Harlow
Afar-off ringing interrupted my dreams. Forcing my eyes open, I realized the sound was my phone. I rolled over and saw Dean Finlay’s number on my screen. This could only be about my dad. Rush’s father only called when something was up with Kiro. I sat up and quickly answered.
“Hey. What’s wrong?” I asked, then glanced at the time. It was a little after three in the morning.
“He’s missing again,” Dean replied.
This was not the first time my father had gone missing. Unfortunately, Daddy would get so high he would do stupid things like go off with women he didn’t know and sober up in their bed, oftentimes cities away from where he was supposed to be.
I stood up and went to my closet for some clothes. “How long?” I asked.
“After the concert last night he was partying with some groupies. I left him to go to the limo and rest. That was the last time I saw him. Trac was still in there with him and so was Wayne. Wayne was too trashed to remember anything. Trac said he left with two women. One had red hair, the other had long, curly brown hair. He didn’t think anything of it.”
Trac Trace was the bass guitar player and Wayne Rolls was the lead guitarist. I shoved my legs into a pair of jeans. “Where was Hail?” I asked. Hail Holloway played the keyboard. He was also the most responsible.
“Hail had already left for the night. He knows nothing.”
“I’m getting dressed. Where are y’all right now?” I knew Dean had called because getting me there was the only way to find Daddy. He went off the deep end sometimes and I seemed to be the only one who could bring him back. Dean said once it was because I looked just like my momma.
“I hate for you to come out here all alone. Isn’t safe,” he said with a worried tone. “I’d send for Rush but he ain’t gonna wanna leave Nate and Blaire.”
“Mase is here visiting. He’ll probably come with me. Where are y’all?” I asked, then buttoned up my shirt.
“Vegas,” he said with a sigh.
“I’m on my way. Not sure when I can get a flight out but I’ll be there. Keep me posted.”
“I’ve already sent the jet. It’ll be at the private strip in Destin waiting on you in about thirty minutes. Your daddy wouldn’t want you in a commercial airplane.”
“Thanks, I’ll try calling him. If he’s gonna answer anyone’s phone call it’ll be mine,” I said.
“Yeah. Keep trying him. I’ll see you soon, kid.”
“Bye,” I replied, then hung up and grabbed a suitcase. I had clothes to pack. I didn’t know how long this would take. I also needed to wake up Mase.
Opening my door quietly, I walked down to Mase’s room and knocked several times before I heard him grunt. Good, he was in there.
“What?” he grumbled.
I opened the door slowly and peeked inside. “Dad’s missing. I gotta go to Vegas and help find him.”
Mase sat up and rubbed his face hard with both hands in an attempt to wake up. “You have got to be shitting me. How old is he, eighteen? F*ck. How does he just up and go missing? He’s Kiro Manning, for f*ck’s sake.”
Mase had no idea how common this was. “It’s something that happens with him on tour. I’ll find him or he’ll eventually answer my calls. I just have to go. The jet is picking me up about twenty minutes from here.”
I watched as Mase battled with himself on what to do. He didn’t like being around the band. He rarely came around anymore. Looking for Dad also wasn’t something he wanted to do.
“I’m going, too. You can’t go alone to Vegas. Let me get dressed and grab some shit.”
I didn’t tell him he didn’t have to; I just nodded and closed the door behind me. I still needed to pack and brush my teeth and hair. I dialed Dad’s number on my way back to my room and it rang three times then went to voicemail.
?
Once I had my overnight bag packed I headed down the hall and for the stairs. I needed some coffee and I knew Mase would, too. Waking Nan up to tell her was pointless. She would be mad that I’d disturbed her. Might as well not even tell her we were leaving. She probably wouldn’t notice.
Just as I put the coffee into the filter there was a light knock on the front door. What the heck? I glanced at the time and it was only three-forty-five. Who would be here this early?
I closed the lid to the coffeepot and pressed brew before going to the front door. It was too dark to see outside. I turned on the outdoor lights and saw Grant standing outside with a thermos in one hand, looking wide awake.
Opening the door, I stared at him, completely confused, but I couldn’t just leave him out there.
Grant grinned at me. “You ready?”
What? Was I dreaming? Was Daddy really not missing? Had this been some elaborate dream where I ended up in bed with Grant again? I had those often enough.
“Dean called Rush who called me. Can I come in?” he said, stepping by me and into the house.
“What?” I finally managed to ask.
Grant held up his thermos of coffee. “I’m ready to go find Kiro. I’ll even drive us to the airport.”
Mase’s heavy footsteps broke into my thoughts and I turned to see him walking toward us. “Is this a damn search party?” Mase grumbled, dropping his bag at his feet and looking from me to Grant.
