by TM Watkins
“You too,” Lilly said, sitting down.
“So, how are things?”
“Great.”
Sam sat down, pulling the menu closer. As much as he wanted to read it, he couldn’t. His stomach was turning over, he wanted to know so many things. Keeping himself calm, Sam took a deep breath in and exhaled slowly and softly.
“Why did you come here, Lilly?”
“To see you. Is that alright?”
“Of course it is. It’s just unexpected. A week off, how’d you manage to swing that?”
Her gaze lowered, Sam could see a vague smile.
“I had a lot of time owing, it was a quiet week, so I said see you later. So, how’s the competition going?”
Something snapped in Sam’s mind as he looked at Lilly. He frowned momentarily, wondering if it was possible.
“Did they put you up to this?”
“Who?”
“The band. They’ve been trying to figure out how many I’ve got.”
Lilly returned the frown, angry and a little hurt.
“No, I have quite a few weeks owing to me, and I wanted to see you. Clearly, I was wrong about what you think.”
Standing from the seat, Lilly kept the trench coat tight to her body to shield her from the cold.
“I guess I’ll go home then.”
Sam was a little bewildered for a second and then stood, pulling her arm back.
“Lilly, come back. I’m sorry.”
He sighed, grateful that she didn’t keep going. Lilly turned back to Sam, seeing the stress on his face.
“Why do they want to know?”
“Because they think that I’m winning.”
“Are you?”
“I have no idea because I don’t know their numbers.”
Lilly smiled at Sam, disbelief at the situation was running rampant through her mind.
“So, they don’t offer any numbers to you, but they want to know yours.”
“Yep.”
“They’re scared.”
Thinking about it for a moment, Sam agreed.
“They’ve realized that I can pull just as many women as them. I think you’re right.”
Lilly sat down again, her mind filled with anxiety. She had to tell him, she had to do the right thing.
“Sam,” Lilly began, forcing a smile that was filled with pain. “I wasn't entirely honest.”
Sam felt sick, wondering what horrid revelation she was about to drop on him. Stalker? Hmm, possibly.
“I have plenty of holidays available, and I did want to see you, but I also have a reason.”
He gulped hard, a shadow distracted him. Sam’s gaze lifted to the young man, smiling eagerly at him.
“Good morning, what can I get you?”
A few more minutes alone, Sam thought.
“We’re still looking at the menu.” Lilly offered. “Maybe a few more minutes?”
“Of course.”
The man returned to the café, leaving Sam and Lilly to their awkward silence. Lilly smiled weakly, reaching out to Sam’s hand.
“I didn’t know how you’d react and I wanted to say this in person, not over the phone or via email. It’s so impersonal, and this is something that needs to be said face to face.”
Sam nodded, thinking that his mind had fled the scene, leaving him dazed and confused.
“Sammy,” Lilly cooed with a smile. “It’s okay.”
“Sure,” Sam said softly. “What is it that you wanted to say?”
“I’m pregnant.”
Sam was stunned, staring at Lilly.
“I swear, I did not plan this to happen.”
“We used condoms constantly.”
“I know and trust me, I bitched at my doctor about it. She said they’re not always effective.”
Lilly took a deep breath in and sighed heavily.
“So, I have a little issue considering that a condom has failed.”
“You don’t know if it’s mine or Fraser’s?”
Grimly, Lilly nodded.
“Look, I don’t want any money. I’m not here to extort anything out of you or Fraser. I am telling you because I like you Sam and I’m hoping it’s yours. I also hope that you want to be with the baby and me.”
Lilly sighed, wishing that she’d known this was in her future.
“I actively pursued you because you came across as a nice person. In all the email correspondence, you were always pleasant, always accommodating. Even when it was just the emails, I already liked you.”
“Is that why you were giving me such a hard time about the rider?”
Lilly nodded with a sheepish smile.
“Yeah.”
The wind blew past them, pushing the long hair around her face. Lilly pulled it back behind her ear, still smiling at Sam.
