Sweetness (24 page)

As soon as the interviews are over, Dominic and I
ask Justin to stay behind before we meet up with Rocco
and Chris for dinner. I tell him what Max told me on the
phone this morning. Justin’s expression changes from
pissed off to murderous immediately. He tells us that he
called his parents yesterday and they told him that Julie
has not been herself lately. She has been staying out late
and not eating. She lost her job and her friends won’t talk
to her. His father is forcing her to move back home next
week to make sure she is properly taken care of. I
apologize profusely to Justin for Glen’s behavior but he
tells me over and over that I am not to blame. If only he
knew how to blame I was he wouldn’t be so nice to me.
“Justin, have to talked to Julie. Did she say that
she was seeing Glen again?” Dominic inquires.
“No. She won’t answer her phone for me.”
“Maybe there is another explanation,” Dominic
says but I don’t think he even believed himself.
“Why do you do that?” I snap at him, causing
both sets of eyes to fall on me. “Why do you constantly
stick up for him? He is beating on your best friends sister,
and still you sit here and stick up for that monster. Why?
Tell me, why?”
I am standing face to face with Dominic with my
fists clenched at my side. My face is hot and red. I am
really about to lose my cool with him. Dominic takes a
step back from me with wide eyes and Justin is at my
side, pulling me back so this matter doesn’t escalate. I
don’t think I would ever hit him but I’ll be damned if
that’s not what I want to do to him right now. For a guy
much bigger then me, he looks scared. At this moment,
he should be.
“It’s okay, Emma. Don’t fight with Dominic
because of this,” Justin mutters so only I can hear.
“Fuck that. This is not only about Julie. This is
about me, too,” I grit through my teeth before turning
around and focusing my wrath on Dominic. “You always
take his side. No matter what the situation. He tries to
ruin my life and I am dramatic. The evidence is building,
that he is abusing Julie, and it is all a misunderstanding.
What the hell Dominic?”
“You know what his childhood was like, Emma.
You don’t feel sorry for him in the slightest.”
“Uh, no. I don’t feel sorry for him.” My response is
sarcastic as I answer. “Yes, it was shitty that his mom
killed herself. Yes, it was shitty that my mom had an
affair with his father, but this is a little extreme for a
temper tantrum don’t you agree.”
“I am not talking about that. You know the abuse
he went through.”
“What the hell are you talking about, abuse? What
abuse? Paul was a drunk who ignored him but I don’t
think he ever hit him.”
Dominic tilts his head to the side. “You don’t
know do you?”
“Know what?”
Dominic’s mulling something over in his head.
His hands are tucked into his back pockets and his head
is bent to look at the ceiling. He lets out an exasperated
sigh before pulling his eyes back to mine. “Sit down,
Emma.”
I sit on the edge of the bed next to Justin. Dominic
paces the floor for a second deciding what he wants to
say. This is ridiculous. The anticipation is doing nothing
for my nerves and I wish he would just spit it out
already.
“Emma, Glen and I have been friends since
kindergarten. When he was younger he would sleep over
my house because he didn’t like to be home. He always
had bruises on him. For a while I ignored it but one day I
asked him what happened. He told me that his mom
would get mad at him when his dad would leave. Rose
knew Paul was having affairs.
“When Paul met your mom and left Rose, it only
got worse for Glen. She was depressed and when she
wasn’t beating on him she would lock herself in her
room and Glen would have to take care of Holly. At one
point she locked herself in for days. There was no food in
the house and random people were constantly were
coming and going. At least that’s what the neighbors told
my dad. My parents were concerned and they talked to
Paul. Paul had no idea this was happening. When he
went to the house to confront Rose, she was passed out
drunk with some guy in her bed that had a needle
sticking out of his arm. Right before Rose killed herself,
Paul had filed a petition for full custody of Glen and
Holly.”
I am trying to process what he is saying but the
only thing I am wondering is: How is it that Dominic
knows this much about my family and I don’t? I
remember Holly and Glen spending weekends at my
house, more often before Rose died. The arguing and the
drinking was Paul feeling guilty for what Glen was going
through. His guilt for the adultery on top of his guilt for
being so selfish, that he would put his son through that,
had to be eating him alive all those years. My mother
standing by and blaming herself for starting this chain of
events would explain why she always let Paul take his
anger out on her. For the first time ever it all makes
sense, in a twisted, fucked up way.
