Rock Hard

Chapter 9

Dare entered the waiting room. “Okay, which one of you started that fight so I know who to destroy if Trey doesn’t make it through this in perfect health?”

All eyes turned to Eric, who blanched. “Me? What about Sed? He’s the one who pulled Jessica off the stage and got the bouncers all riled up.”

Sed nodded. “He’s right. I started it.”

Dare sank into a chair with a heavy sigh and rested his forehead in both hands. “It had to be the big guy,” he murmured. “One more reason to pray the little pain in my ass makes it through this.”

Jessica started awake and lifted her head from Sed’s shoulder. When had she dozed off? Sed’s hand squeezed her wrist until she grabbed his fingers to alleviate the pressure. “Ow.” She glared up at him and decided he didn’t realize he was hurting her. She followed his troubled gaze to the doorway. Dr Angelo stood at the threshold.

Jessica sat up straight in the uncomfortable chair and gaped at the splatter of blood on the right sleeve of the doctor’s surgical gown. Trey’s? She forced her attention to the woman’s face.

Looking weary but not defeated, Dr Angelo pulled her surgical mask down around her neck. “Trey made it through the surgery.”

“Thank God,” Dare said.

He grabbed the nearest person, who happened to be Jace, in a bone-crushing hug. Jace winced in pain and offered Dare an awkward pat on the back.

“But there were a few complications.”

Jessica held her breath. Sed’s hand tightened on her wrist again.

“I removed the clot, drained the excess blood, and cauterized the damaged vessels, but Trey was in worse shape than his MRI indicated. Apparently, his seizure caused a secondary haemorrhage and increased the pressure on his brain far more rapidly than we predicted.”

Dare hauled himself out of his chair. “But he’s okay. Right? He’s okay?”

“He will live. I have no doubt about that. They’ve taken him to recovery. He’s still unconscious. In serious but stable condition.” Dr Angelo lowered her gaze before straightening her shoulders and meeting Dare’s eyes again. “I’d like to say he’s going to be back to normal in no time, kiddo, and I’m hopeful that he will be—he’s young and strong—but we can’t know for sure until he wakes up. The swelling on his brain might have caused permanent damage. Brain injuries are… tricky.”

Jessica took Sed’s free hand and offered a comforting squeeze. She knew he felt responsible for causing the bar fight. He always tried to take responsibility for everything—as if it was his life’s mission to carry everyone’s burden on those broad shoulders. That’s what Myrna had been trying to tell her back on the tour bus. Maybe he didn’t try to take care of her because he thought she was incompetent and weak. Maybe he tried to take care of her because…

No. She’d made her decision about him and she was going to stick to it. Sed Lionheart was poison. An addictive poison, but not someone she needed in her life permanently. Just someone she needed between her thighs regularly.

“When can we see him?” Sed asked.

The doctor glanced at him and shook her head. “He needs uninterrupted rest for several hours. He’s heavily sedated, so he won’t wake for a while anyway. Why don’t you all go get some sleep and come back in the morning? We’ll know more by then.”

“Someone needs to stay here in case he wakes up,” Dare said. “I’m not going to leave him here by himself.”

“I’m staying too,” Jace said.

“So am I,” said Brian.

Dr Angelo smiled. “I’m glad he has so many people who care about him. He’s going to need you all during recovery, but you aren’t going to do him any good if you’re sleep-deprived.”

“Why don’t we take turns staying with him?” Myrna said. “Split the time into four-hour blocks. When he wakes up, a phone call will get all of us here quickly.”

Jessica had to admire Myrna. She had this group of egos eating out of the palm of her hand.

“I’m staying first,” Dare said.

“I’ll stay with him,” Jace said. “I’m wide awake.”

“Me too,” Eric said.

“Okay, Brian and I will come back around…” Myrna checked her watch. “Eight a.m.”

“Then Sed and I will come at noon,” Jessica said. It earned her a glare from Brian, who obviously despised her on a visceral level, but Sed squeezed her hand.

“Sounds good,” Myrna said, elbowing her husband in the ribs.

Dr Angelo smiled. “They’ll bring him back to the ICU after his anaesthesia wears off. I do have high hopes for his full recovery. There was some slight bruising to his brain tissue, but I didn’t see any necrosis. That’s a good sign.” The doctor gave Dare a gentle hug. “Take heart, kiddo,” she whispered.

Dare nodded. Dr Angelo cupped his cheek, her mouth set in a grim line, and then left.

Jessica stood and pulled Sed to his feet. “Let’s go to the hotel and get some sleep. You look zombified.”

