Fatal Seduction (Fatal Cross Live! Book 3) Read online

  Those two men were harassing them and one of them had touched my Abby. He’d actually brought her pain and that was not sitting well with me at all. If it wasn’t for my sister placing a calming hand on my chest, I would’ve killed them.

  “Do you have your medicine?” I growled, knowing I sounded pissed beyond reason, but I wasn’t mad at her. I was just mad at the situation.

  “In my bag,” she whispered, nodding toward her purse on the floorboard of my truck.

  “Take what you need, and then you can stay at my place until you are better,” I offered, gritting my teeth at the end, because having her in my apartment was a bad idea.

  “Can you just take me home?” she asked, screwing her nose up as if she’d smelled something bad. It was probably my attitude.

  “No,” I replied blankly. “I need to make sure you’re okay.”

  “I’ll be fine, Brax,” she said.

  “Don’t argue with me,” I barked.

  “Fine,” she huffed, reaching into her bag and retrieving the pills. I didn’t say anything, because I knew she needed them. I hated manmade drugs…hell, I hated all drugs. After dealing with Ace and his back injury, I understood the need for them when the person was in pain, but I didn’t like what they did to a person’s body in the long run.

  Penny pulled into the visitor’s parking spot next to my truck and hopped out of her car, coming to the passenger side to help Abby out and up the stairs to my apartment. I was right behind them as we reached the landing. I kept silent as I unlocked the door and threw it open wide enough for both of the girls to get inside. As soon as my foot cleared the door, I turned and locked the deadbolt, ensuring none of the scum in my neighborhood could get inside. I had too much precious cargo in my home to take a chance.

  “Do you want to lay down?” Penny asked as they approached the couch.

  “Just for a little while,” Abby yawned. The pills were obviously working.

  “Braxton, grab her a blanket and extra pillow, please,” my sister ordered. I wasted no time in finding the softest blanket I had and the best, fluffiest pillow I could find.

  Abby sighed heavily as she settled in when I placed the pillow down on the arm of my long couch, closing her eyes as soon as she was comfortable. I took a seat in my small kitchen, watching as she slowly fell into a deep slumber. When I looked up, Penny was sitting across from me, watching my every move.

  “Thank you,” she said, running a hand through her long, brown hair.

  “Why were you out in this part of town, anyway?” I prodded.

  “We were shopping at the clothing store we like and decided that the pizza place was fine for lunch,” she answered, rolling her eyes. “I shop that store all the time and sometimes stop for pizza there, Braxton. This never happens to me.”

  “You scared me to death,” I growled, trying my hardest not to be loud and wake up Abby.

  “I’m sorry, Braxton.” She frowned. “Seriously. If I thought it was dangerous, you know I wouldn’t have gone there.”

  “I know you wouldn’t have,” I relented, standing up and pulling her from the chair. I hugged my sister tightly and closed my eyes. They could’ve been seriously hurt.

  “Can you take Abby home when she’s feeling better?” she asked, pushing away from me. “I need to go home and get ready for tomorrow.”

  “It’s your big day, huh?” I teased, ruffling her hair. “You’ll do fine.”

  “If I don’t faint on set from the nerves,” she laughed, grabbing her keys. “See ya.”

  Penny had landed a role in a new movie that was being filmed in our home town. She’d been acting since she was eighteen and was doing pretty good for herself. She wasn’t vastly popular yet, but I was confident she would get there soon.

  My sister had gone through so much growing up. Her weight had always bothered her, and I watched her like a hawk since we’d found out that she’d been making herself throw up every morsel of food she’d ingested.

  It’d been several years since she’d gone through a program and learned to eat healthy and exercise. I’d been concerned when I came home and found her about fifteen pounds lighter than when I’d left on tour. She acted okay, and I hadn’t seen anything that would lead me to believe she was falling back into that hole again.

