“To the guy I know that the whole world is oblivious to, you are my everything.” She told him, as she stared into his eyes. Everyone around them let out a cheer, and took a sip, except her and Ash, who were lost in each other.
“That was much better, now you can have cake.” He teased, as he kissed her lightly on the lips.
“Enough with the smooching you two. Let’s have some cake.” One of the guys called out, and Lucy let out a little cheer.
To her surprise, the cake that had been on the table was gone and disappointment flooded her. Instead, somebody rolled in a huge, quite obviously fake, but very elaborate cake. Lucy bit her lip, and looked around at all the puzzled faces.
Sultry music thundered through the room as someone pushed the cake in front of Ash. He sent a nervous look to Lucy, who seemed as confused, as she was also amused. The music stopped, and a drum roll began. When Mindy Taylor popped out of the cake in nothing but the tiniest bikini ever, the whole room went quiet. Lucy snorted with laughter, causing Mindy to glare at her.
“Okay, seriously? Now, where is the real cake?” Lucy spoke between splutters of laughter, causing the whole room to burst into laughter with her.
Mindy’s face fell for a split second, until she straightened her spine, and marched over to Ash. She draped herself over him. and began to sing him a very spicy version of ‘happy birthday’.
Lucy felt a stab of jealousy, as Mindy ran her hands over his chest, and Ash seemed unable to take his eyes off her cleavage. She finished with a kiss on his lips, which was when Ash finally pushed her away.
It was far too late for Lucy. Her humour thrust into anger at the way he had just acted. Mindy sent her a giant smirk, as she wiggled in Ash’s lap as if she belonged there. Lucy felt her fists itching to do some punching, so with a growl she got up and walked back outside.
“Lucy!” Ash called after her, but she kept moving swiftly away. “Get off me," he told Mindy sharply.
“Come on, now that she’s gone we can have a little fun,” Mindy purred, as she trailed her fingertips into his hair.
“Yeah, not happening. I know you can’t quite grasp this, but the girl that just walked out of here, happens to be the girl that I love.” Ash told her emphatically.
“I bet she wouldn’t jump out of a cake for you.” Mindy sent him a sensual smile, but that just made him want to hurl. She tucked her hair behind her ears, and marched her fingers down his chest.
“The difference is, I know she has more dignity than that,” Ash retorted, and Mindy let out a tiny gasp. He pushed the girl off his lap with a disgusted expression “Find me that cake, and if it’s not chocolate, please find me something that is.” He turned to his friends and asked.
They all nodded as a group, as he got up making Mindy fall over, as she tried to get closer to him. He followed where Lucy had left through the French doors. He searched everywhere. He was starting to feel frantic when he finally heard voices. They were in the canopy of bushes around the pool, and he stopped feeling relieved.
“Why would he even want me, when he has girls that beautiful throwing themselves at him?” He heard Lucy’s disgruntled voice, and was surprised to hear his brother’s chuckle.
“You are one unique individual, Lucy. Girls like Mindy are always trying to get his attention in the same way. In the beginning, he dated a lot of them, but when he realised how shallow they were, he stopped. They only wanted him because he was famous, so they would fawn over him, or do outlandish things like what we saw in there.
“Ash is a down to earth guy; he’s never really liked the fame side of it. He tolerates it, because it's all a part of the music business, and he knows that. Do you even understand why he’s so drawn to you?” Nick asked her seriously.
“No, I don’t really,” she grumbled, her voice sounding hurt and rejected.
“You’re his inspiration. You walked in his door, punched the crap out of me, and you surprised him, you made him see things differently. Do you know that night he didn’t even sleep? He played his guitar for most of it, and drove me nuts with talking about you.
“You argue with him, which these girls would never do. You laugh at things that no other girl would, and you’re just as down to earth as he is. Do you even know how many songs he’s written about you?” Lucy shook her head. “Enough to fill his next few albums.” Nick explained.
