Rhys’s shoulders tensed beneath my hands. We exchanged a panicked glance. Almost in slow motion, Jake turned around. When I dared to look at him, his expression was a mixture of agony and fury.
“This is NOT fucking happening!” he growled.
Rhys spun around, holding up his hands. “Look, it’s not what you think.”
Jake’s eyes widened. “Not what I think? How the fuck could I possibly misinterpret the situation? I caught you with your fucking pants around your fucking ankles screwing my…” He winced in agony. “My baby sister.”
“I’m sorry, Jake. I never meant for you to find out this way,” I said, as I slid off the table and straightened my dress. With extreme mortification, I reached to grab my discarded panties off the floor. I didn’t dare try to slide them back on—instead, I eased them into the pocket on my dress.
Jake pinched his eyes shut at my actions. Then in a strangled voice he said, “Don’t talk to me right now. I can’t even bear to hear your voice right now after seeing you being used like a…whore.”
I sucked in a pained breath at his harsh words. Rhys took a step toward Jake. “What the fuck? Don’t you talk that way about Allison.”
“And don’t you tell me how to talk to my sister!” Jake bellowed.
“You know what, fuck you, if you’re going to act like a moron,” Rhys retorted.
Out of nowhere, Jake lunged for Rhys, causing me to scream. The crack of Jake’s fist along Rhys’s jaw echoed through the room, and I covered my ears to try to block out the noise. Rhys staggered back momentarily. He winced as his hand came up to rub his jaw. “Jake, I don’t want to fight you. Please, let’s just talk about this,” Rhys said diplomatically.
“The time to talk is over, you motherfucking cradle robber. You should’ve had the fucking decency to talk to me before about this, but no, you had to be a coward and sneak around, screwing my sister behind my back.”
“I’m sorry. I truly am. But kicking each other’s asses isn’t going to make a difference.”
Jake narrowed his blue eyes. “No, but I’m pretty damn sure that leaving you broken and bloody will make me feel a fucking lot better!” And then he launched one punch to Rhys’s gut and then another to his chin. This time Rhys didn’t refuse to fight, and he threw two punches back at Jake, nailing him in the face and chest.
With a frustrated growl, Jake started pummeling Rhys’s face and chest. “No, Jake! Stop!” I cried. Grabbing onto his back, I tried pulling Jake away from Rhys. But with his adrenaline pumping, Jake slung me off with such a force I slammed back into the wall and collapsed onto the floor.
“You hurt her!” Rhys bellowed.
I shook my head as I tried catching my breath. “Didn’t…mean…to,” I tried arguing, but Rhys wouldn’t listen. He charged at Jake, sending them both careening back. When Jake’s legs hit the edge of the table, he went over, taking Rhys with him in a tangle of arms of legs. The table cracked under the combined weight of both men and then splintered into pieces. Jake and Rhys were momentarily disengaged as they crashed to the floor, but then they started punching and kicking again on the floor amid the rubble of the table.
The dressing room door banged open, almost flying off its hinges. AJ and Brayden stood wide-eyed and open-mouthed at the scene before them. “Please! Stop them!” I begged.
In one fluid moment, they rushed forward. “Stop it, guys!” AJ bellowed, as he reached out to try and grab Rhys off Jake. All he managed to do was be elbowed in the gut by Rhys. “Motherfucker!” AJ shouted, his face crumpled in pain.
After surveying the scuffling, Brayden stalked over to the dressing room table, reached in a drawer, rifled through its contents, and then proceeded to take out a small, locked box. As he worked the combination, I couldn’t imagine what might be inside—Mace or a Taser maybe? The truth was crazier than what I had imagined. My eyes widened in horror as he raised a sleek, silver pistol into the air. He fired once, causing me to scream and jump out of my skin.
Thankfully, the pistol fire was enough to stop the fighting. Rhys rolled off Jake onto his back. “Nice work with the gun,” AJ mused, as he rubbed his stomach.
“Yeah, the last thing I was about to do was risk breaking my playing hand on these fighting fuckers.”
AJ snorted. “Tell me about it. I think Rhys broke one of my ribs.”
