Legacy by M.A. Foster

March

_____________________________

Katie

Pulling into the parking garage, I park in an empty space up front, and an instant smile stretches across my face seeing the “RESERVED FOR MAC’S” sign is covered with a white paper that says “RESERVED FOR KATIE.”

Grabbing my phone from the console, I see a text from Dylan. Text me when you get here.

I quickly text back, Just pulled in. Be there in a min.

I flip down the visor and check my makeup. I went a little heavy on the eyeliner since I’m going for the eighties rocker look. I’m wearing leather leggings, a vintage Rolling Stones T-shirt, a cropped leather biker jacket, and leopard ankle boots, and I teased my hair a little. It’s grown an inch, and surprisingly the blue color hasn’t completely washed out.

I toss my wallet inside the hidden compartment of the console and climb out.

My phone dings with another text. Setting up. Vanessa will meet you at the side door.

Vanessa decided to stay in California with Liam until he leaves for spring training, but Dylan convinced them to fly in for the party.

I reply, OK. See you in a few.

Locking my car, I tuck my key and phone inside my leather jacket before making my way around the massive building to the side door where Vanessa and Liam are waiting. Vanessa is leaning against the open door laughing at Liam, who is doing his best running man dance, and I crack up at the sight, pressing a hand to my stomach and trying not to pee my pants.

“You two look adorable and utterly ridiculous.”

Vanessa blows out a wolf whistle. “Damn, girl! You look hot.”

I give a little shimmy of my shoulders.

Liam opens his arms and moves toward me. “Hi, Katie.”

“Hi,” I reply, stepping into his embrace. “Congratulations.”

“Thank you,” he murmurs. “I can’t wait to be a dad.”

Vanessa was right. Not even twenty-four hours passed after she flew to California, before Dylan got a phone call from Liam telling him he was going to be a dad.

I step back and take in their outfits. They’re wearing matching shell suits—the nylon version of a tracksuit. Vanessa’s is light blue, and Liam’s is navy. Her hair is pulled up into a side ponytail with a bright purple scrunchy, and a pair of purple Converse complete her outfit. Liam is wearing a perm wig, headband, and Reebok high-top tennis shoes with the Velcro strap and all.

“Wow.” I laugh harder. “You two went all out.”

“You haven’t seen anything yet,” Liam says, gesturing for me to go inside.

“It literally looks like the eighties threw up all over the bar,” Vanessa adds with a laugh of her own as she leads me through the kitchen. “Wait until you see Liam’s mom—”

“She looks ridiculous,” he interjects.

“Shut it, Liam. She looks freaking adorable.”

“I’m gonna run to the bathroom,” I tell them. “I’ll meet you inside.”

I hurry down the hall to the bathroom and slip inside the stall to pee. Standing from the toilet, it automatically flushes as I pull up my leggings.

The door creaks open, followed by heels tapping against the marble. Then Jay’s voice carries into the bathroom.

“Weenie, I swear to God, if Gianna touches my husband one more time, I’m gonna rip her hand off and slap the shit out of her with it.”

I roll my lips between my teeth to keep from laughing out loud as the door to the stall beside me slams shut, followed by the one beside it.

Who is Weenie?

A soft laugh echoes. “Relax. She’s here for Dylan.” I freeze and hold my breath. “She’s had a lady boner for him since London.”

Evangeline.

A snort comes from beside me. “Have you been living under a rock? Dylan has a girlfriend. A hot girlfriend,” Jay adds.

She thinks I’m hot?

A “Fuck” is muffled by the sound of the toilets flushing, and a moment later, they’re at the sink. At this moment, I’m thankful the stalls have a full door where you can’t see the person’s shoes, because this would be very awkward.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know. I’ve been in Italy, and Alex and I haven’t had much time to talk these last few weeks. I flew straight here. He didn’t know I was bringing her.”

I hear the sound of their heels clicking on the marble; then the door opens, and the noise from the party drifts into the room.

“Since when did you start making friends anyway?” I hear Jay ask as they exit the bathroom. It sounds more like a sarcastic statement than a question.

The noise of the party fades as the door closes, but not before I hear Evangeline’s reply. “I don’t.”

I step out of the stall to quickly wash my hands and then rush to find Vanessa. She’s probably wondering what the hell is taking me so long.

