Chase the Road (A Brothers of Rock - GONE BY AUTUMN - Novel) (14 page)

Blake made coffee and thought about
all those damn mornings when he
’
d
try so hard to get coffee and breakfast for him and Maya, only to have the band
show up and mess up their morning. It was routine.

But not this morning.

Blake poured two cups of coffee and
turned just in time to see Maya walking into the kitchen. She had a long black
long-sleeved shirt on, messy hair, but her eyes and morning smile were the most
beautiful thing Blake ever saw.

She yawned, moved some hair out of
her face, and kept smiling.
“
Morning.
”

“
Morning,
”
Blake said.
“
Here. I can at least make coffee.
”

“
That
’
s a good start. Is there any
creamer?
”

Luckily, there was. And it wasn
’
t expired. Not that Blake would
expect anything less for the cabin. It was always cleaned and always stocked.

Maya fixed her coffee and then took
a sip.
“
Not bad, rockstar.
Not bad at all.
”

“
Rough
mornings on the road will do that to you,
”
Blake said.
“
When you feel
like you got hit in the forehead with a boulder.
”

Maya laughed.
“
Lots of those nights.
”

“
Too
many.
”

Blake sipped his coffee and couldn
’
t take his eyes off Maya.

She was just goddamn beautiful.
More than yesterday, if that were even possible.

“
I
don
’
t know what to say
right now,
”
Blake said.

“
Why
not? Not used to waking up and having the girl from the night before still in
bed?
”

Blake shook his head.
“
Seriously? That
’
s where you want to go with
this?
”

“
Maybe,
”
Maya said.
“
I
’
m
sort of feisty in the morning.
”

“
I
can see that. I just
…
the
years, sweetheart. Where did they go?
”

“
That
I can
’
t answer. You know
that.
”

“
You
ever think about how it ended?
”

“
All
the time.
”

“
You
really just
…
just pushed me
away.
”

“
For
your own good,
”
Maya said.

Blake sipped more coffee. He was
getting annoyed already.
“
My
own good. I
’
ve been
heartbroken from the day that happened.
”

“
Me
too.
”

Blake put his coffee mug down.
“
Then what the hell are we doing
here? Why did we spend all those years in pain? And you have
…
had
…
Hunter
…”

“
I
’
m not talking about him,
”
Maya said.
“
That
’
s nothing to me right now. I
’
m looking right at you, Blake. Tell me I was wrong
then. Tell me. Then I
’
ll
believe it and I
’
ll beg for
forgiveness.
”

Blake stiffened tall and stared
with a heavy guilt in his heart. This was the right woman. For him, for the
rest of his life. She could slice him up into pieces in five seconds and look
pretty while doing it.

Blake grabbed his coffee and left
the kitchen. He made a line right to the door and went out on the porch. He
stood there and looked out at the woods. The quiet and calm were there in
appearance but not within Blake at all.

A few seconds later, the screen
door opened with a squeak and slapped shut.

“
Did
I say something wrong?
”
Maya asked.

Blake looked over his shoulder.
“
What am I supposed to say?
”

“
Just
answer me. I know thinking about it now hurts. But go back to that moment.
”

“
Do
you know what it was like to stand there
…
torn between love and dreams?
”

“
I
know exactly what it was like.
”

Blake looked forward.
“
Then, yeah, you did the right
thing. And I did the right thing too.
”

“
You
did the right thing?
”

Blake turned and put his coffee mug
down on a small table. He leaned against the wooden railing.
“
Yeah.
”

“
How
so?
”

“
Because
I stood there and took it. I let you say what you wanted and walk away. To let
you find a way to believe it was the right thing.
”

“
As
opposed to what?
”

“
Grabbing
you. Kissing you. Lifting you up and making damn sure you knew nothing was more
important than you. Fuck, I would have left the band right then if you asked.
”

Maya licked her lips.

She
’
s nervous.

“
That
’
s the truth,
”
Blake said.

