Hartstrings: A Jaded Regret Novel (Jaded Regret Series Book 3)

by L. L. Collins

  “Y-yes, Mr. Hart. Anything I can do to make your stay better.”

  “Thank you.” I reached out and touched her forearm. I heard her suck in a breath as she glanced down at my fingers. I could feel her rapid heartbeat through my slight touch. “I need some information on a guest you had staying here who checked out this morning. And please, call me Tanner.”

  She tensed, the muscles where I touched her tightening. “T-tanner.” She swallowed, licking her lips before sucking in a deep breath. “I-I can’t give you information on anyone. I’ll lose my job.”

  I ran my fingertips down her slight arm until I touched her hand. Lifting it, I kissed her knuckles slowly, my gaze lifting to hers as I watched her come undone at my touch. “I understand.” I laced our fingers together and straightened to my full height. “It’s really important to me, Stacie. I would never, ever get you in trouble with anyone.” I paused, squeezing her fingers slightly.

  “The thing is, I need a name for both people that were in 2511. So I know what you could do so you don’t have to technically ‘tell’ me anything.”

  Stacie nodded.

  “Pull up room 2511 on your computer. Then you’re going to all of a sudden be needed in the back for something. I’ll happen to see it on your computer screen, and for being such an amazing girl…” I paused, lifting our entwined hands and kissing the underside of her palm. “I’m going to leave you backstage passes for our concert tonight. How about that?”

  “A-Are you serious?” Stacie found her voice.

  “As a heart attack, baby.”

  She watched me for another second before typing with one hand on the computer. I squeezed her fingers again to reassure her that what she was doing was okay.

  “I have to get something from the back.” She stared at our hands for another second before slowly pulling away. “W-will you still be here when I get back out?”

  I shook my head. “No, sweetheart. I have to get ready. But I tell you what.” I leaned over the counter and brushed my lips against her cheek. She instantly flamed a deep cherry red and put her hand against the cheek I’d kissed. “Make sure you stay after the show tonight and let me thank you for your hospitality.”

  I had no intention of sleeping with her, but I could give her a little something to get her engine going.

  Stacie’s mouth dropped open, and she stepped back. “Thank you.” Her voice was nothing more than a whisper. She stepped backward, waiting as long as she could before she turned her back on me and walked away.

  As soon as she was out of the room, I ran around behind the counter and grabbed a piece of paper and pen that she’d left next to the computer.

  Andrew Byron. I copied down his phone number and address too, noticing he lived only about an hour from here. I wondered what the asshole was doing at a hotel so close to home. Maybe he went away from home to beat his girlfriend. The room was in his name only, so no last name on Mackenzie. Figured.

  I stuffed the paper in my pocket and walked around the desk. I strode back to the elevator, hurrying back to my room so I could shower and get ready to meet the band.

  I’d find her.

  I’d get her away from him.

  * * *

  “Do me a favor.” I pulled the paper out of my pocket and handed it to AJ, one of our security guys.

  He glanced at it briefly. “What do you need, bro?” AJ was a beast of a man, over six and a half feet tall with muscles that made mine seem small. I swore every guy that was on our security team was an otherworld creature they were so tall and bulky.

  “I need to find out everything I can about this guy. As soon as possible. I’d like to have it after the show if I could.”

  He nodded, slipping his phone out of his pocket. “I have a guy who can do that for me. He’s quick and does thorough work.”

  “Perfect.” I clapped him on the back and turned to head to the stage. It was time for sound checks and rehearsal, but I couldn’t get Mackenzie out of my head. I stopped and turned back to him. “Oh, one more thing, AJ. I need to find out about his girlfriend, Mackenzie. They’ve been together since high school, so it shouldn’t be too hard. I want to know her last name and anything else you can find out.”

  He lifted an eyebrow but said nothing, putting his phone up to his ear and walking away.

  I blew out a breath, rolling my shoulders back as the tension settled in my muscles. After getting the information from the hotel, I’d Googled the asshole Andrew but came up with very little other than he was a police officer in the same county where he lived. Of course.

