Blue Christmas (The Moody Blue Trilogy | Book One) (15 page)

“It means, I asked
the same question before you got here and all I got was a bunch of goofy looks
and no answers.”

“Gevin, maybe this
isn’t the best time to get into this,” Jason said quietly.

Marissa squeezed Gevin’s
shoulder, then sat up. Gevin followed her motions and hung his arm across her
shoulders.

“No, Jason, I
think we owe it to JT and Jackson to get this out in the open.”

A moment of
silence passed.

“The thing is,” Gevin
began, “we haven’t exactly set a date yet, but we have made a decision that’s
probably more important.”

Jackson took the
bait. “Such as?”

Marissa leaned
into Gevin’s shoulder. “Such as calling it quits,” he said. “I want to move on
with my life, guys. I
need
to move on. It’s time.”

Seconds passed. No
one said a word. Hannah looked at JT. His jaw dropped at the announcement. She
glanced over at Jackson and Alli. They were staring dumbfounded at Gevin.

Jackson finally
broke the silence. “Excuse me?”

“I said, it’s time
for
Out of the Blue
to retire, guys. It’s been an unbelievable ride, but
it’s time for all of us to move on. At least, I know it’s time for me.”

“Rissa? Is this
your doing?” Anger coated JT’s accusation as he lifted himself off the ground.

“Now, stop right
there, JT,” Gevin insisted. “That’s not fair.” His tone cut the air like a
knife. Hannah felt Jason’s hand tighten around her own.

“Well, what else
am I supposed to think?” JT clenched his fists as he started to move around the
room spinning a palpable angst. “Everything is great—we have plans and concerts
dates and recording contracts . . . and now you tell us you’re
marrying Rissa and we’re supposed to all give it up? I don’t
think
so!”
His chest rose and fell rapidly. “No, no, no. This is NOT happening.”

“Okay, okay, wait
a minute,” Jackson said. “This is a joke, right Gevin? You’re just putting us
on, aren’t you? Rissa?”

“He’s totally
serious, guys,” Jason answered, his voice husky.

JT bolted toward Gevin
who quickly stood up, towering over him. “NO WAY! You can forget it, man! We
didn’t come this far just to let it all go so you can run off and get married!
Are you crazy? Rissa travels with us all the time anyway! So you get married!
Why does anything have to change? What’s the big deal?”

Gevin shook his
head back and forth. “JT, you don’t understand—”

“Well that’s one
thing you’ve got right! I
don’t
understand! It doesn’t make any sense!” A
string of expletives flew from his mouth, one on top of the other.

Jason flew out of the chair, almost
knocking Hannah on the floor. “Shut up, JT! You’re not going to talk like that
in this house. You got that?”

Jason’s anger frightened
Hannah. She wished she was anywhere but this room. She and Alli shared
disquieting looks while Tracey dropped her head and covered her eyes.

“Guys! Settle
down!” Marissa pleaded. “Just calm down. We’ve got to be able to talk this out.”

“No! I have no
intention of calming down!” JT blasted. “JMac—why aren’t you backing me up? What’s
the matter with you? Are you gonna just stand by and watch everything we’ve
accomplished get flushed down the toilet by these two selfish—”

“No, JT, I’m—”

“And what about
you, Jax?” He stepped toward the recliner. “You just gonna sit there like this
doesn’t affect you?”

Jackson stood up,
his face flushed. “JT, I’m as shocked as you are! I just—”

Gevin moved toward
JT. JT raised his hands, warning Gevin not to come closer. “No—don’t even try
to candy coat this with a bunch of sappy big-brother crap. C’mon, Trace, we’re
outta here.”

“C’mon, JT, we
have to talk through this,” Jason pressed. “Don’t leave. That won’t solve
anything!”

“Fine! So we don’t
solve anything. I’m not gonna listen to another word. We are
not
quitting.
And if that doesn’t suit you, Gevin, then you can just stick it—”

“Knock it off, JT!”
Jackson warned.

JT grabbed Tracey
by the arm, pulling her to her feet. “NOW. Let’s go, Trace.”

Jason shook his
head in frustration. He looked at Hannah, his eyes wild. “You can’t talk to him
when he gets this way. He’s so freakin’ stubborn!” he grunted, clenching his
fists.

“Yeah, I’m
stubborn and you’re a wuss, JMac. You’re lettin’ him roll you over with this
just like every other—”

“Shut up! Just
SHUT UP!” Alli screamed. “You guys are acting like a bunch of jerks!” Tears tracked
down her cheeks.

