As he told me about his stepdad and the terrible things the monster had done to him, I listened, careful to not let what I was feeling show on my face or even by a quiver in my body. I was sickened, horrified that those things had happened to the man I loved. In no way did it make me love Drake less or want him any differently. I skimmed my fingers up and down his arm, offering comfort in the only way I knew he would let me.
“My mom killed herself,” Drake told me, scrubbing his hand over his tear streaked face. “She shot Rusty with the cop’s gun because no one expected her to grab for it. Two shots, right in the middle of his chest. Then before Shane or Nik or any of the cops could stop her...she turned it on herself.”
A small sob escaped me, and I buried my face in his chest, aching for him. “I’m so sorry,” I whispered.
His fingers stroked through my hair, soothing me when I should have been the one offering the comfort. “Don’t cry, Angel.” He kissed the top of my head. “She… She just couldn’t handle that she had let the man that close to her sons. It destroyed something inside of her when Shane told her what had happened to him.”
“I’m not crying for her. I’m crying for you,” I told him as I continued to sob, unable to stop the tears. “You were all alone. In a way you still are, despite your brother, the band, and Emmie. You’re all alone with your pain, and I want so much to be the one that helps you… That sounds selfish, I know, but it’s true.”
After a few more minutes of crying, I pulled away and lifted up onto my elbow. “I need a shower.”
“Go ahead.” He yawned. “I don’t think I can keep my eyes open a minute longer.”
When I came out of the bathroom ten minutes later, he was passed out. I used a warm washcloth to clean off the small traces of blood still on him from where he had torn through my virginity, and he didn’t even move. Shaking my head at the way he had the pillow tucked under his chin I pulled on my panties and one of his tee shirts and crawled into bed beside him.
Chapter 6
Drake
I woke with a splitting headache and a sour stomach. Nothing unusual about that.
The girl snuggled up against my side, now that was a surprise. It took me a minute to realize that it was Lana and not some groupie. That was a relief…for about a second. Then I realized I was naked and Lana was only wearing my tee shirt.
I sat up in bed so fast my head and stomach protested at the same time. Lana protested beside me. “Drake, come back to bed,” she murmured, yawning.
“Lana, wake up!” I shook her shoulders.
She blinked her eyes and I was assaulted by those hypnotic whiskey eyes. “Okay, okay. I’m awake.” She pushed the hair out of her eyes. “What’s wrong? It’s Saturday and I want to sleep in.”
“What happened last night?” I demanded, my tone coming out hard and cold. I didn’t mean to do that, but I really needed to know if I had to apologize for something I might have done the night before. The last thing I remembered was Lana tucking the covers around us.
Now wide awake, she frowned. “You don’t remember last night?” she asked with a frown. “Nothing?”
I shook my head. It wasn’t unusual for me to not remember after chugging liquor like I had the night before. I blacked out when I did stupid shit like that. “No. Nothing. Did something happen?”
She stared up at me for what felt like an eternity, but I couldn’t read anything in her eyes or expression. No emotion crossed that beautiful face. Finally, she gave me a smile, and I tried to pretend like I didn’t notice it hadn’t reached her eyes. “No, Drake. Nothing happened last night.”
“Then why are you wearing my shirt?” I couldn’t help but ask.
She shrugged. “I needed something to sleep in.” She pushed the covers off and stood. With her back to me, she bent down and picked up her clothes. “I’m going to use your shower so the whole house doesn’t freak out and assume something happened too,” she called over her shoulder as she headed for the bathroom.
I sat on the edge of the bed, watching her until the door was closed. Her answer hadn’t exactly set me at ease, and I searched for proof that something had happened. No damp spots on the sheets. The sheets didn’t smell like sex. I fell back on the pillows, relieved. The first time I kissed, touched, made love to Lana I was going to be stone cold sober. If I had done that last night, it would have ruined everything. All the plans I had for our future would be destroyed.
I quickly got dressed and headed downstairs, wanting to give Lana her privacy. It wasn’t lost on me that I had woken up without the sheets tangled and the place reeking of my fear and sweat. I couldn’t remember any nightmares haunting me last night. It had to be because Lana had slept in my arms, and I wondered how I could get her to sleep there again without anything happening between the sheets.
