Banded Together (Rebel Walking #2.5) (7 page)

"This is
amazing!
 
You guys did a fantastic job!"

"We just
finished up the little details.
 
Taron
had it all planned out."
 
Lilly moves in for a hug as well.
 
I ignore Talon staring at Luke as we start
looking at everything in the room.

"You guys
didn't stay at the hospital long."
 
Luke starts to move into our conversation more while trying to ignore
Talon’s stares.

"Nah.
 
We’re trying to finish the wedding plans and
it was pointless to hang around when the grandparents showed up.
 
We're going back to the hospital in a little
bit."

"Yeah, that's
what we were thinking, too.
 
We wanted to
finish the room for them and get the mess picked up before they come
home."

"Does Ivy
know about the nursery?"

"No,
Taron
wants to surprise her."

"Damn, he's
just perfect right now."
 
If I
hadn't seen most of it for myself, I wouldn't believe
Taron's
transformation over the past year.
 
"You
should've told me, I would've helped you with the room."

"We didn't
have much left."
 
Why do I get the feeling they both wanted to
do this together with no interruptions?
 
I'm going to have to quiz one of them very soon.

"Okay.
 
What can I do to help you finish
up?"
 

"We're just
throwing the last of the bedding on and the curtain rod up and we'll be
done."
 
I move to help put the sheet
on the mattress and use the opportunity to ask Lilly questions as soon as the
guys step out of the room.

"So....
What's the deal with you and my cousin?"

"We're just
having fun."

"I hope you
do
get to have some fun.
 
He's a great guy underneath that whole bad
boy exterior."

"I know he
is.
 
I think
we
...."
 
She's interrupted by the sound of footsteps
in the hall.
 
 

"Girls, we
brought you the power tools you need to put up the curtain rod."
 
I know exactly what Luke is doing and I'm not
about to let him ogle Lilly with Talon right here waiting to attack him.
 
I grab the screws and hardware from Luke and
begin to climb the stepladder.
 
Lilly
assists by handing me what I need as I put up a very solid rod.
 
We finish by draping the sheer, dark pink material
up and over it.
 
I look over and see
Talon watching Luke who's watching Lilly.

"We should
probably get going, right Talon?"

"Nah.
 
We need to make sure this is all done
here."

"Talon, it's
time to go."
 
I walk over to him and
lace my fingers through his.
 
Squeezing
tight, I begin to pull on his arm until he decides to follow.
 
"There's a beautiful baby girl that I
want to hold again.
 
We'll catch you guys
later!"

"Wait!
 
What about the wedding?
 
Is it still on for Saturday?"
 
Lilly rushes into the hall to ask us before I
get the chance to get him out the door.

"Yeah, I'll
call you tomorrow and give you the specific details."

Luke watches me
force Talon to leave and I turn to face him before I close the door behind
me.
 
His shit-eating grin tells me that
he doesn't give a crap whether the Walkers are going to like him circling
Lilly.
 
This is
so
not going to go well if he fucks up.
 
He loves to be free and enjoys the benefits of
being single.
 
I can't picture him
settling down with one girl and if he gets with her that's exactly what they'll
expect.
 

"You need to
stop with the barbarics.
 
She is a grown
woman and she doesn't need you scaring off all the guys who come around
her."

"I won’t
scare off
all
the guys, just the ones
that aren't good enough."

"And who
would be good enough?"
 
His
hesitation shows me he has to think really hard to answer my question without
sounding irrational.
 

"There are
guys that'll treat her right."

"I
agree!
 
And it's up to her to find the
one that makes her happy
without
the
interference of the
Walker
brothers."
 
He's hearing me, but is
he listening?
 
Only time will tell if I'm
getting through to him.
 

"Take me to
see that sweet baby!"
 
I purposely
find stuff to talk about the whole way there to get his mind off of the obvious
chemistry between Luke and Lilly.
 
I make
a mental note to talk to Luke and threaten him within an inch of his life.
 
He needs to remember how easy it'll be to
rock this boat and mess up everything they’ve worked so hard to regain.
 
I can't even
begin
to imagine the tension in the band if he messes this up.

Chapter Seven

Talon

Every morning I
open my eyes to see the most gorgeous woman with bed head that is sexy as fuck
and skin so soft that I can't resist waking her by touching it.
 
I've come a long way to find this happiness,
but there’s one thing I need to do to leave the past behind me and move
forward.
 
I slide out of bed, trying my
hardest not to wake her.
 

She stirs just
slightly then falls back to sleep.
 
Damn she's beautiful.
 
How did I get so lucky to find the one person
who can see straight through to the depths of me?
 
A year ago, there wasn't a single person that
would try to talk to me about my issues if I pushed them away just the
slightest bit.
 
She broke right through
to me and I haven't been the same since.
 
I love her more than anything and I will spend the rest of my life
trying to make her happy.

I start the truck
and let it run a little in the chilly morning air.
 
This is going to be tough, but I have to do
this.
 
