“Not that I know of, but I don’t know everyone who lives here. The only people I see are Harris and the TK guys. She looked familiar, though. Probably some celeb,” Jenna mused as we waited on the elevator. “Forget about her, Lu. I already have.”
Shrugging, I followed her into the elevator when the doors opened. “How about Mexican on Saturday?”
“Sounds good to me, babe.” Her blue-gray eyes looked uncertain, though. “Are you sure this will be okay with Harris?”
“Jenna, he loves you. Of course it will be okay.”
“I’ve missed him so much, Lucy. He’s the only friend I have left other than Angie. Nat…” Her voice cracked and she shook her head. “She won’t even talk to me.”
I didn’t know what to say to that. I wanted to help her, but I had no idea how or even if I could. Instead, I changed the subject. “Let’s go shopping Saturday morning. We could get our hair cut and a new outfit. Angie and Kin can come with us. We’ll have a girls’ day.”
“Maybe just the two of us?” she suggested. “I’d like to go with the others, but…” She shrugged. “I’d rather it just be us.”
Baby steps.
“Sure,” I said with a nod. “Of course. Just us, I promise. Whatever you want, Jen.”
“Thanks, Lucy.” The elevator slowed down and finally stopped on her floor. “It means a lot to me.”
Chapter 24
Lucy
Marcus pulled to a stop outside of First Bass, but none of us noticed at first because we were all laughing too hard. My Range Rover was overflowing with chicks. Jenna, Angie, Kin and Kassa had all piled in with me when we’d left Jenna’s apartment earlier. Meaning Jace—and Gray, because he wasn’t about to let Kassa leave without him—had to take a taxi since there was zero room for anyone else.
“Did you see his face?” Kin said with a laugh as she finally turned to watch through the back window as the taxi the guys had taken pulled up behind us. “Kas, what have you done to Gray? He looked like he was going to bust a nut he was so pissed.”
Kassa twisted around in the middle of the back seat to follow Kin’s gaze. “I swear I don’t know what his problem is. He’s been like a bear with a sore head for the last few weeks. I can’t freaking leave the apartment without him.”
I watched with amusement as Jace and Gray got out of the taxi and Gray came to the back door, where Jenna and Angie had squeezed in with the other two, and opened it. Kin got out first and stepped right into Jace’s arms for a welcoming kiss. Kassa took a little longer to get out, her amusement gone now as she frowned up at her new roommate. “I worry about you sometimes, Gray. You’re going to have a stroke if you don’t relax.”
“I’ll relax when you stop doing crazy things,” he grumbled. “I don’t like you going to the club without me. If I hadn’t shown up when I did you would’ve gone alone.”
“Jace is with us, and I have four other girls with me. I wouldn’t have been alone, dumbass.” She shot him an irritated look over her shoulder and joined her brother on the sidewalk.
I waited until everyone else was out before opening the front passenger door. Marcus was already on the sidewalk, handing the keys over to the valet. I kept my focus on the club in front of me and the long line of people waiting to get in. The flashing lights from the cameras of the paps across the street had my own amusement fading and I gritted my teeth as I headed straight for the entrance.
I knew they didn’t know about my secret, but now that so many people who were close to me did, I couldn’t help wondering if one day the paps would start throwing questions at me like, “Been cutting tonight, Lucy?” or “Keeping the blades sharp, Lucy?”
Jace was already waiting with the door open and I gave him a small hug as I went inside. As usual, Tiny was waiting at the VIP entrance. He stepped forward as I approached. “Miss Thornton, it’s good to see you. The boss was expecting you an hour ago. Did you run in to traffic?”
“Traffic, a raging rocker…” I glanced at Gray, who just crossed his massive arms over his chest and gave me a lift of his dark brows. “You know how the artistic types are so fickle, Tiny.”
The big, dark man grinned. “That I do, Miss Thornton.” He stepped aside and the others started up the stairs to the VIP floor. “Enjoy your evening.”
