Two hours had flown by and the show had ended. The four men exited the stage, much to the disappointment of the cheering crowd.
“We’re Freeze Frame! Good night!” Devon shouted, raising his guitar in the air. The applause was resounding. It was magical.
When the men returned backstage, Devon grabbed Chelsie by the back of the head and planted a heated kiss on her lips. She pulled away, breathless. “You nailed it out there.”
Noah came sweeping in and scooped Chelsie off her feet, crushing her in a tight hug. “That’s why they pay us the big bucks,” he said.
“Yuck, put me down… you’re all slimy!” Chelsie grimaced. She hugged him back with a playful squeeze despite her protests.
Devon draped a towel over his shoulder and took Chelsie by the hand, pulling her away from the sweaty guitarist. “We’re gonna hit the bars, babe. I’m feeling celebratory tonight. Want to join us?”
Chelsie shook her head. Late night drinking shenanigans with Freeze Frame were always entertaining, but she was exhausted from all the traveling. “I’m pretty tired. Mind if I call it a night?”
Noah approached them and snatched Devon’s towel to wipe his face. “Me too, Dev. I got no sleep last night.”
Devon’s eyes danced back and forth between the two of them. “Knock yourselves out. You’re just going back to the hotel then?”
Chelsie nodded. She was surprised Noah didn’t want to join the rest of the band. He was usually the first to suggest a night of alcohol after a grueling show.
Noah flung the towel over his shoulder. “It’s better you’re not on your own anyway, Combs. I’ll call our driver and make sure you get back to your room in one piece.”
Devon gave Chelsie’s hand a gentle squeeze. “You sure you won’t change your mind? I can’t imagine spending any time with this asshole is going to be all that fulfilling.”
She leaned in, playfully. “I’ll make a clean break,” she said, planting a quick peck on his lips.
Devon kissed her nose, then her mouth, before letting go of her hand. “Get some sleep. I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Goodnight.”
Chelsie sighed. Her eyes were full of dreamy adoration as she watched him go.
Noah snuck up beside her and handed Chelsie her jacket. “Ready?”
***
Moments after they had stepped out of the limo, a torrential rain poured down on them. Noah took off his leather coat and held it over Chelsie as they sprinted towards the hotel entrance.
“Thanks,” she said. Chelsie shook the rain droplets from her hair as they hurried through the revolving doors.
Noah ran his hands through his own drenched hair while they took a moment to catch their breath in the hotel lobby. “Is this weather bi-polar or what?”
“Good ol’ Chicago for you,” Chelsie replied. She began walking ahead of him to a nearby elevator. “Well, thanks again for the makeshift umbrella. I’m going to turn in for the night.”
Noah followed her. “I’ll walk you to your room,” he offered. He pushed the button for the eighth floor. He wasn’t certain why he wasn’t ready to say goodnight just yet. Maybe it was the two beers he’d just washed down during the limo ride over. Or maybe it was the buzz from the show they had just performed.
Or maybe he was lonely, and Chelsie was looking rather enticing in her miniskirt and knee-high, leather boots.
Chelsie chuckled and shot him a peculiar glare. “I appreciate the sentiment, but I think I’ll be okay. We’re at the Ritz-Carlton.”
The elevator doors opened. Noah tore his gaze away from the sheen of her skin that was still glistening from the freshly fallen rain. He stepped into the elevator with her. “Can’t be too careful these days. Besides, I promised Devon I’d get you to your room in one piece. Can’t have any pieces left behind.”
Chelsie raised an eyebrow, as if to question his logic. “Are you drunk?”
“Not yet.” Noah laughed as the doors shut. “But the night is young. Hey, I do have a fridge full of beer in my room. Care to join me?”
“Well, now,” she quipped with a smile. After a thoughtful moment, she shrugged her shoulders. “Actually, I could use the company. As much as I love coming to these shows, I can’t deny getting a little homesick.”
Homesick. Chelsie had no idea how homesick he felt every time he stepped onto an airplane or drove off in a tour bus. Noah sighed as they rode up in silence. Devon was lucky to have Chelsie in his life. Noah yearned for that connection – that bond. He’d had it once. He’d had Ruby. But she broke his damn heart.
