“God, Jimmy. Can you be less dramatic?” Shane places his hand on Jimmy’s shoulder, gripping it tightly. He glances briefly at the rest of the band before making eye contact with me. “We’re all happy you’ve found someone. Kate seems great. But…we have some concerns about how much you’re changing everything to accommodate someone who may not be around in a few months.”
“Excuse me?” I yell, balling my fists as my frustration grows. Sweat begins dripping down my back, a combination of the stifling summer humidity and my rising body temperature. “Kate’s apermanentpart of my life. All of you need to get used to that.” I point my finger at each of them, reprimanding them like a kindergarten teacher.
Shane flinches and blows out a breath. “We hope that’s the case. But you don’t have the best track record when it comes to women.” He runs a hand through his jet-black hair and winces. “We’ve seen a string of them come in and out of your bus over the years. Why should we expect this one to be any different?”
Jimmy lets out a low whistle, causing Shane to glare at him.
Fuck. He’s got a point.
Even though Kate and I have been together for months, the band sees her as another flavor of the month, based on my past behavior. Someone who might stick around for a very short period before disappearing from my life, usually by my doing. They have no good reason to believe that Kate will be any different—thatIwill be any different. And I suck at talking about my personal life, even with the guys.
I start pacing in a small area in the center of the stage.
“Are you guys going to actually soundcheck at some point or what?” Alex walks toward the three of us, clearly displeased to see the nonexistent progress we’ve made.
“We’re talking through some issues,” Shane answers diplomatically.
I continue my back and forth, unwilling to make eye contact with anyone until I figure out how to explain to them the seriousness of my relationship and that I’ll do anything to make her feel comfortable, even if it upsets all of them.
“What’s the problem?” Alex crosses his arms and squints at me. It’s no wonder the band refers to him as the drill sergeant. His curt tone and standoffish attitude make it clear he’s not someone you ever want to piss off.
“Band stuff,” Jimmy pipes up.
“Uh-huh. What?” Alex asks.
“Just talking through schedule changes,” Shane responds.
Taking a deep breath, I stop pacing and look directly at Alex. “They don’t like the changes.”
“I see,” Alex responds, staring at us. It’s nearly impossible to read his emotions. “Did you tell them to grow the fuck up?”
Jimmy’s mouth drops open as he pivots his head between me, Alex, and Shane.
I chuckle. “Kinda.” I shove my hands into the pockets of my athletic shorts and tilt my head back to look at the top of the amphitheater for a few seconds, working up the nerve to say my piece without losing my shit. “I get that no one is a big fan of the schedule changes. And I can’t promise you there won’t be more. I have a new priority in my life, and she’s not going anywhere. Everyone is going to have to get used to it.”
Alex nods, darting his eyes to each of us, appraising how everyone is reacting.
I rest my hand on the curve of my guitar and let out a deep breath. “You can all give me shit about my past dating life…if we can even call it that. But Kate is different.I’m different now. When I say she’s a permanent part of my life, I mean it.” I swallow hard, pulling on the back of my neck. “Kate’s been a part of my life forever. We grew up together, so this isn’t some fling. I’d marry her tomorrow if she were ready.”
“Oh. Shit. We didn’t realize,” Shane says quietly, staring at the floor rather than making eye contact with me. How would I expect them to know? I’ve kept the details of my relationship secret from everyone except Max, Jason, Alex, and Anna. “We’ll figure out how to make the changes work. We want you to be happy, boss.”
The rest of the band nods, solemnly.
“What did you think of your first meet-and-greet experience?” I ask, holding Kate’s hand as we make our way to the green room at the back of the amphitheater. It’s the last night on tour this weekend, and I finally convinced her to join me for the VIP performance and meet-and-greets. Locking eyes with her while I’m performing or talking to fans has given me an incredible boost, firing me up in an unexpected way. Her presence elevates everything for me.
“Not sure I love watching a bunch of women put their hands all over you,” she answers, giving me a side eye.
Holy shit. Is she jealous?
I press a long kiss to our joined hands as we round the corner and head into the empty room. “It’s actually gotten a lot better since Alex implemented the no-ass-grabbing rule a few years ago.”
Her mouth drops open as she rapidly blinks at me and stops moving, standing in the center of the room. “Wow. Just when you think people can’t sink any lower…” She shakes her head and then wraps her arms around my neck. “It took all I had not to yell at them to get their hands off my man,” she adds softly as her cheeks flush.
“Were you jealous, Kate?” I raise my eyebrows and smirk a tiny bit. Seeing this side of her sends a shockwave to my cock, making me instantly hard. Kate’s never been the possessive type, so seeing her this way unleashes something primitive inside me, wanting to prove to her that I belong only to her.
“Maybe,” she answers, biting her lower lip and turning her head away from me.
Fuck. She’s jealous and embarrassed about it. How can she not realize how big a turn-on this is for me? I’m fucking rock hard, thinking about it.
