Phone Calls From a Rock Star (23 page)

I froze, feet glued to the ground. I
couldn’t move a single muscle.

“
I’ll show you,” Seth
offered. I would have punched him if I was able.

I fumed the whole way, unable to shake
Jake’s grip on my hand. He only released me when Nick, who had
produced a pair of drumsticks and was drumming on every available
surface—including human, tried to spin them and sent one flying. It
hit Jake in the back of the head and when he turned to chastise
Nick, I took that second to step inside the Center and scout out
the situation. Big mistake on my part for all heads turned toward
the door and Dean had to open his mouth.

“
Look, the Meridian Valley
tramp has returned,” he announced.

My head dropped as all the feelings of shame
and worthlessness returned ten-fold. Jake, Seth and the others
crashed through the door as my face reddened. Seth pushed me out of
the way and grabbed Dean by his collar, shoving him against the
wall.

“
Listen to me,” he spit
out, fury overtaking his handsome features. “Keep your mouth shut
about my sister, got it? This stops now!”

Dean didn’t speak; I was fairly certain he
couldn’t. All he did was nod, his eyes frozen in terror. I moved
closer to Jake, reaching for his arm. I opened my mouth to beg him
to stop my brother, but his muscles bunched under my hand and his
head whipped around the room. I followed his gaze where it fell on
Lance and Kimberly huddled together on the sofa. Jake gently
unlatched my arm and shoved me to Ronnie who caught me deftly and
wrapped his arms around my waist. Nick followed Jake as Lance rose
from the sofa.

“
I didn’t touch her, man,”
he said, hands held up in mock surrender. “Ask her.”

Jake stopped right in front of him and I
squirmed in Ronnie’s arms, trying desperately to get loose. He held
tighter and whispered softly in my ear. I gave up and hid my face
in his chest.

“
He won’t do anything he
doesn’t have to, Iz,” Ronnie assured me. I peeked out to
watch.

“
You did enough. Now, I’m
willing to overlook the disgusting bet you made, only because you
lost because Iz is far too good to allow scum like you to touch
her. But I know how this sort of thing works.” He glanced in my
direction, frustration marring his face. “It’s like a …Caste
System. You don’t exactly have to partake in the harassment at all.
You let your minions do that part. And they do it to please
you.”

Lance snorted and took a step back. “I have
no idea what you’re talking about.”

Jake grabbed Lance’s shirt and slammed him
against the wall. I squeezed Ronnie’s arm so tight I was certain
he’d have a bruise the next day. I was a wreck, terrified an adult
would walk in and have all five of them arrested. I peeked over my
shoulder and found Seth still clutching Dean with Matt right behind
him. Jake had a hold of Lance and Nick had his back. Ronnie was
assigned Iz duty. Nice planning, guys. Ever consider a career in
the military?

“
She’s nothing but a frigid
virgin anyway,” Lance said. Not an intelligent remark, in my
opinion, and obviously in Jake’s too, for he slammed Lance against
the wall again. Matt grabbed Seth as he charged towards Lance but
Nick’s reflexes were a little slower.

Jake’s face was so close to Lance’s it
almost seemed as if they were locked in an embrace. “Stay away from
her. Leave her alone. Don’t come near her again. And call off your
sheep. Do you got me?”

Lance mumbled incoherently about his
parents, and it only fueled Jake’s anger.

“
I don’t really care who
your parents are or how much money they have. I don’t care what you
think you will do to me. I am not afraid of anything you think you
can throw my way because I can throw it back just as hard if not
harder. Do you understand me?”

Lance glared at him before nodding.

“
Good. Now you and your
sheep will leave Iz alone. No name calling, no threats, no physical
harm. Nothing. You and your sheep will avoid her at all costs. Do
you understand what I’m saying?”

Lance nodded again, his eyes wide in terror.
Jake loosened his grip only to slam Lance against the wall once
more. “That’s wonderful because my manager gets really mad if I
have to postpone or cancel a show. And I have no problem whatsoever
doing that if Iz needs me to come back here to remind you all of
this little talk. And if you think I’m bad, then wait until you
have to deal with my manager.”

