Questing Heart: Fighting Heart Erotic Bad Boy Romance Series Book 2 (11 page)

“We’re going to ignore Brandon Lynes presence at this festival, totally and utterly. Are you with me?” said Cody.

I loved Cody’s attitude. It was so obvious and it was exactly the right thing to do, even on such a big occasion.  Causing a stir, getting everyone else het up because of his own emotional retardation – these things were Brandon’s oxygen. Now he wanted to treat everyone as badly as he was treating me. Man, Brandon was a fuck up, and I wanted no part of it. Besides, if Brandon’s performance was as bad as the last time I’d seen him there was an excellent chance that Brandon’s reputation was going to go Chernobyl.

“I’m with you stud,” I laughed.

Joanna Laws was talking to one of the venue organisers at The Grand, not far from us. Even though she was busy talking, I could see she’d been listening to the stud comments. She glanced over and fixed me with the look. I’d only just arrived after my last day perusing the city, enjoying the giddy feeling of a great new guy in my life, accompanied by the sweet ache my body felt from such a love making marathon. Joanna Laws couldn’t take any of that away, no matter how much she wanted to. I planned to hang around until Cody finished his 8.30pm gig. As soon as he was done we planned to take flight back to the hotel room and bolt the door. I was as excited as a school girl about the prospect of being intimate with him again, but I wondered how my body was going to feel tomorrow… still, I was sure it was going to be worth it.

“I’m having the time of my life right now,” said Cody. “I hope you feel the same. Promise me you won’t worry about a thing, because you don’t have to. We can fix it all together…”

I nodded and we wrapped our arms around each other. “I know. I’m not worried.” We broke apart under scrutiny from Joanna Laws. I felt a cloud brewing from her direction, and it wasn’t long before the rain drops fell. She waited until Cody was busy scanning the sections he was going to read from tonight when Joanna happened to walk by my shoulder.  The woman always looked so damn good, she made a business suit and pencil skirt look as hot as any off the shoulder number. I wished I had that kind of smouldering thing going on. But I guess I didn’t need any more sex appeal right now. Cody seemed to like me as I was.

The woman narrowed her beautiful eyes and whispered at me. Her whisper was like a shout. “Cody came in here this morning looking like he’d been in the ring with Floyd Mayweather. I asked you to keep him fresh… Do you realise how important tonight is for his career? I thought you might care about that.”

“Oh, I do, Joanna. I care about whatever’s good for Cody. And Cody cares about whatever’s good for me. Believe me, if there was any way I could have stopped him, I would.”

In one of our late night conversations, I had asked Cody about his relationship and Joanna. He told me he’d been tempted, but he had said no. I don’t like being told what to do at the best of times. I couldn’t help but rub it in.

“He was insatiable…”

Joanna’s face changed from angry to curious – her eyes widened at the detail – and a hint of jealousy in her pursed lips.

“Really?”

“Really. He’s relentless,” I said, keeping my mirth just below the surface.

She scanned my eyes for sarcasm, but didn’t find any, then she ‘humphed’ and walked away probably wishing she’d experienced some of Cody’s relentlessness herself.

***

Elsewhere, Amanda stood behind Brandon Lynes in their hotel bedroom. Last night he cancelled the booking for the second room, which overjoyed Amanda. She was back in a flirtatious and queenly mode. Surely victory was not so far away. Brandon had overstepped the mark in pushing Ashley over outside the theatre, and Amanda had seen first-hand the sheer hatred in the girl’s eyes. There was no way that Ashley was coming back to him. And Amanda was ready to pick up the pieces – ready to be the solution Brandon Lynes didn’t realise he needed. Brandon stood bare-chested before the hotel dressing room mirror. His reading notes were laid out on the desk before him. There were scribbled notes in the margins and he’d highlighted his favourite sections. “Roar at the crowd here,” said one of his notes. “Send out your power to the audience” he’d written by his grand conclusion.

He faced the mirror. His big blue eyes roamed the page, then looked at his own male beauty, his firm body and his eyes. He saw the unsettled quality in himself, how his eyes wanted to move all the time, how restless he was. His mind was careening between his rehearsal, to just how bad things had gone with Ashley… then again how much he wanted her… then how he would still force her back into line until she finally realised she was still in love with him. He looked at the beautiful face of Amanda in the mirror, as she kissed his shoulder and wrapped her bare arms around his waist, pressing her bosom against him.