I walk into the bar to find Vanessa and Liam waiting near the doorway. She shoots me a questioning look.

“My leggings were on backward,” I lie, giving a careless shrug before turning my attention to the bar. “Oh my God.” I laugh.

The room is packed with triple the amount of people that were at Jay’s barbecue, dressed in everything from neon to leather.

Across the room I spot Mimi. “Who dressed your mother?” I ask, amused.

Her outfit is complete with a Kiss T-shirt tucked into a pair of leather shorts, fishnet stockings, and black tennis shoes. She even has the jelly bracelets stacked up on her wrists.

“That was all Jay,” Vanessa replies.

Liam’s best friend, Cam, charges toward us. He’s wearing an Adidas polyester track suit—complete with white piping running down the sleeves and outer legs of the pants—a thick gold chain around his neck, and a bucket hat.

Liam takes a step forward, and they simultaneously leap in the air and bump chests.

“Katie, you remember Cam?” Liam says. “My sister’s baby daddy.”

Cam throws a punch to Liam’s arm, then extends his hand to me. “Nice to see you again.”

“Katie.” I look over at Liam. “You’re being summoned.” He lifts his chin, and I follow his line of sight to see Dylan standing on the stage waving me over.

He’s dressed in a pair of ripped black jeans, a faded black Foreigner T-shirt, and motorcycle boots. He’s so yummy.

“Go ahead,” Vanessa says as she looks down at her phone. “We gotta go let Gabbi in.”

I weave through the sea of people toward Dylan. He hops down from the stage and closes the space between us, greeting me with a kiss.

“You look overwhelmed.” He chuckles.

I glance around the room. “There’s a lot of people here.”

“They’re harmless.” He looks over his shoulder. “Most of them.”

My gaze darts in that direction to see Jay in some kind of verbal battle with Evangeline. Zach is standing behind her with his arms curled around her waist and his chin propped on her shoulder.

Alex is perched on the edge of the stage, his parted legs hanging over the side, Evangeline standing between them. Beside Alex is Gianna, and my stomach dips.

Of course she looks perfect, and I’m thankful I chose to go with the eighties rocker look instead of a Madonna knock-off.

“Is she gonna be a problem?”

Dylan turns back to me, brows pinched. “What?”

I shake my head and smile up at him. “Nothing.”

He quirks a brow as if to remind me, “Nothing means something.”

I press my lips together and shake my head again.

He leans down, pressing his lips to the outer shell of my ear. “Don’t make me spank it out of you.”

I throw my arms around his neck. “Is that a threat or a promise?” He narrows his eyes playfully, but there’s a warning. “She’s here for you.”

A devilish smirk curls up one side of his mouth. “Then she’s going to be very disappointed.”

“Did you and her—”

“No.” He gives a slight shake of his head. “I told you that first night at my apartment, it’s only been you. Don’t let her being here make you feel insecure.”

“You already know my insecurities. Italian supermodels don’t intimidate me.”

“Good.” He pecks my lips. “You and I are solid. Come on.” He takes my hand and pulls me toward the group.

“Hi, Katie.” Jay steps out of her husband’s hold, arms spread, and wraps me in a quick hug.

“Hey, Katie,” Zach says.

“Hey.” I wave.

Jay steps back and takes in my outfit. “You look hot.”

“Thanks. You, too.”

Jayla King is a very beautiful girl. Her looks alone rival the two supermodels standing in her space. She’s tall and thin. Her hair is long, a mixture of dark brown and black. The sides are pushed up, giving her sort of a mohawk. She looks just like the rock star I saw in concert last year. Leather pants below a cropped, sleeveless vintage rock T-shirt embellished with grommets exposing her flat stomach and small waist. She’s wearing leather gloves with the fingers cut off and ankle-high motorcycle boots.

“Thanks. I wore this on tour,” she says before gesturing to Evangeline. “This is my best friend, Weenie. You guys met in London, right?”

Evangeline’s brows dip in confusion. “I don’t think so.”

Alex curls an arm around her waist and dips his mouth to her ear.

“I met Alex briefly,” I rush out.

Evangeline’s eyes widen, then flick to me. “Oh, you’re the designer.”

I nod. “Yes.”

