Defile

by Jessica Prince

  She grumbled under her breath, calling me some less-than-creative names as she jumped from the bed and started gathering her clothes. It wasn’t until she was gone that I threw my legs over the side of the bed and sat up.

  There wasn’t any time to be a lazy asshole. I had some packing to do.

  Tatum

  Three days later

  “That goes in the kitchen. Thanks,” I instructed, pointing one of the movers in that direction. I couldn’t believe I was here, that I’d agreed to do this. Clearly, I’d lost my freaking mind.

  That was the only explanation I could think of for why I’d picked up my life in San Francisco and moved to Seattle, away from everyone I loved. All for a job I had no damn clue how to do, working with a man I despised with every breath in my body, but still couldn’t stop thinking about.

  Needless to say, my father had been pissed. Mom had cried and worried. It had taken the full two weeks from that meeting in the Four Seasons until my move to talk my folks around, but I wouldn’t have been able to leave without their blessing.

  “Ma’am.” I spun around to find another mover carrying two boxes marked ‘bedroom.’ “Where do these go?”

  I lifted my hand toward the hallway. “Third door on the left.”

  “Yo. Babycakes. You still there?”

  I’d forgotten all about the phone in my hand as I directed movers around my new home, and the fact that Camden had been waiting the whole time. “Shit, sorry, babe. It’s kind of chaotic around here at the moment.”

  “I wish I was there to help you, sweetheart.”

  Pouting through the line, I grumbled, “I wish you were here too. But you’re the jerk who was too busy and left me to the wolves.”

  Camden’s sigh was clear as a bell as it came through the speaker. “Tate, you know it’s not like that. I’m not leaving you to the wolves.”

  “Really?” I scoffed. “Sure felt that way when we were standing in that room and you teamed up with them to get me to take this stupid job in the first damn place.”

  “I pushed for you to take that job because it’s what you deserve. You’ve been waiting fucking tables for ten years. You have too much talent. I’ve been saying it for years. You refused to let me help, so I saw a chance to give you better and I took it. So sue me.”

  “How considerate of you,” I deadpanned.

  “Look, it’s just a few festivals. A couple months, tops. After my last show, my ass’ll be on a plane for Seattle. I’ll be there before you know it. If I hadn’t already committed to these shows, I’d be with you now, you know that.”

  I did. I knew he’d be there with me if he could. Unfortunately, for the second time in my life, I’d become best friends with a man whose aspirations of stardom had taken him to such great heights that I sometimes came in second.

  “Yeah,” I finally sighed. “I know. Just a few month.”

  “Just a few months, babycakes. Then I’ll be there. I swear.”

  Glass shattering from the kitchen area caught my attention. “Shit. Okay, honey. I’ll hold you to that, but I have to go.”

  We quickly said our goodbyes and I hung up, a headache slowly beginning to pound inside me skull.

  It took several more hours, and only one broken drinking glass, but by the time the sun set over my killer view of the Puget Sound, I was officially moved in to my new, totally swank, unbelievably gorgeous apartment that the guys set me up in. I’d managed to find a place for almost everything, leaving only a few boxes against the far wall in the living room that needed to be unpacked, but that would have to wait. I had wine to drink, and pizza on the way.

  Having changed into a comfortable pair of yoga pants and a slouchy shirt, I padded into my fancy kitchen with top-of-the-line everything and pulled my favorite cheap red blend from the wine fridge that had been built into the big kitchen island. That’s right, my apartment had a wine fridge!

  I’d just taken the first glorious sip when a knock sounded on the front door.

  “Who is it?” I called out as I got closer.

  “Pizza delivery.”

  My mouth started to water at the thought of all that melted cheese and spicy pepperoni. It wasn’t until that very moment that I realized the day had gotten so crazy, the only thing I’d put in my stomach was copious amounts of coffee. I was starving.

  “Just a sec.” Placing my wineglass on the entryway table, I pulled my wallet from my purse and opened the door. “Thank God you’re here,” I started, pulling money out. “I’m so hungry I could eat a—Declan? What the hell are you doing here?”