“I don’t know what to do, but I want you to know that I am keeping the baby. When I’ve given birth, I want you to take the paternity test first.”
“Not Fraser?”
Lilly shrugged.
“I’d rather it was your child.” Lilly sighed heavily. “Look, Fraser’s a nice guy and all but he was just an excuse to hang around. I know how groupies and rock stars work, I see it constantly.”
“Revolving doors?”
She nodded grimly.
“I don’t want this to be difficult for you Sam, if you don’t want this then I want honesty out of you. I can accept being a single mother, but I can’t accept being stuck in a relationship that is dead because you hate me.”
“I don’t hate you.”
“Sam,” She chided. “If you walk away from the job that you love for this, you will end up hating me. I think that we should wait until the baby is born, do the test and then decide. You can think about it in the next few months.”
Sam thought about it for a few seconds. Watching Lilly grow larger with the child, that is when she could spend time with him. The rest of the tour would be spent apart. Lilly would be at home, and he was somewhere in Europe. It didn’t sound like the greatest of ideas, but he knew that there wasn’t much either of them could do about it. Lilly would need to take it easy, she would have medical appointments to attend.
Reality set in, Sam wondered how he would feel after all the months that would pass watching her grow bigger and then learn that the kid is Fraser’s. It would cut him in two, leaving him listless and heartbroken. It had begun already. The child was just a thought in his mind, and already Sam wanted more.
“Okay,” Sam said with a nod. “Are you still coming to Germany?”
Lilly frowned and then smiled.
“Sure, but I will be showing by then. What if Fraser notices and figures it out?”
“Then perhaps we should talk to him.”
The waiter appeared, ending the conversation that had turned to an uneasy place. Lilly didn’t want to talk to Fraser about it, she didn’t want the kid to be his. If it turned out to be true, she would accept it, but she wouldn’t be happy about it.
When the order was placed, and the waiter was gone, Lilly smiled uneasily.
“This is what I get for screwing around instead of being honest. I should have just said something to you.”
“The universe is not punishing you for wanting to have a little fun. If that were the case, then there would be a whole lot of problems following this tour.”
Lilly chuckled, reaching out for Sam’s hand. As their fingers laced together, Lilly found a mild sense of happiness. Grateful that Sam was so accepting and perhaps, ready to take on the role of being a father.
“If you are,” Lilly began, feeling her happiness slide away. “What did you want to do about it?”
Sam stared at her for a brief moment and then shrugged.
“I don’t know. We’re from different countries, we both have family and friends in our own worlds.”
One of them would have to move. One of them would leave their family, their friends and their lives behind for the other. Who would it be and how would they determ
ine the right path?
“One day at a time?” Sam offered.
Lilly nodded quietly, watching as Sam toyed with his phone. Silence remained until the waiter returned with two coffees and the slice of cake that Lilly ordered. She looked at it, feeling her stomach turn over at the thought of eating it.
“Here, you eat it.” She said, pushing it across the table.
“Don’t you want it?”
“I thought I did, now it just makes my stomach churn.”
Sam pulled the plate forward and picked up the small cake fork.
“How is it going, you know, the pregnancy?”
“Well, I’m over morning sickness, but occasionally I feel ill. It doesn’t usually happen, but that’s probably because I avoid things if they make me ill.”
Lilly sipped the coffee, trying not to be put off by the decaf. It was a rude awakening to say goodbye to caffeine, she was a girl that spent her life with a Grande in one hand and her other addiction in the other. Thankfully, she didn’t need to give up her phone.
Silence returned to the table. Sam ate the cake and drank his coffee while Lilly slowly sipped hers, watching Sam. In her mind, she was wondering what he really thought, if Sam was okay with the possibility that he was the father and what would happen if it turned out to be Fraser’s. Would he be crushed or relieved?