“Mine, all mine
,” she thought. And Brandon her claim on him as if he could read her mind. No, that’s not how his life was going to be. Brandon gently rubbed her elegant hands with his own, then held them tightly and turned around to face her. As she was pulled against him, and she let out a little sigh as she looked up at him. There was a challenge in Amanda’s eyes, and yet there was submission. She was in her underwear. Of course they had slept together last night, it was only right and natural. The girl loved him, it was the only right thing to do. She was a wonder to make most men jealous, but he already had this one. And what a man owns soon seems cheap. He wanted the gold almost out of reach, and he had to have it, no matter the cost.

His fidgeting mind needed quiet. He knew one quick way he could stave off his angst. From the desk he pulled up a tumbler with a half inch of amber liquid swirling in it, and tipped it down his throat. Then he looked at Amanda, unwilling to reflect the lust which he saw in her eyes.

“Get on the bed,” he said.

Amanda seductively moved onto the bed, kneeling upright so he could see her fine shape in every respect. She held out her arms for him.  Brandon moved towards her like a bull facing the slightest toreador. After showing Amanda who was boss, Brandon planned to finish his reading, then plot his strategy for reclaiming Ashley Pearson and returning her to his side.

The Reading Room was crammed wall to wall with folks facing the stage, peering into the dark recesses of the venue. It would have been snug without a hundred people in it, and with them hectic tension was the dominant mood. Cody made out the figures of a few of the journalists from his own reading across the street. Before he arrived Cody had felt a prick of jealousy and fear that Brandon Lynes was going to burst his bubble. Now he was here, that feeling drained away. Instead he felt like he wanted to leave, but he looked at Joanna, and saw she was excited at what lay ahead. Yes, she deserved her fun.  There was a microphone and a spotlight on the stage, and nothing else.

“I can’t wait to see this,” said Joanna. She grabbed hold of Cody’s arm and gave him a squeeze. Cody didn’t respond and felt awkward as Joanna was forced by the crowd to press close to him. He could feel the shape and softness of her breasts against his shoulder, the curve of her hip against him. She wasn’t apologising for her proximity – clearly he was the only one who felt awkward about it.

“Yeah, I can’t wait,” said Cody, lying as best he could. He looked at his mobile phone, checking for a message from Ashley. She’d gone to buy supplies for their love nest, and stupidly, Cody was worried that a beautiful tough cookie like Ashley was out in the city by herself. There was a sudden cheer, a whoop, a round of applause and a flash of camera lights as the muscular figure of Brandon Lynes appeared from behind a curtain. He held a folder of his notes. But Cody noticed his strange manner, and odd choice of clothes. Bizarrely, Brandon was dressed in fashion jeans with slashes through them, and a T-shirt with a graffiti style emblem on it. The T shirt was snug to his muscles. He looked good, manly for sure, but at the same time, why the hell was he dressed like the lead singer of a rock band? And why was he wearing sunglasses indoors? Cody felt a cringe coming on.

Cody saw the figure of Amanda standing not quite hidden by the curtain. He saw she was wearing similar fashion clothing. It didn’t fit the scene or the purpose. They looked all set to be a double act.

“Good evening, York, Good evening festival goers. I am Brandon Lynes author of 57 Pages and In Free Fall. You may have heard of them. I heard about your festival and I got so excited about it, and thought I should come along and share some of my work with you.”

So far so good, but Cody heard a slight slur in the man’s voice. He wondered just how many looseners Brandon had downed before he arrived on stage.

“And I heard there was another guy from my college performing right across the street. The red haired dude. Did you enjoy it?  I hope you did. But now it’s time for a sharper pen, my friends.”

Cody looked at Joanna. “Did he just say that?” said Cody. Joanna Laws looked ecstatic. She leaned her head onto Cody’s shoulder.

“Yes, OMG, this is just gold. He is setting you up for headlines, isn’t this just delicious?”

Cody saw the hungry sparkle in Joanna’s eyes, and though she was addictive to look at, he felt the woman trying to seduce him with her look. Cody determinedly looked away to the stage as Brandon Lynes launched into his reading.

