Vintage Volume Two (10 page)

“I can’t wait to love you for the rest of my life,” Parker whispered against my hair.

I melted into the floor. Creating the perfect rhythm with words was his career as a songwriter, but hearing those words aimed for me out of his gorgeous mouth was overwhelming. And the ring on my finger was proof I’d get to experience his words every day for the rest of my life.

twelve

It was sooner than I’d planned, but we were on our way to my dad’s house. I figured I’d have at least one night with just Parker before we ventured out into the real world again. 

I had no interest in seeing Jadyn, but it wasn’t really my choice. If I wanted to see my father—which I did—I was stuck seeing her, too. And I needed to see my dad. I needed to know what was going on, even though I had a pretty strong feeling that he wasn’t going to tell me a damn thing.

I had a bad feeling. Parker had apparently texted him when I went into the bathroom to freshen up, and he invited us over. He was having a small dinner party, just a couple of friends—Mikey and some girl he was seeing, and Keith and Vanessa. As popular as my dad was, he tended to keep a tight circle.

Which was why it was so surprising that he married a goddamn porn star.

I wondered not for the first time how he’d even met her. It was silly to think about that because anyone could meet another person pretty much anywhere in the world. And when you are Gideon Price, you’ve got access to anyone you want.

Apparently he wanted Jadyn. I still didn’t get it.

But it wasn’t my decision to make.

I sighed.

“What’s wrong, future wife?”

I couldn’t help my smile. “Nothing’s wrong. I just wanted to stay in with you.”

“I know. I’m sorry. I feel like I need to tell your dad about our real engagement.”

“I’m shocked he doesn’t already know.”

“He knew it was coming. I talked to him about it.”

I watched his eyes as he focused on the road in front of us. Bruno followed behind us, as usual.

I’d noticed Tim hadn’t left me alone much after that, and as much as I wanted to be annoyed by that, I just wasn’t. I appreciated everyone around me feeling the need to protect me. A few months earlier, it may have been a different story.

“You two are close,” I commented, an observation I’d made ever since I’d first learned Parker and my dad knew one another.

“Yeah,” he answered absently.

He clearly needed a father figure. He’d suffered long enough without one, and I was happy that the person I had chosen to spend my life with got along with my dad. It was a necessity to me.

And even as I thought it, I realized that Parker still hadn’t met my mother. I wondered where in the world she was. She’d probably want to know that I was getting married. Hell, maybe she’d seen it in the news considering it was all over the tabloids.

Daughter of Rock Star Engaged to Guitarist of Flashing Light!

Gideon’s Girl All Grown Up

And my personal favorite:
Price’s Princess Has Seen the Light… the Flashing Light!

Tabloids were right up my mother’s alley. Sometimes it was shocking even to me that we were related.

“He is the most respected man in this industry, Jimi. To me he was always this untouchable hero. He changed my life. And because of him, I met you. I will owe him a debt for the rest of my life for that.”

He glanced over at me and smiled that smile that I would never get tired of seeing. “And I will pay him back for that debt every single day by loving you, Jimi. Taking care of you, protecting you, and making you happy.”

“I think you just wrote your vows, Parker.”

He chuckled. “Your turn.”

“I’m not the writer here.”

“No, but you’re a smart and savvy woman who knows what she wants.”

My heart raced a little faster at his words. He was right, and savvy came with a lot of implications. For one, I still hadn’t had a chance to tell him about the email I saw come through on Barry’s computer. I was dying for his perspective.

I took a leap of faith.

“Speaking of knowing what I want…” I trailed off, unsure of how to continue.

His eyes were on the road, but he grinned.

“The old ball and chain, already telling me how things are going to be. Is this about the wedding?”

“If you ever call me the old ball and chain again, there won’t be a wedding,” I grumbled.

He laughed.

I took a sobering breath. “No. It’s not about the wedding.”

He glanced away from the road and over to me. We were getting close to my dad’s house. It wasn’t that long of a drive from my place.

“What’s it about?”

“It’s about an idea that you sparked in my mind. Something that made me realize that I want more out of my life than working in a record store.”

“Oh?” he asked, his curiosity clearly piqued.

