Whisper (27 page)

The man in charge of the thirty rented security guys answered questions and gave directions from a central spot while sitting on his ass, sucking on a cigarette. Ben and Nomad stood in front of the band and kids, trying to shield them from the crunch of bodies. Tully, the useless son of a bitch would handle the situation, or Keith would.

As Keith neared, he heard Tully ask the guy standing next to him, “Who’s that?”

“Dude,” the young guy replied, “that’s Wendy’s ole man.”

When Keith stood two feet away, he said, “Clear this area. Do it now.”

“They have backstage passes.” Tully crossed his legs, leaned back and teetered the chair on its two hind legs.

Keith pointed. “Get them the hell away from my family and the band.”

Nomad sprinted over with a worried look on his face. “We don’t have control. Too many people.” Keith stepped onto a riser and placed his index finger and thumb between his lips. The shrill whistle made security men turn. He pointed to the spot directly below him and growled out a single word.

“Now!”

Blue jeans, black tee-shirts, and white baseball caps with
BBB
embossed on the front, hurried over.

When most of them were near, he explained how the 230

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rest of the night would go.

“What’s going on? Corral these people and move them across to the other area. Three of you stay with them and keep them in line. Who the hell is at the stairwells?” Nothing but silence came from the group of men. “You and you,” he pointed, “each of you take a man and get those stairwells covered. If you leave your post or let anyone get through, I’ll kick your ass before you get fired. Get me?”

“Yes, sir,” they said before moving with a purpose.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Tully asked, stepping up next to Keith.

Out of the corner of his eye, Keith saw Billy get shoved and almost knocked down. That did it.
Best
in his field, my ass!
Keith drew his arm back and saw Nomad grimace before he let his temper fly. His fist flew too, knocking Tully off the riser. A few of the men caught him before he landed. The entire backstage area fell silent. The crowd out front didn’t, but at the moment, it wasn’t his concern. Regular cops handled them.

“You’re fired,” Keith said, looking down.

“Anyone else not interested in doing his job tonight?” A lot of white baseball caps turned from side to side.

“Good, I bet we’ll do just fine then.” Whisper walked over and gazed up at him.

Damn, he hadn’t meant for her to see that. He’d like it even less if she or any of the kids got trampled.

Keith pointed. “You three, get the tourists where I want them. Do it now.”

He didn’t raise his voice. He didn’t need to. The men moved and started gathering the forty people together. “The rest of you,” he said, making sure he received eye contact from the remaining guys, “you see this woman?”

Heads nodded. Keith pointed. “You see those kids over there?”
Yeah, they looked, they saw.
“Your 231

Kathleen Lash

life depends on them not getting hurt. That’s why you’re here. You’ll listen to me and take care of my family, or you’ll have more than a few broken teeth.

Get me?”

Finally, people started moving. “I want you and you,” he pointed, “on the right side of the stage.

You’ll stand there the entire concert. If someone gets past the cops, you won’t let them anywhere near the band. And you two,” he picked another two big men,

“same detail, left end. Understand?

With the backstage area under control, the kids and band finally came out of the alcove they’d been rammed into. He motioned for Nomad to hop up and stand next to him. When the kid got there, Keith pulled the stupid cap from his head and whipped it across the area.

“This is your new boss. You have a question or something looks funny, you get me or Nomad, pronto. You’ll earn your paychecks tonight gentlemen, every stinking cent. If you won’t work that hard, quit now because if you screw up, you’re mine. If you do the job and keep things under control, you get a bonus.”

Guys looked at each other and smiled. He figured money would do some persuading. “The best twenty guys will have an invite to work with us steady. No more of this shit, never knowing who’s got our backs. I need long-term, dependable men who can keep order, take care of trouble, take it serious and follow directions.” He turned to Nomad. “Tell them what you need.

Anyone gives you shit, get me. Keep the kids and my baby safe.”

“Done,” Nomad replied.

Keith moved off the riser and took a step toward Whisper when he heard an outraged Tully coming from behind. He pushed Whisper back before spinning to grab Tully by the shirt. The guy was 232

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huge but Keith had tussles with other large men.