Sed nodded slightly.

Brian refused to look at either of them. He clasped hands with Dare, Jace, and Eric, but turned his back on Sed and grabbed Myrna’s elbow. He directed his wife from the room. Over her shoulder, Myrna mouthed to Sed, “I’ll talk to him,” just before she disappeared from sight.

“Brian is pissed as hell,” Eric said unnecessarily.

All four men glanced at Jessica.

Jessica’s heart dropped. “Yeah, I know. It’s all my fault. I should just stay away.” She released Sed’s hand and crossed her arms over her chest.

Why did they all hate her so much? What had she ever done to them? She could understand if Sed hated her for leaving, but why the rest of the guys? It made no sense.

Sed headed for the exit and Jessica followed him against her better judgment. Waiting near the elevator, Myrna had her arms around Brian, talking into his ear in a hushed tone. Jessica wished they’d already left. Brian seemed to be the source of everyone’s animosity toward her, but now wasn’t the time to confront him.

“I know,” Brian said to Myrna. “I just can’t deal with it on top of everything else.”

Myrna leaned away and cradled Brian’s face in her hands. “We’ll sort it out when Trey’s better.”

He nodded and she kissed him tenderly.

Sed shifted Jessica behind his back as they approached. Annoyed, Jessica scratched her head behind her ear. Did he think they’d forget she was there if they couldn’t see her?

“Hey,” Sed said quietly.

“Hey,” Brian answered.

“I know you blame me for this—”

“Wrong.”

Sed hesitated. “Then what’s with the cold shoulder?”

“You really have to ask?”

Jessica couldn’t stay quiet any longer. She moved to stand beside Sed. “Our relationship is none of your business, Brian. So why don’t you just butt out?”

“Normally, I’d agree,” he said, “but he doesn’t think straight when you’re around, so someone has to try to bring him to his senses.” He grabbed Sed by his coat lapel. “Tell me, Sed, what was the happiest moment of your life?”

Sed glanced at Jessica nervously. “Don’t do this now, man.”

“Just answer the question.”

“You already know the answer. You were there.”

“Myrna was wondering.”

Myrna grimaced. She obviously didn’t want to be caught up in the middle of this.

“Post-Gazette Pavilion, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania,” Sed whispered.

Jessica’s heart froze in her chest. It was the happiest moment of her life too.

“I asked Jessica to marry me, on my knees in front of thousands of fans.” Sed smiled, both dimples showing. “She said yes.”

“But she didn’t mean it,” Brian said.

“I did too mean it!” Jessica sputtered.

“Uh-huh,” Brian said. “Did you still mean it when you threw your engagement ring at him and left without a backward glance? What was it? Three weeks later?” He looked at Sed again. “And when was the hardest moment of your life, Sed?”

Sed swallowed. A muscle in his jaw flexed as he clenched his teeth. “That would be now, you f*****g prick.”

Brian gaped at him, and then his eyes narrowed. “Bullshit.” He shoved him against the elevator doors. “You’re still trying to protect her? After everything she put you through?”

“Don’t start this, Brian. I’m not in the mood to take it.” Sed straightened and shoved Brian back.

The elevator door opened and Sed stepped inside.

Myrna pushed her husband into the elevator and grabbed Jessica’s arm. “We’ll meet you at the bottom. You two have a little talk. Or slug it out. Whatever.”

“How could you take her back?” Brian yelled at Sed. “Do you realize how much s**t you put me through while you were trying to get over her?”

“Is it my fault your chicks like to f**k me better than they do you?”

Brian threw a punch. It connected with Sed’s jaw with a loud crack. Sed stumbled against the back of the elevator car.

Jessica tried to wriggle free of Myrna’s hold, but Myrna refused to release her.

Sed’s hands balled into fists and he advanced on Brian, who took another swing at him. The elevator doors slid shut.

Jessica turned to glare at Myrna. “Are you an i***t? They’ll kill each other.”

“They’re guys. This will get it out of their systems.”

Jessica jerked away from her and pressed the elevator’s down button repeatedly.

“And now that I’ve got you alone, I have to ask,” Myrna said, “what in the hell are you thinking?”

Jessica glanced at the normally calm woman, who now crackled with electric fury.

Myrna continued, “Brian is taking this out on Sed, who doesn’t deserve it because he doesn’t feel like he can confront you. I don’t have his reservations.”

“What? Are you going to hit me?”

Myrna’s tense expression relaxed and she chuckled. “Of course not. I just want you to think about Sed instead of yourself. You can’t use him like this, Jessica. His heart can’t take it.”

