A Road to Let Go (Fallen Tuesday #4) (25 page)

“
Move
along, ladies,
”
one of the
security men said.

“
I
’
m here to see Jake,
”
Mel said.
“
He knows I
’
m here.
”

“
Is
that so?
”
the other guy
asked with a smirk.

“
Hold
on,
”
the first guy said.

He turned and whistled. Someone
wearing a backstage pass came running over. They talked for a few seconds and
then the man with the backstage pass ran.

“
Just
a minute,
”
the security
guard said.

Mel wondered if maybe something had
happened.

“
We
can just go into the crowd,
”
Mel said.
“
Hang out in
there.
”

“
No,
”
Alex said.
“
Jake wanted you here. So you
’
re going to be here.
”

“
If
you say so.
”

“
I
’
ll look for you though,
”
Alex said.

“
What?
”

Alex smiled.

“
Mel!
”

Mel gasped when she saw Jake
running toward the security guards. When Mel saw him, she smiled and gushed.
Her body warmed everywhere. He looked unbelievably hot in the clothes he wore
when he left her apartment that very morning. Mel had hated her small bathroom
and crammed shower
…
but not
anymore. Now it housed a passionate memory between she and Jake.

“
Guys,
she
’
s with me,
”
Jake said as he got to the
gate.

Security moved and Jake reached for
Mel. The gate opened and Mel officially went backstage.

“
Hurry,
”
Jake said.
“
I don
’
t want to get mobbed.
”

“
I
brought Alex
…”

“
Of
course,
”
Jake said.

Mel turned, but Alex was shaking
her head.
“
You got this.
”

“
Alex
…”

“
I
am meeting a few friends to watch the show,
”
Alex said.

“
Bring
them back,
”
Jake said.
“
I don
’
t mind.
”

“
That
’
s fine,
”
Alex said.
“
You
two
…
just
…
yeah
…”

Mel couldn
’
t believe what she was seeing. Alex turned and
rushed away. Jake had his arm around Mel
’
s
waist and pulled her close. He kissed the side of her head.

“
Damn,
I
’
m glad you
’
re here.
”

“
I
can
’
t believe I
’
m here,
”
Mel said.

“
Believe
it. Now let
’
s get back
there and get ready for the show.
”

Everything started moving really
fast. Mel was introduced - formally - to the rest of the band. She watched as
they talked about their set list. Then they each strapped on a guitar and
started to mess around. Stretching their fingers, playing old, and new, songs.
They messed around, argued a little, and then broke into a song and played the
entire thing. Mel felt like it was a show for just her. It was even better that
Jake was super hot and kept looking at Mel as he played guitar.

When the song ended, Jake put the
guitar down. All the guys whistled at Jake and muttered comments they laughed
about. Jake shook his head. He was actually blushing a little.

He wrapped his arms around Mel
’
s waist and lifted her off her feet.
He spun her around and then took her hand and walked her to the side of the
stage.

“
You
’
re going to stand right here,
”
Jake said.
“
You can see the whole show.
”

“
I
just can
’
t believe any of
this,
”
Mel said.
“
What you do. How awesome it is.
”

“
Hey,
did you paint something today?
”

Mel blushed. She slowly nodded.

She had painted something. A real
sloppy looking picture of a road, a guitar, and all the things that reminded
Mel of Jake.

“
I
’
m going to ask something, so just
run with it,
”
Jake said.

“
Okay
…”

“
When
we
’
re done with the show,
what are your plans?
”

“
My
plans?
”

“
If
you needed to pack for a day or two, could you do that?
”

“
Pack
for what?
”
Mel asked.

The crowd started to cheer as a
Fallen Tuesday song was being played over the speakers. The rest of the band
walked toward Jake and gave the thumbs up.

“
We
’
ve got to get ready,
”
Mack called out.
“
Get
‘
em ready.
”

Jake took Mel by the arm.
“
Look at me, Mel.
”

Mel's heart raced. She had no idea
what was going on.

“
Can
you be packed?
”
he asked.

A guy walked up to Jake and handed
him a guitar. He put it on and dug a guitar pick out of his pocket.

“
All
set,
”
the man said.

“
Thanks,
”
Jake said.

Jake looked amazing wearing a
guitar.

The crowd cheered again as someone
walked onto stage. The man screamed into the microphone and identified himself
as part of the radio station.

Mel had listened to the interview
on the radio and the songs.

Now she was about to experience a
live Fallen Tuesday show.

