Sound of Heartache ( Sound of Book 2)

by Roy, Chelsea

  “So wonderful,” she breathed, smiling. She finally opened her eyes to see her daughter perched at the edge of the bed grinning at her. Her hair was neatly combed into two perfect pigtails and she was dressed for the day. “Is that juice for me?” She asked hopefully. Brenna nodded, making the pigtails bounce. Aimee managed an awkward lean forward and snatched the juice from her daughter’s hand, draining the glass in one gulp. Handing the glass back, she slumped back down in the bed.

  “You’re not getting away with wonderful, you know. I need details.”

  “Brenna, baby…” Aimee searched for the right thing to say. She didn’t want to hurt her daughter, but the dynamic between mother and daughter had to change with Brent’s arrival into their lives. “The things that dad and I do are between us. I can’t share everything with you like I used to because it’s between me and him. Do you understand what I’m trying to say?” Aimee hated having this conversation with Brenna because she knew it would hurt her. But she wasn’t going to lie to her daughter, nor was she going to overshare. In Aimee’s opinion, good parental relationships were maintained by keeping the dynamics of the relationship treasured and private between the couple.

  “I just want to know what you did,” Brenna whispered, making Aimee feel even guiltier for drawing boundaries.

  “He took me all over the city. It was wonderful to get to spend time with him and to see the city I grew up in again. It’s been forever since I’ve been home.” She was willing to share that much with her girl.

  Brenna looked around the small suite. “I’m surprised you’re in here. My friend Lacy told me her mom and dad sleep in the same room. That’s what parents who are together do, so I had Jack let me in dad’s suite this morning instead of here.” The simple explanation of what parents were supposed to do made Aimee smile. She sat up in the bed and pulled her daughter into a tight hug.

  “Your friend Lacy is right. Parents who are together sleep in the same bed most of the time.”

  “So why aren’t you with dad then?” Brenna was like a dog with a bone and Aimee had to admire her intrepidness. The truth was, Aimee and Brent had decided during the very late limo ride back to the Ritz that she would be sleeping in the smaller suite where Brenna was to be dropped off in the morning. Although they both hated the idea of being separated after having only one night together, they agreed it was the right thing to do until they had a chance to figure things out a little more definitively.

  Their sleeping arrangements had been just that, though. Brent had brought her into his suite and made excruciatingly slow and tender love to her until she was breathless and panting his name, begging for him release. Aimee’s cheeks heated as she thought of her shameless promises to him while he was between her legs, his wicked tongue making her thighs tremble around his head. She gave an embarrassed cough.

  “We both thought you were coming here this morning and dad fell asleep in his bed, so I came back in here.” Close enough, and it was all Brenna needed to know.

  Laying there in the luxurious hotel bed with her body sore in the best possible way and her daughter cradled in her arms, Aimee was certain life was just about perfect.

  “Do my girls feel like some insanely good French toast?” Aimee and Brenna turned toward the doorway to see a freshly showered and dressed Brent standing there, smiling happily and looking incredibly handsome with no disguise in sight. Her throat suddenly closed with emotion.

  “We’d love some!” She enthused, knowing within her very soul that she was right – life was perfect.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  Brent was just the littlest bit uneasy as he boarded the flight back to San Diego with Eric. Most of the time, he and Eric booked two seats each so they could have some space but Eric said they needed to talk and it needed to be now. Brent had an idea what was on Eric’s mind but surely wasn’t planning to spill his guts mid-air? As he and Eric found their seats, he figured he would soon find out.

  The pre-flight routine had both he and Eric reaching into their bags for their cellphones and earbuds. The band flew all the time so they tried to be productive with the down time. Sometimes Brent would mess around with his music program on his tablet. Other times, he would listen to rough cuts of their songs. Today, though, he felt like zoning out and listening to some of his favorite bands. He stuffed the buds in his ears figuring Eric would get his attention when he was ready to talk.

  It wasn’t until the plane had reached cruising altitude that Brent felt Eric’s large hand land on his forearm. Brent immediately tugged the earbuds out and turned to look at his best friend.

