“I guess I should be congratulating you, shouldn’t I?” I said to Maddox. He glanced at Lacie and his eyes widened.
“You told her?”
Lacie shrugged. “One of my faults, I guess. Veronica knows everything.”
Carter frowned. “What’s going on?”
Lacie cheeks flushed and she glanced at Maddox. Carter looked at me, then Lacie, then Maddox. He had a cute little confused expression on his face, and my heart thumped in my chest. A grin spread over Maddox’s lips and he put his hand on Carter’s shoulder.
“I’m getting married.”
Carter frowned. “To who?”
“To me,” Lacie said, laughing as she blushed.
No one said anything. The room was deathly still, and then Carter started chuckling. Once he started, none of us could resist. All four of us leaned on each other and laughed until tears streamed down our faces.
“Well, congratulations, I guess,” Carter said. “Am I the best man, or what?”
“Yeah,” Maddox laughed. “You are, you presumptuous bastard.”
I glanced at Lacie. She grinned and nodded. “And you’ll be my maid of honor.”
”Monday morning, at the courthouse,” Maddox said.
“I’ll be there,” Carter said, shaking his hand. Then, he walked up to me and kissed me softly. I looked at his face and shot him a questioning glance, but he just shook his head.
I’ll tell you later, he seemed to be saying.
Garrett got to the hotel a couple minutes later. When he walked into the room, his face was darker than usual. Carter shifted in his seat and put his hand on my thigh. Something was wrong, and we could all feel it.
“Everything okay, Garrett?” Maddox asked. Garrett slumped into the makeup chair and grunted.
“Yeah, everything’s fine,” he said. “Just got a lot on my mind.”
“You checked our gear at the Staples Centre?”
“Yeah, it’s all fine, we’ll do a final check before we go on but it should be good to go.”
Maddox and Carter nodded. Lacie started on Garrett’s makeup. Carter and I exchanged a glance, and then I got up and started taking pictures. This was the perfect opportunity for some great behind-the-scenes pictures. I’d just have to make sure Garrett didn’t look too angry in them. Morgan had posted some of my photos from New York to the band’s social media pages, and they’d gotten fantastic responses. I knew these would be the same.
We were all quiet, with Carter and Maddox lounging and Lacie and I working. Garrett’s phone rang.
“Miss me already, do you?” Garrett said as he answered
My eyebrows shot up towards my hairline. I glanced at Lacie, whose eyes had widened. It had to be Morgan. Had to be!
“What?” I mouthed. Lacie was close enough to hear what Garrett was saying, and maybe even the person on the other end of the line. I saw her struggle to keep her face steady. She shrugged.
“I didn’t send them to her,” Garrett said to the phone. His voice was calm, but there was an undercurrent of anger. “She blindsided me.”
What was he talking about? Something was wrong. I looked at Carter, who had stiffened in his chair. He was trying to look casual, but I knew he was listening to Garrett’s conversation as intently as I was.
“I’ll handle it,” Garrett growled. He hung up the phone and pushed himself out of the chair.
“Good enough,” he grunted. “I think I’m pretty enough now,” he said to me, and I stepped back.
“Okay,” Lacie said. “I was almost done anyways.” She took a step back, wide-eyed and stiff.
“Who was that?” Carter asked. I glanced from him to Garrett to Maddox, trying to shrink into the walls. It felt like I was intruding, but I felt like something was very, very wrong. Then, Garrett said the name that I’d wished he wouldn’t say.
“Morgan.” Garrett growled. “We have a situation.”
Maddox’s straightened up. “What do you need us to do?”
“Just get ready for the show. I’ll meet you there.”
And with that, Garrett rushed out of the room. All four of us exchanged glances and frowns. I sighed.
“Well I don’t know about you guys, but it sounds like something not entirely professional is going on between the two of them,” I said.
“I’m not sure you’re one to talk,” Carter said, grinning. “Can you say you’ve been ‘entirely professional’?”
My face turned red, and Lacie started laughing.
