by Terry Towers
Chapter 17
Violet
The helicopter began to slow as a massive gated two-story estate came into view. I leaned a little closer to the window and took notice of the view below me. There were tennis courts and a massive pool, complete with a swirling waterslide and rock-formation fountain. He hadn’t exaggerated when he’d said he’d gone all out with this place. It sure seemed like more house then one person could ever need. Hell, several families could easily share the house, or at least it appeared that way from the outside.
“This is it,” Dylan announced as the helicopter landed on a marked helipad.
A few minutes later, and with Dylan’s assistance, I exited the chopper. “Thank you.”
He gave me a little bow. “You’re welcome, Ma’am.”
“This place is amazing.” There was a nice soft warm breeze that caught my hair and lifted it up and around my head.
Taking my hand in his he led me across the perfectly maintained grass toward the back entrance to the house. It was becoming very natural to walk hand in hand with Dylan, like we were meant to be together. “I know. I fell in love with the place from the first moment I’d seen it.”
“I bet. I will admit, I do feel bad that we skipped out on the resort a few days early. Zack spent a lot of money on that vacation for us.”
“Zack wouldn’t care. Besides, he’s having a great time with his new brother and the family. A couple nights that weren’t used is the last thing on his mind, I imagine.”
“I suppose you’re right.” There was still a faint feeling of guilt, though I couldn’t say for sure if the guilt was over leaving or that Dylan and I were taking our relationship to the next level and seemed to be leaving Zack behind.
“He’ll join us when he’s ready,” Dylan said, as if reading my mind.
“What? What are you talking about?” I was a bad liar and with each day that we spent together he was having an easier and easier time reading me.
He stopped walking just as we reached the back door of the house and stood before me. He traced my jawline with his index finger. Closing my eyes, I sighed, savoring the feel of him touching me. Then his lips brushed mine and I released the breath I’d been holding. Just as I prepared for a deeper kiss his lips were gone. Confused, I opened my eyes to see him smiling down at me.
I blushed. “Why are you staring at me?”
“Because you’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever met.”
The heat in my cheeks intensified. “I think you’re overstating.”
“I promise you I’m not.”
Looking down at the ground between my feet, I replied. “Thank you.” We hadn’t exchanged “I love you’s” yet, but I felt it, and I knew he did as well. Though there was a piece of me that belonged to Zack, too, and I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to get rid of it, no matter how in love I was with Dylan.
“Let’s go check out the house, shall we?”
“Yes.” He stepped before me and punched in the code to the door, followed by a quick scan of his fingerprint. The red light next to the keypad turned from red to green and there was a distinct click of the lock being disengaged.
Opening the door, Dylan stepped aside and waved me inside before him. As I walked through the threshold, the lights immediately came on, illuminating a massive state-of-the-art kitchen, with a gold and brown color scheme.
“This is an amazing kitchen.”
“Do you cook?”
I laughed. “That’s a bit of a trick question.”
“Why do you say that?”
“There’s a difference between being able to cook and cooking food that’s edible.”
Laughing with me, he nodded. “Okay, I’ll give you that much. Luckily enough we can afford to hire a cook.”
We can afford to hire a cook… We… We hadn’t talked about the idea of me moving into this house since the day he’d mentioned it over a week ago. I was starting to think it was just one those things people say in the heat of the moment.
“Come on, we’ve got a lot more of the house to check out.”
He didn’t seem to notice I’d tuned out for a minute and I was grateful. I couldn’t just move in with him. At least not until the “I love you’s” were out in the open. It would be crazy to consider it otherwise, wouldn’t it?
Then why don’t you just tell him how you feel? A voice at the back of my mind nagged. I knew the answer to that question, though: it was because I’d developed strong feelings for both men. They were such exact opposites and both had amazing qualities and I had strong connections with each of them. Even in his absence, my feelings for Zack increased each day, just as they did with Dylan.
As we walked through the house, I was struck by its grandeur, but there was also something else I was struck by. The house felt very unlived-in. It felt more like a museum then it did a place people could call home. It was a shame.
“What are you thinking?” Dylan asked as we ascended the main staircase that led to the second floor.
I contemplated whether or not I should tell him what was on my mind, and decided that if we were going to continue to progress in our relationship, I needed to be open and honest about everything I felt so we could be on the same page. It wasn’t just my heart that was on the line, but also my career if this thing went sideways.
“I’m thinking this is an amazing house.”
“You must have had a pretty lavish upbringing, considering who your father was.”
“We lived in New York and we had a penthouse with a view of central park, three floors, about four thousand square feet. It was an extremely nice apartment. But considering it was New York there just wasn’t enough room to have a home so spread out like this one is.”
“Ahh.”
“And my father liked to spend money. He was always traveling, as is the situation with this line of work, and always staying at the finest hotels and so on and so forth. He had a lot of amazing qualities, but managing his own finances wasn’t at the top of those qualities.”
Reaching the top of the staircase, I was impressed at how welcoming the top floor looked. The walls were a beautiful maroon with cream trim and sconces were illuminating the hallway with a warm yellowish glow.
