Ashton gently put his hands on her upper arms, holding her still and waiting until she looked up at him. For the first time, her eyes met his, and he saw the uncertainty that she was hiding.
"Kaylee, it is a big deal, and it is your business," he said softly. "Listen, I like you a lot, more than I wanted to or expected to, and that is a big deal to me. I'm not messing with you, so get that out of your head. I want to be with you. I care about you. I thought you understood that."
He was trying not to let his frustration get the best of him. At the same time, he was trying not to let the fears he held deep inside come to the surface. Ashton had never talked about his feelings like this with anyone before, so he wasn't sure of the right words. It was a completely foreign land, this place he was standing in with Kaylee. Everything was new to him, and he didn't want to screw up.
"I do understand that, but do you really think you can give up all other women to be with me?" she asked.
Ashton sighed and frowned. "I'm not going to lie and say that it's a piece of cake. Will there be temptation? I'm sure there will be, but I think I'm a strong enough person now to resist it. You'll never know unless you give me a chance."
"And I'll never get my heart broken if I don't give you the chance," Kaylee retorted. She glared at him, angry at herself for having these feelings, but also angry at Ashton for making her feel this way about him.
Ashton shook his head at her. He wasn't going to get mad. He needed to be the calm one, for once. "Do you honestly think you can walk away from me right now and not have it hurt?" He felt triumphant when he saw the answer in Kaylee's eyes. It was the final push he needed to admit everything.
"I know I've hurt you in the past, but something's changed between us. How many times do I have to tell you that I like you and that I want to be with you before it sinks in? Can't you just give me, give us, a chance to see where this leads?"
Kaylee looked into his eyes. Where she expected to see teasing, she only saw care. But she had to know... "How do I know I'm not some conquest? 'Let's see who can take her virginity?'"
Ashton sighed again. "Come on, do you really think that?" He was starting to get angry and let his frustrations show. "Have I ever once tried to go further than you're ready for?"
"No," she said, ashamed that she had even made that suggestion. She knew that wasn't all Ashton wanted from her, but her mind wouldn't let her give in that easily to him. "I don't want to sit here, constantly wondering when you're going to get bored with me and what I'm giving you."
"Well, when are you going to get bored with what I have to offer?" Ashton countered. "Nothing in this world is certain, Kaylee. Sometimes you just have to let go and see where the wind takes you."
They looked at each other for a long moment. "When did you get so smart?" she asked, with a smile across her face for the first time since their discussion began.
"I listen to a lot of song lyrics," Ashton said proudly. They both laughed, sucking all the tension out of the air. "So, we're cool?"
"Yeah, we're cool," Kaylee said, without hesitation.
"Good, now can I go make my girlfriend breakfast?" he asked. Kaylee nodded, thankful that Ashton, unlike her, enjoyed cooking.
Noah was already in the kitchen when they got there, showered and ready to go. "Morning, you two," he said. He handed them each a plate of French toast and bacon.
"Well, aren't you up early," Kaylee said, surprised that breakfast was ready and so was her brother.
"That's because he's taking me shopping," Brittany told her as she breezed into the kitchen. "He promised to buy me whatever I wanted."
Kaylee thought her jaw was going to hit the floor. Not only did Brittany spend the night in their house, but now Noah was taking her shopping? No way! She remembered that Brittany had done her best to come on to Ashton and had to bite back the terrible things she wanted to say to her.
But still, some snarky bit escaped. "What happened Brittany, lose your job and go broke?"
Brittany didn't even blink. "Nope, I'm still working, and I have plenty of money saved up, thank you. But hey, he was dumb enough to offer, so why should I say no?"
Kaylee saw red, and Ashton knew it. He wasn't happy about the situation either. He put his hand on Kaylee's arm, hoping to calm her down a little so that she didn't cross right over the breakfast bar and go after Brittany.
Noah's eyes flashed a momentary pain, but he snapped out of it quick when he saw how mad his sister was. He shook his head at her, telling her it would be alright and not to worry.
