Battlescars: A Rock & Roll Romance Read online

  “I know. It’s pretty crazy.” I couldn’t help but laugh too.

  It really was some sort of kismet that brought us together. We were like two lost souls wandering the world and then bam!

  “So about what you said earlier, that Aubrey’s pregnant. Is it true?”

  “Yeah, we just found out this morning. She’s literally only like five or six weeks along, and it’s twins.”

  I could hear him chuckling on the other end of the phone. Why does everyone think the fact that we’re having twins is so hilarious?

  “Twins, huh? Figures. Either way you guys are going to be rock star parents.”

  “We’re sure as hell going to try. The doctor said if it weren’t for Bella that we would have lost the babies and possibly Aubrey. She saved all of them.”

  “Bet you don’t think that stupid cocoon thing is so stupid anymore, do you?”

  “I’ll need you to go pick up a new one before she gets released.” I teased.

  “I’m on it. I’ll be over there in a little while to check on things. Do you want me to call Vin in the meantime?”

  “No, we’re good. Why don’t you just go home and spend some time with Ri and Kayley? I’ve got things under control here. I’ll see you in the morning.”

  “Call me if you change your mind and I’ll be right there.”

  “Thanks again, Brett.”

  “Anytime Jake, anytime.”

  I disconnected Brett’s call and scrolled through my contacts. I pulled up Tim’s number and hovered my thumb over the send button. It was after one in the morning their time. I thought about waiting until morning, but I put the call off long enough already. It rang quite a few times before he finally answered. I knew I woke him up. I told him everything that happened and that Jeremy was out of the picture, permanently. I explained that Aubrey, the babies and Bella were all going to be fine. He wanted to come out, but I assured him that I had things under control. I told him we would be there in a week anyway. He reluctantly agreed. I promised him that I would keep him up to date on any changes and to go back to bed. It felt like Texas déjà vu all over again. The hospital. Aubrey in bed, at least this time she wasn’t in a coma. I put my head down on the bed and tried to catch some zzz’s.

  Aubrey

  I woke up completely befuddled. I blinked a couple times before the realization of what happened hit me. It came at me head on, like a freight train. I started freaking out. Jake lifted his head and looked at me with wide eyes. He stood up and sat next to me in bed. I was still rattled from last night. Jeremy. Knives. Bella. Gunshots. I was having a difficult time categorizing it all. I quickly remembered the babies and forced myself to relax. I looked at Jake again. He had worry etched all over his handsome face. I reached out my hand that didn’t have IV’s and touched his cheek.

  “He can’t hurt you anymore baby.” He whispered.

  I knew he was telling me that Jeremy was dead. I already knew and a majority of me felt an enormous wave of relief. The other part of me felt guilty for feeling that way because he was still someone’s son. He was obviously very mentally disturbed. I wasn’t excusing his actions by any means because I would wear the scars that he gave me for the rest of my life. I’m sure that karma takes calls in the afterlife as well. My next thought was my puppy.

  “What about Bella?” I asked.

  I was expecting the worse because she was so tiny, and he thrust that knife at me with such force. The conviction in his eyes will probably haunt me for the rest of my life. He wasn’t kidding when he said he wanted to kill me. I felt horrible that Bella had to bear the brunt of the attack, especially because she was completely defenseless. I guess in hindsight it was a good thing since the outcome could have been much graver, but I still wanted her to be okay. She was my first baby.

  “She’s going to be fine. They said that the knife missed all major organs. They expect her to make a full recovery.”

  “Thank goodness.” I breathed a sigh of relief.

  “How do you feel baby?” He eyed me apprehensively.

  “I’m a little sore. I’m feeling confused. But, I’m okay.”

  I tried to sit up some more so I could get comfortable. Jake reached around and helped me. He told me exactly what the cops told him. He said that we needed to meet with the detective to discuss my side of events. I told him just to make the call so we could get it over with. He called Brett first because he wanted him to be here too. After he made the phone calls he lifted up my hospital gown to look at my stitches. I knew exactly what he was feeling. Last night when I felt like I might lose the babies it all became clear. It was meant to be, they were meant to be. Life doesn’t throw you more than you can handle. It likes to test though. Brett came into the room with some bagels and coffee. Just the smell of the coffee turned my stomach. He laughed and quickly ran them out into the hallway.

