by Jet Mykles
He gasped. “God, I love you,” he whispered across Luc’s moist lips.
This was, apparently, too much for Luc.
Hands gripped Reese’s shoulders and pushed. “Oh, God, no! Get off!”
“Huh? But …”
“No! Get off!”
Reese scrambled back to the other side of the couch. His cock ached and his head swam. Shit! He bit his lip.
Luc surged off the couch and crossed the room toward the kitchen. Or maybe the bedrooms down the little hallway beside the kitchen.
Reese got halfway up off the couch. He froze when Luc spun back to face him with a crazed, dark look on his face.
He pointed at the door, screwing his eyes shut. As though he couldn’t stand to look at Reese. “You’ve got to go.”
“Luc, I…”
“No, damn it. I’m not gay! You’re…” He shook his head and pointed at the door. “Get out.”
“Luc, I’m sorry. I…”
“Get the fuck out! Now!”
Reese jumped at the angry tone. He scrambled out the door.
Two weeks later, Heaven Sent left town on the road to stardom.
Chapter One
Shit! What?
Reese sat hard on the side of his bed, letting the thick, dark blue towel fall from his hands to puddle between his feet.
“Reese? Reese, did you hear me?”
He shook out of some of his shock. “Wha… Yeah, I hear you. What?”
A short laugh came over the phone. “Where did you just go?”
Despite the fact that she couldn’t see it, he frowned at Reegan’s singsongy tone. “Nowhere.”
“Mmm-hmmm.”
“Oh, shut up.”
She giggled. “You sure you’re not thinking about a certain oh-so-gorgeous bass player?”
“Reegan, for the love of God!” He shot to his feet. “How did this happen? What did you do?”
“Now calm down…”
“Calm down? Calm down!” He paced to his dresser. “How can I calm down? Are you serious?”
“Reese, it’s not a big deal.”
“If it’s not a big deal, why’d you wait to tell me about this until just now?”
“I just found out for sure now and I thought…”
“But you knew it was possible.” He was back at his bed, staring blindly at the empty space above his headboard. “Shit, you invited them! When?”
“Well, yes. I did.” She drew out her words, knowing what she’d done pissed him off. “But I didn’t think they’d actually come.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
She snorted. “I didn’t want you to freak out.”
“Because now…?”
“Well. Yeah.”
He growled, clutching his phone so hard the edges cut into his fingers. “How could you?”
“Reese, don’t.”
“Too late!” He dropped back onto the bed, hand to his forehead. Wet hair dripped on his bare shoulders. “Oh my God! Oh my God! Not him.” Him. Him! Him! Reese’s brain reeled while his belly jangled. “He’s going to be at your wedding. Tomorrow!”
She giggled. “Yeah, kinda cool, huh?”
“Reegan!”
“Oh, come on. It’s not that bad.”
“It’s not that bad?” He thrust a hand through his short, damp curls, tugging hard. “The last time he saw me, he wanted to push me over a cliff! Why the hell do you think I’d want to see him now?”
“Oh, it wasn’t that bad.”
Reese studied his reflection in the mirrored door of his closet. His blue eyes were wide with shock, looking bigger than they normally did. Was he paler than usual? “Trust me, it was bad.”
“You’re exaggerating.”
“No.” His heart sank at the very notion of seeing Lucas Sloane in the flesh again. At the same time, the exact same organ sped up. Stupid heart couldn’t make up his mind. “I’m not.”
“Well. It’ll be fine.”
“It won’t be fine, Reegan. Is he coming tonight?”
Her silence said it all.
“Reegan!”
“I didn’t even think about that. But it’s not my fault! If they come, Garth invited them, not me!”
Of course he would. Dave’s bachelor party was at Purgatory, after all, and Garth, the owner, was Darien’s uncle as well as Luc and Brent’s former boss. Heaven Sent used to be the club’s house fucking band. If they were in town and they were going to the wedding, of course they’d be at the bachelor party.
All of his strength ran out and he sighed, sagging forward to prop elbows on knees. Trust Reegan to thrust this on him last minute. “How’d you get in touch with them, anyway?”
