Storming the Castle (Dale Series)

by Arianna Hart

  “Hey, any news?”

  “That’s just what I was going to ask you,” Dave said.

  Damn.

  “Sorry, I thought you were someone else. Things are going great. I’m almost done with the album. I just need a few more weeks.”

  “Excellent. I’ll tell the suits at the record label. They have a new guy they want you to look at for tour manager and some suggestions for studio musicians and producers.”

  “Great.” He could care less about meeting anyone. “I think I may produce this one myself, though.”

  “Seriously?”

  “I don’t feel like arguing with someone about how I want it to sound. It’s going to be a departure from my usual stuff.”

  “How much of a departure? Growth is good, but your fans have come to expect your signature sound.”

  “It’s not fucking easy listening if that’s what you’re worried about.”

  Dave’s laugh sounded a little forced. “That’s funny, Sam Castle being easy listening.”

  There was an awkward pause. For some reason, Dave was rubbing him the wrong way. “Is there anything else? I need to get back to work.” He didn’t say what kind of work, though.

  “Just one more thing. This last album and tour fulfills your contract. You should start thinking about the next one. It takes a lot of time for the lawyers to duke it out, and you’ll want things wrapped up before you go on tour.”

  “Maybe I should look the current contract over again to get an idea of what I want to change.”

  “Do you want me to have a copy messengered over to you?”

  “No, I think I have one somewhere.”

  “Good. Great. So I’ll be seeing you in a couple weeks. Do you need me to get you a flight?”

  “About that. I need a little more time. I’ll get back to you when I’m ready to go. Can you transfer some more money into my account so I can get some cash?”

  “How much more do you need? You just had fifteen large sent last month. If that woman thinks she can milk you for more, she has another think coming.”

  When did Dave become such a tool? “Take it easy. I want some cash on hand to buy…things.”

  “I always take care of getting whatever you want.”

  “And I appreciate it, but I’m not on tour now, so I have time to run to the store myself.”

  “You risk getting recognized if you do that.”

  “Trust me, the risk is low. No one here has even heard of Sam Castle.”

  “If you say so. How much more money do you think you’ll need?”

  Suddenly, Sam realized he had no idea how much money he even had in his account, or how to get to it. When had he turned everything over to Dave?

  Probably when you were stuck in the bottom of a bottle, asshole. Someone had to make sure people got paid.

  “I don’t know. Do I have an ATM card? What bank do I use anyway?”

  “If you haven’t lost it, you should have a bank card along with your credit card. I’ll email you all your info if you really want to get involved in this. Do you want me to have your accountant send you the information on your investments, too?” he asked.

  His tone was kind of pissy. What the hell was his problem?

  “No, I just want to have some cash on hand. Look, I’m not saying you don’t do a good job. I just want to have a little more input now that I’m not…busy on tour.” Dead fucking drunk is more accurate.

  “Fine. I’ll send you the information and tell the suits you need a little more time. They’re getting antsy, though. I can only run interference for so long. Plus, you need to go to some events soon, get back in the public eye before you become yesterday’s news.”

  “I just need a little more time. It’ll be worth it, trust me. Tell you what, why don’t you move into the Malibu house, have a party. If any paparazzi are watching, they’ll think I’m back. Use the household account to hire a caterer and have a rager.”

  “Who do you want me to invite?”

  “Whoever you want. Think of it as a bonus. You might as well stay in the house until I get back. It’s just sitting there empty anyway.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Absolutely. Take a break and have some fun.”

  “Cool. Okay, I’ll send you the bank info and transfer a hundred thou over.”

  “Great. Thanks. I appreciate it, man.”

  Finally, he got off the phone. This was turning out to be a shitty fucking day.

  He didn’t want reality to intrude. He liked the way things had been the last week. Waking up next to Faith and spending nights making love to her was great. He’d written a ton, more than an album’s worth of music. Unfortunately, some of those songs could never go on one of his albums.

  Dave might be an ass, but he was right about Sam’s fan base. As satisfying as it had been to write something that went in a completely different direction, his album needed to stay somewhat within the boundaries of his genre.

  It was too bad some of those songs would never be heard. The one he’d almost finished today embodied everything he felt about Faith and his time in Dale. It definitely wasn’t one of the anti-authority anthems he was known for.

  Maybe he’d record it and give it to Faith as a going-away present. Yeah, that was a great idea. That way she’d always know she meant more to him than just “mutual rocks getting off.”

  Feeling better, he got himself a glass of iced tea and headed back to the bedroom. He had a few more ideas about how he could leave his mark on Faith’s life after he was gone.

  Take that, you redneck bastard.

  Chapter Fifteen

  By the time Faith got through Atlanta traffic and off the highway, her mother had called to tell her they were on their way home from the hospital. Piper had a simple fracture of her left ulna. She’d be in a cast for six weeks.

  Faith had spoken to her baby a few times and felt a little less frantic. Now she just wanted to get to her folks’ house and hold her girl. She was emotionally drained from the worry-filled drive and was riding on fumes and coffee as she headed into the final half hour of her trip.

