Beats of Life (Perception Book 5) (24 page)

“My eyes are up here,” she informs cheekily, causing me to chuckle softly.

She smiles brightly as she carefully lifts the well-used yellow lined piece of paper off the bedside table to hold it closely to her chest for several seconds. She exhales a deep breath, before turning the piece of paper around to show me.

There, in thick black ink is bucket list item number three.

Have a baby.

Kylie

Four weeks later….

“It’s just you and me baby,” Slater croons.

I swallow harshly in an attempt to keep my bile in my stomach. I take in several deep breaths and my eyes stare firmly into his. He smiles largely. He can smile, he isn’t the one that is scared to death right now. I attempt to raise my hand, but it stays firmly plastered at the side of my body like it is being held down by a concrete weight. My hands tremble can be felt all the way up my arms.

“You have nothing to be scared of,” he continues to encourage. “It’s just me and you,” he whispers, his eyes never once leaving mine. He stands from the wooden barstool and moves closer to me, so close we almost become one.

“Close your eyes,” he instructs softly. I nod my head quickly while snapping my eyes shut.

“Just listen to my voice,” he instructs softly.

All noise around me ceases to exist as I listen to his deep and soulful voice whisper encouraging words into my ear. This time when I raise my hand, it actually moves and only slightly shakes in fear. Rustling around me causes my eyes to pop open. I spot Slater moving back to the barstool. I quickly grab his wrist, stopping his hasty retreat.

“Stay with me,” I request softly, my fearful eyes pleading with his. He smiles while nodding his head gently.

“Are you ready?” he questions calmly. I nod my head quickly, trying to encourage myself to hurry up and get this over with. Rip that band aid off in one quick motion.

Slater signals to the gentleman next to us that I am ready. I take in several deep breaths as music slowly filters into the room. A small smile tugs on my lips when I realize the song he has selected. It was the first song he had heard me sing. The first few lines of the song come out a little shaky since my nerves are being projected through my voice. When I lift my eyes to stare into Slater’s, all I can see being reflected back is love and pride. My heart enlarges from the rapid surge of blood that pumps through it. The next few lines come out more clearly and by the time I make it halfway through the song, all of my nerves have vanished and it is once again just me and Slater sitting in the living room of his loft.

He has been encouraging me the past few weeks to sing in front of him. I always find it hard. I can’t perform in front of anyone, not even my parents. To start with, he used to stand behind me, pretending that he wasn’t even in the room. As each day went on, he slowly moved to stand in front of me. I have been able to sing in front of him the past two weeks, but tonight is completely different. We are in public and at a karaoke bar. And as if that isn’t bad enough, we are also here with all of his bandmates.

I have my back facing the stage. Slater thought it would help settle my nerves if I couldn’t see the faces of everyone around me. It appears like it is just him and me. When he smiles at me proudly, I smile back while I continue to sing about Romeo and Juliet, knowing without a doubt that my Romeo is standing directly in front of me.

Once the song is finished, the whole room plunges in silence, forcing my heart to plunge into my stomach. Slater smiles brightly and motions for me to turn around. I nervously turn only my head, fearful of what the crowd’s reaction might be. I am surprised when I notice several smiling faces and few even have their mouths gapped open wide in shock. Suddenly, the crowd erupts into a huge roaring chant. Their loud claps startle me that much that I jump in fright.

“You did it,” Slater whispers proudly into my ear. “Do you want to sing another song?” he questions eagerly. I instantly shake my head. I am that nervous I cannot guarantee that I am not going to pass out, or even worse hurl right on this shiny polished stage.

Slater chuckles at the expression on my face, before clasping his hand around mine and walking us back towards the booth the rest of his band members are sitting in. Several strangers offer words of encouragement and support when I walk by.

“Fuck, Kylie,” Noah says the instant I slide back into the booth, his head slightly shakes and his dark eyes stare into mine.

