Shameless (12 page)

Trey rolled his eyes. “What is this, high school? How the hell should I know?”

Sierra had her thumbs poised over the keypad on her phone. “Should I text her and tell her to bring Josh?”

“Do you get off on pushing my buttons?” Luc asked.

She grinned. “You betcha.”

He set his empty glass down beside Trey’s untouched glass. “Nice to see you haven’t matured at all in the last five years, sunshine.” He crossed the room to the door.

She laughed. “Right back atcha, cowboy.” 

“Trey, I’ll see you tonight.” He gripped the door handle and turned around to face his friend.

“Hey, you bringin’ that hot little redhead? What’s her name, Megan?”

Sierra had to admit, he hit his target. Luc rarely left a room without getting the last word. Except this time. “No, he’s taking me, Luc.” She wiggled her fingers in a wave. “See you there.”

Luc slammed the door behind him, rattling the doorframe.

Trey resisted the urge to pull up to the hotel’s valet parking area, slipping into a nearby guest parking spot instead. He wasn’t in the habit of allowing a date to walk down to his car unescorted. Of course, Sierra insisted this wasn’t a date; she was attending the party as a family friend. As long as she was willing to spend time with him, he refused to dwell on semantics.

He kept his eyes on the front doors of the hotel, watching anxiously as the uniformed doorman ushered patrons onto the walkway. He jumped out of the Porsche as soon as he saw her flash a smile at the young man. The poor kid knocked his hat off in the process of tipping it, turning three shades of red as it landed at her feet. Not that Trey could blame him; he probably would have reacted the same way.

She looked stunning in a fitted silk dress with a shark-bite hem that resembled a kaleidoscope of blue and green. The best feature had to be the shoes, Trey thought, biting back a groan. Silver, sexy, strappy, with a four inch spiked heel. He took a deep breath and tried to slow his stride.

He reached her just as she stepped off the sidewalk. “Hey, beautiful.” He brushed a kiss across her cheek, just as the wind picked up to deliver a powerful whiff of her perfume. He closed his eyes briefly, fighting the urge to draw her into his arms and bury his face in the delectable hollow of her neck. He was getting turned on just thinking about it.

“Hey, you okay?”

He opened his eyes, embarrassed he’d allowed himself to get lost in the fantasy. “Yeah, sorry. I was just thinking about...”

She frowned, drawing a crease on her forehead. “Thinking about Megan?”

He laughed, attracting the attention of passersby. “She’s the last thing on my mind, sweetheart.” He took her hand and led her toward the car.

She looked around nervously. “People are staring, Trey. I told you I would meet you in the car.”

He cast a glance at the curious onlookers, hoping they would reach the car before he was bombarded by autograph seekers. “I wish you’d just stay at the house, Sierra. I have half a dozen guest suites and you have to admit, it would be more convenient.”

“Right. And Eric would have a coronary.”

“One can only hope,” he muttered, squeezing her hand.

“I heard that.”

He grinned as he opened her car door. “Your chariot awaits, my lady.”

Once they were settled in the car, she turned toward him. “I called your mom and asked if she minded that I was crashing the party. Of course, she did extend an invitation a few months ago when we were talking on the phone, but I declined. I didn’t think I would be in Nashville at that time and I thought it might be awkward, you know, with us.”

He pushed a button to select his favorite satellite radio station and the car was infiltrated with the sound of his voice. He lowered the volume.

She laughed and turned it up. “Hey, I love this song.”

He groaned. “I’m sick of the sound of my own voice.”

She reached across the gearshift and squeezed his leg. “I happen to love the sound of your voice, so indulge me.”

“Whatever you like, sweetheart.” He glanced at her. She was tapping her manicured nails against the armrest, bopping her head and singing along to the up-tempo party song. God, he loved everything about this woman. 

When the song ended, the disc jockey went on to talk about the upcoming release of Trey’s new album and how much his fans were looking forward to it.

Trey gripped the steering wheel. “No pressure or anything.”

“Hey,” she said, touching his arm. “I thought we made good progress today, didn’t you?”

“Yeah, sure.”  In fact, he had written more today than he had in the past year. No obstacle had ever seemed insurmountable when she was by his side. “Enough about my career. What did my mother have to say?”

“She said they would always consider me part of the family, and I was more than welcome.” She looked out the window. “Your parents were the kind of parents I wished I’d had. They were always so supportive, never judgmental.”

He grabbed her hand. “Hey, I know it wasn’t easy for you, baby. With your father’s problems and your mom dying when you were so young, you had to raise yourself and your kid sister. I can’t even imagine what that must have been like for you.” 

“It was hell. That’s why I wanted to give our baby the kind of childhood I never had: stable, loving, secure.”

He kissed her hand. “We would have.”

She sighed. “I like to think so, but that wouldn’t have been easy with your career and...”

He knew she was thinking about his drinking. “I went to an AA meeting after you left today.”

She looked up at him, seeming surprised. “You did? That’s great, Trey.”

It was exactly what he needed to refocus on his sobriety. He’d stayed behind to talk to his sponsor, explain his relapse, acknowledge his motivation for getting sober. Of course, his sponsor told him he had to make the decision for himself, not because of undo pressure from others. He also warned against the perils of getting involved in a relationship when his sobriety was still tenuous. He knew if things with Sierra fell apart, he would be at risk of falling into old patterns again, but he had to take it one day at a time and hope for the best possible outcome.

