by K. T Fisher
Finally feeling a little better about what I did to her, I get to my work that I’ve recently neglected. As soon as I start I become hooked and don’t take my eyes away from the screen for a good few hours. I’m too involved in their fake love lives. I let their troubles and happiness take me away from my own life for a while. I love this about my job, I’m a lover of books and editing, plus I don’t have to drag myself into the office and work all day at something I don’t like. This is my passion and I know it always will be, so I’m set for life.
After I have caught up and sent some authors their finished work, I clean our apartment. It’s quite messy because my clean freak best friend hasn’t been her usual self. Both working and cleaning takes me to the end of the day. I’m glad though because otherwise I’d be sitting, twiddling my thumbs thinking about everything. Especially seeing as Cole keeps ringing me and now the rest of the band has joined in too.
TATE: Hope UR OK darling. Cole won’t chat 2 us about it but Chris has given me the run down. I think U 2 need 2 chat babe. I’m here if U need
MASON: Lace, I think U should come back babe. I know Cole wouldn’t do that. He loves U! Plus U took my girl with U, I need her back. Is she OK?
BOOKER: Beautiful, heard from Chris. I dunno what 2 think. Cole won’t talk and UR not here. Please come back, I actually miss U girls around this place. Stay safe
CRYSTAL: Hey honey, hope all is OK? Haven’t heard from U 4 a bit. Hope Rox is doing OK 2, maybe going home was the best for her. I’ve been thinking about what happened and I gotta say, I don’t know if I can believe it. Cole really loves U, I can see it. Maybe Shelly planned it? All I know is Cole isn’t himself lately. He goes on stage and then shuts himself away. He doesn’t come out of that room and I swear 2 god I saw him holding UR pillow! Get back 2 me ASAP girl, I miss U. Oh and don’t be mad, I told the guys what happened, I had 2, they were confused about everything. Xxxx
There’s much more and obviously the thousands from the man himself. I did reply to these messages, I couldn’t ignore them. But Cole’s messages, I did ignore. I don’t know what to say to him and maybe we do need to talk, but that can’t be done over the phone. I need to somehow get Roxie’s letter to Mason though and right now they haven’t got a permanent address to send it to. Even when she’s not here, Roxie’s making decisions for me.
As I continue to clean the place from top to bottom, the music plays loud. It’s a hot day so I’m in my shortest shorts that I’m not confident enough to wear in public as they show off my ass cheeks! As I’m shaking my ass along to Demi Lovato’s, Neon Lights I think I hear something. I place my duster down and sweep my sweaty hair back out of my face before turning the music down. When I do, I don’t hear anything again.
Huh.
Must be me. I pick up the duster again and I’m about to turn the music back up, but a loud knock on the door stops me.
Who the hell can that be?
I hesitantly place the cleaning things down and slowly make my way to the door. I reach for the handle when shouting makes me jump.
“Lacey! Please open up!”
Oh my god, it’s Cole! What the fuck is he doing here? He’s supposed to be on tour!
“Please baby, I need you. I need to talk to you.”
“Come on man, she’s not answering. Let’s go back.” Mason’s here too!
“No! I won’t leave! I need to see her.” More knocking. “Please Lacey, open the door.”
My heart bleeds at hearing the pain in his voice. I do need to talk to him and at least I can give Mason his letter from Roxie.
“Please.” Cole begs.
“Cole.” I speak his name and it feels so good to even say his name again, never mind seeing him.
“Lace? Oh baby, I need to see you. Open this door.”
I take a deep breath and open the door. As soon as I do, I’ am overwhelmed in all things Cole Mase. His scent invades me and I’d like to say he looks amazing, but truth be told, he doesn’t. He has more stubble than usual and it’s not in the sexy way either. It’s unkempt and messy and telling by the dark shadows under his eyes he’s completely knackered too.
I watch as his eyes greedily take me in, every bit of me. Then he speedily walks towards me, invading my space. I’m not ready for this so I back away and it halts Cole mid step.
“Lace?”
“What do you want?”
Mason steps in now too, his kind smile calming me slightly.
“Hey Lace, where’s Rox? I want to talk with her, she’s not answering my calls or texts.”
I open my mouth to speak but nothing comes out. What am I going to say?
Mason frowns at my reaction. “Where’s Roxie?”
“Wait here.”
I go into my room and fetch the envelope with Mason’s letter inside. I walk back to where I left them both and shakily hand it over to Mason. He looks down at it and with a confused face looks back to me.
“What’s this?”
“It’s a letter from Roxie.”
“I don’t want a letter, I want her. Where is she?” He demands.
“Hey ease up on her yeah?” Cole snaps.
