The Biker's Fate Chapter 475

Melody

The plane touched down at PDX twenty minutes earlier than expected and I was so excited, I was practically jumping out of my seat. Luckily, it was just Brandy and me on the private plane, which gave me some much-needed time to relax and catch up on all the hot gossip I'd missed while sequestered away in rehearsals.

In the past, I always traveled by plane while the band and road crew travelled by bus. I'd arrive in town a day or two earlier than the others, which gave me a chance to do local press appearances before they'd arrive. However, for this tour, I chose to travel by bus for as much of the tour as possible. The decision was partially a financial one, but mostly environmentally-based. Flying privately is horrible for the planet and I was no longer the naive and spoiled girl I once was. Plus, traveling by bus would give me more opportunities to bond with the band.

I texted Harmony to let her know I was on the ground, then once the doors were opened, Brandy and I headed out.

"Once we check in, please take the rest of the day off," I said. "I'll probably head to my sister's place for a few hours, so I promise I won't bug you."

Brandy smiled. "I think I'm going to crawl into that huge bed and sleep for a few hours."

I chuckled. "That sounds amazing."

"Melody!"

I turned toward the sound of my name and saw my sister waving from behind the awaiting Town Car.

"Oh my god," I breathed out, making a run for Harmony. "What are you doing here?" I asked as she pulled me in for a hug.

"You might be a famous pop star, but you're still my little sister and you deserve a welcoming committee." She cupped my face. "Missed you DiDi."

"Missed you too, NiNi."

"Jax has been smoking ribs all day and the kids are dying to see you."

"Aw, really?"

"Yeah. Grab your bags. I'll drive you home."

"I have people to deal with my bags, sissy," I said. "I'll just give Brandy the update and we can go."

I turned to find Brandy walking toward me, pulling one of my suitcases behind her. "This one has all your essentials, just in case you want to stay the night with your family," she said, passing it off to me. "I'll get us checked into the hotel and sort out the crew."

Harmony grinned. "You're a miracle worker."

Brandy rolled her eyes. "Oh, I know."

"Thanks, honey," I said, hugging her quickly. "I appreciate it."

"No problem. You guys have fun. I'll see you tomorrow."

Brandy walked away and I turned to my sister… whose mouth was agape. "What?"

"You hugged her."

"Call the media," I droned.

"But what was weirder is, you were nice to her. Positively polite."

"Bite me," I retorted. "Can we go?"

Harmony laughed and wrapped her arm around my shoulders. "Yes, my darling, sweet, incredible sister. Let's do that."

We climbed into the car and Harmony drove us to her home in Portland, right on the Willamette River with access to a boat ramp. They hadn't bought a boat yet, but they planned to the second they had time to enjoy it.

They'd lived in this home for just over a year, but I hadn't had a chance to see it yet, as we'd been gathering at Lyric and Doom's home in Savannah for holidays over the past few years since they had little ones, so it was harder for them to travel.

We pulled up to the house and Harmony's kids rushed the car.

"Auntie Melody!" Skylar squeaked, knocking on my window.

I laughed, climbing out and pulling my niece in for a hug. "Hey, sweetie."

"How long are you staying?"

"I'm not staying—"

"Yes, you are," Harmony countered.

"I'm paying for a very expensive hotel suite, sissy. LiLi would find that wasteful."

Harmony grinned. "We won't tell her, then."

"How about I head to the hotel tonight, then I'll come and stay here with all of you tomorrow?"

"Can you stay for a year?" my nephew, Ares, begged.

"I'm not sure about that, bud," I said, hugging him. "But I'll stay as long as I can, okay?"

"Yes," he hissed, pumping his fist in the air.

"Help with your auntie's bags, please," Harmony said. "Where's Daddy?"

"In his office with Train."

"Ah," Harmony mused.

"What's a train?" I asked, following Harmony inside.

She grinned over her shoulder. "The cavalry."

"What?"

"Kids, take Melody's stuff up to the guest room, okay?"

"Sure thing, Mom," Skyler said as Harmony took my hand and led me down the hall.

"No tour of the new house?" I breathed out.

"After," Harmony said, stopping outside a door and knocking.

She opened the door to Jaxon's office and pushed me gently through before following me. Jaxon was at his computer and sitting next to him was quite possibly the best-looking man I'd ever seen. He was a big man, and even sitting down, I could tell he was tall. Taller than Jaxon who was over six-feet. He had dark red hair, and a beard I wanted to touch, and he appeared to have a good forty pounds of muscle on my brother-in-law. Judging by his attire, I deduced he was a member of the Dogs of Fire, a motorcycle club that Lyric's husband belonged to in Savannah, and Jaxon was friendly with here in Portland. In fact, two of Jaxon's brothers were members of the Portland chapter here and they were both pretty phenomenal humans, as were their wives.

Both men were wearing headphones and I could see they were watching the live DVD, filmed on my last tour. Jaxon, who was also a musician, had an acoustic guitar on his lap.

"What's going on?" I asked.

Both men must have noticed movement, because they looked up at us, and Jaxon smiled, removing his headphones. "Hey, Melody."

"Hey yourself." I glanced at his friend. "Who's this?"

The man in question slid off his headphones and stood up. "I'm Train."

"Nice to meet you, Train. I'm…well…her," I said pointing to the computer screen.

Train smiled wide, catching me a little off guard. For a man with such an imposing exterior, he radiated warmth.

"You must be the extra security Harmony was telling me about," I said. "You certainly look…physically qualified for the job."

"Well, I…" Train said, looking to Harmony.

"Train is your new guitarist," she said.

"What the fuck now?" I whispered.

"I had Kenny send Train soundboard recordings from the rehearsals and he's been learning Gill's parts. He's also working on some of the older songs with Jaxon, so he'll be set to go by showtime," Harmony said.