“Looks that way,” Grant said.
“I, uh . . .” was all I could think of to say. I still hadn’t figured this out.
“Go get you some of that coffee I smell, Sis; you need it to make coherent sentences. I’ll deal with this,” Mase said.
I didn’t want to leave Grant alone with him but, honestly, I didn’t know what else to do.
So I went to get the coffee.
Grant
“Explain this,” Mase said, standing with his feet apart and his arms crossed over his chest. He was Harlow’s older brother and possibly the only person who had ever stepped into the father figure role in her life. I respected that.
“I want to go with her. I have a lot of shit to make up for. I’m starting now.”
Mase frowned and continued to stare at me. “What the hell does that mean? Last I heard you were f*cking Nan. What do you have to do with Harlow?”
She hadn’t told him anything. I wondered if she had done that to protect me. “I was scared of having feelings for someone. Harlow stirred things in me I wasn’t familiar with and it made me run. I’ve decided I don’t want to run.”
Mase took a step toward me. “You need to be real damn sure of that. ’Cause she likes you more than she wants to and I don’t trust you. Not at all. If you want to go help find our sorry-ass father then fine, but I’m going, too.”
I preferred to have her alone but this was okay. At least I was near her. I was tired of not being near her and watching her from afar.
“Understood,” I replied.
Harlow walked back into the foyer carrying two mugs of coffee. “Here,” she said, handing one to Mase.
“Thanks. He’s going with us. He likes looking at you or some sappy shit like that.”
Harlow’s eyes went wide and I bit back a smile. That wasn’t exactly what I’d said but the look on Harlow’s face was perfect.
“Oh” was all she said.
Mase picked up his bag and then looked at Harlow. “Where’s your bag?”
“I left it in the kitchen. Let me get it.”
“I’ll get it,” I said, heading to the kitchen before she could finish her sentence. If I wanted to gain her trust back and even slightly crack that wall she had up around herself I had to do anything I could to let her know I was serious.
“I’m confused,” I heard Harlow whisper as I left the room. I just smiled. Good. Confused was a good thing.
A Louis Vuitton duffel bag was sitting on the floor of the kitchen. I went and picked it up. The bag was worn out. I had no doubt this had been a gift from Kiro and she’d carried it for years. This wasn’t something that Harlow would buy for herself.
I brought it back to the door and then opened the door. “Time to go,” I said to both of them, still holding her bag. She glanced down at it and then back at me.
Mase made an amused sound in his throat and rolled his eyes at me as he walked out the door. Harlow followed him but stopped as she got close to me.
“Thank you,” she said simply, then went outside.
This was going to be good for us.
?
Mase climbed into the front seat and I doubted it hadn’t been on purpose. He didn’t want me close to Harlow. He was going to make this hard on me. Fine. I could handle it.
“You good back there?” I asked Harlow, looking back to make sure she had enough leg room.
“Yes, thank you,” she replied as a blush touched her cheeks. Damn, she was beautiful.
I turned back around and cranked the truck. “Rush said this was normal for Kiro. Is there a process on how to find him?” I asked, trying to make conversation.
“Yeah. Harlow calls him. He finally answers and she goes to get him. She’s the only one he listens to,” Mase replied.
I didn’t like the idea of this all falling on Harlow’s shoulders. The man had three grown kids. Why did everything have to be Harlow’s responsibility?
“You can’t call him and get him?” I asked, unable to keep the annoyance out of my voice.
“Dear ol’ Dad has a favorite. He only listens to her.”
“That’s not true. You have your mother and you don’t really need him. You have a good life. Then there’s Nan, and she doesn’t make it easy on him. I’m just . . . I’m just the one that . . .”
“You’re just the special one. He loved your mother. She was his world and when she died you became his world. That’s just the way it is, and I’m damn happy he gives a shit when it comes to you,” Mase told her.
Harlow didn’t say anything. She stayed quiet. I wanted to ask her more. I wanted to know how she was feeling and if she was worried. But Mase was sitting beside me, and now wasn’t a good time.
“I need food. That jet better be stocked,” Mase grumbled.
“It always is,” Harlow replied.
This wasn’t the first time I had been on Slacker Demon’s jet but it was strange getting on it with Kiro’s kids. It had always been with Rush. These two had a dynamic that I’d never witnessed before. Until Mase showed up in Rosemary I wasn’t even aware they were close. I thought Kiro’s elusive son stayed away from that whole world.
“Have you two always been close?” I asked.
“Yes,” they both said.
“Grandmama always took me to stay at the ranch with Mase and his parents when I was a kid.”
“Parents?” I asked, because that didn’t make sense since his father was Kiro.
“My stepdad and my mom. He’s more like my father than my own father,” Mase said with his head resting on the seat and his eyes closed.
