The Rocker That Needs Me (The Rocker...) (12 page)

Drake

I was supposed to be at the network’s studio by eight. I got there on time with the help of the car and driver that the network had sent, but the line outside the studio made me ten minutes late because it was wrapped all the way around the building and two blocks past it. Fans, tryout hopefuls, and their friends and family that had come to support said hopefuls made it slow going for a while as the driver attempted to get through the masses without running anyone over.

By the time I got inside, the producers were already bitching, but I was used to that shit from Emmie after so many years, so I tuned it out and fell into my designated chair next to Axton. My friend was sucking down scalding coffee like it was nothing while he eye-fucked the producer’s assistant. Apparently he was over the big and final―thank fuck—breakup from Gabriella Moreitti.

The chair on Axton’s left was still vacant, and I wondered who the top secret third judge was for this stupid reality show. Not even Axton knew who the network had gotten, and he had been signed on to do this t
hing since February.

Someone set a huge mug of coffee down in front of me, and I nodded my head in thanks without giving the girl so much as a glance. I had already downed an entire pot of coffee since six o’clock that morning. Which was about the time I had heard Shane leave for his run…

Gritting my teeth, I pushed thoughts of my little brother, and who he could possibly be with right now, out of my mind as the producer finally got his shit together and started giving orders to his other staff members to get the tryout hopefuls organized outside.

“How you liking New York?” Axton asked as he bit into some kind of pastry.

I shrugged. “It’s New York.”

Axton raised a brow, making his eyebrow ring glint in the overhead lighting. “You haven’t even left the apartment yet, have you? Dude, you are really sad since you quit drinking.”

I snorted. “Thanks, man. I love you too.”

“I didn’t say I didn’t love ya, Dray. Just that you are really sad. Grab that brother of yours and let’s do something we shouldn’t tonight.”

I shook my head. “Nah, I’m good.” There was only one thing I wanted to do, and I wasn’t sure how I was going to accomplish it. I knew that hanging out with Axton and getting into something I shouldn’t would only make everything that much worse.

The door I had entered a little while ago opened, and everyone including myself turned to see who the late arrival was. I nearly fell out of my seat when I recognized Cole Steel of Steel Entrapment walking in like he owned the place. Knowing that old rocker, he probably did, or at least a share in it. He and his band had retired a decade or so ago, but they had remained in the business through other means. Cole owned half of a record label and backed several producing studios.

No wonder the network had kept their lips so tightly closed about Cole being the third judge. It was going to send ratings through the roof with the surprise coming out just weeks before the show went on the air. Axton shook his head. “Motherfucker!”

“Morning boys,” the fifty-something rocker greeted in his gravelly voice. Years of smoking had altered his voice. Some thought he had had throat cancer a few years ago, but it was only a nodule on his vocal cord that had been removed. Still, he probably would never be able to sing again, at least not like he once had.

I shook Cole’s hand. “Goddamn, man, I didn’t think I would see you here,” I told him.

“The money was just too sweet to turn down.” Cole shrugged as he took his seat on the other side of Axton.

With all of us now accounted for, the producers gave us a rundown of what was on the books for today. An itinerary was provided, and I scanned it before pushing it away. This was going to be boring as hell!

Two hours later, I was almost falling asleep in my chair as we went through one tryout hopeful after another. No one had stood out. No one had really caught my attention. So far, everyone had been so nervous that they hadn’t lasted more than a minute before they were being excused from the room. Some of these people had spent thousands of dollars on airfare, hotel rooms, and countless other things just to come here and bomb within minutes of standing before three judges.

The producer called for a break, and I reached for my phone. It had vibrated three different times in the last ten minutes. Sliding my finger across the screen, I saw messages from Emmie and Shane waiting for me. I took care of Emmie first because that was more important. She was going to freak when I told her who the third judge was.

Finally, I pulled up the message from Shane and nearly dropped my phone when I saw the attached photo he had sent me. I didn’t know whether to hunt my little brother down and murder him or thank him as I gazed down at Lana’s smiling face staring back at me. Her long midnight black hair was pulled into a ponytail and she was wearing some kind of tight running suit that made her whiskey eyes stand out.

I stared down at the picture until the producers started letting more tryout hopefuls in before saving it to my phone. I felt more awake now, and I was actually paying more attention as the day went on.

--

I was at the network’s studio until almost ten that night. The line outside was still growing by that time. I was beat and my head was killing me. Everyone who was in line was told that tryouts would begin again at eight the next morning, and I wasn’t surprised that the majority of them decided to camp out.