Ash couldn’t stand to wait anymore, to hold her in his arms, and tell her that he was sorry. Mindy had managed to distract him, and he would even admit that to her if it would help. Not that it would, knowing Lucy.
He went to run a hand through his hair, and remembered the crappy wig he had on. In frustration, he pulled it off, and tossed it in a nearby bush. He quickly ran back to his cottage, and took his contacts out to put his glasses back on. He had to face her as Ash not Martin, because no matter what she said, she would always trust Ash more. He raced back to the pool to find that they were still talking.
“Belle?” He called out. He heard a rustling, and she appeared looking sad but fiercely angry. “I’m sorry about a zillion times. That was so stupid and unexpected that it took me by surprise,” he reached a hand across the distance between them, but she didn’t move.
“You know what? I feel the need to punch something right now, and you are awfully handy,” She warned him.
“And I’ll tell you the last place that you want to be is on the receiving end of her fists,” Nick said with a chortle as he followed her out of their hiding place. “I’ll see you two later. Be good to her.” Nick told his brother firmly, while Ash let out a sigh, and ran a hand through his hair.
“Don’t give me that face.” She said shortly.
“What face?” He replied in confusion.
“The ‘I’m far too cute for you to be angry at’ face.” She said, as she shoved him in the chest.
“Does it work?” He asked his voice laced with hope.
“Normally, right now, it’s just encouraging the anger.” She told him, and he backed up a step.
“This has turned into a disaster,” he muttered to himself. “You know that she means nothing to me.”
“Yeah, apparently.” Lucy said sarcastically.
“She is so over the top, beyond annoying, and she bores me to death… I don’t think I could even explain how much I detest her.”
He shoved his fingers into his hair again, and Lucy admitted defeat. She knew all those things. It just astounded her that he always chose her, when there seemed so many better options out there. She softened towards him, but refused to show him that she had forgiven him.
“And? What’s your point?” She tapped her foot impatiently.
“The point is that I want you. You’re my girl, and nobody will ever be able to compare to you.” He whispered, as he stepped forward, and pulled her into his arms. She protested fervently, and struggled against him, while his sigh ruffled her hair.
“Let me go, Ash.” She told him sternly.
“Nope, can’t.” He muttered, as his lips touched her cheek.
“Do it now, or you will regret it.” She warned him.
He never moved away, not even an inch. Lucy let out a grumble, until she saw an opportunity that she couldn’t resist. In one quick movement, she ducked out of his arms, and pushed him backwards. With water flying everywhere, he landed in the pool making a huge splash. He came spluttering to the surface, grinning broadly, while pushing his glasses back on his face. She knew that he knew that she had forgiven him.
“And what was that for?” He asked as he swam to the edge.
“That was for you acting like an arse,” she told him pointedly.
“Touché,” he replied, as he splashed her.
“Don’t you dare.” She narrowed her eyes at him.
“Hey, what’s good for me is definitely good for you.” He teased, with a glimmer in his eye.
He pushed himself out of the pool effortlessly, and snatched at her ankle, but she quickly stepped back. She tried not to loo
k at the dripping wet distraction that was Ash standing in front of her, but it was hard. His golden eyes sparkled mischievously at her, as he pulled her up against him, and lifted her into his arms. She let out a squeal at his wet clothes, and then a yell, as he tossed her into the pool.
“You are so gone.” She told him when she came to the surface, and pulled off her boots, which she put on the side. She treaded water with her clothes weighing her down, as she considered what her pay back should be.
“Hey guys you know that cake is really… chocolate.” Lee trailed off as he saw the two of them. Lucy was scowling from the pool, while Ash kept his back to his friend. “Okay, how about I come back later.”
“Wait one minute, did you say chocolate?” Lucy asked excitedly and Lee nodded before leaving them. “I'm so getting out of the pool.”
She made her way to the ladder in a rush. Ash helped her out with a laugh, which quickly became a choke when he saw her. He stared unashamedly, as she rung out her hair, and sent water everywhere. She grumbled under her breath, as she bent down to pick up her boots, which she dropped again when Ash spun her around to face him. His eyes smouldered at her, their very intensity heating her body.
