Page 50 of Reckless

“I tried to calm it down,” Hector insisted.

“How so? By blaming it on Harlow tonight? If she hadn’t escaped a toxic situation where her mother was calling her a lazy slut because no one stood up for her everything would be okay? That’s the reason Gloria says the vicious stuff she does with zero pushback?”

“This is family business,” Hector said. “It’s not your concern. My mom has overcome a lot.”

“Fuck your mother.” Miles squared his feet slightly apart, waiting. Wanting Hector to make a move because he’d never wanted to punch someone’s face more than he did right then.

Mindy stood between them staring at Hector. “He’s right. Gloria started all that. She always does. She treats Harlow terribly. I’ve said so for years and you’ve made excuses. I made them too even though I saw how she was. You need to apologize to Harlow. Genuinely. You’re her big brother.”

“She lives it up in this world and I’m supposed to what? Play nice so we get invites to places? Like she didn’t get to have all the travel and money while we stayed home?”

Miles was so thoroughly disgusted. “She wanted to share this with you. Wanted you to be proud of her and see how hard she worked to achieve it. You’re backstage right now while she’s on stage and you’re arguing with me instead. You could have said I’m sorry you got treated so badly in my home. Instead, you saidshemade it worse by leaving. Now get out. Go sit and watch her be amazing and you’d better tell her so afterward with your thank you. And then fuck off. Leave her alone because your absence is less painful than your presence when you abuse her just like your mother does.”

He slammed the door as he left, not looking back at the usher who’d overheard that entire exchange.

CHAPTERSIXTEEN

Just over a week later, Miles leaned against the stair rail and watched Above Me’s soundcheck. He’d noticed that Harlow had seemed grumpier than usual earlier that day when they’d woken up, so he wanted to keep an eye out.

He’d hoped to entice her into a nice bout of morning sex to start the day right, but her phone had buzzed, she’d looked at the screen, her mouth lost that kissable quality and had turned down into a frown,

Probably had something to do with her fucking idiot brothers or their mother. There weren’t a lot of things Miles actually hated, but Gloria Martin was one of them, right up there with homophobia and racism. She was probably both, come to think on it.

They headed straight into “Dark Heart”, one of his favorites of theirs and now that he knew her better—and had met her mother—he understood who it was about and hearing her sing it tore him up every time.

Poppy bounced up to him and handed him a printed email with all the numbers Jeremy had forwarded to them that morning. He nodded. They were doing great. One sold out show after the next. So much they’d added another night to several more US cities.

Someone in the audience shouted “Seek & Destroy” and Harlow grinned back over her shoulder and played the opening notes, but Nora followed up and so did Brian so they went for it, but it was Harlow who sang it.

And damn if she didn’t know the whole fucking song, including the bridge where she and Brian kicked ass, and it wasn’t the first time they’d played it either. They put their own spin, speeding it up slightly, slowing it down here and there. Miles was sad he’d missed her metalhead phase, but he could see the foundations of it right then as she played.

And she shined as she played guitar, clear on her face how much she loved it, and loved playing with Brian and Nora as she turned and played into the last part of the song.

“Haven’t done that one in a long time,” she said to cheers.

“Well, not all of us learn to play Metallica guitar solos from Richie Martin,” Brian said of Harlow’s father.

“Right?” Harlow gave the devil horns with her right hand.

“Is everything okay?” Poppy asked him as he broke his gaze away from Harlow back to his sister.

“Yeah. Yeah.” He ran his hands through his hair after he handed the paper back to her. “Good news.”

“Looks like it. More shows in Europe now too.”

Selfishly, he’d tried to think on ways to bring her with him. Thought about how to have Above Me open for them in addition to the other bands scheduled.

But he knew she’d see it as him pulling strings for her instead of Above Me earning their spot. And he also knew she and Above Me were touring the festival circuit over the late summer and early fall when Earthquakes would be in Europe anyway.

Touring could be exciting and fun and fulfilling. He loved so many elements of it. It was also exhausting. And it was hard to sleep in different beds in different places every single night. It was stressful to beonevery moment he was outside his hotel room. It didn’t matter if one of them was sick or had a bad day. Fans paid good money and spent their time to attend a show and it was necessary to give them his best every time.

Harlow being there with him every day. Traveling with her. Experiencing this magical thing so few people every got the chance to at his side was fucking amazing. It made everything better.

“Before,” he said to Poppy, “when I was with Sophie, I didn’t have a deep sense of satisfaction like I do with Harlow. When we were apart, it didn’t feel wrong or uncomfortable. With Harlow, I’m different because she’s different.”

“You’ve been free from that situation for over two years. That’s enough space for you to see the difference and understand why. I wasn’t worried you were going to go and marry whateverhernameis. She didn’t want that either. She got her clicks. You got your kicks. It was fast and it burned hot and was done. And she helped you learn what it is youneedand that wasn’t her. I know the way she used all that personal information hurt you and makes you wonder just who you can trust. But that’s about her, not about you. And Harlow is the opposite of that.”

“You’re pretty wise for a twenty-year-old,” he told his little sister.

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