“Yeah.”

“Well, what do you want to do?”

“I want to own it.” I blurted it out without thinking.

“Vintage?”

“Yes. My heart is yours, but a piece of my soul is in that store. And I can’t see it just go down in flames. But I know nothing about owning a store or running it. I don’t know if I have the qualifications to do something like that. But I have the money and the ideas and the passion.”

“What do you mean by seeing it go down?”

I stared out the window. It was hard to finally admit what I knew. “I was in Barry’s office. We were going over the schedule and he stepped out. I saw an email pop through from a lawyer about bankruptcy.”

“Bankruptcy?” he asked. His hand moved across the car to cover my own resting on my leg. “I thought the store was doing well.”

“So did I. And that’s what I mean when I say that I don’t know anything about running a store.”

We pulled into my dad’s driveway, and Parker put the car in park and cut the engine before looking over at me. Neither of us moved from our seats, but I looked over at him. I could see the wheels turning in his mind. He didn’t speak for several moments.

But then he did, and I was pretty sure that my life as I knew it would never be the same.

Because while I knew that he was the one meant for me, and while I knew that I was going to marry him, what he said next sealed every part of the commitment that I was already going to make. His next words showed me that not only were our hearts and our bodies connected, but our minds and our souls were connected. Forever.

He turned toward me in the car. I mirrored him.

“You know I attended Loyola University in Chicago, right?”

I shook my head. I hadn’t known that.

“I did. And I graduated with a degree in Business Management.”

My eyes grew wide as a smile played at his lips.

“I knew I wanted to go somewhere with my band, the one that your dad talked me out of, but I also knew that I needed something to fall back on in case it didn’t work. So I picked business. I had to choose a major, and business seemed like the smartest choice.”

“So you have some concept of what it takes to run a business.”

“I have more than a concept, Jimi.” He paused, and I wondered what the hell he meant. I didn’t have to wait long. “My senior internship involved working with a company who had their hands in a lot of different projects. One division bought companies near bankruptcy and turned them around to be profitable.”

My jaw dropped. “Are you kidding me?”

It literally could not have been more perfect.

All the pieces fell into place. Maybe it was a threat that had brought us together, but it was the huge ways that we were meant to be that would keep us together. Forever.

“We could do this. The two of us together. I want what you want.” He took both of my hands in his. “I want what’s going to make you happy.”

“You make me happy. Is this crazy?”

“Buying Vintage?”

I nodded.

“I’m shocked it’s going into bankruptcy, to be honest. It’s a great store and I think that together, we could work to make it lucrative. Is it crazy? Maybe. Could we do this together and make it work? Definitely.”

Everything was turning around. My life was on track. I was getting married to the man I loved. It was real, not some sham to keep Randy away from us. I was marrying an intelligent man who wanted what I wanted. He was going to help me buy Vintage, and together we were going to take on the challenge and make it prosper again. He’d teach me how to run a business, and I’d use my creativity and background of the music industry to make it soar. My mind was whirling with possibilities and excitement for everything that was in front of us.

I couldn’t remember the last time I had been so happy. It had to have been before Katie had died, and that had been…God, that had been over eight years earlier.

I should have known it was all too good to be true.

I should have known that something was lurking ahead, waiting to change everything.

But in the moment, I was too happy to consider that there was danger in our midst.

thirteen

Of the seven people at the dinner party aside from myself, somehow I was blessed with Jadyn sitting directly across from me. I glanced up at her and our eyes met, and I couldn’t help the frisson of fear that darted through my chest. I wasn’t sure where it came from, but I knew I didn’t like it. Parker was to my right, and I felt better with him near me.

We sat for dinner immediately after we arrived. Apparently they’d been planning to eat about twenty minutes earlier but decided to wait for the two of us. I hadn’t even been expecting to attend this little dinner party, but it was better than trying to pull something together from my own refrigerator.

“Feel good to be home?” Vanessa asked no one in particular. She was trying to make conversation over the icy silence floating between Jadyn and me.

“Feels better than sleeping on a bus,” my dad finally said.

Everyone concurred with that sentiment. I shrugged, and I caught Parker’s chuckle out of the corner of my eye.