My eyes dart down to the shot glass full of amber colored liquid before I eagerly lift it to my lips. I need some more liquid courage to settle my nerves. Slater had been handing shots to me left right and centre since we arrived. He knew I would have never been able to get up on the stage without some liquid courage. Noah was one of the reasons I was even more nervous about performing tonight. Having an amateur watch me sing is bad enough, let alone a professional. When Noah sings….oh my god, you get goose bumps. His voice is one of the most talented voices I have ever heard in my life.

“You can really sing,” Noah says, forcing my eyes to lift up to his. Slater chuckles softly next to me, his large hand squeezes my thigh in encouragement.

“You have a gift,” Noah continues, his face breaking into his huge grin. “You might want to hide her from Cormack,” he suggests to Slater, causing him to chuckle loudly.

“If she wants to sing, I am more than happy to encourage her,” Slater replies proudly, forcing a large smile to form on my face.

“Is that something you want baby?” he questions, his piercing brown eyes staring directly into mine. I gently shake my head. I am more than happy to only have one musician in our relationship.

“If you change your mind, you just let me know,” he whispers into my ear, before placing a kiss on the corner of my mouth.

I can’t wipe the smile of my face for the rest of the night, that by the time we are driving back to Slater’s loft my cheeks are hurting. Since it is raining we took Slater’s car instead of his bike. Slater has informed me that his car is a Lamborghini Huracan Spyder. He happily smirked and winked when he told me all about it, like it was supposed to impress me? I smiled and winked back, even though I didn’t have a clue what he was talking about. All I know is that his car is shiny, sexy and it purrs. Just like him.

The next morning, I am awoken by a deliciously sugary scent engulfing my nostril cavities. My stomach grumbles loudly and my eyes sluggishly open. Standing before me, shirtless and in a pair of jeans is Slater. He is smiling brightly and has a large glazed jam donut on a small white plate. The donut has a pink lit candle in the middle of it. My eyebrows slowly pull together as I scoot up the bed.

“Happy birthday baby,” he says cheerfully, lowering down the plate, motioning for me to blow out the candle.

I hesitantly blow out the candle, before lifting my eyes back to his. “It’s not my birthday until next month,” I inform apprehensively, not wanting to hurt his feelings that he has mixed up the month I was born. He has the day right, just not the month.

“I know that,” he replies with a slight chuckle. “But we will be on the road then and I wouldn’t be able to give you the gift I have organized if we are on the road,” he informs, pulling off a large chunk of the donut and popping it into my mouth. A long and salivating groan erupts from my mouth the instant the glaze hits my tongue.

“Holy fuck,” Slater mumbles under his breath while adjusting the crutch of his jeans, causing me to giggle softly. I lean over and grab another large chunk of the donut to pop into my mouth, ensuring that I moan just as loudly the second time around.

“Do you want a taste?” I question seductively. When he nods his head, I move to a kneeling position and rip off another large chunk of the donut. His eyes watch my every movement and his mouth commences opening in preparation for a taste. I smile, before shoving the chunk of donut into my mouth.

“Hey--” he attempts to reply before my mouth halts anymore words escaping his lips. His mouth tastes delicious with a slight hint of coffee and toothpaste.

“Donut never tasted so good,” he informs cheekily when I pull away from his delicious mouth. 

When I pull him down onto his bed, his eyes flick up to the alarm clock on the bedside table. His face looks pained and his eyes torn when they turn back down to mine.

“I really want to, but we won’t have enough time,” he informs, raising himself off the bed and walking over to his walk in closest. My bottom lip drops and a small whine escapes my lips the instant he puts a shirt on.

He yanks a pair of my jeans and a shirt roughly from the coat hangers on my side of the wardrobe before walking over to me. “Time for presents,” he says excitedly, his eyebrows waggling excessively.