“Pussy,” Rhys muttered, which caused AJ to playfully kick Rhys’s ass with his foot.
At that moment, two arena security guards along with two Runaway Train bodyguards burst through the doorway. They glanced around, surmising the situation. “Everything okay in here?” one of the security guards asked, his brows cocked questioningly.
Waving the pistol, Brayden replied, “It’s fine. I had to use this to get my bandmates attention. We have a permit for the gun, officers. It’s carried around in a locked box with our makeup supplies in case things get dicey, and our bodyguards can’t get to us.”
The bodyguards nodded their heads in agreement with Brayden’s explanation. “No problem. Just wanted to check,” the security guard replied. The four of them then left us alone.
Crossing his arms over his chest, Brayden asked, “Now you want to tell us what the hell you guys were fighting about?”
Rhys coughed before spitting a stream of blood onto the carpet. “It’s none of your fucking business.”
AJ’s dark eyes narrowed. “Excuse me? We come in to find our two bandmates, our brothers, in a brawl on the floor, and it’s none of our fucking business?”
“He’s no brother of mine,” Jake snapped. With a grunt, he pulled himself into a sitting position. “You should’ve let me kill him for what he was doing.”
AJ and Brayden exchanged a glance. “What do you mean?” AJ asked.
“I came in here to find him disrespecting my little sister like she was some groupie whore.”
I gasped while tears stung my eyes at his hurtful declaration. “It was not like that,” Rhys protested.
“You were fucking her in our dressing room up against the makeup mirror!”
I shook my head. “Jake, please, just let us explain. I promise it’s about more than sex.”
Jake snapped his gaze over to me. “There’s nothing to explain. You’re packing your bags, and you’re on the next flight out of here.”
My mouth gaped open in shock. “Excuse me?”
“I will not stand by and let you be used by him.”
“He’s not using me, I swear.”
“Yeah right,” Jake snapped.
The thought of being sent away from Rhys was almost too much to bear. Stepping forward, I grabbed Jake’s arm. “Don’t you see? I love him!” I blurted, my body beginning to shake from the sobs rolling through me.
Shock and disbelief sliced itself through the room, momentarily cutting off Jake’s argument. AJ and Brayden exchanged a look before cutting their gaze over to Jake. As if they expected my outburst to set him off again, they angled themselves protectively in front of Rhys. Brayden’s hand remained curled around the pistol in his hand.
Jake didn’t move. He didn’t charge for Rhys or act like he wanted to strangle him. He barely blinked as he stared at me.
Through my tears, I watched as Rhys took a tentative step forward. “And I love her with all my heart,” he said, in a strangled voice.
My hiccupped cry turned in a laugh. “You’re so stupid, Jake. Don’t you realize I’ve loved him since I was thirteen years old?”
Jake’s dark eyes widened in shock as he stared at me. AJ and Brayden once again stepped up to form a protective arc around Rhys. When Jake’s glare turned icy, they should have been standing in front of me. After a few seconds of silence, he finally spoke.
“You know what? I call bullshit. You’re just a twenty-year-old kid—you don’t know anything about love,” he snarled.
My tears dried up with my anger at Jake dismissing my feelings. “How dare you stand there and try to tell me what I feel! I know what love is. And I love him!” I said pointing at Rhys. “No matter what you do, you can’t stop the way I feel about him.”
Before Jake could say anything else, Rhys broke past AJ and Brayden to stand by me. Widening my eyes, I stared at him with disbelief as he took my hand in his. After bringing it to his mouth and tenderly kissing it, he said, “You can’t deny us being together. Someday I plan on marrying her.”
Wheezing out the breath I’d been holding, I struggled to keep my emotions in check at hearing Rhys voice his intense feelings for me in front of everyone.
Cocking his brows, Jake skeptically questioned, “You really do?”
Rhys smiled and squeezed my hand. “Yeah, I really do.”
Just when I thought I couldn’t get any happier, Jake crushed me. “Yeah, well, fuck that. Allison, you’re still out of here on the next plane.”
“But I don’t want to go.”