“She left yesterday, just read the letter.”
“I don’t want to read a letter. I want to know where she’s gone.”
I heavily sigh. I don’t know what she has written in the letter so I don’t know if she even wants Mason to know where she is.
“She’s gone to her parents, they’re helping her.”
“Helping her with what?”
“Mason, just read the letter and I’ll tell you what you need to know.”
Mason grumbles and doesn’t sound happy, but he goes into Roxie’s room to give us privacy. As soon as the door shuts behind him I feel very alone with Cole.
“I’ve missed you.” Cole finally says.
I look up from my hands to his face. He looks intense and nervous.
“Can we talk?”
I nod and lead the way to the sofa.
“You look nice.”
I look up at Cole in surprise as I sit down on the sofa, Cole beside me. I laugh at his pathetic excuse of a conversation.
“No I don’t Cole. I’ve been cleaning most of the day. I look like a sweaty tramp.”
“A gorgeous sweaty tramp.” He quickly replies and it makes me smile, but then I remember why I’m in the situation and my smile fades.
“Lacey, I’m not interested in Shelly, I never have been.”
“Didn’t look that way to me.”
He scoots closer. “She was waiting for you to walk in. That wasn’t what you think you saw. She walked in on me getting ready for the show, you know I don’t put my shirt on until the last minute. I was sitting on the chair when she came running in, as soon as she did she was on me. She was talking all this crap about us meaning to be together and I don’t want her. I want you!”
I gulp down my tears as I continue to listen to him.
“I was trying to get her off me and then you appeared. You didn’t even give me a chance to explain, you just ran.”
I don’t know what to believe. I want to believe Cole but I know what I saw.
“I don’t know.”
“Lace, she’s been trying to split us up from the beginning.”
That’s the first I’ve heard of it. “What?”
Cole looks a little uncomfortable. “When we were in San Francisco, before I came to get you, Shelly came in my room. She tried it on with me, just like she did the other night. I told her I was with you and she laughed and said I’m not a one woman man and she can handle that.”
“She said that to me as well.” I accidently say that out loud.
“When?”
“I dunno, she just did.”
It was actually before the attack. I just didn’t want to mention it as it still gets to me a little. In fact, I’ve been on edge today because I’ve been all on my own. I think that’s another reason why I wanted to keep myself so busy. The last of my biggest br
uises has now finally faded and I can hopefully start to forget about it.
However, I don’t think I ever will. Whenever I’m walking in the dark, I think the flashbacks will invade my brain without my consent. Even when I was running around trying to find Roxie, as soon as it started to get dark I was beginning to shake. I was so relieved when I finally found her because I just wanted to run back home and be in my safety zone.
“Lacey, I love you. I would never do that do you. You’re my girl and I want you forever, I won’t do anything to risk losing you.”
Tears fall down my face and Cole grabs me in a bone crushing hug. I’m about to tell him to let me go, but I don’t. I want him to hold me, I want to be back in his arms. I cry harder and I feel warm tears on my shoulder. I look up to see Cole is also crying and I’m shocked. Men like Cole don’t cry!
He holds my face between his hands and kisses me ever so softly on the lips.
“I love you Lacey. I have never and will never do anything to risk what we have. You gotta believe me.”
I smile at him and place my hands on top on his. “I do believe you.”
Just a few minutes ago I didn’t know what to think, but now looking into his desperate eyes and seeing how much of as mess he is, I know he’s telling me the truth. What he was saying is true, it was all Shelly.
“Oh thank god!” Cole shouts and kisses me like a mad man.
Mason reappears out of Roxie’s room, a mournful look on his face. He walks towards me like a zombie and sits right beside me, almost on my lap. Guessing by his face, I think Roxie put everything into that letter.
“Mason?”
He looks at me, his eyes wide and the letter scrunched up in his hand.
“Did you know?”
I nod, she told me everything so whatever he’s referring to I should know.
“What did she say in the letter?” Cole asks.
Mason reads out this letter and sure enough everything is in there. Every detail she shared with me before she left is in the letter. From sleeping with Joe, loving me and all Joe’s blackmailing and what happened when Booker found her outside crying. It’s all there.
Cole is left speechless and just stares at me. Mason desperately holds onto the letter.
“I’ve gotta go and see her.”
“I don’t think you can.”
“Why not? You said she was at her parents.”
“Yes, but they took her to rehab.”
“What?” Mason shouts.
“Mason, you saw how she was, she needed help. This was the only way.”
“But I need to talk to her, what she went through. She never even told me!”
“She isn’t herself, hopefully next time we see her, she will be.”
