Bad Blood (Rock Goddess Reverse Harem Book 5)

by Romy Lockhart

  “He was rather insistent. Says he really needs to talk to you, but he wouldn’t say why, exactly.”

  Oh no. That can’t be good, especially considering how quiet he usually is. Of course, compelling someone to do something doesn’t exactly take personality into account.

  “Tell him to set up a meeting through my manager. It’s inappropriate to just...” I trail off as the door bursts open and Xander darts inside before being manhandled by the bodyguard.

  Heat floods my body on sight of him. His dark hair hangs just past his shoulder on the right side. The left is shaved short. The dark red T-shirt and ripped black jeans are a typical look for a member of a rock band, nothing special but just the right look. It’s those unusual, deep-set grey eyes and those sultry lips that elevate him to star attraction material. It’s too bad he’s always stuck at the back of the stage. Women would definitely go crazy for him as the star of the show.

  Okay, Eden, you can quit drooling now. He’s being kicked out.

  “I just came to talk,” he tells me, his gaze pleading as the bodyguard gets him in an arm lock and hustles him to the door. “Please, Eden...”

  I shouldn’t. Really, I shouldn’t. Eli and Asher left to go bring me coffee and donuts from my favorite place in town. We’d be all alone, and I seriously doubt that’s a good idea considering I can’t stop wondering what his mouth would feel like against mine.

  “Let him go.” I’m going to regret this, I just know it.

  The security guard stops and raises an eyebrow at me. “Are you sure?”

  I nod, though the quiver that runs down my spine says differently. “I’m certain. Let him go. I’ll call you if I need you. Leave us.”

  “Thank you,” Xander says as the guard leaves.

  When the door closes, I swallow. This is it now. We’re actually alone together.

  “What did you need to speak to me about?”

  “It’s Ari,” he tells me, sounding less confident than he did moments ago. “I’m not sure I should be here, but I don’t know what else to do.”

  “What about her?” I try to keep my guard up, but the closer he gets to me, the more I want to let it drop, at the same time as my chemise. I cross my arms but all that does is force the hard points of my nipples to brush against the fabric.

  He blows out a breath as his gaze travels over me. “I had no idea it would be this intense.”

  He knows something then. That’s... a little odd.

  I frown at him. “What did Ari send you for?”

  He shakes his head, making his hair move. “She didn’t send me. I came to speak to you because you’re the only one who might be able to help.”

  “Help with what?”

  “Making Ari mortal.” He smiles wryly. “I know about Goddesses, Eden. I know you’re one of them. She is too, and it’s killing her.”

  “How do you know?” He isn’t one of us, I’d feel it if he was. Now I’m at full power, I can tell the difference between mortal men I’m attracted to and destined for and Gods. If I’d been at this level when I’d met Lawson, I’d have known he was a God.

  “Not to be a prude, but do you maybe want to get dressed to have this conversation? I’m feeling slightly... distracted.”

  I probably should. I point at the couches. “Take a seat. I’ll be right back.”

  I don’t waste time, just throw a long T-shirt and leggings on quickly and leave the chemise underneath. Feels a little weird, but I’d decided to put the chemise on because my men were coming back and after the breakfast I fully intended on letting them find out there was nothing underneath the slip. Maybe you still can, Eden. Maybe you just have an interested third party now who might want to join in.

  I push that thought away. Xander is hot, but he’s not here to become my fourth. I pause before I open the door to the bedroom, to get back out to him. How much does he know? A shiver runs through me. Does he know I have a fourth? Does he know it could be him?

  These thoughts stall my actions, but I remember Eli and Asher could be back any minute and it’s enough to make me get back out there. I walk back into the room. Xander is sitting on the couch facing me, fingers laced. He looks over as I approach.

  “So, you were about to tell me how you know about Goddesses.”

  Another wry smile. “It’s going to sound weird, but I can read minds.”

  “Um, what?” He can read minds? What does that make him?

  “It makes me a freak of nature,” he tells me, his gaze firmly on mine. “I’m not a God. I don’t have the potential to be one either. I’m entirely human.”