I hadn’t realized that. Interesting.
“Harlow’s visits were always something I looked forward to. I thought having a sibling was so cool. Especially one as proper and sweet as Harlow. Getting her all muddy and talking her into riding a horse or feeding the cows was always entertaining.”
Harlow let out a small laugh from the backseat.
Maybe having Mase around wasn’t so bad. At least I’d get a chance to know her better.
Harlow
As soon as we got on the jet, Mase ate a bowl of oatmeal and went to bed. He was not a morning person. I sat down on the leather sofa beside the window so I could look out while I thought about where Dad could have gone instead of the fact that Grant was here. With me.
I didn’t turn to see what he was doing or where he was going to sit down. I wasn’t sure what to say to him now that we were alone. I also hated that my heart sped up when he smiled at me.
His warm body sank down beside me close enough that his arm was brushing against mine. “Hey,” he said simply.
Ignoring him was impossible and it was rude. I wasn’t rude. “Hey,” I replied, glancing over at him then back out the window.
“You worried about your dad?” he asked.
Not really. This was common. “No. Just frustrated that he never seems to grow up.”
“You not gonna look at me?”
I didn’t want to. He made me forget that he was dangerous. “Probably not,” I replied honestly.
Grant chuckled. “That’s a shame. I like looking into those eyes of yours.”
I closed my eyes and swore silently. Why, Grant? Why are you doing this to me? It isn’t fair.
“Are you going to hate me forever?” he asked.
I didn’t hate him. That wasn’t what this was about. Did he not get that? He had laid the terms down. I was just protecting myself from him.
“I don’t hate you. I just know where I stand with you and I’m being careful not to think too much about it, or you, for that matter.”
He didn’t say anything. Good. I’d shut him up. Maybe he would move and I wouldn’t have to keep smelling him. All warm and delicious. I knew how that skin felt against mine and I did not need reminders.
“I made a mistake, Harlow. I was scared and I f*cked up.”
I finally turned to look at him. We’d already had this discussion. I didn’t want to have it again. “I know. You told me already. I get it.” I started to turn away again but Grant grabbed my chin and gently turned my face back to his.
“No. We haven’t talked about this. I told you bullshit that isn’t true. I told you I wasn’t ready for a relationship. That was a lie. I was f*cking terrified of loving someone so much and then losing her. But I’m not anymore. I can’t keep doing this to myself.”
I didn’t reply because I had no idea what he was talking about.
“I want you. I’ve wanted you since the moment I laid eyes on you. When I was buried inside of you I knew then I was sunk. Those pretty hazel eyes and angelic smile had started digging inside me and making themselves at home in my heart. But that night . . . you claimed me, and I can’t shake it. I can’t forget it.”
Oh. I stared up at him as his words sank in. Did this mean he wanted this with me? Or was he just saying this because he wanted to have sex again?
He lowered his head until his lips were barely brushing my ear. “You’re all I want. Forgive me for running? Please.”
I moved away from him, putting some space there between us. “Don’t. I’m not ready to just forget that you slept with Nan or that you didn’t call me for two months.”
Grant frowned and ran his hand through his long hair, making it even more tousled looking. “I did call. Ask Dean. He’ll tell you. I don’t know why you didn’t get calls to your phone but I was calling the hell out of it. I thought you had found out about my drunk screw-up with Nan and were done with me. Your dad threatened to call the cops if I showed up at your house. I started drinking a lot to forget you, and yeah, Nan happened to be there.”
Had he really tried to call me? Why would Dad keep me from him? Unless he knew about Nan and Grant. That would be a reason for Dad to threaten Grant. Was he telling the truth?
“I want to be near you. When I am, everything else fades away and I can’t concentrate on anything but you. That’s what scared me, but I’ve decided I was stupid to be scared of that. It’s special. You’re special.”
My grandmama would tell me to ignore the sweet talk and walk away. But then my grandmama had never laid eyes on Grant Carter. He was too appealing for words. I missed him. This. Being with him. I missed it. He had shown me how to enjoy life, if only for two weeks. I had felt like I was finally living when I was with him.
“I don’t think I can trust my good sense with you,” I told him honestly.
“You’ll find out you can trust me. I’m not a bad guy. Deep down you know that. I just made a very bad decision.”
Taking chances had never been my thing. I wasn’t a risk taker. I was careful. I didn’t get hurt. I protected myself. I had walls. Grant had made it past my walls once. Letting him in again was asking a lot.
He moved over to me and put his head on my shoulder. “I’m not above begging,” he said.
I shivered from the tingle of his breath against my skin. This was a bad idea. Grant was good at sweet-talking. With his looks and his mouth he could talk a girl into anything. If I let myself care about him any more it would only end in heartache.
