Reaper's Girl (Rockin' Country #5)

by Laramie Briscoe

  “Garrett,” she whispered, hoping not to scare their son into burying his head in her neck again.

  Blood poured from his lip, but that wasn’t unusual. Garrett had a seat next to her. “Hey, little guy, let me see.” He coaxed EJ to look over at him, lightly pushing EJ’s lip up.

  Shell arrived with a washcloth, letting Garrett take it from her. He started cleaning the blood from EJ’s nose and lip, breathing a sigh of relief when he didn’t think he saw anything broken. EJ was starting to calm down too; the tears were still streaming, but he wasn’t sobbing and he could sniffle. That made Garrett feel better.

  “What have we got here?”

  The parents looked up as they saw a female EMT with a huge first aid kit hurrying towards him. Her eyes took in the scene quickly, and she had a seat with them.

  “He was running towards me,” Hannah explained. “His feet got tripped up, he hasn’t been running that long, and he took a header into the floor.”

  The female EMT smiled at EJ, handing him a stuffed animal. “That’s okay, we’ll fix you up.” She reached out, and EJ went willingly into her arms.

  “Did he lose consciousness?” she asked the worried parents as she held the washcloth to his lip and using a penlight to look in his eyes.

  “I don’t think so,” Hannah answered. “Almost as soon as he smacked the floor he started screaming bloody murder, and then he wouldn’t let me see it, but I’m confident he didn’t hit the top of his head, I think it was the middle portion.”

  “I think you’re right,” she agreed as she put the penlight down. “He’s not exhibiting signs of a head injury.” She felt along his hairline and his forehead. “And I don’t feel any swelling.”

  “What about his teeth?” Garrett asked, asking the question she wondered about too.

  “I think they’re fine.” She slipped her gloved finger up under his lip, feeling around. “I know it hurts,” she soothed him as he pulled back. Lifting his lip up, she showed the two of them. “I think he cut his lip on his teeth, they aren’t loose or anything.” She tried to move them with her fingers. “I think he got really lucky.”

  Hannah sagged into Garrett, realizing their son had indeed gotten very lucky.

  “He’ll probably be bruised for a few days. I’d ice it to keep the swelling down. If you still have a teething ring, that would probably be perfect, and children’s Tylenol for the pain.”

  “Thank you,” Garrett told her. Picking EJ up, he breathed deeply into his son’s head as EJ wrapped himself around his dad’s body.

  “No problem.” She grinned. “That’s what I’m here for.” She paused. “Well, that and the concert.”

  Hannah grinned back at her. “I don’t know how I’m going to get on that stage after I’ve been scared to death.”

  “You’ll do fine and so will he. Kids are very resilient.”

  “Hannah, we really need you in hair and makeup.”

  It was on the tip of her tongue to tell them tough shit, she had a son who needed her, but she knew she had to work. “Will you be okay?” She pushed EJ’s hair back from his forehead.

  He shook his head, reaching out for her. Obviously when little boys got hurt, they just wanted their moms. She’d make this work because she knew she had to. They couldn’t fail on the first night of the tour.

  Shell appeared with a washcloth wrapped in ice. “Here ya go.”

  Hannah grabbed it, meeting Garrett’s sympathetic eyes. This was what being a mother meant. “C’mon, EJ, wanna see what hair and makeup looks like?”

  Later on, she shared a picture on her Instagram of her with her hair in rollers, her face halfway done, holding her sleeping son in her arms with an already bruising mouth and nose. She captioned it:

  When your son scares you to death by falling on a concrete floor – opening night of the tour has to go on – as does being his mom. #momlife #tourlife #thankful #blessed

  It wasn’t a surprise to anyone that even though the day had started off with such a stressful situation, Harmony Stewart brought her A-game and delivered for a sold-out show of fans in Chicago.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  * * *

  “I’m not sure how we’re going to keep up with all of these requests for your time we have. People want you on their magazines, they want sound bites, and they want interviews. It’s fucking nuts.” Shell ran her hand through her hair, blowing out a frustrated breath. “I feel like I need an assistant to be an assistant to you. This is a lot to keep up with, Han.”