I found Layla making breakfast, humming softly as she scrambled eggs and fried some steaks. My stomach growled as I poured myself a cup of Jesse’s special coffee. “Morning, Layla,” I greeted as I took my first sip of thick, bitter coffee.
She turned to me with a smile on her face that was bright enough to light the entire house. “Morning, Drake. Are you hungry?” She turned two of the steaks and then reached into the oven to check on the biscuits.
“Starving.” I fell into a chair at the kitchen table. “You look happier than the last time I saw you. Things okay now?”
She turned with a pan full of hot biscuits. “I want to apologize to you for yesterday. I overreacted to something I heard and…” She sighed and shook her head. “I’m sorry I put you through that.”
“Hey, baby!” Jesse walked into the kitchen in nothing more than a pair of jeans and a grin. “God, that smells good.” He placed a kiss on her lips and reached for the coffee pot. “Morning, Dray. You ready for Vegas?”
I blinked, not sure I was following him. “What’s happening in Vegas?” Were we doing a show that I had forgotten about?
“I asked Layla to marry me yesterday, and we don’t want to wait. So we’re all going to Vegas later.” He swallowed his coffee and poured some more into his mug. “You gotta come, man. I need you all there.”
I grinned. “I wouldn’t miss it for the world, bro.” I assured him. He had no idea how happy he had made me. If he was marrying Layla, then Lana would be around for a long, long time.
I was just digging into my steak and eggs when Shane came into the kitchen. He was sweating from his run, but he was grinning. I wasn’t sure if it was because he was happy for Jesse or if he was excited about getting to go to Vegas for the weekend. More than likely it was the latter. There was too much shit he could get into, and he was ready for it all.
“Dude, I can’t believe you’re getting married and we don’t get to do the bachelor party thing. I’ve been looking forward to this since Layla whipped your ass into saying you love her.” Jesse gave him a glare, but Shane pretended not to notice. “Come on, man. Give us tonight and you can marry her in the morning.”
“No. I’m not spending another night without her as my wife. You fuckers can go out and pretend I’m hiding in the bathroom or something.” Jesse tossed a biscuit at Shane’s head. “Leave me out of it.”
“It won’t be any fun without you,” Shane whined. “You know Nik won’t join us, and Drake doesn’t do parties anymore.”
“Poor little thing.” Layla laughed. “I’m sure you can find some kind of debauchery to get into on your own. It’s Vegas, the City of Sin. Sin and Shane go hand in hand.”
I rolled my eyes at my brother. “I’ll go with you.”
“Really?” Shane looked excited again. “You won’t bail on me for Lana?”
“I promise.” I guess I had been doing just that lately. Maybe Shane and I needed some quality brother time. Of course, when it came to my brother that usually meant strippers or hookers, or something else that involved women with as few clothes as possible.
Lana
As soon as Lucy was home from her sleepover, we all packed the Escalade. I
t had room for seven, but with the baby’s seat and three extra people, Shane decided to take his car too. Despite the rocky start to my morning, I climbed in the cramped backseat of the disgustingly expensive, sex on wheels car.
With Shane behind the wheel and Drake riding shotgun, I wondered if I would make it to Vegas in one piece. Still, they had me laughing, and the five hour trip seemed to fly by. We pulled up to the hotel, jamming to some rock music that I had gotten to like over the last five hours. Shane had insisted on listening to the same songs over and over again until I knew every song by heart.
Nik pulled in behind us just as a valet took Shane’s keys. Emmie, efficient as always, had us checked in and in our rooms in less than fifteen minutes. Jesse and Layla got the honeymoon suite on the top floor while the rest of us were on the same floor. Drake took the room next to mine and Lucy’s, and Shane opted for the one at the end of the hall. Nik and Emmie got the one a few rooms over.
I loved our room. Lucy, hyped up from having to spend so long in a vehicle, was jumping on one of the queen sized beds while I took a minute to look out the window at the Strip. It was beautiful in the evening light, and I couldn’t help but stare down at it in wonder.