  “So you know about Ari because you read her mind?”

  He nods. “I don’t know how long she’s been a Goddess, but I know it’s a recent change. I also know it was forced on her by another Goddess.”

  “Forced?” I feel uneasy as he gives another nod.

  “All potential Goddesses can become agents of good, or agents of chaos. For some, their lineage is stronger and linked to their personalities. This means they are more likely to choose the path of their descendants. But any God or Goddess can be swayed by outside influences.” He sounds like he knows exactly what he’s talking about. A ball of dread begins to form inside my gut.

  “How many Goddesses have you known, exactly?”

  He smiles tightly. “There are more than you’d think in the music industry. It seems to call to their natural instinct to be worshipped.”

  “That wasn’t an answer.”

  He sits back and runs a hand through his hair. “The truth is, I don’t know. Sometimes I’ll wake up with no memories of the day before. I quit drinking a long time ago because it makes the mind-reading worse. I can block most voices if I’m in control, sober. If I’m not, they all come through. The noise inside my head is too much to deal with when that happens. I hear every little thought, every fragment of an idea, from every person in my immediate vicinity all at once. Then the scope widens and it keeps flooding. It’s like a wall of noise, surrounding me and locking me in.”

  “That sounds awful.”

  “That’s why I don’t drink, or do drugs. Not that I can explain that to everyone I meet. Most of the time they think I’m boring. But the point is, I know when I lose memories that it’s never because I was wasted. I know the power Goddesses hold. It’s within their realm to steal what’s inside a mortal’s mind.”

  Well, I know first-hand that’s true. I feel a stab of guilt for erasing Logan’s memory of our night together. I push the feeling aside. It’s not what’s important right now.

  “Sometimes, it needs done,” he says. “Don’t get me wrong. Thing is, I’ve met four Goddesses that I can remember, and one God. There are probably more.”

  “So Ari was forced onto a dark path?”

  He nods. “Another Goddess met her before she became a Goddess. It was a dark time for Ari and she used that to her advantage. I only know that’s what happened. I don’t know what Ari was like before, but now, she has nightmares. She’s always afraid. Worst of all, she seems to have lost the capacity to feel love. She told me she met you again, hoping to find the spark you two shared years ago. It hurt her deeply when she didn’t feel it.”

  Poor Ari. I can’t believe I freaked out on her. I didn’t know. “I had no idea.”

  “So you understand why I came to you now?”

  I nod slowly, reaching out to touch his hand. He loves her, that’s why he came. Even though he knows he’s one of my potentials. Whatever the consequences, he had to come to try and help the woman he loves. I feel overwhelmed with emotion and struggle to keep my composure.

  “I understand why, but I don’t know what you think I can do about this?”

  “We don’t need to find the other Goddess to fix this. I think you can guide her onto the right path if you spend some time with her. I had a feeling you could, anyway. I’m not usually wrong when I get those kinds of feelings.” He gazes at me intently. “Will you help us?”

  How can I say no? I’m
already compelled by my nature to find a way to make sure Xander and Ari can be together. He loves her and she might love him, given half a chance. But wait, Eden. Why does he want you to speak to her when he could just confess his feelings and allow her to make the choice to be mortal?

  “I already told her how I feel,” Xander tells me.

  I’m going to have to get used to this mind-reading thing. Or not. Because he’s not going to be mine. Oh, yeah. Okay then. “How did she react?”

  “She kissed me and told me she couldn’t give up her power for something she couldn’t tell was real.”

  “She wants to remain a Goddess.” It’s not the same situation as Diana, after all. Ari hasn’t been a Goddess for long. She hasn’t had the time to become desperately lonely.

  “And she can,” he tells me.

  I know the moment he says it, it’s true. Ari didn’t choose this path, she was tricked onto it. She didn’t know there was another option. She thought it was her destiny.

  “I can help her become a Goddess of Love.” That’s why he came to me.

  He nods. “Will you help?”

