One More Night_2_Backstage Pass Series 2

by Ali Parker

  Feeling Nick’s hard jaw snap back under my knuckles had felt good, and I wanted to feel it again. It was an outlet for the shame flooding me that I’d failed my own damn brother. The only person I was sworn to protect. And I hadn’t been there when he needed me.

  Nick wasn’t taking another shot lying down, though. He stumbled upright, raising and pulling back his fist as I advanced on him.

  The next minute, I caught a blond whirlwind from the corner of my eye. Then Alicia was there, standing with a hand on my chest and her other on Nick’s. Her blue eyes darted between us, her brow creased in confusion. “Stop! What the hell is going on with you two?”

  The sound of her voice drew me out of my blood-seeking stupor. I blinked down at her, noticing that in her haste get outside to us, she’d tucked the sheet tightly around her body but hadn’t gotten dressed. Something unfurled inside me, making me want to throw her behind me so Nick couldn’t see her like this and simultaneously poke his eyes out with hot needles for already having seen her naked—even if she was completely covered by the sheet.

  A primal need to shield her ripped through me. I’d only felt this possessive, protective instinct stir once before. The day I met her.

  Before that, I’d always assumed that was just the one manly trait I hadn’t gotten. Figured I’d been out drinking the day whoever handed out aspects of your personality was dishing out that instinct. I had definitely been wrong. The beast reared its head now, tired of having been chained its whole life. I needed to protect both of them, Caleb and Alicia.

  They belonged to the beast in me, mine. Both of them. And Nick was poking me at both ends. I turned, lunging for Nick, but Alicia moved fast. She dropped her hand from Nick’s chest and placed both on mine, her eyes searching mine as she looked up at me. “Calm down, Jared. Please. Tell me what’s happening.”

  “What’s happening,” Nick sneered behind her, his eyes darting between the two of us like he was seeing us for the first time, “is that Jared’s being the poster child of doing the right thing while also sleeping with our public relations manager. Classy, dude.”

  “Fuck off,” I snapped.

  Seeing Alicia calmed the rage in my blood, even as Nick’s words stoked the fire that was causing it. My mind cleared as I looked down into her eyes, bright with questions and confusion, but also so filled with warmth and comfort. The haze that had descended as soon as Nick told me what happened lifted, and the urge to get to my brother suddenly felt like a living thing inside me.

  I’d needed information from Nick earlier, but I didn’t anymore. I’d find out what I needed to know when I got to Caleb. But I needed to get to him now.

  Alicia ignored Nick’s comment, save for a quick, dirty glare shot at him over her shoulder. Her blue eyes were soft on mine. Concerned. Somehow, seeing that expression of worry in her eyes didn’t piss me off more than I already was.

  I didn’t have time to think about why that was. My baby brother needed me, lying by himself in a hospital bed. Dragging a few deep breaths into my lungs, I forced myself to calm down as Alicia gazed up at me.

  “What’s wrong, Jared?”

  One of my hands found her hip, squeezing. “I need to get to the hospital.”

  “Okay,” she said. No questions asked. She didn’t even blink. “I’ll be right behind you.”

  “Okay.” I walked back into my suite, grabbed the first pair of shoes I found, a pair of flip-flops I didn’t remember packing, and my wallet and was on my way out again a minute later.

  Dom was coming up the hall as I marched to the elevator, making a beeline for me as soon as he saw me. He jogged up to me but I ignored him, pushing past him in the wide hall without sparing him a second glance.

  It was like I had tunnel vision all of a sudden, a single-minded focus to get to my brother.

  Faintly, I was aware of Dominic calling my name. Heard him say something else. But I didn’t listen, didn’t even slow down. I didn’t know if Dom had been with the rest of the band all night, but it didn’t matter anymore. I would find out all that later. After I saw my brother. I didn’t have anything to say to anyone about what was going on with Caleb.

  Later, I would get my answers. Who, where, why? The words rattled around my brain, but not loudly enough to draw my attention away from the goal at hand.