JT and Tracey
thundered down the stairs. The front door slammed behind them.

“Oh my God, what’s
happening?” Jason cried. Hannah slowly got to her feet, cautiously reaching out
to touch his arm. He turned to her, his eyes searching and moist.

Marissa folded her
arms across her chest.  “Well, that was . . . fun.”

“He’ll calm down,”
Gevin said. “He acted just like we knew he would. He just needs time to chill
out.”

Jackson pulled
back, wrapping his arm around Alli’s waist. “So . . . seriously,
how are we going to handle this?”

Gevin took a deep
breath. “We give it time. We talk it through. But we have to wait for JT to get
a grip. And—we need to get Sergio back here as soon as possible.”

Jason blew out an
exasperated breath. “I’ll try to track him down.”

“And,” Gevin
continued, turning to look at Jason, then directly at Hannah. “We make sure
this stays in this room.” His serious tone alarmed her.

Jason pulled
Hannah toward his side and looked Gevin in the eye. “You have my word. I think
Hannah’s already more than proven herself.”

Gevin’s expression
softened. He leaned forward to kiss Hannah’s forehead. “Thanks,” he whispered,
patting Jason’s shoulder in reassurance. “Hannah, I’m sorry you had to witness
this.”

She nodded in
silent response.

“Let’s call it a
night. I think we all need some sleep.” Jason rubbed his eyes. “Hannah, you can
have JT’s room again. Obviously, he isn’t using it tonight.”

“I’ll take Sergio’s
room, if that’s okay,” Alli said as she and Jackson picked up their shoes. They
headed down the hall toward their rooms.

Hannah started
toward the hall when Jason caught her hand and pulled her back. “Second
thought,” he began, taking both her hands in his, “I think I need to unwind a
little first. Are you tired?”

She remembered Christmas
night. They ended up here in this same room on the sofa right behind her. How
deeply she had grown to care for this man in such a short amount of time—an
incredibly
short amount of time, she reminded herself.

She gazed at him,
her heart aching for the pain etched on his face. “How about I make us some
tea?” He nodded, a tired smile trying to form on his face. “Besides,” she
added, “the sun will be up in just a couple of hours. Who needs sleep anyway?”

Chapter 11

T
he next three days blurred together as they
all waited for JT to thaw and Sergio to arrive. From time to time, they talked
through every possible solution to the problems between them. But until all
five members of
Blue
could sit down and talk, little could be done.

In the meantime, a
unique bond of friendship surfaced as Hannah spent time with Marissa and Alli
under the peculiar circumstances. They shared their hearts together as they
watched the struggle continue among the guys. New to this odd little cluster of
people, Hannah no longer felt like an outsider just along for the ride; she
felt part of them now. The realization astounded her.

In the short time they’d known each
other, Hannah and Alli became close friends. While Marissa never left Gevin’s
side, Alli and Hannah occasionally slipped out for a stop at Hannah’s apartment
or a cappuccino at a nearby café. They talked non-stop as if they’d known each
other forever. Hannah loved hearing Alli’s stories about the guys, about her life
as the “unknown girlfriend”—her preference—and her feelings about what was happening.
Alli, on the other hand, assured Hannah constantly of how “refreshing” her
presence was, as she put it. And after knowing Jason for so many years, she made
sure Hannah knew this was not a relationship that would just run its course and
die out after the holidays.

“You’re just what
he needed, Hannah. Besides, I love watching the two of you together. If I’d
handpicked someone for Jason, she’d be you. Totally.”

On the morning of
New Year’s Eve, Laura finished putting away the breakfast dishes and served a
fresh pot of coffee to all of them. Jason said he could never bring home too
many of his friends. The party that night had been her idea and he’d gladly
taken her up on it.

Laura set down her
cup of coffee, finalizing the arrangements. “The caterers should arrive around 4:00 and have everything set up before anyone arrives, honey. I padded your number a bit
so if a few more show up, we’ll have plenty for everyone.”

“Mom, honestly—we
kept it small on purpose. Only a few of the guys in the band, some of the roadies . . .
and a couple of the management folks who were gonna be in the area. Shouldn’t
be more than fifty at the most.”

“Fifty?”
Alli
mouthed to Hannah. She rolled her eyes then slapped a fake smile back on her
face. Hannah laughed silently.

