A Sound Like Hope (Fallen Tuesday #3) (16 page)

Trent realized Emily now had two
hands on his face. She was gently pulling at him, her eyes screaming for Trent
to kiss her.

“
You
’
re not a bad man,
”
Emily whispered.
“
At all, Trent. You
’
re human. You have a heart.
”

“
But
I
’
m in the limelight now.
That comes with its own set of rules, unfortunately."

“
Not
right now,
”
Emily said.
“
There are only two eyes watching
you tonight."

“
I
’
d prefer your two eyes over the
millions
…”

Trent moved down. His nose touched
Emily
’
s. She looked
hesitant for a second.

“
Do
you
…
I mean, with her
…
are there feelings?
”

“
It
’
s like a crack on a sidewalk,
Emily. You see it but it doesn
’
t
matter unless you let it get bigger and dangerous.
”

“
I
don
’
t know if that made
sense.
”

“
I
don
’
t know if it did
either,
”
Trent said.
“
I
’
m
not bad person, like I told you before.
”

“
I
never thought that.
”

“
Sure
you did,
”
Trent said.
“
I
’
m
famous, so my mistakes have been plastered all over the internet. Don
’
t play nice with me, Emily. I
can take it.
”

Trent pressed his lips to Emily
’
s. He couldn
’
t wait any longer. Their kiss
out front had been lingering on his lips for too long. After everything he had
just admitted to her, there was no way he could contain himself again. Talking
about his past gave Trent a sense of vulnerability and he didn
’
t like it. The easiest way to
gain back that power was to enjoy the company of a woman. But kissing Emily
didn
’
t just magically make
Trent feel like a man. It wasn
’
t
that easy with her. Her lips were too good. Her mouth too eager. Her hands,
tight around his shirt one second, loose and reluctant the next.

Emily was driving him mad. From
head to toe, inside and out.

The kiss came to another end and
Trent wanted more.

“
Wait
here a second,
”
Emily
whispered.

She broke away and Trent watched
her go into the house. He groaned and let out a long breath. Sometimes he had
no idea who the hell he was outside of music and Fallen Tuesday. He was
supposed to come here to spend time with Nick, explain right from wrong, and
then head back to the band in the studio.

But now he had gotten in deep. He
wanted Emily, but he wanted her more than he thought he would.

Emily came back outside holding a
beer in her hand.

“
Here,
”
she said.
“
Have a drink with me.
”

Trent took the beer and smiled.
“
You trust me now?
”

“
I
never said I didn
’
t trust
you,
”
Emily said.
“
I just wasn
’
t sure
…”

“
You
know I don
’
t drink and
drive, right?
”

“
I
believe you, Trent.
”

“
That
means if I drink this
…
and
another
…
maybe a third
…
I can
’
t leave. I
’
m
going to have to spend the night here, Emily.
”

Emily touched Trent
’
s chest.
“
That
’
s
the point.
”

(13)

Luke walked along the front of the
practice stage, looking at the quiet instruments. In his mind, he could still
hear the music. The perfection that made Fallen Tuesday so good and so popular.
He finished a bottle of water and tossed it into a recycling bin.

It was a good time to be a
rockstar. The band was taking some time to relax and get ready for more studio
sessions to put the final touches on the album. Frank had already started to
work with the record company to come up with a cover and title, and to start
talking marketing and touring. Luke felt alive. He thought of Amy and it made
him smile. He couldn't wait to be in bed with her, holding her, his fingers
caressing her soft skin. He figured Grey was probably doing the same thing with
Carina. As for Trent, Luke wasn
’
t
sure what to think. Maybe he was home, maybe he was out.

A side door opened and Mack
’
s heavy boots hit the floor,
sounding off echoing thuds as he approached Luke. They bumped fists and hugged
before saying a word.

“
What
are you doing here?
”
Mack
asked.

“
I
guess I could ask you the same,
”
Luke said.

“
Just
wandering around a little. Thinking. Clearing my head. Filling it back up. The
usual.
”

“
Same
here,
”
Luke said.
“
I really think Frank is going to
come through with some shows for us. It
’
s
been hard already that we
’
ve
had cancellations. I hate letting the fans down.
”

“
I
think that
’
s what we all
need. I hate feeling like we are in hiding or something."

“
I
get it,
”
Luke said.
“
It
’
s
our job and life. I see the instruments. I hear the new songs. But the thing
missing is the live reaction from the fans."

“
Soon
enough, brother,
”
Mack
said.
“
I can feel it.
”

“
Yeah,
well speaking of feeling
…
I
haven
’
t heard from Trent at
all today.
”

“
Maybe
he
’
s got himself tied up
with a woman.
”

“
Maybe.
Or maybe he
’
s out trying to
find Chloe.
”

“
Or
Jake.
”

“
Don
’
t even say that,
”
Luke said.

