Be With You

by Candy J. Starr

  BE WITH YOU

  FALLEN STAR SERIES

  BOOK 3

  by

  Candy J. Starr

  Copyright Candy J. Starr 2015

  All rights reserved

  This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locales is purely coincidental

  CHAPTER ONE - RUBY

  Music and laughter filled the house. Our house. The house that Tex and I shared. It was so new that the smell of fresh paint still lingered in the air. Mum had burnt incense to get rid of it before the guests arrived but I thought that smelt even worse. Not that I missed living in the studio but I did miss that kind of musty smell of rising damp with the combined Tex and Ruby aroma mixed with it.

  The classic rock mix that Tex had put together could be heard from the speakers he'd wired into practically every room. He was pretty much useless at anything else around the house but had even managed to connect the sound system into the toilets. It made him happy though.

  I hadn't wanted this party. I hate parties. But it wasn't so bad. And, by that, I meant I was really enjoying myself. In a quiet, sitting in the kitchen kind of way.

  After the house had burnt down, Tex and I had lived in the recording studio at the back. It'd been crazy but finally the house was rebuilt. The day I got to have a real shower in a real bathroom, I thought I'd squeal from happiness. Then Tex had joined me in the shower and I really had squealed. In fact, that had been the greatest thing about having the house finished. Well, that and actually having the house finished. No more workmen around the place. No more construction.

  Sure, there were things that needed finishing off, but we actually had some privacy.

  Mum and Dad had flown home from Bali to help out after I'd been kidnapped and ended up sticking around for a while. Of course, they didn't stay in the recording studio with us. That would've been totally creepy. But they'd been there every day fussing over me. Mum kept making soup for me, as though that would help the recovery process. It wasn't like I had a cold.

  "I can't stay in bed," I'd said. "Someone needs to work with the contractors. And we need furniture for the new house. There's so much to do."

  "You rest and leave it to me. Unless you don't trust me..."

  Hell yeah, I trusted her. Tex and I were both total dingbats when it came to that kind of stuff. Mum come across as all hippy-dippy but, as those workmen discovered, she was as tough as hell underneath it all.

  "This house has to be finished for my daughter," she kept telling them. She pretty much stood over them to make sure she got the work done on time. “And it has to be perfect."

  "Are you sure I'm not taking over?" she kept asking me. "I don't want to ruin your fun."

  But she knew me well enough to know that managing a bunch of workmen was not my idea of fun. And somehow she'd gotten Tex to help out. I think he was a little bit scared of Mum and he felt as guilty as hell about the whole kidnapping thing. Which was darn stupid because he'd not been in any way responsible. Still, it meant that Tex actually sat down with Mum and looked at decor magazines while I tried not to let him see me smile. But, ha, what a rock star.

  "Are you sure I'm not going over budget?" was the other question she kept asking.

  But Tex reassured her that she could spend what she wanted.

  "It's got to be perfect for Ruby," he'd said.

  Mum nodded.

  I don't know what that whole "perfect for Ruby" business was. As though I was some kind of invalid or something. The criteria of "perfect for Ruby" was actually pretty low. So long as I had peace and quiet and easy access to snack foods. Like Pop-Tarts. Where had they been all my life?

  "None of this would've happened if you'd not kicked me out of home and gone to Bali," I told Mum. Which was really bitchy of me, but I couldn't resist rubbing that in. "I'd have been safe at home away from crazies."

  "Because you'd have never met me. I'm pretty sure the good outweighs the bad. And, Ruby, you shouldn't say things like to your mother. You'll hurt her feelings."

  Tex didn't really understand our family jokes. From what I knew of his family before his parents died, they didn't seem like the joking around type of family. He loved Mum though.

  And then there was Dad. Actually, Dad was even worse. Oh my God. He had turned into the biggest Tex fan-boy ever.

  They'd sat together on the porch of the recording studio.

  "You know," said Dad, looking as bashful as a teenager on their first date, "I used to play bass in my younger days."

  I'd died inside. Shut up, Dad, my brain screamed. But Tex had jumped, all excited.

  "You want to jam with us? Let's go buy a bass."

  "Dad, don't make a nuisance of yourself," I'd told him but Tex just laughed and put his arm around Dad's shoulders.

  The two of them went off in Tex's new car and didn't come back for hours.

  My parents just loved Tex too much. He didn't even cringe when they made comments about grandchildren. Seriously, at my age, having kids was the last thing on my mind. I could understand that Tex's parents had been really shit and he'd never really had that kind of bond with them but it seemed almost like Tex was just going too far.

  "If you love him so much, you should marry him," I said but quietly because I couldn't say the "M" word out loud.

  Seriously, the three of them fussed around me. But I was fine. So long as I didn't have to leave the studio.

  Anyway, Mum hustled the workmen into getting things done in record time. I reckon she thought I'd get better once the new house was finished. The house looked amazing when it was done.

  Amazing from the outside anyway. Inside, it was a big, empty mess. We had the furniture from the studio which had been makeshift and we'd ordered a few things online but the whole place needed a decorator. There were light globes hanging from the ceiling with no light fittings and empty rooms and sheets pinned up at the windows in some rooms because we'd not bought curtains.

