In Your Honor

by Heidi Hutchinson

  “What does this mean for you and Lucy?” Mike asked seriously as he took a seat across from Blake.

  “Mostly that we're friends and we're always gonna be friends. I've just been doing the worst job at it.”

  Mike studied him, evaluating his words and his demeanor. Finally, he nodded in understanding. “I get it.”

  “I knew you would.” Blake gave his drummer a crooked smile. This is why he was always gonna be friends with these guys. They were brothers. And sometimes explanations weren't necessary.

  “I'm glad to hear that.” Mike leaned forward in his chair and Blake sensed that he had something to tell him. He lifted one eyebrow as the drummer continued. “I, kinda, sorta, asked if I could be in Lucy's band.”

  Blake fought the smile that wanted to erupt on his face. That little devil.

  “She wanted to keep it secret for now and I was willing to let her, but I think we all know that I was going to tell you eventually.” Mike chuckled nervously and ran a hand through his hair.

  “Who else is in it?” Blake asked, sitting up eagerly.

  “So far? No one. But Harrison has been working on a few pieces he wants her to take a look at.”

  Blake was nearly giddy (yes, giddy) with excitement. She'd done it. All on her own. She'd gone out on the stage, shown the world what she could do, and now it was all happening. He really couldn't be more proud.

  “Luke wants to get her to sign as soon as possible but...” Mike waved his hand in Blake's direction.

  “She's still skittish,” Blake finished for him, rubbing his chin with his thumb and forefinger.

  “Maybe you could talk to her,” Harrison prompted, and Blake looked over at the guitarist. His friends were awesome. He really didn't deserve their loyalty, let alone their talent by his side. And here they were, bringing Lucy right on board with them.

  “I'll see what I can do. She can be awfully stubborn.” Blake felt his jaw tick while he glanced down at the spray paint on his jeans, suddenly lost in a memory.

  “You are the most hardheaded girl I know!” Blake snapped and Lucy reared back, eyes wild. Now he'd done it.

  “Oh, don't even pull that on me, Mister I Refuse to Go to Science Class Until My Seat Gets Moved.”

  He should've known better than to ask her to come with tonight. She'd been in a mood all day and he couldn't figure out why. He thought that some casual vandalism to the water tower would help lighten her up. But when he told her to climb up on his shoulders in order to finish the penis he'd started to paint, she refused.

  “What is wrong with you today? You've been in a snit since I picked you up this morning.”

  “I am not in a snit.” She folded her arms over her chest and glared at him.

  “Yes you are.” He started at her feet and pointed up to her head and back down again. “This has snit written all over it.”

  “You really haven't noticed anything different about me?” She focused her scowl at him and he wanted to laugh. She was so damn cute when she was mad. The only thing that kept him straight-faced was that he knew she was completely capable of shoving him off the side of this thing.

  “Besides your bad attitude? No, not really.”

  “I cut my hair, Blake!” she yelled at him, grabbing two fistfuls of her dark hair and holding it out to the sides.

  He stepped back and narrowed his eyes. “Now that you mention it...”

  “Ugh! And it looks horrible. She did it all wrong and now it sticks out all over the place like Doc Brown. Adam Garcia called me Wynonna in History class today!”

  Blake lost it then. He doubled over in laughter and fought to breathe.

  “It's not funny!” she pouted angrily.

  “C'mon,” Blake tried to calm down, “it's not that bad. I mean, I didn't even notice until you pointed it out.”

  “That's the worst part. It's like I'm invisible to you, but Gracie Lynn Taggert gets highlights and you go on and on about how great she looks.”

  “What? That did not happen. I may have mentioned it once, but I never go on and on about anything. And it did look nice. Especially when she gave me ten bucks to say it in front of Kyle Anderson to make him jealous.” He raised a pointed eyebrow at her as she considered his information.

  She scrunched up her face and shook her head. “Still, you didn't notice and it made me mad.”

  “I'm sorry,” he exaggerated as heavily as possible. “Now can you please get on my shoulders and finish painting this penis?”