Cody decided Brandon’s performance was totally ham. No, he changed his mind. Brandon’s performance was serving a cheese and ham main course. The guy’s writing was passable at best, but his on stage delivery, tainted by drunken slurring and ridiculous theatrics, made his ham and cheese main into a soufflé which had all but collapsed. Ten minutes in and Cody was willing Brandon Lynes to finish the reading… for Brandon’s sake. This was a suicide. It was humiliation. Cody shook his head as he heard muttering around the room. There were a few camera flashes as Brandon Lynes grunted a few words and almost stumbled over his lectern.

Finally, the man himself realised something was up. He stared at the audience. There was silence. He looked around with his hands in his jeans pockets.

“I told you I was sharp, huh? This writing is sharp enough to cut steel, right?” Right then – Brandon’s face froze. He caught sight of Cody with Joanna Laws pressed up and cosying against him in her suit.

“Well, well, well. Mr Barnes,” said Brandon, not caring that he was on the microphone, “it looks like you and your agent are getting along very well. Good to have you here. And as you’re here I may as well take a word with you now. So, that’s it folks. You can buy my books at TheRightLynes.Com. I’ll do autographs at the bar.”

Brandon Lynes took his notes and jumped off the stage towards the bar. Amanda walked out from the curtain at his side. The crowd whispered, and then came furtive jeers and a few boos. Joanna joined in the booing.

“Don’t Joanna!”

“Why not, he tried to mock you. And he was as lame as they come. That performance was shocking!”

The crowd parted around Brandon Lynes. He appeared before Cody and Joanna carrying three tumblers of amber liquid, no ice. He was still wearing his shades, glinting with the light from the bar. Amanda appeared beside Brandon, she made the briefest smile at Cody and Joanna, but it was more like a wince of pain.

“Here, I got you a drink, pardner,”

“No thanks, Brandon.”

“It’s rude to turn down a drink, don’t you think?”7

“No. Not on this occasion,” said Cody.

“So, what did you think?” said Brandon, downing one of the drinks in one hit.

“Of your performance? Interesting, is all I’d say. But why you ever came here, I’ll never know.”

“Oh, you know why I came here, Mr Barnes. You know very well. I came to get what’s mine.”

Cody shook his head in disbelief. “Are you serious?! I mean, can you even hear the words coming out of your mouth? Have you got any self-awareness whatsoever? And you,” he looked at Amanda now, direct into her huge pretty eyes. “What do you think about this? I mean, come on, you two are way more than friends, anyone can see that…?”

“Leave Amanda out of this.”

People in the crowd were looking at them now. So far the argument had been managed quietly enough, but Brandon’s voice was getting louder. The tendons on his muscular neck were starting to raise as he spoke.

“No, I’m very keen to hear what she thinks…”

“I- I think Brandon is just… hurting and confused right now… and I… I’m going to try and help him with that.”

Brandon span around to face Amanda. “What the hell did you just say? When did you ever say anything like that?! Amanda, how dare you…”

“I’m worried about you, honey… that’s all…” Her eyes filled up and she laid a hand on Brandon’s shoulder. He viciously shrugged it off and tipped a second tumbler of liquid straight down his neck.

“Leave me alone,” he hissed at her and put the glasses down.

“You my friend, need to get a grip right now, or your career will be in tatters, do you hear? That’s advice from an agent. Get a grip and back off, now,” said Joanna.

“Listen, lady, I earned your annual salary in thirty days. It’s you who should reel your neck in. If you’re backing losers like this one, you’re the one who need some career guidance.”

“This
‘loser’
is going to beat you in every possible way, Mr Lynes. When his novels are winning awards and being made into movies, it’ll be Brandon who?”

“Get out of my face. He knows why I am here. I’m here because of Ashley. She’s coming back with me.”

Cody kept his tone low. “Brandon you’re embarrassing yourself. It’s over between you and Ashley, get it? We’re an item now, her and me. You were a bully and now she’s free of you.”

“Free of me? She’ll never be free of me and I’ll never be free of her. She’s not here, is she? If she was here she’d been talking to me instead of this chicken shit. I’m going to look for her,” Brandon made past Cody and Joanna and stormed towards the street, downing his final drink on the way.

“No!” said Cody, following after. Joanna’s arm trailed after him as she tried to stop him, but Cody kept going.

Brandon and Cody reached the cold air of the city night and Brandon kept going. But only for a block before he turned around outside a closed coffee shop. Cody was almost right behind him now.

“Leave her alone, Brandon. I told you, it’s finished.”

Brandon laughed. “Yes! I was hoping you’d follow. No man, you’re wrong. You’re finished.”