“Don’t beg. Just give me some space. I need to think,” I replied, pressing myself further away from him. The fact that I wanted to crawl into his lap and wrap myself around him was not good. I used to be stronger than this. He talked about me making him weak; if he only knew how weak he made me.
Grant gave me this sad look that only made his face more appealing. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. “Don’t. You’ve been sleeping with Nan. I heard you. Do you have any idea what that feels like? To know that the loud screams that kept you up at night were actually images of someone-—” I stopped myself. I was going to say too much.
“It keeps me awake at night. I hate knowing you heard that. I don’t even remember much about that night. But knowing you heard us . . . it kills me.”
I looked out the window so I could open my eyes. I didn’t trust myself with those eyes of his locked on me. “Put yourself in my shoes. What if you had heard me having sex with another man . . . one you hated. How would it make you feel?”
Grant didn’t reply. I thought maybe I had shut him up and he was going to leave me alone. I was relieved and disappointed at the same time.
Grant moved closer to me again and his hand reached up and brushed the hair on my neck away. “The idea of some other man touching you makes me so f*cking insane, I want to destroy shit. I can’t imagine it, and just thinking about it makes me shake with fury.”
I could feel the stiffness to his body as it brushed against my side.
“Your date with Adam haunts me. I can’t stand the idea of him touching you,” Grant’s finger trailed down my bare arm. “I don’t do possessive and crazy. Never have. But you . . . I want to wrap you up and run off with you so no one can touch you again. Just me. Always me.”
Grant’s head dipped down and the tip of his nose grazed the skin on my neck. “You smell like heaven and hell all wrapped up into one,” he whispered.
My heart slammed against my chest and my legs felt weak. Did he mean all that? I turned my head to look into his eyes, and the determination and desperation told me that he meant every word. Grant Carter wanted me that much. As hard as it was to believe, he had called me and I hadn’t known it. I couldn’t convince myself he was lying. He was so determined for me to believe him. I wanted to believe him.
The memory of how good Grant could make my body feel was replaying vividly in my head. I didn’t want to remember, but he was making it very hard.
“If you don’t trust me, I understand. Just let me near you,” he said as his hand slipped under my shirt and rested on my stomach. “I’ll prove it to you. Just let me. Give me a chance to prove it to you.”
His hand played with the skin on my stomach and I forgot to breathe.
“I don’t want to be another Nan to you,” I told him honestly. I had witnessed firsthand how easily he had slept with Nan then ignored her and her feelings the very next moment.
“You’re nothing like Nan. What she and I had was shallow and based on her selfishness and neediness. She has no feelings for me and she made sure to kill all feelings I had for her.”
I let his hand to continue to touch my skin and send tingles through my body. This might come back to haunt me, but I was good at reading people—and I believed Grant Carter.
“So f*cking soft,” he murmured in my ear, and I let my head fall back to give him more access to my neck because I was incredibly weak when it came to wanting what this man could give me. This wasn’t smart. I was making a huge mistake but I couldn’t seem to stop myself. I loved how he made me feel. My body wanted more. Even if my head was screaming at me to stop this.
He let out a pleased growl and his lips found my arched neck and took small nips as he made his way down to the top of my shirt. His hand was there, unbuttoning it, and I didn’t care. I wanted his mouth on my breasts. Grant had given me orgasms I hadn’t known existed, and I wanted that. He made my body do things I didn’t know it could do, and I wanted that.
“So beautiful,” he said in a reverent tone as he pulled my bra down and his hands covered my breasts. I moaned in relief. The ache that had settled in them was somewhat eased by his touch. I wanted more, though.
Grant grabbed my waist and hauled me into his lap until I was straddling him and my bared breasts were in his face. “F*ck, yes,” he said before his mouth was on my nipple, sucking. His other hand was pinching and twisting my other nipple. The sensation was causing the wetness between my legs to grow as I squirmed. A new ache was taking over. I sank down onto his lap and the hard erection in his jeans pressed against me, causing me to cry out in pleasure.
Grant stopped sucking, and his eyes were fiery blue pools as he gazed up at me hungrily. “You need me to touch your sweet little p-ssy?” he asked as his hands began unzipping my jeans. I only managed to whimper. I shouldn’t be doing this but I couldn’t stop.
The simple truth was I was horny. I hadn’t understood that term until Grant Carter entered my life. But this man made me lose it. All that control I possessed he made me forget in seconds.
“Put your hands behind me and lift up,” he ordered. I didn’t argue. I wanted his hands on me. The excitement made my heart race and my body tremble.
His hand slipped into the front of my jeans and two fingers slid into my panties until they rubbed right against my *. I bucked and moaned.
