“One more.”
His weak arm shook uncontrollably. He felt the weight slipping. Sed’s hand hovered near the bar, but he didn’t grab it.
“Focus, Jace. You can do this.”
Jace couldn’t explain the feeling Sed gave him. Always gave him. It was as if he wanted Sed to be proud—such a strange ambition. It did give Jace the fortitude to lift the bar one last time as he drew on strength he didn’t know he possessed. Sed grabbed the bar at once and shifted it onto the stand. “That’s it.”
Jace forced himself to sit up.
“How did that feel?”
“Exhausting, but great. I’m getting stronger already. Thanks for your help.”
“No problem.” Sed added weights to the bar. “Spot me?”
Jace tried not to grin too widely at being asked, but he couldn’t help it. No one else worked out with Sed. Just him. “Yeah, of course.”
“Jessica can’t keep her hands off me. I think it’s the extra muscle. Must make sure I maintain it.”
Jace figured it was her undying love, not Sed’s impressive bulk, that kept her hands on him, but Jace didn’t want to sound like a wuss, so he kept those words locked inside.
Eric hauled himself into the back of the truck. “Whatcha guys doing out here?”
“What does it look like?” Sed asked.
Eric’s vivid blue eyes moved from Jace to Sed and back to Jace. “Having a ‘who can sweat the most’ contest? I think Jace is winning.”
“He’s working on getting the strength back in his shoulder and arm,” Sed explained.
Jace braced himself for the dis that was sure to erupt from Eric’s mouth.
“Good. Then we can send Jon home.”
Jace was smiling like a dipshit now. When had things changed? When had these guys, who he’d always admired, even idolized, started to include him as one of them? Maybe they were just jerking him. He couldn’t let his guard down too much. Jace remembered he was supposed to ask about Jon playing bass live in those songs Jace would play piano.
“We might need to keep Jon around,” Jace said.
Eric and Sed stared in disbelief.
“For the songs on the new album where I play piano. Maybe he could play bass when we do those songs live.”
“No,” Sed said without hesitation.
“Why not?” Eric said.
“I caught him sharing a crack pipe with one of our temporary roadies yesterday,” Sed said. “I fired the roadie on the spot. Jon’s had his one and only warning. We can’t get rid of him fast enough.”
“Maybe if he has something to look forward to, he can quit the drugs,” Jace said.
Eric nodded. “I agree.”
Sed lay back on the weight bench and wrapped his large hands around the bar, flexing his fingers to find a good grip. “Doubtful.”
“Think about it,” Eric urged.
“I know he’s your best friend, Eric, but the guy is bad news,” Sed growled, lifting the weighted bar up and down as if he was at war with it.
Eric’s brow furrowed. “He’s not my best friend. He uses me. I know that. Jace is my best friend.”
Jace’s heart thudded until he realized Eric was teasing him again. The stupid follow-up joke never came.
Sed made a sound of exertion, and Jace helped him lift the weight bar onto its stand. Sed sat up and wiped his sweaty face on a towel.
“I don’t know. We’ll see what Brian and Trey think. As far as I’m concerned, Jon doesn’t deserve another chance.”
“I need to talk to him,” Eric said. He hopped out the back of the truck.
Sed stood and picked up a twenty-five-pound dumbbell. He handed it to Jace. “Get to work. We need you back. Soon.”
***
Loud arguing on the opposite side of the tour bus drew Aggie from her thoughts. She climbed from the log where she’d been sitting and watching a squirrel bury nuts beneath the leaf litter. She brushed her hands off on her jeans and went to investigate. Eric had Jon cornered against the bus.
“How could you do something so stupid again?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Jon said.
“Sed told me about the crack pipe, Jon. You promised me. You begged and begged me to give you a second chance with the band. Said no more drugs. Reminded me how much I owed you, until I finally relented and promised the first time an opening presented itself, I’d get you in. How the hell was I supposed to know Jace would get himself shot, and I’d have to keep that promise?”
“Why are you jumping my ass? Chill. Sed won’t catch me using again. I’ll be more careful.”
Eric growled in frustration. “You just don’t get it. I promised Sed you were clean. I vouched for you, knowing Sed would hold me accountable for every stupid thing you do. I even alienated Jace to get you here, and you do this?” Eric shoved Jon against the bus with both hands.
Jon shoved him back. “Don’t act all holier than thou, Eric. Do you really think this temporary stint makes us square? You still owe me.”
“You think I don’t realize that?”
“Then get the f**k off my case.”
“How did you get Jace to ask us to keep you on? Did you threaten him?”
Jon laughed. “Do you really think I could threaten Jace? He doesn’t take shit from anyone but the four of you. I had Aggie ask. I knew he couldn’t say no to her. She has him wrapped around her finger.”
Aggie took a hesitant step forward. Gravel crunched beneath her shoes. Both men turned to look at her. “That nice guy routine last night was all an act, wasn’t it?” she said.
“Just shut up,” Jon said.
Eric cuffed him on the side of the head. “You know what? Just get the f**k away from me. I can’t stand to look at you.”
A taxi turned into the roadside. It drew to a stop beside them. Brian opened the door and tugged a beautiful thirty-something woman from the backseat as he climbed from the car. She wore a classy, plum-colored skirt suit and matching stilettos. What had probably been a neat, twist hairstyle was all mussed up as if someone had been raking his fingers through it. The woman couldn’t keep her eyes, mouth, or hands off the lead guitarist, and he couldn’t stop smiling.
“Myrna,” Brian said breathlessly, “this is Jace’s girlfriend, Aggie, and that guy is Jon. You’ve heard a bit about him.”
Her pretty hazel gaze touched briefly on Aggie and Jon before returning to the reason she’d flown to Canada. “Nice to meet you both,” she said. “I hate to be rude, but if I don’t ride The Beast in the next five minutes, I’m going to die.”