My driver picked me up and drove me back to my apartment. Shane had texted me throughout the day, and with each passing message I looked forward to hearing from my brother. He had spent the day with Lana, and it almost felt as if I had too the way my brother had kept sending me pictures of her.

When the car pulled to a stop in front of my building, I got out and nodded to the night doorman as I headed for the elevators. “Good evening, Mr. Stevenson. Your brother asked me to tell you he was taking the young lady home since you had taken so long.”

I stopped. “The young lady?”

The middle aged man nodded. “Yes. Miss Daniels I believe is her name. The other Mr. Stevenson made sure that she was put on your list of guests to let up without having to ask your permission.”

I muttered a curse, beyond disappointed that Lana had been inside my apartment and I hadn’t gotten to see her. She had actually been here! My chest ached and I pulled my cell out as I stepped onto the elevator. It rang once before Shane’s distracted voice greeted me.

“What?” he asked, an amused note in his tone.

“She was here?”

“Yup. I’m leaving her place now. I’ll see you in a few.”

“Dammit!” I raked a hand through my hair. “I want to see her!”

Shane sighed. “Yeah, I know. I did my best, bro. But you were taking for-freaking-ever.”

“What about tomorrow? Are you going to see her tomorrow?”

“No, man. She has plans. I’ll keep trying though. Okay?”

I blew out a long sigh. What more could I ask? I knew it was going to be an uphill battle to get Lana back in my life. I had fucked up, lost the best thing that had ever happened to me. But I had worked hard to get to a place so I could be worthy of her…

Rehab had been a nightmare. The past—the guilt—had been hard to let go of. But Emmie, Shane, and the rest of my band brothers had helped me through it. They had been my support system through those long miserable two months, and then afterward when I had gotten home. Shane went with me to AA meetings, and Emmie was always offering me encouragement.

I had been sober for seven months and sixteen days.

Was it enough to win back the woman I loved?

“Yeah. Okay.” The elevator came to a slow stop on my floor and I stepped out. “Thanks, Shane…I really appreciate it, brother.”

Drake

Tryouts had been held for two solid weeks now, which meant that I was getting up at the ass-crack of dawn and getting home late as fuck!

So far we had narrowed down thousands of hopefuls to about a hundred, most of them guys. The few females that had made it through had been exceptionally good and even made me snap out of my funk to take notice. The three of us all had to agree before a hopeful got to go on to the next round, which didn’t take place until September. I only gave my
yes
if they really made me take notice of them. If they didn’t have what it took to make me look twice at them, then they weren’t worth my time.

Axton was a little easier to appease, but it was Cole who was the real hard ass. He had been in the business for more than half his life, and he knew what to really look for in a rock star. More than once he had made grown men burst into tears because he had told them exactly what he thought of them and their
talent
.

To say I was tired of spending every free moment at the studio was the understatement of the decade. I hated every second of it, regretted ever agreeing to do this stupid thing in the first place. The only reason I had done so was because it had given me the chance to come to New York. I had a reason to be closer to Lana and I had jumped in feet first. Of course I hadn’t known that I wouldn’t have five fucking minutes to breathe, let alone plan how I was going to win my angel back.

Today, the producers were letting some fans in as a kind of audience. I had ignored each set of them because they changed every two hours or so. All I wanted was to get through this day and get home at a decent hour for once. I had even brought Shane along today in hopes of making the producers annoyed enough to call an end to the auditions early.

At the moment, the producer’s assistants were showing in another group of fans. I didn’t bother to look over at them as I sketched a pair of angel wings on the edge of my itinerary. Axton was surfing the web on his phone, glancing up with a grin every now and then when one of the female fans called out that she loved him.

“Holy Fuck!” he muttered next to me. “How do I get that in my bed?”

Curious, I followed his gaze. There was a blonde sitting in the back. She was gorgeous; I’d give her that. Tall, sitting higher than any of the other females and even some of the guys, she wasn’t really paying attention to what was going on around her. Instead, she was playing with something on her phone. There was an empty seat beside her, but I didn’t really pay attention to it.

“She’s hot,” I agreed.

“Dude, seriously. She’s beyond hot. Me want. Me want bad.”

I laughed for the first time that day, maybe even the first time in weeks. “Then tell the producer prick you want a break and go get her number.”

“Hey!” Axton waved his hand until the blonde raised her head. “Hey, you! What’s your name?”

I snorted, my stomach hurting from holding in my laughter. “Smooth,” I muttered.

The girl frowned. “Me?” she called back.