“
Listen
to me,
”
Jake said.
“
I don
’
t want to scare you away. I don
’
t want to burden you. But I want
to help you. I
’
ve been
through enough and I
’
ve
done enough dumb things. I have a plane ready to go after the show.
”

“
A
plane?
”
Mel asked.
“
Jake
…
I can
’
t
…
my job
…”

“
Take
a stand for yourself, Mel,
”
Jake said.

“
Jake!
”
a voice boomed.

It was Mack yelling. The band was
standing there, ready to storm the stage.

“
Now,
I
’
ll ask again
…”
The radio host was loud and
getting the crowd fired up.
“
Are
you ready for Fallen Tuesday?
”

The crowd response was thunderous.

They were ready.

So was Mel. She stared into Jake
’
s eyes, captivated.

“
Jake
…”

Jake leaned in and kissed Mel
’
s cheek. He lingered by her ear
and whispered,
“
I
’
m taking you to Washington. You deserve
answers, Mel. I want to help you and I want to be there.
”

He kissed her cheek and ran over to
his band.

The radio host on the stage
screamed,
“
HERE THEY
COME!
”

Mel opened her mouth, but had
nothing to say. As Fallen Tuesday walked on stage the crowd got even louder.
Instead of saying a word, they jumped right into a song.

Mel touched her heart. It had never
beat this strong, this fast in her life. Jake stood closest to her in terms of
where the band was on stage. They played and worked the crowd like the true
rockstars they were. The way they all looked at each other and smiled showed
how much fun they were having.

But inside Mel
’
s head she couldn
’
t stop thinking about what Jake
had said.

Washington?

She was going to Washington. That
meant she needed to call the hotel. She needed to talk to Harry. Then she
needed to call Jon and get him to call his guy in Washington. It was going to
cost money, but without the insane cost of plane tickets to and from Washington
Mel could make this happen.

It was so much to comprehend, and
with the band on stage playing, Mel kept catching herself getting lost in the
music.

When Fallen Tuesday played a slow
song, Jake looked over at her and nodded. Mel gave a thumbs up. He rocked a
solo where he put one leg back, bent his right leg, and balanced the guitar on
his right leg. He put his head back and played note after note, the guitar
sounding like it was crying against the powerful, sad sound of the song. The
song finished and Jake rushed off the stage. He held out his guitar pick for
Mel to take. She took it and blushed. Jake charged right back onto the stage
and continued the show.

The band played ten incredible songs
and then left the stage. They walked off together, with their arms around each
other, celebrating. Mel waited for Jake to come to her. When he did, she hugged
him, sweat and all.

“
Hey,
”
he said.
“
We
’
re
going back out for two more songs.
”

Mel looked up at Jake.
“
Why are you doing this?
”

“
The
songs? Because the fans
…”

“
No,
”
Mel said.
“
The plane. Helping me. All of
this around me.
”

Jake wiped his forehead with the
sleeve of his t-shirt.
“
I
have an answer for you, I swear.
”

“
Then
what is it?
”

“
Gotta
go!
”
someone yelled.

Jake hesitated for a second and Mel
got nervous. But then Jake touched Mel
’
s
face and smiled.

“
Because
I
’
m falling for you, Mel. I
don
’
t want you to look back
and regret something that never happened. I want you to know the truth
…
all of it
…”

Jake looked like he had more to say
as he turned and rushed back on stage.

As Fallen Tuesday played their
acoustic songs, Mel touched her chest and felt that her heart wasn
’
t racing all that fast anymore.
That
’
s when Mel realized
she was starting to fall for Jake, too. For a rockstar. For a rockstar with
secrets...

(23)

The crowd was awesome. The crowds
were always awesome, but for some reason this particular crowd never stopped
screaming, chanting, or singing. At one point Luke stopped singing and the
crowd took control of the song. They sang the entire second verse and a chorus
on their own.

When the last chord was struck,
Jake stood up with the rest of the band, but he just didn
’
t want the show to end. Even
though he had a beautiful woman waiting backstage and had so much planned, Jake
scanned the crowd and finally connected with the fans. Every single one of
them. Pregnant or not. Babies or not. Men, women, kids. Whoever. It didn
’
t matter. It was about the music
and the connection the fans had to it.

The band gathered at the front of
the stage and offered a few seconds for everyone in the crowd to cheer and take
some pictures. Trent had his arm around Jake tight.

“
This
never gets old,
”
Jake said.

