Bayou Stix Series: Bayou Stix Limited Edition Box Set (102 page)

Slapping the table, I snap out, “Seriously?! Are you seriously on my ass right now about sucking, Jude?! You moped for years when you lost Lexi.
YEARS!
You were a miserable asshole who dragged all of us down, but we supported you and had your back. And now because I was thrown for a loop a week ago, you’re all on my ass! I can’t believe you fuckers.”

Cruz shakes his head. “Dade, stop man. We love you. No one is attacking you, so calm down. We head to New York in a week and all we’re saying is you can’t be glowering at the world when we do. You look miserable. You act miserable. We just want you to get your head right, so yeah, we’re in your business. You need to talk to her. Even if it’s just to tell her to fuck off, you both need to say shit to each other. It’s festering and it’s affecting everyone.”

I glower at him, but I understand he’s right. Snapping at these guys is not the answer. They’re not who I’m pissed at.

“I’m sorry. I know. I just don’t know if I can talk to her and not explode.”

Liam nods. “I saw you in the hall with her, man. You kissed her like she was a juicy steak and you were on death row eating your last meal. She meant something to you. I live with you. I know what’s up.”

Rolling my eyes at him, I can’t help but chuckle. “Yeah. She meant something. She was a great lay.”

Jude glares. “If she was just a good lay, then you wouldn’t be Doctor Downer right now. And that comment is so completely out of character for you that you just proved my point!”

I mutter, “Why do you have to bring a doctor into it?!”

Jessie laughs and points at me. “Me ‘thinketh another one is on the line.”

Liam grins. “If so, that makes four!”

I roll my eyes. “I’m not on any line.”

Everyone looks at Cruz. He puts his hands up in defiance. “Nope. Not me. Sorry to disappoint, but that is not going to happen.”

Everyone laughs. I see the kitchen door open and Jude’s wife, Lexi walks out with a tray. I can’t wait to see what she’s got for us today.

She stops at the table and leans down to kiss Jude. Jessie grabs the tray as Jude pulls her into his lap. She laughs in delight.

The bell chimes and Jessie and Liam look toward it and their faces light up. I turn, knowing who I’ll see. Bradi, Blue, and Clove walk in. Liam gets up and rounds the table so he can kiss Clove, my baby sister and his fiancée. She’s about six months pregnant now and she’s showing nicely. She looks gorgeous pregnant.

Blue winks at Jessie and points to the counter. He laughs and calls out, “By all means, woman, get your coffee first. I see where your priorities lie.”

She sticks her tongue out and blows him a kiss as Erik hands her a coffee. He gestures to the table at large that he’ll be over in a bit.

Once everyone is situated, Lexi in Jude’s lap, Blue in Jessie’s, Clove next to Liam, Cruz, me, Bradi, and Erik, we get to the topic at hand.

Bradi breaks out her laptop and starts clicking. Blue has a notebook out and her pen is at the ready. As she’s clicking on her computer, Bradi starts to talk. “Ok, so we leave Thursday. You have Thursday night free to explore or whatever. No late night though. Y’all are on Good Morning America with Robin Roberts interviewing you on Friday morning and then the concert in Central Park is Friday night. Devil’s Lair has a six song set and then you will do two together before your set begins. You have twelve songs give or take. The after party starts around 11PM. You have two interviews and an informal photo session for Rock With Me. I’ve also scheduled a stop at Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital on Saturday. I have some t-shirts, hats, posters, and buttons being delivered for y’all to sign and give out. Your flight home is Saturday night at 9:31PM. It’s going to be jam packed, but the show is sold out and GMA tweeted about the interview and performance this morning.” She looks around the table. “Any questions?”

Everyone is staring at her in admiration. She tucks an escaped tendril of hair behind her ear. “What?”

Jude is the first to speak. “Everything sounds great, Bradi. You are killing this shit.”

Her cheeks flush and she smirks. “Did you ever doubt my awesomeness?!”

