Son of Sin (Book 3 of the Forbidden Series)

13

Damien aimlessly spun his drumsticks between his fingers while Blake and John argued over the best way to play the bridge to the song they were writing. Donna was sitting on a stool swinging her legs back and forth eating an apple and occasionally adding her two cents on the matter. Damien had not said much about anything all day his mind preoccupied with other thoughts. His body played on autopilot.

He wondered if his attorney had dealt with the problem at Kurtwood successfully, whether Eve had been upset that he had done so. Had he made things worse by stepping in? Annoyance caused him to frown; he shouldn’t care. He didn’t want to care, but he couldn’t help but care.

His mother had been called names, insulted, and disrespected for as long as Damien could remember all because she had married his father. Her reputation had been continuously dragged through the mud because he would lose his temper in public or get arrested in some bar fight over his jealousy. Then there was always the ever-popular question of his birth that would always cause a public buzz despite the proof to disprove the popular rumours.

She had always been such a trooper though, taking the criticism in stride. Trying not to let the media circus get to her. She stood by her husband no matter how horrible it had gotten for her. Sometimes his mother wouldn’t even get out of bed the things said about her were so depressing. Damien had been suspended for fighting sometimes trying to defend his mother growing up. He had come home with many a fat lip and black eyes. He had grown up tough because of it, but seeing the tears in his mother’s eyes Damien had sworn no women in his family would be criticized because of him.

He had no problem being viewed as the bad guy. Hell, he almost preferred it, but when Damien left a woman for any reason he always did it in a way so that the world saw her as a poor victim, to be petted and coddled and pampered back to good self-esteem. He had no problem being ridiculed for his behaviour or criticized for his deeds, but he would not have his sinful reputation projected on to an innocent. He had done plenty of truly terrible things, but that was one thing he could not live with.

“Earth to Damien.” Blake snapped his fingers in front of Damien drawing his attention back to the here and now. “What do you think?”

“About what?” Damien asked, unsure about what he was supposed to be offering an opinion on.

“You aren’t even paying attention.” John snickered. “Thinking about the little lady?”

“No.” Damien snapped defensively. “Just tired I didn’t sleep well last night.” He admitted.

He had become far too accustomed to burning the nights away in Eve’s arms, and why not after all she was his wife. If there was one upside to his distasteful union, it was the free and clear access he had to that sexy little spitfire. He could enjoy his wife physically and send her packing to her room when he was done. Or at least that had been the idea when he started out but as the nights passed Eve had begun to stay longer and longer and soon he was waking up to her every morning.

It was an experience that Damien normally disliked; he would gnaw his arm off to avoid waking up next to the same woman he went to bed with but with Eve it was different. With Eve he enjoyed seeing her next to him with her hair tussled and stole his covers. It was this fact that perhaps disturbed Damien the most. He had let her get too close, somehow, she had settled in and rooted herself in his life when all he wanted was to extract her completely.

He had decided to cut himself off, to force Eve away and out of his blood but damn it if he didn’t spend all night tossing and turning. The pillow next to him still smelt sweet and fragrant with her perfume. It was imposable to get a wink of sustaining sleep without her at his side. ‘Stop thinking about her,’ he silently scolded himself.

“Did she keep you up?” Donna teased.

‘Yes, she did,’ he thought to himself but not in the way they would have thought. “No, I slept alone.” He snapped. “We have separate bedrooms,” Damien informed her.

“Really? You’re taking this drive her off thing seriously. I thought you would at least share a bed most married couples do.” Donna pointed out.

“We fool around a bit, but that’s it.” He told her tapping his symbol with his drumstick. “Can we get back to work?”

“Why, uncomfortable about the subject?” Teased John.

“No, but I would like to lay down a track today if that’s possible. I want to get to Malibu before the snow falls.” Damien said reminding the others of the fantastic beaches and the warm sun. Everyone agreed that Malibu sounded great. They jumped right back into business, and this time Damien forced himself to focus on the task at hand.

Refocused it only took them another three hours to agree on the sound for the track and one other. After which they were on a roll. Damien was back in the zone, his mind and body into the music enjoying the intensity and silliness of the session. It was just like always. With Blake bouncing around like a fool and Donna rocking out behind her bass. John was playing crazy solos, and Damien pounded out the beat. The energy was strong which was always good.