"Come on then, let's get this over with," Noah pulled on Brittany's arm.
"See you at the studio later, man," Ashton called to Noah as he was walking out the door.
Brittany turned around to answer him. "Oh, right. I don't think he'll be there today. We hardly ever get to see each other, so while I'm here, Noah can't come out to play." She gave a self-satisfied smirk, then disappeared through the door.
"Did that just happen?" Kaylee burst out when the door closed behind them.
"Looks like we have another Yoko on our hands," Jenny said, walking into the kitchen from the living room.
"You heard?" Kaylee asked her. She hadn't known that Jenny was in the next room.
"I heard it all. You know, I try not to interfere in your love lives too much, but that girl has to go," Jenny told her, shaking her head.
"I agree," Ashton said, not sure what to do about their recording session. "Looks like I better call the guys and tell them what's going on. Noah can't be missing things like this, especially when we have to pay to use the studio. It's not like we have a whole lot of time to get out next record out."
Kaylee watched him sympathetically as he walked out of the room. She had to do something before this woman ruined not only her brother, but also the band and the band members that she cared so much about.
Chapter 15
Two days later, Ashton, Colton, Jayden, and Kaylee sat in the recording studio with the band's manager, Cody. Emotions were running rampant, with no clear plan in sight. If only they knew if or when Noah was coming back.
"This is the third session in a row that he's missed, and it's all because of that hooker he's seeing," Kaylee spat. She was taking his absence the hardest. "I've been doing everything I can to make him see the damage this woman is doing, but it's almost like he's blind to her evil."
"He is blind to it, but we're not," Ashton sighed. "I just wish that there was something we could do to get him back on track. He needs to regain his focus on the band. We're losing a lot of money and wasting studio time."
Cody agreed. "The record company isn't going to wait forever for the new album. We really need to get this started, with or without Noah."
"How do you expect us to do that?" Jayden asked, irritated with the whole thing. Sure, sometimes there were things that he would rather be doing than sitting in the studio for hours on end, but he had made a commitment to the band, and at the end of the day, that was all that mattered. They all knew when they got into this that it was a more than full-time job. For one of them to slack off like this now wasn't just bad for business. It was blatant disrespect of the other band members.
"Well, I think I know someone else who can help," Cody explained. "Who knows how long it's going to take for Noah to get his priorities back? We can't keep waiting for him."
"Then let's do it. No point in talking this matter to death," Colton said, getting up from his chair and walking over to his bass guitar. He flipped open the latches with a quiet ferocity that showed just how angry he was. Jayden followed him and got behind the drum set.
"Kaylee, how's your shoulder?" Cody asked, hoping to get the answer he was looking for.
"It's getting better. I'm able to use it a lot more now. Why?" She wasn't sure she knew what he was getting at.
"Well, I know that you know how to play guitar..."
Kaylee's eyes bulged. "No, don't even think of asking me that. First of all, I'm not that good, Noah just messes ar
ound with teaching me the songs. Second of all, I doubt I can even hold a guitar for very long with my shoulder the way it is, and third...just...no."
"Come on Kaylee, please? We really need you right now. We'll start off with some easy songs, and I'll get a chair and pillow in there to help you hold the guitar up. There's a few ballads that we can record, so you won't really need to rock very hard." His eyes pleaded with her.
Kaylee looked at Ashton, who was somewhat stunned. He didn't know that Noah had taught Kaylee how to play.
"What if I'm horrible and mess everything up?" she asked, not removing her eyes from Ashton.
"Hey, if you help us get even part of a song recorded, it would be more than if we waited around for Noah," Cody told her. "Give it a try. If it doesn't work, it's no big deal, and we're no worse off than before, right?"
"But this is a big deal..."
"Not recording is an even bigger deal," Cody pointed out.
"Fine, I'll try." Kaylee gave in. She walked into the sound booth, followed by Ashton.
