“How the hell do I fix her?” I don’t even know where to start. Did he show up here just to infuriate me? I’m starting to think that’s his job. “What do you mean my power will weaken?”
“No one is beyond saving. Some just take longer than others to be turned around. You were destroying yourself before doing what you were doing. Choosing someone so resistant to help can start the same process. You can stop it from destroying you if you find others who won’t resist to help in the meantime.”
Holy shit. This just got serious. “I’m out of my depth here, Fred. You have to actually help me now.”
He sighs. “You’ve been doing things right. She just isn’t ready for help.”
“So, what, I have to wait? I feel like this is killing me.”
“You have to persist. She’ll push you away, but eventually you’ll crack through.” He shrugs. “It’ll be hard. She’s resistant. She thinks she’s protecting herself.”
“What’s she protecting herself from? I don’t understand.”
“You will.” And with that, he blinks out of existence.
“Argh.” He’s so irritating.
I try to focus on what he actually told me. I can’t let Sky’s problem destroy me. I have to find others to help so that doesn’t happen. Others? Like who? I mean, Sasha’s problem was dropped into my lap. Going out and finding more like that doesn’t sound easy.
I think about Asher and how his immortality is tied to mine. I have to do this. Whatever it takes.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Eli
I ran a search for a recent image of Logan online before I headed out to Rapture, so I’d know who I was looking for. Then I searched for news on Eden. Images of her embracing a guy in a night club were the first thing to pop up. I know who her other boyfriend is now. The articles named him as the club’s owner and billionaire playboy, Nick Levine. I’d filed that information away for later use.
Always felt a little weird to wear my uniform on a day off, but Asher’s whole problem is intriguing enough to warrant feeling a bit strange. I start the drive early and take a wander around town once I’ve had pancakes in the little cafe across from the library.
I fully believe a guy could go nuts over Eden. I haven’t stopped thinking about her since we met. I’d always liked her voice on the radio, always thought she was stunning whenever I saw her on the cover of a magazine. I had no idea how much more incredible she would be in person.
Stunning didn’t do it justice. Jealousy had swamped me when she asked for Alan in the bank. I’d gone outside to get fresh air after that. The heat had to be making me crazy. But I knew the instant I tried to brush the knee-jerk reaction off that I’d been lying to myself. It was her. She provoked an instinctive, deep-rooted desire that I’d long thought was buried too far down to ever reach again.
So yeah, I can buy that a guy could lose his mind over that goddess of a woman. Asher had assumed Logan’s intent was to scare him, because he wasn’t hurt. I doubted it. No man buried another without thinking he was dead, or at least trying to kill him by way of burial. Something had gone wrong with Logan’s weapon. Asher’s lucky he isn’t dead.
I take a deep breath as I begin to move around town. It’s early, and Rapture has always been a peaceful place. No serious crimes in the past three decades. Not here. Though, to be fair, it would probably be easy for someone who knew what they were doing to get away with a murder in a town this small. Make it look like something else. Natural causes, an accident. No one would suspect foul play.
I check the details on the registration of the rental car I’m looking for, the one Logan got to come out here. It doesn’t take too long to come across it. The street I’m on is the richest in town, which really isn’t saying much. I know exactly whose house it is that his car is parked in front of. And I seriously debate going to her door.
What are the chances the guy who tried to kill Asher parked his car randomly outside his psycho-bitch ex-girlfriend’s house? Something more is going on here. I consider waiting it out. Avoid dealing with Diana. He has to come out sometime, right? Sighing, I start the walk up the path to her house.
I knock the door to no answer. I can’t hear anything inside. I walk to the nearest window and squint to see inside. There’s no movement. I go back and rattle the door knob. It’s locked.
She could be out. Or she could be avoiding visitors. The woman does whatever the hell she likes without consideration for anyone else on the planet. I wouldn’t be surprised if she was burying bodies in her own basement right now.
I walk around back, conduct the same series of checks. Nothing.
Damn. I head back towards the centre of town. Asher’s house is next on my list after finding the car. I want to check around for clues, and lucky for me, Alan consented to giving me his spare key to the place. I didn’t give him the details. I just told him Asher asked me to check on something. He assumed it related to Diana and went off on a rant about that bitch.
I get there and instantly discover something’s off. One of the back door’s panes of glass is broken. I’m able to unlock the door without a key and get inside because of it. We have a point of entry. Asher told me he threw his clothes in the kitchen trash can. I glance inside. Bingo. There’s also some dirt on the floor, and the table. Not much if you weren’t looking for it. Probably wouldn’t even have noticed if I hadn’t been.
I make my way through the hallway, my ears pricking up at the sound of water running. Someone’s inside the house. I draw my gun. I check the living room in passing to make sure it’s clear. I start up the stairs and the water goes off. I move quickly to get to the top of the stairs before the bathroom door opens.
I get my cuffs at the ready in my other hand. I’ve got him for breaking and entering. Caught in the act. It won’t be enough to put him away. He’ll have a good lawyer. They’ll get him off on the charge. That doesn’t matter. It’s enough to lock him up for the night, maybe even two.