  “Evening, neighbor. You gonna invite me in or what? This box is pretty damn hot.”

  “What the hell are you doing here?” I repeated, my head suddenly feeling like it was about to explode.

  One corner of his mouth hooked up in a playful smirk. “Well, I’d planned to bring you a cup of sugar, but then, as luck would have it, I just so happened to be coming up from the gym when your pizza delivery guy was checking in at the front desk. Even paid for it and everything. You’re welcome.”

  I narrowed my eyes into tight slits. “You actually want me to thank you for hijacking my dinner so you could force your way into my apartment?”

  His smirk fell, but humor still danced behind those storm cloud eyes. “Well when you put it like that, I don’t really sound altruistic at all.”

  “That’s because you don’t have a single freaking altruistic bone in your body!” I cried, throwing my hands up. “Why are you here, Deck? The real reason.”

  “Honestly, Tate, all I wanted to do was welcome you to the building, that’s it.”

  “Wait.” I closed my eyes for a moment and massaged my temples. “You live here? That’s what you meant by neighbor?”

  A shit-eating grin spread across his face, and I had the overwhelming urge to smack it right the hell off. “Not only in the building, but right next door. What a coincidence, right?”

  I was going to kill him. No doubt about it, Declan Forrester was not long for this world. “Coincidence, my ass,” I grumbled. “When I came to check this place out a couple weeks ago, there was a nice older couple living next door.”

  “Yeah well, they said something about wanting to retire to the Caribbean. Guess it was always a dream of theirs. Figured I’d jump in and snatch the place up so you didn’t risk getting some creepy psycho as a neighbor.”

  “Too late,” I muttered under my breath. Then, having had enough of Declan for the night, I snatched my pizza from his hands and slammed the door in his face.

  “Just let me know if you need that cup of sugar,” he called out. “You know where to find me.”

  It was official; I was in hell.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Tatum

  “So, how’s the new apartment? Do you like it?”

  I looked from the security guard I’d been staring at back to Gwen, who seemed oblivious to the fact that she had a huge mountain of a man tracking her every move.

  “I’m sorry, but”—I pointed at the giant near the door—“how are you able to ignore the seven-foot beast over there.”

  She smiled and laughed cheerfully while wiping a chocolate milk mustache off her adorable daughter’s face. When she’d called earlier that day and invited me to Bernie’s, the coffee shop she’d worked at the past few years, I’d gladly taken her up on the offer. I’d been holed up in my apartment the past two days and was quickly going out of my mind with boredom. I just didn’t know we’d have a security detail tagging along, tracking our every move.

  “Oh, you mean Ian? He’s harmless. You’ll get used to him. Eventually you won’t even notice he’s there.”

  “Wait… what do you mean, I’ll get used to him?”

  Gwen shrugged like it was no big deal as she stated, “The guys have gotten kind of… protective of the women in their lives. Can’t really blame them though.”

  “Ian’s my bestest friend!” Liddy yelled at the top of her lungs. God, she was the cutest little g
irl in the entire world. “He puts me on his shoulders so I can be taller than Daddy!”

  Adorable!

  “And after all the s-h-i-t,” Gwen continued, spelling out the cuss words for her daughter’s sake, “that’s been in the magazines and on the internet lately, Garrett’s not really big on letting me out of the house without Ian having my back.”

  “Him’s gonna marry Auntie Corrie!” Liddy declared.

  “What?” I asked, smiling down at her.

  “Corrine, my best friend. She and Ian are engaged. I really think you’re gonna like her. She’s loud and outspoken and totally awesome. She’ll be here in a few minutes, actually. Now back to my original question. How are you liking your new place?”

  That tension that had been building in my head the past couple of days came back with a vengeance. “The apartment is great. It’s my neighbor who’s the problem.”

  “That sucks. They play their music too loud or something?”

  I looked at Gwen curiously, surprised she didn’t know. “Declan’s my neighbor.”

  Gwen had just taken a sip of her latte when I answered and promptly proceeded to choke on it. “Wait. What?”

  “You didn’t know?”