Jake finally released him and surveyed the
room. Ronnie let me loose, and I scurried to Jake’s side. Ronnie
wagged a finger at everyone in the room. “That goes for all of you.
If word gets back to us that you’re still messing with Iz, we’ll be
back.”

“
You can’t threaten us this
way,” Kimberly said, standing with her hands on her
hips.

“
I believe we just did,”
Nick said, mimicking her movements. She groaned and sank back to
the sofa. “And don’t think we won’t find out because word will get
back to us.”

“
Don’t forget I used to go
here,” Seth reminded them. “Leave my sister alone.”

Jake touched my cheek and his eyes softened.
“Anything you want to say, angel?”

I shook my head and hid my face in his
chest. I was a little embarrassed, a little relieved and a lot
proud of my brother and my friends. And my Jake.

“
Hey, do you guys want to
shoot some pool?” Ronnie asked as he walked over to the table and
picked up a stick. I couldn’t help it—nervous laughter spewed from
my mouth.

Ronnie gave me a wink. “What? Me and Matty
will wipe the table with you and Jake.”

“
You’re on,” Jake declared
as though he hadn’t just threatened a room full of high schoolers.
He handed me a stick and kissed my cheek. “Nick, do you and Seth
want winner?”

“
Of course,” Nick answered,
nodding at Seth.

As Ronnie racked the pool balls, I gazed at
my stunned classmates’ shocked faces. I turned to smile proudly at
my guys. Have I mentioned lately how much I adore them all?

Chapter Seventeen

I shot out of bed as soon as my alarm
sounded Monday morning and hurried through the shower. I dressed in
my school issued khaki pants and long-sleeved, blue polo, with the
school crest embroidered on the left pocket. Just as I was brushing
my teeth, my cell phone rang. I spit out a gob of toothpaste and
hurriedly rinsed my mouth.

“
Yeah,” I answered, wiping
my chin with a hand towel. “I’m coming.”

“
You better hurry, angel,”
Jake laughed. “Ronnie’s about to die of starvation—his words, not
mine.”

“
I’m working on it,” I
muttered. “Just give me a second, okay?”

“
Sure,” Jake said
cheerfully. “But you better make it fast. Ronnie’s pretty
cranky.”

I closed my eyes as panic filled every
crevice in my body. I was going to have to feed them and that meant
the cafeteria—I didn’t think Ronnie would consider a candy bar as
the perfect breakfast. I glanced at the clock. If I could put them
off another half hour, the cafeteria would be mostly empty.

“
You still with me, Iz?”
Jake asked. I’d all but forgotten he was still on the
phone.

“
Yeah. I’m almost ready.
I’ll meet you at your dorm in a couple minutes.”

“
Good. I don’t think you
want to be late for breakfast with the Dean.”

Huh?

“
Huh?”

“I guess I forgot to tell you in all the
excitement.” I wanted to hit him. But not hard - I didn’t want to
hurt him. I mean, if I was capable. “Dean Fletcher wants to meet
with us so we can discuss this concert.”

“
I’m on my way,” I said,
enthusiasm completely empty from my voice. I shoved my hair in a
ponytail, crammed my shoes on my feet and ran out the door,
forgetting that it was January in my panic. I cursed when the cold
wind hit me and wrapped my arms around my body but I didn’t have
time to run back for my coat.

I made it to the guest dorm building and
buzzed their room. As soon as they let me in, I dashed inside and
found Ronnie pacing the hall. He sprinted toward me when he spotted
me.

“
Iz,” he whined. “It’s
about time. I’m starved!”

I smiled and patted his arm. “Let’s go feed
you then.”

“
You’re kidding, right Iz?”
Nick asked as he walked out the door. He studied my clothes with a
lifted brow. I frowned, checking out my attire for myself. What was
I supposed to be kidding about? “You really don’t have to wear
little plaid skirts?”

I took a deep breath to restrain the curt
comment that threatened to roll off my tongue. “Don’t be a pig,
Nick.”

“
He can’t help it,” Jake
smiled, taking my hand and kissing my cheek. “We’ve been trying for
years but no luck.”

“
Let’s go,” I urged,
anxiety prickling my brain.