  “You're impossible,” she huffed, and he grinned at her, knowing that she would do it.

  “But you are stubborn. Damn, girl, you were mad at me all day about your hair. You should know by now I'm gonna love you no matter what. Even if your hair does belong on stage at the Country Music Awards.”

  She launched herself at him and he tried to catch her, but she was all arms and huge hair and he couldn't get a grip on anything. He staggered backwards into the still wet paint on the water tower as her fingers flew across his abs, stealing his breath. He hated to be tickled. He was really sensitive to it and he felt like such a little kid when he'd go completely useless at the lightest touch. It was Lucy's secret weapon and she used it on him more than he cared for.

  He tried in vain to retreat from her diabolical onslaught, but she had him pinned to the water tower.

  “Say you're sorry,” she demanded as her arms and fingers seemed to multiply by hundreds and she hit all his weak points in unison.

  “Just tell me,” he gasped between guffaws, “how many channels can you get with that antenna? I bet you get great reception. Ow!”

  She reached his chest despite his attempts at blocking her and twisted his nipple. That was going to bruise, he thought briefly as he finally caught one of her hands with his.

  “Say you're sorry or I'll never paint your damn penis!” She was trying to glower, but there was way too much joy in her face for her to pull it off.

  “I'm sorry, I'm sorry!”

  She stopped the assault and he grabbed her other hand as well in case she changed her mind.

  He grinned at her as they both caught their breath. “You know you're the coolest chick in the world, right?”

  She smiled shyly and shrugged. He was caught for a moment by the way the stars seemed to reflect in her eyes. Maybe it was the second beer he'd recently imbibed, but she seemed to smell pretty amazing tonight too. His eyes dropped to her mouth and he cleared his throat.

  “All right.” He blinked hard and let go of her hands. “Let's finish this phallic work of art and have another beer.”

  “Sounds good,” she agreed easily this time, and he wondered if she had felt whatever weird thing that had just passed between them. He hoped not. Because he really didn't need to be thinking about Lucy's lips or eyes or sweet, sugary smell. She was his best friend. And he never wanted that to change.

  He handed her the spray paint and squatted down to let her climb up to his shoulders. He gripped her thighs tightly and tried to think about anything other than what he was doing. But he was nineteen, so that was almost impossible.

  “I hope you realize how wrong this is,” she said, interrupting his internal struggle, and he almost choked. Was she reading his thoughts now? “I really shouldn't be drawing penises on anything. I've never even seen one, for cryin' out loud.”

  “Good. Let's keep it that way,” he responded brusquely. “I want you to think that all penises are cartoonish and misshapen.”

  “Mission accomplished.”

  She tapped his head and he lowered her to the ground.

  Standing back to survey their work, he couldn't stop the proud grin on his face. “Couldn't have done it without you. I really am the worst role model. God only knows what I'll teach my kids.”

  “That's a really good point.” Lucy sat down on the edge and swung her legs out over the open area. He heard the twist off of a beer bottle cap and he joined her.

  “Thanks for coming with tonight,” he said sincerely. “It woul
d not have been half as much fun without you.”

  “You can talk me into anything. It's kind of not fair that you have that much influence over me.” She chuckled and took a long drink.

  “I plan on keeping it that way.”

  “She seems to listen to you, though,” Mike was saying, and Blake pulled himself back to the present.

  “Yeah, I'll talk to her,” he nodded with a smirk. “I don't know if my influence is as good as it once was, but I can try.”

  Chapter 17

  A Matter of Time

  Blake sat in the very back row of the highest seats in the venue. The arena was bustling below as the crew set everything up for that night's show. He laced his fingers behind his head and relaxed.

  His thoughts weren't fuzzy like they had once been. He knew with perfect clarity what he was supposed to do. No more conflict, no more urge to run, just the complete and total conviction that he was exactly where he was supposed to be. And the future would unfold as it should.

