Talon (Ashes & Embers 4)

"Don't purposely make me jealous, Asia." His jaw clenches as he backs me up against the wall.

"Are you?"

In response, his lips come down on mine hard and his hand grasps the back of my head, holding me to him. At first I resist, but I soon give in and slowly slide my hands up his arms to his shoulders. I hate that the way he touches me and kisses me makes me submit to him even when I don't want to.

He pulls his mouth away and leans his head against mine. "Why are you playing games with me?" he asks, breathing heavily. "I don't like feeling jealous. I'm not used to it."

"I'm sorry. It's just… She's what you want. How do you expect me to feel?"

His dark eyes close for a long moment, and he pulls me closer to him. "She's what I wanted. You're who I want."

I swallow back the lump forming in my throat. "Really? You mean that?"

"Yes."

"She's blond…"

"I don't care. I love your hair. It kicks ass."

"She's got big tits …"

"I didn't notice. I'm too busy trying to figure out what yours look like."

An undeniable giggle bubbles up in me. "You're impossible," I whisper to him.

"Maybe." He nuzzles down into my neck, kissing me below my ear, sending a shiver through me.

"You know I hate you drinking," I protest, hating the smell of it on his breath, but loving the feel of his lips on me.

"I'm sorry. I always have a few drinks after we play." His lips return to mine. "You look so beautiful. I don't want to fight, okay?"

I entwine my fingers together behind his neck. "I don't want to, either. I was enjoying everything up until I saw that girl on you."

"Let's go back and enjoy the night, all right? If we stay in this corner, I'm going to continue to molest you."

We spend the next few hours hanging out and talking to his brothers and some friends. Somehow we end up getting split up when Evie asks me to go the bathroom with her and a guy from another band asks Talon to go off into a different part of the club for some kind of "shredding" thing. I find myself sitting with strangers after Storm comes and takes Evie away. Glancing at my cell, I realize it's three a.m. and I'm having a hard time keeping my eyes open.

I wander around the club and finally find Talon about fifteen minutes later, sitting in a smoky lounge room with a bunch of guys I don't recognize and a few girls. Thankfully, none of them is hanging on him. However, my eyes hone in on a few joints and some coke on the table. Shit.

"Hey," he says when I approach him. "Where ya been?"

"Looking for you."

"I've been right here." His eyes look glassy to me, and I don't like it. I quell the bad memories of the alcohol and drug abuse I witnessed growing up. Talon's not an addict, that much I know, but apparently he does like to party, and that is something I definitely did not want to have to deal with.

"I'm getting really tired… Do you think we could go?" I ask quietly, not wanting to embarrass him in front of his friends, who all seem to be having a good time just chilling here. I suppose this is normal for this type of event, but I'm not used to staying out this late at all.

He grabs my arm. "No, babe…not yet. Hang out with me. Do you want a little weed? It's good stuff."

Ugh.

"No, I don't."

The guy sitting next to him jokes with him about something I can't hear and they both start laughing. He seems to completely forget I'm sitting there. Annoyed and hurt, I get up and leave, expecting him to follow me, but he doesn't.

Screw this. I don't want to be here anymore, and I certainly don't want to be around him when he's stoned. I make my way through the sea of people to the entrance of the club and find our limo still in the lot. I cross the dark parking lot and lightly tap on the driver’s side window of the limo. Max puts the window down and looks at me questioningly.

"Are you all right, Mrs. Valentine?"

"Yes… Are you allowed to take me home?"

"Of course." He steps out of the limo and opens the back door for me. "Will Mr. Valentine be joining us?"

"No, you can come back for him. I would like to go home now, if you don't mind driving me?"

"No problem at all, Mrs. Valentine. That's what I'm here for."

"Thank you, and please, call me Asia." I feel silly being called Mrs. Valentine.

I fall asleep in the limo on the drive home, jolting awake when Max opens the door for me.

I step out, my legs wobbly from wearing heels all night, and Max takes my hand. "I'll walk you to your front door. It's very dark here in the woods, even though it is beautiful."

"That's very sweet, thank you," I say and let him walk me to the door. Thank God I have my key with me and the code to the security system or I'd be sleeping on the porch. "Max, please accept my apologies, but I don't have any money on me… I don't know how this works for payment."

A warm smile touches his face. "It's all taken care of, Asia. No worries for you at all. Have a good evening. I'm sure I'll be seeing you again. I'm usually the driver Talon requests."

"Oh, that's very nice. Thank you again for bringing me home. I'm sorry to make you have to make an extra trip."

He waits for me to enter the house and close the front door behind me before he leaves, which is a nice gesture I'm sure is part of his job. I kick off my boots as soon as I get into the foyer, and Pixie comes running, her little bell jingling. Picking her up, I hold her against me and kiss her soft fur.

"I missed you too, sweetie," I whisper and carry her up to the bedroom with me.

As I get undressed, I keep checking my cell phone, hoping Talon will either text or call me, but he doesn't. I wonder if he even realizes I'm gone? And now that I'm home, I'm a little mad at myself for leaving him there, stoned, drunk, and surrounded by sexy women. Did I just inadvertently give him an opportunity to spend the night with another woman? How stupid am I?

No. He wouldn't do that. He wants our marriage to work.

This house has a high-tech alarm system installed, but I still feel scared all alone here for the first time out in the woods, so I turn the hallway light on before crawling into the bed, which feels amazingly empty without him next to me.

Even though I'm so mad at him that tears spill down my cheeks and onto the pillow, I miss him so much my heart aches.

Chapter 19

Asia

The ringing of my cell phone wakes me, and I find it next to me on the bed, the screen flashing Kat's name. I ignore it, not wanting to talk to her at the moment.

&

nbsp; Right now, I'm way too distracted with the vacant side of the bed where my husband should be, but isn't.

He never came home.

Checking my phone, I'm shocked and gutted to see there are no messages, no phone calls. Nothing.

Does he even care where I am? Does he know I made it home okay?

Where is he? And where the hell did he sleep?

Stress-induced nausea comes over me in quick waves as my mind scrambles to all sorts of sordid scenarios, from him starring in an orgy to being in a car accident to serving divorce papers. Any one of those things seems realistic to me right now.

Biting my lip, I call his cell phone and it goes straight to voice mail, which means his battery is probably dead. Or maybe he rejected my call to avoid talking to me.

I rifle off a text, just in case.

Me: Where are you?

I stare at the little glowing screen, waiting for it to tell me it was read, and hoping for a reply.

Nothing.

Ah! Maybe he actually did come home and slept on the couch downstairs so he wouldn't wake me up. I jump out of bed and dart down the stairs, praying that's where he is, but my heart sinks even lower when I see the couch is empty. He's nowhere in this house.

Panic hits me again and I pace aimlessly around the room like a mouse in a maze. I have no idea what to think or do. This is entirely new territory for me, to be putting up with a missing partner. I debate calling Dr. Hollister or Kim, but I'm embarrassed and I don't want it to seem like I'm tattling on him in some bizarre way. Maybe he has a really valid reason for not being home, like a car accident. Oh my God. What if he's hurt? Would anyone call me?

I wander around the house, like somehow he's just going to appear. He doesn't.

I take a long shower and wash off all the makeup, sadness filling me that even though I spent all that time and money to look pretty for him, in the end, what did it matter? Something else obviously caught his attention. Probably something blond with big, bouncy, balloonish boobs.

A flash of fear bolts through me when I see the shower drain filled with dark water and for a quick moment I think it’s blood, but then I realize it’s the hair dye. Jesus. My mind is going nuts.