Nights Embrace (Others of Seattle) (15 page)

“I’m staying,” Sorcha told Trevor with a twinkle in her eye.

“I know,” he replied, but shot Joey a look. “
Sorry Joey. You won’t win this one.”

She had bet
Joey that Roxy would nail the song and he would flub it up. Trevor knew his voice would meld with Roxy’s and there would be no stopping them.

Roxy nodded, a cocky smile on her face.
“Don’t worry. You have it in the bag, Sorcha.”

Joey chuckled.
“Nah, you don’t stand a chance. You haven’t heard the music.”

“Don’t need to. Trevor and I are on the same wavelength.”

Damn, she had no idea how right she was. He could feel what she was feeling. It’s why he felt like a jerk for having to leave the next day. He still didn’t have a clue what to say to help her believe him about their world.

They entered the old studio. Roxy smiled a little.
“We used this same place when we got too loud for Doug’s parents.”

“Really?” Trevor asked.

She nodded.

Trevor grinned.
“It was the first place we found, and we knew we’d want to keep playing. Nothing like the rush of people into your music.” He knew she felt the same. He could tell when he watched her sing. She rode the high of taking the crowd on a journey with her music.

Joey grumbled.
“You ready?”

She raised a brow at him.
“You’re the drummer. Aren’t you going to start us off?”

A cocky smile emerged as he nodded his head, and started the count
.

Roxy had the first line and her rich voice filled the room, pulling him closer. He came in with his line and he had to force himself to listen for Joey to fumble.

Four lines in, Joey flat out stopped. By the chorus, Nick and Shane did too. Roxy stared into Trevor’s eyes as she sang every word full of love, and passion, with every ounce of her soul. Trevor matched it, ignoring everything but her as he lost himself their song, and in her.

When it was over
, Roxy blinked and looked around. Trevor couldn’t help shooting Joey a smirk. “Better luck next time, old friend. I told you she’d nail it.”

Sorcha squealed and ran over to hug Roxy.
“Oh my god, that was amazing. You have to sing it next time the guys have a gig.”

Roxy nodded, a smile spreading on her face.
“I’d love to.”

“I know I want you there for it, if it doesn’t conflict with your band
’s schedule,” Trevor asked hopefully.

“It shouldn’t.”

“Good, let’s give this song another shot.” Trevor flicked his attention to Joey. “This time, try not to flub it up.”

Joey snorted.
“Yeah, yeah, well if your girlfriend wasn’t so damn hot when she sings, I wouldn’t have stopped.”

Trevor
’s eyes narrowed, a low growl rumbling through his chest.

Roxy shook her hea
d. “Okay, boys, let’s do this so Trevor and I can take off.”

Joey started the count and the song began. This time they made it through
to the end, though nowhere near tight enough. As soon as the song was over, Roxy held up a single finger and started for the door. Her phone was buzzing in her pocket, and she reached to answer it before she made it outside.

“Hey,” Trevor smiled tightly. “I’m going to get her out of here. You guys work on the song.”

Shane gave him a nod. “Consider telling her the whole story before tomorrow. She’s not going to run. You two are magic together.”

“I want to. I’m not sure how, but I plan to try.” He turned to Sorcha and pointed at her with a grave look. “
Whatever you do, you can’t tell her what tomorrow is. There’s no need to burden her with that too.”

Sorcha sighed heavily and flopped onto the old ratty couch.
“Fine, fine. Not a word.”

Trevor didn
’t buy it, but he was hoping he could convince them to keep his birthday out of the mix. It was one unfortunate coincidence, and he didn’t want to tell her another lie.

* * * *

Roxy rushed outside to answer the phone. “Hey, Mikey.”

“So, Rox,” Mikey started. “Where were you all day?” There was concern and accusation layered in his tone.

“Snoqualmie. Why?” she asked, not bothering to hide her annoyance.

He sighed heavily.
“Well, the police were looking for you earlier. I was wondering if you ran into them. It’s weird though. Jordan didn’t press charges. Kevin had to close the case.”

Roxy leaned back against the wall and frowned.
“Then why would they look for me?” Everything Trevor told her came back to her.
Could Dina or Boyd be trying to find her? How far will they go?

Trevor came up beside her, concern clear in his jade green eyes.

“I don’t know, Roxy. They called Doug and Jordan’s looking for you. But Kevin has your number, so it doesn’t make much sense. Be careful, okay?”

“Okay, I will. Thanks for the warning.” She chewed her lip and looked up at Trevor who leaned against her, and pushed her hair behind her ear.

“Are you going to be home tonight?” Mikey prompted.

Roxy didn
’t hesitate. “Nope. And don’t start. I’m positive you don’t want to know details.”

“
You’re right, Rox. You’re still my baby sister,” Mikey groaned.

She laughed.
“I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”

“Hey, Jordan wants to talk. You have a minute
?”

“Not for him, Mikey. I’m done with his shit.”

“He wants to apologize.”

“Tell him that actions speak louder than words.” With that, she
hung up.

Trevor tipped her face up and brushed his lips over hers in a gentle kiss.
“Anything I can do to help?”

“Ask me to stay the night?” she
prompted with a smile.

“Please, Roxy, stay the night with me?”

“Of course.”

“Good. You don’t have a lot of food in your place. It makes me wonder if you take care of yourself properly.” His brow arched as he gave her an imploring look.