Jake grabbed my arm as I started out down
the hall. “Where’s your coat?”

“
I forgot it in my haste to
rescue Ronnie from starvation,” I explained shooting a glance at
Ronnie who grimaced. “I’ll get it after breakfast.”

Jake shook his head and removed his leather
jacket. He draped it over my shoulders and took my hand. I tried to
protest but he wouldn’t listen. It didn’t matter, though—I
absolutely loved how he took care of me.

Breakfast wasn’t as horrible as I imagined
it would be. Dean Fletcher was an old, balding man who tried to
keep up with the times—after all, he was in charge of hundreds of
teenagers. He seemed honestly excited to meet Jake and the guys and
invited us all to sit down at the long breakfast table in the staff
dining area. He positioned himself at the head of the table with me
and Jake on his left and the others on his right. The boys ate
heartily as they discussed their idea to hold a charity concert at
the school toward the end of the year. They weren’t familiar with
local charities but thought Isabella could probably come up with an
idea or two.

Wait. Excuse me? As if I didn’t have enough
on my plate at the moment.

“
That’s a lovely idea,”
Dean Fletcher agreed. “Why don’t you keep in contact with Miss Ames
as the plans progress, and she can report back to me.” He turned
his bespectacled eyes upon me. “There are a number of educational
charities in the area. I think any one of those would be
grateful.”

I nodded and continued to push the food
around on my plate.

Jake took my hand under the table. “We may
have to come down from time to time—with our agent and sound
crew.”

Clever, clever man, I smiled. What he really
meant was “We’re using this as an excuse to come down and make sure
your students aren’t giving Iz a hard time.” But hey, who was I to
argue? If it meant more time with Jake, I was all for it.

We finished breakfast and the meeting
adjourned. Dean Fletcher suggested I give the guys a tour of the
grounds and the buildings and then take them to the Arts building
so they could figure out how to set up. He reminded me sternly that
even though I was excused from classes, I was still responsible for
my assignments and that I’d need to stop at all my classes and
speak to my teachers.

“
We’re stopping at your
room first, Iz,” Jake informed me. “You need to grab your coat. I
don’t think my leather jacket is warm enough.”

“
It’s warm enough for you,”
I pointed out.

He kissed my cheek. “Yeah but I’m a
guy.”

What that had to do with anything, I hadn’t
a clue. I just shrugged and ran to my dorm, leaving them outside to
wait. I didn’t want them following and wreaking havoc. Plus, I ran
out without making my bed, and I was sure my pajamas were still in
a heap on the bathroom floor.

Jake held my hand as I showed them each
building and explained what they were for. When I took them through
the gym, Ronnie and Nick snickered at the sophomores running laps
in their shorts and t-shirts.

“
Iz, do you have a gym
uniform like that?” Nick whispered, eyes shining in
amusement.

My cheeks pinked. “Not anymore. I think I
burned it.”

When we strolled by the pool, I nearly
shoved Ronnie in when he asked, disappointedly, why there were no
girls lounging around in bikinis. But the lunch dismissal bell rang
and Ronnie, forgetting all about bikini-clad girls, grinned,
clapping his hands idiotically. “That must mean lunch!”

I bit my lip. I couldn’t avoid the cafeteria
this time—unless I could convince them to leave campus. We weren’t
technically allowed but I was certain Dean Fletcher would bend the
rules just for today.

Jake bumped his shoulder lightly into mine.
“Come on, Iz. It won’t be so bad. You have to face them all sooner
or later and I’d rather you do it the first time with us.”

I looked at all four
worried faces and sighed. It
would
be much better having them with me, but it would
make it all the harder the next day and the next day and the next.
They’d become my crutch, and I definitely wasn’t ready to walk
without them.

“
The cafeteria is this
way.”

Nobody paid much attention to us at first
but once one or two people figured out who they were, the noise
level dropped to a low hum. I kept my head down, my cheeks burning,
and led them to the food line. I tried to ignore everyone around me
by studying the white floor tiles, but Jake would have none of
that.

“
Get your chin up, Iz,” he
ordered. “They’re no better than you, and you have nothing to hang
your head about.”