Page 48 of Play Dirty (Brooklyn Dawn 1)

I didn’t need it in the city. In fact, it was almost always in storage, but when I drove out to see Logan, sometimes I liked to head into the nearby mountains to unwind. It wasn’t as easy to do surrounded by so many people and traffic and insanity.

My nights were full of work and the busy sounds of the place that never seemed to slow. But I could hide in my space. I could read and keep my mind busy. The calming sameness of my life was necessary for me to keep sane.

And when the silence got to be too much, I found a project.

Thoughts of Angel had me slamming my gear shift with too much force as Logan’s truck lights headed down the long, winding drive and finally reached the access road. At least we weren’t heading out to see his friend again.

I wasn’t sure I was ready for the far too knowing eyes of Jacob Stack tonight.

No, we headed for town, but instead of Main Street, he took a side street. My neck stung with awareness as we approached The Barn. Cam and Logan had made some more improvements since I’d last been here.

Fresh paint and a roof gleamed thanks to another rain shower. Fall in the Northeast was all about rain until it turned to snow.

The moon was already climbing into the sky, and there wasn’t a single light on.

I parked beside Logan and followed them from a distance as they quietly chatted. She was so easy with him. The opposite of how she was with me. Big smiles and laughter as she touched his arm.

He held the door for her and waited for me.

“What the hell are we doing here?”

Logan’s eyebrow winged up. “Well, since you two can’t play well with each other at my house, we might as well try here.” He held his arm out for me to precede him into the rustic venue.

I shook my head. “This is stupid.”

I didn’t want these memories cluttering up my brain too. It was bad enough I had her scent and laughter chained inside me, but now he wanted me to walk back into this madness? To the violence that had shaken all of us?

Christ knows I had enough demons.

I turned to beg off, but Logan was already outside the door. “Work it out,” he said and slammed it shut.

The snick of the lock had me rushing forward.

“What the fuck?” I slapped my hand on the wood. “Open this fucking door, Lo.”

“Nope.” Logan’s voice was directly on the other side. “Talk to her. Get whatever it is between you under control, and I’ll be back.”

“Unlock this fucking door.”

“What’s going on?” Lindsey’s voice was lightly distressed. The kind of upset that meant a waiter had brought her ranch instead of some fat free dressing.

Panic clawed at my gut. I couldn’t be left alone with her. I didn’t trust myself.

“I’ll be back in a few hours.”

Lindsey’s huge blue eyes blinked up at me. “What did he say?”

“We’re not going anywhere, duchess. That’s what he said.”

She pushed me aside and twisted the handle. The click of the door release never came, no matter how many times she banged on the damn thing.

Resigned to my fate, I followed the light to the stage. He’d turned on a few of them so we weren’t bumping around the place. I remembered enough from the rehearsals to know the control hub was to the side of the stage. Old memories of other venues stacked on memories of this place until they bombarded me.

There was a reason I didn’t play on stage anymore.

I’d done it for Logan because of a long held debt. Friendship and my beloved piano, Matilda, had been enough for me to come and help out Logan. Knowing he’d been drowning in his own personal hell due to Aimee had given me the kickstart I’d needed to get on stage with him. I’d reasoned I wasn’t alone. I could stuff memories of my own spiral into drug-fueled mania into a box for a handful of songs for charity. For Logan.

I’d shovel millions of dollars into charity coffers before I’d willingly return to the stage. But I’d done it for him.

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