  “Dude, what has Aimee told you about when she was taken away?” Eric looked disturbed, and from what Aimee had told him about what happened when she left San Diego, Brent wasn’t surprised. It was a hard story to hear, especially if you were hearing it with the ears of someone who cared deeply for her.

  “She told me her parents had her committed. I know things were bad, but she was able to escape by climbing over the fence on the 4th of July.” Brent grimaced. The thought of a hugely pregnant and awkward Aimee clamoring over a fence gave him severe heartburn. They were all so lucky she hadn’t been injured.

  “That’s true. But did she tell you anything about what went on while she was in the facility?” Eric shifted in the small airplane seat restlessly. He was agitated.

  “Not really…” Brent said slowly. “She mentioned sedation. Was there something more she should have told me?” He wasn’t sure he wanted to hear whatever it was Eric had to say. It was hard to stomach, but maybe it was better to hear it from Eric than to have Aimee tell it and watch her relive it.

  “Did you know they drugged the hell out of her with anti-psychotics? That’s how they were able to keep her down for so long. They shot her full of the shit so she was too lethargic to go anywhere.” Eric twisted his hands around in his lap and then looked into Brent’s eyes. “It sure as hell was more than simple sedation.” Eric looked tormented, and deeply upset. Aimee must have confided in him when she spent the night in his suite and someone as kind-hearted as Eric wouldn’t be able to keep his feelings inside without exploding. Brent could see the love Eric felt for Aimee there in his eyes, but Eric was doing the right thing for their friendship by telling Brent information he needed to know. He knew how rare of a man that made Eric and loved his friend all that much more for it.

  “Doesn’t that stuff hurt the baby?” He asked, as Eric’s words began to sink in. Brent knew a little about anti-psychotics and anti-depressants. When he was in rehab it was hard not to pick up a thing or two from other patients and prescription drugs, especially those kind, were frequently abused. A sickly feeling formed in the pit of his stomach. What had Brenna been exposed to as a result of Aimee’s parents?

  “Apparently there are different classes of drugs and these don’t cause ‘known’ side effects but they ‘may transmit’ to the fetus. It’s a bunch of shit man.” Eric ran his hands through his messy hair. “I just…Aimee told me this the night she stayed with me and said it was the first time she’d unloaded all of it. And I thought it was only fair that you hear the truth. I know she doesn’t want to tell you because you’ll take on the guilt for all of it and you don’t need to do that. But you do need to know she still carries around some scars inside from everything that happened.”

  “So Brenna was lethargic at the same time Aimee was, then?” Brent surmised. If the drugs did to the baby what they were doing to the mom it stood to reason the baby would have been sluggish.

  “Yeah. Aimee said there were days that Brenna hardly moved at all and Aimee was terrified she’d died. She said the drugs had finally worn all the way out of their systems around the time Brenna was born.” Brent was surprised Aimee hadn’t gone into this more when they’d talked about Brenna’s delivery.

  “I can’t imagine how she coped with all that,” Brent murmured. Aimee was undoubtedly the strongest person he knew.

  “She had withdrawals, dude. Like horrible, moo
dy, depressive withdrawals and she was by herself.” Eric’s voice rose and he twisted his hands together again. “I hate that we weren’t there with her. She was alone and terrified and sick. None of it should have happened!” There was guilt and sadness in Eric’s voice, and Brent could tell he thought maybe he could have done something to prevent what had occurred. Eric feeling guilty wasn’t something he had ever even considered.

  “Eric, man, there was nothing you or I could have done. If I had pushed back, Aimee’s parents would have tossed me in jail and taken her anyway.” Brent was beginning to sorely regret that he hadn’t paid a visit to Aimee’s parents while he’d been in the city and strangled them with his bare hands. How could anyone do that to their child? To their grandchild? Brenna was their flesh and blood for God’s sake!