Jessica didn’t like the accusatory tone of her voice. And how did Myrna know Jessica was just using him? Was she that transparent? “For your information, we have a mutual agreement.”

“You mutually agreed that you could screw him over? I don’t believe that.”

“We mutually agreed that I could screw him. Period. He uses women for s*x all the time. I don’t see how this is any different.”

“Then you’re stupid.”

Stupid?

The other elevator car opened and, fuming, Jessica stepped inside. Myrna followed her.

“He’s a grown man, Myrna. He can take care of himself. You and your overly intense husband need to mind your own business.”

“Maybe the two of you deserve each other,” Myrna said under her breath. “Just try not to hurt him too much. I know he pretends to be tough and all Don Juan Casanova, but he has the most delicate heart I’ve ever seen in a man.”

Jessica laughed. “Then apparently you don’t know him very well.”

Myrna shook her head at her. “And apparently you don’t know him at all.”

Jessica scowled and crossed her arms over her chest. What was this woman talking about? How could she not know him? Hello. She’d almost married the man.

When the elevator door opened, they found Brian and Sed laughing with a pair of security guards. Dishevelled, bloody, and bruised, the two bandmates seemed better off for their elevator brawl.

Myrna hugged Brian from behind and he held her hands against his abdomen.

“Feel better?” Myrna kissed the back of his shoulder.

“Yeah. Let’s go get some sleep.”

“Or we can finish what we were doing when Sed interrupted.”

“What about Trey?”

“You know Trey would want you satisfied. We’ll catch some sleep in there somewhere,” she promised.

He grinned crookedly. “Later, Sed.”

“Later.”

Neither of the newlyweds gave Jessica so much as a second glance when they walked away. Not that she cared. Screw them!

“Are you ready?” Sed asked.

Her eyes swivelled to his weary face. “You aren’t dumping me?”

“I can’t dump you if we aren’t seriously dating. There’s an unoccupied suite at the Bellagio. Seems a shame to waste it.”

“You’re okay with all this?” she asked. “With our purely s****l relationship?”

“Why wouldn’t I be?”

“Myrna said—”

“What does Myrna know about me? Nothing.”

Jessica nodded in agreement, but a niggling doubt teased her subconscious.

They caught a cab to the hotel. Jessica’s exhaustion evaporated the moment Sed pulled her into his lap in the taxi’s backseat and claimed her mouth in a hungry kiss. She tasted blood on his lips. When he pulled away to gaze at her, she dabbed at the corner of his mouth with her fingertips.

“Did Brian hurt you?”

“Not too badly,” he murmured.

“Were you holding back?”

He shook his head. “That would be an insult.”

She chuckled. “Guys are so weird. How can best friends come to blows and then all is forgiven the minute it’s over?”

“Less talking,” he murmured and kissed her again. His hand slid up her thigh beneath her skirt and her body tensed. Her hand moved down his firm belly to the crotch of his pants. She was surprised to find nothing stirred below his belt. He pulled away and moved her body to sit beside him. She looked up at him in question. She’d never known Sed to be even slightly unprepared for a s****l encounter.

“Sorry,” he said wearily. “I keep thinking about Trey. And I’m really tired. Could we just sleep when we get back to the room? I’m just not in the mood. You know?”

Maybe that was the truth. Or maybe Brian had made him question their frivolous relationship. Maybe Sed had changed his mind about wanting her. That shouldn’t make her chest ache, but it did.

“Of course,” she said. “I’m not really in the mood either. We could both use some sleep.”

He pulled his cell phone from his pocket and checked it for messages.

Jessica watched him fiddle with the device obsessively, concerned by the furrow creasing his brow. She took his hand. “The doctor said Trey has a really good chance of recovering fully.”

He nodded. “I hope he hurries up about it. I can hardly breathe.” He rubbed the centre of his chest as if to loosen a knot that had formed there.

The most delicate heart I’ve ever seen in a man. Myrna’s words filtered through Jessica’s thoughts.

She brought Sed’s wrist to her lips and planted a gentle kiss on the pulse point just under his thumb.

“Thanks for staying with me at the hospital,” he murmured, looking out the taxi window.

She smiled to herself, knowing how hard it was for him to thank her for something like that. Maybe he had overcome his innate asshole-ed-ness. “No problem.”

At the hotel, they wandered through the nearly empty casino, their steps punctuated by the whirring sounds of slot machines. In the elevator, Sed leaned heavily against the interior wall and closed his eyes as it rose to their floor. Jessica had to shake him awake when they reached their destination. Literally asleep on his feet. Apparently, he hadn’t decided she was chopped liver and really was exhausted.