  The goal? Getting to Caleb. For right now, my brother needed me, and that was all that mattered. A thousand ghosts started whispering in my ears as I ran down the stairs of the hotel. They talked about my brother as a boy and how many times I’d promised my parents I’d protect him. They whispered in my mom’s voice telling me to take care of him.

  Nausea rose from my stomach as the knots in it tightened. I knew hundreds of people who’d been hospitalized for alcohol poisoning and all of them made it through just fine. But what if this once it wasn’t fine?

  I raced down the stairs, pushing my legs to move faster than ever before. One thought played on repeat in my mind as I finally made it all the way to the lobby and burst through the doors. A single thought that I quietly chanted like a mantra and a prayer all at the same time.

  Please let him be okay.

  18

  Alicia

  I liked the crispness of a recently cleaned hotel room, where every little thing was in place and every shelf was clear and just waiting to be filled. Whenever I stayed in hotels, I liked for the room to keep that crisp, clean feeling about my room.

  As a result, I didn’t make myself at home the way some travelers did as soon as I arrived. My bag remained neatly packed on shorter trips, with only the necessary items hung up on the rail in cupboards. My shoes were packed in a straight line below that.

  As I ripped another cocktail dress out of my bag and threw it on the bed behind me in my rush to dig through my evening wear and find something appropriate to wear to the hospital, I briefly flashed on the fact that for the first time ever, my hotel room looked like a bomb had hit it.

  There were clothes everywhere, lying crumpled on the floor or on the bed. I kept tripping over shoes because I hadn’t taken the time to unpack them when I’d arrived, and they’d suffered the same fate as my clothes, being haphazardly ripped from my bag and discarded in my frantic search.

  I finally found a gray cashmere sweater and pulled that on, along with a pair of jeans. Jumping up and down a few times to fit into the pair of skinny jeans, I used one hand to slide earrings into my ears while doing up my zipper with the other.

  Jared had said something about Caleb and a hospital before rushing back into his room. It had taken me cornering Nick to find out that Caleb had been admitted to the intensive care unit at a nearby hospital earlier this morning with suspected alcohol poisoning.

  I’d felt faint when I heard.

  No wonder Jared’s eyes were so wild before he ran back into his room. Caleb was his baby brother, and he was in trouble. If it had been Kelly, I would’ve been beside myself with worry. I’d never gone through anything like this with my little sister, but whenever she so much as broke a nail, I was worried.

  It must’ve been hell for Jared to hear Caleb was in the hospital alone while not knowing how he was. My heart clenched in my chest, bleeding for him. And for Kelly, just because I suddenly missed her and had an urge to check in with her.

  When Jared had run into his room, I understood his agitated need to be with his brother as soon as he could. I was jittery to get to the hospital, and I didn’t even really know Caleb. Nor could I say it was purely my worry over the band’s reputation or the press getting to the hospital before me that was driving me to dig through my bag like a dog frantically after a bone.

  I’d gotten the headlines of the story from Nick as soon I could and then came back to my room to shower and change. I was breaking personal records with getting ready to leave so fast.

  Not only did Jared need me there, whether he would admit it or not, but if the press got ahold of the story, I needed to be at the hospital to do my job. Getting admitted to the hospi
tal with alcohol poisoning was far from scandalous or unheard of from rock stars, but the guys were the focus of so much attention at the moment that Caleb’s hospitalization was bound to be big news if it broke in the media—a scenario I was determined to avoid.

  A booming, impatient knock at my door invaded my thoughts. My heart skipped a beat. Slipping my other earring in, I wiggled the last bit of the way into my jeans and did up the button, all while hurrying to get the door.

  I wanted it to be Jared standing on the other side of it, coming to get me before he went to the hospital, but it wasn’t. Instead, Gerry stood waiting when I swung the door open. He was wearing a scowl and, shockingly, no jacket with his suit.

  “You know what’s going on,” he said as soon as he saw me fully dressed now even though my feet were bare. Leaving the door open so he could follow me in, I walked to a pair of power heels I’d accidentally kicked across the room earlier and slid them on.