“Thanks, Tiny.” Marcus was at my back as I started up the stairs. Halfway up, my phone started ringing and I would have ignored it if it hadn’t been my dad’s ringtone. Frowning, I pulled my phone out of my back pocket. “Hey, Daddy. What’s up?” He’d known I was going to First Bass tonight and I probably wouldn’t be home until late.
“Hey, Lu. You busy right now?”
There was something in his voice that had my heart clenching. “Hold on a second, Daddy.” I got to the top of the stairs and moved away from my friends so I could hear him better. “Is everything okay?”
“No, baby, it’s not.” He blew out a harsh breath and I could have sworn I heard tears in his voice. My free hand clenched into a tight fist, my nails biting into the palm of my hand. “I’ve been thinking about this long and hard, Lucy. I think…”—another harsh sigh—“…I think you should stay with Harris.”
“What?” I couldn’t have heard him right. No way would my dad suggest that. Hell, I would love to stay with Harris. If I was with him, I knew I would be able to sleep. He would wrap me up in his arms and I’d fall asleep to the sound of his heartbeat under my ear and his heat making me feel safe.
“You don’t sleep, Lucy. I find you walking the floors or passed out on the couch with the sun coming up. I’m worried that something will happen…” He broke off and I sank my teeth into my bottom lip. His worry wasn’t unfounded. I’d been having the same thoughts race through my mind as much as he apparently did, only my worries were quickly followed by the urge to do the damn things I was so worried about. “You need to sleep, and I don’t think you’ll do much of that here without the boy to keep you grounded. It’s killing me to let you move out, Lucy, but I want you to be happy and I know that you won’t be unless you’re with him.”
“Daddy…” I leaned back against the wall, needing it for support after what he’d just said. Tears filled my eyes, but I blinked them back. “I-I don’t know what to say.”
“Just tell me you love me, Lu. And promise you’ll call me every day.” I knew for sure he was crying now, and the thought of my big, strong daddy crying was like a deathblow to the chest.
“I do love you, Daddy. I swear I’ll call you every single day.” I quickly dashed away a tear that had slipped free. “And I’ll come see you every weekend.”
He cleared his throat. “Good. I’m glad we got that sorted. I…I’ll let you get back to your friends, Lu. Call me tomorrow, and Mom and I will bring your stuff over. Love you, baby.”
“I love you too, Daddy.”
I stood there, just staring down at my phone long after he’d hung up. I couldn’t believe what he’d just said. What he’d just done. Jesse Thornton was my hero in every way possible. Everyone who knew him knew that his letting his only daughter move in with her boyfriend was a step that he wouldn’t ever take without first beating the boyfriend to a bloody pulp. Yet he had, because he realized I needed Harris more.
“Hey.” Kin stepped up beside me with a concerned look on her face when she saw the proof of my tears. “Everything okay?”
“Yeah,” I murmured and gave her a small smile to show her I was fine. “Yeah. Just my dad.”
“Good. Come on, let’s get a drink.” She took my hand and tugged me toward the bar. “Jace went downstairs to get Harris so let’s find a place to sit before they get back.”
The bar was crowded and we couldn’t even squeeze in to order. Grimacing, I moved to the end and stood on tiptoes to see over the heads of the VIPs in front of me. I saw Nate putting a few beers on the bar top. “Nate!” I called out to him and waved my hand.
“You two, move it,” Nate ordered and like magic there was s
uddenly a clear spot at the bar. His unusual eyes brightened when he saw me and I stepped forward to hug him across the bar. “Hey there, beautiful. How’ve you been?”
I hugged him tight, then stepped back. “I’ve been good. Really, really good.” I grinned up at him. “Heard you got a promotion. Congrats. You deserve it.”
“Thanks, Lucy.” His eyes went behind me to the other girls I’d brought, lingered on Kassa, and then moved back to me. “The usual?”
“Five ginger ales, please.”
Setting the glasses on the bar top, he shot me a wink. “Don’t be a stranger.”
“I think I can make that promise.” He grinned and I waited until he went to the other end of the bar before handing out the drinks.
“So that’s why Gray gets testy when you come here without him,” Kin murmured with a grin in Kassa’s direction.
