Chase the Road (A Brothers of Rock - GONE BY AUTUMN - Novel) by Karolyn James Page A

madly.
    I love you … like madly … I mean … I ’ m madly in love with you …
    Of course, four seconds later, the
rest of the band had appeared, leaving Maya dangling on a broken branch since
then, wondering if it was just Blake being lovingly drunk or if he was dead
serious.
    She told herself that soon she
would say something for real. Tonight even. Considering it was the best Gone by
Autumn show, like, ever, why not top it off with her and Blake confessing their
love to one another.
    It was absolutely beautiful.
    A memory they ’ d …
    Maya took two steps and then
stopped when she saw a few other women approach the band. They were in shirts
showing too much skin, too tight, and jeans that seemed impossible to get on. A
blonde woman walked right up to Blake and ran her hand down his arm. She said
something to him and his eyes lit up.
    Groupies.
    Another part of the rockstar life.
Those wild and, usually, one night stand adventures. The purpose of the road,
Maya figured. Unless you were tied down. And if you were so-called tied down,
what stopped it from happening? Distance and time did strange things to anyone ’ s heart. It made the guilt less
and less. Plus, Maya figured there were rules of the road when it came
to being with a rockstar. What happened there, stayed there. Not to mention if
Blake was drinking and having fun. Did he really deserve to have to constantly
judge his own judgment?
    He ’ d
been waiting for this his entire life.
    Maya took her two steps back and
plenty more, until she was out of sight.
    She ended up in the woman ’ s bathroom, sitting on closed
toilet, crying.
    She could never share Blake. It
would hurt less now to lose him than it would to have him break her heart …
     
    Maya had no more tears, but she
still dabbed the corners of her eyes. Everything was on her shoulders now. Just … everything. Her grandfather was
a good man. A strong man. He worked hard, kept Maya alive and raised her until
she was old enough to go out on her own. He loved music and that ’ s where the love started for
Maya. Although her grandfather preferred blues and jazz over rock, his passion
for music went to her.
    And now he was in a hospital bed,
waiting to let go.
    She ’ d
already told him to do so three times. Whispering in his ear, kissing his
cheek, holding his hand, telling him to just let go. To be free. To go jam out
in heaven with his favorite trumpet players.
    But the stubborn man hung on.
    Maya had met with doctors and
nurses, everything simply confirmed that there was nothing left to do. She had
known it was going to happen; eventually everyone runs out of time. Some sooner
than others, but no matter what, it wasn ’ t
easy for those who cared. Yeah, her grandfather loved cigars. Yeah, he loved
brandy. Yeah, he didn ’ t eat
the right foods all the time, but who gave a shit about that right now?
    The head nurse, Daphne, brought her
a coffee and told her to get something to eat. Maya refused. She wouldn ’ t leave the room until …
    Maya closed her eyes and shook her
head. She couldn ’ t stomach
thinking it.
    More so, she couldn ’ t stop thinking about Blake.
Christ, he ’ d been the first
person she called. Just instinctively called. Just like that. He was the first
person that popped into her mind, but that made sense since her grandfather and
Blake had been close.
    Maya took out her phone and sent a
text to Hunter, explaining everything that was going on. She didn ’ t expect a reply, but one came
through within a minute or two.
    I ’ m so sorry. Where are you?
    Maya texted back the name of the
hospital. In her mind, she wondered how long it would take for Hunter to
return. If he could land and get another flight.
    Her phone vibrated again.
    I wish there was something I
could do.
    Maya wrote back.
    When do you land? Not sure how
long he has. You should have met him. He was a good man.
    Maya didn ’ t feel very comfortable writing that last text.
Truth was, she couldn ’ t
picture