“That’s what scares me.”
“It shouldn’t.”
I tangled my fingers in her hair and pulled her close to me, inhaling her scent and kissing her tenderly. Her fingers rested on my chest and my heart beat against them as I kissed her. She fit so perfectly against me and it felt so right to have her there.
When we pulled apart, Lacie was crying. I brushed a tear off her cheek and frowned.
“What’s wrong?”
She shook her head. “Nothing. I just… I was getting ready for my mom to die, you know? Like the prognosis is so grim, and I’m so broke…” she trailed off, and then put her hands on either side of my face. “But now… I have hope. I haven’t had hope in so long, Maddox—”
A sob shook her body, and I held her closer. I brushed the tears away and kissed her trembling body, cooing and shushing and stroking her hair until her sobs quieted down.
When she was still, I caressed her arm with my finger and kissed the top of her head.
“So did we just agree to get married?” I asked.
“Yeah,” Lacie replied, her head nestled on my chest. “I think we did.” She glanced up, and the familiar mischievous gleam was back in her eye. “But only if you pay me. This is a business arrangement, Mr. Knight.”
“Is it?”
“Maybe a bit of pleasure, too,” she grinned.
“I can agree to those terms,” I said, pulling her in for another kiss as my hands roamed over her perfect body.
Chapter 16 - Lacie
I woke up with a start, sitting up in bed as my heart raced. Maddox groaned beside me and I squinted at the alarm clock next to the bed.
“Shit,” I said in a loud whisper. Maddox groaned again.
“Maddox,” I said, poking his muscled shoulder. “Maddox, I need to get up. I need to be at work in half an hour! You need to be at work in an hour!”
His eyes finally fluttered open and he groaned again. “Relax,” he said. “They’ll wait for us.”
I snorted. “They might wait for you, Mr. Rock Star, but they definitely won’t wait for a makeup artist.”
“Don’t talk about yourself like that,” he said. “You’re my wife.”
“Not yet,” I grinned, kissing his lips. I jumped out of bed and showered in a couple minutes, threw some clothes on and grabbed my makeup kit. Maddox was watching me as he got up and wrapped a towel around his slim hips. He grinned.
“You look sexy when you’re flushed.”
“Shut up,” I laughed. “I’ll see you at the studio. The car will be waiting outside in fifteen minutes.”
“Yes ma’am.” He nodded and then brought his hand up to his forehead to salute me. As soon as his hand left the towel, it fell down to the floor and he stood there, saluting me in the nude.
I tried to keep the smile off my lips and shook my head. “You’re a goon.”
He winked at me, and I walked out of the suite. By the time I was downstairs and hailing a cab, my smile had widened and my heart felt light. I made it to the first studio on our itinerary when Morgan called me.
“Hey Morgan,” I said. “How’s LA?”
“Same old,” she said.
“I can’t believe Marcus didn’t let you come to New York. He’s definitely trying to sabotage you.”
“I know,” she sighed. “Are you at the first studio? Is the band there?”
“I… I’m almost there,” I said. I didn’t want to lie to her. “I think they’re on their way.”
“Good. Keep me up to date on how today goes. I don’t have to tell you how important this week is for their image. They’re playing at the Grammys on Saturday, and we need as much positive press leading up to it as possible.”
“I’ll make sure they look their best,” I said with a nod.
“I know you will.”
“Hey Morgan?” I said, chewing my lip. I hated not telling her the truth. I hated keeping my relationship with Maddox a secret. Was it a relationship? My engagement? But for now, Morgan had a lot on her plate.
“Yeah?”
“It’ll be okay. You’re a master PR Manager, and these boys are hanging on your every word. They’re as invested in us as we are in them.” Maybe more.
“Okay,” she said. “Thanks, Lacie.”
“You got it. We’ll celebrate on Saturday after the show.”
I hung up the phone and took a deep breath. I’d have to tell her. I’d have to tell Veronica, too. What would I even say?