Jake held up a hand to silence me before closing his eyes in pain. “Don’t you get it? Even when it’s all said and done, I can barely look at you right now. Seeing you like that with him…” His eyes popped open, and he shook his head. “You broke my heart.”
“I’m sorry, Jake. I’m so sorry you feel that way, but as much as you want to, you can’t send me away. I’m a grown woman, and I can make my own decisions.”
“Then how’s this? You’re fired as our nanny and from the internship,” he seethed.
I hated myself for showing weakness when tears filled my eyes at his venomous words. “You don’t mean that,” I protested feebly.
“No, he doesn’t,” a voice came from the doorway. I swiveled around to see Abby standing with Eli and Gabe. With her arms crossed over her chest, she gave Jake a glare that could curl paint off the wall.
“This is not your concern,” he snapped.
She cocked her head at him. “Excuse me? While I may not be able to call the shots when it comes to Runaway Train, I sure as hell get to make the choice of who takes care of my children.”
“Abby—” Jake growled, his jaw clenching and unclenching.
Stalking across the room, she threw a hand up in front of his face. “Oh, hell no. This is not how you are going to handle this situation. I’m going to give you time to cool off and get your wits about you, and then you and Allison or you and Rhys are going to sit down and talk about this like a civilized human being would. I will not allow you to kick your baby sister—a sister you love and adore more than life itself—to the curb just because of something you’re not happy about.” As Jake’s chest rose and fell in angry pants, Abby shocked me by reaching up to cup his cheeks in her hand. “Just for a minute, I want you to think about how my brothers could have reacted to us. I was only a year older than Allison when we got together.”
“Your brothers were not my bandmates. We didn’t have a fucking bond and code that went back for years,” Jake hissed, cutting his eyes to Rhys.
Rhys exhaled an agonized sigh. “I’m sorry, man. I really am. I never meant to do anything to hurt you or our friendship,” Rhys said. He glanced over at me. “I never expected to fall in love with Allison, and when I did, I tried everything I could not to give in to my feelings.” Rhys’s expression turned apologetic. “In the process of trying to deny what I felt, I hurt Allison pretty badly. At the end of the day, her happiness—our happiness—mattered more than what you would think or do.”
“Yeah, well, how fucking long have you been lying to me?” Jake demanded.
Narrowing his eyes, Rhys replied, “Trust me, I’ve been lying to myself for much longer. If I was to be truthful, I think I first fell for Allison the night of her Sweet Sixteen when she asked me to kiss her.”
Jake’s mouth flopped open and close like a fish out of water gasping for air. Then he jerked his hands through his hair. “Since she was sixteen?”
“Well, not exactly—” Rhys started, but then Jake lunged at him. Brayden and AJ barreled forward and kept Jake from trying to hit Rhys again.
“Enough!” Abby shrieked. She then took Jake by the bicep and started dragging him from the room.
“Don’t shuffle me out of her like some punk-ass kid!” Jake growled.
“Then stop acting like one!” Abby countered.
Jake glared at her for a moment before his expression softened. “Babe, the only reason I’m letting you treat me this way is because I love you more than life itself.”
Abby sighed. “I know you do. But I’m just trying not to let you something you’ll regret.” When they got to the doorway, she glanced at us over her shoulder. “When he’s ready to act human again, I’ll come for you.” Then the door slammed behind her.
“Motherfucking hell,” Rhys muttered, before he sank down on the couch. He buried his head in his hands. I eased down beside him, rubbing his back in wide circles. When I glanced up, AJ and Brayden were staring curiously at us.
“Are you angry at us, too?” I asked. My question caused Rhys to jerk his head up and gaze at his bandmates.
“You really care about what we think?” Brayden asked.
“Of course, I do. You two are like brothers to me, too,” I replied.
He gave me a genuine smile. “I’m very happy for you both.”
“Really?” Rhys asked, his voice vibrating with doubt.
Brayden nodded. “But I can’t say that I condone all the secrecy and sneaking around, and I sure as hell think that you guys could have let Jake know in a better way.”
While Rhys chuckled at Brayden’s comment, my face burned with mortification. It was bad enough that Jake had caught us having sex, but now Brayden and AJ knew as well. I glanced from Brayden to AJ. “What about you?”
