Page 32 of Pretty Little Rocker

My mood determined how I felt about the two of them. All the entertainment media wanted to do was compare the two of them to their dads. Uncle Drake, who was Damien’s dad, and Uncle Shane, Mason’s dad, were brothers. They were also the guitarist and bass player for Demon’s Wings, my poppy’s band. According to rumors, Drake and Shane were wild for decades. I wasn’t sure how much truth was in all the stories, but my instincts told me that they were not overembellished. But then they’d met their wives and calmed down.

It was hard for me to imagine the men I knew as the degenerates the media portrayed them to have been. They were old men now, with grandkids and aching joints.

When I didn’t hear my brother’s voice, however, I quickly turned my head toward the two cousins. Evan would have been easy to spot. Six-ten and still growing, he stood above most of the people in the room, except for the few NBA players walking around.

I glared at Mason. Evan had told me earlier in the day that he was going to be out with Mason and Damien and would meet up with us later. “Where is my brother?”

“We’re not Evan’s keeper,” Damien grumbled, getting defensive. Leaning back against the bar top, he had that stupid scowl on his face as he glared at everyone around us who dared look our way. He thought he was intimidating, and maybe, to anyone else, he was. But to me, he was just the boy I slapped on the back of the head when he said stupid shit. “He ditched us for Bentley.”

“They went to a party without you?” Abi asked, her brows raised.

“Fuck if I know.” Damien kept up that same grouchy tone. “Bentley rolled up outside, and Evan jumped in the back with Ali.”

Every muscle in my body went stiff while Abi whisper-shouted at the idiots in front of us. “My sister is hanging out with Bentley and Evan? Was Sixx with them?”

“Didn’t see him.” Mason finally spoke up, ignoring Abi’s ire to signal Nate for a drink.

“Shit,” Abi groaned, while my stomach turned to lead. “What are they up to?”

I wished I knew. Bentley and Sixx were best friends, but Sixx and Evan? Nope. They barely tolerated each other on a good day. And the sole reason for the animosity between them was Ali. She was blindly in love with Sixx, but when it came to Evan, he was only her friend. Evan might have let himself fall for Ali, but he wasn’t dumb enough to do that when he knew she would never see anyone but Sixx.

Evan hanging out with my sister without Sixx shouldn’t have been an issue, but Sixx was a deranged possessive asshole when it came to Ali. It didn’t matter that Evan was more like a brother to her than a friend. The two boys had gotten into so many fights over Ali, I’d lost count. And those fights had only gotten bloodier as they’d gotten older.

A basic giant, my brother might be, but he was gentle. Not the psychotic nutjob that Sixx could turn into with the flip of a switch. His temper was nuclear, especially when it came to Ali. Sixx had aspirations of going into MMA when he got older. His mom wasn’t a fan of his career goals, but there wasn’t much she could do about it once he turned eighteen.

But that was still two years away.

“You let my brother get into a vehicle with Bentley and Ali, but you didn’t see Sixx?” I hissed at the two dumbasses before me. Damien’s scowl only deepened, and Mason’s shoulders hunched up a little in defense. “And neither of you saw a problem with that? Your spidey senses didn’t go off and tell you that was a bad goddamn idea?”

“If Sixx has issues with his best friend hanging out with other guys, then he should grow a pair of balls and claim her,” Mason said dismissively. “Besides, if it comes down to it, Evan can take Sixx. He’s a fucking beast.”

“Idiots,” Abi growled at them, already pulling her phone from her back jeans pocket. She swiped her finger over the screen, and I saw her connect with Ali. “Where are you?”

I didn’t hear what her sister said, but Abi’s voice was almost shrill when she spoke again. “Ali. Tell me where you are. Hayat and I will come get you… Ali, don’t hang…up.”

Abi went from zero to sixty in the blink of an eye as she stabbed her finger into Damien’s chest, getting in his face without fear, a snarl on her beautiful face. “If anything happens to Evan, I’m holding you two responsible.”

I felt slightly sick, wondering what state I would find my brother in once we got to him. If Sixx was in a bad mood, he might hurt Evan. All my brother wanted to do was play basketball. One leg injury could risk all that.

Throwing some cash on the bar top, Abi grabbed my hand, glaring at Mason. “Older obviously doesn’t mean smarter. All those good looks, but not a single working brain cell in your head. Pathetic.”

Mason flinched. “I didn’t have time to stop him. One minute, he was beside us. The next, Bentley slammed his brakes at the curb and was yelling at him to get in the vehicle. What should I have done, Abi?” Remorse flickered over his face as he realized he should have done something. “Where are they? We’ll come with you.”

“Fuck off,” my friend snarled at them, pulling me toward the exit.

As we rushed outside, I tried to call my brother, but he wouldn’t answer. At least he hadn’t turned off his GPS, unlike Ali. Fuck. Abi screenshotted the address of where they were on her phone, before waving down a cab. Given the line that was waiting for valet, it would have taken forever to get my car. And from the sick sensation in my stomach, I couldn’t risk waiting that long.

I was still trying to call Evan, but he continued to ignore me. “Answer your fucking phone,” I shouted when it went to voice mail while Abi pushed me inside the waiting cab.

Closing the door, she read off the address to the driver. He slowly turned to look at us in surprise. “Are you two girls sure that’s where you want to go?”

“Of course we are!” I cried.

“Why do you ask?” Abi asked, unease in her voice.

He shrugged. “Just didn’t figure you two for the warehouse fights. Well, not you. You’re too delicate-looking,” he said to Abi, before looking straight at me. “Havoc might fit in, though.”

“Warehouse fights?” Abi and I squeaked out.

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