“’Bout time you made it.” A tall man of what appeared to be Native American descent stepped forward, holding his hand out to Layne.
“Nashville traffic fuckin’ sucked,” he explained, clasping hands with the big man.
“Tyler, everybody, this is Jessica Shea.”
A blonde woman with dark highlights stepped forward, raising her hand in a wave. “Welcome to Bowling Green, I’m Bianca.”
Jessica grinned at the woman who looked like they might be around the same age, but then again it was so hard to tell with other people. “Thank you.”
“So did I read my text right? It’s a girl?” Layne asked as they made a space for him at the window.
“Sure is.” Tyler gripped Layne’s shoulders and directed him to the black-haired baby at the front.
“Tatum, huh?”
“That’s what they named her. Tatum Meredith Walker.”
Layne raised his eyebrows and looked back to where Meredith stood with Bianca. “I know, right?” she laughed. “I was just as surprised as everyone else.”
“What do you know? You went from Heaven Hill enemy number one to having the princess named after you.”
“I still don’t know what to say,” Meredith admitted as she stepped up and stood next to Layne.
“She’s pretty,” he whispered as Tatum’s eyes opened and she looked right at him. “Black hair and blue eyes. What a combo.”
“Liam’s gonna have his hands full,” Jagger commented.
“You seriously don’t have to remind me,” a voice said from behind the group.
Layne turned around as he saw his president approaching them. Reaching over, he held Jessica’s hand in his, nodding at the leader of the group.
“Was this your pick up?” Liam asked, offering a small smile to Jessica.
“It was.” He pulled her forward so that they stood even with each other. “Jessica Shea, this is Liam Walker, president of the Heaven Hill MC.”
“Pleasure to meet you.” She held out her hand for him.
Liam licked his lips and tilted his head before smiling at her and clasping her hand. “Somehow I don’t think you would be here if you had any other choice, and I’ll just say that’s something I understand.”
She nodded; let them believe what they wanted to, and Layne spoke up beside her. “She’ll be staying in my dorm indefinitely.”
“It’s your dorm. You can have whoever you want there, just make sure she knows what the hell she’s getting into bein’ around us.”
“Trust me,” she interrupted. “I would rather be with a bunch of law breakers than be with people I thought cared about me.”
The group got silent.
“I’m so sorry,” she rushed on. “I didn’t mean to offend anyone.”
“No,” Tyler said. “You got it right; we are a bunch of law breakers. However, most women have the decency not to mention it.”
Jessica knew her face was flaming, and it wouldn’t help to apologize, instead she kept her mouth shut.
“Are Drew and Mandy on their way?” Layne asked, trying to fill the gap in the silence.
“They should be getting here anytime,” Liam confirmed, looking at his watch. “Roni is going to bring them.”
They all stood there for a moment, and Jessica felt like maybe the awkwardness that rolled off Layne was because of her.
“Do I need to be here for anything else? It’s been a long day,” Layne asked, rubbing his leg for affect.
“Nah, go on back to the clubhouse,” Liam told him. “We’ve all had a long day. I’m sending the rest of them back after Roni leaves with the kids.”
Layne said a few words to a couple of the members and then steered her back towards the elevator they had come in on. Jessica hoped her mouth hadn’t gotten her in trouble. But if it did, it wouldn’t be the first time.
The clubhouse was like nothing Jessica had ever seen before. It looked almost like a movie set—even though it was much darker.
“My room is over here,” Layne directed her to a row of doors and then used a key to open one of them.
“Who else stays here?” she asked, seeing just how many doors there were.
“Everyone pretty much has their own room. It depends on what we have going on within the club as to who stays, but there’s always an option.”
“Do you stay here all the time?”
“I do, I don’t have another apartment or house like some of the other members.”
He let her in and turned on the overhead light. Jessica turned around in a circle, taking in the room.
“I know it’s probably a lot smaller than what you’re used to,” Layne said as he set her luggage down. “But it’s kinda what I got right now.” He didn’t want to admit this was all he could handle at the moment.
“This is perfect.” The smile she pasted on for him didn’t meet her eyes.
“It’s not,” he laughed. “But it’ll do.”
“Really, Layne, I’m putting you out, so I appreciate this.”
For someone who had spent most of his adult life in barracks and tents around the world, this was home. The only one he had known for a long time. Layne couldn’t expect other people to understand what it meant to have a bathroom that you didn’t have to dig a hole for, a shower that constantly had hot water, and a bed that actually had a mattress on it. For most people those were everyday rights, not luxuries.
“You’re not putting me out, I’m happy to share anything that I have with you, but I know this isn’t what you’re used to.”
“What I’m used to and what I want are two totally different things,” she sighed as she had a seat on the bed. Looking around, she realized there was only one bed in the room.
He caught her look—he caught nearly everything. His time in the military had trained him not to miss anything. He was one of the most observant in the club. Not much escaped him. Although he had to question why she acted that way—it wasn’t like the two of them hadn’t shared a bed before. They had shared one both ways, the sleeping sense and the carnal sense. “Your virtue is safe with me.” He pointed to the chair in the corner. “That folds out into a bed.”