“F*ck,” he growled, and jerked his hand out. I started to beg him and he stood up, holding on to me. I wrapped my legs around his waist as he stalked to the back of the plane. Then he stopped and looked at the closed door to Dad’s room. Mase was in there sleeping. I had forgotten about Mase, and I was pretty sure Grant had, too.
He looked at the room beside it and I knew even if we were quiet Mase would hear us. Grant turned and went the other way to the private bathroom and opened the door and slammed it closed behind him.
“Get them off,” he said in a heated voice as he jerked his shirt over his head.
I glanced down at my jeans and started to fumble with them. Before I could get very far he had stripped and taken over, pulling my jeans and shirt off. Once we were both naked his mouth crashed down on mine and his tongue invaded me. Hot, minty, and hungry. I clung to his shoulders and kissed him back just as fiercely. I had missed this. The heat, the passion, the need all wrapped up into this one act. Grant’s hands cupped my bottom as he pulled me closer and continued to take nips and licks at the corners of my mouth while destroying me with a kiss I knew no one could ever live up to.
When he pulled back he looked into my eyes then pressed one more small kiss to my lips before picking me up and sitting me on the counter. “I want inside you again, but I want to taste you. I’ve missed how sweet you taste. But you have to be quiet.” He gave me a wicked smile. “Can you be quiet while I kiss this sweet p-ssy?” he asked, slipping a finger into me and causing me to cry out.
“I don’t think you can. My sweet girl likes to be loud. I can’t kiss it if you’re gonna scream,” he said as he kissed my neck and continued to run the tip of his finger between the slick folds.
I wanted his mouth on me. I wanted it more than I wanted to breathe. “I’ll be quiet,” I promised.
He grinned but didn’t look as if he believed me. I held my breath as he kissed his way down my body and pressed one simple kiss to my bare mound.
Then his tongue stuck out and he slipped it right over my *. I slapped my hand over my mouth and threw my head back as the pleasure grew.
He stopped and I reached for his head to hold him there.
“If you scream I stop,” he said, looking up at me with a sexy smile that made me want to do anything he asked.
I nodded and held my hand over my mouth.
Grant
This was not what I had intended to do. I wanted to talk to her and ease her into talking to me. Get Harlow to smile at me and trust me as she had before I screwed it all up by being a coward. But then she’d made me think about someone else touching her. Someone else knowing how incredible it felt to be inside her and knowing he was the one making her cry out. F*ck no. I couldn’t allow myself to think about that. If she had thought about sleeping with someone else, I needed to make sure she remembered just how it was between us. I wasn’t losing her. Not again.
The taste and smell of her made me forget everything around me. I’d almost forgotten her brother was in the damn bedroom. Small noises escaped from behind the hand she held so tightly across her mouth. I couldn’t help but grin. She was so damn adorable.
Bringing her to an orgasm like this would make her drop her hand and grab my hair and cry out. I knew that. So as much as I wanted to, that wasn’t happening. I needed to have my mouth close enough to smother her cries when she got off.
With one small kiss to her sensitive skin, I leaned back, causing her to reach for me and pull me back. I loved seeing proper, sweet Harlow get sexually demanding. It was hot as hell.
“Shhh . . . I’m gonna make it feel good, sweet girl. Just wait,” I promised her, reaching over her head into the cabinet, knowing there would be condoms somewhere close by. This was Slacker Demon’s plane, after all. The second door revealed an open box, and I grabbed one. Harlow watched me as I slipped it on, then I grabbed her hips, sliding her closer to the edge of the counter.
Her eyes went wide and locked with mine as I eased inside her. It was so incredibly tight I wanted to make a noise. I bit my bottom lip as I sank all the way in. She was like a hot, slick glove that squeezed me just right.
“If you move I’m gonna get loud,” she said, breathlessly.
I bent down and covered her mouth with mine before sliding back out and letting the exquisite feel of her send tingles up my spine. Harlow moaned into my mouth as I began pumping my tongue into her mouth with the same rhythm as our bodies.
Harlow clawed at my back and I relished it. She’d leave marks that I would feel later. I wanted that. I grabbed handfuls of her hair and let out a groan into her mouth as her hips began meeting each thrust. Her knees lifted even higher until they were covering my ribs. That was my undoing. I was too close and she felt too damn good.
“Let go,” I muttered against her mouth before covering it again to muffle her sounds.
At my words, her tight warmth clenched me so tightly I lost it. Harlow’s cry as I reached my release made me come even harder. Feeling her body jerk and tremble under me made want to shout. This was mine. How had I thought I could let this go?
I broke the kiss and buried my head in her neck as I gasped for air. Her nails gently raked down my back one more time, then she let out a long, shaky breath. Her legs fell from my sides and I stayed there inside her, reluctant to leave her warmth.
