Page 35 of Just Wait

The only thing that stops me is that I have no idea if the door would be locked when I tried to get back in.

That’s the last thing I need.

My chest heaves as I lean against the wall, desperately trying to catch my breath. My hands shake as I bring them to my face. There are no tears, but I almost think it would be cathartic to cry.

Everything fell apart in one night.

I should have planned for this possibility, but I didn’t.

I have no backup plan.

No idea what to do next.

I’m losing it.

“Whoa.” Malcolm comes out into the hallway, his head tilting. “What’s wrong?”

“She’s having a fucking panic attack, you dumbass,” Kincaid says, following him out. “Just get back in there and finish your shit. I’ve got this.”

Chapter Nine

Kincaid

“Wait, what?” Mal asks, his jaw dropping. “She was fine two seconds ago.”

“You’re a fucking idiot, and I’m about to punch you in the throat.” I get close to his ear before lowering my voice. “She just caught her boyfriend fucking a groupie, and you brought her over to sit in your lap while you were draped in women. You signed some chick’s tits six inches away from her face.”

“Fuck you,” he growls, shoving me back. “I wanted to make her feel welcome. No one wants to stand around alone…”

The thing is, I know Mal.

He wasn’t trying to be cruel.

He was actually probably trying to help.

He’s as genuine as they come, but he’s just so goddamn detached from reality that he can’t remember what life was like before we signed our first major contract.

Not every woman is happy to have a sliver of our attention just because we’re rock stars, and Lumen has to be highly sensitive to being around groupies at the moment.

I’m not saying every woman that comes to the after-parties is a groupie. Some are hardcore fans who want to spend time with us one-on-one, but the chicks who were surrounding Mal were there for one thing.

The entire reason Riser didn’t make it back to her before Mal intervened is that he was filling me in about what went down. Had he been at her side, Mal probably wouldn’t have felt the need to pop up and check on her.

In some way, that makes this my fault.

“I’ll calm her down and take her to relax on the bus,” I say, pointing to the open door. “Go finish your interview. I’ve got this.”

“Don’t let her leave,” he says with a huff, spinning around and going back into the after-party.

Before I even turn to check on her, I know she’s in the same spot. Music spills from the meet and greet, but Lumen is hyperventilating loudly enough to be sure she didn’t run off.

My chest tightens.

She’s had a rough night.

Her head shakes as it falls back against the wall, and I approach her slowly. She gasps for air and bends in half, resting her hands on her knees.

“Hey, sweetheart,” I say, keeping my tone low and soothing. “You’re going to pass out if you keep that up.”