Battlescars: A Rock & Roll Romance Read online

  “I love you. I just wanted to protect you. That’s what husbands do.”

  “You’re not my husband yet and if you keep acting like this you won’t be.”

  He gently bit his way along my shoulder blade. I was melting into a puddle.

  “Come on baby, let’s go home.” He whispered, running his nose along my ear.

  “Fine.” I threw my hands up in the air in exasperation.

  He mumbled something like ‘that was easier than I thought’ and climbed back on the bike. I got into the car and followed him home since I had no clue where I was. I was actually kind of glad he found me. I probably would have ended up in Mexico trying to get back. I pulled in through the gate and parked in the garage. The house smelled like burned food. The ziti! I ran into the kitchen and pulled our blackened dinner out of the oven.

  “Cereal it is.” He smirked pulling a box of Lucky Charms from the cabinet.

  He pulled out two bowls and poured the cereal and milk. He handed me a spoon, and I ate. The marshmallow goodness reminded me of being a little kid. I felt my mood lighten slightly. After dinner, Jake pulled out a guitar and took my hand. He led me out to the patio and started a small fire in the fire pit. He started singing Rod Stewart’s ‘Reason to Believe.’ I laughed remembering the conversation we had in Virginia after he was scrolling through my iPod.

  “You like Rod Stewart?” Jake looked at me like I was crazy.

  “Sure, what’s not to like? My mom always listened to him while I was growing up. It reminds me of happy times.” I confessed.

  “It just seems weird to go from bands like Battlescars and Three Days Grace to Rod Stewart and James Taylor.”

  “What can I say, I have eclectic taste.” I teased grabbing my iPod back.

  He sinfully crooned out the lyrics. It was weird how much I liked them better live than on their records. I asked him once why he never played an instrument on stage. He said he didn’t think he was good enough. He also liked to have the freedom to move across the stage and playing made that more difficult. He broke into another song. I watched him skillfully move his fingers along the guitar neck. I decided he was forgiven. Especially, after he broke out the supplies to make s’mores.

  The next day he was on the phone arguing with the record label. It turns out that they added one last stop on the tour, which ended here in LA. They were thrown onto another large venue with Blood to Bleed, and Jake didn’t want to play with Ian again. He was furious. I knew they didn’t like each other, but his reaction seemed a little over the top. It had something to do with when Jake was starting out. Ian screwed him over and tried to set Jake up for failure. It obviously didn’t work since they sold out every show and were pretty much a staple for any rock and roll fan. I didn’t care for Ian either, but it was mostly because he was an arrogant asshole. Jake threw his phone against the wall. It fell to the ground with a crash.

  “Sorry.” He said pulling me into a hug.

  “What the hell was that about?” I inquired.

  “Just the stupid shit that they always pull. Every fucking time!”

  He needed to calm down. I pushed him up against the wall he just threw his phone at and dropped to my knees. I undid his zipper and went to town. I took as much of him as I could in my mouth while he was running his hands through my hair. When he was finished, I stood and smirked at him. He grabbed me by the waist and spun me, so I was standing where he just was.

  “How about that Australian kiss?” He grinned.

  He pushed me against the wall and hitched my leg over his shoulder. He moved my panties to the side and dropped his face between my legs. He bit, licked and swirled until I was writhing. He moved so that I slid down onto him. Fuck his happy place, I was in paradise. He continued to thrust into me until I cried out again. My legs felt like jelly, and I was completely spent.

  “I should get angry more often.” He smirked. I playfully smacked his chest.

  The next day we got up and headed straight out. We were going to do some volunteer work at a local soup kitchen that Jake helped out at when he was home. We climbed into his truck and headed downtown. I watched as the ocean view disappeared and the city came into view. We pulled into what would be considered a ‘shady section’ of town. We walked through a back door and into a kitchen. Jake grabbed two aprons from a hook and handed me one. He took my hand and led me further in. The place looked like any other commercial kitchen that I’ve seen. There were people all over preparing food, while others getting them into serving dishes.

  “Rosie!” Jake called.