A connecting door led into Drake’s room, and I knocked twice before he answered. He had a tooth brush in his hand, probably to get the taste of Red Bull out of his mouth since he and his brother had chugged several each on the drive.
“Hey, neighbor.” I grinned up at him as I made myself at home in his room, which was an exact copy of my own except his bed was a king where mine had two queens.
“You should be getting ready,” he called from the bathroom where he was rinsing out his mouth. “Aren’t you supposed to be meeting Layla and Em downstairs to go dress shopping?”
I sighed. “Are you trying to get rid of me, Drake?”
“Of course not. I just don’t want you to keep the bride waiting.” He stuck his head out of the bathroom. “You seriously need a nap, Angel. You’re starting to sound like a cranky bitch. It started just outside of the Nevada state line.”
I gave him the finger and turned toward my room. “Nice. I’ll talk to you later, asshole.”
Strong arms wrapped around my waist before I could reach the door. “Don’t leave mad,” he murmured against my ear. My shiver was involuntary, making my entire body come alive. “I’m sorry I called you a bitch...” he kissed the back of my head “...but you have been cranky.”
I closed my eyes. He was right. I had been cranky. The events from the night before and this morning kept replaying in my head, and I wanted to hit something. I had been stupid and now I was paying for that stupidity.
“You’re right. I’m sorry.” I leaned into him for another few seconds before pulling away. “I’ll try to do better,” I promised, shooting him a forced smile over my shoulder.
Lucy and I met Layla and Emmie downstairs. There was plenty of time to shop for dresses since Layla wasn’t looking for the typical wedding dress. “Just something beautiful,” was her only requirement.
Emmie, having been to Vegas a few times, knew some really good boutiques that didn’t cater to the trashy and nasty. We all found something pretty to wear, except for Lucy. She required an additional stop. I loved Emmie’s silver dress. It ended about mid-thigh and showed off her milk filled breasts beautifully. My own was a shimmery blue that was a little more conservative in length but just as daring at the bust. I had them and tonight I wanted to make sure that Drake realized I had them too.
Nothing compared to Layla’s dress. It was creamy beige and hugged her curves, letting everyone see her for the goddess she was. The sheer happiness shining from her big chocolate brown eyes made my breath catch when I saw her after we had all showered and gotten dressed.
A car was waiting for us down stairs. Lucy tugged at her blue lacy dress, not used to wearing a dress at all. “You two look beautiful,” Layla murmured as the car pulled into traffic.
“Not nearly as beautiful as you, Layla,” I assured her, blinking back tears. “I’m so glad you’re happy. No one deserves it more than you.”
“Stop it,” Emmie scolded gently. “Don’t you two dare start crying! It took me forever to get my makeup just right.” But she was already blinking rapidly, tears filling those big green eyes of hers. Mia cooed between us, letting us know that she wanted in on the conversation too. It broke the serious moment and we all laughed, wiping away the tears that had escaped. Before I knew it, the car was pulling to a stop outside an adorable little chapel.
It was white, and more serious than some of the other chapels in Vegas. The man and woman that ran it had been married for fifty-two years and only married people they deemed truly in love. If they couldn’t see how in love Layla and Jesse were, then they were blind.
Emmie left us in the back of the chapel for a few minutes while she made sure everything was perfect. When she returned she was without the baby and all smiles. “Okay. How would you like to do this Layla? Do you want one of the guys to give you away?”
She bit her lip and glanced from me to Lucy. “No. I think Lana and Lucy should walk me down the aisle. We kind of come as a full package anyway.” She blinked, fighting tears again. “Will you give me away, girls?”
“Of course we will, silly.” I kissed her cheek, careful not to mess up our makeup.
With Emmie leading the way as the matron-of-honor, we walked Layla down the aisle. As we started the short walk, I looked at the front of the chapel. Jesse was all smiles at Layla, the same light shining from his unusual, ever changing eyes.