  She pulled into a gas station with a convenience store and decided to get something to eat and drink. The low-fuel light had dinged on a mile back. There weren’t any other gas stations between here and her parents’ farm, and she wasn’t sure how much farther the big SUV could go.

  It took a little fumbling before she could figure out how to get the gas tank open, but she managed. As she was watching the numbers climb, another car pulled in on the other side of the gas pump.

  She was snapped out of her daze by the sound of someone calling her name.

  “Faith? Faith Adams?”

  Faith craned her neck around the pump to see a redhead looking at her hesitantly.

  “Rebel Duvall. As I live and breathe. What are you doing back here? I thought you were in Savanah with your momma?” Faith put the nozzle back on the hookie thing and ran around to give her friend a hug.

  “I am. I mean, I’m on my way back there now. I was just up at the school for a fundraiser with my father. I’m trying to network, and he’s on the board. You’d think that would help me get a job, but not so much.”

  “I still can’t believe you’re a teacher. My mom told me she saw you a little while back and you’d gotten a degree. You never said a word to me about going to college.”

  “I didn’t tell anyone, except my momma. Just in case I didn’t pass the certification exam. What are you doing here anyway? Picking up Piper?”

  “Yup.” Faith decided not to go into the reason why she was picking up early. She really wanted to get moving.

  “Speaking of Piper, I have a confession to make,” Rebel said, her face coloring slightly.

  “Don’t tell me you’re pregnant.”

  “Good God, no. My social life is deader than Moses, and I’m definitely not a candidate for an immaculate conception. No, it’s about Piper.”

  “What about her?” Faith asked, a sink
ing feeling settling in the pit of her stomach.

  “Last month I was at the annual dinner at the country club with my father and I ran into Matthew’s folks.”

  The sinking feeling got worse.

  “I remember how you told me they wanted nothing to do with Pip, and it ticked me off something fierce. I might be projecting some. Anyway, I went up to them.”

  “Oh no, Reb, what did you do?”

  “Well I bless your hearted them to death and gushed about what a beautiful little girl their granddaughter was, acting like I didn’t know what bastards they’d been. I even took out my phone and showed that picture of Pip you’d sent me to everyone at the table.”

  “Dear Lord, what did they do?”

  “Well, as you can imagine, there were awkward glances and some seriously uncomfortable grand dames, seeing as none of them even knew Matthew had had a child.”

  “I mean, what did Cynthia and John do?” As far as Faith knew, they had never seen a picture of Piper before.

  “Cynthia looked at the picture, I mean what else could she do with all her friends sitting right there looking at her? Then she about stroked out in her fruit salad. Her face turned all pale. I was afraid I’d have to wrestle her to the floor to get my phone back.”

  “I wish I could have seen that.”

  “If the old bat hadn’t hijacked my phone, I would have videoed it for you. Anyway, I hope it didn’t cause you any problems. I know you said you haven’t had any contact with them since Matthew’s funeral, but I wasn’t thinking about the repercussions when I blindsided them. I just wanted to embarrass them for being assholes.”

  “I know. Don’t worry, everything is fine.” Faith felt numb. At least now she knew why the Prentices were suddenly suing for custody. “I hate to run out on you after I haven’t seen you in forever, but I need to get to my parents’ place.”

  “And I need to get on the road back home. Maybe when Pip starts school we can meet half way for lunch or something? I’d love to get up to see your place, but it’s hard to find someone to take care of Momma overnight.”

  “I understand. Text me, and we’ll try to work something out. Please give your momma my love.”

  “I will, say hey to your folks from me, too.”

  “Take care now,” Faith said, hugging her impetuous friend good-bye.

  “You, too.”

  Faith pulled out of the station without getting a snack for herself after all. Her world was spiraling out of control all because Rebel had thought she was doing something for Faith by embarrassing the Prentices.

  There’s nothing you can do about it now. Just focus on getting to Piper.

  The familiar sights of her childhood calmed her down somewhat as she turned onto the dirt road that led to the farm. In almost no time, she was turning into the drive alongside her parents’ farmhouse. Flowers bloomed in abundance, and a dog who was Sadie’s littermate woofed at her from the porch.

  “Quiet, Duke,” Twyla said as she stepped out the screen door, a dish rag in her hands. “Faith, is that you? What happened to your truck?”

  “Hey, Momma. It wouldn’t start and Sam, my…renter, let me borrow his so I could get here.”

  “That was awfully nice of him.”

  “It was. Where’s Piper?” she asked as her mother gathered her in for a tight hug.

  “She’s in her room, resting. The pain meds wiped her out. Come on in, I’ll get your stuff so you can go on up.”

  “Thanks, Momma.”

  The smells of her childhood washed over her as she kicked her shoes off by the front door and headed up to her old bedroom. The scent of spaghetti sauce simmering blended with lemon from her momma’s furniture polish. Faith’s shoulders relaxed a fraction as she climbed the worn stairs. Something about being in her parents’ house made her think everything was going to be all right now.

  The bedroom door was slightly ajar, and Faith nudged it open as quietly as possible. Piper lay curled up on her side, clutching Brown Teddy to her chest, her arm in a bright pink cast. Tip-toeing into the room, Faith squatted down next to the bed and stroked Piper’s hair off her forehead.