AJ eyed us for a few seconds and then pursed his lips. “I gotta agree with Brayden that you two really know how to fuck things up. But at the same time, I didn’t ever think I’d hear Rhys say he loved a girl.” AJ grinned. “It did my heart good to hear it. So, I think the two of you as a couple is fucking awesome.”
I exchanged a look with Rhys who smiled at me. “Thanks, man. That means the world to me to hear you say that.”
“I mean, you couldn’t have picked a better girl. Besides all of her wonderful attributes of being beautiful, sweet, and talented, Allison is already loved by all the Runaway Train women, and you know how important that is,” AJ said.
Brayden bobbed his head in agreement. “At the same time, she’s already loved by all the Runaway Train men, too.”
Tears blurred my vision at his sweet words. “Thank you, Bray. That means a lot to me.”
With a wink, Brayden then turned his gaze on Rhys. He wagged his finger at him. “But just know, if you hurt her, you’re going to be dealing with me.”
“And me,” AJ chimed in.
Rhys held up his hands defensively. “Trust me, I know that. But I also know that I’d walk through fire before I’d ever hurt Allison again.”
My heart beat wildly at his response, and I couldn’t resist leaning over and kissing him. When I pulled away, Rhys exhaled a breath in a long whoosh. “Now if we can just get Jake to be okay with us.”
AJ waved his hand dismissively. “You know Jake. He’s always got to go ape-shit and show his ass. But he always comes around.”
Rhys shook his head. “I dunno. Considering the way he feels about Allison, he might hold a pretty long fucking grudge.”
It was at that moment that Abby appeared in the doorway. She crooked her finger at me. I shot off the couch and went sprinting toward her. “Jake thinks he can talk to you now.”
“Okay.” Nervously, I glanced over my shoulder at Rhys. Part of me didn’t want to have to face Jake alone, although I was pretty sure that seeing Rhys would only set him off again.
As we started down the hallway to one of the other dressing rooms, Abby took my hand in hers. “While Jake has promised me he won’t do it, should he start that macho asshole bullshit, you just get up and walk away. You don’t have to listen to that.”
“Um, okay,” I repeated. This was all new territory for me. Up until the last thirty minutes, Jake had never spoken to me so harshly.
Abby smiled. “What I mean is, if he starts in on you like before, don’t take the abuse. Although he’s come a long way in handling his emotions, Jake still doesn’t know how to navigate a situation by thinking things through first, rather than reacting. Make him see that you will not listen to anything else hurtful—he’s said far too much today as it is. If he can’t talk to you tenderly and with brotherly love like he always has, then you won’t listen to him.”
I nodded. “I think that sounds like a good plan.”
When we got to a closed door, Abby pulled me into her arms. Into my ear, she whispered, “He loves you so much, Allison.”
I sniffled, fighting the urge to cry again. “I know he does.”
She patted my back. “Stay strong and stand your ground.”
Bobbing my head in agreement, I then pushed open the door. I knew Jake was expecting me, so there was no need in knocking. Glancing around the room, I saw Jake sitting on the couch with his head in his hands.
“Jake,” I murmured softly.
After jerking his head up, I could see he was still so visibly angry. “Sit,” he ordered, through clenched teeth. At my hesitation, his expression softened slightly. “Please.”
On somewhat shaky legs, I stepped forward and eased down in the chair across from him. He stared down at his hands, taking several long breaths before he spoke. It appeared he was still having trouble keeping his emotions in check, and I’m sure he was trying to weigh his words carefully. But of all the things going through his mind, I never imagined what he finally said.
“I hated you when you were born.”
I gasped at the harshness of the words. He glanced up and gave me a remorseful smile. “I couldn’t help it. In my eyes, you were the reason my parents got divorced. I mean, my mom and dad were trying to work things out after the affair, but then when your mother found out she was pregnant, everything changed. In just a few months, Dad moved out and into a house in Atlanta.” Jake drew in a ragged breath, his hands twisting over and over in his lap. “Being a punk ten-year-old kid, I wouldn’t acknowledge your existence. After you were born, I refused to visit my dad. I didn’t want to be under the same roof as you—the living, breathing symbol of why my mom cried all the time and my life had been turned upside down.”