“
Well,
I
’
m here right now. We
’
re alone. No band. Nothing but
us.
”

“
And
I already told you, sweetheart, if you keep doing this, I
’
m never going to let go. I
’
m never going to walk away. I
’
ll give it all up right now. For
you.
”

Blake moved toward Maya. He touched
her by the waist and gave her a second to collect her thoughts. Her eyes were
wide and surprised.

“
This
is what you would have done?
”
Maya whispered.

“
No,
sweetheart, this is
…”

Blake pressed his lips to hers and
lifted her up. He held her with one hand and arm and reached for the door. He
opened it and took Maya right to the bedroom. He blasted the door open with his
foot and basically tossed her to the bed. He was then right there, against the
bed, grabbing at the long sleeved shirt she wore. Up and over her head,
revealing that Maya had nothing else on under the shirt.

Fucking hell
…

Blake had skipped putting his
boxers back on, which now worked to his personal advantage as he took his jeans
off, showing Maya how hard and ready he was to have her.

This was what he had thought about
for a long time.

This was what he should have done
that day she broke his heart.

Blake hovered over Maya, an inch
away from a thrust that would allow him back inside her beautiful and perfect
body.

He touched her face and curled his
lip.
“
This.
”

“
Holy
shit, Blake
…”

“
And
then I
’
d look you in your
eyes and tell you that I fucking love you. That nothing is ever going to change
that. Today, tomorrow, forever. It will never
…
change
…”

With that, Blake came down with his
entire body. His lips were back to Maya
’
s
as he thrust and slipped into Maya
’
s
warm core. One hard thrust allowed him deep and he held there. He kissed Maya
as hard as she had kissed him last night. She wrapped her legs around him and
pulled, wanting more.

So Blake gave it to her.

He moved slow, like they had
nothing but time to kill. The wild passion from last night still existed, but
for the first few minutes Blake fulfilled another fantasy
…
making love to Maya. Touching
her body everywhere he could reach while fucking her gently. Bringing her to
another wild edge and easing her off of it. Feeling her come, listening to her
moans and cries for him, her lips kissing his neck, her teeth grazing his chest
as she gasped for air. That
’
s
what Blake had wanted with her forever.

When Maya slid her hands down to
his ass and pulled, giving him the most vixen set of eyes he
’
d ever seen, he quickly rolled
over, taking Maya with him, putting her on top. Her hands instantly clawed to
his chest and she went right to work. Her full and beautiful breasts danced
right in front of his face as she lifted and lowered herself, bringing Blake to
a forceful climax.

As he came, he groaned and hissed, while
Maya moved so perfectly with the pulse of his cock. They finished as wildly as
they had began. May lifted herself off Blake and then collapsed down to his
body. She remained there, breathing heavily, as Blake gently touched her back.

“
You
okay?
”
he asked.

“
Staring,
”
Maya said. She looked up at
Blake.
“
Feel like making me
breakfast?
”

“
Oh,
sweetheart, some things never change
…”

“
So
we
’
re going out for
breakfast?
”

Blake grinned and nodded.
“
Yeah.
”

“
I
have to put clothes on?
”

“
For
a little while.
”

Maya groaned and slid off his body.

Blake watched her get dressed,
heart racing.

I love her. I
’
ve always loved her. I
’
ll never stop loving her.
Ever.

(14)

The little diner had changed names
half a dozen times that Maya could remember. Probably more since her
grandfather built the cabin thirty years ago.

It had been
Becky
’
s B-fast, Cabin in the
Woods Diner, Hidden Lake Diner, Crack! an Egg Diner
…

And a few other weird names that
slipped Maya
’
s memory.

Now the place had a rustic sign
that hung purposely crooked that read,
By the Lake Diner - the best
breakfast you
’
ll
ever eat!
.

Maya pointed to the sign.
“
That
’
s a bold statement.
”

“
Yeah,
it is.
”

“
Especially
for two people who spent a lot of time on the road. We
’
ve had a lot of good and bad breakfasts.
”

“
Yeah,
we have,
”
Maya said and
smiled.

Blake then grabbed her by the hand
and opened the door. The subtle move left her reeling, wanting this to become
something like normal.