"I had no idea," he whispered in her ear from behind her.
"You're about to see why. I'm really not that good, so please don't laugh at me, and please don't get upset when I screw up," she pleaded.
"I wouldn't dream of it. Let's warm up." He sat her in the chair and put a pillow in her lap, then handed her a guitar.
Jayden was already banging on his drums, and Colton was slamming a smooth line on his bass. Kaylee looked up at Ashton, and after an encouraging nod from him, her fingers began to tickle the strings. He winked at her and started to warm up his throat. After a few minutes, Cody came over the intercom and said they were going to get started. The studio engineer spoke to them for a few minutes, explaining what he wanted to hear, then gave them the cue to start.
The red recording light went on, and Kaylee's throat went dry. She almost missed her cue to start, but got on it at the last second. Her fingers moved stiffly at first, but the more she strummed, the more she relaxed. The song stopped and started a few times, fixing missed notes and off beats. Each time they started, it got easier and easier for Kaylee.
Ashton was definitely impressed with his girlfriend's hidden talents. As he sang the song, he gazed over to where Kaylee sat. She looked like she was lost in her own little world, and her body no longer held the anxiety that it did when they first started. He noticed that she was even adding backup vocals where they were needed.
After a few hours, they finally recorded the song all the way through, and Cody told them to take a break. Kaylee looked relieved, especially after Ashton took the guitar from her.
"That was great!" he told her, helping her up from the chair. "How's the shoulder?"
"It feels sore right now. I don't think I'll be able to use it for a while. I just hope I didn't push it too hard." She put her hand to her shoulder and rubbed it softly.
"I'll rub it for you tonight. How does that sound?" Ashton asked her, winking.
Kaylee didn't have time to react before Colton grabbed her around the waist from behind and twirled her in the air. Her shoulder smarted with pain, but the happiness in his voice made her ignore it. "That was awesome! I had no idea you knew how to play!"
Kaylee giggled. "I really don't know how to play, I just mess around a little. Noah's been working with me though."
"You always manage to surprise us," Jayden told her, giving her a soft kiss on her cheek.
"Hey!" Ashton protested, and pulled Kaylee back to him. "She's mine, lips off!"
"Okay guys, I hate to break up your fun, but I just thought you might like to hear this," Cody said over the intercom. The track they had just recorded filled the air.
Kaylee covered her face with her hands, nervous to hear what it sounded like when she played. Colton grabbed her hands and danced with her around the sound booth. He twirled and dipped her, moving to the beat of the song, in exaggerated steps, careful of her sore shoulder. Then it happened...she heard her voice coming through the speakers. It surprised her so much that she stumbled, and sent both her and Colton crashing to the floor, him on top of her. They both landed with an audible groan.
She pushed Colton off her body with all the strength she could muster. Before she could get up, the song ended. She looked at Cody and shook her head. "You can't use that!"
"What? Why not? That was awesome!" Ashton told her.
"But I don't like my singing!"
"That's one of the best parts," Cody told her. "You started out as a background singer, and when we heard how good your vocals were, we engineered them to be louder. They mix perfectly with Ashton's gravelly voice. This song's got hit written all over it. Not to mention how marketable it's going to be, Ashton and his girlfriend singing together. How about we call it a day now? Oh, and see what you can do about getting Noah in here so that I don't have to get the lawyers involved for breach of contract."
With that, he turned and left the studio.
"I guess that settles that," Colton said, and grinned at her.
Kaylee helped the guys pack up their stuff before leaving. They let her carry the light stuff, which only required one hand, but she wasn't complaining. She was pretty drained, and was still distracted from hearing her vocals on the song. "I'm going to wring Noah's neck the next time I see him," she growled. This was all his fault...his fault and the little whore that had him wrapped around her pinky.
After leaving the recording studio, Jayden and Colton followed Kaylee and Ashton to their house, hoping to find Noah and talk some sense into him. When they got there, they found he was out again, much to their dismay.