“Well, whatever it is, you heard the man,” Lacie said, saving me from the embarrassment. “Carter, you’re up. I need to fix that face of yours.”
“Fix my face!” He said, his eyebrows shooting up in mock offense. “Do you know who you’re talking to?”
“You’re no David Beckham, I’ll tell you that much,” Lacie grinned, winking at me. It would have been offensive, except for the fact that The Mondays were possibly the sexiest three men in the Universe.
“You’re not like any makeup artist I’ve ever met,” Carter said, still in shock. “Usually they try to butter us up and make us feel good about ourselves.”
“She’s not like other makeup artists,” Maddox said, his eyes full of love as he looked at Lacie. “That’s why I’m marrying her.”
Carter looked at his friend, and then towards me. He gave me a sly wink and I smiled. Whatever was going on with Garrett and Morgan, I hoped it wouldn’t change things between Carter and I, or between Maddox and Lacie.
Chapter 22 - Carter
Maddox hung up the phone and looked at me, his eyes wide. The limo lurched, and all four of us—me, Maddox, Lacie, and Veronica—almost fell over.
“What the fuck is going on? What did you mean we won’t play?” I asked. The blood was pumping in my veins. Had I heard him right?
“Apparently Morgan and Garrett were sending nudes to each other while we were in New York.”
“What?!” Lacie and Veronica said in unison.
“Garrett’s ex-girlfriend came out of the woodwork and threatened to release them if we go through with tonight’s show. Garrett says it’ll end Morgan’s career, and he doesn’t want to go on.”
“So he and Morgan…” I trailed off.
Maddox nodded.
I sat back and shrugged. “I guess we’re not playing.”
“You guys would do that for Morgan?” Lacie breathed, her eyes wide. I put his hand over Veronica’s and interlaced his fingers with hers. She looked at me with wide eyes and I nodded. It was the Grammys, and it was our album launch, but Garrett was more important than any of that.
“When we find someone, we’re loyal,” Lacie said. Vee’s mouth dropped open and I gave her a quick, tender kiss.
“It’s true,” I said. “Fuck the album launch. It’s just one show, we’ll play a thousand more.”
“This is the biggest show of the year,” Lacie breathed. “You’d give that up…?”
“Yes,” Maddox said, kissing his future wife. Veronica’s eyes misted up and I kissed her again.
“Thank you,” she whispered in my ear.
I said nothing, just held her close. She was the reason my divorce hadn’t ended in disaster, and if her friend was in trouble, I’d do anything to help them out.
Maddox and I went on the red carpet without Garrett. There were photos and questions about it, but we just smiled and posed and pretended like nothing was wrong. If anything, it would create more of a buzz. Maybe Garrett’s ex’s plan would backfire, and we’d actually get more press for not playing.
By the time we made it backstage, Garrett had Morgan in his arms. I could hear her protesting, her voice strained as she asked Garrett about us not playing the Grammys.
“Garrett called us on the way over,” I said as we all stepped through the door. I interlaced my fingers with Vee’s. “You’re one of us, now, Morgan. We won’t let you go through that.”
Morgan’s jaw dropped, and Garrett let out a sigh.
Tears welled in Morgan’s eyes.
“You guys would throw away this chance to play at the Grammys just for me? I barely know you!”
Maddox chuckled. “But we know Garrett. And he knows you. We won’t play.”
Morgan looked like she was in shock. Garrett looked at me and Maddox and grinned. He nodded to us, as if to say thank you.
“We are in the market for a new PR company,” he said. “And it looks like you might be in the market for a new job.”
Morgan’s cheeks flushed and her eyes widened. She shook her head. “How could I…? I wouldn’t have any of the connections, I couldn’t—”
Vee inhaled beside me, and I could tell she wanted to go to her friend and comfort her. Garrett beat her to it, though, putting his hands on Morgan’s hips.
“I see the way people react to you, Morgan. They like you. And with the biggest rock band in the country as your first client, how could you fail?”
I glanced at Veronica. Her eyes were shining, and she squeezed my hand. Lacie and Maddox seemed to be having a similar wordless exchange.