The main door opened with a creak
and in walked Jake. He had a big smile on his face and some swagger in his
steps.

“
Band
meeting?
”
he asked.

“
Nope,
”
Mack said.
“
Just hanging. We
’
re missing two guys.
”

“
I
’
m sure Gray is rolled up in bed
sheets,
”
Jake said and
laughed.

“
Right
where I want to be,
”
Luke
muttered.

“
That
would be nice,
”
Mack said.

“
I
just kind of came from there,
”
Jake said.
“
Well, not with
Gray, but, you know
…”

“
Really?
”
Mack asked.
“
Who is the unlucky lady?
”

Jake walked to the stage and jumped
up. He went to his guitar and flicked the strings. They barely made a sound.

“
Jake,
”
Luke said.
“
Tell me you
’
re messing around again
…”

“
Hey,
it
’
s not drugs.
”

“
Same
thing,
”
Mack said.
“
You know what
’
s going to happen with this.
”

“
I
can
’
t care about Trent,
”
Jake said.
“
I mean, come on, we
’
re adults here.
”

“
You
should care about Trent. We know there's more to the story than what the rest
of us know, but you should care because it concerns the band relationship. You
have to take it easy with this line you
’
re
walking.
”

“
Well,
I
’
m going to do what I
want. I
’
m not married. I
’
m not committed. And it
’
s fun to show someone from the
past what it
’
s like to be
famous. I like it. She does too.
”

“
This
isn
’
t going to help Trent,
”
Luke said.

“
Where
is he?
”
Jake asked.
“
I
’
ll
talk to him right now. If he needs to punch me in the face, then let him. I don
’
t care.
”

“
Just
calm down, man,
”
Luke said.
“
We are all on such an edge
right now. None of this is helping. Jake, you know that keeping Chloe around
isn
’
t good. But I
’
m not going to tell what you to
do. It
’
s not my job.
”

“
I
’
m not going to marry the woman,
”
Jake said.
“
It
’
s
just
…
nice. Fun.
”

“
Shit,
”
Mack said.
“
We need to get back on the road,
man. This sitting around and waiting is only making it easier to find trouble.
”

“
Or
let trouble find us,
”
Luke
said.

Jake picked up his guitar and sat
on his amp. He started to strum chords.
“
I
’
m rooting for Trent in all this.
I think all the charges are bullshit too. He didn
’
t
drink and drive. And hitting that guy? Come on, we
’
re rockstars.
”

“
You
can
’
t do that stuff these
days,
”
Luke said.
“
As far as Trent goes, he
’
ll be fine.
”

“
How
long does this program last?
”
Mack asked.

“
No
idea,
”
Luke said.
“
But it
’
s only a short drive. And I
’
m sure when we
’
re
ready to hit the road again, he can pull away from it.
”

“
That
is, if he comes back home,
”
Mack said with a laugh.

“
Trent
didn
’
t come back?
”
Jake asked.

“
Not
that I know of,
”
Luke said.
“
I
’
m sure he
’
s
okay though. He needs this right now. I was hoping that this would help him
cope with his past so that he can move forward."

“
So
it would help if Chloe wasn
’
t
hanging around the band again,
”
Mack said.

“
Yeah,
well
…”
Jake just looked
down.

“
I
’
m taking off then,
”
Luke said.
“
I'm going to bother Frank a
little, and then I am heading over to see Amy and scoop her out of the bakery.
”

“
Sounds
good,
”
Mack said. He rubbed
his face.
“
I
’
m going to ride back to the
house and try to get some sleep. Maybe tomorrow we can get some more parts
recorded. Or just jam out.
”

“
Mind
if I stay?
”
Jake asked.
“
I
’
m
in the mood to sit and play.
”

“
It
’
s our place, man,
”
Luke said.
“
Just lock up when you
’
re done.
”

Luke walked to the side door and
held it open for Mack. Just as he was about to step through, Jake called his
name. Luke looked back.

“
This
is all going to blow over, right?
”
Jake asked.
“
I mean, it
’
s just another lull.
”

“
Yeah,
it
’
ll blow over,
”
Luke said.
“
But I think we
’
re at a point here where the
band needs to be a band. No distractions."

Luke stood outside the door for a
few seconds. He heard Jake
’
s
amp turn on and then the soft sounds of Jake playing a slow song.

Rockstars had a tough outer shell,
but they were some of the most emotional, romantic souls. Which led to
heartbreak more often than not.

Sometimes Luke wondered if it was easier
to live without a heart.