“There’s a variety of rooms up here. About half of them are bedrooms. Most of the space up here is never used.”
“It’s such a big house. It must be lonely when you’re here alone.”
“It can be. As you know, we’re not here much anyhow. I haven’t even had a chance to really make it a home.”
As he opened the doors to the rooms and showed me around the upper floor I could see what he meant. As beautiful as everything was, I could almost feel the emptiness. Half the rooms on the upper floor hadn’t even been furnished.
“And this would be the master bedroom.” Dylan opened the door and motioned for me to enter, before trailing behind me. The room was massive, with more space than was necessary that’s for sure, decorated in light blues and silver. Across the room was a set of patio doors, which I went immediately toward. Unlocking the doors, I opened them up and was hit with a gust of wind, which flipped my hair into my face. Brushing the stray lock of hair from my face, I walked onto the balcony.
“This is breathtaking,” I said as I looked out and surveyed the scenery. Below us was the pool I’d seen from the helicopter; the water was a pleasant blue. I’d have to take a dip later on. Lifting my gaze, there were hills to my right and to my left another mansion of equal size of Dylan’s, which made me wonder who his neighbors were.
“Anthony Fletcher.”
“Huh?” Looking up at him, my crow creased. “What do you mean?”
“The person who lives in the house you’re looking at.”
“The actor?” I loved Anthony Fletcher’s films. He did a lot of comedies that weren’t over-the-top silly, but just crazy enough to make tears come to your eyes from laughing.
Chuckling, he nodded. “He would be an actor, you are correct.”
<
br /> Rolling my eyes, I gave him a swat on the shoulder. “No need to be sarcastic.”
Raising his hands to either side of him, he replied, “I swear I wasn’t.”
“Wow. This is quite beautiful. Dare I ask the price tag on this house?”
He grinned, looking down at me with a little guilty look on his face. “I don’t think you really want to know.”
I kinda did, but dropped the subject; it wasn’t all that important.
Suddenly his expression became serious, as he slid his arms around my waist and pulled me into him. “Do you think this could be a place you think you could call home?”
Sliding my hands up his chest, I laced my fingers around his neck as I stared up into his dark eyes. This man wore his heart on his sleeve. There was no game, just directness and honesty. “Yes, I know I could. I wasn’t sure if you’d been serious or if it was a heat-of-the-moment ask.”
“I’m not an impulsive man, Violet. I might be taking a leap of faith, but I’m hardly impulsive.”
Taking a deep breath in, I slowly released it. It was time to take a leap of faith. “Then I’d love to.”
I squealed as he lifted me up in the air, his hug was strong and nearly winded me, but it felt good. It felt like my future was just starting.
~*~ TT ~*~
Dylan
I couldn’t believe how nervous I’d been bringing Violet here. We’d had a connection from the very moment we’d met and it had only grown from there. A big hurdle we had was that she wasn’t some random woman; she was a woman with a future in this business. She was ambitious and driven and she went after what she wanted. I wasn’t sure if she’d even be interested in slowing things down just when her career was kicking into high gear.
“I can’t believe you ordered in groceries.” Violet shook her head as she stood beside me in the kitchen, her hands in the back pockets of her jeans, watching a couple of delivery people drop off canvas bags containing an assortment of groceries.
“It was either that or be mobbed at the supermarket. Which would you prefer?”
“We could have just ordered in. It seems like such a waste since we’re only going to be here for another few days before we finish the last leg of the tour.”
“Nah, it won’t be. The cleaning people will just be given instructions to take whatever is leftover home with them.”
She nodded. “That’s a nice thought.”
“Just makes sense.”
“That’s all, sir.” The delivery guy carrying the last of ten bags said.
“Thank you so much.” I stepped forward and passed the delivery guy a tip.
Without looking at the amount I’d give him, the young man who I’d estimate to be in his early twenties smiled and exited, closing the front door behind him.
“Still seems excessive.” Violet began to unload and put away the groceries from the bags.
“We will be having a visitor arriving tomorrow.”
“A visitor?” Pulling out a block of cheddar from the bag she looked up at me. “Who?”
“Zack, he’s flying in in the morning, should be here for breakfast.”
A flash of excitement showed in her eyes and then disappeared almost as quickly. She was anxious to see him; it made me wonder what that meant for us. Giving my head a shake, I dismissed the feeling. It meant nothing. Of course she missed him, I missed him too; we were like family at this point, three lost souls that had found each other.
“That’s good. I haven’t heard from him since he left. Did everything go well with his brother?”
“From what I could tell, yeah. Our conversation was brief this morning.”
When the groceries were put away, I took her hand and led her out to the pool area and lay down on the hammock, pulling her down with me. She squealed as the hammock rocked from our weight as we tried to adjust and get positioned so we wouldn’t fall out.
Holding her tight to me, I kissed her temple. “Listen, there’s something else I need to tell you.”
She looked up and stared into my eyes, frowning. “What’s that? It looks like you have something serious to say.”