“I can’t believe I just did that,” she said quietly.
Me either, but I wasn’t going to say so. I didn’t want her regretting this.
“You’re amazing,” I replied, lifting my head so I could see her face. The flush on her cheeks and chest only highlighted the sated look in her eyes.
“I’m not like this. I don’t just do this,” she said.
Here came her self-doubt. I stood up and pulled her up with me. “You do this with me. That’s all that matters. We’re attracted to each other. We have feelings for each other. This is okay. It’s not like I’m a one-night stand.”
Harlow ran her hand through her messed-up hair and gazed up at me. “Are you sure this doesn’t make me a slut?” The true concern in her eyes was the only thing keeping me from laughing out loud.
“Baby, it’s only been me. You’ve only been with me. Twice. That does not make you a slut. Never. Don’t consider it.”
Harlow chewed on her bottom lip as she thought about my words. Finally, she sighed. “Okay. I guess you’re right. But . . . it’s not like we’re in a relationship, and I just . . .” She paused and looked down at us. I was still inside her and I could see that realization in her face as her pink cheeks turned even redder.
I eased out and groaned from the release of her warmth. Harlow watched me in fascination. If she didn’t stop, I was going to be ready to go again in less than five minutes. I reached over and grabbed some toilet paper and eased off the condom before looking back at her.
She jerked her attention off my cock and then smiled at me shyly. “I forgot what I was saying.”
A loud knock on the door made her jump and I swore.
“Get your damn clothes on and get the f*ck out of there,” Mase demanded loudly from the other side of the door.
Shit. Not what I wanted to deal with right now.
“Let me talk to him first,” she said, jumping down off the counter and reaching for her panties. Her angry brother might be outside, but I wasn’t letting him ruin this for me.
I took her panties from her hands and bent down to put them on her. Once I had them pulled up and in place I did the same with her jeans. She cooperated silently. When I fastened her bra I finally allowed myself to look at her. She had on enough clothes now that I could focus.
There was a softness there I hadn’t seen before. I wanted to keep her right here, locked away from everyone else in this moment. She slipped her arms into her shirt and I buttoned it up before pressing a kiss to her cheek.
Then I quickly grabbed my jeans and jerked them on and pulled my shirt on over my head. We both slipped on our shoes. I ran my hands through her tangled hair until I had it looking as if she hadn’t just been completely f*cked in the bathroom.
“Let’s go,” I told her and opened the door so she could step out.
“Maybe you should stay in here,” she said quietly.
I shook my head. I wasn’t scared of the cowboy. “Hell, no.”
Harlow let out a sigh and we walked into main cabin of the plane. Mase was drinking coffee and sitting by the window, but he was facing us.
“Not sure why this surprises me. I saw it coming a mile away,” Mase said as he glared at me.
“You don’t understand. It wasn’t just . . . it was . . . we were . . . ,” Harlow stuttered.
“I screwed some shit up. Harlow and I are working through it. I’m winning her trust back.”
Mase snarled. “No, you’re f*cking her in the damn bathroom on a plane.”
I took a step toward him and Harlow reached out and grabbed my arm. “You don’t understand, Mase.”
He raised his eyebrows, then took another sip of his coffee. “You’re a grown woman. If you want to make a mistake, I can’t stop you.”
The fact he was calling me a mistake pissed me the hell off, but I held my tongue.
“Don’t say things like that. You don’t understand. But you’re right. I’m a grown woman, and as much as I love you this isn’t your business.”
Mase smirked. “Bet our father will disagree with that.”
Harlow moved this time. “You will not tell Dad any of this. We aren’t kids.”
Mase took another long drink of his coffee. “Easy, tiger. I’m just teasing. Besides, he’ll figure it out himself. First, we just have to find his sorry ass.”
Harlow
Grant had taken a seat on the couch and pulled me down beside him with his arm wrapped firmly around my shoulders while he talked to Mase as if my brother hadn’t just caught us in the bathroom.
Men.
The rest of the flight went quickly, but then Grant had kept me very distracted for the first long portion of the trip. When we arrived in Vegas, Grant took my bag and we headed to the limo that Dean had sent to pick us up. I didn’t have to ask to know they were at the Hard Rock. It was their favorite place to stay in Vegas. I preferred the Venetian.
Grant slid in behind me and sat close enough that our bodies touched from shoulder to ankle, even though Mase sat across from us and there was plenty of room for him to scoot over. I liked it, though. He was determined to stay close to me.
“You called him since we landed?” Mase asked as he leaned back and stretched his legs in front of him.
I quickly pulled out my phone and turned it on to call Daddy. It rang three times and went to voice mail again. “Still not answering,” I said.