Tears stung my eyes. Never in my life had I ever doubted Jake’s love. And now here he was acknowledging that he had once hated me. Part of me could understand—I mean, I probably would have felt the same way toward someone who had caused my parents’ divorce. But at the same time, Jake was the big brother I idolized, and I could never, ever accept he had once felt that way about me.
“What changed your mind?” I finally croaked.
“One day my mother sat me down. She told me that regardless of how I felt about my dad and Nancy, you were an innocent in what had happened, and you didn’t deserve my hate. She had never wanted me to be an only child, but she’d barely been able to have me, least of all give me a sibling. She explained that you would need a loving big brother, and that I could benefit from the pure, unselfish love of a little sister.”
Although I never got to know Susan that well, there wasn’t another woman around with such a loving, giving heart. While she had every reason to hate me, Susan had been worried about me enough to try to bridge the gap between her son and me.
“So I finally agreed to visit Dad for the weekend. Mom bought an outfit and some toys for me to give to you.” He shook his head with a wry smile. “The whole drive to Atlanta, while I sat with that damn package on my lap, I fantasized the whole time about rolling the window down and chucking it out onto the interstate.”
A nervous giggle escaped my lips at both his sentiment and the expression on his face. “After Mom dropped me off, Dad and Nancy gave me my space. They didn’t force you on me to start with. Finally after roaming around the house and playing basketball with AJ, curiosity finally got the best of me. I found you in the living room. You were in this frilly bassinet thingy. When I walked over to you, I had a thousand horrible thoughts running through my mind about what harm I’d like to do to you.” At my horrified gasp, Jake grimaced. “I said I was a punk kid, didn’t I?”
“Yes. But it’s just terribly hard for me to imagine that you would ever think such horrible things.”
“Ah, that’s the unfailing love you have for your big brother speaking. I was a real bastard then.”
“What changed your mind about me?”
With a ragged sigh, Jake jerked a hand through his hair. “You.”
I furrowed my brows in confusion. “Me?”
“It all changed the moment I bent over the bassinet to look at you. Even though I probably stared down at you with such hate on my face, do you know what you did?”
“What?” I questioned softly.
Tears shimmered in Jake’s dark eyes. “You smiled at me.”
Witnessing Jake’s emotions caused tears to sting my eyes as well. “I did?”
He bobbed his head before dragging his sleeve across his face. “And then just like that—” he paused to snap his fingers, “any hate or anger I had toward you evaporated. The longer I stood there, the longer you kept smiling and cooing like I was the best thing you had ever lay eyes on. Nancy came in the room and asked me if I wanted to hold you. Never would I have imagined saying yes, but I did—I wanted to feel you in my arms, snuggle you against my chest.” With tears streaming down his face, Jake smiled. “And from that day on, I’ve loved you with all my heart, Allie-bean.”
I hiccupped a sob at his words. Fumbling out of the chair, I couldn’t seem to get to him fast enough. When I threw my arms around his neck, Jake pulled me down beside him on the couch. “Oh Jake, I love you so much,” I murmured, as I hugged him tight.
“I know, baby girl. I know. I love you just as much.”
Relief flooded me when Jake’s arms came around me. They felt safe and comforting just like they always did. I hoped that meant that he had forgiven me for what he had witnessed earlier. Pulling away, I stared up into his handsome face. “Nothing will ever change my love for you or how much I need you as a big brother. Not even my feelings for Rhys.”
Jake’s expression darkened at the mention of Rhys. “I just can’t believe he betrayed me by going behind my back with you.”
Shaking my head, I replied, “He didn’t betray you. It takes two, and I’m just as guilty as he is.”
“Allison, you’re just a kid, but Rhys is a man. He knows better. Just the thought that he seduced you for his own selfish, bullshit reasons makes me want to throttle him again.”
“He didn’t seduce me.” When Jake started to protest, I held up my hand. “Didn’t you hear me say that I’ve been in love with Rhys since I was thirteen years old? Trust me, no one wanted this more or consented more than I did.”