“I kinda do, yes.” I ran my index finger along her jawline and heard her sigh as she closed her eyes. “I’ve decided I’m going to take a break after this tour.”
Laughing, she replied. “Of course you’re going to take a break. You’ve got a new album to record; I’ve got a bunch of publicity gigs set up. We’ve got a lot to do, you wouldn’t be able to tour if you wanted to.”
Boy this was harder than I’d thought it would be. Saying it out loud seemed crazy to my own ears. “No. I mean, I’m quitting Hypnotic.”
“You’re going solo?”
“No. I’m tired. We’ve been doing this a long time. I’ve been hustling my music for twenty years. I need time to be normal again, to remember what it’s like to be normal.”
“But you’re not normal!” She sat up fast and so quickly that the hammock swung, knocking her off balance, and before I could stop it from happening she was on the grass, looking up at me through its white netting.
“Are you okay?” I probably should have gotten off the hammock to help her up, but it was too funny looking down at her with the bewildered look in her face.
“No. No, I’m not okay. Your group is at the top of the world right now and you’re leaving! Have you lost your mind?”
“I haven’t been so clear in my life. Twenty years is a very long time.”
“Does Zack know?”
“Not yet; I’m telling him tomorrow. You’re the first person to find out.”
She scrambled out from under the hammock, brushing her dark blue jeans and black tank top off. “I appreciate that I’m the first person to know, but I can’t say I’m happy with your decision. I’m going to be the manager that was on call when you bailed ship.”
“We bail ship together.”
“What? I…I just…” Running a hand through her hair she gave her head a shake. “I see what you’re saying, but…wow. You’ve mentioned it, I know. It shouldn’t be a shock. I honestly thought it was just you letting off steam or being whimsical.”
Carefully, I got out of the hammock and pulled her into my arms and looked down into those stunning emerald eyes of hers. “And I want you to settle down with me. I’ve given this a lot of thought. Not just stopping in here between shows but I’d like you to build a life with me here.” I took a deep breath in, gaining the courage to mention the second half of my thoughts. “Perhaps down the road even start a family.”
Her mouth quite literally dropped open. “A…family…”
“Sometime down the road, yes.”
We stared at each other for what felt like an impossibly long time before she answered. “I really have to think about this. I love you. I really do.”
My heart soared; just hearing her say the words that had been left unsaid between us for too long was enough for me. “I love you too.”
“But this is a lot. We’d be moving at a breakneck speed.”
“Sometimes you need to take a leap of faith, Violet.”
She hooked her arms around my neck and pressed her body against mine. “I’ll think very carefully about it. But I do love you and I hope you can understand if I’m not ready to drop my career just yet.”
I felt a slight stab of sadness that she wasn’t about to jump at the idea straight away, but I had to be fair and hope she’d come around. Either way, it wouldn’t change anything. We’d make it work one way or another.
Chapter 18
Dylan
“He’s here. The guard at the gate just sent the car through,” I announced to Violet.
She walked over and gave me a quick side hug. “Are you sure this is what you want?”
“I believe it is, baby.”
“Okay.” She smiled and stood up on her tip toes to place a quick kiss on my lips. I didn’t think I’d ever get enough of the feel of her body against mine or the sweet smell of her shampoo whenever she came
near. “If you want to greet him at the door, I’ll finish up breakfast.”
“Sounds good.” Giving her a playful smack on the butt, I laughed when she let out a little squeal, grinning as she batted my hand away.
“Behave.”
Wiggling my eyebrows at her, I replied, “You didn’t say that last night.”
Violet rolled her eyes, turning her back to me to attend to the bacon that was sizzling in the frying pan.
Exiting the kitchen, I made my way down the corridor to the front entrance, which was a set of oak double doors, with decorative frosted windows. Opening the door, I grinned at the sight of Zack before me in the process of pressing the doorbell, looking relaxed and refreshed in an Adidas black and white tracksuit with black t-shirt.
“Zack.” Grinning, I stepped forward and gave my adoptive brother a hug. “How was the trip?” Taking a step back, I waved for Zack to enter. He passed by me, pulling a large, black hard-shelled suitcase behind him.
“It was good. Where’s our girl? I want to tell you both at the same time.”
Something tugged at me. The way he called Violet “our girl” didn’t make me angry, not in the least. Instead it made me feel guilty; as though I was about to break up our little trio. When Zack wasn’t here it felt okay, but with him back it didn’t feel quite right.
He’s not interested in settling down or being in a relationship. Never has been. There’s nothing to feel guilty about, I told myself.
“She’s in the kitchen, preparing breakfast.”
“Nice, I could use some breakfast. Haven’t eaten since last night, with the exception of some peanuts on the plane.” Leaving his suitcase just inside of the door Zack headed straight to the kitchen; he’d been here numerous times so already knew the general layout of the house.
Closing the front door, I followed behind my bandmate. “Good, she’s worked pretty hard. Several types of pancakes, bacon, omelets. She went to town.”