I’m engaged.
Yeah, right.
I’m engaged to Maddox Knight.
Casual. That’d work. Made perfect sense.
Not.
I sighed as the taxi pulled up outside the studio. By the time I was in the dressing room with my gear set up, the band was arriving. Maddox winked at me and I blushed, but other than that I think I succeeded in staying relatively professional.
Veronica snapped some candid photos of the band. As Garrett was getting up off the makeup chair and Carter was sitting down, she showed me one of the photos.
“These are great, Vee,” I said. I glanced at the guys. “You’re lucky that Veronica is so talented. I’m not sure anyone else could make you look this good.”
Maddox grinned and my knees went weak. His smile was blindingly sexy.
When the band went out for their first interview, Veronica let out a deep breath. She glanced at me.
“You never checked in to our hotel yesterday,” she said. There was a strange look on her face, but I couldn’t place it. I made a mental note to ask her if anything had happened. But right now, she was asking questions about something I wasn’t quite ready to talk about.
“No,” I replied slowly, putting my makeup brushes away and clipping my case closed.
“Stop avoiding my eyes,” she laughed. “What’s going on with you?”
“I’m engaged.”
I looked up to see Vee’s eyes widening. “What?”
“I said I’m engaged.”
“I know what you said,” she laughed. “What I mean is, what?! How? To who?! Are you engaged to Maddox Freaking Knight?!”
“Sort of,” I said. “I don’t know. I think so?”
She put up her hands, shaking her head as she closed her eyes. When she opened them again, she put her hands on her hips and looked at me.
“Lacie, babe, I love you. You’re my best friend. But will you please tell me what the fuck you’re talking about right now?”
Her eyes were bright as she stared at me, and I couldn’t help it. I started laughing. It bubbled up inside me, and all the tension in my body started to evaporate. She frowned as the laughter started to spread to her too, her confusion battling with her desire to laugh with me. Finally, she gave in, and we dissolved into a fit of giggles.
“I’m sorry,” I said, wiping my eyes. “I know it’s crazy.”
“You’re fucking right, it’s crazy. What is going on?”
“I guess he needs a wife to get his inheritance or something. I don’t know, I don’t really get it. He said he’d pay for my mom’s medical bills if I married him.”
Veronica frowned. “Lacie, that’s fucking weird. That’s like… coercive. I’m not okay with that.”
“No!” I said, shaking my head. “It’s not like that. He said he’d give me the money either way.” I opened my mouth but I didn’t know what to say.
The thing was, Vee was right. It was weird, and a bit coercive. But the way Maddox and I had talked about it hadn’t felt that way at all. It had felt right. I hadn’t felt forced into it at all. I’d felt…
…happy.
She leaned against the counter, folding her arms and staring at the ground. She glanced at me, studying my face as I shifted from foot to foot.
“And you’re okay with this?”
I took a deep breath, willing my voice to stay steady. “I have to do this for my mom, Vee.”
“There are other options.”
“What options?” I exploded. “I’ve been denied
loans, we can’t remortgage the house a third time, and I barely make enough money to pay for the house and food. I have no family to ask for money and I’m not going to like, start stripping to pay for it or anything. Remember that pole dancing class we took? I looked like a baby deer pretending to be a firefighter.”
Veronica tried to fight the smile off her face, but she couldn’t. She finally laughed and nodded.
“Right, so stripping isn’t an option,” she grinned. “But marrying a guy you met a couple days ago? That’s fucking crazy, Lacie.”
“I…”. I looked away and took a deep breath, swinging my eyes back to my friend. “I kind of want to.”
“You want to marry Maddox?”
“I know it’s insane, and I know that it doesn’t make sense and we only just met a couple days ago. I know it’s probably a terrible idea for a zillion reasons, but—”
Vee held up her hand and I stopped talking. She walked towards me, wrapping her arms around me and holding me tight.
