Love Resolution

“We’ve got to find her!” Marcus shouted at Dwight as he paced the length of his hotel room. “I need her back here now!”

“Lower your voice and calm down, Marcus. We’ve got people looking everywhere we can think of.” Dwight returned his glare with his arms crossed over his chest. “In the meantime, you wanna tell me what this is really about?”

“No. I don’t.” Marcus ran a panicked hand through his hair, gaze jerking to the door as Trevor walked in. “Any news?”

“Sorry.” He shook his head. “No one’s seen her since the concert.”

Marcus let out an exasperated sigh.

“I checked for Jackson, too,” Trevor continued.” Just like you asked. No sign of him, either.”

“Shit!” The lid he’d been holding on his temper burst. His vision turned red as his anger erupted. Predictable. She had run to Bryan. Furious, he swept an arm across the suite’s bar, sending delicate glassware flying and shattering against the wall. Without pause, he grabbed a lamp by the base and slammed it into the glass coffee table, breaking both.

“Dammit Marcus!” Dwight exclaimed. “Stop!” His arms locked tightly around his brother, pinning him back against his chest. “Get it together, man. What the hell’s going on?”

“Let go!” Eyes bulging, pulse pounding in his ears, Marcus twisted in his brother’s arms.

“Not until you calm down.”

Ray came into the room, brows lifting as he surveyed the scene.

“Ray!” Marcus called, shrugging free from Dwight’s grasp. “Did you find her?”

“Yeah, Boss.”

“Thank God.” His tension eased, ever so slightly. “Where is she?”

“Gone.”

“What do you mean gone?” he demanded, his heart rate accelerating.

“I mean gone. She hopped into a taxi and left.”

“Why the hell didn’t you stop her?”

Ray gave him an exasperated look. “How was I supposed to do that?”

“This is bullshit!” He advanced toward his bodyguard, hands curled into fists. “You’re supposed to be protecting her.”

“Really?” Ray held his ground, his dark gaze narrowing. “You really want to get into a finger pointing match with me about what I should or shouldn’t have done? Did you not see her when she left?”

“Yeah. I saw her,” Marcus said bleakly. He’d watched her shatter like those glasses into a million jagged pieces right before his eyes. He stuffed bleeding hands into his pockets, shoulders hunched with tension. The glass crunched beneath his Vans as he shifted. “Was she by herself?” he made himself ask, dreading the answer.

“Yes.”

Marcus let out a breath.

“She said she wanted to be alone. She left this with me,” Ray finished, holding out her cell.

“Holy shit.” Marcus took it, hand trembling as his fingers closed around the familiar VH cover.

“That’s weird. Why in the world would she leave her cell behind?” Dwight asked, brow furrowing.

“Trevor.” Marcus head whipped up, eyes burning. “Call the cab company. We need to figure out who picked up passengers in the past couple of hours and where they dropped them off.”

“Sure,” the band manager said, pushing his glasses back up the bridge of his nose. “I’ll call right now.”

“Here.” Ray offered him a piece of paper. “I jotted down the number of the cab she left in.”

Sam walked into the room, eyes widening as she stepped gingerly around the destruction. “Has anyone heard anything?”

“Ray saw her leave in a taxi,” Marcus answered. “Trevor’s calling now to see where they dropped her off.”

“Ok. Good. Someone as famous as she won’t be able to stay out of sight for long.” She wagged an accusatory finger in front of Marcus’ face. “I get the feeling that you might have some idea why she took off tonight without telling anyone.”

Marcus turned his back on her.

“Perhaps I should rephrase that,” she said, moving in front of him again. “I just spent the past half hour talking down a bunch of VIP’s. They’re pissed off that the meet and greet was cancelled. I don’t have to tell you that Mary is pretty unhappy, too. So pardon me if I’m a little irritated and not in the mood for evasion.”

Marcus folded his arms and stared down at the riled tour manager.

Sam stood up straight and returned his glare. Taking a step closer, she put her finger out as if she was going to poke him in the chest, but folded her arms across her chest instead. “She’s my best friend, Marcus,” she told him lowering her chin. “I’m worried about her. A responsible girl like her doesn’t just up and disappear. Something’s happened.” She looked back in his eyes. “And you’re gonna tell me what.” Her words were more a plea than a demand.

The room fell into a suspenseful silence.

“She walked in on me with someone,” Marcus admitted softly.

Sam covered her mouth.

“A groupie,” Dwight interjected with a frown. “A very famous kiss and tell one.”

“You have Avery and you slept with a groupie?” she asked, voice muffled through her fingers.

Marcus could feel all eyes on him. He crossed the room, the bedspread creasing as he sank down on top of it.

“She thinks that I did,” he whispered.

He’d only wanted to protect her, but instead he’d broken her. His chest was so tight he could barely breathe. Nothing, nothing in his life could have prepared him for the way he’d felt watching her look at him like that. Watching their love die.

I hate you.

F*ck.

“What do you mean thinks?” Dwight demanded with a frown.

Suddenly everyone was speaking at once.

Dwight took one long measured look at Marcus before seizing control of the chaos. “Trevor, keep working on the taxi thing. I think the sooner we find her the better.” He shifted his attention. “Sam, talk to War or someone with Tempest and get Jackson’s number. Maybe he knows something. We need to explore every avenue. Everyone keep your cells on. I’ll stay here with Marcus. We’ll work on getting this hotel room cleaned up.”

As soon as everyone left, Dwight turned on him. “What’s really going on here?”

There was a long uncomfortable pause. Marcus glared at him, watching comprehension dawn in his brother’s eyes.

“This was all just a set up. You wanted her to think you slept with Adrienne.”

“Yes.” Marcus let out a long sigh. “I just wanted Avery to get on with her life…minus me. I knew Adrienne would go along with it. She’d never tell anyone that I didn’t sleep with her. It’d ruin her reputation.”

Dwight rolled his eyes at Ray who just shook his head.

“After the accident,” Marcus explained, “I knew she’d be better off without me. But she kept pushing, wanting us to get back together. I knew that it would take something drastic to make her give it up.”

“Shit, Marcus,” Dwight exclaimed. “This is so jacked. You’re looking at it all wrong. It’s not whether or not you’re good enough, but whether or not you’re the right one for her. It’s really messed up that you took that choice away from her by doing something this stupid.”

“I had to. You know Avery. She wants to save everyone. She would have stayed with me. The only way I could be sure she’s safe is to keep her away. You weren’t there that night.” He dragged a shaky hand through his hair. “I can’t get the image of her unconscious and covered in blood out of my mind. I thought I had killed her. Every time I look at that scar I think about how close it was. I’m not willing to take that risk with her again the next time I f*ck up.”

“Then you don’t f*ck up, Marcus. If you love her: You. Don’t. F*ck. Up.”