“Nate is just a friend,” Kassa assured her, but I could see the slight blush that filled her cheeks. “Just don’t say anything to him about Nate, okay?”
“My lips are sealed, babe.”
“Where is Gray anyway?” Angie glanced around the room. “I thought he was right behind us?”
“There he is.” Jenna pointed him out and we all looked across the room to find him talking to a blonde with legs that went on for miles. He was leaning against the wall, but his eyes were predatory as he kept them on the chick in front of him.
“On second thought, mention Nate as much as you fucking want.” Kassa took a long swallow of her ginger ale and set the glass back on the bar top. “I think I’ll hang out over here for a little while. Y’all go have fun.”
“We’ll stay with you. There’s nowhere to sit anyway.” All the couches were taken and there wasn’t a free chair in the place. It was the typical Friday night crowd and I was so proud of Harris for all his success with First Bass.
“She looks familiar.” Kin took a longer look but shook her head. “I can’t make out her face from here, but I swear I’ve seen her before.”
“Of course you have,” Kassa muttered. “She’s one of those standard, run-of-the-mill, skanky-ass groupies. They’re a dime a dozen around our place.”
“Gray’s a douche. Ignore him.”
I couldn’t disagree with Angie’s observation. I thought Gray was a douchebag from the first time I’d met him. But I’d seen the way he was with Kassa earlier and even when he’d been pissed, he’d still looked at her like she was precious. I wasn’t about to say that to her right then, though. Kassa looked green with a jealousy I knew all too well. I’d experienced it a million different times over the years before Harris had become mine.
“Wait, I don’t think he’s trying to get in her pants,” Jenna observed as she continued to watch Gray.
We turned our attention back to the couple across the room. Jenna was right. The look on Gray’s face wasn’t that of a guy trying to seduce his way between a chick’s legs. At second glance, he looked bored and more than a little irritated. I saw him lift his head in our direction. The blonde glanced toward us and Kassa quickly turned away, but I couldn’t look away for some reason. Like Kin said, the chick looked familiar to me.
“Is that the chick from earlier?” Jenna asked as she took a step closer to me.
It clicked in my head then. “Yeah, I think that is her.” The same mile-long legs, the same long ponytail minus the ball cap. She was wearing a different outfit, but it was no less expensive or trashy. She looked like a chick on the prowl for a man, but as I watched Gray continue to talk to her, I came to the conclusion that he wasn’t the man she was prowling for.
“Great, here she comes.” Angie sighed. “What the fuck? Why is she smiling like that?”
My earlier distaste for the chick only grew as she walked toward us. The smile that was on her face gave her a mean-girl look that set my teeth on edge. I clenched my jaw, trying to fight the desire to punch the bitch in the face. Who the hell was she and what the fuck did she want?
She stopped right beside us. “So you’re the one?” Her tone was cool and had a sharp edge to it.
It took us all a second to realize who she was talking to, but her gaze was right on me. “The one what?” My tone was just as cold, with more of a bite. I hated her and I didn’t even know her name.
“The one who thinks she can take Harris away from me.”
Awesome. She was not only a bitch, but a total nutcase. I wondered if I would have to serve time if I tore up a mentally ill chick’s pretty face.
Chapter 25
Harris
Between Nate and Barb, the work I had to catch up on was minimal. That was a relief because I wasn’t sure I had it in me to give an avalanche of work piled on my desk the attention it needed. Every two seconds my thoughts went from work to Lucy and all I wanted was to be with her.
Fuck, I missed her.
I’d seen her just the day before, and I knew I would see her before the end of the night, but I missed her regardless. Spending the daytime hours with her wasn’t enough. I couldn’t sleep without her so I hadn’t gotten nearly enough sleep lately. All I wanted was to spend every free second with her—loving her—and that wasn’t possible.
Grimacing, I tossed my pen on the desk and reached for my phone. She should have been at the club over an hour ago, but she’d texted me to let me know she was running late. I was twitchy like an addict needing his next fix just for the sight of her—the sound of her voice in my ear.
The sound of my elevator had my head snapping up. I watched hopefully as the doors opened, aching for it to be Lucy.