  “I’m over here you knuckle head.” She yelled.

  I noticed a woman who looked to be in her mid-sixties. She was short and stout with curly, gray hair and glasses. She came over and embraced Jake happily. I was going to have to tease him about having a thing for older women later. First Mama Bee, and now Rosie.

  “How you doing, baby boy?”

  “I’m doing great, Rosie. How’s everything been around here since I’ve been gone?”

  “We’re hanging in there. Thanks to you.”

  Jake blushed.

  “It was nothing Rosie. I told you that already.” He rubbed his hand across the back of his neck uncomfortably.

  “I hardly call one hundred-thousand dollars, nothing.” She pressed.

  “Can we stop talking about this? It makes me uncomfortable.”

  “Sure thing, sweetie. Is this Aubrey?” She turned her attention to me. Jake nodded.

  “It’s nice to meet you, Rosie.” I offered her my hand.

  “Pleasure to meet you, Aubrey. You make sure he stays in line, ya hear?” I giggled. “Now go get to work.”

  “Yes, ma’am.” Jake said.

  He led me out to where the food was being served. There was a line out the door already. Jake greeted each person that came through the door with a smile. He even took pictures and signed some shirts. He was a completely different Jake here. He was humble, but I already knew that Jake had a soft side. I’ve seen it first hand when he helped me through my panic attacks. We helped serve and wash dishes for most of the morning into the afternoon. At two o’clock Jake told Rosie we had to leave because he had a visit scheduled at a local children’s hospital across town. We hung up our aprons and said our goodbyes.

  It was a shame that none of his good deeds ever made the news.

  A little while later we pulled up to a state of the art hospital. Jake parked out front and came to open my door with a grin on his face. I could tell that he was excited to bring me here. We walked through the revolving door into a brightly colored reception area. There were murals painted by some of the patients lining the walls. Jake signed us in and led me down a hallway to where the recreation room was. The kids were already in there waiting for him to arrive. As soon as he walked in the room they got so excited to see him. I looked around at their smiling faces. I couldn’t help but feel a little sad since they were all here for a reason, they were sick. Jack squeezed my hand reassuringly as we made our way further into the room. A little girl ran over to him and hugged his leg.

  “Princess Penelope.” He cooed.

  He dropped to his knees so that he was eye level with her and pulled her into a hug. She was so frail and tiny. I don’t think that she could have been older than four. She had a pink bandana around her head. My heart broke. She was so little to be going through what I could only imagine was some form of cancer or other childhood illness. She had the most adorable round face and large, green eyes.

  “Jakey!” She wrapped her arms around his neck.

  He stood up with her and kissed her cheek.

  “Aubrey, I’d like you to meet Princess Penelope.”

  I did a curtsey, and she giggled. Her laugh was magical.

  “It’s very nice to meet you Princess Penelope.”

  “Aubrey’s going to be my Queen soon.” Jake told her. “We’re going to get married.”

  “Can I come?” She squeaked.

  “If the doctors and yo
ur mommy and daddy say it’s okay, then you can absolutely come.” He kissed her cheek again and placed her down.

  She clapped her hands excitedly and ran over to who I assumed was her mom. She looked over at Jake with tears in her eyes and mouthed thank you.

  He walked up to a little boy with brown hair and freckles next.

  “Hey, Daniel. How’s my buddy doing?”

  “Good.” He said shyly.

  “Have you been playing the Wii lately.”

  “Yeah, and Rock Band. I want to be just like you when I grow up.” He grinned.

  “Keep practicing, and you will be.” He patted the little boys head.

  We went over to the TV where Jake played Rock Band with Daniel. After they were done we had a tea party with Penelope. Jake said he needed to make a couple more stops before we left because some of the kids were too sick to come down to the recreation room. He was so kind and patient with all of them. He made each one of them seem like they were the most special person in the world. Seeing him like this eased my fears of possibly being pregnant. He was going to make a great dad someday, and I was lucky he was going to be my husband. On the way home, I complimented him on all his philanthropic work. He shrugged and said it was nothing.