“Then I’ll take that,” she insisted as she squared her shoulders. It didn’t matter to her that there was only one bed, but it obviously mattered to him. For some reason it had taken her by surprise, and she hadn’t had time to hide that surprise. Now she felt like he was offended.
“The hell you will.”
“No.” She shook her head. “I invited myself, and I don’t expect you to go out of your way for me.”
Layne grabbed her hand to keep her from flailing. “I don’t mind it. Like I told you, I’ve slept in some crazy places in my life. A smaller bed won’t be the worst place I’ve ever laid my head at night.”
She thought for a moment, still not feeling right about this. In Calabasas, when she had picked up the phone, she hadn’t been sure who she was going to call. Her fingers had automatically dialed his number. When he hadn’t answered that number, she dialed one that he had given her for emergencies. “Thank you,” she told him softly.
“That’s not to say I’m gonna let you stay here without asking some questions first.”
The fierce glint in his eyes told her that she wouldn’t be able to talk her way out of it this time.
“What do you want to know?” she sighed, wringing her hands together.
“Do I look like the type of man that does anything half-assed?”
Those words scared her, and she ran her tongue over suddenly dry lips.
“I don’t want to make you uncomfortable,” he assured her. “But you came here for some reason, and I need to know what I’m facing. You have got to be honest with me, Jessica.”
Since the night the two of them had met, he’d called her Jessica a handful of times. “It’s not that I don’t want to tell you…” she started.
With a voice that could only be described as one used by a drill sergeant, he cut her off. “Then t
ell me.”
Fighting for the words, she opened and closed her mouth.
“Tell me,” he commanded again, his tone growing harsher.
“I wanted to disappear.”
“But why?” He ran a hand over his head. The peach fuzz was left over from his Army days. He couldn’t tolerate to have hair as long as the rest of them. “I’m gonna tell you this once and once only. You can’t be honest with me; you can take your shit and leave. I don’t put up with liars.”
His words shocked her. She had never known him to speak to anyone that way.
“Don’t look at me like you’re scared of me. I’m being honest with you. Now you be honest with me.”
Her face burned. “Tomorrow a story is going to drop in gossip magazines and on gossip sites along with some pictures.”
“Pictures? All of this over some pictures? Give me the whole story, Jess.”
“They’re nude pictures,” she blurted out.
His eyebrows were almost touching his hairline. “Seriously?”
If Jessica wasn’t mistaken, Layne looked interested. “Yes, seriously.”
“Those pictures are a dime a dozen. Most of young Hollywood has them now.”
“They do,” she nodded. “But there’s a problem with mine.”
He rolled his eyes to the ceiling. “There’s always a catch where I’m concerned. What is it?”
“Two things, actually. One, I have a morality clause in my contract with the studio that’s produced my last four films, and there are a handful of sponsorships that I’m going to lose. The contracts that my dad signed for me before I got emancipated have not been able to be voided. Not only am I screwed, but he’s also going to lose a lot of money. Two, I had the only copy of those pictures, and three days ago my home was burglarized—those pictures were stolen along with other personal items and writings.”
The way she said personal items caused goose bumps on his arms. “What do you mean personal items and writings?”
“Underwear, my date book, a private notebook or two.”
“So whoever this is knows a lot of information about you, as well as where you’re supposed to be for the next few months.”
“Yes,” she nodded. “It scared me.”
Layne could see exactly why she was scared. He wasn’t sure she had a stalker, but someone was very interested in her personal life. “No need to be scared here.” He put his hand on her arm. “Anybody who comes after you while you’re with Heaven Hill will have to go through me.”
That was exactly what she had counted on, and for the first time in days, she breathed easier.
Chapter Three
The room was still and quiet, the only sound coming from the bed where Jessica slept. Most people wouldn’t be able to hear her breathing, but it was the only thing he could hear. At night when he had been overseas in the military, that was the one sound that kept him grounded—that let Layne know he was still alive. He clung to that sound again tonight; not sure why, just needing a sense of familiarity.
Rolling over onto his side, he used his arm as extra support. The pillow he had for this chair wasn’t that great and again reminded him of his time in the Army. There were a lot of things he had learned during his time there that he wanted to completely forget, but there were some things he also coveted. One of those things slept in the bed across from him.
“C’mon, some chick got Justin Timberlake to go to her ball. Why don’t you ask Jessica Shea? You’re a good lookin’ guy, I’m sure she’ll say yes.”
Layne laughed, shaking his head. It was a late night in Fort Benning, Georgia, and the whole group had been drinking more than they should have. That had to be the answer as to why they wanted him—of all people—to make a YouTube video asking an actress to come to his military ball.
“Why me?”
“You’ve got that dark, brooding thing going on. You don’t smile often, and women make it their mission to make you have a good time. Imagine what kind of a good time this woman could give you.”