“Is this one your room?”
Chelsie’s voice broke through his hopeless daydreams and Noah realized they were already standing in front of his hotel room.
“Uh, yeah. This is the one.” He scrambled for the room key, stuffing his hands in every pocket. He sifted through his wallet, coming up empty. “Shit. Tad or Miles must have it,” Noah groaned. “I’ll run down to the front desk.”
Chelsie shook her head. “Don’t bother. We can hang out in my room. Devon won’t be back for a few hours and I want to change out of these wet clothes.”
A mental image of Chelsie changing out of her wet clothes popped into Noah’s mind and he had to wonder if this was a good idea.
“Yeah, okay.”
Yep. Good idea.
“We only have a couple bottles of wine, though. No beer. You know Devon isn’t much of a drinker,” Chelsie said.
Noah didn’t respond right away because he was still thinking about Chelsie changing out of her wet clothes. He felt an elbow nudge him in the arm and he glanced up. “Huh?”
“Wine. No beer. Comprendo?” she repeated, as if he were a preschooler – a Hispanic, alcoholic preschooler.
“Sure, yeah. Fine.”
Chelsie cast him a worried glance as she popped her room key into the door and opened it. She flipped on the lights and set her purse down onto a table. Noah threw himself on the bed with a dramatic sigh.
“Hey! No wet shoes on the bed. Devon will flip,” Chelsie scolded.
Noah leaned back with his hands behind his head and closed his eyes. “Devon is out enjoying his night. He is blissfully unaware that my wet shoes are on his bed.”
Chelsie was not amused by his answer. She stormed over and smacked his legs off the bed with an irritated swat. “Don’t be an ass.” She ambled into the adjoining bathroom to change.
Noah sat up and craned his neck to get a peep of her through the cracked door. Almost instantly, Chelsie shut the door all the way and Noah cursed under his breath. After a few minutes of debating whether he should fall asleep or pop open that bottle of wine, Chelsie emerged from the bathroom in a pink tank top and sweatpants. She pulled her hair into a high ponytail and yanked it tightly as she strolled past him. A whiff of citrus and lavender breezed by as she reached the mini-fridge and pulled out the wine.
“Cheers to Freeze Frame,” Chelsie said, handing him a glass. She filled her own glass with the sparkling Moscato and held it up.
“I’ll drink to that,” Noah agreed. He brought the wine to his lips and studied her over the rim. “Also… cheers to us.”
Chelsie swallowed abruptly. “Us? What about us?”
“You know… us,” he repeated. “From mortal enemies to a kindred fellowship.”
“A kindred fellowship? Are you sure you’re not drunk?” Chelsie pressed.
“Hey, I’m trying to have a moment here.”
“Yeah, an awkward moment. You’re being weird.”
Noah sighed, leaning back on one arm and chugging the rest of the wine. “Fine. I’m just glad we were able to get past our differences. You’re pretty okay, Water Girl.”
Chelsie’s expression softened as she sipped her Moscato. “You’re okay, yourself,” she said, her green eyes sparkling over her wine glass. She sat down beside him and held her beverage primly in her lap. She cleared her throat and cast him a sideways glance. “Can I ask you a question?”
“I
suppose,” he answered. Noah poured himself another glass of wine and promptly chugged that one, too – just in case he didn’t like the question.
She tapped her perfectly painted toenails against the carpet. “What happened to the girl you were in love with?”
Chelsie’s question felt like a punch to the gut. Noah avoided questions about his personal life, and he especially avoided questions about Ruby. He knew something sinister must have flashed in his eyes because Chelsie recoiled and began to backpedal.
“I – I mean, I’m not trying to pry. You mentioned you were in love before. I was just wondering what came of it. You don’t have to talk about her if you don’t want to.”
“I don’t want to.”
The look in Chelsie’s eyes switched from sympathy to annoyance. “Okay. Sorry I asked.”
Noah stood up and began pacing the room. “You know, it’s not really customary to bring up ex-girlfriends out of the blue. In fact, it’s a terrible fucking idea.”
Chelsie rose to her feet, accepting his invitation for a fight. “You know, I didn’t mean any harm by it. I said you didn’t have to talk about it if you didn’t want to.” Her hands were firmly planted on her waist.