  “When I was a kid before my mom died, I would have starved if it weren’t for soup kitchens. They help a lot of people. The kids are special though. They just deserve a chance to be kids, I love going there and seeing them smile. I like thinking that maybe, just maybe I had something to do with it. Penelope is my little doll baby, I freaking love that kid!”

  “It’s noble Jake. You shouldn’t be embarrassed about it, you should be proud.”

  “Alright, enough talking about me. It’ll go to my head.” He teased.

  He quickly changed the subject to food and demanded that we stop at In-N-Out burger on the way home. I agreed and had my first In-N-Out experience. Yes, they are all they’re cracked up to be, and more…

  We spent the rest of our time in LA relaxing and hanging around the beach. We didn’t have any more fights either. We were both sad tonight was our last night here before heading back on tour to finish up the West Coast shows. I was going to miss our little bubble. I made us shrimp scampi for dinner, and we ate on his patio by the ocean.

  Everything was perfect… Almost too perfect.

  CHAPTER TEN

  Love Drunk

  Tonight we were in Omaha. I was laughing at Jake spraying his newly dyed Mohawk. Since I decided it was time to dye my hair he demanded that I add some pink tips to his, so we could match. I laughed because I thought he was kidding, he wasn’t. So in front of me stood my bad-ass rock star with pink tips in his black Mohawk.

  “What do you think?” He asked.

  “It suits you.” I teased.

  “I thought so.” He grinned and leaned down to kiss me.

  We walked into the hallway and Brett broke into a fit of laughter. Jake slapped his shoulder. We went to the guys’ room at the end of the hall. I was looking forward to their reaction the most. Jake knocked on the door. Kevin opened the door with wide eyes but didn’t say anything. Blake and Derek were sitting on the couch. When they looked over at us, Blake was instantly on the ground clutching his stomach with uncontrollable laughter.

  “Oh my God, what did you do?” Derek laughed.

  “Is it that bad?” Jake looked at me.

  I smiled and shook my head no.

  “Do I need to start buying you tampons?” Blake asked, picking himself off the ground.

  “Shut the fuck up, asshole.” Jake tossed a pillow at him.

  They kept laughing as we made our way down the hallway. Jake grabbed my hand and pulled me into the elevator. He pushed me up against the wall and kissed me. The boys whistled behind us. He pulled away and smirked. I patted his back reassuringly. We made it to the venue in plenty of time. He sang Adele’s ‘One and Only’ during sound check. We hung around and they teased Jake relentlessly until it was time for them to go on. I gave him his preshow kiss and shoved him onto the stage. It was the first time that he was performing since the news of our engagement broke. Blake stepped up to his mic.

  “What do you think of this tool’s new hairdo?” He yelled.

  The crowd cheered in response.

  “Sorry ladies, it looks like Jake Parker is officially off the market. I, on the other hand, am still, without a doubt single.”

  Some guy in the front told him to shut up. Blake flung a guitar pick at him and hit him right between the eyes.

  “See, I have great aim, just ask your girlfriend.” Blake winked at the girl standing next to him who turned all love struck.

  I chuckled.

  Derek started drumming, and the place went wild. The lights started going, and Jake screamed into the mic.

  “Omaha, let’s do this!”

  He jumped and moved lithely around the stage. I loved watching him perform and was actually going to miss it when the tour ended. Earlier we had been discussing where we wanted to live after we got married. We mutually decided that we would split our time between LA and Ohio. He wanted to buy some property and build a house near my parents. He figured that we would probably end up being there full time if we had kids. He said he would still need to come to LA to record so we would keep his place for getaways.

  I still couldn’t believe we were planning a freaking wedding. I didn’t want anything crazy, or even big. My mom was having a hard time with the fact that I wanted to get married in a black dress, but I told her white just wasn’t my color. We were looking to do it pretty soon after the tour ended. Only a little over a month away! At first it seemed like it was really fast, but Jake pointed out that we were meant to be together. Neither of us saw the sense in dragging out the inevitable. He finished out the set and tossed his sweaty towel out to some girl that would most likely sleep with it on her pillow. He walked off the stage and picked me up. I wrapped my legs around his waist and kissed him. Sweaty Jake was something I’d grown to love.