As truly screwed up as this all is, it is no excuse
for Glen to get away with any of this now. Truth is, he
still raped me mentally and physically for years. No
matter what I would do or say. No matter how much I
fought or submitted he would rape me over and over
again. That kind of torture will affect me forever and for
that I hate him. I don’t care what he went through as a
kid; it is no justification for what he did to me and what
he is now doing to Julie.
“I didn’t know. I am truly sorry for what Glen
went through, but that doesn’t make what he is doing to
Julie acceptable. It doesn’t make what he did to me
acceptable,” I spit back without thinking. As usual my
brain to mouth filter is on the fritz again.
Justin’s eyes dart over to me and a flicker of
realization settles in. Dominic didn’t catch my slip up,
but Justin knows there is more then I am letting on. He
purses his lips and takes a deep steady breath but doesn’t
say anything. Dominic looks between us like he just
missed something, but doesn’t ask any questions. He
either doesn’t want to know, or he didn’t catch my slip of
the tongue.
“I am not saying it is. I am just telling you why I
have a soft spot for him. I saw the evidence of his abuse
and it was terrifying. I used to hug and kiss my parents
when he would leave just because they were nothing like
Paul and Rose. I will talk to Glen. I will tell him about us
and I will tell him to stay away form Julie,” he says to me
with a guilty expression in his eyes as he grasps both of
my hands with his.
His eyes slip over to Justin who is sitting next to
me on the bed. “You have to tell her to stay away from
him too. He is going to keep trying, but she has to stay
away.”
Justin nods; I can still see his jaw clicking as he
clenches his teeth. Needing a minute to compose myself,
I ask the guys to wait for me in the other room while I
change for dinner. Dominic confused expression doesn’t
go unnoticed but he agrees and leaves with Justin. Before
closing the door, Justin turns back to me for a second, I
know he wants to say more but with Dominic here he
won’t. I know we will be having another conversation in
the near future.
My mind is racing with all the information about
my family. This is all so absurd. I have to call Mrs. Cross
and discuss this with her. She has always protected me
and doesn’t lie to me. If anyone knows the truth it’s her.

After changing my clothes
and freshening up, I walk
into the main room to see Gabe working at the dining
table. He lets me know the guys went to their room for to
get ready for dinner. Feeling mentally deflated I flop into
the chair across from him. He closes his laptop and sits
back in his chair, studying me.

“Emma. What is it?” Gabe asks clearly concerned
for my lack of physical energy.
I give him a pitiful smile and shake my head in the
negative. “Nothing. Family stuff. I’ll be okay.” I put my
elbows on the table and ask what he is working on. He
tells me he is just coordinating a team for a new
campaign for a chain restaurant. I pretend to care, but in
reality I can’t focus on anything other then the revelation
Dominic just dumped on me.
“Do you want to talk about it?”
“Not really. I would just prefer to wake up one
day and have a normal family that doesn’t bring chaos
and havoc to the table every chance they get.”
“Well sometimes we need a little chaos and havoc
for us to put our lives in perspective. It makes us
appreciate the bigger picture and focus less on the little
things,” he retorts, a soft smile tipping the corners of his
lips.
I take a deep cleansing breath and drop my
forehead on the table in front of me. This is exhausting. I
hear a soft laugh come from Gabe’s direction. He walks
around the table to sit next to me and rubs small circles
on my hand with his large hand. His touch relaxes me, it
feels gentle and soothing. Exactly what I need. But wrong
at the same time.
Slowly lifting my head from the table, I sit up
straighter and slump back in my chair. “Thank you.”
“What are intimidating bosses for?” he grins.
“You’re not that bad.” I nudge him with my
elbow.
“Really? I can’t even get you to call me by my first
name because I have scared you to think if you do, I
will…what
do
you think I will do to you.” Gabe can’t
hide the amusement in his tone.