  Abby made a noise as she moved in her sleep, bringing me back from my memories. I walked over toward the couch and took a seat on the ground after pulling the blanket up over her shoulders.

  She hadn’t changed in all of this time. My Abby was still as beautiful as the day I first met her five years ago. The only change was her matured features and the scars on her body. Those were my fault and would always be something that haunted me day and night.

  My phone chimed with an incoming text. The guys wanted to get together the next night to practice at the warehouse space we owned in Seattle, and I needed the distraction. A good four hour session behind my kit was just what the doctor ordered.

  Looking over my shoulder and seeing Abby there, nestled on my couch, sent my heart back into that dark place that seemed more like a home than a hindrance. I couldn’t keep her. She wasn’t mine anymore.

  She had this fantasy that things would go back to the way they had been. I knew this, because I could see it in her eyes. If I was honest with myself, I’d say that I wanted that as well. Reality and life were nothing but a hateful bitch, and I knew it would never work out between us. It hurt too much to look at her.

  As soon as she woke from her nap, I would take her home and prepare for our next tour. That was the only option. She couldn’t keep coming around me. It just wasn’t fair to either one of us.

  I loved her…but I had to let her go.

  Chapter 8

  Abby

  My eyes blinked slowly as I woke up. At first, I wasn’t sure where I was, but it wasn’t long before I realized I had been asleep on Braxton’s couch. The scent of him was all around me, and I didn’t want to think about the fact that it was more than likely in my clothes.

  “I need to take you home,” Braxton announced as I sat up. He was across the tiny room, sitting in a chair at his kitchen table. His eyes were on me, but they were unfocused, like his mind was a million miles away. I didn’t like that look in his eyes.

  He wore a pair of black denim jeans. There were tears and rips in them that obviously came from the manufacturer. His cut up concert shirt, showing some band I’d never heard of, draped over his massive chest. The multitude of tattoos that covered his arms drew my attention and I traced each line and color with my eyes. I saw the muscles in his arm flex as my gaze traveled to his thick neck.

  “You can’t look at me like that,” he warned.

  “Why not?” I asked, clearing my throat. “You used to like it when I would look at you.”

  “Things have changed, Abby,” he replied, standing up from his seat. He reached behind him and picked up my bag. “Penny had to go home. I will take you over to your place.”

  “I can call a cab,” I gritted out through clenched teeth.

  “No,” he replied. “I want to make sure you are safe at home.”

  “Fine,” I snapped, climbing to my feet.

  I pushed past him as he stood off to the side of the door. My hand grazed his hip and I heard him groan low under his breath. The only solace I had was he was still obviously affected by me.

  “I’m assuming you know where I live,” I accused, my words clipped with my anger. “Since you know where the medical bills come.”

  “Not now, Abby,” he grumbled.

  I sat back in the seat and folded my arms across my chest, mindful of my healing elbow.

  The ride to my place only took twenty minutes. I wanted to storm up to my apartment and slam the door like a child, but I didn’t. As soon as he put his truck into park, I opened the door, blinking when the interior lights illuminated the inside of the truck. I didn’t even look at him as I climbed out. “Have a good night, Braxton.”

  Chapter 9

&nb
sp; Braxton

  The metal door creaked when I pushed it open. The warehouse we owned held all of our equipment and had a small room we used for practice sessions when off the road. I was the first one to arrive, and while I waited, I spent the time setting up my kit, making sure it was ready for when the rest of my band arrived.

  I had to shake the pictures of Abby from my mind. She was angry with me when I dropped her off at her apartment. I didn’t walk her in. I didn’t even speak a word to her. She was trying her hardest not to cry when she slid out of my truck, slamming the door in protest.

  I just couldn’t do it. I couldn’t be around her. It hurt too much to see her, knowing she was covered in scars. The pain in my chest whenever I thought of her could send me into a bad place. It was a place I spent every moment of my life in since the night I almost killed her. Those scars on her body were mine…all mine.

