Craving Talon (27 page)

“Addison Lynae!” I pull away from Talon and Kyle, feeling like I’ve been caught making out with a boy in the closet when I was fourteen. Don’t laugh, it happened.
 

“Hi mom,” I say sheepishly. We had Leroy bring her to the greenroom before we let the public in.

“Oh, wipe that look off of your face, you’re not in trouble.” I giggle. She comes up and wraps her arms around me. “You were absolutely amazing. I’ve seen the videos but they do not do you justice. You’re beautiful and I loved every minute. And you guys,” she looks at Talon and the guys standing behind him, “I’m impressed. I didn’t know what to expect, but you put on one hell of a show.”
 

I watch as all their faces light up. “Thank you, Lori,” Talon says to her and she lights up.
 

“You’re most welcome. You deserve it.”
 

My mom sticks around for a few more minutes, praising me and the guys before she takes her leave of the room. I walk out into the hallway and into the crowd of people standing there. They start cheering when I walk out behind my mom and I fight the urge to blush at the praise of the waiting group.
 

I walk my mom out the back door to where her car is parked. “Addison, I had an amazing time tonight. You sing so beautifully and you looked like you were having a great time up there.”
 

I laugh. “You know, tonight is the first time I really kind of let loose. It’s scary being up there, but it is such an adrenaline rush.”
 

“Then maybe you should consider their offers.” She gives me that mom look.
 

“I am, mom, but right now if I sign with them, I’m done with these guys and I don’t want that. I want to finish up my job and the tour with my band before I make any decisions and Cami, my boss, is keeping them at bay for me. We’ll be recording both songs while we’re in New York in a couple of weeks. Once I have a better idea of what kind of audience I’m going to gain, I’ll decide.” I lean against her car. “This might sound selfish, but I don’t want to turn into some starving artist. I’ve made a hell of a name for myself at Bold and I hate to throw that away on the unknown, especially a whole new career.”
 

“Oh, baby, I believe you would be a hit for a long time, especially after seeing what I saw tonight. They absolutely loved you.”
 

I smile. “You’re so sweet. They do love me, but what happens when I become me without 69 Bottles? They have such a following and my being included just might be a ‘she’s cool right now’ kinda thing. There’s just too many unknowns right now, but I promise to keep you posted on whatever decisions I make.”
 

“Okay, baby girl,” she says sweetly to me and then hugs me. “I miss you so much. Please, bring them after the tour. I’d love to spend some time with you and with them. They’re a couple of great guys, Addison, hold on to them.”
 

“God, mom, I can’t believe you’re so…”
 

“Cool about all this?” she finishes my sentence. “Addison, you’ve been alone way too long. I know you love your job, but whether it’s one man or a hundred…”
 

“Mom!” I scold.
 

“Well, hear me out. Whether it’s one or a hundred, as long as you’re happy, as long as you’re breaking this wall you have around yourself, I don’t care who you’re with.”
 

“Have I really been that bad?”
 

She smiles. “No, you just haven’t been you. I understand what you went through with Dan, I honestly do, but it’s not a reason to be alone for the rest of your life. If Dan really loved you, he’d want you to be happy. Whether it is with his brother or someone else.”
 

“I didn’t stay alone on purpose, it just happened.”
 

“Oh sweetie, I know, but now is the time to live your life and I’m beyond the moon that you have two amazing men willing to show you what life is all about.” I wipe the tears from my cheeks. “Aw baby, don’t cry. Just live it up. Now get back in there, I think you have some fans to entertain.”
 

I laugh and hug her again. “I miss you. I love you, mom.”
 

“Love you too, sweetie. We will talk and then I’ll see you, what, this summer?”
 

I smile and reply, “The tour is over in June. I’ll know more closer to the end of the tour because the guys are due back in the studio, so we will need to plan it all closer too.”
 

“Sounds great, baby.” She hugs me again and climbs into her car. I stand outside and watch as she drives away. When I turn back toward the venue, I can see my bodyguards close by but Kyle is also standing just outside the door. I walk over to him.
 

“You okay, baby girl?” he asks with concern.
 

“Yeah, I just realized every time I see her, I miss her a little more. I want to move her to LA so she isn’t so far away, but I don’t know if she will.”
 

“One day at a time, baby girl.”
 

“I know. Why are you out here?”
 

He laughs, “You’re not going to believe this.”
 

I cock my head at him. “What?”
 

“No one will leave the greenroom. They’re waiting for you.”
 

“You’re kidding me, right?”
 

He snorts, “I wish. I was sent out here to drag you back in.”
 

“Well, then we better go.”
 

Kyle wasn’t kidding. I was all but mobbed the moment I walked into the room. Mills, Beck and Rusty were all over me, blocking me from the barrage of people. Talon and Kyle come to stand with them. Talon surprises me when he announces, “Alright guys, calm down. I promise you that she has time for all of you.”
 

They all calm down and Mills begins moving them into a line and the party begins.
 

Two hours later and everyone is finally out of the greenroom. I’ve signed at least two hundred autographs and probably taken as many pictures. The guys all lined up next to me so that they could get me and then get to the others and back out the door again.

