Chase the Road (A Brothers of Rock - GONE BY AUTUMN - Novel) (18 page)

“
Good.
”

Maya was still trying to catch her
breath.
“
So what
’
s next for today?
”

“
I
don
’
t know. I don
’
t care. I have you naked in bed.
”

“
Yeah,
you do.
”

“
I
can stay here for the rest of my life for all I care.
”

“
That
’
s not how rockstars work.
”

“
Then
I
’
ll quit being a rockstar.
”

“
That
’
s a total turn off.
”

“
Fine,
”
Blake said.
“
I
’
ll
be your rockstar.
”

Maya laughed.
“
Hey, go get me a bottle of water
from the fridge.
”

“
What
’
s wrong? Out of breath still?
”

“
Are
you kidding me?
”
Maya
asked.
“
Were you not just
there with me?
”

Blake grinned and trailed a finger
down Maya
’
s neck and to her
right breast. He teased her nipple and Maya caught her hips thrusting, still
turned on. Wanting more.
Fuck that, needing more.
His hand then
continued down and stopped at Maya
’
s
hip. He squeezed and took a deep breath.

Blake pushed from the bed and stood
there. Maya propped herself up on her elbows and took advantage of the sexy
sight before her eyes.

“
I
’
ll be right back,
”
Blake said.

He turned and left the room.

Once out of sight, Maya fell back
to the bed and let out a sigh and a giggle. This feeling was good. Like some
kind of crazy and perfect high. She stared at the ceiling for a  few breaths,
finally able to actually breathe the right way. Never before did Maya feel so
sexy being naked in bed. Sex was never like this before. Once it was done, she
’
d grab for covers or for her
clothes and already be on the next part of her life. That
’
s because, honestly, it was
never really that good. Ever. Not after having Blake and realizing what good
actually meant.

Maya slid from the bed and realized
Blake had been gone for way too long. She grabbed the top cover and put it over
her shoulders and walked from the room. Her plan was to find Blake and drop the
covers.

Come on, one more time
…

Maya made it down the narrow hall
and she opened her mouth to say something but stopped at the sight of Blake
’
s firm ass as he stood at the
dining room table, naked.

“
I
don
’
t know what I
’
m supposed to say,
”
Blake said.

“
What?
”

Blake moved to the side and Maya
let out a gasp.

The box was on the table. Opened.
The big diamond glistened against the light in the room.

“
Shit,
”
Maya said.
“
Blake
…”

He looked back at her, his face
crushed and angry.
“
Is that
what I think it is?
”

“
Yeah,
”
Maya whispered.

“
When?
”

“
Last
night
…
after I came home
…”

“
Damn,
”
Blake said.
“
I have to go.
”

Blake charged down the hall and
Maya went after him. She scrambled for words as Blake put on his jeans and
grabbed his shirt. He stormed back from the room and made a line right to the
door.

Maya grabbed for Blake, but he
shook her away.

“
Say
something to me,
”
she
managed to spit out.
“
You
can
’
t just
…”

Blake had the door open.
“
I can, sweetheart. I can.
”
He looked back at her.
“
You let me believe things were
over. And if they weren
’
t
…”

“
I
’
m not wearing the ring!
”
Maya cried out.
“
It
’
s
…”

Blake shut the door and was gone.

Maya felt like her heart had been
ripped from her chest.

As she felt her throat tightening,
Maya managed to whisper one last thing.

“
I
’
m not wearing the ring
…”

(18)

Blake went outside to catch his
breath.
The bar, club, whatever, was small and overpacked. A few fans were
plucked from the crowd by security because they were passing out. The band had
already taken a full case of water and threw bottle by bottle out into the
crowd, trying to keep the fans hydrated, happy, and wanting to rock the night
out with Gone by Autumn.

Blake knew this wasn
’
t going to last much longer.
There were still fourteen more dates planned on this tour. After that, it was
time to make a big decision. The band needed to go bigger. They need bigger
places to play. Something between a club like this and an arena. That was Sam
’
s job to figure out. He had been
working on something, wanting to get the band hooked up on tour with other bands.

Being the opening band didn
’
t sit very well with Blake, but
he understood it. If Gone by Autumn would get a chance to play for twenty
thousand fans a night, opening for a mega band, they would end up as the mega
band in no time. He believed that with all his heart.

Blake heard the sound of an empty
bottle hitting the ground and rolling. He walked to the side of the building
and saw two guys standing there. They were smoking something, passing around a
fresh bottle of beer.

