I muttered as I exited the bathroom.

  Leaving the guys behind, I strode through the elaborately decorated ballroom. I wanted to get to the lobby and Abby. She had flown in earlier in the day. After meeting up with Lily and the kids at the airport, Brayden had brought Abby back to the hotel. I’d been rehearsing, so I hadn’t gotten to see her yet. Although I felt like a giant pussy, Brayden had talked me into sending Abby with Lily to the hotel spa to get her hair and makeup done. Of course any doubts about whether I had balls left or not was short lived when Abby’s excited squeal came over the phone when she got my gift.

  Craning my neck, I peered through the crowd of people. Like out of a movie, it parted, and there she stood. For a minute, I couldn’t breathe at the sight of her. She looked so fucking beautiful that she took my breath away. Her long blonde hair cascaded in curly waves over her shoulders, and she was wearing more makeup than usual.

  When she caught sight of me, her face lit up, and she started running as best she could in the sexy-as-hell heels she was wearing. “Jake!” she cried before throwing herself into my waiting arms. I spun her around before sitting her back on her feet. Her blue eyes twinkled as she took me in. “Look at you!” she exclaimed as she ran her hand down the front of my suit. “You look amazing!”

  “I look like a real gentleman, don’t I?”

  She grinned. “I think even my dad would approve of you tonight.”

  Part of her comment stung, but I covered up my feelings by giving her a cocky smirk. “Yeah, well, what would he have to say about his daughter’s attire tonight?”

  She glanced down at her dress. “You like it?”

  Considering it had flimsy little straps, showed off her fabulous rack and was almost backless, hell yes, I liked it. “I love it. You look absolutely breathtaking tonight.”

  Abby’s cheeks warmed with my compliments. She leaned up to kiss my lips. “Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  AJ strolled up to us. At Abby’s attire, his eyes widened. “Oh my God, Angel! That is just like the dress Sookie wore in the Season Two finale of True Blood!”

  Abby rolled her eyes. “AJ, you’ve got a True Blood fetish.”

  He grinned. “Dude, it’s basically vamp porn!”

  She laughed. “You’re impossible.”

  “Yeah, well, you’re beautiful and sexy in that dress.”

  With a beaming smile, Abby smacked his arm playfully before giving him a hug. “Thank you. You guys are all looking so handsome in your suits,” she replied.

  I took Abby’s hand in mine. “I want to introduce you to someone.”

  “Okay.”

  Surrounded by a group of her friends, Allison talked and laughed. When I tapped her on the shoulder, she whirled around, causing her dark hair to fly around her shoulders. “Jake!” she cried before launching herself at me. I hugged her tight. Regardless of how I felt about my dad and step-mother, Allison had always been my baby sister to love and protect.

  “You look beautiful,” I murmured into her ear.

  “Thanks.”

  “I can’t believe you’ve gone and grown up on me.” I pulled away and grinned down at her. “Just promise me you’ll keep being my sweet, innocent little Allison.”

  She giggled. “I’ll try.”

  Turning back to Abby, I said, “I wanted you to meet my girlfriend. This is Abby Renard.”

  At the word “girlfriend”, Allison’s dark eyes almost bulged out of her head. “Wow, it’s awesome to meet you,” she gushed, shaking Abby’s hand.

  “It’s great finally meeting you too. Jake talks about you all the time.”

  Allison beamed with pleasure. “He’s amazing, isn’t he?”

  Abby grinned. “Oh yes, he is. But we better not say too much. He already has a big enough ego about him.”

  “Hey now,” I argued to which Abby nudged me playfully.

  Brayden came up behind me. “Okay, man, it’s time.”

  “Excuse me ladies, but my adoring public beckons, so I’ll see you later.”

  Abby and Allison waved to me as I headed to the stage with Brayden. The plan was for us to play the first thirty minutes of the party, and then the DJ would take over. AJ disappeared behind the drum set while the rest of us suited up with our guitars.

  Taking the microphone from the stand, I gazed out into the crowded ballroom. “Good evening, everyone, and welcome to Allison’s Sweet Sixteen Party.” A symphony of high-pitched, hormonally fueled teenage girl shrieks filled the room along with some hearty screams from the males. “As her big brother, I couldn’t be prouder of her at this moment.” Meeting Allison’s gaze, I smiled. “I hope all your dreams come true, and that you stay forever young.”

  The guys and I then launched into a harder rock version of Chrissy Hydne’s Forever Young. We finished to thunderous applause and cheers. I searched through the crowd of faces for Abby who grinned and gave me two thumbs up. I laughed and shook my head before starting “Unravel Me”, which got everyone dancing. After playing through two more fast songs and two of our ballads, I handed the mic off to the DJ and headed through the throng of people to Abby.

  I was almost to her when my dad stopped me. He gave me a stiff hug before saying, “That was fantastic, son. We can’t thank you enough for making this night so special for Allie.”

  “You’re welcome. You know I’d do anything for her.”

  He nodded. His lips twitched as if he wanted to say something else but was afraid to. Finally, he drew in a ragged breath. “Jake, I’m so very sorry about your mother.”

  I instantly tensed. “Yeah, it fucking blows when bad things happen to good people.”

  Dad’s expression paled a little. “She’s one of the strongest and bravest women I know. I talk to her often, you know. She has the most forgiving of hearts.
”

  I knew Dad was talking about how I couldn’t forgive him for the fact he walked out on Mama and me for a piece of ass. Sure, he paid his child support and saw me every other weekend and during the summers. On the surface he was the most attentive and supportive father. But everything changed with us the moment he chose to leave.

  “Yes, it’s probably one of her only faults.”

  Seeing he wasn’t getting anywhere with me, Dad sighed. “Well, just know I’m here for you, son. Always.” His gaze left mine to hone in on Abby who had sought me out. “And who is this lovely young lady?”

  “This is my girlfriend, Abby Renard.” I slipped my arm around Abby’s waist. “And Abby, this is my dad, Mark Slater.”

  “It’s very nice to meet you, Mr. Slater,” Abby said politely.

  “Likewise, Miss Renard.” Dad’s gaze roved over Abby, and I could tell he was surprised. Because even in her sexy little dress, Abby still looked like a good girl, and I’m sure Dad couldn’t believe I was actually with someone like her.

  As the music turned over to a slow song, I wanted to escape from my dad. Glancing down at Abby, I asked, “Wanna dance?”

  “Sure.” She smiled at my dad. “Nice meeting you.”

  “Yes, very nice meeting you as well.” He patted my back. “Thanks again.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  I took Abby’s hand and led her out onto the dance floor. As I wrapped my arms around her waist, she pressed against me. Damn, she felt good. I tried tuning out the myriad of disgusting sexual thoughts swimming through my dirty mind.

  “Your dad seems nice,” Abby said.

  “Oh yeah, he’s a real stand-up guy.”

  She pulled away to gaze up at me. “So I was right to come and try to save you?”

  When I stared at her quizzically, she smiled, “You’re so easy to read sometimes, Jake. I could tell from across the room that you were uncomfortable talking to him.”

  “The bastard had the nerve to bring up my mom,” I muttered through gritted teeth.