“You are stunning, and I love that you don’t even realise it.” He told her, as he captured her lips with his.
Lucy gasped as he grabbed her hips pulling her tighter to him. He took advantage, and stroked his tongue against hers. She ran her fingers up his chest to link around his neck, as she went on tiptoe to return his kiss just as fiercely. The sound of muttering voices, and a laugh pulled them apart.
Lucy peeked behind her to see most of Ash’s family and friends gawping at them. Some smiled; some frowned, while the others stared at Ash perplexed.
“Martin, what the hell happened to your eyes?” One of his friends said, and she felt Ash completely freeze up.
“Come on, we need to get you out of here.” Lucy said with a hint of panic in her voice, as the curious crowd got closer.
She tugged on his hand, and he finally snapped back into things. He followed her in a daze, wondering if he had finally blown the cover that he had worked so hard on building.
Chapter 26 – Bad news and breakups
For the next week, there was nothing in the papers or magazines. Both Ash and Lucy had sighed with relief. There had of course been an article about the party, but nothing more startling than Mindy jumping out of the cake.
It was on the following Sunday, when Ash picked up the paper, and felt a sick jab in his stomach. It seemed in the past week that Crystal had been very busy stretching the truth, while sneakily adding truth to an article.
He frowned at the ‘party animal’ that he was portrayed as, cursed under his breath with the ton of lies about Lucy, and he dropped the paper when she gave away the town that he was living in. About the only thing she never once mentioned, was that he looked different to what they knew.
He read the article, as panic gripped him. He had to be the one to explain this to Lucy. He dressed quickly with his thoughts constantly churning. There was only one thing taking hold of his mind, and that was if Crystal wanted to play hardball, then she was going to get a lot more than she expected. He grimaced, as he drove over to Lucy’s house. He wasn’t looking forward to this at all.
“Belle?” He asked, as he gently touched her face. Bill had let him in with a smile, and he had felt guilty for not telling him what was going on.
“Humph!” She responded with a wild wave of her hand.
“I need to talk to you. Please, wake up,” he called to her softly.
He smiled at the cute expression she gave him, as she scrunched her face up. He leaned over, and kissed her lips gently. She responded in her sleep, by letting out a tiny moan. He pulled away and frowned at her, just as her blue eyes blinked at him sleepily.
“Ash?” She asked croakily.
“Morning Belle.” He tried to put some cheer into his voice, and failed miserably.
“What is it? What’s wrong?” She asked, coming instantly awake at his worried voice.
“Did you know anything about this?” He asked with a sigh.
She picked it up and bristled at the title, ‘Rock star goes country?’ As she read the article, her anger unfolded into a towering rage, and the paper crumpled in her fist, until Ash retrieved it from her.
“What exactly was I supposed to know about it?” She asked icily, and Ash looked at her in surprise at the immense fury in her voice.
“I don’t know what you mean,” he said in confusion, which only made her snarl with anger.
“Just get out,” she pointed furiously to the door, before shouting the words again.
Ash left the room and felt distressed to hear her start crying beyond the door. He tried to get back in, but she locked the door. Her reaction completely perplexed him, and he didn’t know what to do. She had seemed more distressed by his words than the article.
When he could no longer stand to hear her crying, he went downstairs to the kitchen. Daz was pouring himself a cup of coffee, looking rather tired and haggard; it was obvious he must have finished a backshift. He sent Ash a smile, which quickly dropped from his face at the younger man’s expression.
“Tell me what’s happened.” Daz said quietly.
Ash quickly outlined everything, still feeling slightly dazed by Lucy’s reaction. He showed Daz the paper, and he skimmed through the article. He sent a frown to Ash, as he considered what had occurred that morning.
“So you reckon that she wasn’t as mad at the article, as she was at your words right?” Daz asked, and Ash nodded. “What were you exact words?”
“Um, I’m not sure… I think I said ‘did you know anything about this,’” Ash's surprise came when Daz sucked in a breath and looked shocked.