  He heard a familiar loud laugh and his mouth pulled up on one side. He looked towards the floor below and saw Lucy getting set up for sound check. She was like a ray of sunshine, lighting up the whole arena with her presence.

  He knew she'd gotten back a couple hours ago, but he had kept himself busy. They'd see each other soon enough. He no longer carried that anxious fear of missing an opportunity to talk to her.

  He watched her tune her guitar and goof around with Chad, that happy smile never leaving her face. Could she be any more perfect?

  Shane was nearby, to be sure. Blake doubted that he'd stray far from her at this point. But that was good, no, that was great. If Shane could keep her heart safe, then Blake would support them at all costs.

  “Who's lurking in the shadows?” Lucy called into the microphone, pointing up the bleachers at him.

  He grinned, that girl had eyes like an eagle. No way she could tell it was him. At least, he didn't think so.

  He stood up, cupping his hands around his mouth, and shouted, “Get back to work, slacker!”

  She laughed and turned around, saying something to Chad and Stuart. He would probably always enjoy her pre-show antics. She was a natural entertainer even though she pretended not to be.

  He had talked to Luke and the rest of the guys again this morning about Lucy's potential to be a serious solo act. Luke was already in the works to introduce her to a few good agents who would be able to help with her fledgling career. That was the thing with being in the music business for as many years as they had been—you learned shit real quick. You figured out who to avoid and who to trust. Now that DBS owned their own label, they could coach new talent into being a success instead of getting lost in the shuffle.

  Getting Lucy to pursue this kind of a future might be a trick. She had talked about it a lot when they were kids, but had pushed it to the back burner when her grandparents got sick and she took over the diner. Her loyalty to her family came first. Having her here on tour was no doubt thanks to Triny's encouragement. But Blake was positive that once the tour was over, she'd return home. Or possibly follow Shane around the world.

  As such, the band had appointed him to be the one to present the offer to her. He wasn't sure how to go about it yet, it would require some more thought. And quite a bit of finesse.

  ***

  Shane couldn't take his eyes off of her. As Lucy tuned her guitar and jumped around with her bandmates, she was shining like a star.

  That morning, when he had woken up with her in his arms, her hair spread across the pillow, her arms around his middle, he realized he had never felt so much contentment in his life. He hesitated waking her up, knowing that once he did, they would have to face daylight's harsh realities.

  She stuck close to him the whole drive back. Holding his hand, mussing his hair, staying positive even though they both knew goodbye was nearing them.

  She invited him to stay for sound check and the show, prolonging the inevitable, and he was more than happy to indulge her. He wasn't ready to let go yet either. How was he supposed to know that one taste of her would cause such an addiction?

  He turned around and looked up the bleachers, knowing it was Blake sitting in the shadows. Lucy had kept their past fairly protected. Shane knew she wasn't hiding anything, but he recognized that they had a history that he might not ever completely understand.

  He chewed on his lower lip, conflicted between what he wanted to do and what he knew he should do. He looked back to Lucy, who was engrossed in her task, and he knew that this was probably the best opportunity.

  He started the long trek up the steps, headed to the top. His heart thudded with anticipation of the upcoming conversation. He wasn't sure what he would say or if Blake would talk to him at all. But he had to try.

  When he was close enough to make out Blake's face, he could see the rocker's eyes were closed like he was asleep. Shane sat in the chair next to him and rested his feet on the top of the backrest in front of him.

  “What's up, Brookings?” Blake asked, not opening his eyes.

  “Nothing much, just wanted to say hey.” That was stupid. Shane held in a groan. He wasn't an easily intimidated man, but he'd never been able to get a clear read on Blake and it unnerved him. He always seemed a little off base. As if underneath that cool exterior, he was too tightly wound.

  Blake opened his eyes and slowly turned his head, looking Shane in the eye. He examined him intently, as if seeing right through him, analyzing what he saw and rendering a conclusion. All without saying a word. Yep, unnerving.

