Page 9 of Chronicles of a Rockin' Mess

“Wow, and I thought we knew everything about you,” Kade mumbles.

Lincoln shrugs. “Remember I told you I took some first aid classes?”

“Well, yeah, when you said first aid classes, I thought you meant CPR or something, not paramedic training,” he adds.

“The plane is waiting,” Gwen says from across the room. I look over, to see she’s pacing and on the phone.

I start to get back up, but Lincoln swoops me into his arms. “Oh no, you are not walking anywhere, and we are getting you properly checked out the minute we get home,” he says.

I thank the doctor as does Lincoln as he carries me out to our waiting car. It’s as we board the plane that I start to get tired. After takeoff, Lincoln unbuckles me and picks me up again.

“Let’s get you settled. There’s a bedroom on this plane,” he says. “I’m going to get Lark settled in the back.” Everyone nods, immersed in their own little worlds.

Lincoln lays me on the bed, and then lies down next to me and pulls me into his arms. I’m surrounded by the smell of his cologne and I never want to leave. My eyes start to close.

“Go to sleep, Lark. You need to rest. I’ll be right here when you wake,” he says gently and kisses my forehead. I snuggle against him and fall into a deep sleep.

Lincoln

I hold Lark in my arms. It feels so right to have her here, but I also know I can’t keep her. My emotions wage a war in my head. Part of me wants to hold her forever, never let her go, and part of me knows I have to let her go.

She stirs in her sleep, and I wrap my arms more tightly around her. She calms and her breathing slows again. I can’t stand being so close to her. I watch her thick, dark lashes flutter as her eyes move beneath her lids. They are perfect lashes, long and curved.

She’s not like the waif-like supermodels I date. Her full breasts press against me. My one hand rests on her perfectly shaped ass, her rounded hips. She’s gorgeous. She’s always been gorgeous, but she has no idea she is. Whatever self-confidence she had when she came to LA was killed before I ever met her. But on the stage…she was alive, confident, and sexy as hell. She commanded the audience, and they loved her.

I live with so many regrets. I don’t want holding Lark back to be one of them. And so, I begin to devise a plan. Lark can’t stay here with me. If she keeps working as my PA, she’ll never follow her dreams. I refuse to let her give up on them.

I know what I need to do to push her away for good, and it kills me. I’m going to have to hurt her. It’s the only way she’ll leave. I war with myself as I hold this woman in my arms, this woman I want so badly. It’s ironic that I can have any woman, well, almost any woman, but I can’t have the one I want.

My heart clenches as realization dawns on me. Lark keeps me together. She’s the only weight keeping me from floating away in this ocean of fame. And I’m about to do the unthinkable to her. I just hope, one day, she will forgive me.

Lark

I run faster, but I can’t get away from the shadowy figure. I turn to see where he is, and then I’m falling…

“Lark. Lark, baby, wake up!” I hear Lincoln’s voice.

My eyes fly open. I’m breathing fast, my heart is racing.

“Hey, it's OK. It was just a bad dream,” he says, smoothing my hair away from my face.

He helps me up, and I sit there for a long time. “What time is it?” I ask.

“We have about two hours left,” he says.

“Wow. I slept for a long time,” I state.

“You did,” he says.

“Sorry,” I reply.

He caresses my face. “It’s OK. You needed it. It’ll help your head heal,” he points out. “You scared me; you know that?”

I roll my eyes. “I’m fine,” I say as I wince while touching my head. “Well, nearly fine.”

He takes my chin in his hand. “I was really worried about you,” he reiterates.

“Lincoln, I—”

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