  They’d always been honest with one another, even when it’d been hard to be, so Hannah knew Shell was telling her the truth.

  “What’s changed?” Hannah questioned, her face pensive as she and Shell went over her schedule. “Like, when did it get to be so much? I was never this in demand before; I kind of don’t understand what caused it. I know I released a record, but I’ve done that before.”

  “Wanna know what I think?”

  “You know I value your opinion probably more than anyone else’s except for Garrett’s, and sometimes yours is much more insightful than his is.”

  Shell paused for a moment, and Hannah knew she was trying to form her words in a way not to cause more anxiety than Hannah already felt. “I think you taking your time off in order to have a family and then being so open—not only about the marriage, but the pregnancy too—has blown you into the stratosphere. Before people looked at you like you were this star who was so unattainable, and then you met a guy, fell in love, got married, and had a family. The two of you are living the American dream; it’s what everyone wants, and you’re doing it. I think it made so many people think you could be their best friend down the street, and now they all want a piece of you. You’re doing so well right now because you’re so well liked. This is organic, Han. Nobody’s going to take it away from you.”

  That was the source of some of her anxiety, and both she and Shell knew it. She was worried it would all go away, including her husband and son, and she’d be left holding an empty life. The empty life she’d had before they came into it. It wasn’t one she ever wanted to go back to. Looking at herself through the eyes she had now, she realized she hadn’t even enjoyed it. It’d been about pleasing other people and not herself. It would be detrimental to her mental health to go back to that life now.

  “I just keep telling myself this could all go away tomorrow, because that’s what I’ve told myself the entire time I’ve been an artist, you know? You don’t wanna get too comfortable where you are because one bad single, one bad shot, or one horrible article can ruin you forever. It’s like I’m constantly waiting for the other shoe to drop, which I know is crazy, but the way this album has blown up, Shell. Can you blame me?”

  Shell had to be just as honest. “No.” She laughed. “In all the years we’ve been in this business together and seen overnight sensations happen, I’ve never seen this with anyone else. You’re number one on three charts right now. The pop, country, and the adult contemporary. You’ve got all the basic bitches covered.”

  Hannah laughed so hard she almost cried. “I needed that. I start taking things too seriously, and then I get in trouble because I get too deeply inside my head. This is scary though, Shell, like when you’re this big everybody wants to bring you down, and that worries me. I have a lot to lose: a family, a child, a career.”

  If people targeted her, it wouldn’t be the first time, but she would not have EJ hurt because of how she chose to live her life. More than anything she worried people would make a spectacle of her son. He hadn’t asked to be born into this lifestyle, and she constantly warred with herself. Did she allow the public to see him or not? In the end she decided to because this was her life, it’s what she did, and no matter what, others would assume he would do it too.

  “We’re not gonna let that happen, Han. We’ll accept the requests from the people we know and we’ll tell the others to kiss our asses. We’re only in week two of this tour, we can’t burn out yet.”

&
nbsp; Hannah knew every word Shell said was right, but it didn’t keep her from worrying.

  * * *

  “Are you sure you wanna come with me? It’s just a radio interview,” Hannah explained to Garrett.

  EJ was with Jared for the afternoon, playing out some of his energy on a nearby playground, leaving Garrett alone for the time being. He hadn’t been able to do any of the normal stuff with her because usually he watched their son. Today he wanted to be included. “Yeah, it’ll be fun to see someone else get grilled.”

  She groaned because that was one of her least favorite parts of interviews. More often than not the radio DJ wanted to delve too deeply into her personal life. For a public figure, she thought she shared way more than necessary, hoping to make sure people didn’t want to snoop. “Alright, we’re leaving in a few minutes.”