Bigger didn’t always mean stronger. An elbow in his stomach, a right to his chops and the big lug staggered. Keith let a lot of aggression build, watching the chaos for two hours before putting an end to it. He vented on Tully with a few more hits before Tully dropped and kissed the floor.

“Get him out of here,” Nomad said. “He’s fired.” Three guys lifted and carried him away. The remaining security moved in close as Nomad gave orders. The kid was a natural, looking tough, speaking softly and meaning business. For once, his stony face and cool exterior perfectly suited the job at hand.

Keith placed an arm around Whisper and escorted her back to the others. When Billy scrambled away from Corey, he came flying. Keith caught him and scooped him up.

“Holy shit, Keith. That was way cool!”

“Language, little man.”

“Sorry, but holy shit!”

Keith rubbed his head and set him down.

Whisper asked, “How’s your leg?”

“Baby,” he said, pulling her close, kissing her temple, “I didn’t hit him with my leg.” The announcer started talking and the crowd roared. Whisper nervously twirled drum sticks through her fingers as he massaged her shoulders.

He hoped she wasn’t more on edge over the security incident. He’d hung back, watched the catastrophe during the last two concerts before he couldn’t take it. Enough was enough!

She followed the others up on stage, the screams from the crowd temporarily deafening him. He glanced down at Billy to make sure he had the earplugs in place. They’d get a routine going after a few more concerts.

Keith relaxed and leaned against a wall. The 233

Kathleen Lash

kids surrounded him, watching Whisper and the band. With the houses in Cleveland donated to Miles and the shelter, he probably wouldn’t be travelling back and forth so much after tomorrow. He’d get Whisper and the kids home before hopping a plane to bail Connor out of jail. They’d gotten the call earlier in the day. They probably should’ve just dragged him back a few months ago, but he hadn’t turned eighteen yet. The stupid kid got into a fight and spent his first day as an adult in jail.
Happy
birthday, you little rebel.

Christy stood next to Mark looking prettier than ever. Who would’ve thought she wanted to be a nurse. For that matter, he never would’ve guessed Mark had an interest in becoming an attorney. For now, he spent the savings to educate the kids and invest.

When they met with the attorney and found out how much Whisper inherited, she wanted to pay for everything. He refused. By the time his savings dwindled, he’d make damn sure he remained an asset to her, not a liability. He and Ben worked to figure things out with the new manager they’d hired.

Between the band, the kids and Whisper, his days and nights were filled in the best way possible.

A bunch of hours later, the kids left with Nomad and some of the better security guys. She’d changed, cleaned up and did some photos with the guys before they settled in the back of the private limo. Playing local concerts had distinct advantages. No autograph seekers to contend with when they hit their front door.

She snuggled against him and he stroked her hair. She’d gone back to the strawberry blond and put on a few pounds. She looked more like the Whisper he knew.

She studied him in the dim light. “You look tired. Did you get worn out beating that poor man?” 234

Whisper

“Baby, I didn’t beat him. That would’ve involved blood and teeth and intestines all over.” She stopped smiling. “I couldn’t imagine you ever fighting. It never occurred to me you would.”

“He had it coming.”

“Probably.”

A lot of silence followed and he didn’t like it.

“I’m sorry. It won’t happen again.”

“You do what you think is right.”

“I didn’t mean to upset you.”

“You know, it’s pretty hard to miss how big you are, but you’re so casual about it. You never threaten anyone. Even the smallest children run to you.”

“Yeah, that’s me, a sissy.”

“No one would call you that if they saw you tonight. Bam, bam, he’s out!” They both laughed.

“Why did you get so angry?”

“The man didn’t take your safety seriously. He learned.”

“You
do
protect us.”

“I may not always do the right thing, but you can bet I’ll try.”

When she leaned close, he pulled her onto his lap and cuddled her. “Keith?”

He closed his eyes and relaxed. He probably wouldn’t sleep with having to catch a redeye in the morning. The hours before then wouldn’t be spent catching a nap. He and Whisper had things to do.

“Yeah, Whisper?”

“Would you…”

He stroked her back. “What, baby? Ask.”

“Marry me?”