  “Of course.”

  Chapter Fifty-Three

  Asher

  I’m pretty sure the guy who gets into the elevator as we exit is Xander Kraus. Eli frowns and glances back, so I’m certain he realised it too. As soon as the doors close, he turns to me.

  “That can’t be coincidence.”

  I move quickly to the hotel room door and the bodyguard holds it open for me, which is just as well considering my hands are full of donut boxes.

  “Eden,” I call out, as I put the box down on the coffee table.

  She comes out of the bedroom a moment later, dressed and with a tight smile on her gorgeous face.

  “Hi, Asher. Eli. There’s been a change of plans.”

  Eli puts the coffee containers down and we glance at each other warily as Eden sighs.

  “It’s a long story, but I need to go see Arianna.”

  “Does it have anything to do with Xander Kraus?”

  She nods slowly. “Not in the way you think, but yes.”

  She picks out a donut and starts looking around. If I had to guess I’d say she’s trying to remember where her shoes are. She kicked them under the couch, but I doubt she’ll realise that until she’s checked everywhere else. Good. That gives us time.

  “We’re going with you,” Eli tells her, picking up his coffee and taking a drink.

  She hesitates before nodding. “Okay.”

  “Did Arianna send him here?” I touch her arm and her conversation with Xander pours through me. I glance at Eli. “He wants Eden to turn Arianna good. She was never meant to be Dark Forces.”

  “Guess I was wrong about it being a long story,” Eden murmurs, before taking a bite of her donut.

  Eli’s frown deepens. “Who was the third potential?”

  Good point. If Nick doesn’t accept Logan, and Xander and Arianna are out, what does that leave?

  Eden winces. “He’s married so it doesn’t matter. I’m not going to look for him. It doesn’t matter. There are other potentials, they’re just less likely to be bumped into anytime soon.”

  Where the hell is Nick anyway? I seriously need to speak to him. Every minute Eden’s fourth is in question, is a moment where she’s at risk for potential threats.

  I get my cell out and send him a message. He doesn’t reply immediately. I begin to wonder what the trouble was at the bar. How bad could it be? Should one of us go and check on him?

  “So, anyway, I need to go see Arianna, right now.” Eden puts her half eaten donut down now that she’s located her shoes under the sofa.

  I glance at Eli. If Arianna is truly Dark Forces, it would be best if I went with her. She might not be able to influence either of us, but there’s nothing to stop her taking a shot with something physical. It’s not so much that I want to be shot at again, it’s more that at least it can’t kill me.

  I get out my phone as we make our way down to the elevator. I text Eli quickly and put the phone away. He checks his while we’re on the way down, but only after I nudge him and make a phone-call gesture with my hand at him when Eden isn’t looking.

  He stares at me after he checks it, a scowl beginning to form on his face before he nods curtly. He doesn’t like it, but he knows I’m right. I’m the only one who can go with Eden. Anyone else would be a weakness. We need to play this safe.

  Chapter Fifty-Four

  Eli

  I tell Eden the message was from Nick and that he needs my advice on an incident that happened at the club. I pull out some convoluted excuse about a complicated insurance issue he’s trying to work out and no-one questions a word of it. Asher even gives me an impressed nod. As pissed as I am that I can’t go with them and protect Eden, I know he’s right.

  I walk to Nick’s nightclub and go around back while I call him. He doesn’t pick up. I press the buzzer but he doesn’t let me in. Asher was probably right to be worried. This seems more than a little odd.

  Picking the lock, I get inside and close the door behind me. There’s an elevator at the end of the hall. It doesn’t seem to be locked. The doors ping open when I press the call button. I step inside and punch the button labelled ‘apartment’. There’s another labelled ‘club’ that I might try next if he isn’t home. After that, I’m all out of ideas.

  I step out into a lavish apartment. The shades are drawn and the lights are out so the place is shrouded in darkness. I find the switch and hit it. The place slowly begins to brighten. It looks like a show home, nothing out of place. No clothes lying around. No signs of life.