“I have a non-compete agreement, even if I did, I wouldn’t be able to work for you!” Morgan protested.
Garrett kissed her. “I have your CEO’s number. Something tells me that when I let him know that his Managing Director hacked into my private accounts and tried to blackmail me, he’ll wave the non-compete.”
What the hell had happened between them? I’d have to ask him about it later, but at that moment I heard someone start clapping behind us.
Clap… clap… clap…
It was slow and mocking. We all turned to see Brenda, Garrett’s ex, in the doorway.
“Congratulations, Garrett, you could win an Oscar for that performance. Have you considered getting into acting?”
“Brenda,” Garrett snarled. “Aren’t you done trying to ruin my life? What’s in it for you?”
“You’re a fool,” she said to Morgan. Both Lacie and Veronica made a move towards the woman in the doorway, and then they stopped.
Brenda scoffed. “You’re exactly the same man that broke my heart, Garrett. You haven’t changed a bit. Now, you’re going to break this poor girl’s heart too.”
Garrett roared. “I broke your heart?! You left me, remember? Are you delusional?”
“I had no choice!” She screamed. Brenda trembled in the doorway, not letting her eyes drop from Garrett. She lifted her long arm and pointed her long nail at Garrett. My eyes widened and I just watched the drama unfold.
“You made me get rid of my unborn child, Garrett! I’ll never forgive you for that. Never!”
Maddox frowned at me. I had no idea what the fuck was going on. Was this why Garrett had been so crazy these past six months? I’d been so focused on my divorce, and Maddox on his own legal shit that maybe we’d missed this whole thing.
But then Garrett frowned and took a step forward.
“What?”
“Oh don’t pretend that you didn’t know! Right after I took the pregnancy test, you went in the bathroom and by the time you came back out, you wouldn’t even touch me. I got the message loud and clear.”
Garrett shook his head. “How…? What?”
“You’re a pig.”
“Brenda,” he said softly, shaking his head. “I’ve had a vasectomy.”
Her eyes widened and her cheeks flushed. Garrett stiffened, his hands balling into fists. “I know you were sleeping with what’s-his-face for months before you broke up with me. I saw the messages. You might have seen them too—I saved screenshots of them in my account. Unless my vasectomy magically undid itself, the baby wasn’t mine, and I never even knew about it.”
I don’t even know what happened next. Garrett said something, and then Brenda said something else, but I was too focused on holding Veronica in my arms to know what the fuck was going on.
Finally, his ex threw something and ran down the hallway. I frowned after her before turning back to my bandmates.
“What the fuck?” Maddox said, glancing after Brenda. “And I thought I was having a crazy week.”
Lacie smacked my arm and giggled.
Garrett picked up whatever she’d thrown and opened his palm to reveal a small black USB key.
“The pictures?” Morgan said, breathless. Garrett looked at her and shrugged. Morgan scrambled to get her laptop, and then she flushed. Garrett said something in her ear and her whole face and neck turned red.
Maddox cleared his throat and the two of them jumped.
“So… are we playing this show, or what?”
Garrett looked at Morgan, and she shrugged. A grin spread over our lead singer’s lips and he nodded to us.
“Let’s light that fucking stage on fire.”
Chapter 23 - Veronica
The pictures I took during the Grammys were the best I’d taken in my life. The Mondays played like they’d never played before, and the crowed went nuts. Morgan and I waited in the wings, and she looked at me with stars in her eyes.
“I think this launch will be a success.”
I put my arm around my friend and smiled. “I know it will.”
Then, Garrett rushed over to us and picked a laughing Morgan up and whisked her away. Carter wasn’t far behind, interlacing his fingers in mine and kissing me gently.
“How was that?” He asked.
“Ah-mazing!”
Carter laughed and led me back to the dressing room. “You want to watch the rest of the ceremony?”
“About as much as I want to pull my own teeth out,” I replied, wrapping my arms around his waist. I knew exactly what I wanted to do, and it didn’t involve anyone except me and Carter, and possibly a bed or a couch or another similar soft surface. The floor would do, in a pinch.
