3. McKenna

Chapter 3

McKenna

I close my eyes and take a deep breath before facing Creed and his apparent girlfriend. Did I really think Creed would be sitting home alone, waiting for me when I was running all over the world with a different guy all the time? I can only imagine what he thinks of me.

"Did you need something?" I plaster on a bright smile, already feeling like a fraud, as my cheeks begin to ache.

"You came here for a tattoo. I'm going to give it to you." The way he says, I'm going to give it to you , makes my panties instantly soaked.

We stand there staring at each other, neither one of us moving or saying a word. It's like the world has disappeared, and it's only the two of us.

"I'll leave the two of you alone." Serena's voice breaks the spell surrounding us. As she strides to the front door, she stops before she opens it and turns back to us, "And for the record, Creed and I aren't dating or doing anything like that. He's just a nice guy letting a friend crash at his place until she can get back on her feet." With a sad smile, she walks out the door, closing it behind her.

"So, um, do you still want that tattoo? It's been a slow night—I can close up early if you want to go in the back." His face turns an adorable shade of pink, and he looks just like the boy I fell in love with—except for the beard—that's new since we stopped hanging out. And I'm not going to lie—I love the beard. Add that to his tattoos, muscular body, and sense of humor, and he's perfect.

I watch as he locks the front door and flips the open sign to closed, the muscles in his back pulling tight against his t-shirt with the movement, causing me to bite my lip, trying to hold back a moan that wants to break free at the sight of him.

"Yes, please, but can I ask you something?"

He turns to face me but keeps his distance by the front door. "Sure, Siren, you can ask me anything."

And just like that, I'm transported back in time to when we were teenagers—and the first time he called me Siren. He was my captive audience. I would sing him every song I knew—unlike my sister, Fallon, he would never complain. He would sit there for hours, silently studying me until the song ended, and then he would stand and clap for me like I was the greatest singer in the world.

If it weren't for his encouragement, I never would have had the nerve to sing in public. Which led to me being discovered by a talent agent, and the rest is history. I never dreamt he would desert me once that happened. If I could turn back time, I would never have signed the recording contract. I would have stayed here in Love Beach, hopefully as Creed's wife, with a house full of babies by now because there's nothing I want more than to spend the rest of my life with him and our future children. Hopefully I'm not too late to make my dream a reality.

"Why have you been avoiding me all these years?" I can't keep the pain out of my voice.

For years, he was my rock, the one person I knew I could always count on, and then, just like that, he was gone. Even with my twin sister by my side, I always felt alone, like I was missing a part of myself.

"Are you sure you really want to know?" A sad smile crosses his handsome face, making me realize for the first time he might not have wanted to let me go.

"Yeah, Creed, I do. For five years, I've been trying to figure out what I did wrong that caused you to hate me so much that you never wanted to see me again." I feel tears gather in my eyes, and I silently curse myself for being so weak as to cry in front of him.

"Oh, Baby, "he lunges for me, wrapping me in his arms and pulling me close to his big, warm body. "It wasn't you—you're perfect. It was me." I snuggle deeper into his embrace, feeling whole again after five years apart from the man I love. "I knew if I was still in the picture, you might have chosen to stay with me instead of following your dream, and I didn't want you to resent me years later when you came to your senses and realized you'd made the wrong decision."

"Wait, what?" I place my hands on his chest and give him a shove, needing to put some distance between us. "But you didn't let me decide. You took that away from me." I begin to pace his tattoo shop. It's clean and masculine, with just a hint of feminine touches to make it feel welcoming to men or women. I wonder who helped him design his shop. Anger hits me at the thought. It should have been me helping him design his shop. It should have been him by my side when I was on tour. We could have made it work somehow, but he made the choice for both of us. "I think I need some air."

I barely remember walking out of Creed's tattoo parlor, the Siren's Stain, and down main street to the far side of town to a little dive bar only the locals go to, Knotty Netty's. I haven't been here in a couple of years. It was the place Fallon and I would sneak into when we were underage when we would be home from touring with my band. The owner didn't care as long as we stuck to water or soft drinks. That's one nice thing about a locals-only bar; they take care of their own.