  An hour later they were at SiriusXM Studios getting fit with mics and meeting the DJs who would be taking part in this town hall for the afternoon. Upon arrival, Hannah found out they were letting fans in to ask questions. As they were going over what was okay to ask and what was not okay, she felt Garrett stiffen next to her, and she heard a low curse.

  “What?” she asked, trying to see what or who had caught his attention.

  “Nothing,” he shrugged it off, “just thought I saw someone I used to know.”

  She wanted to question him but couldn’t as they had her have a seat and then welcomed the group of fans into the room. All through the Q & A session, she kept an eye on Garrett, noticing one of the female DJs not part of her session walking over to him. The DJ approached him and tried to hug him, but Garrett held her back, keeping his arms crossed over his chest as they faced off against each other.

  Hannah tried to tell herself she wasn’t jealous, she was just curious.

  “The story of how you and your husband met, is it true? You met at an awards show?” one of the interviewers was asking.

  Garrett’s head snapped up and he met her gaze. She smiled at him. “It is. He told me to have a good show, and then I saw him again on the red carpet to the after party once it was done. We took a picture together, and I never realized how one picture could change your life. We’ve been together ever since.”

  “And you had a son almost two years ago?”

  “Yeah.” She grinned. “EJ is a handful, but he’s enjoying the touring life right now. So far he’s excited that he seems to get to go to every zoo and nearby playground all these different cities offer.”

  The crowd laughed, but she noticed Garrett didn’t. His attention was still focused on the woman beside him. Jealousy was a foreign feeling for her. She’d never questioned Garrett’s motives with other women—ever—but there was something about this woman she didn’t like.

  It was a struggle to get through the rest of the interview, and Hannah tried to act like she was paying attention, but all she wanted to do was rip the microphone off and ask Garrett who this woman was. She was still standing next to Garrett when Hannah concluded her commitments and made her way over to where they stood.

  As soon as she was within arm’s reach, he grabbed her in his arms, hugging her tightly to him, kissing her passionately. Hannah was as confused as she’d ever been. It wasn’t like they hid their love or passion from people, but they normally weren’t so completely open about it either.

  “I was looking for you,” she said as he pulled back. “But I saw you had a visitor.”

  Garrett looked like he didn’t want to make the introduction, and in the end, he didn’t. Hannah turned to the other woman, and when she did, the obviously not appreciative woman took her shot.

  “Hi, Harmony. I’m a huge fan.” She smiled brightly.

  “Thanks,” Hannah answered, not sure whether to believe her or not. “Nice to meet you…?” She purposely left off the name so she would have to be told.

  “Vanessa, my name’s Vanessa.”

  The Vanessa?

  It took everything Hannah had to as polite to her as she could be. “Oh bless your heart, that’s a beautiful name.”

  Garrett choked back a laugh and grabbed hold of Hannah. “We gotta go, babe. It’s almost EJ’s nap time, and you gotta get ready for the show.”

  As they left, Vanessa waved, telling Garrett how good it was to see him again.

  Hannah didn’t say anything, but when they got to the waiting SUV, Shell asked who they’d been talking to. Without skipping a beat, Hannah glared at Garrett before speaking. “Vanessa of the Vanessa fame.”

  “Oh shit.” Shell laughed. “You’re in so much trouble, and you probably don’t even know it.”

  “I didn’t do anything,” he argued.

  “Do you have anything to reply to that, Han?” Shell asked, because she knew she did.

  “I saw the way she was sidling up to you, trying to touch you, and trying to engage you in conversation. You’re a married man for goodness sakes.”

  “Well, you did tell her to fuck off.” Garrett laughed.

  Shell whipped her head around, staring wide-eyed at her friend. “You did what?”

  “I said bless your heart to her. I didn’t come right out and say it. I wanted to though. She knew exactly who I was and still kept making googly eyes at my husband.”

  “Tell us how you really feel,” Shell encouraged her.

  “If she were a cookie she’d be a whoreo, and that’s the last I’m saying on the matter unless she ever shows up again.”