He comes out of the bathroom and freezes in place. I slap the cuff on his right wrist and he pulls at it before switching to his other hand to make a pass for his holstered weapon. I press the barrel of the gun to his head.
“Don’t even think about it.” I cuff his other hand behind his back and relax slightly as I relieve him of his weapon. “You’re under arrest.”
I’ll make a call to Asher once this asshole is locked in the backseat of my car. A deviation from the original plan could hit this creep with an actual prison sentence, if Asher’s willing to testify about what he did. Attempted murder is a harder charge to get dropped.
Chapter Thirty-Six
Asher
A night spent staring at the ceiling has left me weary and ready to collapse into a coma. I force myself into the shower, drying off and putting on yesterday’s pants and shirt. I get the call from Eli when I’m considering what reason to give Ronnie for my absence from the library.
“Hey, Asher,” he speaks when I pick up.
“Did you find him?” And I don’t sound panicked at all. I groan inwardly as I wait for his reply to my tense question.
“He was in your house.” Elias sighs and I know there’s more coming before he speaks again. “Listen, I can stick to the original plan. Question him and let him go. It should work, but who knows if he’ll come back later. We have no control over that. I can hold him for breaking and entering. He’ll probably be able to have the charges dropped. Attempted murder charges are harder to make go away.”
“Attempted murder?”
“He did bury you alive, Asher. You seriously think he was just trying to scare you?”
He could be right. I don’t like the thought of it, but I can see his point. I consider his suggestion, but it changes nothing. “What if he gets those charges dropped too? What then?”
He sighs. “It’s your chance to get him locked up. He can’t come after you if he’s behind bars.”
He does have a point, but I think Logan’s pissed off enough at me withou
t adding more fuel to that fire. I don’t want this on the record. It’s not going to help anything. “I think he’ll leave town if you question him over my death. The sounds better than putting someone who hates me through hell for a few years, or however long a charge might get him locked up for. I don’t think it’s a good idea to let him know I’m alive. I’m afraid Eden might get hurt if we can’t get him to leave town and he tries to attack me again.”
He’s quiet for a few seconds. “Okay. It’s your call. I’m taking him back to Haleton to put him in a cell for the break in. I’ll question him about your disappearance while he’s there. I’m guessing he’ll use his phone call to make bail. I’ll let you know when he gets released. Hopefully he’ll run when he does. Problem solved.”
“Thank you for this,” I tell him, feeling kind of shitty for steering clear of him for so long. He’d been a good friend. He still is. Maybe Sasha had been right to be pissed at me for not instantly trusting he wasn’t guilty of murder.
“Just try to steer clear of psychos in future, okay?”
“I’ll try.” It might be easier if they didn’t seem so attracted to me.
He hangs up and I text Ronnie to tell her I’m coming down with something. Another day or two spent floating around Eden’s house while she’s gone is going to drive me crazy and I know it. If it wasn’t for her psychotic ex body guard hanging around town I’d call her to try and beg her to come back sooner.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Eden
I text message Kira after I’m showered and dressed. I’m on my way to meet my manager, and I’ve decided sorting out Sky’s band mates love life might be the answer I’m looking for. Just as long as she isn’t into Cain, and he isn’t into her. I groan inwardly at the thought of it. Things are going to get worse before they get better, I can tell. Kira gets back to me and I tell her I’ll swing by her place after my meeting.
“When will you be back?” Nick calls through from his bedroom.
“Probably a few hours. Meetings with Amy tend to drag on,” I call back, stepping into my heels and picking up my purse. The curse of celebrity means always looking good for public outings. The skirt and fitted top are more conservative than most of my clothes, but I’m in that kind of mood. I sort of knew I’d end up having to meet Amy. I brought the outfit specifically for that occasion.
Nick comes out into the main room, dressed in his usual T-shirt and jeans combo and my heart skips a beat. I don’t know how he looks so effortlessly sexy all the time. It’s not the clothes, though I have to admit seeing the tattoos on his bared arms helps. It’s his confident manner, the way he walks and talks. The way he just takes what he wants. He pulls me to him for a kiss. I know the lipstick I just put on is probably smearing but I can’t seem to force myself to care.
He breathes in deeply as he moves back. “We need to get back to Rapture.”
I raise my eyebrows at him. “We do?”
“You don’t have all these other people monopolising your time back there.”
He’s sort of right. Except... “You do realise I’ll have to spend time with Asher when we go back, not to mention…”
“Not to mention going on dates with the new guy.” He shrugs. I see the playful smile tugging at the corners of his lips. He’s plotting something, I can feel it.
“What are you thinking right now?”
“You need to go meet Amy.” He kisses me one last time and lets me go. “You’re going to be late.”
I frown at him, but he’s right. I need to go. Todd is waiting at the elevator. We get inside, and I try not to wonder about Nick’s no doubt devious plan. Whatever it is, I trust him.
***
Amy is already at the restaurant when I get there. A middle-aged woman in a skirt suit with a general distain for make-up and no time to maintain anything more than a sleek bobbed hairstyle, she wouldn’t look out of place in any office anywhere. She stands up to greet me and we sit down together. Her dark eyes are wide, and she never seems to blink as much as anyone else.