  “But maybe if we’d planned better, or, hell, something! We could’ve taken her to Mexico.” Brent was shaking his head. He knew where Eric was coming from. He’d been there himself. There were so many ‘what ifs’ it was easy to drive yourself insane with them.

  “Aimee is the strongest woman I know,” he told Eric. “She survived, Brenna is thriving, and we’re all back together now. Things are back on track.” He placed his arm around Eric’s shoulders and pulled him in for an awkward man hug.

  Eric hugged him back for a moment before sitting back in his seat and clearing his throat. “I’m sorry I never told you about this whole thing.” He waved his hands in the air and then dropped them down to his lap where he began a staccato drum beat with his fingers against his jeans. His lean fingers flew as he tapped them restlessly. Brent knew they weren’t talking about what Eric had learned over the weekend.

  “You mean how you felt about Aimee?” Eric nodded and slumped back in his seat.

  “I just never saw the point, ya know? Why even bring it up when I knew it could hurt our friendship? And I never wanted things to get awkward between us.” Eric looked over at Brent and frowned. “I still don’t want things to get awkward between us.”

  Instead of dismissing Eric’s concerns, Brent gave them serious thought. Would he be comfortable with Aimee hanging out with Eric alone? Did he care if Eric saw Aimee in her nightie? More importantly, did he trust them both to do the right thing? He exhaled noisily.

  “Dude, I can’t say it wasn’t a shock to find out because it was. But I should’ve picked up on it sooner. You were always as protective of her as I was and you looked out for her just as much as I did. That should have clued me in.” Brent shook his head at himself for missing such obvious signs. “I guess what I need to know is if you’re going to be okay with all of it? Because Aimee’s it for me and as much as I hate that it might hurt you, I don’t want to change it.”

  He and Eric sat in silence, the hum of the airplane engine providing soothing background noise. This conversation with Eric had to happen at some point but it didn’t make Brent happy to hurt his best friend. He knew Aimee felt the same way and he hoped Eric could get past his feelings.

  “Our friendship is the most important thing to me. You know I don’t have much to do with my family because they disapprove of my lifestyle. When Aimee came along, I just loved her. I couldn’t help it. But I would never come between the two of you. I know it’s one-sided. I’ll get through it. It’ll take a little time, but I’ll get there.” Eric lifted his head and looked into Brent’s eyes. “I promise.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

  Aimee missed Brent horribly. Talking with him on the phone and exchanging silly texts wasn’t even close to being the same as seeing him on a regular basis. It had only been three weeks since she’d seen him but it felt like an eternity. Skype helped. They’d done that a few times and though it was better, it still wasn’t enough.

  Heat burned along Aimee’s cheeks. One of the Skype sessions had been late at night and she and Brent had taken ‘phone’ sex to a whole new level. Watching Brent, having him watch her, was so raw and carnal Aimee knew she would never forget the experience. It was live porn just for her.

  After the weekend in San Francisco and with the help of technology, Aimee was now comfortable saying the geographic distance between their homes was one of the only real problems they faced. The other issue, which in Aimee’s mind wasn’t as easy to deal with, was the fact that even if Aimee moved closer to Brent she would still have to deal with his extended absences when the band went on tour. Being a pediatrician meant she couldn’t just pull up stakes and take time off when the band hit the road. Plus, with Brenna in school…It was an obstacle Aimee knew she’d either have to accept and deal with or reject and lose Brent. She and Brent had danced around the issue of their distance but neither had broached any type of resolution because it meant Aimee would have to decide if she was in it for the long haul.

  Sitting back in her chair in her small office at the pediatric practice, Aimee sighed heavily. She sometimes wished life was a heck of a lot more simple. Instead, there were grow-up decisions to be made, choices to be weighted, and repercussions to be handled. She wouldn’t trade her life for anyone else’s in the world but it would be good to have things a little more settled.

  She glanced at the clock. She had a few minutes until she was scheduled to see her next patient so she grabbed her cell phone and thumbed through her contacts. She hit the little green phone icon when she found the name she wanted and settled in for a chat. When the line connected, she heard baby gurgles in the background.