When it was done, Sam stood and walked into the café to pay the bill. Lilly was waiting by the door, her bag hanging from her shoulder, her jacket pulled tight. A hint of a smile crossed her face as she watched Sam walk towards her, he looked at ease with the situation, and she hoped that the future would be this easy.
Taking the bag off her shoulder, Sam hitched it to his own and then took Lilly’s hand. Returning to the hotel was met with a mixture of emotions, Sam worried as to how Fraser would take the news.
It was quiet when they reached the locked floor, Sam guided Lilly into his room and then set out to find Fraser. Taking a deep breath, Sam quietly knocked on Fraser’s door. It swung open, and the brute towered over him, like always.
“I need a moment of your time,” Sam said quietly. “Alone and in my room.”
“I don’t swing that way.” Fraser grumped.
“Neither do I but you need to come to my room, and you need to do it alone. I’ve said it, and if you choose to ignore me, then that is not my problem.”
Sam turned and walked to his door, opening it and waiting for Fraser to follow. With a heavy huff of reluctance, Fraser grabbed the room card and followed Sam into his room. He was surprised to see a familiar face sitting on the lounge by the window.
“You remember Lilly?”
“Uh yeah, kind of. What’s going on?”
“She has wonderful news. Go, sit down and behave yourself.”
Fraser sat down on one of the chairs, Lilly smiled at him.
“Hey, Fras,”
He tipped his head as a hello, glancing as Sam shifted the jackets aside and sat down. Lilly gripped her stomach, feeling the anxiety ripple through her.
“I’m pregnant.”
Chapter 20
Fraser stared out the limo window, watching the world as they sped to the concert hall. Jaxon watched, his eyes narrowed as he observed his friend. The mood was low, Fraser was quiet. This was unusual.
He gave Evan a soft jab in the ribs, then flicked his head at the oddity.
“What’s the deal?” He asked quietly.
“No idea.”
“He’s been like this for two damned weeks now. I can’t take this shit anymore. Is he still participating?”
Evan shrugged.
“I saw him enter his room without a groupie last night, what was that about?”
“Maybe he’s not in the mood.”
The tour was past the halfway point of the tour, it was almost time for the usual lethargy to kick in. They called it tour fever. Missing their family and friends, the normality of life at home, the ability to do absolutely nothing. Added to it was the growing hatred of living out of a suitcase, hard beds in overpriced hotel rooms, the monotony of driving through countries while being stuck on a bus. Sometimes they had the displeasure of sleeping on the bus.
To kill tour fever, they played video games, read books or magazines, wrote music and tried to forget that they were hundreds of miles away from the people that meant everything to them.
Fraser never seemed to suffer from it, Curtis was usually too drunk to notice. Austin took off for a few weeks either side of the tours, hiding from the world in his secret island paradise. As for Evan and Jaxon, they were always keeping themselves entertained with getting into mischief. Fraser was usually up for a bit of fun, but something had changed.
Jaxon huffed softly, turning to the window as the vehicle pulled into a driveway. They were at the concert hall, and the mood was so low that he thought tonight’s performance would be crap. Something had to give. Otherwise, they’d bomb out tonight and tomorrow, there would be hell to pay. Jerry would be pissed if they weren’t on their A game. The issues with Curtis were let slide because Jerry knew that he was struggling with the demons in his mind, but for the rest of them, it wasn’t so easy.
When the vehicle stopped, a guard stepped to the door and opened it. Jaxon waited, pulling Evan’s sleeve.
“We need to pull him out of the mood, and I think that we can move forward with the plan, it might just help.”
“Well, okay,” Evan said hesitantly. “But are you good for it?”
Jaxon nodded with a devious smile.
“Always.”
Sam stood beside the vehicle, watching as the band got out and walked into the backstage area. Moving quickly, he searched for the green room while Curtis was occupied with talking to Jerry.
He walked into the room and stared with disbelief. The table was filled with alcohol. As the thoughts melted into deep concern, Sam turned out of the room. Curtis was in a good mood, he was sober, and Sam didn’t want that to change. He scuttled up the corridor to Jerry, his happiness slid away when he saw the panic in Sam’s face.