“Garth. He sent the invites to Darien. I really didn’t expect them to come. Honest. Well, not all of them, anyway. I just thought it’d be nice to see them. And, well… Yeah.” Yeah. Because who wouldn’t want world-famous rockstars to attend their wedding? He couldn’t fault her for that. She hadn’t done anything so monumentally stupid as profess her love for… Okay, that thought just didn’t make sense.
“Yeah.” Reese's blood simmered at the mere thought of seeing Luc again. He hadn't spoken a word to the bass player since that disastrous night four years ago. He couldn't imagine Luc ever wanting to see his face again. Reese, of course, could stare at Luc’s face for eternity, but that wasn’t the same. Sucking in a loud breath, he sat up. “So you’re just springing this on me now.”
“Better than tomorrow as you’re ushering in the guests!” Typical Reegan logic. “Cheer up, sweetie. Luc has to know that you’ll be there. If he didn’t want to see you, he could have bowed out.”
“Unless he wants to deck me or something.”
“That’s just silly. He has to be long over it by now.”
“Says you.”
“It’ll be fine. Hey, Johnnie’s even bringing his new hubby.”
Now that was intriguing. Johnnie had gotten married last fall. To a man! Sure Reese had known Johnnie swung both ways — all the local fans did — but that fact hadn't been part of his very public persona when the band hit the big time. For him to come out so spectacularly was something. The world of rock was all agog over it. Reese wondered how Luc had taken it, since he was so opposed to homosexuality. Or was he okay with it for others, just not directed at him?
Don’t go there. He took another fortifying breath. “Him I'd like to meet.”
“There you go. It’ll be great!”
Sure it would.
“Are you happy for me?”
He smiled at her puppy dog tone. “I’m happy for you.”
“You’ll make nice for me tomorrow?”
“I will.”
“And you’ll look after Dave at the bachelor party tonight?”
Reese laughed. “Reegan, you don’t have to worry about Dave. He’s so in love with you, I don’t think he notices other women.”
She hummed happily. “That may be true, but you need to keep all those sluts off him. I know they got strippers for him. Garth told me, the rat. Take a few for yourself, won’t you?”
Smiling weakly, he retrieved the towel from the carpet. “Oh, Piper will love that.”
Reegan’s mirth cooled. “Yeah, well, she can deal with it.”
He chose not to comment. He knew his sister didn’t much like his latest girlfriend. Even less than previous others, since Piper had been making noises about marriage and Reese hadn’t refuted her. Why should he? He was twenty-four, after all. A good age to start thinking about it. Reegan couldn’t throw stones since she was taking the plunge herself.
“Okay.” Reegan went back to her normal bright and chipper tone. “I’ll leave you to get ready for the party. Have fun and fuck a stripper.”
“Reegan!”
Laughing, she hung up.
Reese shook his head. He’d have to ask Dave again if the man really wanted to marry his insane sister. He tossed his cell onto the crate that served as a nightstand beside his bed then went back into the
bathroom. That’s where he had been when he’d heard Reegan’s ringtone. He was on call for his twin, knowing brides were basket-cases. She’d been pretty good, but she was crazy at the best of times so he knew to expect the worst. He hadn’t expected this latest bomb, though.
Heaven Sent. Good God, he was going to be in the same room with Lucas Sloane again. The mere thought was enough to rouse his dick. He looked down at it. “Oh no. We’re not going there.” No. He didn’t do that anymore. He didn’t think those thoughts. He didn’t dream. He wasn’t gay. These residual feelings were just that, echoes of his past, before he’d come to his senses. There was nothing wrong with being gay, but it wasn’t him. That wasn’t his life. He’d learned that when Luc had put him in his place that day and it had been enforced by a series of bad choices in the time that followed.
He stood in front of the wide mirror that covered a good four feet across his bathroom wall above the double sinks. He fingered his hair. By some stroke of… well, Reese hesitated to call it “luck”, he and Reegan had been gifted with a combination of their mother’s silky black hair and their father’s tight curls. The result was either a really cool, sleek, satiny mop of hair that fell in silky waves to his chin — or a mess. Unfortunately, if he didn’t dry it properly right out of the shower, the mess was the result.