I wanted to add that I hated that someone needed to watch over me twenty-four hours a day. I wanted to add that I hated Randy and everyone involved with him, my step-mother included. I wanted to add that at least on the tour, I had a reason to have people around me all the time, and now that I was home, it sort of felt weird. 

But I chose the high road. I only opened my mouth to put in food, because I wasn’t sure what I’d say to—or about—Jadyn, and I didn’t need to give her more fuel to hate me. If she actually was still involved with Randy, the worst thing I could do was give her the match to start a fire.

Parker poked me in my ribs when Mikey and my dad got involved in a rather loud conversation about one of the tour stops. My dad hosted dinner parties for his friends often. The men needed that camaraderie after they returned home from their tours. I’d heard about musicians who fell into a depression after they returned home from their tours because they’d been surrounded by friends and fans, and the empty house was too quiet. My dad had been in the business long enough to know how to avoid those pitfalls.

I glanced over at Parker when I felt the poke. “What?”

“You’re quiet.” His eyes were dark and concerned.

“So are you.”

He shrugged, and I smiled. “Stop stealing my move.”

“I wish I could’ve talked to him before dinner.”

“Is that why you’re quiet?”

He sighed, and I saw my dad shoot us a look across the table, as if to say that secrets at the table weren’t proper. I had a feeling he’d get over it once he knew what we were whispering about.

Dinner felt long as I listened to the conversation around me. I learned that Mikey and Fiona had known each other for years but had recently started dating. She was in public relations and often worked with musicians. I learned that Black Shadow was heading back to the studio in a few months. I learned that Pure Adrenaline was already booked on a summer tour for the following year. I learned that Flashing Light was booking out for the fall and that they were going back to the studio in a few weeks to work on their album.

But everyone remained mysteriously quiet about the threat that lurked in every corner. No one said anything when they saw George pass by the entryway to the dining room. It was the elephant in the room; we all knew it existed, but none of us acknowledged it.

And I had a feeling it was because of Jadyn. We simply couldn’t talk in front of her. I wanted to ask Keith how he was doing, and I wanted to find out from Vanessa what she thought about her husband’s attack. I wanted to dig a little deeper. I wanted to know if they’d figured out who had attacked him and whether it was connected to Randy.

Instead, I sat quietly, took in everything around me, and tried to focus on the euphoric feelings I’d experienced in the car.

Once dessert was over, everyone meandered into my dad’s living room to sit and have a few drinks. It was the perfect room for entertaining—close to the expansive kitchen which housed all of the liquor, and super comfortable with leather recliners and a sectional couch that was about the most relaxing thing I’d ever sat on. I’d grown up part time in this house, and it still felt like home to me.

Parker was glued to my side, and we had our chance to talk to my dad once everyone was comfortable in the family room. The two of us were pouring some wine in the kitchen while my dad got ice for a glass of whiskey.

“Can we talk to you?” Parker asked.

My dad looked up from his tumbler. “Always. Alone?”

Parker nodded and wrapped his arms around me.

My dad glanced toward the family room. His guests were occupied for the moment, laughing at some story Mikey was telling.

He mouthed to Jadyn, “Be right back.” I saw her nod in understanding, but I didn’t miss the dart of jealousy that passed through her eyes.

My dad nodded toward his office. “In here.” We followed behind him. He held the door open and ushered us in, shutting it to allow us the privacy we had requested.

I glanced around, impressed as ever at what my dad did for a living. Framed platinum records indicated millions of sales; other records were framed with diamond indicators above them, showing that he’d sold more than ten million copies of those particular albums. A collage of photos signed by just about every band Black Shadow had ever worked with adorned one wall, and a handful of guitars were located on one side of the room. His office was enormous, but more importantly, it was private. It held couches and two desks, both showcasing the newest Macbooks and a bunch of equipment and components that I recognized from his recording studio.

“What’s going on?” He leaned against his desk, and Parker and I stood in the center of the room a few feet away from him.

Parker took the lead. “Gideon, we actually have some good news for a change.”

“I’d love to hear it. It’s been a frustrating couple of months, hasn’t it?”