  Then Mum had suggested the party and I'd had a big moan about it. But she wanted it and I could hardly say no. I really wanted to prove I wasn't totally useless. Tex wasn't so sure. He thought it might be too much for me and that I should take it easy. Strangely, that made me keener to agree to it.

  To be fair, the party wasn't awful. There weren't that many people and they were all friends. I sat on the kitchen counter, wondering if I should go into the front room and join in but it was nice just watching from afar. Devon and his latest girlfriend kept shrieking with laughter about something. Mum fussed around, filling up glasses and doing all those kinds of hostessing things that drove me nuts.

  Lizzie came into the kitchen and picked up a cupcake from the bench.

  "Did you cook these delicious cakes?" asked Lizzie. "I want the recipe."

  I laughed. As if. I could cook but fiddly things like little cakes were not my forte. They were super delicious cupcakes though. Mum had ordered them online.

  "You look fantastic," I said to her. There was something really different about the way she looked. Even though I complimented her, I wasn't sure I liked the change. She didn't look comfortable and those high heels she wore made her limp.

  "Thanks. I've found this great new hairdresser. I'll have to give you his number. He's a bit pricey but hey, we can afford it now. And it'd be letting the guys down if they are seen with dowdy girls. I never thought I'd be able to shop at places like Prada and Chanel but really, can I afford not to shop there?"


  I glanced from her to Hannah in the other room. Hannah wore expensive clothes, but she never really mentioned it the way Lizzie did. Not that it bothered me one way or the other what Lizzie wore, so long as she stopped dropping hints that I needed to improve my wardrobe.

  Tex came into the kitchen and put his arm around me. "We did it. I can't believe we actually did it. Look at this place. Your parents are the best. Although, the recliners were my idea and they are the best part of the house."

  "Aren't you going to miss sleeping in the studio?" I asked.

  "I won't miss you bitching about not having a working shower."

  Those recliners were pretty darn awesome. I could not argue with Tex about that. Just having an actual house was the best. Not that I'd minded being forced into such close contact with Tex. Well, maybe it was weird at first but it'd definitely worked out.

  "This place was so fallen down and neglected when I first came here, I nearly ran back to the bus in horror."

  Devon walked into the room, with a glass of scotch in his hand.

  "The house or Tex?" he asked.

  "Both of them," I said with a grin. "They have both been thoroughly renovated though."

  "Don't be too sure of that," Devon said, quietly so only I could hear him. I tried not to react. I didn't want trouble between him and Tex.

  "Ha, remember when I thought you were a burglar. I nearly brained you." I grinned at Tex. That first night in the house, he'd scared the shit out of me. He'd looked so dangerous.

  "With a pencil!"

  Tex had been the grumpiest of hermits when I'd moved in as his housekeeper. But then I'd been pretty anti-social myself. Okay, I still was anti-social but hey, I'd agreed to have a housewarming party and that was a huge step forward. When I looked around the place, I even had a group of people I liked and felt comfortable around. That was a massive thing for me.

  I pulled Tex closer and felt the warmth of his body. My only wish was that we could be together like this always. We'd been through so much and were still together but I still didn't feel like it would be forever. I didn't have that kind of trust or hope. I had parts of me that I hid from him and would probably keep hidden. But, for now, I appreciated having him close to me. The light that shone in his eyes when he looked at me was the light that had given me hope the whole time I'd been locked in that horrible place. It was the one thing I'd clung to when I thought I'd rot away and die there. Every day I got to see that light was a special day.

  The house was ready to be filled with good times and good memories, enough to sweep away the bad ones from Tex's past. Not that he should forget his past. I was so happy that our friends had come to help us celebrate. Already we'd created new memories.

  It seemed everyone had moved into the kitchen. Tex opened a bottle of bubbly and proposed a toast to Mum and Dad. I would stay in this house and everything would be happy and sparkling as long as I never had to go outside again.

  CHAPTER TWO- RUBY

  "Have you called that tech company back?" Mum asked. "If you don't get in touch with them soon, they'll think you aren't interested."

  That was exactly my intention. They could forget all about me and that stupid app I'd made.

  Even though I'd told Mum I'd ring the company back, I had no plans to actually do so. But she nagged and then stood over me until I gave in just to shut her up.

  "You just have to call them," she said. "You don't have to meet up with them or do anything you don't want to. Set limits when you talk to them."

  If there was one thing I hated doing in this world, it was talking to people on the phone. You can't see their faces and you have to rely on your words. It was a totally uncomfortable experience. I'd much prefer contacting them by email so I could take my time figuring out the right words and then I could forget about them until they emailed back. Phoning was so immediate.

  But I did it to get her off my back. I should never have even mentioned the messages in the first place.