“Fire me.” I say ruefully,
Gabe’s face falls. All semblance of a smile gone.
“Do you really think I would fire you for that?”
“Yes, I do. I think you would fire me for much
less.”
“You don’t think very much of me do you?” His
tone is sad. I don’t want him to think I don’t like him,
because I do. I am just baffled by him. He is conundrum
to me.
I put my hand on top of his interlaced hands that
are resting on the table. “That’s not true. I think you are
great. You have always been fair. Even when I acted like
a brat on my first day. If it makes you feel better, I will
call you Gabe outside the office.”
I give him a small smile and he nods his head in
agreement, looking down at my hand. I pull it back and
sit back in my chair. “Emma, can I ask you a question.”
“Shoot.”
“Do you really plan on taking over HMA one
day?”
“Of course. Why?”
“Well I just figured that since you will be my boss
one day, I better start sucking up if I want to keep my
job,” he snickers.
It is nice to be here talking to Gabe like he is a
normal person. I am still not sure if he is gay or straight,
and you can usually cut the sexual tension between us
with a knife, but when he is relaxed like this, he’s a great
guy.
“Well according to Mia that won’t be a problem
because we are going to get married and run the
company together.” Filter, Hill, filter.
Gabe stiffens in his seat and there is suddenly a
weird vibe in the room. “What? Why would she say
that?”
“I think she was kidding.” Here goes nothing.
“Maybe she doesn’t see it.”
“See what?”
“That you’re gay. I don’t think you-“
Gabe laughs. “Why in the hell do you think I’m
gay?”
“Well because…you never…” Oh god. My face is
red again, I can feel it. I am completely embarrassed. I
have managed to make a complete ass of myself…again.
I knew this was an inappropriate conversation to have.
“Gabe I’m sorry. I just assumed.” I stand and look
around the room for an out in this conversation.
Gabe stands abruptly and his chair is forced back.
He’s angry? I’ve offended him for sure. Gabe towers over
me. His six foot two frame warming my already overly
heated skin to the max. I slide my eyes up his chest, neck
and face until I am looking into light chocolate brown
eyes, which are almost completely black with desire.
Nope not angry, just extremely turned on and panting
like a dog.
Sweet baby Jesus, he’s hot.
There isn’t a molecule of space between us. My
breathing becomes heavy in anticipation of his next
move. He stares into my eyes and I have to say,
notwithstanding all of the hot sex I have with Dominic,
this has got to be the most erotic moment I have ever
had. He leans down and I stiffen. I am flustered and
good God I know this is wrong. It feels like he going to
kiss me. I can’t move. My body is in a trance; I can’t
manage to move my eyes from his, at all.
He brings his face next to mine so we are cheek to
cheek. He whispers in my ear, “Anytime you want me to
show you how straight I am, you let me know.”
He gently kisses my cheek. When he pulls his face
back I can feel my knees getting weaker by the second
while his coffee scented breath engulfs me. With a look at
sheer confidence he flashes me a soft wink and retreats to
his room without another word. Once the door closes I
sink back into my chair and cover my face with my
hands.
Great!

For the first night since
I arrived in Miami, I am all alone
in my bed. Dominic decided to stay in his room and hang
out with the guys after the show last night. I was relieved
because I just wanted to crash. Two very late nights of
loud music followed by hot sex is enough to make me
want to sleep the day away, but I have to finish packing
before we hit the road. When I put my stuff back in my
suitcase, I realize I only have what I bought with me to
Miami. I’ll have to do a bit of shopping once we get to
Austin.

After all my stuff is packed and I take a much
needed shower, I pull my luggage out to the main room.
Gabe is sitting at the table in pajama pants and a white tshirt reading the newspaper. We have avoided each
other-or rather I have avoided him-since his confession
that he is in fact straight. I don’t think he was just hinting
at his sexual orientation.

“No shit, Sherlock.” I inwardly scold myself for
being so naïve.
His presence does strange things to my body and
despite my brain telling me not to react like a lovesick
teenager, my body won’t listen. For everyone’s sake I
need to stay away from him. I would never cheat on
Dominic. I love him. But I don’t trust myself around
Gabe. He has this draw to him that I can’t seem to resist.