Sed used one of the plastic keycards to open the door. Jessica stepped inside and glanced around, breathless in awe. Their suite had a marble entryway and rich mocha and taupe decor. On the other side of the expansive living area, a king-sized bed overlooked the Vegas strip through a wide floor-to-ceiling window.

Sed put out the “Do Not Disturb” sign while Jessica went to the window to stare at the lights below. The fountain now rested, but in the morning she’d be able to watch the water dance from above. “What a spectacular view!”

Sed followed her, but instead of joining her beside the window, he collapsed face down on the bed. “Will you call the front desk and extend our stay another day? I’m sleeping late. Unless someone calls about Trey.”

She turned to gaze at him. His face was smashed against the mattress, his eyes already closed.

“Sure.”

The hotel was happy to accommodate her request, and by the time she returned to Sed’s side, he was snoring quietly. Poor guy looked incredibly uncomfortable. Taking pity on him, she removed his boots and socks. He groaned in protest when she made him stand so she could take off his coat. His pants followed, and once naked, she tucked his gorgeous body into bed.

“Thanks,” he murmured, almost asleep again. “Your turn to get naked, beautiful.”

He kept his eyes cracked open long enough to watch her remove her clothes and jewellery. He held the covers open and she slid into bed beside him. He’d always been a cuddler, and she didn’t mind when he spooned up against her back and draped an arm and leg over her body. He kissed the back of her head and sighed.

“I’ve missed this,” he whispered.

“Me too,” she admitted.

She lay there for a long while after he’d fallen asleep, his warm breath tickling her ear. As much as she tried to convince herself that all she wanted from him was amazing s*x, she knew she was slipping back into old patterns. Tomorrow she’d be more careful with her heart, but tonight she’d let him hold her while he slept and pretend he still loved her. Which of course he didn’t.

The riff of Sinners’ “Twisted” drew Jessica from a deep sleep. Sed groaned beside her and tugged her body closer to his chest. Limbs and bedclothes tangled their bodies together. Again the riff intruded upon the room’s silence.

What?

Sed’s arm shot toward the nightstand. He answered his cell phone.

“Trey?” he said, his voice raspy with sleep.

Jessica kicked herself free of the sheets and sat up beside him, instantly wide awake.

“We’re leaving now,” Sed said into the phone and ended the call.

“Is he okay?”

“He’s not quite awake yet, but he’s starting to stir. Get dressed.”

Jessica slipped into her wrinkly clothes from the night before. Oh yay, a day without panties. Sed had a similar problem.

“I don’t have a shirt.” But he looked damned fine in those leather pants without one.

“We could stop by the tour bus and change clothes,” Jessica said.

“No time.” He shrugged into his black leather duster and reached for his boots.

At least he gave her a moment to use the bathroom before rushing her out of the room and into the nearest cab outside the hotel. She was surprised by how bright it was outside.

“What time is it?” she asked Sed, thinking there must be a law against starting the day with no caffeine.

He glanced at the screen on his cell phone. “Almost noon.”

“Noon? Jeez, I slept like a rock.”

He smiled at her. “Me too. I can’t remember the last time I slept that good. Months? Two years, maybe?” He ran a hand over his shorn hair and found the roof of the cab incredibly interesting. “You hungry? We missed breakfast.”

“I’m okay. Seeing Trey is more important.”

Sed grinned and lifted her hand to his lips. “Brian was all excited when he called. Something about Trey flinching.”

In the ICU, they found Brian and Myrna at Trey’s bedside. Dare slept in a chair at the end of the bed. Jessica doubted he’d left his brother’s presence since the night before. Rumpled clothes, tangled hair, and a growth of beard shadow on his strong jaw, Dare looked about as scruffy as Jessica felt.

Myrna chuckled at something Brian said. She patted Trey’s hand. “If you don’t wake up soon, sugar, Brian’s going to tell me all your dirty little secrets.”

The black staples that ran along the left side of Trey’s scalp in a semi-circle stood in stark contrast to his unnaturally pale skin. Jessica noticed that only a single wide strip of his hair had been shaved along the left side of his head. How had he managed to get away with not having his entire head shaved? Oh, wait. This was Trey. That explained it.

Jessica glanced at Trey’s monitor. As far as she could tell, his ECG, heart rate, and breathing rate looked normal. The tube up his nose did not.