He came to full awareness. Temporarily stunned, it took him a minute to comprehend what she’d asked.

“It’s okay. Never mind.”

“Oh, hell no. You asked and now you won’t take it back.” He’d contemplated the question a thousand 235

Kathleen Lash

different ways. With her money, fame and talent, he could never find the right words. Somewhere down deep, he figured she wouldn’t permanently stick herself with someone like him.

“But you didn’t answer.”

He chuckled. “I was stunned into stupidity. I’m better now. Yeah, we’ll get married. As soon as you want.”

“Are you sure?”

“Positive.” With the request coming out of the blue, he knew he shouldn’t ask, but couldn’t help himself. “You been thinking about this for a while?”

“Sort of.”

“And you figured you’d pop the question tonight?”

“Well, I, uh, keep thinking about stuff.”

“Like…”

“How good it felt, you know, us together, without protection.”

He groaned and squeezed her too tight, remembering exactly how incredible it felt the one time they’d been fully naked together. After a long, hot kiss, he licked her throat, restraining himself from licking a hell of a lot more. “You could get pregnant. You okay with that?”

“Mmm,” she murmured. He parted the neckline of her shirt and she twisted in his arms.

“God, baby, you’d have my baby?”

“Oh,” she said, before, “uhh, oh! Yes.” With the tinted windows, they had about five minutes before they’d roll in the driveway. He needed to stop. She didn’t show any mercy. Kissing him, squirming in his lap with her ass stroking his erection, she said against his mouth, “Our baby.” When she opened her lips, he gave into the burning need. “Damn it,” he finally managed to say after some in-depth, red-hot lip action. Pulling his hips from the seat to rub against her perfect ass, he 236

Whisper

rode the searing, pulsing climax to the end. How embarrassing!

What did it? Her wanting to get married? Her wanting a baby? He cradled her, taking in her scent.

He eventually realized he could never hold back with her because she wanted
him
. All of him. He had no choice but to answer and give her anything and everything she wanted. He loved her. He’d always love her. And he sure as hell didn’t mind kids.

Especially the really little ones.

237

If you enjoyed
Whisper
, you’ll want to read
another of Kathleen’s books,

Forbidden Thunder.
Here’s an excerpt:

John Thunder glimpsed at the carnage in utter disbelief. A tangle of tractor-trailer and tractor-tanker blocked one complete lane of the two-lane interstate. Any description of the mess wouldn’t do it justice. The cab of Liam’s rig dangled off the side of the bridge. Twisted slightly toward the passenger door, the grill and windshield pointed down. The rear axles straddled the guardrail, which barely supported the cab. The trailer had jack-knifed and lay partially on its side with the tanker tangled against it. The massive Detroit diesel sputtered, sending up tiny bursts of smoke now and again.

John had cleaned up some bad accidents but nothing compared to the destruction a few yards away.

He swung the heavy wrecker across the median, then spun the steering wheel to move the truck into position. Police and firemen stepped aside. John launched himself from the cab and strode to the back of his truck. After dropping the outriggers for stabilization and extending the boom, he eyed the McKenna truck. Ominous creaking warned that a miscalculation or hesitation could send the truck into a one hundred and fifty foot freefall to the concrete highway below. The fire chief, in a bright yellow slicker, appeared at his side.

“What’s the situation?” John asked.

“The tanker’s intact, the driver’s safe. But the McKenna driver is trapped in the cab.” The Fire Department usually handled rescue, but the biggest problem was the precarious position of the McKenna truck. John’s three brothers slid to a halt just then with the airbag truck and another boom truck. John hurried to the concrete abutment closest to the cab and yelled, “McKenna!” 1

Kathleen Lash

“Thunder, is that you?” John heard Liam say before he caught the faint odor of gasoline fumes.

“Yeah, I came for the barbeque. You on the menu?”

“You tell me! I don’t smell smoke, so I guess my ass won’t roast today.”

“Nope,” he said, “but how are you at flying?

Grown wings since the last time I saw you?” The long silence relayed Liam’s unease. When he finally did respond, his voice wasn’t nearly as loud. “I don’t like heights.”