He has this power over me that I can’t describe. My
insides feel like melted chocolate left out in the sun too
long and my mind goes blank when he is around. No one
has ever had the ability to completely control me with
just a look.
I need to keep my distance. Shouldn’t be too hard
since I won’t be seeing him for a whole month.
Hopefully, once I get back, the awkwardness between us
will have disappeared.
“Good morning,” Gabe greets looking over his
paper with a boyish grin on his face. “I ordered breakfast.
I want to go over some things with you before you
leave.”
His dimples deepen when he smiles like that. I
can’t help but eye fuck him and fantasize dirty, naughty
things when he looks at me like at. It is like the other day
didn’t faze him at all.
I am trying to focus on something, anything, in the
room that isn’t him but when he looks into my eyes like
that, I can’t help but lock up. It is almost like he has this
Jedi mind control over me.
“Morning Mr.-I mean, Gabe,” I correct myself as I
sit down at the table as far from him as I can manage.
This earns me a frown from the other side of the table. I
pretend not to notice, I don’t want to encourage any
more weird vibes between us.
“I emailed you your itinerary, the radio show
appearances, and concert dates. Stephanie will update
your schedule and overnight any files you will need. I
want daily check-ins. The interview questions need to be
run through with the band before each interview so there
are no surprises. You will keep your phone with you at
all times and I expect full reports in my inbox first thing
Monday mornings. Any press releases will still need to
have my approval. Other than that, this is your project. If
you need anything, day or night, call me.”
I nod my head and move the food around on my
plate, not really eating it. His faith in me is terrifying.
There is so much riding on me doing this the right way; I
still don’t think I am the right person for the job. I don’t
want to disappoint him or the band…or my father. I
want to prove I can do this but I have my doubts that I
am ready to take this on so soon.
“What’s the matter Emma?”
“Why do you think I can do this, now? I mean,
what changed your mind about me?”
Gabe pushes his plate away from him and places
his elbows on the table; his hands laced in front of his
mouth. He just stares at me for a few moments before
crossing his arms across his chest and speaking. I can see
every muscle in his arm flexing as he tightens his grip on
his hands. His eyes are intensely watching me. I put my
head down to move some of my eggs around before
dropping the fork on my plate and sitting back in my
chair. The silence is deafening.
I look over toward the large glass doors to the
balcony; I don’t want to look at him because if I do I am
afraid of what I will see. I am afraid that he is just doing
this to see me choke. I can’t take that kind of failure.
“Emma, you CAN do this,” Gabe pauses until I
look at him. When our eyes lock he levels me with his
glare. Looking directly into my eyes, as if he is looking
into a deep part of my soul that holds all my secrets. I
can’t explain the way that makes me feel. Safe maybe?
Protected? I shake my head and fiddle with the napkin in
my hand. His voice gets louder to bring my attention
back to him.
“I
know
you can. You have done a great job so far
and…” he looks away for a moment, his face hardens as
if he is having an eternal battle with himself. “I just know
you’re ready. If you need anything call me. I will be there
to support you 100%. Whatever you need.” He is so
confident in me. Why? I don’t get it. How can he be so
sure I can do this when just a few weeks ago he was so
sure I couldn’t?
My father has assured me since day one that Gabe
is the best, and if he thinks I am ready then I will take
him at his word. What’s the worst that can happen? I
completely screw up and ruin the bands reputation
causing them to lose their contract and be washed up
before they get to make it big. Sure, that’s all. It’s only the
rest of their lives that is being placed in my hands. No
big deal. Oh god! I am going to need a lot of Valium to
get through this tour in one piece.
I nod my head and start eating, smiling around
my fork as I place a bite of egg into my mouth. I can feel
Gabe watching me from across the table. When I lift my
head, I am gazing back into his hooded brown eyes,
which are melting my cornflower blue from the heat
behind them. My fork falls from my hand and clatters
loudly on the plate.. After picking up my fork the last
thing I see of Mr. Gabe Hernandez is his back before he
slams his bedroom door shut.