Everyone laughs. A chorus of “No’s” is heard around the table. We all eat and drink and finalize the plans since everyone at this table plus Bradi’s boyfriend, Micah and Erik’s boyfriend, Alec are coming on the trip. Lexi kisses Jude one last time and grumbles about needing to get back to work. She bakes everything in this place and they sell out every single day, so she’s trying to create a surplus for the weekend. Erik says he needs to get back behind the counter. He’s the coffee guru in this place. Blue and Jessie leave, Liam and Clove head home to pack a bit more since they are moving into their new home next week; thankfully, it’s only around the corner from me, Jude leaves to get a ride on his bike before coming back to help Lexi close up, and then, it’s just me and Cruz.

We finish our coffee in silence. I love that about Cruz. He never pushes. Well, he rarely pushes. He looks at me and I can tell he wants to say something.

“What?”

Shaking his head, he chuckles, “Are you going to call her?”

I flop back in my chair and drum my fingers on the table as I think. The thought of calling her makes my palms sweat, yet I get dizzy with my rage at the same time. I’m in a quandary.

“I don’t know. I know what you said. I hear you. I think the same thing sometimes, but then I think that she deliberately gave me the wrong name and I get pissed.”

He just looks at me. He sighs and speaks. “She did, but maybe that
is
her name. Just not her first name. You know my name is Robert Cruz, yet I’m Cruz.” He stands up and pins me with his crystal gaze. “I’m just thinking you need to talk before you condemn her completely. After all, she didn’t know you were Dade Rodrigue of the famous rock band, Bayou Stix either, now did she?!” His brow arches with his question.

Shit! Why does he have to point out and say out loud what I’ve been thinking in my head this whole time?! I mean, fuck, it’s so much easier to stay mad at her when I think she just blatantly lied to me. But didn’t I do the same thing in a way?! I told her my name, but I never volunteered my last name or my full occupation either. Dammit, Cruz! Fuck you for being right! Ugh.

He’s watched my face and he smiles slightly as he starts to walk away. “You and Clove are both open books sometimes. You just keep the cover closed a lot more. Call her.”

I nod as he walks out. As he clears the door, I see a pretty brunette stop and stare at him with a look of recognition on her face. She sees me watching her and smiles slightly as her cheeks flush. I smile back as I call out a “Later” to Erik. He salutes and holds his fingers to his face in the universal signal for “Call”. Damn my meddling friends.

Melonie

I
’ve just finished up with my last patient of the day and take off my white lab coat as I walk back to my office. Dropping my coat onto the chair in front of my desk, I fall into my chair and lay my head back. It’s been a long day. Hell, it’s been a long few days.

I had forgotten about him. Ok, that’s a lie, but I had convinced myself to forget about him. What was the point?! We’d had an amazing time on St. John and then he just up and disappeared. I was supposed to meet him for dinner. No message, no call… nothing. I thought he’d just left. How was I supposed to know he didn’t just decide he was done with me?!

It wasn’t all him. Mel. You played a part in this shit, too. You never told him your real name. You never asked him what he did.

He’s a fucking rock star! A rock star! He’s famous. I acted like a loose groupie on an island with him. It doesn’t matter that I didn’t know who he was, hell that makes it worse.

Face it, Mel. That was a fluke. An island affair that was over with as soon as his plane kissed the sky.

But why can’t I stop thinking about him? Dammit!

Because he’s the most gorgeous man you’ve ever seen, Melonie and out of an island full of women, he chose to spend time with ME!

I never thought I’d see him again.

I cried for two days when he left!

God, seeing him the other night… out of the blue… he was still so gorgeous. He looked shell shocked when he saw me.

Closing my eyes, I try to stop the memory.

The party was amazing. I’ve never seen so many famous people in one room. It was surreal. I saw James Black, the movie star, arguing with some beautiful, yet trashy-looking woman in the parking lot when I arrived. Then, I walk into the Old Governor’s Mansion and I see Keith Urban and Harry Connick, Jr. at the bar. Keith Urban smiled at me when he handed me my drink from the bartender. I just blinked in awe.