“I get it,” she said. “As long as you want to, and you’re not just doing this because you feel like you have to.”
“I do want to,” I squeaked, sniffling as my eyes started to mist. “It sounds crazy—”
“I get it,” she said. Veronica pulled away, putting her hands on my shoulders. “I’ve met someone, too, and—”
“Carter,” I interrupted.
It was Veronica’s turn to blush. She grinned at me.
“Now we just need Morgan to hook up with Garrett and we’ll be all set.”
“Yeah, right.” I replied. “It’s one thing for you and I to do something like this, but Morgan is way too straight-laced.”
“I don’t know,” Veronica said, grinning. “I thought I heard something in the hallway at The Morning Show the other day.”
I blushed. “That was probably me,” I laughed.
Veronica shrugged. “Didn’t sound like you.”
“You think she and Garrett…?”
“I mean, you’re getting freaking married, so nothing would surprise me now.”
I grinned, putting my arm around my friend as my heart soared. If Veronica could accept this crazy wedding, then it couldn’t be a terrible idea.
… Could it?
Chapter 17 - Maddox
Normally, when the guys and I were in New York, we’d be partying like animals. We’d be out every night until the early hours of the morning.
But this time it was different. Even Garrett kept to himself, hurrying to his suite as soon as we were done for the day. After a long day of interviews and TV show appearances and radio shows, we’d all head back to our hotel with no mention of parties or drinking or drugs or women.
None of it mattered anymore.
I got back to the hotel and sank down on the leather couch in the suite’s living room. My phone buzzed.
“Hey, Hillary,” I said, closing my eyes and leaning back. “What’s up?”
“I wanted to check in with you. Do you remember what we talked about? Maggie is pushing to have the will thrown out, so if we don’t act within the next week, you’ll end up with nothing. Maddox, I care about you like a son. I’ve known you since you were little, and I don’t want to see you end up with nothing. It’s not right. It’s—”
“I’ve found someone,” I said.
The line went quiet.
“Hillary?”
“You… you found someone to marry?”
“Yeah.”
“Oh,” she said, not even trying to hide the surprise in her voice. “Great. Okay! I wasn’t expecting that,” she laughed. “May I ask who she is?”
“My makeup artist.”
“You’re going to marry your makeup artist?”
“Yeah.”
“Are you sure that’s—”
“Yes, I’m sure,” I said, the frustration bubbling up inside me. “First you want me to find a wife, and now that I’ve found one, you’re second-guessing it. Do you want me to get married or not?”
“I want you to do what’s best for you, Maddox.”
“And you want to keep that hefty retainer I’ve got you on.”
“This is about more than money, Maddox. Your sister shouldn’t end up with everything. It’s not right.”
“Good. Well, I’ll take Lacie to the courthouse on Monday. Have you got the paperwork sorted out? Once I’m married, do you need anything else from me?”
“No,” she said quietly. “Maddox?”
“Yeah,” I said, sighing.
“I hope she makes you happy.”
A smile stretched over my lips as the door opened. Lacie’s gorgeous face appeared and she flashed a brilliant smile at me.
I cleared my throat. “She does,” I replied. “I gotta go.”
I hung up the phone and stood up as Lacie walked towards me. She wrapped her arms around my waist and tilted her chin up towards me. A smile floated over her lips and I leaned down to kiss them, savoring her sweet taste. She pushed herself away, staring up at me and grinning.
“You still want to marry me now that you’ve had the day to think about it?”
“More than ever,” I said as my heart thumped.
I couldn’t explain it. I didn’t know how to tell her that it was about more than just money. It was more than sticking it to my sister and getting what my parents had left for me. It was about her.
“If you’re second guessing it,” I said, “I wasn’t lying when I said I’d give you the money for your mom.”
Lacie grinned.
“Where’s the fun in that?”
