Page 31 of Just Wait

“That’ll be a pain in the ass with the venue still clearing out,” I say, stepping around her to grab her duffel bag. “It’s a travel night. I don’t know exactly what time it is, but we’ll be leaving by one or two a.m. I’m not comfortable sending you out into an unfamiliar city with no plan.”

Her eyes widen, but she says, “I’ll be fine.”

“Yeah, you probably would be,” I agree, solely because I don’t want to freak her out. “But I have sisters. Even a one percent chance something could happen will keep me up at night. Not to mention, Malcolm will kick my ass if I let you disappear without so much as a goodbye.”

“Why would he care?” she asks, her head tilting to the side like a confused puppy.

That is a valid question, but I’m not about to out Malcolm’s feelings about her. There’s no way to be sure how serious he is, anyway.

“We’re all invested now,” I tell her, and it’s not a lie. “We travel for the next two nights, but then we have a night off in Columbia before we’re there for three days. Why don’t you stick with us until then? It’ll give you a few days to plan if you need to rent a car or fly back to…Florida?”

I’m not sure if she intends to go to their hometown or somewhere else, but it makes sense she would go to where her things are.

She nods. “Yeah, I’m from Florida.”

“I grew up in the Midwest.” I laugh. “I would have killed to grow up that close to the beach. All right, do we have a plan?”

“Are you sure your bandmates will be okay with me traveling with you?”

“I’m positive,” I assure her. “Did you meet Randy?”

She shakes her head.

“He was our label-appointed babysitter, and he was with us all throughout Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. Anyway, we’re used to having six of us on the bus, and he’s gone now. It won’t be any trouble.”

I still have no idea why the label sent us from Jacksonville over to Baton Rouge, but it’s like that sometimes.

Our schedule is more chaotic than usual this time because our original tour was delayed. They had to pop us in on the days the venues had openings, and that means we’re zig-zagging across the country, even more erratically than a normal tour.

“You’re sure it won’t cause any arguments?” she asks.

Well, I didn’t say that.

Kincaid might have something to say about it, but he’s got enough tact to do it when she’s not around.

There are six bunks plus the room at the back of the bus, so we really do have room. I’d warn her how cramped it is with so many bodies in such a confined space, but she’s lived it for over a month with her ex and his band.

“We’ll be on our best behavior, I can promise you that,” I say, nodding to her bags. “Now, can we get out of here?”

“Yeah, thanks, Riser.”

Chapter Eight

Lumen

My hands shake as Riser leads us into Liminal’s after-party. With their music blasting through the speakers, and the room stuffed to capacity with fans, it’s loud.

I’m overwhelmed and mentally exhausted, but I’ll be fine.

I always am.

Going back to Florida is going to suck. My best friend will let me stay with her for a while, but she just had a baby. I’m not sure bringing my chaos into her home is the right call.

I’d also have to endure listening to her say I told you so an unimaginably large number of times, but it would be worth it to have a place to stay.

I’m not sure what I’ll do long term. I’ll need to pay off the balance I owe to my old apartment complex, but I can probably live with a roommate until that’s taken care of.

Riser’s hand is warm against the skin of my lower back as we stop just inside the doorway. He leans down, getting close to my ear, and asks, “Can I get you a drink?”