  “That was a great show!” I praised.

  “Thanks baby.”

  They had a meet and greet scheduled backstage for some contest winners and then they had an interview set up with a local radio station. I walked with him back to the room filled with adoring fans. He took a couple pictures and signed CD’s and t-shirts. When the room cleared out, they assembled on a ratty couch and got ready for their interview. I stood back with Brett. Jake wanted me with him, but I told him this was about him and the band.

  “Hey guys. I’m Ryan from WRU.” A tall, thin guy with dark hair and tattoos came over and introduced himself to the band.

  “Jake, Derek, Kevin, and I’m Blake.”

  “I know who you all are.” He laughed. “I have some questions for you guys if you want to get started.” He took a seat and reached into his bag. He pulled out a notebook and set up a recorder.

  “Question one comes from Terry. Are you guys currently working on a new album?”

  “We’re not currently in the studio, but Jake has some pretty fresh stuff that we’ve been working with. Hopefully we will be able to get into the studio after the tour is over.” Kevin answered.

  “Next, you guys had to reschedule quite a few tour dates due to personal reasons. Care to elaborate?”

  “My fiancée was in an accident and needed time to recover. It wouldn’t have been fair to the fans for me to perform under those circumstances. I definitely wouldn’t have been at my best. As much as I’m married to the music for better or worse, Aubrey is my top priority.” Jake said.

  “Glad to see she’s better.” Ryan said looking at me. Jake growled. “Alright here’s the doozy. Word just broke that you guys will be one of the headlining acts at this year’s Radioactive Tour alongside Blood to Bleed. The industry is no stranger to the longstanding feud between Jake and Ian. It’s also rumored that Blood to Bleed just acquired a new bassist that could rival Blake. Any comment?”

  “Ian’s a shit stain. My skill is unparalleled. Ye
s, I know that’s conceited, but it’s the truth.” Blake said smugly.

  “Ian reminds me of something a cow would shit out.” Derek chimed.

  “Listen, I don’t want to go around kicking a dead horse here. Yes, Ian Voss and I don’t get along. He tried to sabotage my career from the beginning and failed. Yet he refuses to give up. Battlescars has its own following of fucking kick-ass fans. We’ll go to Radioactive, we’ll kick ass. Then I plan on getting married and getting into the studio. The end. Ian has no place in my life other than acting like a flea.”

  “Are wedding plans in the works?”

  “Nice try. They are, but I won’t be disclosing anything until after it takes place. It will be a low key event, just family and close friends.”

  “Thanks for your time tonight guys. I really appreciate it and good luck Jake. She’s a knock out.”

  “Look at her like that again and I’ll knock you out.” He smirked.

  He walked over to me and put his arm around my shoulder.

  “Let’s go.” He led me over toward the door.

  We climbed into the waiting car and headed back to the hotel.

  Jake

  We got back to the hotel and as much as I wanted to get wrapped up in the sheets with Aubrey something about the interview was bothering me. I told her I wanted to talk to the guys about something and that I would be back in a bit. She smiled and went to go take a bath. Brett and I headed to their room. I knocked and walked in. It was a pretty low-key night for them. At least there weren’t any groupies philandering around. I told them that I needed to talk to them. We raided the mini bar for some beer and sat around the living room of their suite.

  “I love you guys like you were my brothers, and I’m going to tell you something in absolute confidence. If one word of this gets breathed outside this room, I will personally fucking kill you, with my bare hands.”

  They looked at me to proceed.

  “Tonight at the interview the guy mentioned something about Blood to Bleed having a new bassist. I looked it up on my phone on the way back, and it’s someone that Aubrey knows. It’s not a good thing either. See, when she was a teenager she dated a bassist, and it’s this guy Jeremy. He has some sort of sick obsession with her. Here’s the thing… almost all of her tattoos are to cover up scars. Scars that he gave her.”