  “How was your week with Lucy?” he asked, and Shane was positive that he already knew the answer. The way he was being scrutinized, as if Blake was daring him to lie, to withhold the truth.

  “Amazing,” Shane said honestly, and relaxed slightly when Blake gave him a lopsided smile.

  “She's pretty fantastic, isn't she?” Blake agreed, and Shane had to wonder again why he felt the need to discuss his future with Lucy with her ex-boyfriend.

  “I saw her tattoo,” Shane blurted out.

  Blake's face was unchanged, waiting for him to continue.

  “She hasn't told me everything about you guys but,” Shane swallowed, “I've really fallen for her, Blake. And I guess I'm wondering if I need to be worried about... stuff.”

  “What kind of stuff?” Blake narrowed his eyes.

  Shane frowned. “I'm not totally sure, to be honest. This is all new territory for me. I guess, you're gonna be around her a lot and I trust her, I do. But I don't know you.”

  Blake's jaw clenched and unclenched. “You want to know if I'm over her?”

  “Something like that.” Shane held his breath, hoping he wasn't crossing a line somewhere.

  “I used to be that guy. The one you're afraid of,” Blake affirmed with some shame in his tone. “And truthfully, I'll probably never be over her.” He nodded to Lucy on stage. “I mean, look at her.” Shane gave an almost-smile in agreement. Blake watched her for another second and Shane thought he saw a touch of sorrow wash over the man, but it was gone in an instant.

  “Nah, man.” Blake looked back to him. “You don't have anything to worry about. She's always going to be one of my best friends but that's it. I respect the place you have in her life. I just want her to be happy.”

  Shane didn't answer, he only nodded. He should have felt better. Blake had said exactly what Shane wanted to hear. So why did he still feel like there was something he was missing in all of this?

  “I will add one thing though,” Blake continued. “If you make her cry or break her heart in any way... I will end you.”

  His tone was dead serious and his eyes were cold. Shane knew he meant it. But what Blake didn't know is that that was the last thing Shane would do.

  He looked him in the face without any hesitation. “It's a deal.”

  ***

  Shane walked her back to the bus after the show. DBS was still on but he needed to get going, he had to get back to Huntington Beach a
nd it was getting late.

  Lucy wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly.

  “Is it stupid that I don't want you to go?” she asked, her eyes closed tight.

  “No, it makes me feel good. Maybe you like me after all,” he said as he brushed his lips against her ear.

  “I think it's a little more than that,” she confessed, her stomach tightening as the words spilled out unchecked.

  He pulled back and examined her face carefully, cupping her cheek and touching her lips lightly with his thumb.

  “It's too soon for either of us to say it.” His velvety voice was low and controlled.

  She felt her lips part. Was he saying what she thought he was saying? Or wasn't saying?

  “But it doesn't make it any less true.” He bent to kiss her full on the mouth and she knew she would miss his kisses tremendously.

  “When will I see you?” she whispered when he pulled away.

  “Soon,” he promised. “I have some things to take care of, but I don't think I'll be able to stay away from you for very long. You probably won't even have time to miss me.”

  “That's highly doubtful,” she said earnestly, and he couldn't help but smile.

  “Can you do me a favor?” he asked, his amber eyes soothing her worried insides.

  “Name it,” she agreed softly.

  “Promise me that you'll have a great time, that you'll keep writing and that you won't be sad.”

  “That's three favors.” She arched one eyebrow at him, trying to hide her smile. He was so good to her.

  He leaned forward, pressing his lips to her forehead. “Don't be so stubborn, Newton.” His voice was rough and she knew he was having a hard time saying goodbye.

  “I promise.” She rested her head against his chest for one last hug, savoring his strength. Oh, she would miss him dearly.

  ***

  “You're a whore. Why won't you admit to being a whore, you know you are.”

  “That's just mean to say. Why would you even say something so mean?”

  Blake rubbed the sleep from his eyes and tried to focus in the darkness of his bunk. Were Sway and Harrison seriously having an argument in the hallway? Didn't they know people were sleeping?