“Well, I see you’ve been making yourself at home already.” She turns her iPad my way and I pale at the image splashed on the celebrity news website. Someone did take a picture when Nick kissed me in that party room. The angle is either really bad, or someone touched up the image, because I look topless. Fuck.
I try to let Nick’s words from last night flow back through my thoughts. None of this matters. I calm down. My shoulders relax, and I shrug. “So, I kissed someone, who cares?”
“The tabloids know who he is. Nick Levine isn’t exactly a nobody, Eden.”
I roll my eyes. His parents had been loaded. Hotel magnates. He’d inherited some of that money when he was already on his way to making his first million with the club he built from the ground up using money he made on the stock market. It was important to him to be successful in his own right. I don’t care who Amy thinks he is. I know the real Nick. “So, what, Amy?”
“So, everyone is used to the Goddess of Rock being a good girl with a steady boyfriend. They don’t want to see you with a different guy on your arm every week. You have an image to maintain. Fans to keep happy.” She makes it sound like she’s being perfectly reasonable. Her words are fucked up in too many ways to count. I wouldn’t even know where to start.
“Are we here to discuss work, or my love life? Because one of the two is nobody’s business but mine.” I stare her down when she shakes her head at me as if I’m an unruly child.
“Everything you are is open to public approval. Just remember that, Eden.”
“Can we move on?” I really want to just get this meeting over with and go speak to Kira.
“You said you were working on a new album?” She taps away on the iPad. “I can book you studio time next month to record. The label will be happy you’re back on track.”
Next month? Fuck no. “I have like two songs almost done. A month is way too soon.”
She frowns deeply at me. “Two months?”
“Make it three.” I know that’s the maximum I’ll be able to push her out to. It should be enough time. I hope. Ugh. My stomach’s starting to churn over this whole damned thing.
“Fine,” she mutters, flipping through and checking the date with me before she types it in.
“Next?” I’m surprised to realise this is kind of going well, the waiter hasn’t even been over yet for drinks never mind food. I might get away faster than I expect if we don’t have to actually eat lunch.
“Hmm. You have offers from potential sponsors.”
Ugh. Advertising deals? I shake my head. “We can talk about those in three months’ time.”
I would point blank say no, but that’s not how anything in this business works. I have to consider the label. They’ve been good to me, and scoring the right advertising deals helps them as much as it does me. It does all tie into image though, and that worries me.
Amy is right. The world sees me a certain way. An all American sweetheart who looks good in leather and sounds sexier than sin itself, but is the perfect girl next door otherwise. All of that is going to be compromised by the lovers I’m taking now. Nick has a playboy reputation too, which probably doesn’t help. It certainly colored how Amy took our kiss.
“My relationship with Nick is serious.” I might as well be honest about it.
She raises an eyebrow. “Really?”
“Really.”
“What about the other guy?” She smirks slightly as she asks.
Nick was right. There’s no way to stop this from coming out. It’s going to, and it’s not going to wait for me to be ready. It’s all going to be okay. Remember that. I decide not to be coy. She brought it up. I’m not going to deny it.
“Oh, that’s serious too.” I watch her jaw drop. “And there’s no cheating going on. They know about each other.”
She stares at me for a few seconds before she recovers from the shock. “You have to be kidding.”
“It’s not a joke.”
; She leans forward and lowers her voice. “The press ripped Hunter to pieces for what he did to you. Everyone wants to see you come back stronger. Painting yourself a slut will do the complete opposite.”
This is the reaction I was waiting for, the hate I expected to encounter. It doesn’t hurt nearly as badly as I thought it would. Not everyone is going to understand. Maybe most of them wont. It doesn’t matter. This isn’t something I can change. I’m not going to be made to feel ashamed about it.
“This is who I am,” I tell her, getting to my feet. “If you can’t handle it, I’ll find a manager who can.”
I don’t give her a chance to answer. She’ll scramble to get back in my good graces, or she won’t. I no longer care. Managers are a dime a dozen. I’ll tear through as many as I have to, to find one who’ll cause me less trouble, if she can’t find it in herself to show a little empathy.
I head out, followed by Todd who moves quickly to keep up with my rapid pace. I’m done being worried about what everyone will think. More time would have been nice, but I’m not going to get it.
***
As soon as I walk into Kira’s house, I ask her for her iPad. She looks around before passing me a tablet. I do an online search for my name, and news articles for the last week fill the screen. Rock Goddess with a Mystery Date. I click the headline and blow out a breath. Someone took a picture of me with Asher in the Italian in Rapture. We’re holding hands as we walk out of the place.
“Are you okay?” Kira sounds worried.
I nod as I take in a breath. Another headline questions if I’m playing the field. I know what I have to do now. But I want to talk to Asher and Nick before I do it. And I probably want to drink my weight in alcohol first too, but that’s just the nerves talking.
Wild Hearts (Rock Goddess Reverse Harem Book 2) Page 15