“I don’t think even Brian knows all of Trey’s dirty little secrets,” Sed said. “How’s he doing? Brian said he was waking up.”

Brian scratched the back of his neck. “I got a little over-excited.”

Myrna smiled a greeting at Sed. “When Brian told me how Trey lost his virginity, he flinched. That’s the only response we’ve gotten.”

Sed cringed. “No wonder he flinched. Sheesh, Brian, give the guy a break. He just had brain surgery.”

Jessica’s curiosity stirred. “How did Trey lose his virginity?”

“Let’s just say he’s been with an older woman,” Sed said.

“Much older,” Brian added.

“There’s nothing wrong with older women,” Myrna said defensively. She patted Trey’s hand again. “Besides, it’s sorta sweet that his grandmother’s best friend helped him out.”

Brian and Sed shuddered in unison.

“I’m sorry I asked,” Jessica murmured.

Sed glanced at Dare, who would need a chiropractor after sleeping in a chair in such a position. “Is Dare dead or what?”

“He keeps passing out from exhaustion, but he won’t leave,” Myrna said. “His band couldn’t get him to leave. His parents couldn’t get him to leave. Even the doctor and nurses couldn’t talk any sense into him. The only one who will get him out of that chair is Trey.”

“Trey, you selfish prick,” Sed called to him. “Wake up. Look what you’re doing to your brother. He’s a train wreck.”

Trey’s eyebrow twitched.

“See, I told you he’s trying to wake up,” Brian said. “Aren’t you, buddy? How about we tell everyone about New Year’s Eve three years ago? I still don’t think the police report had all the details right.”

Dare sat up in the chair, instantly alert. “Is he awake?”

“No. He just twitched a little,” Myrna said.

Dare darted across the room and grabbed Trey’s shoulders firmly. “Terrance, can you hear me in there? Wake up! Terrance!”

“Fuckin’ quit calling me Terrance,” Trey mumbled, his voice slurred but coherent. “You know how much I hate that name.”

“Thank God,” Dare whispered. His head dropped against Trey’s shoulder, his body trembling uncontrollably.

“Are you crying? Jesus Christ, Dare. Who replaced my big brother with this p***y?” Trey placed a hand on the back of Dare’s head and offered him a weak, yet comforting, pat.

“How do you feel?” Brian asked.

Myrna pushed the call button to alert the nurses. Her smile was infectious. Even though Jessica felt like an outsider, she smiled too. Sed just stood there, looking dumbstruck.

“I am feeling no pain.” Trey grinned his irresistible smile. “Good drugs.”

A physician’s assistant entered the room. “Is our guitar hero finally awake?”

Dare lifted his head, wiped his eyes with the heels of his hands and looked down at his baby brother with a most serious expression. “If you ever scare me like that again, I will f**k you up beyond recognition.”

Trey grinned at him. “I will try to keep the brain injuries to a minimum, boss.”

Dare planted a big wet kiss on Trey’s forehead. “I’d better call Mom and Dad. They went downstairs for some food.”

The physician’s assistant asked Trey a series of questions and wrote his responses on a paper affixed to a clipboard. His full name. What day it was. Who the president was. The last thing he remembered. The PA smiled and blushed each time he answered. Besides thinking it was a day earlier, Trey didn’t seem confused at all. Jessica took that as a good sign.

“My turn to ask you a question,” Trey said to the attractive brunette.

She paused in mid-scribe. “What?”

“When will you give me my sponge bath?”

She giggled and slapped his shoulder. “Mr Mills.” She glanced around the room with a blush staining her cheeks. “That’s an LPN’s job.”

“Call me Trey. And I wasn’t assuming it was part of your job.”

She shook her head at him. “Is he always like this?” she asked Brian.

It would have taken a pressure washer to remove the grin from Brian’s face. “Yep.”

The PA tugged the covers off Trey’s feet. “Can you wiggle your toes?”

Trey scowled as he concentrated on moving his toes. His movement was sluggish at best.

“That’s okay,” the PA told him. “Try to make a fist.”

His fingers curled inward slowly, but his hand never completely closed. Everyone in the room held their breath.

“I can’t,” he said breathlessly, allowing his fingers to relax again.

“You just woke up. I’m sure you’ll get full mobility back with time. Keep working at it. You just have to retrain your brain to move your fingers,” the PA said.

“Retrain my fingers?” His incredulous gaze moved to Brian. His breath hitched. “What?”

“I’m sure your fingers will be fine,” Brian said. “It’s okay.”

“How is this okay?” Trey flexed his fingers slightly. “I can’t play guitar like this.”