  “No! But… how is he your neighbor? I thought he owned a house in Medina.”

  That son of a bitch.

  “He owns a house?” I seethed.

  “Yeah. A huge place. What is it with these guys buying houses too big for just one person?”

  I couldn’t believe that asshole already had a house and still bought the apartment next time me just to screw with my head. Well, actually I could believe it. What Declan wanted, Declan got, no matter what.

  “Looked like you ladies needed a refill.” Gwen’s friend and coworker Gina popped over just then, placing a new latte in front of Gwen, another chocolate milk for Liddy, and a chai tea for me. “So what are we gossiping about today?” she asked, taking the empty chair next to me. Besides the three of us, and Ian, there were no other customers in the shop at that moment. I had a gut feeling that was intentional, so Gwen could take Liddy out for a bit without being hassled.

  “Oh, you know,” Gwen smiled teasingly. “Declan’s massive crush on the beautiful Tatum here.”

  “Ooh, girl! I had that man crushing on me, I’d serve myself up faster than McDonald’s.”

  “Looks like I showed up at the perfect moment.” At the sound of another voice, I turned to see a pretty, petite blonde waltzing through the door of the coffee shop. “Hey, babe. Good day so far?” She stood on her tippy-toes, but the huge dude, Ian, still had to bend deep to meet her lips.

  “You know how it goes with Gwen,” he replied in a deep voice. “Hearing a bunch of shit I don’t wanna hear, wishing I could go deaf. Same thing, different day.”

  I laughed at the same time Gwen barked, “Language!” at the big man.

  He had the good grace to look properly chastised as his fiancée made her way to our table, taking the last available chair beside Gwen.

  “Tate, this is my friend Corrine,” Gwen introduced.

  “You can call me Corrie,” the woman offered politely, reaching across the table so I could shake her hand. I studied her for a brief moment, looking for any signs that the cheerful demeanor was fake. I’d gotten pretty good at spotting the ones with hidden agendas over the years, but I couldn’t see anything deceptive in her or Gina. It was a nice change of pace, meeting women who could be potential friends. “So what were you guys talking about when I first walked in?”

  “A certain rocker crushing on a certain lush redhead,” Gina chided playfully.

  “Oh?” Corrine turned excitedly curious eyes on me. “Gwen gave me very little of that story,” she said, shooting a glare at her best friend. “I’ve been dying to know what happened between you two.”

  “Oh my god!” Gina chirped loudly. “Wait! You two were a thing?”

  “It was a long time ago,” I muttered, taking a pull from my chai.

  “A thing?” Corrine scoffed. “I’d say it was a whole hell of a lot more than a thing. She’s Crimson. You know, from the song?”

  “No way!” Gina squealed. “You’re kidding me! The Crimson? Holy sh—uh, crap.” She barely caught herself as she looked at Liddy. “So you and Declan Forrester were, like, seriously together? I can’t imagine. I mean, I’ve always thought the dude was hot, but in that unattainable, billboard-perfect kind of way. Then I kind of got to know him when he came in here to help this one”—she hooked her thumb at Gwen—“pull her head out of her a—behind and go after Garrett a couple weeks ago.”

  That threw me for a serious loop. That didn’t sound like the Declan I knew at all. “What?” I asked, looking to Gwen for answers.

  “Mommy, when was your head up your booty?” Liddy asked seriously.

  “It wasn’t, honey.” She gave Gina a look that could’ve melted a glacier. “Ms. Gina’s just trying to be funny.”

  “That’s right, sweetie,” Gina said, tapping Liddy on her nose. “It’s just a funny saying adults use. It means your mommy was being silly and making bad decisions.” She looked at Gwen like she dared her to disagree.

  “And Declan came to talk you around? Declan Forrester?” I asked in bewilderment.

  “It was right after Will died,” Gwen answered softly, her face awash with sympathy. Garrett and I… well, we had kind of a rocky start. Because of that, I had some trust issues. Declan showed to tell me what happened, and to help me see the bigger picture.”

  “Wow.” I couldn’t keep the surprise out of my voice. “That’s… so out of character from the Declan I used to know.”

