Page 37 of Anthem of Love and Loathing

That doesn’t mean I won’t prepare myself.

I climb out of the bunk and go to the kitchen to grab something to protect myself with. Jasper watches me lift the kitchen knife and then tsks until I put it back. He shakes his head when I pick up the stainless-steel pan.

I glare at him and take a fork from the utensil drawer. He lets me have that one item. He’s underestimating the damage I can do with one tiny metal pitchfork.

I take it back to my bunk and stow it under my pillow. Then I pick out a couple of pieces of my own clothes. It’s been fun running around in Bronx’s clothes, but I could do with the confidence that looking my best brings.

Oh, I need new panties too. Mascara and eyeliner. Not enough time for anything else. I rifle through the drawer of slippery silk, and lace.

Oh fuck.

I dig in harder, searching for the pink vibrator that would have been with my lingerie. It’s not here.

Bronx wouldn’t have stolen it. Kodiak either. I imagine Bronx would let it slip as a flirt. Kodiak would wear that filthy smirk he had this morning as he sucked my juices from his fingers.

No, neither of them would have taken it. They would have made sure it was available to me.

Was Marco inside my apartment, rifling through my life? Did it get left in the drawer? Or did Riot—that prick—steal my vibrator?

14

Riot

“You’re coming all the way to San Fran with us, right?” I ask the cute redhead under my arm as we exit the stadium into the parking garage underneath. Kelsey Peterson is going to see she doesn’t mean a fucking thing.

The redhead nods enthusiastically, her arm around my lower back. “I’ll go as far as you want me to.”

“Mm.” I rub my bottom lip as I contemplate the flirty double entendre and the height of her heels. “I like that.”

Rook moves ahead of us, his head on a swivel. He’s been like that since the stalker I had a couple of years back. They’d gone quiet not long before my brother’s wedding, but then that event had turned out to be somewhat of a nightmare shitshow.

Now our fame is at an unparalleled high.

We’re untouchable. And our security acts like it.

Bronx, Kodiak, and Golden follow behind. They decided against company on the bus tonight. Golden has a ritual on opening night, that doesn’t include female companionship.

But we’re all still riding high from the energy of the crowd. Underneath it we’re exhausted, but it’ll be a few hours before we’re not wired. Bronx and Kodiak are probably planning on spending those hours fighting over the bitch on the bus.

“You first, baby.” I usher the twenty-something honey in a tiny, strappy green dress and snakeskin heels onto the bus.

“Morgan.” She turns around and wraps her arms around my neck. I pick her up and kiss her while she winds her legs around my hips.

Jasper, who will travel with us, is already at the table in the front lounge. He shuffles a pack of cards, then lays them face down in rows. His gaze darts to bunk alley. She’s in there.

I sit down with my new girl on my lap. Golden collapses opposite Jasper at the table. He reaches over and steals the pack of cards out of the bodyguard’s hands. Kodiak stretches out on the long bench.

Bronx, his white tank drenched with sweat, grabs us all a bottle of water. He tosses one to each of us. Twisting the cap off his, he tips his head back and empties it in a couple of mouthfuls.

Crushing the bottle in his hand, he tosses it in the trash and stalks toward bunk alley. “I’m going to go take a shower.”

“Tell her to get out here on your way past,” I tell him.

“You’ve got company.” He flips me the bird at the threshold.

“Yeah, I do.” I steal another kiss from the lovely redhead. Lean in to whisper in her ear. “You’re going to look fucking good riding my cock, baby.”

And Kelsey... the look on her face last night when I was fucking the blonde keeps flooding my mind. That and the fact that I didn’t come, because once she went with fucking Kodiak, I lost my hard-on.