He should thank Luc, he thought, twisting a curl. It made him smile bitterly to think of how Luc might react to knowing that he’d changed the course of Reese’s life that night. He couldn’t decide if the bass player would be horrified or gratified, or if he’d even care. It hurt to think that the last might be true, but Reese had to be honest. He didn’t mean anything to Luc, never had. The friendship Luc had acknowledged had been a lie since they hadn’t spoken once since. Maybe Reegan was right, maybe it wasn’t a big deal. Maybe Luc would see him, maybe they’d exchange a few words. Hell, maybe Luc didn’t even remember that night. It couldn’t have been as big a deal to him as it was to Reese.
“Yep. That’s probably it.” Sighing, Reese draped his towel over the edge of the sink and reached into the shower to turn it back on. The only hope for his hair now was to rinse out the mousse and start all over.
Chapter Two
Reese looked up into the most beautiful face he’d ever seen.
Lucas Sloane. That was his name. Reese had discovered that much, thanks to the numerous times he and his friends had tried to convince the man to let them inside the club. Gorgeous, dusky pink lips pursed as he studied Reese’s ID, then Reese’s face. “Well, hell, kid.” He finally smiled, revealing white, even teeth. He handed the ID back to Reese. “You’re finally legal?”
Reese beamed, tucking the ID back into the wallet chained to his belt loop, then shoving the wallet into his back pocket. “Had to happen sometime, y’know.” He’d been trying to get into Purgatory for the last two years. But no fake ID had done it. Just in the past few months, Luc — not that much older than he — had caught him every time and had finally started to recognize his face. While being recognized by this gorgeous man wasn’t a bad, thing, Reese’d had to wait until he was eighteen and had a legal ID.
For the first time for him, Luc reached down and unhitched the dingy charcoal-gray rope that blocked the door. He smiled as he waved Reese and his friends inside, a number of plastic and metal bangles clacking on his wrist. “Come on in.”
“You playing tonight?” Reese asked as his friends passed by.
Luc nodded, dislodging a lock of rich auburn hair to fall over his left eye. Casually, he reached up to tuck it back behind his ear. The gold in his ears and on a few of his long fingers shone. He winked at Reese as he accepted the ID from the next person in line. “Yep. We go on at ten.”
Reese grinned, letting his friends pull him backwards into the club so he could keep his eyes on Luc as long as possible. “Can’t wait!”
Reese smiled at the memory. That had been about four years ago. It’d been almost as long since he’d stepped foot in Purgatory other than to occasionally pick up or drop off Reegan. He’d pretty much stopped coming after that fateful night. He’d been there to see Heaven Sent’s final performance, but he’d ghosted the edges of the crowd rather than trying to get near the band. Once they left, Purgatory had lost its pull for him. Back then, his age had banned him from the elevated bar section of the club, but he’d been allowed to dance and have nonalcoholic drinks. Now, he sat at one end of the main bar in the dim light of the neon signs that lit the mirrored wall behind rows of shining bottles of alcohol. He sipped his Jack and Coke, watching spandex-and-rhinestone-clad strippers try to compete with plainclothes rockstars for attention. If Reese was any judge, even in this male-centric bachelor party crowd, the rockstars were winning. The three women were doing their jobs on the harshly lit black stage that sat in one corner of the club, but more of the partygoers were crowded around the tables at the opposite end of the dance floor where two members of the Heaven Sent currently held court.
Darien Hughes was perched on the edge of one table, his straight, dark gold hair framing the healthy tan of his face. He had one booted foot on the seat of a chair, the other just brushing the floor, as he faced about ten other guys. True to Reese’s memory, he gestured earnestly with his hands as he spoke and laughed. Darien had always been one to make friends and put people instantly at ease. Whatever story he told, he had his audience captivated.