  Garrett put his arm around her neck, pulling her deeply into his chest, laughing loudly. “You’re cute when you’re jealous.”

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  * * *

  Hannah was dragging after a training session with the personal trainer they employed on tour. Three weeks in and she could feel the effects, even though she was doing her best to stay on top of being healthy and well rested. Touring just wasn’t a place conducive to those two conditions. Climbing onto the tour bus, gritting her teeth when she felt the pull in her glutes, she was met by EJ.

  “Morning.” She kissed his sleepy face, pushing his tousled hair back from his forehead. He still had a slight bruise on his nose, but for the most part, no one could tell he’d fallen so hard recently. He ate a banana, one of the only things he ate consistently, and held his hands up for her to lift him. His favorite thing to do after waking up was cuddle with her, and she had to admit it was her favorite too.

  Picking him up, her thighs screaming, she made her way into the back of the bus, where Garrett was sitting on the couch, his cellphone at his ear. Havock was at his feet, glancing up at his owner.

  “This wasn’t what we planned.”

  Hannah felt bad for the person on the other end of the line. The tone with which he spoke to them was one hundred percent Reaper. She held EJ close to her, letting him munch on his banana as she listened to her husband. When she realized the call was getting serious, she grabbed the tablet they let EJ watch and turned on some cartoons for him so maybe he wouldn’t pay attention to his dad.

  “What am I supposed to do?” He huffed before he grit his teeth so hard that she heard his jaw pop. “You make the calls, right? It doesn’t matter what I was promised or what I have going on in my life, does it?”

  Her stomach pitched, and she suddenly got a very bad feeling about the conversation. Telling herself she wouldn’t jump to conclusions, she curled up on the couch, holding EJ closer, kissing his forehead as he was content to hang out with her. Every once in a while her eyes would search out Garrett, and then she wished she hadn’t. He looked angrier every time they made eye contract.

  “I’m not sure I believe this fucking apology,” he fired off the words into the mouthpiece of his phone. “You know the shit I have going on in my life right now, and the token I’m sorry I just got seems more like a great big fuck you and your family. But whatever.” He ran his hand through his hair. “I’ll make it work like I always do.”

  She watched as he swiped the screen, ending the call, and then promptly threw his phone across
the room. Thankfully, EJ was too engrossed in his show to worry about what was going on around him. It scared Havock though, who tucked tail and ran to the front of the bus.

  “You okay?” Her voice was soft, like she was speaking to a wounded animal.

  “I’m fucking pissed.”

  If she hadn’t been able to tell by his actions or his tone, she could tell by the color of his face. It was blood red, and he held his bottom lip between his teeth, biting into it as he paced the room back and forth.

  “Why don’t you tell me what happened?” She shifted EJ off her, sitting him against the couch and covering him up with a blanket before standing and joining Garrett where he stood with his back to her.

  Silently, she reached around his stomach, hugging him tightly before putting her cheek to his back. The anger and annoyance reverberated off him so hard she was afraid he’d shoot his blood pressure up. They weren’t as young as they used to be anymore. “Calm down, Garrett. Whatever it is, we’ll make it work,” she soothed.

  He was close to the opposite wall, and he leaned into it, propping his hand, letting his head fall on his shoulders before reaching down his stomach and grasping hers with his other. The tension was palpable within his body, and she wished there was something she could do about it. “Tell me,” she encouraged him again. She couldn’t make it better or make any plans if he wasn’t going to be honest with whatever was going on.

  “That was Rick. They want to move up our recording sessions. Before you came out on the tour, we busted ass to finish writing so I could concentrate on taking care of EJ while you worked. Since we finished, they want to expedite everything.”

  In the blink of an eye, Hannah came to the realization she’d always feared they’d come to. While having young children, there was going to be no way they’d be able to each have a career, and it would come down to who was willing to give theirs up, as far as touring and promotion went. “I don’t know what to say,” she admitted, kissing along the edges of his back.