With a roar, Brandon stormed forward and unleashed a brutal punch. It struck his jaw and almost knocked his head off, but somehow he kept standing. More blows rained against his arms as he covered his face, then he tried to strike back, but Brandon’s size and strength filled all of his space. Now the punches kept coming, full of Brandon’s drunken rage. Cody stood his ground as the blows landed, cutting his brow, slamming into his jaw.

“You bastard!” shouted Joanna Laws as she caught up with them. “You stupid bastard, leave him alone!” But Brandon kept on throwing punches.

***

I heard the commotion way up the street as I struggled forward with my overloaded shopping bags. I didn’t want to bump into any idiot street fighters, so with my bags of French bread, cold meats, salad, and white wine, I trekked across the street. I got just a little further when I suddenly recognised the female voice who was screeching at the street fighters - calling someone a bastard. I went cold. I dropped my bags by the side of the street and broke into a sprint, my skirt flapping around me. I ran then faster than I did in my entire life. “Cody!” I cried as I ran. “Cody!” I screamed. I already knew what was going on, before I saw it with my own eyes. My heart and my gut knew it. I wanted to cry but I had to keep running. When I got there, Brandon was an animal on the verge of triumph, his body full of sweat, swagger and vigour. And there was Cody swaying on his feet, his face bloodied, Joanna Laws trying to step into the fray but also not get hurt. I didn’t wait for that. My lungs were burning. I jumped straight in the way of Brandon’s violence, his fists ready to hurl again any second. Behind me, I knew Cody was in a bad way.

“Why, Brandon? Why?! You could have killed him!”

“Did you hear that, hero? She admits it. I could have killed you. Now that’s a true story.”

“Cody didn’t do anything to you!”

“He did. He stole you off me, and dragged you up here. And he’s been fucking you, am I right?”

“What the hell! It’s none of your business who I spend my time with.”

“Yes it is, Ash. It’s all my business. I’ve got something to tell you and you better hear it this time.”

I looked around. I smelt the booze on Brandon’s breath, that same shitty Armagnac that he’d so impressed me with not so long ago.  Joanna’s eyes connected with mine. She took Cody by the hand and led him away from the animal. Joanna’s eyes told me she would look after Cody for me. I hoped she would. I wanted Brandon out of there, in fact, right then I just wished he would have dropped down dead where he stood. But I followed him to the side of the street, hoping he would calm down and go away.

“What do you want?”

“You know what I want,” he said, his voice going soft. “You don’t have anywhere to live, do you? You’ve barely got any cash to get through college either. You need me, honey.”

“Brandon, I don’t need you and I don’t want you. I never will. Not anymore! That’s done with…”

Brandon shook his head and folded his muscular arms.

“No, it’s not. I’ll tell you why. I love you Ashley.”

“No, you don’t!” I shouted. “You think you love me, but look what you did! You hurt people, Brandon. That’s not love! That’s no love at all.”

“No, I
do
love you. But there’s a limit to my patience and you need to know that. I have leverage with important people, Ashley.”

“Leverage. What the hell are you talking about now?”

“I’ve got money and influence.”

I shrugged, not liking where this was going. I felt queasy, but I wanted him to go and to leave Cody alone. It turns out that was part of his leverage.

“First off, there’s my good friend Dean Jonathan Mayhew. If he heard that I suddenly wanted my money back, he could arrange that. Then your college bill would be reinstated. You’d be out inside a day. Finished.”

I looked around to see Cody and Joanna. Cody looked dazed, she was talking to him and holding his hands. They couldn’t hear Brandon’s threats.

“So what, I can come back next year.”

“No, Ashley. I can stop that too. And on top of that, look what I just did to Cody. You cross me again, I’ll break that little prick in two. And I mean
break
, do you understand?”

“You are seriously deranged, Brandon. You need help.”

“Here’s the last part, Ashley. How far is your home town from London? What, an hour? That’s not far. Some tube journeys are longer. I could go down there and pay a little visit to your brother and we could see how that pans out for him. Or, even better, I send some friends down there to visit your brother and repay him for all the crap he ever caused you. I could have his pockets loaded with a fat bag of coke, and we could get him arrested. Do you like that one? It’s amazing what a little money and influence can do, Ash. But think about it the other way round, sweetheart, you and me… with my money and influence… we could be stars, baby.”

I wanted to cry, but I wouldn’t. The bastard was threatening my family. I stared at him cold.