They had not even noticed that the day had slipped away. They took their meals in the booth; dinner was Chinese takeout at midnight while they squabbled over the opening of one track, the bridge of another, and the lyrics to a third. Damien’s cell had rung a few times that night but seeing that it was Eve, Damien turned off the cell and left it in the control room, not interested in speaking to her or returning her calls. After all, he was busy, and it would be easier on both of them if he simply made a clean break of it all. It was best she learnt sooner than later that the life of a musician’s wife could be a lonely one.

***

Eve went to bed that night without speaking to Damien, and the next night and the night that followed that. Damien would come home in the wee hours of the morning and sleep but an hour or two then leave again before Eve woke, if he came home at all. It had been almost two weeks without sight or word from Damien and Eve had given up on calling him. His cell went straight to voicemail, and the messages she left with the studio went unanswered. He clearly did not wish to speak to her.

Eve threw herself into her work at the school, staying late to use the rehearsal space when she could. It was more effective than their living room. Tryouts had gone exceptionally well after Nicky and Beret were forced to leave her alone. Eve stopped stumbling and regained the confidence she had lost. She danced herself into a major role in the production. Not the lead, unfortunately, Nicky had landed that, but Beret was forced into a minor supporting role which satisfied Eve.

Unlike Nicky though Eve had no life outside the school. Her family had forsaken her, and her husband had abandoned her. She had nothing to do but practice, which she did each day and each night until her feet were blistered and bloody. She would be almost in tears some nights taking off her ballet slippers. Soaking her battered feet in the tub with Epson salt and ointments to promote healing. She was determined to stand out, to hone her talent until she was at the top of her class. Many of the major ballet companies selected their talent from schools like Kurtwood, and they only accepted the best. Eve wanted so badly to dance for a major company. To see her name on the bill. To hear the applause and accept the bouquet of roses at the end of the night.

A girlhood dream that had her prancing about her bedroom at a young age. Her parents had paid for dance lessons since she was five years old. The only nice thing they had ever done for her. The money had stopped when she was sixteen when they realized dance was all Eve wanted to do with her life. They had called it a foolish dream. She had taken on a secret after-school job part-time to pay for her lessons. She wouldn’t let anyone stop her then, and she wasn’t about to let anyone stand in her way now; no matter how painful it was at times.

Except for this weekend, she was going to take a rest. Put up her blistered feet and watch some old movies on television. She had just sat down when she heard a knock at the door. Eve groaned and stood up sucking in a painful breath as she limped to the foyer. She opened the door and in barged a group of chattering women.

Recognizing everyone as her new in-laws Eve shut the door and welcomed her unexpected guests. It would appear that Chase had flown in and all the ladies had decided to get together for the day. Since Eve was family, they had come to collect her for their day about town. “I really can’t.” She told them turning down their offer.

“Oh, come on,” Kat said to her new sister. “It is just money don’t feel bad about spending it. I’m sure Damien’s left you a charge cared somewhere in here.”

“Yes, he did.” She confirmed Kat’s suspicions. “It’s just that I physically can’t.” Eve chuckled awkwardly. “My feet are so sore from practicing I can barely walk.”

“Oh, you poor thing.” Chase gushed taking Eve’s hand and sitting her down on the nearest chair. “Well, we have the solution to that too.” She grinned.

Layla’s smile beamed as she rubbed her swollen belly. “Ooo, spa day.”

“Spa?”

“You will feel like a whole new woman,” Chase promised her. “Come on, get dressed the limo is downstairs.”

“I suppose saying no thank you would be pointless?” Eve asked looking back and forth between the women.

“Completely.” Kat smiled.

“Get dressed,” Chase ordered.

Eve changed into one of her casual designer dresses and chose some simple flats she hoped would not hurt too much. Then she went to the kitchen and took some petty cash and the charge card that Damien had left her. Slipping them into her matching handbag Eve painfully followed the women down to the stretch limo parked out front. They enjoyed a glass of champagne, all but Layla who had substituted the bubbly for some sparkling juice.

They drove for about twenty minutes to an exclusive spa and Eve was surprised they got in without a reservation, but when the man behind the desk had seen the women come in through the door, he threw up his hands as if Christ himself had returned to earth. Parsing the women and snapping his finger while his staff ran around like they were on a sinking ship. Eve could not believe the service this family received everywhere they went. They must be big tippers, she decided, what other explanation could there be?

They were shown into a private bathhouse where they all settled into a surprisingly relaxing mud bath. It was silky and warm, and the room smelled like flowers. It felt like being dipped in chocolate. After which they received an aqua massage and a steam bath in the sauna. Eve sat incredibly relaxed, a long white spa towel wrapped around her body. They had been so right she felt great, and her feet barely hurt at all anymore.