“Yes, of course you!” Axton shouted. “What’s your name, hotness?”

“None of your fucking business! If you can’t come talk to me like a decent human being would, then you don’t need to know.” She shot him the finger and turned her attention back to her phone.

I was still laughing when the next hopeful stepped inside. Poor kid was nervous as hell and didn’t last more than two minutes before Cole was thanking him for his time. I went back to my sketch…

A door shutting just behind the fans caught my attention and I glanced up, expecting to see one of them going in search of a bathroom. The sight that greeted me made me feel as if I had been punched in the gut, the oxygen leaving my lungs so fast.

She was here! Oh fuck, she was beautiful!

Lana stood at the back of the group. Her hair, longer than I remembered it, was flowing freely down her slender back. She was wearing jean shorts and a Demon’s Wings shirt that I had given her when we had first met. As I watched, she dropped down into the chair next to the blonde. The other girl whispered something to her, shooting Axton evil glances.

“Hotness’ friend looks familiar,” Axton commented.

“Keep your fucking eyes to yourself,” I bit out, keeping my eyes locked on Lana. “If you look at her the wrong way I will hit you so hard you will puke out your balls.”

Axton snorted, not intimidated by my threat in the least. “Chill out, man…Oh, shit. That’s Lana!”

He said it loud enough that her head snapped around. Whiskey colored eyes locked with mine, and I was defenseless to look away. After a long moment, her lips tilted ever so slightly and she gave me a small smile. Not one of my hard to perfect on paper Angel smiles, but I would take what I could get. She raised a hand, giving a tiny wave.

“If you two are done eye-fucking the ho-club,” Cole commented from the end of the table, “I think the next loser is about to come in.”

Lana

I must have had a moment of insanity.

When Shane had texted me that morning saying the studio was allowing fans to watch the auditions for the show, I should have just turned over and gone back to sleep. But what had I done? I had jumped into the shower and was ready in less than half an hour!

Somehow, I had conned Dallas into going with me. My first choice would have been Harper, but she had to work this morning. Freelance photographers never knew when they were going to get a call, and right now Harper was pretty popular with some of the more respectable magazines. Still, I was happy that Dallas had taken the time from pissing her mother off to come with me.

We waited in a long line with other fans to get in. They were taking everyone back in groups of twenty-five to thirty at a time for two hour time intervals. Dallas and I had been pretty far back in the line, but I had texted Shane and he had sent someone to take us with the next group.

I was nervous. My hands were sweaty and my heart was racing. I wasn’t sure if I was ready to see Drake again after so many months. Seeing a bathroom as we followed the others toward the auditioning room, I ducked inside. “Lana!” Dallas whined.

“You go on,” I told her. “I just…I need a minute.”

“Fine.” She sighed and kept on walking.

It took me a while to get my nerves under control. I stood in front of the sink, staring at myself in the mirror.
Play it cool. Act as if you haven’t been dying inside without him. He’s still the same Drake. You can do this.

The mental pep talk I gave myself calmed me for the most part. When Dallas sent me an annoyed text, I knew I couldn’t hide any longer. I entered the audition room, keeping my eyes down so I didn’t look at Drake before I was ready. He had always had this way of making me lose my mind with just a look, and I needed some more prep time before that happened.

When I dropped down beside Dallas in the last row she was pissed. “Do all rock stars think that they can snap their fingers and anyone with a vagina will drop their panties for them?” she asked.

I blinked, surprised at her question and the fire in her blue eyes. “Um…Yeah. You’ve met Shane. That’s the way it works in their world.” I knew that better than most. Vegas still haunted me.

“Pricks,” she muttered.

“What did I miss?” I asked, half afraid of her answer.

If Drake had tried anything with Dallas I didn’t know if I could sit there without having an emotional meltdown. She was my friend, but I was sure I would end up doing some physical damage to her pretty face!

“Axton Cage is a douche bag,” she informed me, like I didn’t already know that.

I had hung out with the “rock god” more than once. He wasn’t the nicest guy, but he wasn’t the worst one I had ever meet either. He was cool as long as he wasn’t drinking or drooling over Gabriella Moreitti. But those two had broken up about six months ago, for good this time or so all the tabloids had reported. Gabriella wasn’t a topic that we happily talked about in my family. Emmie and Gabriella had a war going on between them, and that meant Layla was anti-Gabriella as well. Which in turn, because I was loyal to my sister, meant that I was definitely anti-Gabriella!

“Oh shit! That’s Lana!” Axton exclaimed. The sound of my name made my head snap around, and I was caught in the blue-gray gaze of Drake Stevenson.