  “Nick,” I call out, as I walk through the main, open plan area.

  It seems unlikely that’s he’s here, but I may as well check around now that I am. The bedroom is messy. Clothes on the floor, bed unmade. I see a pair of silky red panties and I can’t stop staring. It’s not that Eden would never wear silk, but every pair of panties I’ve seen her wear have been lace.

  I move around the bed and find a matching bra. Too small to belong to Eden.

  It’s a bad move for a cop to jump to conclusions, but it’s unavoidable. Deducing is a part of the job. This doesn’t look good for Nick, and that makes me feel a little sick inside. If he’s been out all night with another woman, Eden’s going to have more than one replacement to have to think about.

  Anger begins to well up inside me. How could he do this? I thought I had a good handle on what he was about, but this feels like a major backslide. I can’t believe he could do this to Eden. It’s not even as if a Dark Forces Goddess could coerce him into this. He’s supposed to belong to Eden. This is a betrayal of that.

  I move on to the bathroom and find some make-up items scattered around the sink. It makes me wince. Whoever this girl is, it doesn’t look like a one-time thing.

  I get my phone out and leave him a message, telling him not to come back to Eden’s hotel room. It gets a little threatening toward the end, but I can’t seem to help myself. I’m pissed at the idiot. He fucked up. And I’m going to have to be the one to tell Eden.

  “Damn it.”

  Why the hell does Asher have to be the immortal one? I could have done without being the messenger on this.

  Chapter Fifty-Five

  Logan

  Everything is different since I found out about Goddesses. I was isolated in Rapture. I didn’t even consider the existence of others. Here, I watch everything closely. Like today, back at Skyler’s side while she runs through a practice with the Hellcats.

  Sky is naturally extremely attractive and has incredible stage presence, but next to the blue-haired lead guitarist who calls herself Raven, she pales in comparison. That woman walks the stage like she owns it, as if it bends to her command. There’s something darkly piercing about her gaze and that smile her royal blue lips wear is cunning, slyly confident.

  Apparently, she has no singing talent to speak of, but when she talks her voice is low and raspy an
d I don’t think it would matter if she couldn’t carry a note. The audience would fall over themselves to do anything she asked. I’m not sure exactly what it is about her that trips my Goddess detector, but I know she’s one of them and I doubt it’s the good kind.

  “Time for a break,” she says, putting her guitar on its stand as the other girls groan.

  “We’ve barely gotten one song down,” Kira, the pink-haired drummer complains.

  Sky frowns at Kira before shrugging. “If Raven wants to fill her lungs up with smoke, let her.”

  Raven stalks off stage, presumably going to the fire exit to sit on the stairs and light a cigarette. She shows no sign of caring if the others are moaning about how much she’s delaying this practice session. I used to just think she was a diva. Now I know, it’s worse than that.

  Worse still, that woman is going to be on tour with Eden. There’s no way that doesn’t spell trouble.

  “How did she get in the band anyway?” I ask idly, only realising I’ve spoken out loud when Skyler sighs and answers me.

  “She showed up to the audition and blew the producer and our manager away with her shredding. Of course, it helps that she looks the way she does. They turned down a girl with a few extra pounds on her, who was just as talented.” She shrugs. “I fought for the other girl. I could tell she’d be a hard worker, but they wanted the bitchy sex-siren. Better for our image, or whatever.”

  “She’s a witch,” Kira mutters.

  Sky glowers at her before turning back to me. “I just want to get through another couple new songs and get the hell out of here. Lawson’s recording today. I want to go watch that.”

  I realise she’s ignoring Kira and remember over-hearing that she kicked the girl out of the Hellcats. Guess that didn’t take. “Do you like anyone in this band?”

  Skyler laughs. “I’m just in a pissy mood, Logan. Don’t let it twist your panties.”

  The blonde girl on keyboards pulls a face and I know I’m right. Sky isn’t friendly with any of these women. It’s not that surprising when they were put together by a record company, I guess. It’s not like they were friends who formed a band.