“I’ve also been thinking about what you said about counseling.”

She squeezed his hand. “Really?”

“Yeah, I think you’re right. I do need help letting go of the past, coming to terms with everything. Obviously, I haven’t done such a great job of that on my own.”

“I think you’re making great progress.”

“We’ll see how it goes.” He didn’t want to think about the past tonight. He wanted to enjoy the present. “Speaking of your sister, how is she?”

Sierra smiled, her eyes lighting with pride. “Lexi’s fantastic. I’m so proud of her.”

Trey thought back to the shy, insecure teenager Lexi had been when he and Sierra first met. It was hard to reconcile that image to the successful real estate investor she was today. “Still raking it in, is she?”

“She definitely has a knack for it.” Sierra slipped her phone out of her small designer handbag.

She scrolled through the images until she found the one she wanted. “Here she is accepting an award at a national business convention last fall.”

Trey glanced at the screen. “Wow, she looks great. Good for her.”

“Yeah, but I worry about her sometimes. She’s so focused on her career that she doesn’t have time for anything or anyone else.”

“She’s still single?” That was difficult to believe, given how beautiful she was.

“Yeah, used to say she wanted to be financially independent before she thought about settling down. Now she’s telling me she never plans on getting married or having a family. I think she saw what happened to me and she’s just being overly cautious.”

He swung the car into the parking lot and pulled up to the valet area. “Listen, about that...”

She held her hand up, halting him in mid-sentence. “I told you. I don’t want to talk about the past tonight. We’re simply two old friends enjoying each other’s company.”

He watched her slide out of the car, revealing an expanse of smooth, bronze leg. She wanted to be his friend? He took a deep breath and gripped the steering wheel. At least it was a start.  

Chapter Nine

Sierra spotted Luc and his date immediately. They were lounging by the bar, enjoying a glass of wine. She was a stunning redhead, tight black dress, too much make-up—fake from her nose to her toes—definitely Luc’s type.

Sierra smirked. “If Luc’s trying to make your sister jealous...”

“I’m gonna kill him,” Trey muttered, slipping his arm around her waist.

“Who?” She looked up and her eyes followed his. He was watching Luc and the redhead. Megan.

Apparently Luc was getting the last word after all. Damn him.

“That’s your...” She couldn’t say the word,
girlfriend
.

“She’s just a friend,” he said carefully, steering her in their direction.

“There you are,” Megan said, launching herself at Trey. “I thought you’d never get here.” She crushed her breasts against his chest and snaked her arms around his neck. “I’ve missed you, honey.”

He tried to disentangle himself while glaring at Luc over the top of her head. “I’ve been busy.”

She glanced over her shoulder at Sierra. “So I’ve heard. This must be the ex-wife, huh?” She giggled. “Honey, I should thank you for setting this one free. Now the rest of us get to enjoy him, too.”

“Megan, I...”

Before he could finish, she kissed him full on the mouth. When he stepped back, pushing her away, she traced a red lacquered fingernail over his stained lips. “You snuck out on me the other morning, you naughty boy. I thought we would have time for a little more fun before you left.” 

Sierra muttered, “Excuse me.” She walked as quickly as four inch heels would allow, finally passing through the heavy glass doors. She was frantic to find a restroom, but when she heard the distinct sound of hurried footsteps behind her, she bolted out the front door and straight to the valet.

“Will you call me a cab, please?” she asked, trying to sound calm while her stomach was twisting in knots.

“Of course I will, ma’am. Is anything wrong?”

She struggled to find her voice. “I’m just not feeling very well.”

“Forget the cab,” Trey said to the valet.

The uniformed man looked uncertainly between Sierra and Trey. “If you say so, sir.”

Trey gripped her upper arm, turning her toward the entrance doors. “You’re not leaving,” he whispered.

“Like hell I’m not.” She struggled to break free of his grip without making a scene. “Take your hands off me.”

“Not until you calm down, Sierra.”

She whirled around, facing him. “You want me to calm down?” She thrust a finger at his chest. “Your girlfriend made a fool of me in there and you’re telling me to calm down?” She knew she was raising her voice, attracting attention, but she couldn’t help it. “I’m leaving town, tonight. Damn it; take your hands off me.”

He stared at her, disbelief clouding his eyes. “Are you serious?”

“Dead serious. I’m going back to Oklahoma tonight.”

“Why?”

She choked back a sob, shocked by the fury raging through her. “How can you ask me that?”

“Is it because I’m sleeping with her?”

She slapped him across the face hard enough to leave an imprint.

Her trembling hand flew to her mouth. “Oh my God, I’m sorry. I had no right to do that.”

He rotated his jaw, looking furious. “We need to talk, now.” He grabbed her hand and led her inside.

People were milling about; fortunately no one she recognized, though many of them smiled and nodded at Trey. She could only imagine what they must think of the fiery imprint on his cheek.

“Wait right here,” he said. He knocked on the door to a small office and a man in a dark blue suit appeared. He and Trey exchanged a few words and he un-locked a door beside his office. Trey nodded to Sierra, gesturing for her to follow him into the private room. She had no choice but to follow, unless she wanted to risk another scene.