A smile spread over my lips and I kissed her again, holding her close as the world around us fell away. I didn’t know how it happened, but somehow, Lacie had walked into my life and turned it upside down. Somehow, I felt good about it.
I was happier than I’d been since the accident that killed my parents, since our band started going downhill. I was happier than I’d been in a long, long time.
The next three days went by in a flash. Lacie and I worked together during the days, and I tried my best to keep my hands off her. At night, she’d arrive at my suite at the Ritz and the barrier between us would melt away. Having her in my arms was the sweetest joy.
We laid in bed on Thursday, the night before our flight back to Los Angeles. I was tired from the long days of promotions and interviews and appearances, but I was happy. I trailed my hand over and back along her spine as she snuggled into my chest. Her breathing slowed down, and in a few seconds, I knew she was asleep.
I held her there, breathing in the scent of her hair and watching her chest rise and fall. Her face was free of any lines or frowns. She was angelic.
My heart thumped in my chest and I took a deep breath.
Was this really happening?
In a few days, on Monday, I would marry Lacie. It had started as a bit of a joke. I’d gone along with what Hillary had been saying to me, even though it sounded absolutely insane.
I’d thought it was some cruel joke from my parents, who obviously never thought I’d end up with anyone.
But now?
Now it seemed more real than ever. And Lacie seemed happy about it too, which was even more surprising. I mean, I was offering her a large sum of money to marry me, but still. She sounded like she wanted to get married.
She shifted against me, curling her fingers into my chest and huffing in her sleep. Her skin looked milky white against my tattooed chest, and I took her hand in mine. I stroked her back with my other hand and kissed her forehead and she quieted down again.
“Where did you come from?” I whispered, trailing my fingers along her jaw.
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. Deep in my heart, I knew this was the right thing. From the moment she’d walked in to our rehearsal space, I knew I’d make her mine. I thought I’d meant physically, but I’d been wrong. She was going to be mine, body and heart and soul.
And whether I liked it or not, I was hers, too. In a few days, we’d be man and wife,
and the thought of it made my heart beat harder and warmth spread through me.
She was mine, and I was hers.
Chapter 18 - Lacie
When we got back to LA, I got a notification from my bank that I’d gotten my pay check for the week. I went straight to the hospital to make the down payment, feeling hopeful that I’d be able to make the next payment. It was the first time I’d felt hopeful about anything since my mother had gotten sick.
Once that was done, I went home. When I walked into her darkened bedroom, the joy that I’d felt over the week was replaced with an underlying sense of guilt. I hated leaving her here on her own.
“Hey, Mom,” I said gently. She opened her eyes and a painful smile stretched over her lips.
“Lacie,” she breathed. “I’m glad you’re back.”
“I’m back, and I made the down payment for your treatment. We’re going to get you better.”
I sat down beside her, and a sense of calm washed over me. Even if this wedding was a crazy idea. Even if it was probably foolish and there were a thousand reasons not to do it, it felt right.
I actually had a chance to save my mom. I had hope.
My mother smiled, squeezing her hand over mine. “That’s great, Lacie. But don’t put yourself into debt over me. You need to live your life and not worry about your old mother.”
“You’re not that old, Mom. And I am living my life. I want you in it. So don’t say things like that, we’ll make it through this.”
Her eyes misted up and she nodded. “Okay, honey.”
I crept out of the room and unpacked my bags, sitting on our old couch and sighing. I looked at the peeling paint, and the TV that was older than I was, and I sighed.
It wasn’t the Ritz, but it was home.
Tomorrow, I’d go to the awards show and I’d watch The Mondays play. If their week of promos was any indication, they would do really well. Their album launch wouldn’t be tainted by any tabloid news about trashed hotel rooms or wild parties, and their careers would be back on track.
And then I’d marry one of them.
I fell asleep on the couch with a smile on my face. For the first time in a long time, things weren’t so bleak.
Maddox: A Bad Boy Rock Star Romance (Rock Hard Book 2) Page 7