They chose a corner booth where two
mugs were waiting. A waitress hurried by and filled the mugs with coffee and
told them she
’
d be right
back. She stopped and did a double take at Blake then kept moving.

“
You
’
re busted,
”
Maya whispered.

“
You
think people will know me here?
”

“
Blake,
you
’
re famous. People
…
they
’
re already looking.
”

Maya watched as Blake looked
around. There were a handful of people who kept glaring at the table. At first,
they wouldn
’
t believe it.
Why the hell would a rockstar be in town? Those with internet access and who
were fans would realize that just yesterday there was an article posted that
Gone by Autumn had cancelled certain media obligations due to a family medical
emergency.

Blake waved at a table and the
people waved back, their jaws looking ready to hit the floor.

“
Told
you,
”
Maya said.

“
Well,
we better eat fast then.
”

“
No
rush. I doubt you
’
ll get
mobbed here.
”

“
I
’
m not worried about them,
”
Blake said as he leaned over
the table a little.
“
I
’
m more worried about getting
breakfast so we can pick up where we left off in the cabin.
”

Maya gasped and touched her cheeks,
feeling them burning with fresh color.

The waitress - name tag read Annie
- stopped and pulled a pen from her hair.
“
You
’
re
…”

“
Yeah,
”
Blake said.
“
No worries. I am who you think.
”

“
I
love Gone by Autumn,
”
Annie
said.
“
I can
’
t
…”
She took a deep breath.
“
Okay,
let me get your order. I
’
m
sorry.
”

“
Again,
no worries,
”
Blake said.

They both ordered the same meal -
two eggs over easy, two pieces of toast, butter and jelly, a side of
hashbrowns, and three pancakes on the side. It seemed every diner in the
country had a special name for such a meal and this place was no different.
Titled
The Biggest Breakfast EVER
was a bit of a stretch, but the smell
of the food made Maya
’
s
mouth water. Not to mention the coffee was spectacular.

“
You
have those eyes,
”
Maya
said.

“
What
eyes?
”

“
The
eyes that
…
I don
’
t know
…
you
’
re
letting everything eat at you. Do you really want to keep talking about the
past?
”

“
Honestly,
no,
”
Blake said.
“
I just can
’
t stand to think for years
…”

“
Then
don
’
t,
”
Maya said.
“
Don
’
t think about the years behind us. Think about the
years in front of us.
”

“
Just
like that?
”

“
Just
like that.
”

Blake shook his head.
“
You know, I had so much built up
in my mind with us. Where we were going. Watching you with a guy here and
there. Then that new guy. You said
…”
Blake rubbed his jaw.

“
I
said what?
”
Maya asked.

“
You
said you loved him. I heard you. I wasn
’
t
spying. It was after a show
…”

“
Shit,
”
Maya said and swallowed hard.
She looked down into her coffee.
“
I
did do that. More than once, Blake.
”

“
Why?
I mean, I
’
m not judging
you, sweetheart, but why?
”

“
You
’
ve never said it?
”
Maya asked, looking back up at
Blake.

“
Never.
Not even close. I don
’
t
think I
’
ve had a relationship.
”

“
Well
I did. Why? I don
’
t know.
Because Hunter was there. He was happy, excited, and it came out of him. Part
of me wondered what it would feel like. Maybe it would let me turn that corner
and keep walking.
”

“
Away
from me?
”

“
Yeah.
Away from you.
”

“
Shit,
”
Blake said.
“
I was that close to actually
losing you for good?
”

Maya smirked.
“
You were never close to actually
losing me. You
’
ve had my
heart for a long time.
”

“
So
what did you feel when you said it?
”

“
Besides
the guilt? It just
…
it just
didn
’
t work. That
’
s all I want to say.
”

“
Okay,
”
Blake said.
“
Fair enough. That was just
something bothering me.
”

“
No
offense, Blake, but that feeling was how I felt after each show when a parade
of half naked women would flock to the band.
”

Maya watched Blake
’
s face turn white.
“
Damn, sweetheart. I never meant
…”

“
I
know you didn
’
t. That
’
s why I said I don
’
t want to talk about the past.
It
’
s not relevant.
”

“
Done,
”
Blake said.

