Rock Chick Revenge (Rock Chick #5)(144)

“I’m not sure,” Mom said and I could tell she desperately wanted to take Luke up on the offer of a free ride but thought it might appear rude and greedy in front of Mrs. Stark.

Luke could tell too. “You stay here, Ava and me will go to a hotel,” Luke looked down at me. “I get things taken care of, I’ll take everyone to dinner tonight. I don’t and you don’t, I’ll arrange for your family to have a nice dinner and you do what you gotta do.”

“But, we came here to see you and Ava,” Mom protested.

“Ava has shit to do,” Luke replied.

“We came all this way,” Marilyn added.

“Yeah, and you didn’t tell Ava you were comin’ and, I’ll repeat, she has shit to do.”

“But –” Marilyn kept going.

“Take a close look at your sister then take a look at me. Does it look like we got time to drop everything because you hit town with no notice?”

Ho-ly crap but Luke didn’t take any shit. I was impressed more than I was normally impressed.

“What’s going on?” Mom asked, eyes narrowing on Luke.

Luke looked at the ceiling. I tore my gaze away from him and looked at Mom.

“I told you,” I answered. “I have a little bit of trouble. Luke is helping me and we both are trying to sort it out.”

“What kind of trouble?” Mom pushed.

“How many kinds of trouble get you a cut lip and a black eye?” Luke asked, aiming his angry stare at Mom. “There’s only one kind of trouble, the bad kind,” he finished.

“I’m her mother!” Mom, it was clear, had just lost patience. “Why don’t I know what’s going on? Not only is her face all banged up but she’s dating you, of all people. I mean, that George boy I can see Ava with, but you?”

Luke looked at me, not knowing George and I felt the knife that was plunged in my belly twisting. George was serious history, pre-weight loss, pre-Rick-Dave-and-Noah, a sweet guy but a geek and so not in Luke’s league it was sad.

The fact that Mom still thought I was out of Luke’s league hurt like hell. I’d worked hard to be a Barlow Bombshell but that was totally lost on her. For the past week four seriously hot guys had been after me like I was the best thing since sliced bread but in my head that evaporated. Mom thought me doing the impossible – landing Luke – was bigger news than me being “all banged up” and that was killer.

“George?” Luke asked me.

“Her first boyfriend,” Marilyn answered helpfully.

“He wasn’t my first boyfriend,” I mumbled even though he kind of was.

“You and George were cute together. He was all snugly soft. Perfect for you,” Sofia threw in.

“Snugly soft is right,” Marilyn said.

“The soft is right. Dough boy,” Sofia giggled

“This is unbelievable,” Luke growled low, watching the Barlow Super Bitch Byplay with an angry gaze. I could tell his control was slipping and I couldn’t do a thing about it.

“Didn’t he pop your cherry?” Marilyn put in and my stomach plummeted as my lungs seized.

Luke went totally still.

Here we go. They had warmed up and were ready to throw down.

“Marilyn!” Mom snapped, not protecting me, more embarrassed that Luke and Mrs. Stark could hear.

“Well, he did,” Sofia told Mom.

“That’s no reason to share,” Mom went on.

“I knew the minute it happened,” Marilyn stated, so into the Barlow Super Bitch Fest she ignored Mom, Luke’s scary anger filling the room, Mrs. Stark’s horrified, furious gaze and me. “He always followed her around like a little puppy, after he nailed her it got worse.”

“She probably popped his cherry too,” Sofia told Marilyn and they were now holding a conversation like no one else was in the room.

“Can you imagine?” Marilyn bugged her eyes out at Sofia at the very thought of Dough Boy George and Fatty, Fatty Four-Eyes fumbling around popping each other’s cherries.

I was back to wanting to run screaming from the house except I couldn’t seem to get my limbs to move.

“Quiet,” Luke said softly but lethally and all eyes turned to him.

“Lucas –” Mrs. Stark began but Luke kept talking.

“Your sister is standin’ in front of you with a busted lip and a black eye, her man at her side, and you bitches are talkin’ about… whatever the f**k it is you’re talkin’ about,” Luke said, his voice vibrating with anger.

“Did you just call us bitches?” Marilyn asked, her eyes wide and her voice filled with offended surprise.

“You act like a bitch, I’ll call you a bitch and you’re actin’ like a f**kin’ bitch,” Luke answered.

“Oh my God,” Sofia breathed.

“He’s kind of a straight-talker,” I put in quietly.

“You were men, I would teach you some manners. Though growin’ up you never had any so I don’t imagine you’ll start now,” Luke carried on. “Difference is, back then I wasn’t in the position to say what I’m gonna say now. Back, the f**k, down. Ava tells me any more of that shit you just treated us to goes down, you’re both out on your asses and you aren’t comin’ back. Your sister is a memory for you and you two cease to exist for her. Is that understood?”