Jake’s brows creased with confusion. “What are you saying?”
“There’s never been and never will be any man in the world for me but Rhys.”
“But how?” Jake croaked.
I laughed. “Are you asking me to explain why I love him? Because I don’t necessarily think I can. Just like I’m sure it would be hard for you to explain why you fell in love with Abby despite your differences and the fact the world was against you guys.”
Jake winced as if he knew what I was saying was true but hated to admit it. “I promise you that Rhys never set out to seduce me into his bed and make me one of his conquests. More than anything, he fought against what he felt for me because he didn’t want me to get hurt. But Jake most of all, he didn’t want to jeopardize your friendship.”
“Really?” Jake asked, his brows rising in surprise.
“Yes. Runaway Train is the only true family he has, and he didn’t want to do anything to risk it, even if it meant throwing away his own happiness and mine to keep the peace.”
Running his hand through his hair, Jake gave a ragged sigh. “I had no idea.”
“No, you’ve been too much of a stubborn ass to see anything past your own feelings,” I replied.
Jake’s eyes momentarily bulged. “Hey now.”
Cocking my head at him, I gave him a tentative smile. “It’s the truth on some level, and you know it.”
With a sheepish expression, Jake said, “Yeah, I guess it is. You know me too well, Allie-Bean.” He then glanced down at his hands and sighed raggedly. “Hell, I knew Rhys’s home life was fucked up, but I had no idea how strongly he needed the band. Not only do I feel terrible about hitting him, but I feel like a huge ass for all of the horrible things I said to him. The truth is he’s never been like me in the way he treated women. I shouldn’t have called him out for behavior that wasn’t really his. It’s just hard to think any man would ever be fucking good enough for my baby sister, Allie-Bean.”
“All you have to do to make it right is apologize.” When Jake gave a frustrated grunt, I brought my hand to his cheek. “Rhys isn’t the type of guy to hold a grudge. The most important thing in his life is harmony between those he loves. You can make things right because you love him and because you love me.”
Jake brought his gaze to mine. “Fine. I’ll fucking apologize, okay?” he growled.
“Can you work on your tone a little before you try?” I teasingly asked. He plastered on a hideous fake smile. “Well, that is truly frightening.”
He chuckled. “You’re really busting my balls, kiddo.”
I grinned. “Just go easy on Rhys, okay?”
Jake nodded. “For you, I will.”
“Don’t just do it for me. Do it because of your love for him. He’s your family.”
Rolling his eyes, Jake gripped my waist and then set me on my feet. “Fine, fine. I’ll get all mushy and sentimental and do it for our—” he paused to make air quotes, “bromance. How’s that?”
“Very good.”
Motioning to the door, he said, “Go send him in.”
Although I felt like everything was good between us, I was still a little scared to have Jake talk with Rhys. “Alone?”
“Yesss,” Jake hissed, as if he couldn’t believe I doubted his ability to be civil.
“Okay, okay,” I replied, heading for the door. Peeking my head out into the hallway, I saw Rhys pacing back and forth. It warmed my heart to see that he had stayed relatively close in case things went bad. “Rhys?” I called.
His head snapped up, and he whirled around to stare expectantly at me. “Is everything okay?”
“It’s fine. Jake’s ready to talk to you now.”
Rhys’s brows shot up. “Really?”
I nodded as he exhaled his breath in one long whoosh. As he strode up to me, he gave a shaky smile. His being nervous would have been quite comical if I hadn’t been so apprehensive myself. “So should I be worried about more bodily harm?”
With a laugh, I replied, “No, I think you’re okay.”
“And we’re okay?”
“We’re great.”
He leaned in and gave me a tender kiss. “I’m glad to hear that.”
I was almost too overwhelmed with emotions to respond. I felt like pinching myself to make sure this was really happening. It felt too good to be true. With a gentle nudge, I pointed Rhys in the direction of the doorway. “Go on, face the music, and get it over with.”
“Yes, ma’am,” he replied, before giving me a mock salute.
After he disappeared inside the room and shut the door behind him, I couldn’t help saying a prayer that everything would finally be right between us—and that meant all of us.