I have to say goodbye and forgive
her once and for all.

I pull off the
dirt road and park in the same spot I have so many times before.
 
The sound of water rushing fills the air as
soon as I open the door.
 
Walking over to
the bridge, I stop where her car mangled the steel and see that repairs have
been made to secure the bridge.
 
The
memories of that night begin to flood my mind.
 
I was so full of anger and hatred for Nicole for taking everything from
me once again.
 

Everything could’ve
ended so differently that night and I've had a rough time letting go of some of
the hatred I feel when I think of her or our baby.
 
I'll never have the chance to hold my son or
daughter because Nicole took that away from me.
 
How can I ever forgive someone for that?
 

I pull out my ear
buds and start the music.
 
Songs that I
use to purge every emotion by beating the shit out of the drums begin to flood
my ears.
 
I sit on the edge of the bridge
and watch the water flow for what seems like hours.
 
I cry, cuss, pray, remember and try to forget
the entire time I sit there.
 
A few cars
go
by—one even stops—
but I don't bother looking to see
who it is.
 

She runs her hand
up my back and around my neck.
 
There is
no mistaking her body when she leans on my back to fully hug me from
behind.
 
I leave the music on to finish
this song.
 
She doesn't move at all and
we just sit there with her holding me.
 
The tears run down both of our faces and I don't even bother to wipe
them away.
 

"I love
you," are the first words that come out of her mouth when the song
ends.
 
I choose to kiss her arm since the
lump in my throat won't let me speak.
 
She pulls out an ear bud and sits beside me.

"Talon, I'm
sorry."
 
She has nothing to be sorry
about, but this is who she is.
 
If
someone is hurting she is, too.
 
She
loves with everything inside of her and would do anything to take the hurt away
from someone she loves.

"I am,
too."
 
We sit there and watch the
water some more.
 
"How'd you find
me?"

"Macy saw you
out here.
 
She called and asked me if she
should stop and I told her I would
come
talk to
you.
 
You going
to be alright?"

"Yeah.
 
I just needed to work through a few things
that I never really took the time to do before."
 
When I pulled
Ev
out of the river that night, the last thing I worried about was me.

"Want me to
leave you alone a little longer?"
 

"Nah.
 
I'm
gonna
be
alright."
 
She leans in and gives me
a peck on the lips.
 
I see the tears in
her eyes that haven't quite dried.
 
Using
both thumbs, I wipe her tears away and she does the same for me.

"From now on,
you let
me
catch your
tears."
 
Her serious face and
demanding words make me smile.
 

"I will, Mrs.
Walker."
 

"I'm going to
go back to work on some of the wedding stuff.
 
You want to stay a little longer?"

"I'll be
right behind you."
 
I watch her
leave, letting the glare of the sun bounce off the water a little longer.
 
There’s nothing more to do or say out
here.
 
Sometimes, tragedies in life make
you stronger and sometimes they break you down.
 
I hate that Nicole lost her life to her struggle with drugs.
 
If only she would've taken the help that was offered
to her, she’d be here today.
 

I crank up the
music as soon as I turn on the engine and head to our house to move forward
with my life and try to leave behind the guilt.
 
I'll always feel like I should’ve done something to save the baby.
 
Time hasn't helped that feeling go away, but
maybe I can quit blaming Nicole.
 

Our little house
is a perfect starter house for us, especially since we won’t be spending very
much time in it for a few years.
 
Ev
will be traveling with me everywhere I go.
 
Her career as a photographer will only grow
on the road.
 
We’re going to be more in
control of the tour dates and try to enjoy some of the locations we get to visit.
 
The last tour was balls to the walls
non-stop.
 
If it wasn't for
Ev
being there with me, I would have hated every minute of
it.
 

Taron
has plans to bring Ivy and the baby for at least a
year.
 
We’ve worked our asses off to get dates
at some of the best venues around.
 
Aiden
actually managed to get some of the best ones booked.
 
It looks like he'll be going on the road to
help us manage all of the details needed as we move from city to city.
 
He’s been vital to getting us the exposure we
need and marketing the events to ramp up ticket sales.

With all of our hard
work, we might just actually make it big this time.
 
I'll be happy with just playing with the
group and traveling with
Ev
.
 
Who gets an opportunity like this in their
lifetime, let alone as newlyweds?

Ev
isn't at the house when I arrive, so I start to work on
the music for the wedding.
 

Chapter Eight

Ivy

Her little toes
and fingers are so tiny.
 
I had no idea
how much I really loved this little girl until I met her for the first
time.
 
She has her dad's personality
until she gets mad.
 
Then it's all
me.
 
She has a full head of dark brown
hair.
 
One of the nurses brought in a bow
and we've managed to have it around her eyes, off to the side and on the floor
with how much we’ve been holding her.
 

Everyone says that
she will get spoiled if we hold her.
 
Well then, she'll just have to be spoiled, because I want to love on my
baby.
 
Taron
has been extremely attentive.