Page 2 of Jealous God
“It was mine.” Erik shook his shoulders, bringing him back around to face him. “Wesley called me and asked if I knew anyone. I put Lola’s name forward.”
There was an uneasy silence as each of us tried to make sense of what was being said.
None of it made a lick of sense to me. I threw a glance at Tate, who looked just as confused. I had a feeling they were talking about Wesley Gunner, the lead singer of Louis' old band. We weren’t exactly friends, but we had hung out a few times over the years. It was one reason we had known Louis was a perfect fit for us. We had heard him play many times. I just didn’t know what was going on between Wes and Lola that would make Dion an even more irritable bastard than usual.
That was the part that made little sense. To any of us, by the looks of it.
“You put them together? Why, for fuck’s sake, why?”
“It was for one party. Wes needed a pretty girl on his arm for a club appearance and Lola was local. It meant nothing. I doubt she even had a good time and she sure as hell—”
“Then why isn’t she answering my emails?”
This was all too much for Louis. His shoulders were stiff as he walked past us all. “I don’t need to hear any more of this.”
“Have you said something to her?” Dion snagged the drummer's wrist, whirling him around. “Have you been badmouthing me to her? Is that why she is ghosting me?”
“You’re doing this all by yourself, Dion.” Louis' voice was angry, and growing angrier by the second. He snatched his arm away. “Every fucking day you’re in the papers, and the headlines are never good. If my sister is ghosting you, then you have no one to fucking blame but yourself.”
A stunned silence fell over the group.
“Louis is right, Dion, and you know it, which is why I’ve got you some help. I should have done it weeks ago.” Erik nodded at the rest of us, silently telling us he was finally doing what we were paying him to do. I didn’t know the extent of what had happened in Vegas, but I had a feeling we were all going to find out sooner rather than later.
“You’ve got him some help?”
Erik nodded. “Yeah, I’ve employed someone. She should be with us tomorrow afternoon.”
* * *
“Come on.”Wrapping my arm around Dion’s waist, I felt the full weight of his heavy-ass frame settle against me. And God, he was heavy. Not fat heavy either. Dion was built solidly, with muscles on muscles. It drew women to him in droves. He was the face of Dionysus Rising, and we used his sex appeal and cover boy muscles to our full advantage. But right at that second, it was nothing but a massive pain in the ass.
Anyone who weighed as much as that asshole did should not be getting fall-down drunk, forcing me to carry his limp ass back to the tour bus.
Tonight, at least, there would be no after-show drinks in the dressing room or anywhere else. Dion needed to sleep it off. Tomorrow, whoever Erik had brought on board to help him would hopefully start doing their magic. Dion was one of my oldest friends, and I wanted him back.
And not this shell of a man, either.
“I hope you get the mother of all hangovers, asshole,” I muttered as he stumbled forward and almost caused both of us to go down heavy. My arm tightened around him at the last minute, righting us both before we kissed the carpet.
“You love me really.” His words were so slurred that they were barely intelligible.
“It’s a good job I do, because you’re—”
“Need a drink. Need to phone Lola.” He mumbled so much over her name that it came out more ‘Lubla’ than anything else.
“You don’t need either of those things, Dion. You need sleep.” Heaving him back upright, I tried to walk again. “Come on.”
“Asked her to marry me.”
I don’t even think he meant to say it out loud, but his words hit me up like I had walked into a brick wall. I was so shocked that I almost dropped him.
“You married Lola?” I racked my brains to try to work out when it might have happened and came up blank. But then again, so much had happened in Las Vegas that I hadn’t even thought about babysitting Dion. Everyone knew, even Louis, although he staunchly refused to say anything about it, that something had happened between Lola and Dion. His interest in her had been clear from the moment she had appeared on her brother’s arm.
But marriage?
Even by our crazy standards, that was, well, crazy.
“When the hell did you marry Lola and who knows?”
