“What did you say to Dee?” he asked as he stepped inside and closed the door.
“Nothing,” Jack replied, but Rodney saw the telltale glint in his eyes before he looked away.
Rodney stepped forward until their faces were mere inches apart. “Don’t lie to me.”
“What I did was in the best interests of you and the band,” the man said.
Did? That implied more than a phone conversation. No wonder she’d sounded so strange.
“What did you do to her?” Rodney demanded, wrapping his fingers around his brother’s neck. “So help me, if you laid a hand on her, I’ll kill you.”
He let go immediately, realizing the girl in bed was witnessing the whole ugly scene, including the threat to kill his brother. And, as he had so many times, he reminded himself of the rejected little bastard boy behind the nasty exterior.
Growing up, Rodney had let his brother borrow from his allowance, but he rarely paid it back. He’d even let him borrow his car once, and Jack had wrecked it. He’d taken the losses in stride, but when it came to messing with Dee, he had no forgiveness left.
Jack hooked his thumbs on the edge of the towel, disgustingly casual. “I just paid her a little visit and offered to pay her off to get lost.”
“You what?” Rodney exclaimed. “You had no right.”
“She didn’t bite on it,” his brother said with a shrug. “End of story.”
End. The word rang through Rodney’s head with the finality of truth. Yes, something had to end, and the pain of it sent a knife through his gut. When he’d told Dee he loved her, he’d meant it. He loved her enough to keep her safe.
* * *
Butterflies danced through Dee’s stomach as she prepared breakfast Saturday morning. Breeze’s tour finally had some eastern concerts scheduled again, including New York City and Pittsburgh. Rodney said he’d stop by her place. He’d been vague about how long he could stay, but he didn’t have a show until tonight in D.C. With luck, they could lounge in bed for most of the day.
She tightened the ties of her black satin bathrobe. Under it, she wore a red negligee she’d bought for the occasion. The morning reminded her of their first breakfast date. They’d come a long way since then. After pulling a week of nonstop overtime, she deserved some romance. She hoped he wouldn’t notice how run down she’d been. What if she fell asleep in the middle of sex?
When she opened the door to his knock, she almost didn’t recognize him. He wore gray sweatpants, a ski cap, and dark glasses.
“Nice disguise,” she said, laughing, when he came in.
But his eyes weren’t smiling when he pulled off the glasses and hat and laid them on the kitchen table. She ignored the falling sensation in her stomach and wrapped her arms around him.
“Hey,” she said, turning her face up for a kiss.
“Hey,” he replied, giving her a quick hug before backing up a step.
She touched one of his pale cheeks. “You must still be run down from your cold, too.”
The negligee, begging to be revealed, caressed her curves under her bathrobe. She hoped he wouldn’t be too sick to appreciate it.
“I’ll rest up after the tour. Only a couple more weeks to go.”
“I can’t wait,” she said, stepping in front of the stove to turn the frying eggs over. Why did he look so awkward and stiff?
“Well, sit down. I’ll get you some coffee.”
“Coffee would be good,” he said.
She poured herself a cup as well and turned off the stove. He obviously had something to tell her, and she wanted to get it over with so they could enjoy their precious alone time together. In bed…
He remained standing even after she handed him the cup, so she did, too.
“What’s going on?” she asked.
“Dee…”
He gulped a big swallow of coffee. It had to have burned his throat because hers was scalding hot. Whatever was on his mind must be big because he’d just disregarded the voice he’d need for tonight’s show.
“I’ll just come right out with it,” he said as he set the cup on the table. “It’s over.”
She shook her head. “Why?”
But she knew why, and his name was Jack.
“For the band.” He gripped his forehead then dropped his hand. “I have to put it first. The band members count on me. So do the fans. Our music has helped people through divorces, health problems, and the deaths of loved ones.”
She set her cup down, too, because the scent of eggs and coffee suddenly made her feel like throwing up. “I know Wheeling was rough, but everything turned out okay.”
“This time, but what about next time?” He stared at the floor. “Social media passed you off as a nutty fan, and I let it happen.”
“It’s all right,” she said quietly. “I understood.”
“It’s not all right.”
“Don’t do this, Rodney.” She stroked a lock of his golden hair. “We knew a relationship would be hard.”
“I can’t do it anymore.” When he gripped her hand, his touch brought tears to her eyes. “I’m so sorry.”
She turned away from him and crossed her arms. “So am I.”
Sorry my career wasn’t enough for me. No, I had to go looking for love like an idiot.
“I know your father will be pissed at me,” Rodney continued, his voice filled with a sad smile. “I hope he doesn’t track me down and shoot me.”
“But you gave my parents money to fix their house,” she said, facing him again. “Breaking up doesn’t make sense.”
“Ending it doesn’t mean I stopped caring. I’ll never stop.”
His voice sounded rich and soulful, the way it did when he sang his ballads. She never wanted to hear it again.
“Go find yourself somebody white, Rodney,” she said as she headed to the door and opened it. “You can fly your miserable flag and sing “Dixie” while you fuck her.”
On his way out, he gave her a long