***
After talking with Mason and Cole about everything that Roxie told me and wrote in the letter, Mason decides to leave. Leaving me alone with Cole again. He has just told me that he should be doing a show tonight but is here instead. He just walked out on his manager.
“Cole! They could fire you!”
This makes him laugh. “No they won’t baby, don’t worry about me.”
I’m not so sure, but after reassuring me that his place in the band is safe, he moves onto a different topic.
“Come back with me?”
Immediately I stiffen up. “I don’t know Cole, everything that happened there. What if it happened again?”
“Then I give you permission to beat her ass.” This makes me laugh. “Seriously though Lace, I’m not interested in her, in anyway at all. Only you. If she does try it again, then it’s all on her and I will put a stop to it.”
I let out a long sigh. “I don’t think I can come back.”
“Please baby? It won’t be for long and then we’ll be finishing in San Diego and I’ll show you my home. I want to show you where I live, you can stay there if you like?”
I would like to see Coles house. “How long will it take to get to your home?”
“We have three weeks left and then we will be home.”
His gorgeous face looks so hopeful and I would be lying if I said I didn’t want to see Cole’s house. “Ok.”
He smothers me in kisses as soon as the word comes out my mouth. I hope I’m making the right decision. I’m just dreading the whole Shelly situation. I think she will do anything to sink her claws into Cole.
Chapter Twenty Five
Lacey
The next morning, we leave for the tour. I’m terrified that this will all go wrong again and I try my best to hide it but, from the kind smile on his face as he looks down at me, he knows. I’m safely in Cole’s arms for now, as we ride in the limo with a quiet and pissed off Mason.
Three hours later, Cole wakes me and points out the window. With sleepy eyes I see the tour bus and standing outside are my newly formed friends. Booker, Tate and Crystal are all waving as we drive closer. When we stop, the door opens wide and a happy looking Tate helps me from the limo. When I step out he grabs me in a hard hug and then I’m passed onto Booker who spins me around.
“So glad you’re back baby girl!”
Tate messes my hair like an annoying big brother. “Glad you gave him a chance.”
Booker laughs. “Yeah, he’s been acting like a little bitch.”
Cole stands by my side and glares at Booker. “Careful Booker, wouldn’t want to piss anyone off right now.”
I understood that threat and by the dark look on Booker’s face, so does he.
“Ok.” Crystal sighs. “Let’s get inside and calm down yeah?”
She flashes a mean look between Cole and Booker and then a kind smile at me as we all pass. Poor Tate doesn’t have a clue what’s going on.
***
That night there’s another gig and Cole really wants me to go.
“Come on baby, please?”
“I don’t know Cole, it just feels really weird without Roxie being here.” Plus, I’m worried about seeing Shelly again.
Cole nods his head in understanding. “Yeah I know, Mason’s not taking all this well either.”
“Where is he anyway?” Since we got back he walked off and I haven’t seen him since.
Cole shrugs his shoulders. “Fuck knows, if I were that Joe I would be shitting myself right now.”
My eyes widen. “You think he’s trying to find him?”
There’s a loud bang as the door shuts and Mason walks in, blood covering his hands and a scuffed up shirt. Other than that, he doesn’t have a mark on him.
He looks over at me and Cole and smiles at my terrified look. “I did find him Lace, don’t you worry about that.”
He carries on walking and as he passes Booker in the kitchen and he smiles wide. “Get him Mase?”
“Yep.” He answers.
Booker cheers. “You hear that Lace, he got that fucker for our girl!”
And as much as I hate violence, especially after what happened to me, I’m happy that Mason got him. Roxie would be proud. With that thought, maybe I should take up on Coles offer and get a few punches in on Shelly if I see her.
I agree to come along to the show and get ready with Crystal.
“I’m so glad you’re back! I hated being the only girl around here.”
She laughs and I laugh along with her, it is funny after all. I wouldn’t like to be around here with no other female companionship.
“Yeah, I’m glad you’re here too Chris. It feels wrong being here again without Rox, but it helps having you here.”
She gives me a shiny eyed look and captures me in her arms. When she lets me go she sniffles and holds back her tears.
“No more talking like that woman, I don’t want to be crying and ruining this make-up! I worked hard at looking this good.”
When we’re ready to go, Crystal and I walk out to see the guys all waiting for us. I grab my phone and walk towards Cole, but Mason stops me. I’m happy to see he’s looking cleaned up now.
“Lace, can we talk a minute?”
&nbs
p; “Sure.”
He leads me outside and once he gets himself together he begins to talk. “I rang Roxie’s parents today. Roxie put their number in the letter in case I wanted to check up on her. Anyway, I found out which rehab she was at and I was impressed.”