  She looked so darn tiny and fragile lying there. Her face held the signs of crying, and her poor fingers were swollen up like sausages, but she was okay. All the fears she’d carried with her for five long hours slowly eased their grip on her heart. Faith dropped a light kiss on Piper’s head and slipped out of the room.

  As she made her way downstairs, her phone buzzed in her back pocket. She didn’t even remember taking it out of the SUV.

  Thinking of you, lmk if you need anything. Sam texted her.

  Her heart flipped over at this little bit of kindness. She was pathetic.

  Doing good. Made it here no problem. Pip is sleeping but okay, she texted back. Her cast is hot pink.

  Perfect. Keep me posted.

  Will do.

  “Who are you texting?” her mom asked, handing her a glass of iced tea.

  “Sam. He wanted to know if I’d made it okay and how Pip was.”

  “You seem to be getting really friendly with this Sam. What do you know about him?”

  “I’ll tell you all about it after I use the bathroom. Hold on.” Faith gave her tea back to her mother and racked her mind about how to explain her relationship with Sam.

  For heaven’s sake, you’re thirty years old. If you want to have sex, you don’t have to worry about what your mother thinks.

  Yeah, right. It wasn’t that her momma would take her to task, but she’d give her that look that said she was disappointed in her. God, she hated that look.

  Unfortunately, no miraculous solutions came to her in the time it took to pee and wash her hands. She’d just have to tell the truth and tough it out.

  “I’m in the kitchen,” her momma called out as Faith exited the powder room.

  “What are you making?” Faith asked, stalling.

  “I thought I’d whip up a batch of Snickerdoodles. I bought some ice cream, and we can have that and the cookies for dessert.”

  “Sounds good. Can I help with anything?”

  “I think I have everything under control. Sit down and relax for a bit. You must be tired after that long drive. How was the traffic?”

  “Horrible in Atlanta, but after that it was pretty light. Oh, Momma, I was so scared.” Faith collapsed in a chair at the kitchen table. “I know you said it was only a broken arm, but my brain kept coming up with a hundred different nightmare scenarios. It sounds stupid now that I’ve seen her, but I couldn’t seem to stop.”

  “Oh, baby, I get it. I hate to tell you, but the worrying doesn’t end once she’s grown and out of the house, either. Little kids, little worries, big kids, bigger worries.”

  “Thanks, that’s so reassuring. I was hoping it got better.”

  “It’s worth it, because eventually your baby has a baby, and you can spoil them rotten and send them home. Do you want some more tea?”

  “I think I’ll switch to water. I’ve had a ton of caffeine today, and my nerves are already a mess.” Faith took her glass to the sink and refilled it. “Where’s Dad?”

  “He’s finishing up the mowing he had to stop when Piper fell.” Twyla shook her head. “I called him and he came running. I’m surprised he didn’t have a heart attack right then and there.”

  “He’s not the only one. I about thought my heart had stopped when you said you were on the way to the hospital.”

  “I debated on whether to wait to call you until we were on our way home, but I knew you’d have torn a strip off me if I didn’t tell you right away.”

  “How right you are.”

  “Now you can relax and let me take care of you for a change.”

  “I’m not going to be able to relax until Pip gets up and I can hug her. If she didn’t look so worn out, I’d wake her up and hug the stuffing out of her.”

  “Good thing you resisted the urge, she needs to rest. If she’s not up in another hour, you can wake her. Sh
e’ll need her medicine by then.”

  “I guess I can wait that long.”

  “You’re darn tootin’ you can. Besides, this gives us a little time to chat.”

  That’s what I’m afraid of.

  “I ran into Rebel Duvall at the gas station on the way here,” Faith said.

  “Really? She was just up here not so long ago.”

  “Yeah, I guess she’s hoping to get a job at the Academy, although with her mom so sick, I don’t know how she’ll manage juggling both.”

  “It’s such a shame. From what you’ve said, her momma isn’t that old.”

  “No, I think she’s only in her fifties. Amazing how young that looks since I’ve turned thirty.”

  “Just wait until you hit forty. I used to look at my mother and think she was older than dirt. She had me when she was nineteen, for heaven’s sake.”

  “Gramma will outlive us all. How’s she doing? I got a postcard from her trip to Puerto Rico, but I haven’t heard much from her since she’s been back.”

  “She’s already planning her next vacation. I stopped in to see her before we picked up Piper, and her table was covered in travel brochures. I think she’s looking at a cruise.”

  “Please tell me it’s for seniors and not a singles’ cruise.”

  “I wouldn’t put anything past her. Between her and Piper, I’m headed for an early grave.”

  “No way, you’ll be running Daddy ragged for years to come.”

  “From your mouth to God’s ear. I hope to have him around for a good long time. I don’t like you being alone, either. Matthew’s been dead for six years. It’s time you found someone else, baby girl. Piper needs a father, and you need a partner.”

  “I will, when the time is right. I’m not going to marry any man just so I’m not alone.” She thought of Sam and how right it felt being with him. There was no way she could settle for anything less than what she had right now, no matter how temporary it was.

  “What about the man who put that sparkle in your eye?”