I eagerly jump out of bed and throw on the clothes he had supplied me, before rushing into the bathroom to brush my teeth and pull my hair up into a high ponytail. Upon walking out into the living area of the loft, my eager eyes dart around trying to spot anything that resembles a present, but they come up empty. My bare feet quietly tiptoe into the kitchen where I find Slater drinking a large mug of coffee. I walk over to him and steal a quick sip out of his mug, forcing my nose to screw up in disgust. I have only just brushed my teeth and toothpaste and coffee don’t mix, unless you are sampling it straight out of Slater’s mouth.

I feel a vibration on my hip that is leaning against Slater’s side. He smiles largely as his hand digs into the front of his jeans to pull out his phone. He turns the phone screen away from my view and quickly reads the message, his smile enlarging with every second that ticks by.

“It’s here,” he says excitedly, slipping his phone back into his pocket.

My excitement rapidly builds when I see the joyous look on his face. He grasps my hand within his and quickly makes his way to the elevator. My curious eyes dart up towards his. So my gift must be outside?  My heart is crazily beating when we arrive in the basement carpark of his building. He better not have purchased me a car or I will shoot him. I already have nearly one thousand dollars in expenses to pay back to him once I start working again, and that doesn’t include rent. There is no way I could afford to pay back a car.

My heart rate slowly lowers when he walks over and pushes the button to open the roller door. The instant the doors are open, a hot stuffy breeze gushes in. My eyes dart down to my jeans, wondering if I should go and change them into a pair of shorts since it is so hot. Slater pulls me in close to his side. His body heat makes me even hotter, but in a good way. I listen to the rapid beating of his heart as we walk us around his building. My confused eyes dart up to look at him when we round the corner of his building. Suddenly, he stops walking and his eyes turn down to mine. He smiles largely, before motioning his head for me to look forward.

The instant I turn my gaze, my eyes burn from the sudden rush of moisture that forms in them and a small gasp escapes my lips.

“Happy birthday,” he whispers softly into my hair, pulling me in close to his body. I wrap my arms tightly around his waist and squeeze him as tight as I can, trying to project my thanks for the best present I have ever received. I hesitantly release my arms and slowly walk up to the most beautiful present I have ever been given.

“Hello Misty,” I whisper softly, trying not to startle her since we haven’t seen each other in over two years. She walks straight up to me and runs her nose down my cheek. The warm breath out of her beautiful nostrils dry the tears that are streaming down my face.

Slater

Kylie’s face when she noticed Misty standing near the docks was worth all the effort it took to get her here. I would go to hell and back just to see that look on her face again. I move over to stand next to her, causing Misty to rear up and kick like she did the first time we met. Kylie giggles loudly, her joy clearly shown all over her face. She rushes towards me and throws herself in my arms, her hay smell even more prominent than earlier.

“How did you do this?” she questions, her excited and happy eyes dart between mine.

“I may have had some help,” I reply, using my thumb to rub away a few stray tears Misty missed, before slowly turning Kylie around to face the other side of the dock. She gasps even louder than she did when she noticed Misty. Her eyes dart back to mine, so many words are said without a single one escaping her lips.

“I love you,” she eventually says, planting a quick peck on my lips before she rushes towards her mom. Her mom is leaning against the horse trailer, her apprehension shown all over her face. Once she notices Kylie running towards her, she starts running as well. They meet halfway, crashing into each other arms, both with tears streaming freely down their faces.

The first few times I called the ranch, the phone was always answered by Kylie’s dad. He never gave me a chance to speak. He just hung up the phone the instant I announced who was calling. Kylie had been photographed with me constantly the past six weeks and her face was plastered in several magazines and newspaper as the girl who finally tamed ‘Rise Up’s’ bad boy. I am sure he thought Kylie had been with me the whole time the past two years. Which only we know isn’t the truth. I remembered Kylie saying how the ranch has no Monday to Friday routine. Every day the same chores have to be done whether it is the weekend or not and then I remembered how her mom prepared a huge breakfast first thing in the morning for when the men returned from doing their chores.