  Over my shoulder, I talked to Gerry while pulling the shoes on. “Caleb’s been admitted to the ICU. Alcohol poisoning, apparently. We have to get to the hospital.”

  Gerry paled and then spun into gear.

  When we walked into the hospital less than an hour later, I heard Jared long before I saw him. His rough voice carried down the sterile halls. Loudly. Clearly upset. People glanced in the direction of the commotion as they rushed around the halls, but no one paid attention to him for very long.

  Probably because people in hospitals, for work or for personal reasons, had more important things to worry about than who was causing a scene and why. Gerry and I turned a corner and saw Jared standing at a nurses’ station demanding to see his brother. “He’s knocked out. He can’t consent to anything, and I can’t consent if I can’t even see him. I want to see him. Now.”

  He was fuming, his palms flat on the counter in front of him and his gaze intent on a stoic looking woman wearing a nurse’s uniform. She had spiky white hair and was shaking her head at Jared.

  People gave him a wide berth, not stopping long enough to notice who was causing the scene.

  Thankfully.

  I breathed a sigh of relief, glancing around to make sure no one was recording his performance. Only a few other people were around the waiting room outside the ICU, and none of them were holding up a phone or any other kind of device.

  Most looked haggard and exhausted, staring blankly out of the grimy windows overlooking the city or scrolling absently through their phones. One young woman was looking at Jared with interest, blinking like she couldn’t quite believe what she was seeing. Her gaze dipped to her magazine a second later, and my shoulders relaxed.

  Whether she recognized him or not I didn’t know, but if she did, she’d clearly decided against approaching him or worse, recording him. Sitting back in her faded blue chair, she didn’t pay any further attention to him.

  The stoic nurse, on the other hand, flushed angrily and clenched her little fists at her sides. “You’re making a scene, sir. If you would please—”

  “I won’t please.” Jared dropped his chin, glaring at the spiky-haired nurse. “That’s my brother in there and I need to see him before I sign anything.”

  Gerry swooped in as the nurse opened her mouth to reply. He planted a hand on Jared’s shoulder and flashed the nurse a smile. “Thank you for your help. Will you give us a minute?”

  She glowered at Gerry but waved him away. He started speaking to Jared, his voice too low for me to hear what he was saying.

  Walking up to the nurse with a bright smile, I got to work myself. If it got out Jared was yelling at hospital staff, his attitude and reputation would be front and center in the press once again. I needed his voice and his album front and center, not his lack of patience.

  My eyes dropped quickly to the bronze name tag affixed to her uniform. “Hi, Nancy.”

  The nurse’s obvious contempt lessened as I smiled at her and Gerry led Jared away, but she was still not a happy camper. Her tired green eyes focused on me as she lifted a hand to toy with a thin golden chain around her neck, shooting one last scowl at Jared’s retreating back.

  “Good morning,” I said.

  “No one is allowed to see the patient he’s demanding to see at the moment,” she told me without niceties or prelude. “I only asked him to sign the papers since he produced identification confirming he was the patient’s brother. The doctors don’t need his consent right now, though. They’re within their rights to be administering the treatment they are without your friend’s consent. He wasn’t even here when the patient was brought in.”

  “I understand. So does he.” I nodded at Jared. “But the patient is his brother, and he was just told about him being hospitalized a little while ago. That’s why he’s so upset. He’s just worried. His brother was out with friends when this happened, so he doesn’t know how bad his condition is. If he could just see him for a second, I’m sure it would ease his mind.”

  “Yes, but we can’t make any exceptions.” She shot an accusatory stare over my shoulder at where Gerry was trying to calm Jared down. “No matter who the family is.”

  I sighed inwardly. I didn’t know what Jared had said to the woman to antagonize her so much, but I was getting a pretty good idea. It was also clear the woman was not a fan, and Jared arguing with her had basically guaranteed she wasn’t going to take pity on him and allow him to see Caleb. Now, it would be up to me to ensure she forgave him enough not to give a snooty statement to the press if they ever came sniffing around.