  “Hey man,” Ace said as he opened the door, then stopped dead in his tracks. “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing,” I said, shaking my head. “Nothing at all.”

  “Bullshit,” Ace barked.

  “Leave it alone, Ace,” I warned.

  “I won’t leave it alone,” he said, narrowing his eyes. “You need to get your shit straight when it comes to Abby, because the news I have to share is going to be huge. I can’t have you running off all half-cocked when we leave town again.”

  “Man, I’m good,” I promised, hoping my expression didn’t give away how not good I actually was when it came to Abby.

  “What news?” Cash asked as he entered. Our bassist set his case against the wall and moved close. Ace just gave me a pointed look and turned around to greet the others.

  “Yeah, what’s going on?” Taylor asked as he came in with his guitar case.

  “Looks like we just booked a three month tour opening for Bleeding Secrets,” Ace said with a grin. “This is huge.”

  “Hell yes, it is!” Cash laughed. “They’ve been all over the charts for months now.”

  “Their shows bring in a lot of people,” Cash mentioned, pulling his long, blond hair up into a ponytail.

  “This is going to be good for us,” Ace remarked, looking at his phone.

  I nodded when necessary, knowing that my vote wasn’t needed. Anything that boosted our career was good in my book. There was only one question I needed to know the answer to. “When do we leave?”

  “Three weeks.” Ace frowned. “Why?”

  “Just wondering,” I shrugged, hiding my wince. I had hoped we would leave immediately. That way, I could get away from Abby all that much quicker.

  We spent the next four hours putting together a set list and practicing. After that, we worked on new songs for our next album. We’d probably go into the studio after the upcoming tour. It was never too early to start making music and planning for the next album release.

  Presley and Coraline showed up with pizza, forcing everyone to take a break. Ace and Presley chatted about the song that was to be recorded on her next album. Witch’s Spawn had been in the studio for the past two days, and Ace was going to sing the new song with her.

  I was happy for him and Taylor. Those two deserved so much. After all they’d been through over the past several years, settling down looked good on them.

  I refocused my gaze on my kit and adjusted one of my cymbals as I thought about how I could’ve had that at one time, but I had destroyed it.

  By the time we finished, my mood had soured and I just wanted to leave, but the guys were having none of that. As the door to the warehouse opened, I realized my sister wasn’t going to get off my back about Abby either, because she’d brought the woman who owned my heart with her.

  “Before you growl at me, just know I didn’t want to come, but she made me,” Abby told me as I approached, hooking a thumb over her shoulder to indicate Penny was behind dragging Abby out of the apartment.

  Jesus, she smelled amazing. It took all of my willpower not to tangle my hands in her hair and take her lips with my own. There was a time when I would’ve done just that. There’d never been a time when I didn’t remind her that she was mine. I used to own her love, and I cherished it…until I destroyed it.

  The sway of her hips was not forced as she began to walk away. No, Abby never tried to look sexy; it just came naturally. Fuck, I had to stop looking at her like that. It took me a second to get my wits about me, but when I did, I frowned when I noticed she was holding onto her scarred arm.

  “What’s wrong?” I asked, walking up behind her and placing my hand on her shoulder. When she shrugged me off, I felt my anger boil. If someone had harmed her again, I’d probably kill them for sure this time. “Talk to me.”

  “No,” she said, walking away to take a seat on a lone stool over in the corner.

  “You’re in pain, aren’t you?” I accused as I followed her. She didn’t need to confirm it, I could see it in her beautiful eyes.

  “Maybe a little,” she admitted with a heavy sigh. “I’m okay, Braxton, really. I’m just tired.”

  “Have you not been sleeping?” I pulled a chair over and turned my body toward her, realizing that was a mistake when my knee brushed hers. Why did one simple touch send a stabbing pain directly to the center of my heart?

  “No,” she answered, pulling her hair over the left side of her neck to hide the scars from me, and it gutted me.

  “I’m sorry,” I whispered. “I wish there was something I could do.”