Jace stepped out with a smirk on his face. “Yo, man. Let’s get going. The girls are upstairs waiting.”
“Lucy?”
He nodded and I blew out a relieved breath. “She should have texted me when she got here.”
“She was on the phone when we got upstairs,” he assured me. “You done for the night?”
“Mostly. Everything else can wait, though. I’ll get it handled tomorrow or let Barb finish on Monday night.” I pushed back from my desk and grabbed my keys. As I stepped into the elevator, my phone went off and I bit back a curse when I saw who it was.
Jesse Thornton. Damn it. I hadn’t even seen his daughter yet and he was probably calling to ask what time I would get her home. Knowing I couldn’t ignore him, I lifted the phone to my ear. “Hello?”
“Harris, you got a minute?” His voice sounded choked but cool and I punched the second-floor button, figuring I wasn’t going to like this conversation even a little bit.
“Yes, sir. I always have time for you, sir.” Whether I wanted to talk to him or not, I would make time for him when he needed to talk to me. He was going to be a huge part of my future, after all.
“I just spoke to Lucy, but I wanted to speak to you about this personally as well.” My gut clenched because he sounded…strange.
“Is Lucy okay?” Please, God, let her be okay. Jace had said she was upstairs, but that didn’t mean shit. She could be having a bad day, but I didn’t know it. Fuck, why hadn’t I called her?
“She’s fine, boy.” He blew out a ragged breath. “Mostly fine, I think.”
“What does that mean?” My tone was sharper than I intended but, fuck, I was going to lose my shit if I didn’t know she was all right or not.
“She hasn’t been sleeping at night. Not since we got home. She’s up walking the halls or who knows what else at night. I’m worried about her.” His voice was strained. “She needs you, Harris. I love her enough to admit that she needs you more than she needs me.”
“What can I do to help?” I’d stop time to help her if that was what she needed. Anything, as long as she was safe and happy.
“I think it would help her if she moved in with you.”
The elevator stopped but I pushed the closed button so the doors wouldn’t open. Jace shot me a curious look, but I couldn’t have spoken to him if my life depended on it. I couldn’t believe what I was hearin
g. I wanted it so much that I was pretty sure I was having a mental break and was hearing things. No way had Jesse Thornton just told me he wanted his daughter to live with me. I would have done a damn backflip off the top of my club if I thought he was for real right then.
“Can you say that again, sir?”
“She sleeps easier with you around, Harris.” The strain in his voice had doubled now. “She’s happier when she’s with you. Her happiness is all I could ever ask for and that means letting her go so she can live with you.”
“I…” I swallowed hard, and tried again. “I… Thank you, sir. I promise you I’ll take perfect care of her.”
“I know that, boy. If I didn’t I would never let her go.” He cleared his throat. “I’ll let you go now.”
“Yes, sir. Goodbye, sir.” The phone went dead on his end and I dropped my hand, trying to wrap my mind around the reality of what just happened.
Jace nudged my shoulder. “You okay, man?”
“Yeah,” I muttered as a grin lifted my lips. “Yeah, I’m great, man.”
“Good, then maybe you can let us out of this sardine can and we can go see our girls? I’m getting claustrophobic in here with your ass.”
Chuckling, I released the button and the doors opened. Jace stepped off first and my eyes went around the room in search of Lucy. I felt like celebrating after the conversation with her father. This was just one more step in the right direction for us and the future I wanted with her. I’d never imagined it would come together so quickly, but I sure as hell wasn’t going to be sorry it was.
“That Peyton chick’s been looking for you, dude.”
My head snapped to my left when I heard Gray’s voice. He’d obviously been waiting so he could tell me that little bit of news. “Peyton’s in my fucking club?”
I was going to have that bitch arrested. She was becoming too much to deal with. She’d done nothing but call me ever since I’d fired her and the Blonde Bombshells had kicked her out of the band. I’d blocked her number, but she’d only gotten another phone and started harassing me with texts and twice as many calls. I hadn’t been concerned about it, though, not really. She was annoying but hadn’t overstepped any lines.