The Hardest Set (Willow Son #4/Brothers of Rock #19) (26 page)

Tears escaped from her eyes as he
loved her in the shower. But the rushing water blended them together.

It was the greatest sex of Natalie
’
s life, even if it was the most
heartbreaking.

She couldn
’
t lose Van. She couldn
’
t lose her rockstar.

She couldn't lose love.

19.

Van signed his name where Harry
told him to do so. There were two lawyers present, for two different
situations. The band was gearing up for the next show. The first show had set
some records that Van didn
’
t
really give a damn about. All he wanted to know was that the fans were happy.
The rest of the band was scrambling to get all their affairs in order too.
There were photo shoots, interviews, radio spots, and then, of course, going
back to basics with band practice.

That was maybe the most fun of all.
Getting together with the band and coming up with a brand new set list for the
next show. Then figuring out how to make certain parts of the songs different.
What to play acoustic. What to skip. What to add.

It was non-stop busy.

“
You
’
re sure about this?
”
Harry asked.

“
It
’
s done,
”
Van said.
“
I
already signed. Is the plane ready?
”

“
Yeah,
”
Harry said.
“
Waiting for you.
”

“
Thanks.
”

“
Hey,
brother,
”
Brantley said.
“
Don
’
t forget. Studio time tomorrow.
”

“
I
have it programmed in my phone,
”
Van said.

“
Christ,
we suck,
”
Jett said.
“
Keeping calendars in our phones
now.
”

“
That
’
s life,
”
Van said.
“
As
long as we
’
re still
rockstars, who cares?
”

“
Fly
safe,
”
Colby said.
“
Good luck.
”

“
Thanks.
”

Van shook hands with the band and
then hightailed out of the building. He had no interest in seeing Portis. He
had no interest in talking music, tours, set lists, nothing. There was one
destination in mind for him.

Texas.

**

Van sat on the porch to the house
and looked around. It was definitely a quiet, little town. Down at the corner
there was a small park that overlooked a ton of land. He felt a little out of
place being there, but it was okay. All he could do was wait.

The wait was well worth it when
Natalie pulled up and got out of her car. She dropped her bag and covered her
mouth. Van reached for a single rose and stood up, shrugging his shoulders.

Never before in his career did he
really appreciate money until now. Until he was able to get on a private jet
and see the woman he loved. When he got his first royalty check, Van bought an
expensive car, new clothes, and spent a week buying drinks at bars and
indulging. But nothing was as satisfying as when Natalie ran down the small
sidewalk and jumped into his arms.

“
What
are you doing here?
”
she
asked.

“
I
needed a kiss.
”

Natalie kissed him.

Van put her down and started to
walk away.
“
Okay, I can go
now.
”

“
What?
”
she asked.

Van laughed.
“
Come here, sweetie. Let
’
s go for a walk down to that
park. I want to hear about your day.
”

It all had a weird normal feeling.
Like they were a normal family in a normal neighborhood. Like they worked
normal jobs and had the normal fears of normal people. Well, Van was definitely
afraid right now. Anytime he took Natalie
’
s
hand, he was afraid. Love did weird things to the heart.

“
Are
you getting settled?
”
Van
asked.

“
A
little,
”
Natalie said.
“
It
’
s
such a big change. But everyone is so nice. The students are responsive. I
mean, there are a few who just don
’
t
get it. But that
’
s okay.
They try. There
’
s a few who
are really good at what they do. It
’
s
just mind-blowing right now.
”

“
Good.
I
’
m so happy you
’
re here.
”

“
I
’
m not, Van.
”

“
Why?
”

“
This.
You
’
re here right now. But
you
’
re not going to be here
forever. So what do I do?
”

They walked in silence for a
minute. They turned into the park. There was a creek that ran through the park
with a bridge that went over it. That
’
s
where Van wanted to go. His silence may have been a little ignorant to Natalie
’
s feelings, but there was a
reason.

Once they were on the bridge, Van
stopped.

“
So
what are you going to do?
”
Van asked.