  I wondered what had happened when she went back to him. Had he hit her again? Or had he been “sorry” and given her flowers or whatever their equivalent was? Where had she told him she’d been all night?

  The more I thought about it, the more knots my stomach accumulated. There was no way he’d be okay with the fact she spent the night in my hotel room. What if he killed her?

  I’d never forgive myself if another woman died because I didn’t step up to the plate and help.

  “Tanner.” I hadn’t seen Bex standing there watching me, but from the expression on her face, it seemed she’d been there long enough to know something was up with me.

  “Hey, Bex. Sorry. I’m ready.”

  Bex was seriously one of the hottest women I’d ever known, but we’ve known each other so long now that it wasn’t like that for me. I mean, hell, when I first met her I had wet dreams like every other man in the world. But she was like a sister to me, not to mention, she was sickeningly happy with Johnny.

  “What’s going on with you, Tan? You’ve been out of it since we got here.” She indicated down the hallway. “What was that all about with AJ?”

  I sighed. I didn’t want to get into this with her or any of them, but it seemed like I wasn’t doing a good job of hiding it.

  “Last night, I witnessed a guy beating the shit out of his girlfriend.”

  Bex’s eyebrows shot up, and her mouth dropped open. “What? Where?”

  “At the hotel. I was walking down the hall when I heard crashing glass.” I neglected to add the rest of the story, that I was looking for Natalie and thought it had been her. “Long story longer, I intervened with this guy and his girlfriend.”

  “Shit. What happened after that?”

  I took her back to my hotel room, bathed her, then we fell asleep, and when I woke up, she was gone. Now I have to find her. “I tried to get her to leave her boyfriend, but she wouldn’t. All I knew was her first name. So I did some digging and found out who her boyfriend was. That’s what I want AJ to find out about.”

  Bex studied me, her eyes narrowed slightly as she tried to figure out what I wasn’t telling her. “This doesn’t sound like the whole story.”

  I shrugged. “It’s complicated.”

  “Did you fuck her?”

  “No. Jesus, Bex.”

  “Well? It’s not unlike you to dip your stick where it doesn’t belong, Tan. Sorry. So what are you going to do when AJ finds out this information for you?”

  Find her. Get her away from that asshole. “I don’t know, Bex. I need to know she’s safe.”

  She watched me again, and I found myself wanting to break eye contact to get away from her knowing stare. “That’s noble of you, Tanner, but if her boyfriend is abusing her and she still went back to him, what exactly are you going to do to make sure she’s safe?”

  The million-dollar question. It wasn’t like I could kidnap her and force her to see what she was doing. “I don’t know. I can’t stop worrying about her.”

  She linked her arm with mine, and we walked to the stage. Johnny and Beau were already up there. Natalie stood in the front talking to someone about the lights. April sat in the front row with Robbie and Olivia.

  Bex pulled me closer to her as we reached the edge of the stage. “I knew you were a better guy than you let on,” she whispered into my ear. She let go of me and winked, going over next to Johnny and picking up her guitar.

>   She had no idea about my family or why this was such a trigger for me, and if I had it my way, they’d never know that part of my life.

  * * *

  I wiped my forehead with a hand towel, throwing it in the pile with my soaking wet T-shirt. My bare chest glistened in the lights of the backstage room where we hung out before they let our Backstage Pass winners come back and spend an hour with us.

  Workers buzzed around the room, setting up drinks and snacks. I pulled on a clean shirt and tugged my phone out of my pocket. I wasn’t sure what I expected to see, but the blank screen disappointed me just the same.

  Mackenzie didn’t have my number.

  She couldn’t find it if she tried.

  AJ appeared next to me. “Tan, I got some info for you.”

  I smiled. “Thanks, AJ. That’s epic. What did you find?”

  “Andrew Byron is a twenty-nine-year-old detective for Palm Beach County. He’s been a cop for ten years. His dad was the sheriff at one time, but now he’s retired. He grew up right there in Palm Beach County. Graduated high school with honors and went to college for criminal justice.”

