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He restrained himself. He refused to go there again. If he knew one thing, it was that his heart and soul were just as tangled up in the music as his dad’s had been.
So instead of pulling her against him, he reached up and stroked his thumb down her cheek. “I’m sorry, too.” He wasn’t even sure what he was saying sorry for. Her shitty childhood or what happened on the plane.
Or maybe he was sorry for his own history. Maybe without it, things could be different between them. Maybe he would be a different man. A better man. One who could love Cassie the way she needed. One who could give her the life she deserved.
Whatever she understood from his words, she accepted them. Her gaze softened, mouth turning up in a shaky smile. He hoped that meant they were okay. Because as much of an asshole as it might make him, he didn’t want her to go. Not yet.
He dropped his hand from her cheek as the car pulled into the venue. They’d managed to make it back in time for the final sound check.
The first damn person Zac saw when they got backstage was Bryan, staring balefully at him as they passed. As pissed off as he still was at what Bryan had done, knowing he’d been there for Cassie when she needed someone softened his opinion.
Slightly.
Still, Zac didn’t like the way Bryan watched Cassie. As if he was just biding his time. As if he knew this whole thing was a lie and was just waiting for it to be over so he could swoop back in.
Zac kept his gaze fixed on him. If the man wanted to grovel and try to win Cassie back after the tour, there was nothing Zac could do about it. As much as the thought pissed him off. But right now, fake or not, Cassie was his girlfriend.
Not Bryan’s.
His.
Zac stepped closer to Cassie and slung his arm over her shoulders. It seemed to surprise her, but she didn’t pull away. He didn’t check to see if Bryan was still watching them, just guided Cassie up on stage where the rest of Fractured was gathered. He ignored the grin on Noah’s face as they approached.
“How’s your dad?” asked Connor when they got close enough.
“Alive.” Zac dropped his arm from around Cassie’s shoulders when Dan stepped toward him, holding out one of his basses.
“Wasn’t sure if you’d be back in time, so I did the initial check,” Dan explained to Cassie.
“Thank you. I appreciate it,” she said. Dan gave her a grin and a wink.
Zac ran his fingers over the instrument and played a couple of verses. The heavy strings felt good under his fingers. Not as good as Cassie’s body, though. He glanced in her direction. She had her head tilted down, her lips curved up as she listened to the music.
You ruined my life.
Tension knotted his shoulders. His dad may believe Zac had ruined his life, but true or not, he’d learned one thing from his father. If you can’t commit your whole heart to someone, then don’t commit it at all. He knew what happens when the people you’re supposed to love come last. And he refused to be responsible for ruining anyone else’s life.
Zac put his head down and kept playing.
ChapterTwenty-Eight
Cassie stood to the side of the stage as Fractured brought the house down. Watching them perform never failed to make her heart pound. Electricity surged through the air, crackling against her skin, making the fine hairs on her arms stand on end. As much as she used to love watching Bryan perform, she’d never experienced this kind of full body response. She wasn’t the only one feeling it. The entire crowd was a shrieking, writhing mass, reaching and straining toward their idols.
The flare of the lights, the driving beat of Noah’s drums, the oscillating screams of Tex’s guitar, Connor’s deep, whiskey-smooth voice, and under it all, the pulse of Zac’s bass that vibrated through her bones. He didn’t play to the crowd like the others did as he moved around the stage. He was lost in his own world, head down, the muscles in his arms and shoulders moving smoothly as he played.
Now and then, he looked out over the crowd, giving them the gift of his intense gaze. And every time he did, fans would scream and call out for him—desperate for his attention. Sometimes he’d catch someone’s eye and flash them a smile, and even through the wall of sound surrounding her, Cassie could hear women calling his name.
They craved his attention. A moment of his time. A night in his bed.
She longed to hold him.
To be the person he turned to when he needed someone.
Cassie squeezed her eyes shut. She had to stop thinking that way. She and Zac were just… Well, she didn’t really know what they were. More than boss and employee. Friends maybe? Whatever they were, she accepted it. Even though every time he looked at her, she felt it from the top of her head to the tip of her toes. It didn’t mean anything. It couldn’t mean anything. She didn’t need more heartbreak. And Zac was heartbreak personified. Not because he was an asshole. It would be easier if he was. No, he wasn’t an asshole. He was just so self-contained, it was like he existed in his own little world. He was an enigma to her. Maybe even to his friends. Sometimes when he was talking and laughing with them, she could almost see how he held himself back.
It was like Tori said—he didn’t really seem to need anyone.
Noah smashed his sticks into his cymbals to end the song, and Zac made his way toward her, dragging the strap of his bass over his head. His white T-shirt was plastered to his body, outlining the hard ridges of his muscles. Muscles she’d run her fingers over. Muscles that had flexed over her again and again as he’d thrust into her. Her breathing quickened, her skin warming as he smiled at her.