My heart literally skipped a beat. He was my soul mate. I had always known that, and my soul had been without its mate for far too long. My skin felt as if it were going to split open from the emotions shooting through me. Drake looked good. Oh, fuck. He looked amazing. He had lost a little weight and there were a few new lines around his eyes and mouth. His hair was a few inches longer, and I thought I saw a little gray at the corners, but to me he had never looked better.

My stomach tightened and lower, liquid heat pooled. My nipples hardened and I mentally chastised myself for not being able to control my physical reaction to the sight of the sexy rocker. No one had ever affected me like this but Drake.

As I took all of him in, I realized that I wanted him back in my life. On what terms I wasn’t clear of yet. I didn’t know if I could be his friend without falling deeper for him, but I wasn’t sure if I wanted more from him. I just knew that I couldn’t keep going on without him in my life.

A small smile tilted my lips as I came to that conclusion, and I raised my hand to wave. I thought I saw relief cross his face, and he started to smile back, but then he turned his head, frowning at something the man at the end of the judge’s table had said…

That was when I saw him. Cole Steel. That was probably the biggest shock of my life. No way! I glanced at Dallas, but she didn’t seem at all fazed about the old rocker’s presence. Maybe it was because she wasn’t easily impressed with superstars. Maybe it was because she was still pissed at Axton. Or maybe it was because she didn’t know that dirt bag’s secrets like I did!

Somehow, I contained my shock. Okay, I was beyond shocked, but no one needed to know it. They didn’t have to know anything. If I kept my cool, then everything would be fine. Cole wouldn’t know who I was, wouldn’t even guess the truth. There was only one feature that we shared, and that wasn’t all that big of a detail to notice.

“You’re going to break your phone if you don’t relax your hold on it,” Dallas told me after a few minutes. “Is it that bad seeing him after so long?”

“Yes,” I whispered, and then shook my head to clear the hatred haze. “No,” I corrected myself, knowing that she had meant Drake and not Cole. “No. It’s actually good to see him. I’ve missed him.”

The sudden crash startled me, and I jumped up, not knowing what to expect. Drake had Cole pressed against the wall holding him up by his throat, and it scared the hell out of me. He was saying something to the older rocker, but it was too low for me to make out. His face was purple he was so mad, and there was a vein popping out in his neck.

Around me, the other fans were becoming rowdy. Axton was still sitting at the judge’s table, seeming reluctant to stop his friend. A producer and two security guards appeared, attempting to pull Drake off of Cole, who was clawing at Drake’s hands while he gasped for air he wasn’t going to get.

I pushed passed Dallas, knocking another woman to the ground as I rushed toward the fight. If you could even call it that! It looked more like Drake dominating some little old man the way Cole Steel looked right now, still pressed against the wall.

“Drake!” I screamed his name as I ran toward him. He seemed to jerk at the sound of my voice but still didn’t release his hold.

I glanced around, frantic. “Shane!” I screamed. “Shane!” Where was he? Before I could reach Drake strong arms wrapped around my waist. “No. Let me go!” I kicked behind me, connecting with someone’s shins.

“Dammit, Lana!” Axton huffed. “Be still!”

“Let go, Ax. He’s going to kill him.” I had never seen so much rage coming from Drake before. “Let. GO!”

“Drake!” Shane’s voice boomed around the room, and I glanced around, relieved to find the younger Stevenson brother. He reached his brother and wrapped his arms around his neck in a sleeper hold. “Let him go, bro.”

Drake struggled as his brother pulled him back. “Fucker!” he bellowed. “You ever talk about her like that again and I will end you!”

Cole put his hands to his bruised throat, coughing as he sucked in life giving oxygen. Shane was still pulling Drake back, getting him as far away from the old man as possible while his brother struggled to get back. “A little help here, Ax!” Shane muttered, out of breath.

I was still trying to get free from Axton’s hold on me. He seemed more eager for Drake to finish what he had started than keeping him back. “Sure. As soon as this little spitfire stops clawing at me, I’ll be right there!”

I reached down and caught Axton off guard when I bit into his forearm. He released me with a string of curses, and I stumbled a few steps before righting myself. Then I was doing what I had meant to do in the first place. I threw myself against Drake.

He went completely still in his brother’s arms. There was only a small hesitation and then he was wrapping me in his arms. I felt his nose skim against my neck as he inhaled deep. Drake’s big body shuddered, and I thrust my fingers through his hair, holding him in place as the rage faded.