  “Anything shady on his record?”

  AJ gave me an incredulous look. “Well…no. He’s squeaky clean. Seeing as he’s a cop, I didn’t expect to find anything on him.”

  I blew out a breath. Of course, the asshole wouldn’t have anything on record that made him seem any less than a choir boy. He probably saved puppies from drains and shit, too. “What about his parents? Still together?”

  AJ nodded. “Yes. Married thirty-five years. Andrew is the oldest of four children.”

  Well, this was getting me nowhere. “What about Mackenzie?”

  “Mackenzie Shepard is twenty-eight years old and also grew up there. She graduated high school a year after Andrew, but she went to college in the area. She got a bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice and minored in business.”

  “She’s a cop?” There was no damn way she did this for a living and continued to allow herself to be a punching bag.

  He shook his head. “No. Her dad owns a private investigation firm and she works for them.”

  “She’s a fucking private investigator?” This was even worse. She investigated assholes like her boyfriend.

  He shrugged. “Seems like it.”

  “Do they live together?”

  “Yup. The same address is listed for the last eight years.”

  I growled, flinging my hands through my hair. I paced back and forth before turning back to face him. “Phone number?”

  He indicated the paper in his hand. “On here with the rest of the information. Anything else I can help you find out?” AJ watched me.

  “This is good. Thank you.” I took the paper and tucked it in my pocket. At least I knew where to find her, her last name, and her phone number. At this moment, she was probably at home with him. Less than two hours from where I was right this damn second.

  I couldn’t leave.

  Wait. Why the hell couldn’t I?

  I glanced across the room at Bex, sitting on Johnny’s lap. He was kissing her neck, and she was laughing. They were moments away from becoming inappropriate. That same twinge I got every time I saw them like this coursed through my body, and I shook my head to rid myself of those crazy ass thoughts.

  Just as I was about to walk over to Bex and Johnny, Natalie stepped in front of me. I’d mostly avoided talking to her one on one the entire day. She’d been busy with preparations for our show, and I’d been busy trying to avoid an awkward conversation.

  “Tanner.” Natalie was fucking gorgeous, as usual. She had on a pair of tight jeans and a low-cut blouse. Her long blond curls were pinned up off her face, and her makeup was flawless. Even though she’d probably been working upwards of twelve hours already, it didn’t seem like it.

  “Hey, Nat.” Wait. I could talk to her. I could tell her I needed to go. I’d rent a car and meet them at our next stop, which was only a few hours away. I could be there right after them.

  “You okay?”

  I put my hands on her shoulders. I ignored the way she blinked her big eyes up at me or the floral scent that had my libido waking up. “I need to talk to you for a second.”

  She glanced down at her watch. “We have fans coming in soon. You’re worrying me, Tanner.”

  “I’ll make it quick.” I pulled her over to a small loveseat in the room. Beau and April sat across on the leather couch. Beau lifted his eyebrow at me, but when I left a rather big space in between us, he turned back to April, who held their infant baby while Robbie ran around the room talking to the workers.

  “This is going to sound crazy. But I need to leave.”

  “Leave?” Natalie asked. “What exactly do you mean by that?”

  “It’s a long story, but last night I saw something terrible happen at the hotel. I was on my way to your room, but I got confused and I witnessed a guy hurting his girlfriend.”

  “You were coming to my room?” The way her voice sounded so small and child-like made my gut clench. I was an asshole.

  I glanced over at Beau, glad he was still deep in conversation with April. “Yes. I was. But I tried to help this girl, but she left.”

  “I’m confused.” Natalie wrung her hands together. “What does this have to do with you leaving?”

  “I found out where she lives. I have to make sure she’s okay.”

  Natalie studied me without saying a word. “Let me get this straight. You saw this woman you don’t know getting hurt from her boyfriend. Now, somehow, you’ve found out where she is and you want to check on her. You. Tanner Hart, the famous bass guitarist of Jaded Regret.”