They were part of one of the
opening bands.

“
Yo,
Matty, you gonna fuck that chick tonight?
”

“
Hell
yeah, man. I
’
ve been
working her. Texting, calling, the usual. She
’
s
tough, man.
”

“
That
’
s too much work for me.
”

Blake just stood there listening.

“
Too
much work? Yeah. Not like I
’
m
not fucking anyone else, right? I
’
m
just working this one. Something about her
…”

“
She
’
s definitely hot.
”

“
I
bet she
’
s a freak, too.
Maybe she
’
ll want me to
smack her ass or some shit.
”

“
That
would be insane. Hey, let me in on it then. Both of us.
”

“
No,
no, Jaxy. She
’
s all mine.
Maya is all mine.
”

Maya?

Blake made fists.
“
You guys good?
”

Matty and Jaxy looked at Blake.

“
Yo,
Blake,
”
Matty called out.
“
Fuck, man, that was a good show.
You guys are crazy good. I mean, you need to be on a bigger tour.
”

“
I
can agree with that,
”
Blake
said.
“
Everything you
’
re talking about, however, I don
’
t.
”

“
What?
”
Matty asked and chuckled.

It was a drunk, stoned kind of
laugh, like he was some cliché surfer dude in a movie.

“
You
heard me,
”
Blake said.
“
Maya is with us. She travels
with us. She
’
s not some
groupie or whore.
”

“
Whoa,
”
Jaxy said.
“
Are you hitting it then?
”

“
The
band?
”
Matty asked.
“
Fuck, maybe she
’
s not as tight as I thought.
”

Blake stepped forward. Matty turned
and faced him.
“
Don
’
t.
”

“
What?
”
Matty asked.
“
She
’
s been fucking texting me. Wanting me, man. Begging
for it.
”

“
Come
on,
”
Jaxy said.
“
Let
’
s go inside, man.
”

“
No,
”
Matty said.
“
Fuck this guy. Fucking drummer.
”
He pointed a finger at Blake.
“
I
’
ll
fuck whoever I want. If the bitch is willing, I
’
m
going to bend her over
…”

Blake threw a fist. He wasn
’
t sure if he should have done it
or if he really intended on doing it, but it was done. He hit Matty square in
the nose, sending him back, blood spraying.

“
Christ!
”
Jaxy yelled.
“
Matty are you okay?
”

“
It
burns!
”
Matty yelled.
“
That fucker
…”

Jaxy looked at Blake. Blake held up
the same fist he just used to crack Matty in nose. Jaxy shook his head and put
his hands up.

“
That
’
s what I thought,
”
Blake said.
“
I hear anything about you
fucking punks near Maya and I
’
ll
beat you senseless.
”

Blake turned and walked away.

His hand was hurting
…
but not as much as his
heart
…

Blake faded back to reality with
the sound of twenty thousand people going wild. They were pulsing, cheering for
the band, not in unison, but with the fierce rage of rock n
’
roll need. Hell, they were
louder than the backing track playing to set up the show.

“
Come
on!
”
Ryan yelled as he
breezed by Blake.

Blake rushed up the steps onto the
stage and ran to the kit. He grabbed his drumsticks and held them up. A light
came on behind him, which, to the audience, illuminated the silhouettes of the
band as they stood there.

All Blake could think about was
Maya.

He had blown her off now for three
days. Not that it was a lifetime, but it sure damn felt like it.

A fucking engagement ring?

Blake knew a simple phone call
could answer all the burning questions in his heart. But he feared the answers.
Dammit, the tough rockstar feared not being able to be completely greedy and
steal Maya all to himself for good. He didn
’
t
want any doubts. He didn
’
t
want to compete. All he wanted was for her to be happy. Just like back then.
Just like when she called things off the first time.

“
Are
you ready?!
”
Ryan yelled into the mic.

No,
Blake thought.

But when the backing track ended
and the curtain dropped, he sat and hit the bass drum and cymbals, in sync with
Tanner, Gabe, and Asher, kicking off what would be another two hour kick ass
Gone by Autumn concert. Because no matter how fucked up of a day Blake was
having, the fans out there paid hard money to grab a ticket and come see the
band play.

The band went right into what would
be another amazing show. Fans screaming, singing, taking pictures and videos,
creating and indulging in an experience with Gone by Autumn that they would
never forget. True to everything they believed in, the band always tried to mix
up their set lists and come up with something new for each show. The idea that
each opportunity to see the band would provide something unique made fans even
more excited to catch a show.

