The Rocker That Savors Me(31)

“I wasn’t…I just wanted…” He raked his hands through his hair again, looking sick to his stomach. “I’ll call her later,” he muttered and turned to leave.

I stood in the doorway and watched him make his way back toward the big house. He looked almost defeated with his head bowed and his shoulders slightly slumped. I felt bad for him, but he and Lana had to figure it all out on their own. When he was out of sight, I closed the door and picked up the bags filled with expensive clothes.

My eyes got huge when I saw that they were from an exclusive boutique on Rodeo Drive. I could just imagine the money he had spent there. Leaving Lucy in the living room with a cartoon movie on, I took Lana’s new things into the bedroom. She was laying on the king sized bed glaring up at the ceiling.

“Drake said he will call you later,” I told her as I dropped the bags on the bed and started snooping through them.

I pulled out jeans with designer labels on them, tops made of silk instead of cotton, and two dresses that made me want to weep they were so beautiful. There were two shoe boxes: one with heels that were to die for in a passion red, and another with boots that just begged to be worn by me… Okay, maybe not by me, but if Lana thought I wasn’t going to borrow them, she could think again!

“I told him I didn’t want anything,” Lana muttered. “He said he just wanted me to try a few things on, and I didn’t have to get them if I didn’t want them. So I tried them on. It was fun. But then the sales girl started ringing everything up, and he kept adding more and more things to the pile. I didn’t want them. I don’t want them! But would he listen to me? No!” She punched the bed beside of her. “I don’t want his fucking money. I don’t want what he can buy me. I just want to spend time with him!”

“Don’t say fuck,” I gently admonished her.

“Oh, shut up Layla,” she grumbled. “You say it all the time.”

“Yeah, but you’re better than me. Don’t curse.”

“Don’t you go starting that again!” Lana sat up, glaring at me now instead of the ceiling. “I’m not better than you. No one is better than you, Layla. You are the best person in the world in my eyes. I don’t care about your past or what you had to do to survive when Mom kicked you out. I love you!”

I clenched my jaw, not wanting to think about the past. “So what happened after he bought you the clothes?” I asked, changing the subject back to her day with Drake.

“I walked away. He still bought the clothes. When he and Lucy came out of the store, he drove us to another one that was just for kids and bought Lucy just as many clothes and half a dozen stuffed animals.” She shook her head again. “And he got mad at me for being mad at him. Really? He’s such a child sometimes! Thirty one years old and he acts younger than Lucy! Pouting because I wouldn’t talk to him. Muttering to himself…”

“Oh, Lana! You have that man wrapped so tightly around your finger…” I laughed when she glared at me. “He likes you. And I can see that he cares about you. Give the guy a break. He doesn’t know about how you grew up. He doesn’t understand your mentality when it comes to things like this. But I told him you aren’t like most girls. When he calls, talk to him. Tell him why you don’t like gifts, baby.”

Her amber eyes closed and she dropped back on the bed again. “I’m not ready to talk about the past. He either accepts that I don’t want him buying me things or he doesn’t.” She turned on her side, away from me. “Problem solved.”

I blew out a long sigh. “It isn’t always that easy, Lana, but you handle this the way you think you should. Until then, I’m borrowing these kick ass boots to wear tonight.”

“You can have it all. I don’t want any of it.”





Chapter 10


Jesse

Emmie woke me around two. I wasn’t expecting the glass of cold water, but I guess I should have. It was the easiest way to wake my ass up. I slept hard and enjoyed every second of it, but try to wake me up and you had a good thirty minute workout unless you tried to drown me.

I sat up in bed, water dripping down my face. “What?” I cried. “What’s wrong?”

She stood over my bed in a bikini top and wrap around skirt, her belly sticking out in a cute way that made me want to rub it. The grin on her face told me that she was in a good mood, and it scared the shit out of me. “What are you up to?” I demanded, wiping water off my chest with my damp sheet.

“Nothing.” She sat the glass down on the table beside of my bed.