Authors: Savannah Young
I strum a few bars just to make sure it’s still in tune.
“You can do this,” I tell myself. I’ve been singing with Wilde Riders for nearly ten years. We’ve played in front of packed houses hundreds of times. But I’ve never felt so nervous. I actually feel like I’m going to puke.
I take in a deep breath to try and calm my nerves. “It’s now or never.”
With guitar in hand I head back out into the bar.
Harley is nervously looking around the bar, no doubt wondering what’s up and where I disappeared. When her eyes catch mine her face turns from anxious to confused.
She whispers something to Riley but Riley just shakes her head in response.
When I glace over at my brothers who are now standing near the corner of the stage Cooper gives me a thumbs up sign.
The stage lights have already been turned on and I assume the microphone has been turned on as well. I hurry towards the stage before I change my mind or throw up.
As I look out at the small crowd that has now gathered near the stage my attention is drawn to Harley. She truly is the most amazing person in the world. And the fact that she once loved me seems like a miracle. One that I didn’t appreciate enough.
If I can make her fall in love with me again it won’t be something I take for granted, that’s for damn sure.
“This Dan Fulton song is dedicated to Harley Davis. It’s called
Count On Me
."
It'll be alright, I say
When you start to cry
But I know damn well that it's not true
Your fingers in my palm
I fight to keep you calm
But I know keeping calm's not what you do
And the words I choose are a useless few
You can count on me to let you down
'Cause I'm a cracking ledge
And I'm a broken bridge
I'm the tearing rope that you hang from
And you're a stranded soul
I leave beside the road
And throw a callous wave as I roll on
Or at the best I'll drive you half way home
You can count on me to let you down
You can count on me to let you down
I'll be the one to watch you slip and fall
I'll be the one to watch you hit the ground
I'll be the one who doesn't move at all
You can count on me to let you down
Once I finish singing the song the audience is eerily quiet. It’s as if they’re all wondering what just happened. Maybe Harley is too. She’s staring at me with her mouth wide open.
Time feels like it’s running at super-slow speed, like in action movies when they slow everything down enough for every movement to be seen.
I’m relieved when Cooper starts to applaud and the rest of the onlookers follow his lead.
I jump down from the stage and grab Harley’s hand. I pull her into the back room with me and shut the door behind us.
She still looks dazed and confused. “You gave me a song.” It’s almost like she can’t believe that I sang a song for her.
“I did.”
“Why?”
It’s not a question I was expecting. I’m not sure how to respond. “Because I want you, Harley. I want to be with you.”
As I pull her close my heart is beating so fast I feel like it’s going to beat right out of my chest. I gently stroke her cheek with my hand and it immediately calms my nerves.
Then I kiss her. Softly at first giving myself time to get reacquainted with her luscious lips. Then I deepen the kiss. I missed her taste, a hint of cherry like the lip gloss she always wears. I quickly lose myself in her presence. Just being near her again, smelling the scent of her shampoo and feeling her soft skin under my hand, it’s my own personal Nirvana.
My dick has completely sprung to life, something I haven’t felt in a while, not since I’ve been in my break-up funk. I want her to know how badly I want her. How much I’ve missed being with her. I grab her and push my throbbing erection against her.
“I want you,” I whisper into her ear. “I need to be inside of you.”
To my complete surprise she pushes me away. “No.”
Now I’m the one who looks dazed and confused. “No?”
She shakes her head. “No. This isn’t right.”
Before I can say another word she opens the door and hurries out of my office.
I stand there for a few minutes in shock, trying to figure out what I did wrong.
Cooper and Tucker are standing at the bar waiting for me when I approach.
I do a quick scan of the place, but I don’t see Harley anywhere. I don’t see Riley or Gracie either. “Where’d the girls go?”
“Harley said she had to leave early,” Cooper informs me. “And Riley and Gracie went with her.”
“I need to find her.” I know I sound a little frantic, but I can’t help it. I feel completely out of control.
Tucker shakes his head and blocks my path. He knows there’s no way I’ll be able to get by him. “You’re going to stay here and close the bar with us. All hands on deck with the girls gone.”
“But…”
Both my brothers shake their heads.
“Now tell us what you said,” Cooper demands.
I heave a sigh and try to remember exactly what I did say. I was so excited to have Harley in my arms again it’s all kind of a blur.
“I told her I wanted her,” I admit.
Cooper raises an eyebrow. “Anything else?”
I bite the inside of my cheek. I’ve never been able to break the nervous habit. “I think I said that I wanted to be inside of her.”
Both of my brothers are now looking at me like I’m stupid.
“Please tell me you said more than that,” Tucker urges.
I shrug. “She didn’t give me a chance. She ran out of my office.”
Cooper and Tucker both cross their arms over their chests at the same time and I get the sinking feeling they’re going to start grilling me.
Tucker eyes me. “After your grand gesture of singing her a song that’s the best you could do?”
“That’s what I always say,” I admit. “I guess it was just habit.”
Now Cooper joins in. “You couldn’t think of anything else to say? Something more appropriate for trying to win her back?”
I rub my temple. “I screwed up again, didn’t I?”
“Majorly,” Tucker says.
“You’ll need to go all in,” Cooper suggests.
“What do you mean?”
“I asked Riley to marry me. That’s how I sealed the deal.”
“I saved Gracie from her psycho ex-boyfriend and almost got killed in the process,” Tucker adds. “But I wouldn’t recommend that strategy.”