  “Ri had the same problem when she was pregnant with Kayley.” He smiled.

  He reached into the bag and handed me a bagel with cream cheese. It tasted stupendous. It tasted like the forbidden fruit. I was popping the last bite into my mouth when the police showed up.

  “Ms. Thompson, I’m Detective Johnny Cruz, and this is Officer Ryan Consuelo.” He said as he came into the room.

  They pulled up chairs next to the bed, and the detective pulled out a notebook.

  “Can you tell me what you remember from last night?” He asked softly.

  “We had gone to the doctors earlier and what we thought was kidney stones turned out to be babies. I remember going to take a nap because I was feeling really tired. I hadn’t been able to keep food down for most of the day, so I sent Jake to go get me some. When I woke up I was being carried. At first I thought it was Jake because he’s notorious for tossing me over his shoulder and carrying me around like that.” I looked at him, and he smirked. “Except it wasn’t Jake, it was Jeremy. He somehow managed to bond my hands while I was sleeping. He threw me into the back of a car and drove to the hotel. He dragged me inside, and the dresser was lined with candles and knives. My instincts were to fight, but the last time I was attacked by him the more I fought the more he liked it. I decided to act like a willing participant and see what happened. I remember him asking me, ‘How does it feel knowing you’re going to die tonight?’ The next thing I knew he picked the biggest knife and taunted me with it. As soon as he heard activity outside he stabbed me with it. Brett came into the room right after that, or I’m certain that he would have kept stabbing. Brett used some kind of ninja move on Jeremy knocking him down. He was distracted long enough for Brett to grab me and run back out the door. Then we ended up here.”

  The detective reached into his pocket and produced an evidence envelope.

  “Does this look familiar?” He held it out.

  I felt all of the air rush out of my lungs.

  “That’s her ring.” Jake stammered.

  We both looked down at my hand at the same time and saw that my replacement was still in place. It was him, he was the one that attacked me in Texas! Jake looked absolutely enraged. Brett walked out of the room and came back in a couple seconds later.

  “That fucking asshole!” Jake roared.

  “Jake.” I scolded. “We couldn’t have known that it was him. Relax.”

  “I can’t even let myself think what almost happened in Texas.”

  “That fucking snake!” Brett yelled.

  “What snake?” The detective asked.

  “You should talk to Ian Voss.” Brett scoffed.

  “From Blood to Bleed?” The officer asked.

  “The very same. I’m sure that you’re familiar with the ongoing feud. Well, it’s pretty much one sided, but Ian has had it out for Jake from the beginning. He would know that something like this could potentially ruin him. Think about all the cancelled tour dates they had, plus it threw Jake off his game. He still managed to put on an epic show each time, but his thoughts were always with Aubrey. It was very disconcerting for Jake.”

 
; Holy fuck! I didn’t even think about that.

  “It all makes sense.” Jake said.

  “We’re going to have a talk with him right now. I’m sure he’s in town since you are all set to play that show on Saturday. Thank you for your time, Ms. Thompson.”

  I nodded. They left and closed the door behind them. Jake came over and kissed me.

  “I can’t wait to add a Parker to that name.” He grinned and winked.

  Jake and Brett went and huddled in the corner like a couple hens. They were whispering so that I couldn’t hear them. A nurse came in and checked my vitals. She said she would put in the discharge papers so that we could go home. I wanted to go home and sleep, but not before I got my bacon cheeseburger with extra pickles. Jake kicked Brett out so he could help me get dressed. We signed out, and I got the customary wheel chair ride. I hoped that the next time I had to do one of these would be for a much happier occasion. Jake helped me into Brett’s Escalade.