She pushed him back with a groan. “If you turn out to be one of those alpha-holes who thinks you can dictate what I eat, or wear or any of that shit, you can stop right there. You won’t like me much if you think you’re the boss.”

He laughed out loud.
“Oh no, love. You mentioned eating out a lot. But what if you’re not well and don’t want to go out. It wouldn’t hurt to have a few things stocked away.”

She grumbled,
“Okay, you might have a point. Now let’s go. You mentioned me staying at your place tomorrow night, as well. I should probably get what I need for a few days in case you want me there longer.”

“I
will always want you there. I can tell you that right now.”

She sighed and leaned her head against his shoulder. “You have a way of righting all the wrongs
in my world.”

“You do the same, love. I felt lost before you came along, moving through life without direction. Ever since I saw you, I knew you were my direction, my everything.”

* * * *

Trevor followed Roxy into her building, but he caught Boyd and Dina
’s scent. She took the stairs and the smell disappeared. As soon as he stepped onto her floor and into the hall, he found it again.

Shit,
they’ve been here.

He raced through a hundred scenarios while Roxy walked to her door. He didn
’t see any evidence of tampering which was a relief, but he could sense Fiona’s magic.

She unlocked the door and stepped inside.
Trevor followed right behind her, kicking the door shut and quickly locking it.

Roxy didn
’t even look back before she started pulling her sweater off as she walked to her bedroom. “Be right back. Going to change real quick,” she told him.

He closed his eyes and breathed in deep
. Only Roxy’s scent and his. There were old traces of her brother, and Skylar.

Trevor glanced over to find her door shut. He pulled his phone out to text Nick.
Ask Fiona if she found signs of Boyd and Dina at Roxy’s place before she cast the wards.

Nick’s
response came in seconds.
Not inside her building, but they were snooping around it. Why? Have they been there?

Trevor
replied.
Inside the building, yes. Not in her apartment. They were here in the last hour.

Nick came back with.
Got bad news. The condo across from hers is empty. They could be interested in buying it.

Trevor sent one last text.
Good thing she’s staying at my place.

He heard her moving toward the door and
stepped in front of it as he slid his phone into his pocket. She came out of the room as his eyes caught on her home phone flashing with messages.

She walked right into him. Every instinct in his body urged him to pin her against the wall
and take her hard and fast, but he took a deep breath and nodded at her phone. “You have messages.”

With a sigh, she picked it up and played them back. A few were from Jordan. One from Kevin early that morning. Then another from Jordan late morning, this one to apologize.

On the last message, Boyd’s voice came on, devoid of the accent.

Trevor’s
blood ran cold, and he had to repress the growl from bubbling out of his chest as he pretended not to listen.

A frown tugged at her lips.
“This doesn’t sound right. I don’t know why, but I don’t think this is a cop.”

Trevor
’s brow arched as he held a hand out for the phone. “May I?”

Nodding, she handed him the phone and he listened intently. He nodded.
“It’s Boyd. I don’t know how he got your number, but that’s him all right.”

“Shit. I thought it sounded like him,” she took a deep breath and let it out as she sat on her desk and closed her eyes. “So, I guess that confirms I’m staying at your place until they are locked up for good, or you are with me.” She half
-laughed, a sad look on her face. “Don’t get used to me wanting to hide out. It’s not my normal mode, but after what that asshole did to Jordan, I’m not taking any chances.”

Trevor closed the distance, setting the phone on the cradle, and stepping between her legs.
“I already know you’re a fighter, Roxy. As long as you stay safe until I come home from the trip, I promise we will find a way to deal with them once and for all.”

Her head
dipped in a slight nod. “Okay. Let’s go though. If they have my number, they know where I live. I’m a little creeped out.”

Thank God she
’s smart.
“Don’t forget anything you may need for a few days.”

Roxy gently
pushed him back and stood. She already had her backpack on her shoulders, but she grabbed another bag and slid her laptop and a few notebooks into it. “Okay, I’m ready. I’m generally pretty low maintenance. I do more for shows, but you won’t see me all decked out any other time.”

He leaned in to nip her lush bottom lip.
“Roxy, honestly, I love you just like this. I don’t need a made up rock star, I only need you.”

“
You really are breaking down all my defenses.” She gave him a smile. “Let’s get going.” Once he was out, she locked the door and he took her hand to pull her toward the exit at the rear of the building.

She pulled him to a stop with a raised brow.
“Where are we going?”

“After that message, I want to go out the back.”

“Oh. I should have thought of that.” She started moving again.

“Nothing is going to happen to you, Roxy. I won’t let it,” he promised.

* * * *

A thousand questions rippled through her head.
Roxy followed Trevor back to his place without a word. He kept looking over at her with a questioning look. He was amazing… so far. But like she told Mikey, actions speak louder than words. His actions were swaying her, but he kept making promises he couldn’t possibly keep.

How did he plan to keep her safe from psychopaths? Especially if he was gone?

No. I don’t need a man to take care of me, to protect me, or any of that shit. Staying at his place is only acceptable because they won’t expect me to be there.

Or would they?

Oh fuck, it doesn’t matter. He has better security than I do.

“Penny for your th
oughts?” Trevor asked in his low concerned voice. Blinking, she found herself in the elevator. She hadn’t even realized they had stepped into his building yet.