Beside him stood all three of his band brothers: Nik, Drake, and Shane. I couldn’t help but linger on Drake as my eyes took them all in. Their suits looked new and they probably were. Drake Stevenson looked hot as hell in a pair of ragged jeans and a thread bare tee shirt, but in a suit that looked like it was made just for him? Oh dear Heaven above!
As Lucy and I handed our sister over to Jesse Thornton’s safe keeping for eternity, I was unable to keep my tears at bay a second longer. My sister was so happy she was trembling. Jesse’s fingers actually shook as I put my sister’s hand in his. The owner’s wife discreetly offered me a tissue as I took my place behind Emmie, and I dabbed at my damp eyes.
By the time Layla had said, “I do,” Emmie and I were both quietly sobbing. The owner’s wife tossed rose petals at the happy couple as they walked back down the aisle. I started to follow after them when Emmie rushed into Nik’s arms, sobbing.
“I’m sorry! I’m so sorry. I love you. I want to get married.”
“Ah, Em!” Jesse called from the front of the church. “Couldn’t you have waited a day or so longer?” But he was grinning.
Emmie shook her head. “I don’t want to get married in Vegas. I want to do it right…Not that this isn’t awesome, Layla,” she was quick to correct, “but I want a small wedding back at the house…” She looked up at Nik with hope in her big green eyes. “Will you marry me, Nik?”
He laughed, his ice blue eyes glazed with tears. “Yes, Emmie. I will marry you.”
--
Lucy was exhausted by the time I carried her up to our room. After the wedding we had gone out for dinner and Emmie had pulled out all stops to get us the VIP room at one of the most exclusive restaurants in all of Las Vegas. There had been a full buffet waiting on us as well as a two tiered cake.
I hated to admit it, but Emmie could probably rule the world with her cell phone in hand if she wanted to.
After dinner, Nik and Drake sang one of the band’s new songs as Layla and Jesse shared their first dance as husband and wife. I spent more time watching the way Drake’s fingers strummed across the strings of the acoustic guitar, mesmerized as he played so effortlessly. And his voice! Good heavens his voice made something deep inside of me melt.
From the first time I had heard him sing, I had wondered why he wasn’t the band’s frontrunner. He just shook his head and told me that he didn’t like being front and center on stage. He liked pl
aying from the sidelines.
When Lucy had fallen asleep at the dinner table, I knew it was time to call it a night. Layla and Jesse had taken off for their honeymoon suite more than an hour before and Emmie and Nik were making noises about following. I had hoped that Drake would come up with me, but he had promised Shane a night on the Strip. So with a heavy heart, I had picked up my sleeping sister and carried her up to our room.
After tucking Lucy into her bed, I showered and sat on my bed flipping through channels. Before long, I was yawning and unable to keep my eyes open…
A noise startled me awake. At first I didn’t know where the noise had come from. A glance over at the other bed told me that it hadn’t been Lucy because she was still fast asleep. The television was turned down low, so it hadn’t come from there…
A thumping against the wall made me jump, and I tossed back the covers. It had come from Drake’s room next door, and I was scared something had happened to him. But when I raised my hand to knock on the connecting door, a moan caught my attention.
The moan hadn’t come from Drake. It wasn’t deep and rough, but high and feminine. I held my breath as I leaned in closer, trying to hear better even as my stomach rolled. When the moan came again, louder this time, I knew that they were just on the other side of the door. Another thump and the door vibrated as if someone was pushed up against it.
Tears burned my eyes and bile rose in the back of my throat as I heard the woman moan again and then…Drake’s hoarse growl! I knew what was happening. The only thing that separated me from Drake fucking some random girl was a door three inches thick.
A sob escaped me and I ran for the bathroom, unable to listen a second longer as the woman’s moans grew louder as her ecstasy increased with each passing second. I shut the door and turned on the shower, trying to drown out the sounds coming from the connecting hotel room.
I wasn’t sure how long I sat there on the edge of the bathtub. All I was wearing was a pair of boy shorts and a tee shirt—ironically enough the same one I had slept in the night before because I had needed something of Drake’s touching me while I slept. Now I was cold, the steam from the shower not providing enough heat to warm the coldness that had invaded my very soul.