“And considering I’m looking more and more like the psycho ex-boyfriend every day, it’s probably best I pursue another tactic.”
Cooper pats my back. “You’ll have all night to think about it. The girls are staying with Harley tonight.”
Great. Another sleepless night.
Eleven
Harley
“How is it possible that you’ve never had a sleepover party?” Riley asks as she pours the freshly popped popcorn into an extra-large bowl.
“Let’s just say I was never very popular with the girls when I was in school. I was more of a tomboy and most of my friends were guys. Not very conducive to sleepovers.”
“I think we now have everything we need.” Riley inspects our comfort food. “Popcorn with extra butter; freshly baked chocolate chip cookies with extra chocolate chips and vanilla milkshakes with extra ice cream.”
I take a sip of my milkshake. “This is really good. I think you missed your true calling, Riley. You should open an ice cream shop.”
She laughs. “Maybe when Cooper and I get sick of life in Manhattan we’ll retire to Old Town and open up a little shop in the town square.”
“You need to make your first million first,” I remind her.
She nods. “Do you want to grab the popcorn? I’ll get the cookies and we can talk in the living room?”
“Sure.” I grab the tub of popcorn and my milkshake and head into the living room.
Riley and I crash on the coach and Gracie takes the big chair my dad usually sits in when he watches football.
“Spill,” Riley says between bites of popcorn.
“I’m not sure what to say.”
“How about telling us what happened with Jake and why you ran out of Haymakers like the place was on fire.”
“After he sang that song for you,” Gracie adds.
I take in a deep breath and try my best not to cry. “I was over the moon when he sang that song for me. I thought it really meant something. But then when he took me into the back room, everything came crashing down around me. He treated me like I was a just another fifteen-minute fling. To say I was disappointed would be an understatement.”
Riley pursues her lips like she’s giving it some thought. “I’m not trying to defend Jake. I know he can be a womanizing asshole. But I really do think he loves you. Maybe he just doesn’t know how to say it. I get the feeling he doesn’t have much experience in that department.”
I blink back tears. “Do you really think he loves me?”
She nods. “Obviously I haven’t known him as long as you have, but something has changed. And I’ve never seen him look so—I don’t know—defeated. Even when he was in danger of losing the bar, he didn’t look like he looks now.”
“He looks like a little boy who lost his one and only friend,” Gracie interjects.
That strikes me right in the gut. It’s the same thought I had the night Jake saw me on my date with Max.
“My parents want to sell the house,” I admit. “I have to make a decision whether I want to stay here and buy it from them, or leave Old Town and do something else with my life.”
“You can’t leave.” Gracie looks panic-stricken.
I never even considered how leaving would impact the rest of Jake’s family, particularly Gracie and Riley, who have become the closest thing to sisters I’ve ever had.
Gracie and I have talked about me being there with her and Tucker when the baby is born since she doesn’t have a mom to support her. Not that Tucker won’t spoil her rotten, but it’s not quite the same thing as having another female in your corner.
“I don’t want to leave,” I admit. “The only thing I’ve ever wanted was to be married to Jake and help him run Haymakers. It’s been my dream since I was a teenager. It’s the only thing I could ever see doing with my life. It’s the only thing that makes me truly happy. I’m just not sure that I’m what makes Jake happy.”
“Well he’s sure unhappy when he doesn’t have you,” Gracie says. “I’m actually worried about him.”
“So are Cooper and I,” Riley adds. “I know you didn’t actually ask for my advice, but can I give it to you?”
I smile. “The two of you are probably the only people on the planet whose advice I would take.”
“Good. I think you should give Jake another chance to get things right.”
I take in a deep breath and slowly exhale. “One more chance. But he better not screw things up this time.”
Riley laughs. “I think Cooper and Tucker would kill him if he did.”
“Enough of the girl talk,” I say. “We need to raise the level of testosterone in this room before I start to get sick. How about a Jason Statham movie night? I’ve got all of the Transporter movies on my iCloud.”
***
I know I need to have a conversation with Max. It’s not fair to leave him waiting and wondering if anything is going to happen between us. I’m glad I had the chance to go out with him. I got the chance to see what it would be like to be with someone other than Jake Wilde.
Too bad Max pales in comparison.
Don’t get me wrong, he’s a great guy. He’s just not Jake.
“Max,” I say when he answers his cell phone.
“Harley Davis.” He sounds surprised to hear from me. “How are you doing?”
“I’m okay…”
“That doesn’t sound very convincing.”
I take in deep breath. “I wanted to phone before you heard any rumors. Old Town is like a gossip mill.”
“Let me guess. You’re getting back together with your boyfriend.”
“You are smart, but he was never really my boyfriend.”
“But you want him to be, don’t you?”
“Yes,” I admit.
“And I get the feeling he wants you.”
I laugh. “What makes you say that?”
“My first clue was when he followed us on our date. He was very possessive. I got the feeling that he already thought you were his.”
“He’s got some work to do,” I admit. “But I think his heart is in the right place.”
“Does he make you happy?” Max asks.
I think about it for a few seconds. “For the most part.”
“Just make sure he treats you right. Make sure he treats you like you deserve to be treated.”
“And how’s that?”
“You’re special, Harley. You’ve got a smile that lights up the room. Just make sure he appreciates what he’s got if you decide to let him have you.”
“I will,” I promise.
“And if you ever want to participate in a ghost tour, just let me know. It’s on the house.”
I laugh. “I may take you up on that someday.”