  “I’m sure Mr. Larsen understands your position and respects the rules.” The nurse raised her eyebrows, letting me know she didn’t agree with what I was saying, but I pressed on. “He just wants to know his brother’s okay.

  “This is bullshit, Gerry.” Jared exploded behind me. I sighed out loud this time, watching the nurse’s expression darken. “They can’t keep me from seeing my own goddamn brother.”

  “Actually, we can,” Nancy told me, though her eyes remained on Jared. “We can’t allow anyone to see him because of the state he’s in. Not even his brother.”

  Jared turned away from Gerry and stormed back up to the counter. “The state he’s in? Is it that bad?”

  He turned away from us and started striding to the double doors marked ICU. Gerry took off after him and grabbed his arm, hissing. “You can’t, Jared.

  The nurse crossed her arms and pursed her lips. She glanced at Gerry, who held onto Jared, his jaw tight. Ignoring Jared’s question, she looked back at me as she jerked her head at him. “You need to get control over him, ma’am. I’m going to have to call the police if you don’t.”

  “That won’t be necessary.” Please let that be true.

  Walking over to Jared, I rested my hand on his forearm and waited for him to take a deep breath and meet my eyes. When he finally did, anger sparked in his dark eyes, but I could see his underlying worry in the lines around them.

  “Take a walk with me.”

  He didn’t respond immediately, first looking back at the doors to the ICU and then to the nurse, to Gerry, and finally, at me. “Fine.”

  Spinning around abruptly, he marched down the hallway we’d entered through and didn’t stop again until we were outside. The exit doors slid open quietly to let us out into the parking lot. Jared kept his head down, his hands stuffed into his pockets.

  A few people looked twice as he passed them, but no one stopped us. I followed him to a quieter corner of the lot and nearly crashed into him when he stopped almost as suddenly as he’d taken off once we cleared the crowds. “There. No more self-righteous nurse threatening to lock me up. The band’s reputation is safe. What is it?”

  I folded my arms, half waiting for him to stomp his feet like an entitled, spoiled toddler might have. He was already acting like one. It didn’t seem like too much a stretch to imagine he might take it to that level.

  Angling my head slightly, I debated the best way to calm him down that didn’t involve a few hours in the police hold
ing cells to cool his jets. That would probably do the trick eventually, after a few more hours of shouting, but it was quite possibly the worst outcome this situation could have.

  “They’re only doing their jobs in there, Jared,” I said finally. “You might not like it, and I get that. I would’ve been ten times worse if that was Kelly in there, but we have to trust that they know what’s best for Caleb right now. And if that’s uninterrupted medical attention, then we owe it to him to let them do what they need to do for him.”

  “I don’t like it.” He pointed up at the windows above us, which probably weren’t those of the unit Caleb was in, but I didn’t point it out, knowing what he meant anyway. “He’s in there. My brother is in there. God knows what they’re doing to him or if he even knows it. All I want is to see him.”

  “I know you’re worried.” I reached out to him, and to my surprise, he opened his arms and pulled me into a hug. “Caleb’s strong. He’ll be okay.”

  His arms tightened around me, and he tensed before relaxing again, his breath tickling my temple when he spoke. “I just can’t believe the guys let him get like this. I never thought they’d let it go this far.”

  I burrowed into his chest, winding my arms around his waist in a silent show of support.

  There was nothing I could say to that. The band had its own dynamics, and I didn’t pretend to understand them all. I knew Jared blamed himself for what happened to Caleb. I’d seen that much in him this morning when he was getting into it with Nick.

  But there was more to it. I didn’t know what it was yet, but it sounded a lot like disillusionment. Jared rested his head on top of mine, almost hesitant before he continued in a quiet voice. “He’s the only family I have left. He has to be okay.”

  “I’ll stay with you until he is,” I whispered, pulling away from him to look into his eyes as I made my promises. “We won’t go anywhere until we know he’s fine.”

  Jared sighed and then his eyes turned stormy. “No, you should go.”