At the far end of a second table, Johnnie Heaven sat between Reegan’s groom and his own new spouse. Even dressed casually in worn black jeans and a sleeveless green T-shirt, Johnnie never could look anything but amazing, especially with his long hair in a sleek ponytail that fell over his shoulder and down his chest to pool in his lap. Tyler Purcell, the cuffs of his pristine white shirt folded neatly up his forearms, leaned on an elbow on the table and talked across the singer at Dave. He took no notice of the hand Johnnie rubbed idly on his back. Reese could easily see why Johnnie stuck jealously close to his prize. Tyler was enchanting, with huge blue eyes and gorgeous blond curls. Even more so since he really didn’t seem to be that conscious of his looks. Unlike Johnnie, who knew exactly how gorgeous he was. Reese grinned, remembering many a performance where Johnnie had demonstrated his charms. But Reese had long ago accustomed himself to the ridiculous animal magnetism of the singer. Oh, yes, the long hair that was every shade of brown was captivating, and those gorgeous green eyes even more so, but neither Johnnie nor Darien nor the currently missing Brent Rose had ever captivated him like Lucas Sloane.
Reese shut his eyes, determined not to search the darkly lit room for Luc. He was here. Reese had seen him briefly when he’d arrived with the rest of the band, but Reese had done his damnedest to stay far away since. He didn’t care if it meant that he sat here alone in a corner. He didn’t have a problem with watching the party from the fringes. He’d long ago stopped running in the same circles as his sister so he only knew a few of the partygoers anyway and, except for Dave, none of them that well.
“Hey, you.”
Reese looked up. And smiled. “Brent.”
Brent Rose, lead guitarist of Heaven Sent, slid onto the stool just around the bar’s corner from Reese. He extended the hand that wasn’t holding a cigarette, and Reese gladly shook it. He’d been told he and Brent resembled each other. Certainly they had similar black hair and lean faces, but Reese’s eyes were blue, not shining obsidian, he was a few inches shorter and he wasn’t as slim as the guitarist, who wore a long-sleeved black shirt and equally black jeans that hung on him. Shockingly, he’d removed the black sunglasses that he normally wore, setting them on the bar with a cigarette pack. Reese had kept up and he knew Brent was rarely seen without them, at least in public. Brent had always been the quiet one and it looked like he still liked to sit back and let the three more garrulous members of the band take most of the limelight. The only place Brent truly came to life was on stage. Man, he could play a mean guitar!
Brent took a drag off his cigarette, then lowered it toward a nearby ashtray. “I wasn�
��t even sure it was you. How ya doin’, man?” His voice was lower and softer than Reese recalled, just loud enough to be heard over the music playing at the other end of the club.
“Doin’ good.” His smile was genuine. He’d always liked Brent and hoped the feeling was mutual. He couldn’t be sure since Brent was Luc’s best friend. “Not as good as you, but I’m doin’ good.”
Brent raised a brow, lips quirked in his famous half-smile. “Am I doin’ good?”
“Oh, I dunno. Platinum album, second in a row. Sold-out world tours. Girls throwing their underwear at you and chasing you down.” Reese shrugged, feigning nonchalance. “I’d say you were doin’ good.”
Brent signaled the bartender, who apparently already knew what he was drinking. The other half of his mouth rose to complete his smile. “Okay, I’m doin’ good.”
Reese laughed. “It’s nice to see ya, man.”
“You, too. Good to be back for a bit.”
“You guys on hiatus?”
“Sort of.” He tossed his head in the direction of the crowded tables. “Garth sent the invites for Reegan’s wedding and Johnnie decided it was a good excuse to show Tyler the home turf so we all decided to tag along. Then Garth asked us to do this thing next Friday.” He rolled his eyes. “You’d think we were attached at the hip.”
“Are you?”
“Nah.” He tipped his head in thanks when his beer arrived in a tall glass with condensation clouding the sides. “But if I missed this opportunity to see my mom, she’d never forgive me.”
Reese laughed. “From what I remember of your mom, you should be scared.”
“Oh, I am. Believe me.”
Still chuckling, Reese looked back toward the tables just in time to see Johnnie grab the collar of Tyler’s shirt to pull him closer and plant a wet kiss near his mouth. The blond screwed his face into a frown and tried to push away, but Johnnie wouldn’t let him. With a shake of his head, Tyler gave in and, laughing, kissed his spouse.