“
I
’
m thinking about talking to
Peter. Ending it. Going back and working with Andrea. I already talked to her.
”

Van nodded.
“
And
…
?
”

“
She
would give me plenty of work.
”

“
You
’
d do that for us?
”

“
For
you, Van. I can
’
t be away.
Even if you can fly here anytime you want.
”

“
I
’
m busy in California too. Always
on the go. Then I have to travel for shows.
”

“
I
can work with Andrea and be able to come once in a while.
”

“
True,
”
Van said.
“
So that
’
s what you want?
”

“
What
do you think I should do?
”

Van touched Natalie
’
s cheek.
“
I
’
m
never going to tell you what to do. I swear. Whatever you decide, I
’
m there.
”

“
I
like the job. I like what I
’
m
doing. I just don
’
t like
feeling empty.
”

“
Don
’
t feel empty. I
’
m standing right here.
”

“
For
how long? When do you have to go back?
”

“
I
have band practice tomorrow. But I can bring the guys here. We
’
re gearing up for the next show.
Not everything is ever going to be set in stone. Except the way I feel about
you, sweetie.
”

“
Will
you just kiss me for a minute?
”

Van couldn
’
t argue that. He stood there on some small bridge
in some small park in some small town in Texas and just kissed Natalie. That
’
s what made it all amazing. It
didn
’
t matter where they
were, as long as they were together.

“
I
have to figure this out,
”
Natalie whispered.

“
Not
that I want to sway you, but if you decide to leave, let me know so I can get
some rental things worked out.
”

“
What
do you mean?
”

“
The
house,
”
Van said.
“
Where you
’
re living now. I
’
ll
have to rent it out.
”

“
What?
Why?
”

“
I
’
m not going to live here without
you. I
’
m not going to live
there alone.
”

“
Why
…
Van
…
that house
…”

“
Oh,
I forgot. I was too busy staring at your beautiful face. I bought that house
today. Like four hours ago.
”

Natalie
’
s eyes went wide.
“
What?
”

“
Do
you like that house?
”

“
I
love it. I told you that. It
’
s
…”

“
I
bought it. I made a few calls and that guy who owns it never really intended on
keeping it for this long. So I made him an offer he couldn
’
t refuse.
”

“
What?
”

“
So
if you leave, then I
’
m
going to have to rent it out. I
’
ll
never sell it for what I paid for it. I
’
m
kind of dumb when it comes to money I guess.
”
Van grinned.

“
Holy
shit
…”

Natalie turned and gripped the edge
of the bridge.

Van reached into his pocket and
took out the ring. He stepped up behind Natalie and let it rest in his hand.

“
I
brought this,
”
he
whispered.

“
What
the hell is that?
”
Natalie
asked.

Van stood next to Natalie.
“
This is the ring.
The ring.
”

“
Oh?
”

“
I
never wanted it back. But I got it back. I wondered what the hell to do with
it. Here, open your hand.
”

Natalie
’
s hand was shaking. Van put the ring into her palm.

“
Van
…”

“
Don
’
t worry, I
’
m not proposing right now.
”

“
Okay.
I mean
…
if you were
…
If I
…”

“
Want
to see what I want to do with this ring?
”
Van asked.

“
Okay,
sure.
”

Van tapped under Natalie
’
s hand. She yelped as the ring
went into the air. A second later it
plunked
down into the water and was
whisked away by the gentle current.

“
Van!
”

“
Oh
well,
”
Van said.
“
It
’
s
gone now. There
’
s nothing
more that I need in my life than you. I have you and I
’
m not letting go. So you have two things to do
right now.
”

“
I
do?
”

“
First,
you need to kiss me. Second, you need to give me a tour of the house I just
bought for us.
”

Natalie blinked away a tear and
jumped into Van
’
s arms. The
audience of twenty thousand fans was really amazing
…
but the audience of one -
Natalie
- was all
Van would ever need.

“
I
love you, you crazy asshole rockstar,
”
Natalie said as she kissed Van.

“
I
love you, sweetie,
”
Van
said.

It had all worked.

That damn ring was finally gone.
And Van had definitely freaked and faked out Natalie.

What she knew was that the ring he
had promised to the wrong woman was swimming away in the creek. Off to live
another life and another story.

What Natalie didn
’
t know
…
was that Van had another ring in his back pocket.
That was the one for Natalie. He had no idea when he planned on giving it to
her. But when he did, she would become the rockstar in his fantasy. The woman
that fixed, tamed, and teased his heart. And that Van could deal with for the
rest of his life.

*****

Brantley twirled a drumstick with
one hand and took a shot of whiskey with the other. He tossed the stick into
the air, dropped the shot glass to the floor, and then grabbed another
drumstick. He twirled that one, caught the other stick, and gave it to one of
three women sitting backstage at a small nightclub.

He then grabbed a beer and started
to drink.

He downed half the drink and then
stopped. He stopped twirling the drumstick and handed it to another woman.

“
Two,
”
he said.

The women grinned, blushing,
giggling as they bumped into each other.

“
Great,
”
the third woman said.
“
I guess I
’
ll go home.
”

“
Hold
up, darling,
”
Brantley
said. He reached back and grabbed a third drumstick.
“
I always bring enough for everyone in need.
”