  I didn’t even need to tell them to stop to get me food. Brett pulled into the first In-N-Out that we passed. I sat happily in the back next to Jake and devoured my food. He called the vet, and they told us they wanted to keep Bella for a couple more days. They wanted to make sure that everything was okay, but said she was doing great. I wanted to protest, but I just wanted her to get better. Jake promised me that the second they said she could come home that we would go and get her.

  Three days later we were walking out of the vet with my baby Bella. She was happy to see me, but not as happy as I was to see her. Her little tail was wagging a million miles an hour. They even gave her a fresh coat of pink nail polish while she was there. Jake helped me into the truck and closed the door behind me. I pet Bella’s fluffy head and gave her lots of kisses as we headed home.

  The Radioactive show was tomorrow. Jake was still too anxious to leave me home alone after everything that happened, so Bella and I were going to the show after all. They still didn’t have enough evidence to prove Ian had any connection to Jeremy either. Jake also hired his other bodyguard Vin to come babysit me.

  I made him make a pit stop to get me some burritos on the way home. My appetite was either ravenous or non-existent these days. Right now I was starving. I wolfed down my food in the most unladylike fashion and practically growled at Jake to give me the rest of his. He just smirked and handed it over. He pulled another one out from next to him. That sneaky bastard. We pulled back into the garage and headed up to the bedroom. Just that little bit of running around left me utterly exhausted. I climbed into bed, and Jake offered to walk Bella for me so that I could rest. I turned on the TV and started watching reruns of The Golden Girls. That show always cracked me up. When Jake came back after checking the alarm three times to make sure it was armed, we decided we would fly back to Ohio on Sunday to start looking at property. We needed to go soon because my dad was having a stroke all week since he was worried about me. I agreed and closed my eyes.

  When I woke up it was morning. I managed to sleep almost fourteen hours. I turned my face and Bella started licking my nose. I pet her head and sat up. That’s when I smelled it… bacon! I felt like Super Woman flying down the stairs. Jake looked over at me and grinned like a lunatic. I rolled my eyes and walked over to the plate on the counter. He made French toast and lots of bacon. He took my hand and led me over to the table, pulling out my chair. I sat down, and he placed the plate down in front of me. I savored each morsel. Poor Jake was going to have a miserable couple of months ahead because food was much higher than sex on the hierarchal desires right now. I finished my breakfast and got up to put the plate in the dishwasher. He took it from me and sat me back down.

  “Rest is really important right now. I’m going to wait on you hand and foot, my lady. I already talked to all the guys this morning, and we’ve agreed that we are going to record a new album. But, we’re going to do it in Ohio.”

  “Huh?” I asked confused.

  “When we build the house I’m going to incorporate a studio in the basement. That way it will save me from having to make a lot of trips back and forth. I’ve already got it all figured out. The guys agreed that it would be nice to get out of LA for a bit too. Do you think Smithville can handle Battlescars?” He teased.

  “I think we’ll all manage just fine. You don’t have to do that though. I understand your work, and I know that you love what you do. I don’t want to take you away from that.”

  “You’re not taking anything, baby. If anything you’re giving me much more than I could ever have hoped for. I love you so much Aubrey Thompson, almost Parker.”

  I couldn’t help. it I turned into an emotional blubbering mess. These pregnancy hormones were taking me on a damn roller coaster.

  “I love you too, Jake Parker.”

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  Radioactive

  Jake

  I showered and got ready for the show. I dressed in a pair of gray cargo shorts and a black t-shirt. I was just finishing tucking my laces into my boots when Aubrey walked into the room. She took my breath away. She looked awesome in a pair of camo capris and a black tank top. She was always sexy as hell, but lately she’s just fucking unbelievable! I was looking forward to getting this last show under my belt so we could focus on the future. I walked over to her and kissed her deeply. I reached into my back pocket and handed her a surprise that I found at the store other day.

  “Where has this been all my life?” She squealed excitedly. “Whoever thought of making bacon flavored lip gloss is my hero.” She hugged it tightly.

  I kissed the top of her head and laughed. She elbowed me playfully in the rib.

  “Do not make fun of me, Jake Parker! I happen to be carrying not one, but two babies around for you right now. If I want to eat bacon 24/7 then you’re just going to have to deal with it. Capiche?