Climbing back onto the bus is a chore. I’m tired and my hands, cheeks and feet are killing me. I stumble my way back to our room. Kyle and Talon were taking care of some things before getting on the bus. We need to get on the road before too long so we’re not going out.
 

I open the door and freeze. “What the…?” I grumble. The room is literally covered in flowers. Every surface has a vase full of red roses. The bed, the tops of the tables and down onto the floor are littered with rose petals. In the middle of the bed is a card that says “Addison” on it. The room smells so fragrant and vibrant. I reach for the card on the bed.
 

“What the fuck?” I hear Talon behind me.
 

“What’s the ma…Addie, stop.” I freeze on the bed. My heart is pounding wildly in my chest and I can feel my body shaking.
 

“This isn’t…from you?” My voice falls to a whisper.
 

“No, come back off of the bed, baby girl. We didn’t do this.”
 

I pull off of the bed quickly pushing my back against the wall. I feel a hand around my wrist and I flinch. “It’s me, baby, come here.” I slide across the wall toward him.
 

“Mills!” Kyle shouts and then I hear him stomping across the floor of the bus. “Mills!” he shouts louder, but from further away.
 

Talon pulls me into his arms and wraps them around me before backing out of the room and down the hall. “We need to get you off the bus.”
 

“What’s going on?” I hear Mills say from behind Talon.
 

“We need a safe room, and you need to get into the bedroom. Someone’s been on the bus.”
 

Mills slides past us, his arm at his side ready to draw his sidearm. Talon moves me onto the couch and Leroy and Beck come to stand in front of us. Rusty follows Mills toward the back. He begins checking behind the bunk curtains. Nothing. He looks into the bathroom, nothing.
 

Suddenly the bus rocks to one side and back again and Rusty goes running back to our room. There is some shouting and another jolt against the side of the bus and I jump with each one. Talon continues holding me, rubbing my arm and whispering comforting words into my ear.

“This was the stupidest fucking thing you could have possibly done,” Mills barks at whoever he has in his clutches. Rusty comes around the corner first.

“I don’t know if you want to see this,” he says to me and Talon, but mostly to me.
 

“Did you catch him?” I ask, and Rusty nods. “Who is it?”
 

“That’s why I don’t think you want to see this. The cops are on their way. We believe the situation is neutralized, but until we know for sure, you can’t leave. So you can either cover your eyes or watch.”
 

“Come on, angel,” Talon says turning me toward him, patting his chest. “Don’t watch, baby. Please.” His voice is choked with pain and I want to hold him. Suddenly I feel Kyle behind me. “We got you, baby. We won’t let anything happen to you.”
 

Kyle and Talon sandwich me between them. I turn my face toward the wall. Being between them prevents me from turning, even if I wanted to.
 

There is some movement, some shuffling of feet, and I feel more than I hear because of how they have me protected. I close my eyes, concentrating on Talon’s racing heart. I notice as it increases I can feel his hands tighten into fists at my side. This isn’t good, whatever this is. The bus shifts and bumps as people climb down the stairs and then everything seems to settle again.
 

“He didn’t see you, baby girl. He didn’t even know you were here.”

“Do I want to know who it was?”
 

“No, baby, you don’t.”
 

My gut tells me that I know exactly who it was, but the fact that he was hiding somewhere on the bus is all the more worrisome and I don’t know how I feel about this. I don’t know how I feel about all of this anymore. This is just too fucking insane. I burst into tears. Fear, panic, and a nervous energy rack my body. The only thing I know is that I’m not cut out for this. This is too much for me to handle anymore. I sob harder.
 

“How long before we absolutely have to leave?” I ask Kyle after we put Addison to bed back in her old bunk. She’s physically and mentally exhausted. Frankly, so am I. We came outside with Mills and Rusty so that we could talk without the risk of waking anyone up.
 

“It’s about three, three and half hours so by one at the latest,” he says. He’s just as shaken over what happened as Addison and myself are.
 

Eddie, that fucker that attacked her, of all fucking people, it would have to be him. He was fucking naked. The image is burned into my mind.
 

“What the fuck happened, Mills? How did he get on the bus?”
 

“He managed to get past security at the fence. So we’re working on that, but they’re not our guys, so it’s hard to tell. Then when he got to the bus, he told Ted that he had a delivery for Ms. Beltrand from Talon with specific instructions. Then Ted got pulled away with a mechanical issue on the other bus. No one noticed that he never left the bus.
 

“I found him in the closet. He was naked, waiting for his chance to strike. But you and Kyle interrupted it. So he stayed put. How he expected to get off of the bus, I have no fucking clue. But the bottom line in all of this is that he has a conviction of assault against Addison, add to that the stalking charge, plus he’s violated his plea deal, and bail. He was arrested as soon as they released him for Addison’s attack and charged him with rape of another woman. He was out on bail again. He wasn’t supposed to leave the state of Texas. He’s now been arrested here. I’m pulling some strings to ensure he doesn’t get bail again. We will know immediately if he gets released again.” Mills looks really upset about what happened. “Look, I’m recommending an additional four bodyguards to meet us in Des Moines this afternoon.”