“The green room is out.”
Curtis reached them, his good mood stalled.
“What’s wrong?”
“I’m sorry Mister Andrews, but it appears that the events manager has not paid attention to any of my requests.”
“There’s alcohol in the room?” Jerry asked.
Sam nodded reluctantly.
“You know, it’s cool,” Curtis said. “Let’s call it a test. You can be right by my side if you need confirmation that I’ll be a good boy and I’ll sit on the lounge and pretend it’s not there.”
“That’s not what your therapist would want, Curtis.”
Curtis shrugged at Jerry and walked away.
“I’ll stay with him,” Jerry grumbled. “You find the ass that didn’t pay attention and rip strips off them.”
Sam nodded and then turned to the security guards.
“Gentlemen, the green room has alcohol in it, I would like it very much if one of you could keep an eye on it while the others stay near Mister Andrews in case he starts to get violent. I will find the events coordinator and make them remove the offending items.”
Stalking through the corridors, Sam found someone that might be able to tell him where to find the events coordinator.
“I’m looking for,” Sam frowned as he looked at his notebook. “Ruben Smit.”
The girl looked at him, staring for a moment.
“English? Do you speak it?”
“Yes, sorry.” She huffed. “Ruben quit yesterday. You are?”
“Sam Easton. Are you the new events coordinator?”
“Temporary. Working holiday, picked up a few hours tonight, maybe tomorrow as well. Who knows, right?”
Sam wanted to say that he didn’t need the life story, he just needed answers.
“That’s great. I emailed Ruben to say that I didn’t want any form of alcohol in the green room.”
“Yeah, the thing is, he didn’t exactly leave
on the best of terms. All of the emails were deleted, I.T. is working on getting them back, so we had to go on something that Ruben had printed out a few weeks ago.”
The first rider. Sam sighed, relenting on his anger. He looked at the name tag that she’d written her name on herself.
“Well, Ms. Marshall, I would like all of the alcohol removed from the room. Is there another room that the band can wait in while that’s being done?”
“Uh sure. Across the hall is another green room. Take it, I’ll get the other one cleaned out.”
“Thank you.”
Sam returned to the room, Jerry and Curtis were sitting on the lounge together, the other four band members were prowling like caged tigers.
“Gentlemen, we are moving to the green room across the corridor while this room and its issues are fixed. If you will,”
He gestured to the door, watching as they approached. Jaxon hugged him hard.
“Pokey,” He said with a fake sniff. “We love it that you care for us so much.”
Sam stiffened, unsure of why Jaxon was so personal. Sure, he was an ass, but Jaxon usually did it from a distance.
“Mmh,” Jaxon said, sliding his hands lower. “You’ve got buns of steel, pokey.”
“Mister Ryan, please remove your hands from my backside.”
“Am I crossing the line again, pokey? Group hug boys.”
Evan grinned, wrapping his arms around them.
“We love you pokey.” Evan purred in his ear.
“Evan,” Jaxon said low. “I think pokey likes our affection.”
“Sure it’s not a gun in his pocket?” Austin asked, wrapping his arms around them.
“I can assure you that I am not aroused,” Sam said tersely.
Jaxon chuckled as his fingers wriggled on the perky cheeks, watching as Sam’s cheeks flushed.
“Please stop massaging my backside.”
They stepped away with their smirks, wandering across the corridor. Austin handed the phone to Jaxon, a dark scowl filling his face.
“Hurry up and get the number before he realizes.”
Fraser watched as the three of them walked into the new green room, his role in this farce was easy. All he had to do was keep Sam occupied and given the recent revelation, it was easy. Of course, they didn’t know that, and they wouldn’t know why either. He would not tell them that it was entirely possible that he was about to become a father. They’d give him shit for weeks, and he didn’t need that. Not now, not ever.