They sipped their coffees and their
food came out a few minutes later. That provided an excuse to focus on
something else for a little bit.

Maya couldn
’
t believe how ravenous she was.

All that crazy good loving
…

She blushed as she ate, unable to
stop the images of Blake on top of her. Touching her, holding her, commanding
her body in such an amazing way.

When they finished, Blake picked up
the conversation again.

“
Maya,
I
’
m going to be blunt,
”
he said.
“
We
’
re
not young anymore. I don
’
t
have the time or the ability to be heartbroken over this again. So, is this for
real?
”

“
Define
real.
”

“
Real
…
when we get back and have to
hit the road again. Are you going to stick with me? The band?
”

“
You
’
re still pissed I missed some
shows?
”

“
Sort
of,
”
Blake admitted.
“
Maybe more now that you were
with someone you didn't even love.
”

“
It
was an attempt at a change,
”
Maya said.
“
That failed.
”
She reached across the table
and took both of Blake
’
s
hands.
“
I don
’
t want you to worry about
anything. Don
’
t be like me
all those years back, Blake. If this is going to happen, it
’
s going to happen. A hundred
miles an hour forward. No matter what. I
’
ll
be there at the next show. I promise.
”

Blake squeezed her hands and
grinned.
“
Shit, I
’
ve been picturing this moment
for years.
”

“
Right
here? At this little diner?
”

“
Yeah,
right. I dreamed of this diner. Pretty cool, huh?
”

Maya laughed.

The waitress came by to take their
plates and to refill their coffees.

Blake pointed to her apron and
asked,
“
Can I see our
check, please?
”

“
Sure,
”
Annie said.

Blake took the check and wrote
something on the back of it and signed it for her. He then took out money and
gave it to Annie.

“
Keep
the change and keep the check.
”

Annie gasped and thanked Blake.

She walked away and Maya couldn
’
t take the smile off her face.
She remembered a time when the guys could go into any diner, pizza place, or
restaurant and nobody knew who the hell they were. Now they couldn
’
t go anywhere.

“
Blake.
”

“
Yeah?
”

“
I
’
m proud of you.
”

“
Proud
of me?
”

“
You
did it. You packed up a van and chased down a dream. I can
’
t believe it. I
’
m so happy for you.
”

“
No,
sweetheart, I
’
m proud of
you. For never giving up on this dream. If it wasn
’
t for you and Sam, we
’
d
be in a van still. Trust me, this is all you. Not to mention what you do to me.
How you make me feel.
”

“
A
romantic rockstar. Did you learn all that on the road?
”

“
No,
sweetheart, I learned that by looking at you.
”

*

Blake couldn
’
t take his eyes off Maya. Not like that was
anything new. But now he could grab her, hug her, kiss her, and not give a damn
about what anyone thought.

They hung out at the little diner
for a while, talking about life and music.

Then something happened.

The first true brave person
approached the table. It was some kid, maybe sixteen or so, wearing a black
shirt, had long hair, and looked terrified to talk to Blake.

“
Excuse
me,
”
he said.
“
I
’
m
really sorry
…”

“
What
’
s up, my man?
”
Blake asked.
“
You need a refill on your
coffee?
”

The kid smiled.
“
No. I
’
m, uh, a big fan.
”

“
You
know who I am?
”

“
I
started drumming because of you.
”

“
Seriously?
”

“
Yeah.
”

“
What
’
s your set up like?
”
Blake asked.

“
My
set up
…
?
”

“
Your
kit, man. What
’
s it like?
”

“
Oh,
yeah. Just a five piece. Nothing fancy. Kind of sounds crappy.
”

“
Trashcan
lid cymbals?
”
Blake asked.

“
Totally,
”
the kid said.
“
I
’
m
saving up some money for a good cymbal set.
”

“
Good
for you. What
’
s your name?
”

“
Drew.
”

“
Well,
Drew, what do you need from me right now?
”

“
An
autograph.
”