I needed a minute to take it in so I went in search of a bathroom. I was walking down a plush carpeted hallway when I heard a shocked “Rayne?” in the voice I’d convinced myself I’d never hear again. I immediately froze, slowly turned, and there he was.

Dade.

I couldn’t move. I couldn’t speak. Was he real? He can’t be real.

He recovers before I do. He closes the distance between us in a few strides and then he’s in front of me. I can’t breathe. Grabbing my arms, he exclaims, “Rayne? What are you doing here? How did you find me?” A strange looks crosses his face. “Did you know who I was all along?! Are you a groupie?”

What? What is he talking about? Who he is? Who the hell is he? And is he pissed at ME? He LEFT ME on an island with no good bye.

I try to pull my arm free. “Let me go, you asshole!”

His face tightens and he jerks me into his body. He’s breathing hard as he grits out through his teeth, “What are you doing here? And I’m an asshole? Are you kidding me?”

He pulls me into his body so forcefully, my hair falls out of its clip and cascades down my back. His eyes rake my face and then he groans. I halfheartedly try to pull back as my body betrays me and melts against him. As he groans again, he swoops down and kisses what little breath I have right out of me. He backs me into the wall as he devours my mouth and sucks on my tongue. My hands are roaming his arms and chest and I want to bury them in his hair. I can’t get enough. It’s like my body has just been waiting for this. For him.

Somehow, I remember he left me. Months ago. Jerking back, I take him off guard and I slap him as hard as I can. He steps back as the sound reverberates down the empty hallway. I slump against the wall with my heart racing, my palms wet, and my nether regions clenching in anticipation for what I know only he can give me. Shaking in desire and rage, I stare at him with my hand over my mouth.

He spits out, “You slapped me!”

My hand is throbbing from the contact with his face. I straighten and glare at him as I rub my stinging palm. “You. Do. Not. Touch. Me! Don’t ever touch me again!”

His face registers his shock and confusion. “Why are you mad? Do you have any idea how hard I’ve been looking for you, Rayne?!”

He’s lying! He LEFT me!

I screech out, “You haven’t been looking for me! And my name isn’t Rayne!”

His face falls and I just want to hug him before it’s quickly masked. He barks out, “What?”

How dare he look at me like this is MY fault! Screw him! “You heard me. My name isn’t Rayne. Funny you want to find me now, but you didn’t care enough to even tell me you were leaving!”

A sound down the hall takes my attention from the rage building on Dade’s face. I blink in shock as Clove, my patient, and her fiancé walk out of a room. Clove looks exhausted, so my doctor instincts take over. “Clove. Liam. I’m sorry we disturbed you. Is everything alright?”

I see Dade’s head whip towards me as I talk to them.

Clove assures me she’s fine, just tired after her long, excitement fueled day, and then asks how I know her BROTHER!

Her brother? What the ever living fuck? HER BROTHER?!

I get lightheaded and feel like I’m going to pass out. I gasp. “Your brother?” I look between Clove and Dade and clearly see the resemblance. How did I not realize this before?! She looks exactly like him, just in female form. I swallow back the bile rising in my throat as I whisper, “Your… He’s… Oh my God… He’s your brother?”

Slumping against the wall to stay upright, I try to see through the spots wavering in my vision. Liam is talking so I try to concentrate on what he’s saying. He says that Dade is his bandmate and friend and that he is certainly Clove’s brother. He wants to know how we know each other… and is asking why Dade is calling me Rayne. Oh, God.

Dade looks at me and the disgust on his face makes me shrink back.

He lights into me. His flat statements are coming so fast, I can’t even follow completely. I said I worked in an office and I’m a baby doctor. His sister’s baby doctor. My name isn’t Rayne. While I’m flinching with every barb, and he’s laughing, but nothing about this is funny, he makes a direct hit… straight to my heart, “And for the record, I left in a hurry because I got a frantic call that my baby sister was in the hospital. I was going to call you once I got to the airport, but you never gave me your number. But then again, you also told me your name was Rayne. What the fuck else did you lie about? I’ve wasted enough time searching for someone who doesn’t exist and obsessing over lies, Dr. Melonie Bird.”