“He’s an ass. I can’t believe we came out here to look for our forty-five-year-old father. This is ridiculous,” Mase grumbled.
I knew Mase didn’t respect Dad. He held him to the level of his stepfather and that was unfair. Dad was a rock star. He was a legend. His world was different. You had to take into account that if he wanted something, people fell all over themselves trying to give it to him.
“He’s still our father,” I said, trying not to get defensive. Grant reached over and squeezed my hand. It felt as if I had an ally. Someone who understood. No one really understood my life and choices, not even Mase. Just knowing that someone might felt . . . well, it felt freeing. As if I wasn’t alone.
“Yeah, he is. Lucky us,” Mase replied, staring out the window.
Grant’s hand tightened on me and he pulled me closer to him. I didn’t want to like this or need it. But right now I was giving in to it.
My phone rang, startling all of us, and I fumbled with it to see it was only Dean.
“Hello,” I said, hoping he was about to tell me Dad was back at the hotel.
“Have you landed?”
“Yes, we’re on our way to the hotel,” I replied.
“Has he answered any of your calls?”
There was something off in Dean’s voice. Did he know something?
“No . . . has he called you?” I asked.
Dean didn’t reply right away. I started to get worried.
“No, he hasn’t. But when you get here we need to talk about something before you go looking for him.”
That sounded as if he knew something. I didn’t like him being so secretive. It was only making me nervous. “Okay. I should be there in just a few minutes,” I replied, when I wanted to demand he tell me now what it was he knew.
“See you in a few, kid,” he said before he hung up.
I held the phone in my hand and stared at it a moment.
“You forgot to tell Dean you brought his other son with you,” Mase drawled.
I glared at him and Grant just chuckled. I was glad Mase wasn’t getting to Grant. That wasn’t something I wanted to think about right now. I was afraid I had a much bigger problem. The foreboding sound in Dean’s voice was all I could focus on at the moment. Something was wrong. He would tell me if something had happened to my daddy . . . wouldn’t he? I dropped the phone to my lap and placed a hand over my stomach. He had to be okay. He had to.
?
When we arrived at the Hard Rock, we were sent right up to the penthouse that Dean and Kiro always used. The rest of the band stayed in another one. Dean opened the door, a frown creasing his forehead. I studied him closely. He didn’t look like someone who was about to tell me my dad was dead. He just looked concerned.
“We need to talk,” he told me. I nodded, because I already knew this. I hadn’t said anything to Mase and Grant in the car because I wasn’t sure I could without choking up. I was scared. I hated to admit it but I was scared of losing Kiro.
Grant’s hand was suddenly in mine and Mase was at my other side, his hand holding my arm as if I needed support to stand.
“Is he alive?” Mase asked, and I realized he knew nothing but was reading the tension in the room, just like I was. Whatever it was, Dean needed to tell me, even if he didn’t want to.
Dean’s eyebrows shot up and then he realized how his words had sounded and an apologetic look crossed his face. “Hell, yes, he’s alive. I’m sorry, Harlow, I didn’t mean to scare you, sweetheart. Normally, when he does this and I know where he is, I don’t call you. I just deal with it. But when he ran this time I decided it was time you knew. You’re not a child anymore. Kiro still treats you like one but he needs you more than he realizes.” Dean paused and started pacing back and forth in front of us. He fisted and unfisted his hands at his side and stared at the floor.
Although I knew Dad was alive, I was now dealing with the fear of this big secret. Could he be sick? Was he hiding something like that from me?
“I don’t want to be the one to tell you—hell, he should have told you years ago. This isn’t right. But you need to know. I need you to know. I can’t deal with him anymore. I need help. You’re the only one that can help him, I’m afraid. It’s getting harder and harder to make him leave once he’s there.” Dean’s ramblings made no sense. He continued to pace the floor as if he could walk a hole through it to sink into. Whatever this secret was, it was bad. My knees started to feel weak.
Dean motioned to the sofa and waved his hand at it before running a hand through his hair. “You need to sit down,” he said.
Different scenarios began running through my head. My dad was in rehab, or he had a secret family I didn’t know about, or he was terminally ill. I let go of Grant’s hand and walked over to the sofa and sat down, never taking my eyes off Dean. Grant was right beside me. I wasn’t sure if I wanted anyone near me now. I started to feel smothered. Or my nerves were just making it hard for me to breathe.
“Didn’t expect to see you, Grant,” Dean said, acknowledging Grant.
I could see the look in Dean’s eyes, and I realized he knew exactly what had happened with those phone calls I never received. He didn’t approve of me and Grant, and that surprised me.
“Tell her whatever it is, Dean. She needs to hear it,” Grant replied.