We both nodded. I wasn’t sure why I was suddenly nervous, but I was. It seemed odd that I felt anxious to tell my dad that we were really engaged when he’d taken part in the original, fake engagement.

“When we were apart the past couple of weeks, I came to grips with several realities in my life, but most of all, I realized how much I love your daughter. I’ve shared things with her that I’ve never told anyone else in my life, and she’s shared things with me that made me fall into this depth that I never want to climb out of. I plan to spend the rest of my life with her, and tonight I told her that I don’t want our engagement to be some publicity stunt to keep her safe. I want to protect her for the rest of my life because I love her.”

I watched my dad’s face while Parker spoke. I half expected him to be surprised even though Parker had told him this was coming, but he just wasn’t. Instead, I saw pride. My nerves immediately evaporated as I realized how absolutely perfect everything about this scenario was.

“When you hired me to protect your daughter, I had no idea that I’d find the other half of my soul. But I did.”

His words touched my heart, because it was exactly the same way I felt about him.

My dad grinned. “I knew it from the second I met you, PJ. I knew that you’d be perfect for her, that you two were lost souls who needed to find each other. So tell me where you’re going with this.”

“We’re engaged! For real!” I exclaimed, unable to stay quiet anymore as I held up my hand that displayed the new ring Parker had given me only hours earlier.

“Congratulations,” my dad said warmly, pulling me into a hug.

He hugged my fiancé next. “Parker, I couldn’t have chosen a better man for my daughter. I’ll be proud to call you my son.”

“We have more news, too,” I said. Parker glanced at me with curiosity. “Vintage,” I mouthed, and he nodded.

“Let me guess. Baby on board?”

“Dad!” I exclaimed, embarrassed about all that implied. He had to know that Parker and I had sex, but just like I didn’t want to think about all the ladies he’d been with throughout his illustrious career, I was sure he didn’t want to think about his daughter’s extracurricular activities.

“Thank God. I’m not ready to be a grandfather yet.”

“Someday you’ll make a good one, but that’s pretty far down the road,” I said.

“Well,” Parker interjected, “maybe not
that
far down.”

Our eyes met, and his were playful. It was slightly alarming as I realized this was something we hadn’t discussed yet, but just as everything else had worked out as it was supposed to, I had faith that bringing children into the world would eventually happen at the right time.

Well down the road.

My dad chuckled. “Looks like you two need to have a conversation about that.”

A knock at the door interrupted us. As my dad went to check who it was, Parker whispered to me, “I can’t even imagine how adorable little Jimis would be running around our house.”

I laughed, but I sobered quickly as George entered the room behind my dad. He looked so serious. He always did, but as he shut the door behind him, I couldn’t help but think that something was off.

Very off.

“Sir, I’m so sorry for interrupting, but I just need a few moments of your time.”

“George, it’s a night for celebrating. Let’s save work for the morning.” Merriment shone in my dad’s eyes.

But it wasn’t reflected back by George.

I felt a lead weight settle in my chest.

Something was seriously wrong.

“Forgive me for overstepping, but this can’t wait until morning.”

My dad sighed. “Fine. Get on with it.”

I’d never seen my dad act so petulantly, but then again, I’d rarely actually seen him have a conversation with George. Typically their conversations took place behind closed doors.

George glanced over at me and then back at my dad. “Sir, this is sensitive information. I just need a moment.”

“Whatever it is, you can say it in front of my daughter and my future son-in-law. I need to fill them in on some recent developments anyway, but that can wait for another time.”

“Surely this is news you’d like to hear in private.”

“Just spit it out, George.”

George glanced nervously over to me again. I wanted to hear the news, too. The way he was acting made me think it somehow involved me.

I wasn’t sure why my dad was suddenly forcing George to talk in front of us, but I was glad. If it involved me, I deserved to know. I was tired of the secrets. I was tired of being in the dark.

I appreciated that whatever it was, my dad wanted me to know about it.

Maybe he finally agreed that my status had elevated to “need to know.”

George lowered his voice so that he was talking only to my dad, but it didn’t matter. His words carried across the small space toward me. And when I caught them against my ear, I fell into Parker’s waiting arms.

“Damien Williams was found dead this evening.”