“Damn, I should have warned you about this,”
“Warned me about what?” Ash asked, feeling panic rushing up, and starting to overwhelm him. His girlfriend was crying upstairs, and he was getting no certain answers.
“Lucy has phrases that set her off… back to remembering about Crystal. You just used the prime one. Apparently, our lovely mother always asked that if any articles appeared that made her look bad in the local newspaper.” Daz explained
“At least that now makes sense.” Ash muttered to himself, as he went to walk back to her room.
“You can’t do that.” Daz pulled back on Ash’s arm.
“What do you mean?” Ash asked abruptly.
“Trust me here, you need to leave her be for a while. You need to give her space to think this over.” Daz answered seriously.
“And that’s something that I can’t do.” Ash pulled out of the older man’s grip, and walked back to Lucy’s room.
He knocked decisively on the door, and when Lucy opened the door, he felt uncertain. She looked grim and distressed, making his heart thud with dread. She didn’t say anything, just watched him from her perch on the bed.
“We are done, Ash!” She eventually snapped, and pointed to the door.
Did she just break up with him? His mouth dropped open, as the dread spread violently through his system. He couldn’t move, was unable to breathe, as the world halted around him. His anger kicked in, allowing him to fight back. She was breaking up with him because he said an expression that Crystal used. It made no sense to him.
“Give me one good reason why?” Ash said with forced calmness.
“I’ll give you ten, if you like,” she told him sharply, so he rolled his hand at her to continue. “Let’s see, you’re famous, you attract her, and you complicate my life…” She listed them off, but came to a stop at Ash’s harsh bark of laughter.
“You have got to be kidding me,” he hissed through clenched teeth.
“We are done,” she emphasised every word, her blue eyes flashing, and Ash felt fury fill him.
“You know what, Lucy; fine, let’s break up for no apparent reason,” he shouted, before lowering his voice, and sending her a look hot en
ough to melt her insides. “But we will never be done.” He whispered.
He strode angrily across the room, leaned over, and left a scolding kiss on her lips. She didn’t respond, though he knew that she had to force herself no to. He made himself walk away from her, and it was excruciatingly hard.
He was in his car driving away, when the pain finally melted the numbness that he had felt at her words. He understood it was a reaction to what he had said. Perhaps, he should have taken Daz’s advice, and given her some space. For them to break up over something so insignificant, cut at him deeply.
At the gate leading to his house, there were already paparazzi waiting. He let out a groan; it looked like he wouldn’t be going home today. He sat in his car as his exposed emotions overwhelmed him. He didn’t know what he could do, or where he could go, but he could feel the pain filled words waiting for release. He pulled out a scrap of paper, and set the words free.
Lucy, meanwhile, sat on her bed with tears burning across her skin. What had she just done? She wanted to take back every word she said, but it was too late. He was gone. The worst thing was that she was the one to make him leave over something so insignificant.
He didn’t know; the words began repeating as a chant inside her head. She didn’t know how to fix things, but she sure knew how to destroy them. This was her fault, she thought in despair, as she dropped her head into her hands.
She drove over to his house, only to find it smothered with reporters, so she knew that he wouldn’t be there. She was tempted to ring him, but she wanted to tell him her apology face to face. Eventually, she drove back home feeling a sense of grief that she had never felt before.
He didn’t turn up to school on Monday, and Lucy felt an extraordinary disappointment take hold of her. By the end of the week, she could barely hold the tears at bay, and she snapped at everyone. He never once came to school; she couldn’t get to his house, and she had no idea where he was.
The rumour mill had been rife with so much speculation that the truth was barely noticeable. The only positive in all of it was that nobody believed that Ash was Martin James, or that Lucy was the stars boyfriend, except for the reporters. Due to Crystal’s outrageous claims over the years, the town had a good dose of scepticism. That never stopped the reporters, who had been constantly hounding the town all week with questions, but they never received any answers.
I Met Her On the Balcony Page 27