After ripping through a four song
set, the band stopped. Blake stood from the kit, and they all seemed to then
properly introduce themselves to the audience.

“
You
guys are wild!
”
Ryan
yelled.

The crowd reacted as figured. Wild
sometimes wasn
’
t the word
for it.

As Blake scanned the mass of
people, it left him filled with so much energy. Yet he felt completely alone
and completely empty. Life without Maya really wasn
’
t that exciting. Hell, even having her on the
sidelines, living in the fantasy of her falling in love with him, was better
than this desolate feeling right now.

“
How
about Blake back there?
”
Ryan yelled.
“
Everyone say
hello to him!
”

Blake waved his drumsticks. The
crowd kept going wild.

Two beach balls suddenly appeared,
bouncing around the crowd.

“
Well,
”
Ryan said,
“
we didn
’
t come to talk
…
we came to rock!
”

Blake sat back down and gave a four
count with his sticks.

The show continued on. Blake played
hard and played fast. His arms and legs worked as though he would never get
this chance again. Even after songs were finished, Blake kept drumming. He kept
a steady bass drum going, the audience clapping along. The beach balls jutted
up into the air and floated around like lost souls floating through time.

Gabe walked back to Blake at one
point. Sweat poured from both of their bodies and Gabe nodded.

“
Ready?
”
he called out.

“
For?
”
Blake asked.

“
The
new one
…”

Blake stopped playing drums
completely.

The lights dimmed out. The audience
kept cheering. Techs lined the side of the stage with flashlights, making sure
nobody in the band tripped and got hurt.

They each took an acoustic guitar.

Ryan grabbed Blake.
“
Bro, we can skip it tonight.
”

“
Skip
what?
”

“
The
song, man.
”

“
No.
”

“
Look,
I don
’
t know what happened
…”

“
Nothing
happened,
”
Blake said.
“
Same old shit, that
’
s all.
”

“
I
know the song
…”

“
Ryan,
we
’
re playing the damn
song. It
’
s not about us. It
’
s about everyone out there
yelling for us. Let
’
s give
them something.
”

“
Okay,
”
Ryan said.
“
Let
’
s give them something.
”

Blake sat at the front of the stage
with the guitar. Since it was his song, the band decided he should lead it off.
The second he started strumming, a light shined on him. The crowd cheered. And
one by one, as the guys all came in on the song, lights appeared on them. For
Blake, this was the most intimate he
’
d
ever been with a crowd before. First off, it was his damn song. The song he
wrote about, and for, Maya. Second, there were just lights on them. Not that
the band didn
’
t live in a
constant spotlight, but this seemed so much more than that.

The song went beautifully without a
hitch. And in fact the song was so hitting and powerful, it left the crowd damn
near in silence. Blake never experienced such a thing, seeing twenty thousand
people giving their attention and silence to the band for a song like this.

When it ended, Blake spoke the final
words.
“
Thank you.
”

That
’
s
when the crowd picked back up with some noise.

By the time the show finally ended,
Blake was tired. Physically, mentally, everything tired. He got off the stage,
did his normal routine of toweling the sweat off his face and chugging a bottle
of water, when he heard voices calling him name.

It was a group of women.

“
We
love you, Blake!
”

He waved. They screamed louder.

Blake walked over to the women as
they were ready to jump the gate.

The closest one grabbed him and
wrapped her arms around his neck.

“
I
love you.
”

Blake hugged her back.
“
Thanks. I love you too
…”

He looked at the four women, eyes
wide and starstruck. He looked to the arena, almost empty already.

I love all of them. I love
…

Blake signed autographs, took pictures,
and made small talk. The weirdest part was someone asked for his empty water
bottle and another asked for his sweaty towel. Blake gave up both and walked
away.

They kept calling to him, saying
they loved him.

Blake felt the love, yeah, but it
wasn
’
t the kind he really
wanted.

There was only one person for that.

*

Maya literally ran into Sam, her
head down, scrolling through her cell, trying to paint a picture of the last
time she talked with Blake. Any kind of communication
…
anything that could happen right now to take away
the sting of what had happened between them.

“
You
okay?
”
Sam asked as he
grabbed Maya by the shoulders.

“
Yeah,
”
she said.
“
Just checking things. Video
counts. Downloads. The usual. They really hit it off with the new song the other
night. I mean
…”