Dean started to sit down then stood back up and ran his hands through his hair. “Damn, this ain’t gonna be easy,” he muttered and looked over at Mase.
“Get to it, Dean,” Mase demanded, taking a seat across from me. I was thankful he hadn’t sat down on the other side of me. I was having a hard time getting air.
Dean nodded, then looked at me. “You know the story of how your mother was in a car accident when you were a baby?”
I nodded. It was how she died. She had left me with Dad and gone to the store. A truck had run a red light and hit her. She died instantly. My grandmama had told me the story one day when I was old enough to ask. She never wanted to talk about it, though. She wouldn’t even look at me when she told me. I knew it was because losing her daughter had to hurt her. So I never asked her again. The fact that he was asking about my mother only made my anxiety worse. I gripped the edge of the sofa and tried to calm myself.
“She didn’t die in that car accident, honey. She was in a coma. For five years. Your dad refused to take her off life support, and one day she woke up. Except she didn’t remember anything. Not you, Kiro, or even her own name. She also couldn’t eat or drink or speak. And . . . she was paralyzed. The doctors soon realized she hadn’t just suffered memory loss; her brain was traumatized. She was no longer mentally complete. She would never be able to relearn simple things again. She would be stuck in this state for the rest of her life. She got very agitated when your dad tried to bring her home, and the doctors warned him that if he did take her the trauma could send her back into a coma, and she might never wake up. So he had to leave her there.”
I shot up off the sofa and walked away from everyone to the other side of the room. I couldn’t breathe. This wasn’t true. This was not true. It couldn’t be true. My grandmama would never lie to me. She wouldn’t do that. My mother was dead.
Grant was immediately beside me, his arm around my waist.
“I don’t believe you,” I said angrily, glaring at Dean. He was a liar. Why was he trying to hurt me like this?
“Holy shit,” Mase said, standing up and swinging his gaze from Dean to me. I could see it in his eyes. He believed Dean. Didn’t he know this was a lie?
“It’s time you saw her. I think you’re going to have to be the one to get him. He hates going on tour because he can’t see her when he wants to. She’s in the finest facility available in L.A. When we come to Vegas, he’s close enough to run back and check on her. We have to leave the States from here and hit the U.K. He doesn’t want to leave her. He’s gonna need you to get him. We can’t go without him, and seeing her only upsets him more.”
I jerked away from Grant’s arm. I didn’t want anyone to touch me. I needed space to breathe. Once I managed to force oxygen into my lungs, I put both of my hands on the wall and closed my eyes. Could this be true? Mase thought it was. He didn’t have to say anything—it was all over his face. And Grant wasn’t calling Dean a liar. He had been there to comfort me.
How could that be hidden from me all my life? Wouldn’t my grandmama want to visit her daughter? There was no way. This made no sense. I didn’t look at Dean. I didn’t look at anyone. I stared at the wall in front of me and took a deep breath. “This isn’t possible. I would have figured it out. My grandmama would have wanted to visit her only child.” I wanted to yell at him and throw things, but I balled my hands into fists and focused on calming down. Let him explain that. Let him tell me my grandmama had gone the rest of her life without visiting her only daughter.
“Texas, Harlow. Your grandmother took you to Texas to stay with Mase,” Dean said quietly. His words were gentle, yet it felt like he had slammed his fist into my gut.
She . . . she was going to see my mother. Oh my god. I doubled over from the pain. She had never stayed in Texas with me. How could she lie to me? Why? Why? Didn’t they want me to see her, too? She was my mother.
I heard Mase and Grant both say my name but I shook my head. I didn’t want them to try and soothe me. There was no way to ease this pain. I turned to see them both moving toward me, and a scream bubbling to the surface broke free. “NO!” I didn’t want them near me. I held out both hands to keep them back. They both froze. I didn’t focus on the pain in Grant’s eyes and the sadness in Mase’s. This wasn’t about them. This was mine to deal with. Alone.
“Where is she?” I asked Dean, looking back at him. The fury and betrayal building inside me were solely focused on that man at the moment. He was the only one around that I could lash out at. He had known, yet he had let them lie to me.
“The limo will take you to her. Your father took it to L.A. The driver knows where to go,” Dean said, dropping his head and letting out a sigh. He hadn’t wanted to tell me. I should be thankful he had. But right now I had no room for thankfulness in my heart.
Grant started to walk toward me and so did Mase. “Stop. Both of you. Don’t come near me. I need to be alone. I want to go alone. Just stay,” I demanded. I didn’t wait for their response. I turned and headed for the door.
I had to get to that limo. If this was true, then it changed everything. My father had lied to me my entire life, and my grandmama. How could I trust anyone?
How could they keep my mother from me?