Jayden and Ashton started cooking dinner for them, while Kaylee and Colton watched TV in the living room. Kaylee would have liked to help them, but she was so tired. The recording session had taken a lot out of her.
She and Colton were talking about the Noah situation, and Kaylee was telling Colton about her brother's past with this girl. She was so frustrated with the situation that she knew it was time to take some desperate measures.
"Hey Colton, I need you to come with me and be my lookout," she said as she got an idea in her head.
"Why, what are you going to do?" he asked.
"I'm going to get some answers," Kaylee said over her shoulder, as she walked towards Noah's room.
Colton followed behind her, nervous about what Kaylee was going to do. He didn't want her to do something stupid, and he definitely didn't want to get caught trying to help her with whatever it was. "What are you doing?" he asked again.
"I'm just going to go through her stuff to get some answers. Relax, it's not that big a deal!" she said, almost too calmly. It was as if she had done this before.
Colton situated himself in the hallway, watching for any signs of Noah or Brittany, while Kaylee made her way through the room. As much as he didn't like this idea, he had to chuckle at Kaylee's 'Ah-ha' cry when she found Brittany's suitcase.
Kaylee carefully opened the suitcase, trying not to move it from its original spot on the floor. She knew that delicacy was of utmost importance. She needed to make sure that no one would ever be able to tell that she had been snooping.
Once inside the suitcase, Kaylee carefully searched through all the clothes, not finding anything of importance. But at the very bottom lay a day planner and a statue. She opened the day planner first, and took out one of Brittany's business cards, putting it in her back pocket for later use. Then she flipped open to the current date and found it blank, along with all of the pages following it. The pages leading up to the current date did have different meetings and appointments listed on them. After reading a few meaningless pages, she put the planner back in the suitcase exactly how she had found it.
Next was the statue. Why would she be carrying a statue of an ape with her? It was so ugly, about ten inches tall, with its big lips exaggerated, and with a fat, round belly. There had to be a reason why it was there. Kaylee turned it in her hands, front to back, top to bottom. Something just wasn't right about that stat
ue.
Thinking for a minute, Kaylee began playing with its arms. They moved easily in her hands, causing the overly large lips to open. Inside the mouth was a button that opened the fat belly of the ape. Out tumbled some small baggies with a white powdery substance. Still stuck inside the ape was a misshapen spoon and a few needles.
"Colton," Kaylee gasped, trying to get his attention. When he didn't answer her, Kaylee called for him again, a little louder this time.
He finally came into the room, hesitantly, to see what she wanted. He looked from her shocked face, to the statue in her hands, to the baggies in her lap. "No shit!" he said, never thinking for a minute that Brittany would be involved with drugs.
Before either could say anything, they heard a door slam, and voices calling out hellos to Noah and Brittany. Both looked at each other, panic-stricken, as they scrambled to put everything back into the statue. Neither one was having much luck with their fingers since they were so nervous. They finally got everything back into the ape, and closed it up. Kaylee told Colton to go stall them while she put the room back as she found it.
Looking around, it appeared that everything was back in the right spot as she calmly walked out of the room towards the kitchen. As she passed by the bathroom, she reached in and flushed the toilet, intent on using that as her excuse for being in their hallway.
No matter how calm she looked on the outside, Kaylee was freaking out inside. Drugs! She just hoped that Noah wasn't involved. She smiled at the group when she walked into the kitchen and said hello to everyone. Ashton grabbed her by the waist and kissed her, whispering in her ear and asking her what was going on. She smiled at him, and gave an almost imperceptible shake of her head. He knew right then that something was wrong, but that she would tell him later.
Before long, they sat down at the table, ready to eat the meal that Ashton and Jayden had prepared. Not wanting to get into a fight while Brittany was there, no one mentioned a word about the missed recording sessions. They knew that it was something they needed to speak to Noah about when she wasn't around.
Miles of Pleasure Page 12