“So, when did you get into New York?” She asked Chase.

“Last night. Mike had some things to deal with, and I thought what the hell I’ll come to see the kids. See how everyone is doing.” She said pouring more water on the hot stones. “How is everything going?”

“Well, I got a major supporting role in a school production, so I’m pretty excited,” Eve explained. “I’ve been practicing a lot that is why my feet hurt so badly. Ballet can be hard on your feet. People don’t seem to realize that, they think it’s all spins and prancing about. I spend a lot of time at school because of it though because there isn’t enough room at home to practice properly.” Eve said with a relaxed smile. She was proud of her progress no matter how hard it had been.

“And how are things with Damien?” Chase asked next.

This question was harder to answer. The smile faded from Eve’s face as she thought of her estranged husband. “I don’t know.” She answered honestly. “I don’t see him anymore. Ever since he started going to the studio, I never see him, and he doesn’t accept my phone calls. I might as well not even exist.” She said a bit more bitter than she had meant to sound.

The ladies all shared a knowing glance. “You know Eve you shouldn’t take it personally. Recording and producing an album is a very time consuming and demanding process.” Layla assured her. “When I cut mine, I didn’t see Alexander for two months because I was so busy.”

“Back when the Heathens were still recording Mike used to spend weeks upon weeks at the studio,” Chase told Eve. “When it came time for them to put out a new album I would lose my husband for months.”

“David wouldn’t even leave the studio; he would sleep there. Sometimes for days until they forced him to go home and shower.” Kat added. “He still disappears for days on end when he gets involved with a particular artist. I have to admit I’ve pulled the all-nighters in the studio too from time to time.”

“It’s just a part of the creative process. It’s not a reflection on you in any way my dear. As for the unanswered calls… well, what can I say he’s an inconsiderate jerk.” Chase shrugged unable to defend her son.

“Damien is just not used to having someone else to think about besides himself. He’s thick headed; it will take time for him to grow accustomed to the couple’s aspect of life.” Kat assured her.

“I don’t think he wants to grow accustomed to it,” Eve said making her suspicions known. “He’s leaving me to move to Malibu when he is finished.” The three women sat up on the edge of their seats stunned by Eve’s confession. “I think he’s left me. With the studio and then Malibu… if it wasn’t for this album, I don’t think he’d even be in New York.”

“That jerk.” Kat snipped.

“I can’t believe he’d do that.” Layla piped up.

“I can.” Chase sighed crossing her arms and tapping her long nails furiously on her elbow. “You aren’t going to let him get away with that are you?”

Eve was confused. “How can I stop him?”

They all laughed and sat back. “Oh, honey the passive thing so does not work. You want my brother, right?” Kat asked. Eve nodded. Heaven help her she did. “Then you need to be aggressive. It is the only thing Damien response to.”

“You need to pursue him actively. Don’t wait for him to come after you because honey he won’t. My son is an i***t he has no idea what is good for him.”

“How did you get your husband?” She asked Chase.

“I moved in with his best friend.” Chase smiled.

Eve turned to Kat. “I won mine in a card game.”

Surprised she looked at Layla who was blushing and rubbing her belly. “I paid him a thousand dollars to dance for me.” Kat gave her daughter a disapproving look, but Layla just grinned and winked at Eve. “It was worth every dollar.”

Chase after Damien did she dare? What was his weakness? How did a little no one like her trap the heart of a man like Damien? He seemed larger than life, and she was married to the man. s*x had not been the way to his heart. They had fooled around plenty, and he seemed to have formed absolutely no emotional connection to her. “I don’t know. I don’t know Damien well enough to know how to get to him, and he’s so guarded I don’t think I’ll ever know him well enough to be able to figure him out.”

Chase grinned sadistically, a look that was contagious among the others. “You might not know him well enough to get into his head, but we know him better than any other woman on earth.”

“A chance to mess with my brother’s head. I’m up for it. I bet I could even get David in on it.” Kat offered.

“If we want to make him jealous Alexander’s got some old stripper buddies that could do the trick.” Layla offered.

“See honey the trick is to make Damien think you don’t need him, don’t want him, and don’t even miss him. His ego is too big to let that slide. He won’t be able to stand being ignored. Trust me he will do whatever it takes to reinstate himself as the most important thing in your life just because he isn’t.” His mother told her.

“Do you think he is that self-centred?”

They all answered together. “Yes.”