One of his fellow recruits threw a magazine at him with Jessica on the cover. He wouldn’t lie and say that he’d never watched one of her movies or looked at her and wondered what it would be like to meet her. With red hair and green eyes, her looks were striking. If he wanted to be completely honest with himself, he would admit she was fucking hot. But actresses just didn’t go out with men in the military from backwoods Kentucky.
Somehow during that night, as they took more shots of Southern Comfort and got more daring, he ended up making a video that invited her to his Ranger ball. Miracle of all miracles, she had accepted his invitation.
Layne still wasn’t sure why she’d accepted. Maybe it was fate, maybe it was a divine plan. He figured he would never be able to know for certain. The friendship had completely changed his life, and he would always question what had made him different from every other guy who had asked her to other events. Never before and never again had she said yes.
“I can hear you thinking over here.”
It hadn’t escaped his attention that she had stopped her deep breathing and was now awake.
“Can’t help it. At night I tend to think instead of sleep like normal people do.”
“That must be thanks to your overseas service. You weren’t like that when I first met you.”
She’d hit the nail on the head with that one. It was thanks to his overseas service that left him one fucked up individual, even to this day. On impulse, he asked. “How did you see me when you first met me?”
The silence from her told him just how surprised she was to hear that question. “You sure you want me to answer that?”
“I don’t ask anything I don’t want an answer to; it’s a waste of time.”
“All right. When I first met you, you had this air about you. It was dark, much like you are now, but it wasn’t deadly. It was obvious that you could do what Uncle Sam asked you to, that you could get yourself out of any situation that you found yourself in, but there was still a sense of innocence about you.”
He snorted and interrupted. “There’s never been a damn thing innocent about me.”
“Yes, there was,” she argued. “When you came back, you were a completely different person. Now, you’re different than even that.”
“I had to be,” he answered, his voice flat. He didn’t tell her that being different was the way he made it through his days—it was how he kept himself from going crazy. Most people didn’t understand it, but then again, most people he hung out with hadn’t known him before his military time. They didn’t know how much he really had changed.
Jessica sat up, and with his eyes adjusted to the dark, Layne could make out every feature. Her shirt slipped from her shoulder, showing an expanse of creamy white skin. The purity he saw there made him feel like a piece of shit.
“I had to do things that I wasn’t proud of there,” he continued. “Then I decided to just keep doing those things when I came home.”
She licked her lips, not sure of how she wanted to say this, she wanted to use her words carefully. “I don’t think you’re a bad person at all. You made decisions you had to, to deal with things you saw.”
He closed his eyes, seeing some of those things again. “You make it sound so heroic,” he spat.
“It is. You fought for our country.”
“Tell me, Jessica…out of all the men, boys really, that asked you to come to their balls, why did you pick me?”
“I just liked you.” She shrugged.
“No, I’ve never asked you this question before, and I want a serious answer,” his voice was hard. Waiting for her to speak made him nervous. He tightly gripped the blanket that covered his body and waited to hear what she would say.
“You looked like you needed a friend.”
“So it was pity?” The word tasted bad in his mouth. His heart kicked up a beat, and he began to feel sick. This whole friendship was based on pity? This fucking sucked, and for just a moment he wished that h
e had never given voice to the question.
“No, not at all.” Jessica shook her head and sat up fully so that she could push her legs over the side of the bed. “I saw something in you that I needed too.”
It took everything he had not to cuss her. “Don’t try to pacify me. I got enough of that in the military.”
“I’m sure you did, but I’m not pacifying you. We’ve been friends for years, Layne. Do you think I would have kept this going over a damn ocean if I felt bad for you?”
He shrugged and turned so that he didn’t face her anymore. “I’m sure it was good publicity.”
“Don’t insult me, Layne. It pisses me off. You know I never told anybody about our relationship after that banquet. The only people that knew about it were people that were close to me. I didn’t use you in any way. I was too scared to. Scared that they would target you. I did everything that I could to protect you.” She got up and walked over to him, touching him on the shoulder.
She must have been quieter than she thought because in the blink of an eye, he had her on the ground, his body over hers, her hands trapped at her side. Breathing heavily, she looked him in the eyes. “That was uncalled for.”
“That’s what happens when you fucking sneak up on me. Another residual effect from being overseas.” He got up off her and sat on his bed.
“That doesn’t scare me.”
“Then you’re a damn fool. I don’t know why I agreed that it would be a good idea for you to come here. Much less sleep in the same room as me. I’m a live wire.”
“You’re not going to hurt me, and I want you to stop talking like you’re going to.”
“Then stop talking like you don’t pity me.”
She rolled her eyes, getting frustrated. “Think about it, Layne. I could have gone anywhere in this world to get away from the scandal that’s about to erupt. I didn’t. I came to bum-fuck Kentucky because this is where you are. You, out of everyone I’ve ever known, make me feel the safest. Don’t act like our friendship doesn’t matter. It does.”
Worth The Battle (Heaven Hill Series) Page 2