“
Never,
”
Trent yelled.
“
Never.
”

Fallen Tuesday left the stage.
Their night was over, but the crew needed to take apart the entire stage and
pack it all up for the next show.

Jake looked at Mel and waved for
her to come closer. When she did, he kissed her. Her lips tasted so sweet.

“
Let
me finish up here,
”
he
said.
“
But I have
arrangements for us, Mel. There
’
s
a car waiting to take you back to your place so you can pack. You want to do
this?
”

Mel nodded.
“
Yes. I can
’
t
believe it, but yes.
”

“
Good.
”

Mel walked away and Jake went with
the rest of the band to a backstage area. Everyone grabbed a bottle of water
first. Next came the drinks. Jake spotted Mack twisting off the cap of a
whiskey bottle.

“
Hey,
”
Jake said to Luke.
“
He
’
s
going after the bottle hard the past week or two.
”

“
Just
that time of the year,
”
Luke said and patted Jake on the back.
“
Hey,
when are you out of here?
”

“
Little
bit,
”
Jake said.
“
Wouldn
’
t mind a shower and a change of clothes.
”

“
Go
to my place,
”
Mack said.
“
Don
’
t worry about it.
”

Jake nodded. He shouldn
’
t have had to sneak around like
this.

Anger flowed through his body and
he decided to take care of all this right now.

“
You
know what,
”
Jake said.
“
I
’
m
going to my apartment. This can
’
t
happen anymore.
”

“
Be
safe,
”
Trent said with a
nod.

“
No.
There
’
s no safe. I want the
damn truth.
”

Jake went to a waiting car and directed
the driver to his apartment. When he got there, he carefully opened the door
and prepared himself for the worst. He went in and called for Chloe a few
times.

She wasn
’
t there.

He checked the bedroom and her
smelled lingered. Drawers were open, the closet open, but Chloe was gone. There
was something left on the bed though. When Jake lifted the paperwork, he saw it
was from Chloe
’
s doctor. It
was everything Trent had told him. Chloe was no longer pregnant. She had been
…
and now she wasn
’
t
…

It hit Jake hard in the gut. He
swallowed and sat down on the bed. He had almost been a father. As much as he
didn't want to have a family with Chloe, it was still his child. That hurt.
However, Chloe lost another baby. She had to be a mess. He couldn
’
t help but hope she was going to
be okay.

Jake grabbed his cell and dialed
Chloe.

She didn
’
t answer, which was a surprise. Then again, it was
Chloe. She was probably somewhere looking at her phone, wanting it to go to
voicemail to torture Jake a little.

When the voicemail beeped, Jake was
put right on the spot.

“
Chloe
…
hey. I came to my apartment and
saw you weren
’
t here. I
also saw what you left me. Look, I
’
m
really sorry things worked out the way they did, okay? I never intended for it
to become this. We
’
ve
always seemed to get ourselves into these messes and I
’
m not sure who is to blame for that. But I
’
ll take the heat for it. I
’
m sorry. I hope you find
everything you
’
re looking
for. I just want you to know that if you stayed pregnant I would have been
there. I
’
d have been a good
father. I would never abandon you, Chloe. Take care.
”

Jake ended the call and put his
phone down on the bed. He made a fist and took a deep breath. This was an
intense feeling of emotion running through his heart. It was time to say
goodbye to part of the past so he could finally create the future.

And his future had meaning with
Mel.

As Jake got to the airport, another
car pulled into the parking lot. Jake got out with his bag in his hand and looked
around. A sense of success washed over him as he realized that he was about to
whisk a woman away on a private plane. He had dreamed of moments like this ever
since he first held a guitar, and here it was coming true.

Mel stepped out of the other car
and Jake rushed to her. He hugged her and took a deep breath, inhaling her
scent.

“
Are
you serious about this?
”
Mel whispered.

“
Yes,
”
Jake said.
“
The plane is taking us to
Washington.
”

“
It
’
s
…
amazing.
”

“
You
’
re amazing, Mel. You deserve
this. And so much more. This is the start, okay?
”

“
Okay.
”

They boarded the plane and a short
while later, they were in the air. The small plane was comfortable and once
they were able to unbuckle their seat belts, Jake asked Mel to cuddle up in his
arms.

He held her and kissed the top of
her head.