  “Hello?” An out-of-breath female voice answered. Aimee frowned, confused. Ellie’s voice was normally soft. This woman sounded impatient and a little commanding.

  “Hi, Ellie?” Aimee wasn’t sure if Ellie had programmed in her number when Aimee had given it out during the San Francisco weekend.

  “Nope, this is Regan. Ellie’s not available right now.” Well, that made more sense. Regan was impatient and commanding, but this was actually perfect. Aimee began to smile. Regan was ultimately the person she wanted to talk to anyway.

  “Regan, this is Aimee. Brent’s…” Aimee hesitated. She wasn’t exactly sure what to call herself. Baby mama? Girlfriend? Woman? She let out a little giggle, and then slapped her hand over her mouth.

  “Brent’s hot piece?” Regan asked, sounding amused and much less impatient. Aimee laughed outright. She could perfectly picture the gorgeous brunette saying that.

  “That’s better than what I was coming up with in my head,” she admitted. “I was thinking baby mama, but you know… Brenna’s not really a baby anymore.” Both women chuckled.

  “You want me to pass a message along to Ellie? I’m trying not to burn the house down while Ellie goes for a pedi. She left me with baby Elliott.” Regan sounded terrified and perplexed in the trust Ellie had in her. Regan’s passion for her career had been clear the day they’d hung out, but Aimee hadn’t realized she was so involved in her career she didn’t know how to deal with children.

  “I was actually calling Ellie to bug her for your number, so this works out great.” Aimee admitted.

  “I knew you were a lesbian!” Regan teased. Aimee laughed again, hoping if her plans came through she would get to know Regan better. She seemed like a fun, genuine person. “Seriously, though, what can I do for you?” She asked, sounding curious. Aimee appreciated the other woman’s no-nonsense approach.

  “Ellie mentioned you have connections with different practices there in San Diego.” She hated to ask favors from someone she barely knew, but Aimee knew if she wanted to grab the life being offered to her, she needed to put her pride aside.

  “I do. I don’t work with them, of course, because the type of law I practice doesn’t involve medical malpractice. I’ve gotten to know them socially because we end up at a lot of the same local charity events.” Aimee wasn’t surprised. Physicians were often called upon to help local causes, and so were attorneys. Short of people with real money, old money, doctors and lawyers were a good way to get donations because they had a decent income.

  Aimee took a deep breath and plunged
forward with her plan. “Do you happen to know of any practices that might be looking for a good pediatrician?”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

  Brenna’s beautiful face filled the screen of Brent’s iPad and she chatted happily about her day. Thanksgiving was coming up and Brenna and Aimee planned to drive down to San Diego to spend the week with him. He hated the thought of them driving alone but Aimee convinced him she and Brenna would be safe and that it would be good mom-daughter time for the two of them.

  “Bug, do you like living in Las Vegas?” He asked Brenna. He was trying to carefully feel his way around what was best for his daughter. If she loved Las Vegas, he’d figure out a way to move there. He wasn’t sure how that would work out for the band logistically, but he’d do whatever he had to do to be with his daughter. What was right for her was more important than anything else.

  “It’s okay here. I have lots of friends and everything. But I’d rather be with you in San Diego,” Brenna responded, smiling at him. He smiled back at her.

  “Wouldn’t you miss your friends if you moved?” When he was ten, friends were everything to him. He would have been pissed if his parents moved him around. Plus, he knew Brenna was on a competitive dance team and finding a place in a new team could be difficult.

  “Yes daddy. I’d miss my friends.” Brenna’s face grew sad for a minute before she perked back up again. “But you’d let me come see them again, right?”

  Brent’s throat was tight. “Yeah bug, I’d bring you to see your friends in Vegas.” Brent took a gulp from the bottle of water next to him at his desk. His throat was dry and locked up. He would move heaven and earth if it kept her happy. He had been so certain Brenna would be resistant to moving and here his daughter was offering everything up on a silver platter for him without hesitation.