I rose early one morning, before the sun was even up, and tried her home phone again. That time, I got her mom. Her sobs sounded down the phone the instant I informed her who was calling. Her voice was barely a whisper when she asked if Kylie was okay. She was just as surprised as I was when I informed her that Kylie had been living in Orange County the past two years. I talked to Kylie’s mom, Mary, for nearly an hour while watching Kylie sleep peacefully in my bed. When I told her I wanted to buy Misty off her, she blatantly refused my request.

I was just about to resort to begging when she said, “Misty is Kylie’s horse. I gave her to Kylie for her tenth birthday. She belongs to her; you don’t have to buy her.”

Two more early morning phone calls, and a few hours of begging Jacob and everything was set. Mary was going to bring Misty and Charlie to my house and Jacob was going to let them stay on his dad’s property until I could find somewhere more suitable for them to go. Nick’s dad Harrison had offered for the horses to stay at his farm in Petersburg, but Jacob’s house is only five miles from my condo so Kylie will be able to visit them more there.

Kylie and Mary walk back to me with their arms wrapped around each other. Kylie only loosens her grip when she gets closer to me. She throws herself in my arms and gives me one of the longest simmering kisses I have ever had. Mom or not, if she keeps kissing me the way she is, I am going to take her against the wall of my building. I feel her smile against my lips when she notices my body’s reaction to her. She is such a tease and she loves it.

“You brought Charlie too?” she half questions, half informs, pulling back from our embrace.

I give her a quick nod of my head. “We have a mutual agreement. If I let him eat all the grass he wants, he guarantees he won’t kick me off,” I inform, causing her to giggle softly.

I head into my loft to grab Kylie a change of clothes, while her and Mary load Misty back into the horse trailer to transport them to Jacob’s dad house. When spend the remainder of the day riding Misty and Charlie around Thomas’s expansive paddocks. The smile plastered on Kylie’s face all day was one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen.

****

By the time we arrive back at my loft, my ass is the deadest it has ever been. I offered for Mary to stay with us, but it is only just dawning on me now that it may be a little awkward, considering I only have one room. I had the penthouse and the garage converted first, but the remainder of the building is still in its original warehouse condition. I didn’t need the room or the money so I was happy for it to stay vacant. But maybe now I should consider converting them to small apartments so Mary can come and stay with Kylie as often as she pleases. And I am sure Kylie would love to have Melanie come and visit as well. I’ll have to call my builder. Maybe he can do some work when we go back on the road?

Mary and Kylie are chatting happily when we exit the elevator. Suddenly, I have the living fucking shit scared out of me when a loud “Surprise,” gets screamed loudly from inside my loft. Once my heart leaps back into my chest, I lift my eyes to spot all my bandmates and their partners, Jacob, Lola and my parents standing in the middle of my living room with large smiles on their faces.

Emily and Jenni rush towards Kylie, eagerly giving her their birthday wishes before Jenni walks over to me. “I know her birthday isn’t until next month, but we didn’t want to miss out on the opportunity of eating your mom’s famous triple layered chocolate cake,” she says, her mouth salivating in excitement.

Like my mom can read Jenni’s pregnancy cravings, she walks out of the kitchen with her famous cake covered in several candles. Everyone breaks into a surprising well-tuned version of ‘Happy Birthday.’ Kylie has a broad smile on her face, her happy eyes dart around at everyone in the room before she leans over and blows out all the candles with one large breath.

****

My mom’s cake is as good as I remember. Her eyes narrow slightly when I enter the kitchen requesting my third slice.

“What, its fucking delicious,” I say, handing her my plate. I smile brightly when she cuts me a super large piece. You only have to give my mom a slight compliment and you get well rewarded for it. I polish off the entire piece of cake before using my tongue to ensure every last drop of frosting is licked off the plate. I then hand my sparkling clean plate back to my mom to wash up.

“I don’t even need to wash it,” she giggles softly, dunking my plate into the sods in the sink.

Jacob’s large chuckle echoes around my loft, triggering everyone’s eyes to dart over to him. I don’t know what Kylie is telling him, but she has him laughing so hard he has tears in the corner of his eyes and is slapping his knee harshly.