“
Did
you lose your job?
”

“
Probably,
”
Mel said.
“
My boss was pissed off.
”

“
Don
’
t worry about it. You need this.
”

“
I
had to call Jon,
”
Mel said.
“
The private investigator I
hired.
”

“
Everything
good there?
”

“
Yeah.
He
’
s making a few calls for
me. We
’
ll have answers
sometime tomorrow.
”

“
That
’
s great.
”
Jake looked down at Mel.
“
Tell me about it all, Mel. How this
…
I don
’
t know. About you.
”

“
There
’
s not much, Jake. I found a
picture. That
’
s how it
started. I looked at my mother
’
s
handwriting on the back and saw that there was a chance my father was in New
York. That
’
s what brought
me there.
”

“
Bold
and beautiful,
”
Jake said.
“
That
’
s why I
…
like you.
”

For a flash of a second, Jake saw
the word
love
in his mind. But it was quick and it almost choked him up.

“
I
don
’
t know how to pay you
back for this,
”
Mel said.
“
It has to cost a lot of money.
”

“
Sweetheart,
”
Jake said rubbing a thumb along
Mel
’
s cheek,
“
I
’
m
rich. I hate saying that because it feels weird. But I
’
m rich. And when this next album hits and the tour
starts, it
’
s going to get even
better. This is the least I could do. If this gives you peace to move forward
and take care of yourself, then it
’
s
worth every last penny I have.
”

“
That
’
s the kind of stuff I never
thought a man would say to me,
”
Mel said.

“
I
’
m not just a man, I
’
m a rockstar.
”

Mel kissed him and then cuddled
closer. The flight was calm and quiet. It was dark outside and dimly lit in the
plane. Jake didn
’
t know how
long the flight would take and he didn
’
t
care. As long as he had Mel in his arms, it was perfect.

He didn
’
t want to take away from the moment, but it was
also a chance to talk to Mel about other things in his life

“
Mel?
”
Jake asked.

“
Yeah?
”
she whispered, her voice tired.

“
I
want to talk about something. I really need you to hear me and understand.
”

“
Okay
…”

“
I
’
m sure you have a history of
your own,
”
Jake said.
“
I mean, of course you do.
Everyone does. That
’
s just
part of life. But mine is a little
…
Mel?
”

Jake looked down. He saw Mel, but
not her face. Gently, he pulled the hair away from her face. He tried to tuck
it behind her ear, but the curls made it impossible. Her hair fell forward but
not before Jake saw that she had fallen asleep.

Jake let out a sigh and put his head
back.

He
’
d
talk to Mel soon then. It didn
’
t
really matter all that much though. Chloe wasn
’
t
pregnant. Chloe was gone. Another piece of history made and filed away. This
time it would stay filed away for good.

*

When Mel woke, her neck was sore
and she was still on the plane. Jake had his head back, asleep. She carefully
sat up to make sure she wasn
’
t
going to wake him. It was still dark outside, which was expected. It was
somewhere in the middle of the night and with the time difference coming into play,
Mel could already feel herself becoming exhausted.

She looked at Jake and touched his
face. She ran a finger along his jaw, following his sexy stubble. She had never
met anyone like Jake. At first it was admiration of what he did for a living.
But now it was far beyond all that. She was learning that he had flaws, and it
turned her on. She hated the idea of someone being perfect. Well, Jake was
perfect in certain ways, yes, but she could always see deep in his eyes that
there were regrets and secrets. And that made him real in her eyes.

Plus, it made Mel feel better about
her own life and the choices she made.

Jake
’
s
head moved left to right and his eyes popped open. He touched his chest and
jumped when Mel wasn't there. That little subtle move made Mel
’
s heart gush with emotion. It
was almost like his instinctive need was to take care of her. That was
certainly new for Mel.

“
Hey,
”
Jake said.
“
You should have woken me up.
”

“
I
just woke up a minute ago.
”

“
I
wonder where we are,
”
Jake
said.

Mel looked at her phone just as
someone came to tell them the plane was about to land.

“
Perfect
timing,
”
Jake said.
“
There
’
ll be a car waiting to take us to a hotel.
”

“
A
hotel?
”

“
Where
did you plan on staying?
”

Mel blushed.

Of course they
’
d stay at a hotel. It was just unbelievable
that Jake had gone through all this trouble for Mel. Jake gained no benefit out
of this other than securing more of Mel
’
s
heart.

“
You
’
re not the kind of rockstar I
thought you would be,
”
Mel
said.
“
I mean, not like the
guy who had a random woman in his bed
…”

“
Hey,
”
Jake said.
“
You helped me with that.
Remember?
”

“
I
felt bad. You didn
’
t even
sleep with her.
”