“I said I didn’t want to. Then you got all… pissy-eyed.” Noah wagged his finger in front of her face for emphasis.
“Pissy-eyed?” Her tone was incredulous. “Excuse me for wanting to learn more about you. Pardon me for caring. In fact, I think it was you I spilled my guts to not that long ago.”
Noah’s defenses went up and he leaned in close, her hot breath skimming against his face. “You think I wanted to know all that? Did I ask you for a recap of your tortured past?”
The look in Chelsie’s eyes turned again, this time from aggravation to something along the lines of ‘you killed my puppy’.
“Really,” she snarled through gritted teeth. “I confide in you, and you throw it in my face? Here I thought maybe I had misjudged you. Maybe you were just misunderstood. But no… you really are an asshole.”
Noah’s shoulders sagged. The fight in him had left as quickly as it had arrived. He hadn’t wanted to hurt her. “Look –”
Chelsie pointed a sharp finger towards the door. “Get out. Just go.”
“Listen to me, Combs.” Chelsie crossed her arms over her chest, her eyes brimming with tears. Noah ran a hand over his face. “The girl I loved? Her name was Ruby. She broke my heart into a million fucking pieces and I’ve never really recovered from it. And it doesn’t help that Ruby gave me something that reminds me of her every day.”
Chelsie’s features softened but her stance remained stiff. “Yeah, well, Ian gave me scars and bruises that will never heal. What did Ruby give you? Herpes?”
Noah ignored the well-deserved barb and reached into his back pocket. He hesitated for just a moment before opening his wallet. He pulled out a small photo and handed it to her. “No,” he said. “She gave me Sam.”
7 Chapter Seven
Noah Hayes had a son.
Noah. The tattooed, foul-mouthed, cigarette-smoking Freeze Frame guitarist. He had a child. By all accounts, an adorable, well-adjusted child. After only having a week to digest this information, Chelsie was on her way to Samuel Hayes’ fourth birthday party.
Devon tapped his hands against the steering wheel of his black Jaguar. The top was rolled down, yet the wind hardly disturbed a hair on his slicked back, gelled-up head. Chelsie pushed her sunglasses up over her hair to tame the fly-aways.
“So, what is Noah’s house like?” Chelsie’s voice was shrill over the howling winds and The Rolling Stones. She smiled to herself, envisioning the bad boy rocker planting perennials and hosting martini mixers.
Devon shrugged. He didn’t miss a beat of his amateur drum solo on the wheel. “It’s a normal house. It’s just him and Sammy. And Rosa, the caretaker.”
Chelsie had learned about Rosa over the past week. She took care of little Sam when Noah was off touring or playing shows. Chelsie couldn’t help but feel bad for the poor kid… he had no mother in his life and his father was hardly home.
“What is Noah’s relationship like with Sam?” Chelsie wondered.
Devon switched off the radio and placed his hand on her bare knee. “They’re close,” he said. “It was hard being a single dad in the beginning, but they make a great team.”
Chelsie nodded thoughtfully. Noah hadn’t provided any details into why he had become a single father. She knew better than to press his buttons on that subject.
Twenty more minutes passed, and they pulled into the driveway of the Hayes Household. Chelsie twisted in her seat to get a good look at the place Noah called home. She noticed Devon had been right – it was normal. A picture of suburbia. Chelsie could almost see the soccer moms through the walls of the cookie cutter houses lined up down the street.
Devon and Chelsie stepped out of the car and Chelsie’s eyes twinkled when she spotted three balloons tied to the mailbox. They swayed gently with the spring breeze.
“Hi, Uncle Devon!”
Chelsie looked up when she heard a small voice coming from the front of the house. It was accompanied by an excited, young boy running full force into Devon’s welcoming arms. Devon lifted him high off the ground, as all good uncles should. He spun him around until tiny giggles emerged from the brunette-haired child.
“Put me down, Uncle Devon! I just had cake.”
Devon studied the boy’s face. His smile was beaming with blue frosting. “I can see that. You got into the cake already?”