“She gets along well with your friends,” my mom says, her head motioning towards Kylie.

“Yeah she does,” I reply. Everyone loves Kylie the instant they meet her.

I haven’t told anyone about Kylie being sick. I know what it was like for Serena when everyone found out. They all treated her different. The kids at school avoided her like she had the plague. Like they were worried Leukaemia might be contagious, and even her pathetic boyfriend she should have never had vanished. She hated being treated different and I would never want Kylie to be treated that way.

“Can I ask you something?” I ask my mom quietly, my fear easily heard in my voice.

My mom finishes drying a dish before she slowly turns around to face me. Her face appears concerned and her eyes have a slight amount of sheen to them. She softly nods her head at my request.

“What are the chances of being diagnosed with ALL for a third time?” I question quietly. I know Kylie is well now, but I am terrified that she is going to get sick again. My mom is a chairman on the Serena Scott Foundation board and she is very knowledgeable about this type of stuff.

“Kylie had it twice?” my mom questions, her scared eyes quickly turning to look at Kylie.

“You knew?” I respond unbelievably.

“I had an inkling just from looking in her eyes. She has that same fighting spirit in her eyes that Serena had, I just didn’t know what caused it. Then when you said you met her riding your bike on the anniversary of Serena’s death, I knew she was brought into your life for a reason.” Her eyes turn back to mine and they are full to the brim with tears.

“How old was she the second time?” my mom questions softly.

“Twenty-one,” I reply, exhaling a large deep breath. “It was why she vanished,” I continue, my gaze turning to look at Kylie. She must feel me watching her as she lifts her head and smiles, before returning her gaze back to Jacob and Lola.

“I don’t know what the odds are of her getting it again, but the fact she survived it a second time shows how truly strong she is,” my mom informs painfully, triggering my eyes to return to hers.

“Normally, adult patients who relapse with ALL only have a ten percent survival rate of longer than five years,” she continues quietly, her voice barely a whisper.

The instant the words escapes her lips it feels like I have been punched in the stomach and all the cake I have just eaten threatens to resurface.

“She is strong Slater, just look at her,” my mom instructs softly when she notices the concerned look on my face. I turn to look at Kylie. She is smiling largely and laughing with my friends. Her happiness is practically beaming out of her.

“Serena wouldn’t have brought her into your life to have her taken away. You have to believe that. Don’t treat her like a porcelain doll that might break. She will never forgive you if you do,” my mom instructs firmly.

She gently squeezes my arm in support before she walks over to Kylie and hands her a large piece of birthday cake. Kylie smiles brightly as she lifts a forkful of the cake into her mouth. Her pleasant moans echo around the interior of my loft the instant the frosting touches her tongue. She uses the fork to summon me into the living room. Her happiness sparkling from her eyes.

I place my best fake grin on my face before making my way towards her. Kylie is a fighter and the fact that she has made it this far shows me how truly strong she is. I will never stop worrying, but for now I am going to enjoy having her back in my life and take every day as a fucking blessing.

Once I reach her, I lean over and take a huge bite out of her cake.

“Hey, get your own!” she says cheekily. I chuckle loudly when she elbows me hard in the ribs.

Suddenly, the side of my face becomes covered with something sticky and wet. I lift my hand and run it down my right cheek before pulling it in front of my eyes. Chocolate frosting is smeared all over my hand. Lifting my gaze, I spot Kylie sprinting towards our bedroom with a huge smile plastered across her adorable face. Her loud giggles are echoing around the room. When I take off after her, the grin on my face is no longer fake. It takes me all of five seconds to catch up with her. I rub my cheek along her face, effectively covering half of her face with the frosting that was smeared on mine. Once her giggles die down, she places each of her tiny hands on my cheeks. Her excited and happy eyes dart between mine before she lowers down her mouth and gives me a scorching hot kiss.

Not that I would ever tell my mom this, but Kylie’s mouth tastes even better than my mom’s famous triple layered chocolate cake.