Carter grinned, and pointed his chin towards the door. “Let’s get out of here.”
We walked hand-in-hand down the hallway and out the back door. He called for a car and within seconds, a sleek black limousine was pulling up in front of us.
“Rock star treatment, hey?” I grinned. Carter shrugged, but he couldn’t keep the smile off his face. He opened the door for me when I heard my name being called out.
“Vee!”
Carter stiffened beside me. I turned to see Seth jogging towards me. Putting my hand on Carter’s forearm, I held him back. His sinewy, muscular forearm tensed under my touch, but he didn’t move.
“Seth,” I said, my eyes narrowing as he jogged towards me. He looked from me to Carter and then gulped.
“I… I wanted to say thank for not pressing charges.”
“Stay the fuck away from her,” Carter growled. He stood up taller, and Seth cowered in front of us. His Adam’s apple bobbed up and down as he swallowed.
Seth turned back to me, holding out his hands.
“I’m sorry.”
Those two simple words shocked me. I opened my mouth and closed it again, nodding curtly.
“Okay.”
“I mean it, Vee. I…” He looked at Carter. “I won’t both you guys anymore.”
“If you ever follow me again and try to grab me, I’m will press charges, Seth,” I said, my voice hard. “And I’ll get a restraining order. Stop calling me. It’s over between us.”
He dropped his eyes and nodded. “I could have lost my job if you’d have pressed charges.”
“So stop following me.”
“I just…” he looked at me with anguish, and a small part of me felt sorry for him. The bigger part of me remembered how scared I’d felt in New York, and how terrible he made me feel when we were together. He looked so small and weak, standing there in front of us. Carter put his hand on the small of my back and I felt safer than I’d felt in months.
I turned away and got into the limousine with Carter. We left Seth standing there as we drove off, and I let out a big sigh.
“Is it bad that I almost felt sorry for him?” I asked, nestling my head into Carter’s chest. He smelled so good.
“No,” Carter replied, kissing the top of my head. “It makes you a g
ood person.”
“I just don’t want him to bother me anymore. I don’t want to hurt him or get him arrested or anything, I just want him to leave me alone. How did he know about your divorce, anyways?”
Carter chuckled. “He probably googled me. It’s not exactly hard to find information about me.” He squeezed his arm around me. “My ex sent me the divorce papers. Looks like it’ll all work out.”
My eyes widened and I looked up at him. “Really? The whole mess will be over?” Carter nodded, kissing my lips.
“And it’s all because of you.”
I frowned and then Carter explained what had happened with his ex. He told me everything—the private investigator, the music rights, and finally Angela’s visit last night. A tiny shiver of jealousy ran through me when I thought of her coming over to his house, but then I saw the way he looked at me and my heart was at ease.
“So, thank you,” he said. “You made her realize that we were better off just being done with this divorce.”
“And I think you made Seth realize that he didn’t have a chance.”
“Not a snowball’s chance in hell,” Carter grinned. “How could he compete with this?”
I laughed, running my fingers along his jaw and wrapping them around his nape. “He can’t. No one can.”
And then, Carter did what I’d be hoping he’d do since the show ended. He crushed his lips against mine and pulled me to him, wrapping his arms around me in a warm embrace.
My heart started thumping as the heat of his body seeped into mine. His hands ran down my spine and over my ass just as the limo lurched to the side and I fell over him. I laughed, catching myself on his chest.
“This is dangerous!”
“Well, Danger is my middle name,” Carter said as he quirked his eyebrow.
I laughed, rolling my eyes. “Very original.”
“You love it,”
“I love you.”
It just slipped out and my eyes widened. I stammered, blushing as I tried to recover. “I mean, you know. I like you. A lot. This week has been amazing, and—”
Carter silenced me with a kiss. He growled into my mouth as he pulled me close, tangling his fingers into my hair and inhaling the scent of my skin as he kissed me.
Carter: A Bad Boy Rock Star Romance (Rock Hard Book 3) Page 9