Pretty Little Hellion (Rocker Universe: Pretty Little #3)

Epilogue

Hayat

Success was a thrilling, intoxicating experience.

Gaining two million followers overnight was a success. I’d done that single-handedly as Havoc and then as simply Hayat. But gaining millions of new followers worldwide in two hours for Autumn’s Slumber was an entirely different level of addictive.

Performing live for SatRad’s most-listened-to rock challenge, Rockville, and having a single hit three million sales in less than twelve hours was a success. That it was the first single from a brand-new band was unheard of but not impossible. Autumn’s Slumber achieved five million sales overnight on our second single released two weeks later, after another live performance on SNL .

Another success.

And it was fucking invigorating.

It was even more so when it felt like the ultimate level of vindication against those who didn’t want us to reach the top. Every time I heard our music on the radio, whether on a local or satellite channel, I got goose bumps. Having two songs reach the top ten on the charts in less than a month had all three of my men strutting around like the rock gods I knew they were.

Knowing our climb to the top was in spite of Nana and Pop-Pop, that it was sending Maddie into full-blown tantrums whenever she overheard someone talking about it at the facility where she was receiving treatment, left me conflicted. I wanted to rub it in their faces. But at the same time, all that hard work and success would have tasted better if the three of them had been beside me while I climbed to the top with not just my band, but the men I was going to spend the rest of my life loving.

That wasn’t to say that our success tasted bad—just different.

When the stage was set up for the first time on the first stop of the OtherWorld/Demon’s Wings tour, it was bittersweet. Aubree and Kale were there with me, the three of us slowly descending from the rafters on a platform—an idea I’d gotten from the little adventure Abi and I had taken to rescue Evan and Ali from the cartel warehouse fights.

Poppy’s platform lifted from below the stage, along with the new OtherWorld drummer. Hector had played for Kin’s band in the past, and when Pop-Pop had “stepped away from the band to focus on family and his granddaughter Maddie’s mental health journey,” Hector was offered the position.

My heart was in my throat as all the bands came together for the first performance. Legends and legacies. Nik and Jagger. Axton and Cannon. Liam and Gabriella and Piper. Poppy and me. It was everything I’d ever hoped for, even if the dream had been altered.

Autumn’s Slumber was the opening act, but we all started and ended the show together. Unity and family were the focus of the tour that would rock the globe for an entire year. Tainted Knights and the Blonde Bombshells performed right in the middle before OtherWorld and Demon’s Wings wrapped it up with one final, collaborated song, meshed together by Kin’s wicked talent with music lyrics.

That night, and every night that followed, long after the world tour was just a wonderful memory, I fell into bed with my rockers and let our love heal all four of us. Our living room was full of our accomplishments. Platinum albums. Billboard Award trophies. Grammys. JUNOs. brITs. We’d accepted every award together, and while there were times when others tried to judge or come between us, no one could tear me away from those three rockers. Our fans accepted us as we were.

And for those who tried harder than most to take any of my men’s attention from me, my bestie Sammy never let me worry about them.

Did it make me a bad person that I wasn’t actively stopping a psychotic serial killer from having a little fun?

Maybe…

Did I lose sleep over it?

Not even for a minute, because I had three sexy rock stars to fuck me into a coma every night.