  “Yes, ma’am.” I teased.

  “Good. Do you think we can get bacon cheeseburgers on the way to the show? Because that sounds sooo good right now.”

  “I’m sure we can figure something out. We don’t want Brett and Vin to see what an angry bear you become when you haven’t eaten in a couple hours. On second thought, maybe we should pick up a bunch of stuff so you can snack while we’re there. It’s going to be a long day, and I don’t want you leaving, for any reason. Capiche?”

  She growled, and the dog followed. I handed her Bella’s sling, and we headed downstairs to wait.

  “Come on, we have fifteen minutes before they get here.”

  I pulled her over to sit on my lap and rubbed her shoulders. The doorbell rang, and I went to open it while Aubrey scooped Bella up. I set the alarm and double-checked to make sure that I locked the door. We climbed into the Escalade. I introduced Aubrey to Vin. I told Brett that he better stop and get Aubrey food, pronto. Especially if he knew what was good for him. He laughed and agreed that if we all wanted to keep our man parts we do as the pregnant lady says.

  She leaned on my shoulder and snuggled closely with Bella on her lap. Every time I looked at that dog I saw much more than a dog, she was my little angel. I hated thinking about that night. It was hard to believe that it all happened less than a week ago. It was fresh and far behind at the same time. Brett pulled into Ray’s Burger House and ordered Aubrey and array of selections, including her bacon cheeseburger. He handed her the bag, which she happily accepted. She finished her last bite just as we were pulling into the venue. Vin had strict orders not to leave her alone, even for a second.

  We were escorted in through the stage door and over to a dressing room that was set up for our band. All the other guys were already in there when we arrived. Kevin got up right away and ushered Aubrey to take his seat. He was such a mother hen sometimes. He was asking how she was feeling, yada yada. He reached into his backpack and pulled out a gift bag. He handed it to her. It was a guide to a healthy pregnancy and a couple boxes of herbal tea. He was all into that health conscious stuff. Aubrey thanked him and gave him a hug. What a kiss ass! Blake and Derek sur
prised me too. They were all being super sensitive to Aubrey and Bella. I cocked an eyebrow at Blake.

  “What?” He asked bemused.

  “Nothing. I was just wondering if I’m going to have to start buying you tampons next.”

  “Shut up dickhead.” He teased.

  “Ah, he’s still in there somewhere.” I joked.

  “Please, we were all worried about her. I still can’t wrap my head around the fact that you’re going to be somebody’s dad. That’s some freaky shit right there.” Derek shook his head as if trying to comprehend what he just said.

  Aubrey laughed.

  “About that… it’s twins.” I stated proudly.

  All heads snapped to me. Blake looked like he was going to pass out. Derek was white as a ghost. Kevin just shook his head and whispered what sounded like ‘figures.’

  “That’s right. My boys can swim.” I said proudly.

  “And she didn’t kill you when she found out?” Derek laughed and looked at her. “Aubrey you deserve a fucking medal or something.”

  “I would have totally had your sack cut off right then and there.” Blake yelled.

  “Oh I thought about it.” Aubrey grinned and winked at me.

  I shook my head. “What is this pick on Jake day?”

  “No, that’s every day.” Blake laughed.

  I shook my head and walked to stand next to Aubrey. She started skimming through the book that Kevin gave her. She was asking him a lot of questions about the information in the book. Then we talked about the upcoming move to Ohio and the wedding, which was only two weeks away! Blake and Derek couldn’t wait to meet Granny Jean. I could only imagine what choice words she was going to have for them and their shenanigans.

  I couldn’t wait to figure out where we were going to build. I wanted to build something big so we wouldn’t have to move again, and so I would keep having an excuse to knock Aubrey up. Can you say football team? I also wanted to have enough space for when company came. I already knew that I wanted to build a small guesthouse since I wanted the guys to have a place to stay when we were recording. I definitely want something secluded and plan to put a gate around the entire premises. Maybe we could incorporate a moat. How fucking cool would that be?