Deep (Stage Dive, #4)(32)

“Later, Liz.”

“Later.” I raised a cracker in salute, but he was already gone. And, for once, my heart couldn’t quite bring itself to care.





CHAPTER SIX

Voices hit me as soon as I stepped through the apartment building’s front door. Loud voices, and lots of them. Odd. Lauren hadn’t mentioned anything about throwing a party tonight. Wait. My mistake. Those weren’t party time voices. No, these were pissed in the nonalcoholic way.

I jogged up the steps, unbuttoning my coat. For a car that predated me, the Mustang ran spectacularly well. Its heating could be a little iffy, however, especially if you liked to crack open the window now and then to feel the ice-cold wind on your face. Silly, I know. It was just something I felt the need to indulge in every once in a while.

The hallway was brighter than usual, a light from the second floor shining out. I hastened up my steps.

Holy shit. My front door had been smashed off its hinges.

“… expect a twenty-one-year-old girl to manage with a baby—” That was my sister’s voice.

“Like I said before, she won’t be doing it alone.” And that was Ben’s.

“Because you’ll get your shit sorted and get married to her. Right, baby daddy?” Crap. That was Mal, and he sounded even angrier than he’d been the night before. “You’ll do the right thing and give up the single lifestyle with a different woman every night, won’t you? ’Cause you’re so f*cking known for seeing shit through.”

“Man, we’ve been over this already—”

“Yeah. And you’re still not saying the right things. Do you get that?”

The living room was certainly crowded, that’s for sure. Ben, Anne, and Mal were facing off in the middle. Clearly, two against one. While Sam the security guy and Lauren watched on from the sidelines, for some reason.

“Guys,” I said.

They argued on.

“Guys!”

Still nothing.

Finally, I put two fingers in my mouth and let loose with an earsplitting whistle. A talent I’d perfected in my younger years. Useful for annoying the living shit out of my sister, if nothing else. The noise even rattled my own head.

Nothing but silence followed.

“Hi. How are you all?” I stood in what remained of the splintered frame. “I’d really like to know what happened to my door.”

“Lizzy,” said Ben, exhaling hard. “Thank f*ck. Been worried sick about you.”

“Where have you been?” My sister rushed forward, catching me up in a tight hug. “I’ve been trying to call you all day. We checked everywhere and couldn’t find you.”

“Sorry. I just needed some alone time.” I squeezed her back, unable to stop from smiling. The thought of Anne turning her back on me had scared me more than I liked to admit.

“Well, I get you might want that.” She stepped back. “But you could have told someone.”

“You can’t just disappear like that.” And Ben kept right on frowning. “Shit, Liz, you’re pregnant.”

“Don’t upset her,” snapped Anne.

Ben ignored her. “I don’t know what the hell’s going on in your head. But you need to let me know where you are.”

My eyebrows went up and my mouth opened, ready to rip him a new one.

“She doesn’t answer to you. She’ll let you know if and when she decides to let you know,” said Mal, laying down the law to his bandmate before turning my way. “You will text your sister next time you decide to go wandering for a day, understood?”

My mouth, it still hung open.

“Christ, man.” Over and over, Ben’s hands rolled into tight fists before releasing again. “Can you cut the shit and get off my back for a f*cking minute?”

“Don’t swear at him.” My usually sensible and staid sister poked a finger dead center in Ben’s broad chest. “You’re the one that caused this mess, thank you very much. She might still be a little young and naive, but you’re definitely old enough to know better.”

“That’s right.” Standing about as tall as a skyscraper, despite only coming up to Ben’s nose, Mal stared him down. Or up. Whatever. “This is a family matter. You can leave, thanks.”

The battle for control played out plainly on Ben’s face. He forced out, through gritted teeth, “I can leave?”

“Yes.”

This was insane.

Someone had to step up and be the voice of reason. Sadly, that someone was me. “Okay. Hold up, everybody. Why don’t we all just calm down for a minute.”

With all the skill and speed of a seasoned male stripper, Mal turned on his heel. “And you, young lady! You are grounded until further notice.”

“I’m grounded?”

“Babe.” Anne winced. “That’s not going to fly.”

“And you are never to talk to Ben again. He is clearly a very bad influence on you.” The drummer continued, oblivious, sneering at his former friend. “Is that understood, Elizabeth?”

Lauren snickered.

“Yeah. Okay,” I said.

“Good.”

“Get out,” I said, my voice quite cool, quite calm. A little tired, but hey, it’d been a long day.