  “You make it sound like he wasn’t a good guy,” Corrine stated. It wasn’t said in an angry or defensive manner, just a fact, so I continued.

  “The Declan I knew could be selfish and… thoughtless.” I was careful with how I worded my opinion since there were little ears present. What I’d really wanted to call him was a lying, cheating fucker who destroyed people.

  “Sounds like you two didn’t have all that amicable of a breakup,” Gina hedged.

  I snorted before taking another sip of my drink. “That’s putting it mildly. He gave me no other choice but to walk away, and when I did… well, if you guys are fans, then I’m sure you’ve listened to more than just their first album.”

  “No way. You’re also Red Devil?” Corrie asked on a shocked gasp, listing one of the harsher songs from Civil Corruptions second album. “And Black-Hearted Woman?”

  “Okay, okay,” Gwen thankfully cut in. “I think we get the point without having to bring up the band’s entire back catalogue.” She cast her eyes to me, and I mouthed a relieved “thank you” in her direction.

  “I really, really want to ask, but I won’t. I’m holding myself back.”

  At Gina’s declaration, Gwen laughed. “That’s a freaking miracle coming from you!”

  “I know!” Gina cried, then pointed at me. “But rest assured, there will be a night in the very near future where I ply you with margaritas and get the full story.”

  “I’m so down for that,” Corrie chimed in. “Girls’ night!”

  Girls’ night. I’d never really had many female friends, so I didn’t think that was ever something I’d been a part of. And until that very moment, I hadn’t realized it was something I wanted. But sitting around those women, I found that I did. I really wanted things like girls’ night.

  A little while later, Corrie got up to go to the restroom, and Gina went to make more coffees. Liddy was immersed in a coloring book that Gwen had pulled out of her huge bag, along with a small box of crayons, making it possible for us to chat privately for a little while.

  “You know,” she started in a low voice so no one could overhear, “It’s none of my business, and feel free to tell me to stay out of it at any time, but if you ever want to talk, I’m always here to listen.”

  I reached across the table and placed my hand on top of hers, appreciating the offer more than she’d
probably ever know. “Thank you,” I whispered.

  She smiled brightly, and I could totally see why Garrett had fallen so hard. Not only was she gorgeous, but she was sweet too. “And just so you know, I think that the past ten years may have changed Declan.” Gwen’s hands went up quickly to ward off what I was about to say. “I’m not telling you to forgive him. I don’t know the full story there, and it’s yours to tell if or when you feel comfortable enough to tell it. I just wanted you to have all the information. I’m not sure he’s the same guy he was back then. Maybe he’s grown up. Maybe both of you have. And that’s all I’m going to say on the matter. Consider it dropped.”

  I laughed at her candor, but silently thanked God when the other women came back to the table.

  “Okay, while I love gossip as much as the next chick, it’s time to start talking wedding,” Corrie stated. “Gwennie here is getting married in two days, and I’m thinking we need to plan a kickass party!”

  And that was exactly what we did. For the next few hours, we talked about nothing but Gwen and Garrett’s upcoming wedding, and I don’t think I’d ever had more fun in all my life. By the time I left, I had three new girlfriends to add to my circle. And they were pretty damn good additions if I did say so myself.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Tatum

  Gwen hadn’t been wrong. The guys were seriously into big houses, if Garrett’s place was anything to go by.

  “Here, you look like you could use this.” I turned just as Gina reached me, extending a glass of champagne my way.

  “Thanks,” I said appreciatively, taking a huge gulp as I glanced around at the people gathered in the impressively large family room. The furniture had been moved so the room could be set up for Garrett and Gwen’s reception. They’d decided on a small ceremony with a justice of the peace, with Corrine and Declan going as witnesses and Liddy as their flower girl. Ian had tagged along as security, of course, but everyone else stayed behind to get the house ready for the party that Gwen wanted to have after. There were caterers in the kitchen, a bartender at a makeshift bar in the far-left corner of the room, and across from him to the right was a DJ, setting up the music for the evening. All the people they cared about were gathered around to celebrate the happy couple.