“No, Jacob, you’re not.”

“Look, the guys are all in agreement. Hell, Rhys is even ready to use what little law school he had to go toe to toe with the execs if they give us any shit about it.”

“I’m still your mother, and I say no.”

A tormented sob choked off in my throat. I gripped the phone tight against my ear as I tried to hold my emotions and sanity in check. “But we don’t have that much time left together. How can you be so fucking cruel and deny me one moment with you?”

“Jacob, your language is absolutely atrocious!” she chided.

“Stop it! I don’t wanna hear about the wrong I’m doing, okay?”

“Look, these are hard times on everyone, sweetheart. There are a lot of people who work for you and they depend on you and so do their families.” When I started to protest, she sighed. “I’m a mess right now, honey—both emotionally and physically. I don’t want you seeing me like this. Before I knew for sure if it was terminal, I started treatment again just in case. It’s wrecked me. So give me a few weeks, okay?” At her sniffling, I broke down myself. “Sweetheart, I want more than anything to have a month or two just to be your mother and take care of you before you have to take care of me.”

Tears streamed down my cheeks when I thought about everything she was going through just to have time to be a mom to me. “Why do you have to be like this?”

She chuckled. “Jacob, it’s that stubbornness that we both share, remember?”

“I love you…God, do I love you,” I blubbered.

“I know, baby. As high as the sky, remember?”

I was crying so hard I couldn’t respond. Even though she couldn’t see me, I bobbed my head in acknowledgement of the phrase she had taught me as a child.

You know how much I love you, Jacob?

As high as the sky, Mama!

That’s right, sweet boy.

“Jacob,” my mother began in the soft, soothing voice she’d used since I was a child. “I know it’s hard, but try to put all this behind you. Focus on your music. Find escape in it, and for the next three weeks, give your audiences the best shows you possibly can. And each night you do, rest assured that you’re making me proud for your strength and courage.”

With the backs of my hands, I tried wiping off the tear-stained, snot-filled mess my face had become. “Okay, I’ll try.”

“That’s my boy. I’ll call you each and every day.”

“You better.”

“I will. I love you, honey.”

“I love you too.”

And with that she was gone. Doubling over, I rested my palms on my knees. My body heaved and shook as I tried to get myself together.

“Jake?”

Pinching my eyes shut, I willed her to go away. I couldn’t deal with her period, especially not like this. “Not now,” I muttered.

She snaked her arms around my waist. “Baby, what’s wrong?” Bree crooned into my ear.

“Shit that you wouldn’t possibly understand. Besides, I just told you I don’t wanna fucking talk about it, okay?”

Slinking around me, Bree tucked her finger under my chin and forced me to look at her. “Oh Jake, you look like hell.”

“Thanks,” I grunted.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t make it yesterday. Trust me, if you’re going to get like this when I go away, I’ll just quit my job,” she teased.

“You barely work as it is. It’s a wonder you don’t get fired as much as you call in.”

She laughed. “That’s the perk of working for your granddaddy’s towing service. It’s hard to fire family.”

“Whatever.”

“Besides, he likes being able to tell everyone that I’m cutting off work to go hang-out with Jake Slater of Runaway Train.”

I fought the urge to say that her grandfather was pretty sketchy to enjoy the fact she was a glorified groupie, joining up with me at different tour stops.

Bree’s tongue flicked across my earlobe, causing me to shiver. “I could work on you full-time. Cause trust me baby, it’s a buzzkill having a real job that keeps me away from you and that fantastic cock of yours,” she drawled. The lust in her voice caused my traitorous dick to twitch.

“Is that right?”

“Mmm, hmm.” A cat-like smile curved on her lips. “You miss me?”

The truth was I hadn’t. Sure, I missed the sex, but there would never, ever be anything stronger between me and Bree. But I desperately needed an emotional escape right now, and the only thing I could think of was screwing my problems out of my mind. “Yeah, I did.”

“Hmm, wanna show me how much when we get back on the bus?”

“Yeah, but first I need to get fucked up.”

She chuckled. “It’s barely ten o’clock, Jake.”

“I don’t give a shit. Go tell your dad I want his flask—the one with the good stuff in it.”

“Okaaay, if you say so.” She ran her hands up my chest. “Just don’t get too wasted where you can’t make me scream at least three times.”

I forced a smile to my lips. “Now why would I want to do that?”

***

I could only push around the food on my plate after Jake refused to sit at my table. I tried reasoning that it wasn’t really a slight against me. Maybe he needed some space after AJ’s dig about our writing session or maybe he wanted time with the roadies and crew. He’d obviously already opened up to me far more than with anyone else, so I guess he needed time to process it all. I had to remember that I would be a total bitch if I laid too much fault with him considering he was going through hell right now with his mother’s illness.

We’d barely known each other twenty-four hours, so he didn’t owe me anything. But deep down, his behavior pierced through my heart to sting my soul. If I allowed myself, I could really feel something for him—something more than sympathy or compassion. I could even maybe grow to…like him.

When I saw Jake fly out of his chair and storm out of the diner, it took everything within me not to go after him. Instead, I tried focusing on Brayden’s stories about his children or how Rhys’s parents had almost disowned him after he gave up his Ivy-League background to pursue life with the band. AJ remained conspicuously silent, and from time to time, I would cut my eyes to catch him staring at me.

As we started back to the bus, he grabbed my arm. When I turned back, his expression was pained. “You’re starting to like Jake, aren’t you?”

“No! Why would you ask such a thing?”

The corners of his lips quirked up in a sly grin. “Call it my Latin intuition.”

“Wait, I thought it was supposed to be Irish institution.”

“Are you saying we Mexicans can’t have it too?”

A relieved giggle escaped my lips. “Yeah, I guess you can.”

AJ laughed. “Whatever it is, I meant what I said.” When I started to protest, he held up his hand. “You know, it’s crazy, but after I met you, I thought I might try to be a one- woman-man for a while. See if your angelic nature couldn’t tame me.” He winked to which I rolled my eyes but laughed in spite of myself. “But after last night and this morning, I realized there isn’t any point.” As the wind whipped the long strands of my hair into my face, AJ reached over and pushed it away. “I could go all medieval and fight for you, but there’s no point. You and Jake seem to have this magnetic pull.”

Before I could stop myself, I gave a mirthless laugh. “Yeah, well, I call bullshit on your little magnetic theory considering he steered right past my table this morning. Not to mention he let that waitress from the diner…” Warmth flooded my cheeks as I realized I’d said too much.

AJ shook his head. “This morning was my fault for giving Jake shit about the songwriting. And the waitress…well, you got him worked up, and I’m sure she was more than willing to take care of it for him because he’s Jake Slater of Runaway Train, not because he’s Jake this good-looking guy who has a lot of unattractive demons he’s dealing with.”