“What?” Jason
asked, noticing the exchange. “Alli, someone else you’re wanting to invite?” he
teased.

“Yeah,” Jackson
interrupted. “She invited some of the Bucs cheerleaders, but I said, ‘Alli? No—
no
cheerleaders allowed. This is Jason’s party!’ She pouted, she whined, but—I
stood my ground, JMac. No problem.”

“Yeah right, big
guy,” Alli begrudged. “Like I would invite cheerleaders. In your dreams.”

“Well, Jackson, if
you want to invite the cheerleaders or the entire team for that matter, you
just tell ’em to come on,” Laura said. “I’d be happy to meet your friends. And
don’t you let Jason give you a hard time,” she finished with a wink.

Laura started to
turn, then stopped, reaching into her pocket and pulling out a cell phone. “Oh,
Hannah, is this yours?”

“I’ve looked
everywhere for it!” Laura handed it to her. “Where’d you find it?”

“It was under the
sofa. I found it when Frank moved the furniture out of the way for the party.”

Hannah hit her
forehead with the heel of her hand. “Oh, now I remember. When Jackson and Alli
arrived the other day, I—oh, never mind. I’m just glad you found it.” She
pressed the side button and found six missed calls, twelve text messages, and
five voice mails.
Kylie. She’s gonna kill me.
She brushed off the
thought and looked up. “Thanks, Laura.”

“No problem,
sweetheart. I’m just glad—”

“Thought you might
like to see who I found at the front door,” Frank interrupted, as he entered
the kitchen, a funny expression on his face.

A head full of bouncing
black curls atop a short, 5’2” frame came bustling through the door. “Hi
everybody! We’re here! We’re here!” she squealed, her dark Italian eyes wide
with excitement. “Did you miss us?” An exaggerated high-pitched laugh trilled
across the room.

Liza. Has to
be. Exactly as I’d pictured her.

Sergio appeared
behind her, his huge grin expectant as he faced the roomful. “Hey guys, how’s
it goin’?”

Jackson and Jason
jumped up to greet them. Hannah watched closely as they lightly embraced Sergio’s
girlfriend. She didn’t miss the heated hug they received in response as Liza
pressed her body against each of them.

She stole a look
at Alli, that same fake smile plastered on her friend’s face. “Liza. Nice to
see you,” she said, her tone flat. “Sergio, welcome home.”

Sergio gave Laura
a hug, which she returned warmly. “Sergio, we thought you’d never get here.
What’s Hawaii got that North Carolina doesn’t, huh?”

Liza stepped
between Jason’s mother and her boyfriend. “Why, me, of course! Isn’t that
right, Sergi?”

Baby talk. I
hate baby talk.
Hannah’s eyes locked with Alli’s, communicating her
disdain.

Alli’s expression
spoke volumes.
See what we mean?

Laura made a valiant
effort at remaining cordial as she stepped away. “Well, there you go,” she
remarked.

Hannah glanced up
to notice Sergio looking straight at her. “And who is this?” he asked, the
broad smile warming his face as he moved toward her with his outstretched hand.
He was far more handsome than she’d imagined, his dark eyes the kind you could
get lost in. Forever. He’d clearly spent a lot of time working out in a gym
just like the rest of the guys. A
lot
of time.

Jason rested his
hands on her shoulders. “Sergio Cruz, meet Hannah Brooks. Hannah, this is Sergio.”

She took hold of
his hand, surprised how firmly he gripped her hand. He leaned down to kiss her
cheek. “Hannah, nice to meet you. This is great! It’s about time someone took
pity en este pobre perdedor!”

“Now, Sergio,
Jason’s not a loser,” she laughed.

“Very funny, Sergio,”
Jason anguished in a sing-song response.

“¡Ah! Ella habla
espanol. ¡Qué inteligente chica!” Sergio continued, praising Hannah’s Spanish.
“Inteligente y hermosa,” he added, his eyes dancing.

“What did he say?”
Jason asked her.

“He says I’m smart—”

“Smart and
beautiful,” Sergio completed. He wrapped his arm over Jason’s shoulder. “Looks
like Santa was
very
good to you, JMac.”

“That, he was, Sergio.
More than you—”

“Well, he was good
to Sergi too, wasn’t he, baby?” Liza interrupted, again stepping between Sergio
and his friend. “We had a
wonderful
time in Hawaii with my family, didn’t
we?”