  It sounded ridiculous. I knew it did. But I had to do it. I’d barely been able to focus on playing tonight, and that wasn’t me. Normally when we were on stage, I was two hundred percent in it. Even the bras tossed on the stage tonight didn’t phase me. I had no desire to entertain groupies when hours from me, Mackenzie could be fighting for her life.

  Of course, she wouldn’t understand why I needed to know. Why would any of them get why I wanted to go? The only thing they knew about me was that I was from Tennessee. As far as they knew, I’d grown up in small town suburbia with the perfect family and had wanted to escape and do something bigger with my life.

  I knelt on the ground, the dew from the grass soaking through my jeans. I swept a few random leaves off the stone and clenched my fist.

  “Why are you here?” My voice was merely a hiss. “All you had to do was leave! It’s because of you that Tracey is gone, too! You know this, right? Why weren’t you strong enough to get us out of that life?”

  I ran my fingers along the etched name on the cold headstone. It was ironic. The cold slab of concrete that marked her name and birth and death dates was just as cold as her body now was. Under the ground, rotting.

  I felt the tears stinging behind my eyes, but I refused to let them come.

  I could wish for it all to be different, but it didn’t change what had happened. She’d lived forty-three years, over twenty of them being beaten by the man who said he loved her.

  He couldn’t hurt her anymore.

  “Is Tracey up there with you?” My heart clenched at the name coming off my lips. I hadn’t seen her in seven years. She’d disappeared without a trace, presumed dead.

  I refused to believe that before now, but maybe it would be better if she was. Then she could be with our mom again. She could keep her safe and show her the life she could’ve had.

  I was all alone now.

  I stood, brushing the dirt and grass from the knees of my jeans. I stared at her headstone one more time.

  “I’m leaving, Mom. I’ll never come back to Tennessee again. I’m moving to Florida to follow my dreams. Did you know what they were? I’m going to play bass guitar for a rock band, Mom. I’m going to put all this behind me. You, Dad, even Tracey. I have to start over, or I’m going to curl up on the ground and die with you. You’d like them. Bex, she’s t
he lead singer and guitarist. She’s had a rough life, like you, but she won’t talk about it. Ryver is another guitarist, and Natalie is their manager. They had a bass guitarist, but he quit to start his own band, so I’m taking his spot. They’re rather new to the rock scene, but they’re gathering quite a reputation in Florida. I’m going to make something of myself, Mom, despite you and Dad. I’ll never return to these memories. As of today, you’re all dead and gone.”

  “Tanner?” I lifted my gaze to hers. Shit. I’d been lost in my own head and hadn’t answered her.

  “I know it sounds ridiculous, but I can’t stop worrying about what happened to her. I’m going to rent a car and drive down there. It’s only about two hours from here. Then I’ll meet you guys tomorrow. I promise I’ll be there for practice.”

  Natalie bit her lip between her teeth. “Okay. You need to take AJ with you.”

  I knew it was smarter to do that, anyway. “Got it.”

  “And you need to wait until after the fans leave. We can’t try to explain why you left.”

  “What’s going on?” Bex appeared next to us with Johnny in tow. Beau heard her question and turned his attention to us.

  “I’m going to meet you guys tomorrow. I have something I have to take care of.”

  Bex stared at me without a word. I knew she could probably deduce what I was doing or at least who it had to do with, but thankfully, she didn’t say a word. We had a silent conversation, and she nodded once, turning to Johnny. Whatever look she gave him told him whatever he needed to know, so he also stayed quiet.

  “Are you okay, Tanner?” April was always the one mothering us. She worried about all of us like we were her family. I was so glad for that because I sure as shit didn’t have anyone watching out for me.

  I forced myself to smile. “I will be. Just something personal I need to do before I hit the road again.”

  She reached her small hand out and touched my forearm. “Be careful, and I hope it all works out.”

  Before I could realize what she was about to do, she wrapped her arms around me and pulled me close. I couldn’t tell you the last time someone hugged me. It felt…good.