"Well, well, well, look what the cat dragged in, if it isn't our very own superstar McKenna Carlisle." I sit at the bar and am greeted by none other than the owner, Netty herself. "What brings you to town besides that hunk of man standing behind you?" Her eyes shift over my shoulder, and I follow her gaze to find Creed standing there. "Please don't tell me he did something even more stupid than letting you go all those years ago." A pained expression crosses his handsome face at Netty's words, causing me to catch my breath—he's hurting as much as I am.

Not ready to confront Creed, I turn back to Netty, "It's not so much what he did this time—it's what he didn't do last time."

Netty leans across the bar, "If you ask me, men do the craziest things in the name of love." She taps the bar with her knuckles before straightening up and going down the length of the bar to help a customer, leaving us alone.

"She's right," Creed slides into the barstool next to me. Instead of ignoring him like I want to, I turn and face him. "I was stupid. Since I'm older, I thought I knew best. I never should have taken that choice away from you." He places his hand on top of mine, bringing it to rest over his heart. "Do you forgive me?"

I want to pull my hand back and tell him I'm still mad—tell him to go to hell for making us both suffer for so long. Instead, I change my mind at the sorrow in his eyes, deciding it's time to leave the past in the past and move forward.

But before I have a chance, a voice I would recognize anywhere calls out. "McKenna, Darling, we've been looking all over for you. Fallon said we might find you here."

I stare wide-eyed at my manager, Amber, and the attractive guy standing next to her when I realize he's Jax Shepard, the latest rockstar idol.

"What are you doing here? How did you get here so fast?" I spoke to Amber less than six hours ago. I know she's good, but I didn't think she was that good to pull off bringing Jax to Love Beach this fast to act as my boyfriend for publicity.

"Silly, your boyfriend Jax here," She squeezes Jax's arm, and he looks as uncomfortable as I feel. "wanted to surprise you, so I decided to tag along. Isn't that romantic?" Amber gushes.

My eyes dart to Creed, taking in his hurt expression. I haven't had time to explain that all my dating is fake. But first, I need to take care of Amber's meddling, "If you'll excuse us for a moment." I say to Creed and Jax before hauling Amber to the far corner of the bar. "I told you, I wasn't doing this whole fake dating anymore. I'm here to claim Creed."

"That bearded, tattooed giant of a man?" she wrinkles up her nose in disgust, "I mean, I definitely see the appeal, but only as a fling. Your fans can't know that's the kind of man McKenna Carlisle dates."

That's it. I'm done with Amber as my manager. Creed is a great guy, and if my fans can't see that, then I don't want them as fans. I have plenty of money, so I could retire today and not have to worry about working for the rest of my life.

"That's it, Amber, I warned you. I'm done with your publicity stuns. You're fired."

"You can't be serious. You would be nothing without me." She hisses, and I see the real Amber breaking through her fake exterior for the first time.

"Oh, I'm serious. I want you and Jax to be gone from Love Beach, and I never want to see you again. Do you understand me?" I didn't think standing up for myself would feel this good.

"You'll be hearing from my lawyer." Amber storms out of the bar.

I feel alive for the first time in a long time. Now I need to claim Creed, and my life will be perfect. But when I turn to where I left Creed and Jax at the bar, all I see is Jax arguing with Serena. I don't have time to figure out why Serena is at the Knotty Netty instead of at Creed's, as she said she was going to be. But I'm thankful she's here.

"Where did Creed go?" I rush over to Serena, and her eyes shift to mine, changing from fury to pity.

"I'm sorry, he left. I stopped in for a bite to eat before I went home. I was sitting in a booth, and I saw the whole thing. I stepped in between Creed and Jax when you pulled that lady into the corner to talk, and it looked like Creed was going to punch the diva here." She rolls her eyes and nods at Jax.

"Hey, I'm not a diva." He's quick to argue, but I don't have time for this either.

"Do you know if Creed went home?" I grab Serena's hands, needing something to help ground my emotions. I can't lose Creed again.

She shakes her head, "I'm sure he went to the marina where his boat, The Siren's Song, is docked."

My heart does a little flip that he named his boat after me. "Thanks, Serena," I say as I rush out the door to claim the only man I will ever love.