“Yes. Miss Rosa let me have some.” Sam leaned in and whispered into Devon’s ear. “Shh. Don’t tell my dad.”
Devon laughed and stood up to reach for Chelsie. “Sam, I’d like you to meet a very good friend of mine and your dad’s. Her name is Chelsie.”
Chelsie expected the boy to cower behind Devon’s legs or give her the silent treatment. She was almost knocked off her feet when forty pounds of sugar-infused four-year-old attacked her with a giant hug. She patted the boy’s head and laughed out loud. “That was quite the hug,” she said. Chelsie squatted down until she was at eye level with him. “In fact, that was the best hug I’ve ever had. Do you practice that a lot?”
Sam nodded with pride. “I give my Daddy all the hugs in the world!” He held out his arms to emphasize the greatness of this feat.
Chelsie smiled broadly. Sam was adorable.
“Come on, squirt. Let’s get back inside. You’re the star of the show, after all,” Devon said, tousling Sam’s hair and leading him towards the house. Chelsie rose to her feet and put her arm around Devon as they walked up the pathway to the front door.
“Hey, who invited this guy?” Noah greeted them at the doorway with a smirk. He eyed Devon with mock distaste. Then his eyes shifted to Chelsie and his smirk softened into a tender smile. “You, on the other hand, are more than welcome.”
Chelsie stuck her tongue out at him. “Not without my date,” she joked.
“Daddy, this is Miss Chelsie.” Sam poked her arm with an eager finger. “She’s here to eat cake wif me.”
“I do love cake,” Chelsie shrugged.
Noah scooped up his son and the little boy rested his head against his father’s shoulder. “This little monster could eat cake all day long. Isn’t that right?”
Chelsie had never seen Noah so stripped down, and so… happy. There was a sweetness in him reserved only for Sam.
“Can I open presents now?”
Noah put the boy back down. “Who said anything about presents? I haven’t seen any presents.”
Sam’s eyes grew wide and fearful. “But it’s my birfday!”
“Oh, right.” Noah pressed his index finger to his chin. “I guess there are presents then. But not until later. Why don’t you go find your friends and show them the fort you made downstairs?”
Sam ran off, and Chelsie’s eyes settled on Noah. She was surprised to see him in something other than his signature t-shirt and ripped jeans. He was wearing a c
risp, white button down and khaki pants. The stubble along his jawline had grown out over the last week, and the tattoo on his arm was even more striking against his snowy, rolled-up sleeves. More importantly, his green eyes had an extra sparkle in them today.
Chelsie and Devon made their way through the living room, dodging a sea of children chasing each other with plastic spoons.
“Hey!” Noah snatched the make-believe weapons away and ushered the kids back into the kitchen. “The spoons are for ice cream, not mayhem.”
Chelsie giggled at the sight of Noah playing an authoritative figure. “You’ve really got the stern voice down,” she said.
Noah grinned. “Yeah, well, Sam has given me exceptional practice.”
Chelsie jumped when she felt a tugging at her sundress. She glanced down to see two large, green eyes beaming up at her – eyes that looked remarkably like his father’s.
“Will you color wif me?”
She brightened. Sam’s chocolate curls were stuck to his forehead. “I would love to. I thought you’d never ask.”
“Here, I’ll show you to the playroom,” Noah offered.
Chelsie gave Devon’s hand a friendly squeeze as she stepped away. “Your house is really nice,” she said, making conversation as they headed up the stairs. She eyed the picture frames along the walls leading up to the second floor. A black and white photo of Noah and a mystery woman holding Sam as a newborn caught her eye. It was the only photo the woman was featured in.
“Thanks. My decorator did most of the work. I know that sounds haughty, but I don’t really have time for interior design with my schedule.” They reached the top of the staircase and Noah pointed to a room on the left.
Chelsie marveled at Sam’s playroom. The walls were a spectacular shade of tangerine. A huge, elephant-shaped clock hung on the far wall, surrounded by canvases of animal paintings and a large portrait of Sam. The room was filled to the brim with toys. It was every child’s dream playroom.
Sam clapped and danced around the room. “Here is my coloring table!” He pointed to a miniature table with two wooden chairs. “Do you love it?”
Aria (Duet Series Book 1) Page 7