“My bad. I didn’t put the two together.” She extends her hand to me, and I take it. “The Onyx is one of my favorite hotels in London, and I love Bliss’s new look. I was so excited when I got the invite for the New Year’s relaunch party. I was in London for a new campaign, so it worked out perfectly.”

My eyes shift to Dylan, and we share a smile. “It did.”

* * *

Alex tips his chin at Jay. “You ready?”

She nods once. “Sure am.” Her gaze darts over my shoulder to Dylan. “Are you?”

“Fuck yeah.”

I tilt my head back. “You’re playing?”

“Drums.” He gives my hip a squeeze, and I step out of his hold. Dylan gets to his feet and smiles down at me from the stage.

“You look like a rock star up there.”

He shoots me a wink before moving to sit behind the drums.

“Dylan and Alex used to play all the time,” Zach tells me.

Alex pulls a guitar strap over his head, and Jay moves to stand at the mic. A blond guy jogs up the steps and across the stage. He pounds his fist against Dylan’s and picks up a guitar. When he turns around, my jaw drops.

“Is that—”

“Lucas Wild,” Zach says. “Lucas, Eva, and Jay grew up together.”

I guess that makes sense since Lucas’s father, Andrew, was the drummer and one of the founding members of Royal Mayhem.

Lucas smacks a kiss on Jay’s cheek, then moves to stand on her right.

Jay presses her lips close to the microphone. “You guys ready to get this party started?”

Wolf whistles and catcalls carry through the bar.

“Look at my baby all grown up,” Liam says as he and Vanessa stand on my other side.

I look over in time to see Vanessa smack him on the arm.

“Stop calling her that.”

“Where’s Gabbi?” I ask.

“She took off.” Vanessa shoots me a concerned look. “She’s been weird lately.”

“I know.” I nod. “I’ll talk to her.”

“Drums,” Jay clips.

Dylan raises his arms and bangs on the drums. Then Alex and Lucas join in, and I recognize the song immediately as Joan Jett’s “Do You Wanna Touch Me.” Vanessa grins over at me, and we begin moving to the beat. She and I have always loved the same music.

I bump my shoulder against Zach’s. “Your wife is hot.”

“Very,” he replies, keeping his eyes glued to Jay. “She wonders why I can’t keep my hands off her.”

I laugh and look over to see Liam eyeing Zach. He’s so ridiculous.

Emerson, Jay’s mom, steps up next to Liam and Vanessa. “Look at my baby girl up there.” She swipes a tear from the corner of her eye.

Zach leans into my ear. “She always gets emotional when Jay performs.”

I look over at him. “I’m sure your mom feels the same way when you’re on the field.”

He seems to consider my words and nods. “I never thought of it that way, but you’re probably right.”

* * *

“Do you need help cleaning up?” I ask Dylan.

The party is over and the place is mostly empty, save for a few of us gathered around the table.

Dylan shakes his head. “I’ve got a cleaning crew coming later.”

“I’m gonna miss this place,” Jay says.

“Me too,” Cole adds, wrapping his arms around Harper’s waist and propping his chin on her shoulder.

They make a beautiful couple. My gaze bounces between Jay, Cole, and Dylan. The Mackenzies have good genes.

“I don’t know about you guys,” Logan, Zach’s brother, pipes up, “but all this partying has made me hungry.” His eyes dart to Gianna, and a wicked grin pulls at his lips. “I’m craving Italian.”

The whole table goes silent.

Zach snickers. “Smooth, bro.”

Logan jerks a shoulder as if he couldn’t give a flying fuck.

“Well, hot damn,” Evangeline murmurs with a laugh fanning herself.

Gianna tilts her head, her eyes darting over Logan’s face as if she’s considering it. Then she stands with her clutch in her hand and says, “Let’s go,” before she heads for the exit.

Logan jumps to his feet and follows her. “Don’t wait up,” he calls over his shoulder.

“Did that really just happen?” Alex asks through a disbelieving laugh.

“Logan’s got game,” Jay chirps.

“All right.” Cole taps Harper on the thigh, and she stands. “We’re out.” He stands and tugs on his leather jacket before bumping fists with Dylan, Zach, and Alex.

“Stay golden, pony boy,” Zach calls out to Cole’s back, prompting us all to burst into laughter.

Cole raises his hand and flips him the bird.