  “I always have problems sleeping after a surgery, Braxton. It’ll be better in a few days. Please, don’t cause a scene.”

  Coraline handed Abby a plate with a slice of pizza. I left her to talk to the girls and grabbed some food for myself. I watched her laugh and smile as she talked to them, and I wished things were different. I’d give anything to go back to the day I almost killed her.

  “We will have a break about three weeks into the tour,” Ace said as he came up to my side. I didn’t miss when his eyes flickered over toward the couch where Abby was sitting. “You can come home.”

  “I don’t know, Ace,” I said, rubbing at a pain in the center of my chest. “This is hard.”

  “She obviously loves you,” he replied, dropping his plate into the trash bin behind the table. “Stop running away from her.”

  “I’m not running.” I frowned. “I’m doing what’s best for both of us.”

  “No, you’re running, man.” He lowered his voice as he moved closer. I was taller than my lead singer, but he had no problem getting into my face. “You’ll never be happy until you make things right with that woman.”

  “You don’t understand,” I replied, wiping a hand over my face.

  “What happened between you two?” he inquired, taking a small step away. “You can tell me.”

  “Can we not do this here?” I begged, looking over my shoulder. Abby was talking to Coraline and Presley. They were deep in conversation, and I willed her to look up at me, but she didn’t.

  “We can do it here or outside,” he said, narrowing his eyes. “You are not alone in this, Braxton.”

  I disposed of my trash without another word and started walking toward the back door of our warehouse. Ace wasn’t far behind me. I had never told them exactly what had happened with Abby, but I was sure they had some idea. It was no secret in our band that we all had our demons and guilt over things from our pasts.

  The sun hit my face as I pushed the door open wide. It was nice to see the sun after several days of dreary weather. The picnic table off to the side of the door was dry enough for me to take a seat on top as Ace took to the actual bench on the other end, giving me enough space.

  “I almost killed her,” I began, seeing Ace flinch out the corner of my eye. “I was coming off a high, and she saw the marks in my arm as we were driving on the highway. We had a fight and the next thing I knew, I smelled smoke. My body was on the highway, broken so badly I couldn’t get to her. She was pinned in the car and it was on fire.”

  “Fuck,�
� Ace cursed under his breath.

  “She’s burned down the left side of her body,” I continued. “There have been numerous surgeries and treatments over the past three years. I’d avoided her as best as I could, but she finally came to the show last week to confront me.”

  “Why?” Ace asked.

  “Because I’ve been paying her bills.” I shrugged. “It’s the only way I can ensure she is taken care of for the things I did.”

  “She’s mad about you paying the bills?” Ace pushed, looking for more answers.

  “Yeah,” I replied with a harsh curse. “She has insurance, but I made sure that everything she ever needed would be taken care of when I went to jail.”

  “Are you still paying, Braxton?” he asked, looking down at his feet.

  “Of course,” I scoffed. “Why would I ever stop paying for her care?”

  “Because she isn’t yours,” he replied, making my hands tighten where I had them wrapped around the edge of the table. “You said so yourself.”

  “She is mine,” I barked, feeling my anger bubble to the surface. I had to take a few deep breaths before I lost my shit and punched the wall behind me. “But I can’t be with her.”

  “What are you going to do when she finds someone who accepts her for who she is now? Scars and all?”

  “I’ll kill him,” I replied, feeling my heart ache.

  “That’s not fair to her. You need to let her go.” Ace stood from his seat and turned to face me. I saw the pain in his eyes. I knew what was coming next, and I begged him with my eyes to not say it out loud, but it was no use. “Or love her the way she deserves to be loved, my friend.”

  Back inside, I ignored the women and found my place behind my kit. Ace and Taylor were already in place. Cash came in and grabbed his bass. I started playing and forced myself to practice the new song we’d written. I lost myself in the music, and I tried my hardest not to watch Abby from the corner of my eye.