  I figured it'd be nothing anyway. Maybe they'd seen the app and were going to try to sell me advertising or some crap like that. I'd say I wasn't interested and had no money anyway and they'd leave me alone after that. Or maybe they'd seen the photos of me with Tex and had somehow connected that with my apps. I'm not sure how they would do that but it wasn't impossible. Then I'd be like this fluffy little celeb app developer person. That really grossed me out. I was so the opposite of fluffy. I was spiky.

  I called and got put through to some man. I imagined him as a puffed-up wanker nerd, stretched out behind his desk, rubbing his belly. I hated those types. His voice dripped with smugness. He said his name was Jeremy. In my head, I called him Jeremy Jerkface.

  I'd have said it was a wrong number and hung up but Mum glared at me across the room. She sat cross-legged on the floor doing something with a pile of wool. I, of course, reclined in the recliner. Mum didn't really approve of the recliners. She thought they did unnatural things to your chakras. I don't know about her chakras but mine liked comfort just fine.

  Jerkface made all kinds of peppy small talk when I just wanted him to get straight to the point. I mean, he had to have a point. You don't just contact someone for no reason. Did he have no friends he could call to discuss the weather and other random crap with? I almost put the phone down.

  "So, how about we meet up to discuss things further?"

  I didn't see that there was any "further" when we hadn't even discussed things to start with. And I did not want to meet up with this wanker. The perkiness in his voice made me want to punch him.

  "Maybe you could tell me what this is about. I don't like leaving the house." That was an understatement. I didn't leave the house. Ever. Not now.

  "We do prefer to do business in person."

  "Well, this is the 21st century. The whole reason technology was invented was so I don't have to leave the house." That and porn. Actually, probably more for porn. But porn didn't really benefit me while not leaving the house did.

  Mum scowled from across the room. I'd have actually felt more comfortable without her listening in and making facial expressions. She'd tell me I'd been rude when I got off the phone but I just couldn't deal with this guy.

  "We wanted to make an offer for your app. I didn't want to just blurt it out like that but that's what it boils down to. We can nut out the finer details over time because I'm sure you'd like to continue in a hands-on role with further development and maybe come on board with future projects..."

  "Or you could just give me a big bundle of cash and I could walk away. I'm not that attached to the app if the truth be known."

  The app was called Go-mad. Mum named it. I shuddered every time I heard that name. It was just something I'd thrown together so Mum and Dad could meet up with other digital nomads around the world. Sort of like tindr but without the sex. Well, I hoped without the sex. It wasn't even anything special but it had taken off in a short time and had a heap of people using it.

  Who even knew that sort of thing happened? I knew stuff went viral but surely that was interesting stuff like Grumpy Cat not stupid nomad apps.

  Then I got distracted by thinking about that wacky little Grumpy Cat.

  Mum waved her hands frantically at me. It seemed asking for a big bundle of cash was not the thing to do. I would've been happy with a small bundle of cash and this knob jockey to stop talking to me. I'm easily satisfied like that. Actually, I'd have been happy with a decent sandwich. It was more than I'd been expecting when I developed the app. Jerkface Jeremy was obviously a bad negotiator for not offering me a sandwich. Then I'd have asked for an upsize with a Coke and fries and that would've been that.

  "Well, if we were to buy the app outright, we couldn't offer more than..." He named a figure that made me squeal a little. It was even more than the big bundle I'd been thinking of.

  "Are you okay?" he asked.

  "I just saw a mouse. I'm fine." No way would I let him know that I'd squealed over the money. It was enough for me to not have
to work for a long time.

  Well, I worked for Tex as his housekeeper but that was no longer like a real job since we started... what had we started? Not dating, since we never went on dates. Since we started our relationship. Since we started having sex. I was a housekeeper who had sex with my boss. That's what it boiled down to.

  We were together and I lived in his house but I didn't expect him to support me and I sure as hell didn't expect him to give me pocket money. It'd been as weird as hell for the past few months, accepting a pay cheque from him. And it wasn't even a literal pay cheque. He just had a direct debit set up to pay into my bank account. Tex didn't care. He didn't care about money one bit. Even when I first started working for him and he hadn't known me, he'd given me his credit card to use.

  "We're a partnership," he'd said to me. "What's mine is yours. It's not like you are going to blow a whole wad of cash on stupid shit. The work you do around the house is just as important as what I do."

  But that was okay for him to say. It was his money to start with. Maybe I would want to buy him a gift or pay for dinner sometime and do it with my own money, not his. If I got some money out of these guys, I'd have financial independence without having to leave the house to get a job. That seemed like a perfect solution to all my problems.

  "But we never buy things outright. It’s not house policy. We would want to fly in to meet with you. Maybe rent a collaborative working space for the day so we can...blah, blah, blah."

  I didn't really listen to the last part. Collaborative working was one of the things I hated most. Even for an obscene amount of money, I did not want to meet with these guys. And I didn't want a job. I wanted the cash.

  "I'll think about it," I said then hung up. I'd had enough of Jeremy Jerkface and his talking.

  "What was that squeal for?" Mum asked.

  I didn't want to tell her the amount of money they'd offered because she'd be all for me doing business with them. For someone with such hippy ideas, she sure was materialistic.