The Wild Interview

by K. A Knight

  The tour around the house leaves me breathless, and not just because of all of the stairs. It’s beautiful, and yeah sure, I had known that as soon as we had pulled up in the driveway, but the inside was a whole other story. Liam hadn’t been joking when he’d said there were fifteen bedrooms here, I could sleep in a different room every night of the week if I wanted, and that’s not including if I shared rooms with the guys. A grin spreads across my face at that thought and I try to force it away. Come on Gabs, be professional, they’re your colleagues! Liam and Emmett are my tour guides for the evening. I think the others had wanted to come as well, but Blake had barked at them about following me around like lost sheep and they had sat back down. I shake my head as we continue the tour. I have no idea what Blake’s problem is with me. I’ve done nothing to him except put a lot of hard work into making their show better, yet he treats me like I’m just there to cause problems.

  “And this, is my room,” Liam announces with a waggle of his eyebrows as he pushes open the door for me to look in. Like the other rooms I had seen so far, it’s modernly furnished with a large bed pushed up against the wall. The main feature of the room is the large, arched window that looks out across the gardens. I walk into the room and straight to the window, leaning against the wall next to it. It’s enough to take my breath away, and luckily I’m not staying in this room as I would never get anything done. I turn and see Liam lounging across the bed, watching me admire the view, a small smile on his lips. Hmm, there is another view for me to admire. I pull my eyes away from Liam at a cough from the doorway, Emmett’s grin lets me know I’ve been caught.

  “You want to continue with the tour? Or stay here?” he teases and I roll my eyes at him, giving him a small push as I get to the doorway and start walking down the corridor.

  “You can stay in here with me if you like Gabs, there’s plenty of room,” Liam calls out after us, his voice is teasing, but I’m pretty sure he’s being genuine. I try not to think about that as Emmett shows me the large shared bathroom. Like the rest of the house, it’s spotless, with gleaming marble surfaces, and a large clawfoot bathtub in the centre of the room and a glass shower cubicle large enough for four people against the far wall. My overactive brain starts producing plenty of ideas about what I could get up to in this room. It seems that professional Gabby has left the building today.

  “Come on Gabby, I’ll show you where you will be staying,” Emmett says and I turn from the bathroom to see him standing in an open doorway. “You get to stay in the master bedroom. It’s the nicest room in the house. We couldn’t agree who got it, so it was decided none of us would have it. You know, to make it fair,” he explains with a smile and gestures into the room.

  I smile at him as I pass him, only for my mouth to drop open. The room is stunning. If I had thought the view in Liam’s room was good, this is like I’ve walked into paradise. The room is large with high-ceilings, and like the rest of the rooms, painted in creams, with darker accents around the patterned architraves around the ceiling. It’s bright and airy, giving the room a modern feel, even though the original features of the room have been kept. There is a fireplace against one wall, and a glass vase rests on the mantel with a bouquet of beautiful white flowers, which fills the room with a floral smell that makes the room feel fresh and clean, even though no one stays in here. The large modern four-poster bed faces the extensive arched windows. The wooden frame has flowers and vines etched into the pillars, making it look like it has grown there. Fresh cream and duck egg blue bedding is waiting for me. I glance over my shoulder to see Emmett watching me with a smirk on his face.

  “It’s nice, huh?” he teases and I make a rude noise. Nice is not the word I would use for this room.

  “Why do you keep the room so clean and ready when no one is staying here? Isn’t it just extra work for you guys?” I ask. Emmett just shrugs, that easy smile of his still in place.

  “We like to be ready in case anyone needs somewhere to stay. You never know when we might pick up a stray.” He grins. I roll my eyes at his implication that I’m a stray dog and continue my perusal of the room, poking my head in the large wooden wardrobe.

  “You pick up homeless girls often then?” I joke, but I see his face fall a bit at my mention of me being homeless. He tries to cover it up with a shrug and his easy smile, but I noticed it all the same.

  “No, but Blake had a tough time growing up. He likes to make sure we have room for someone in need.” I pull my head from the set of drawers I’m snooping in and look at him in shock. Blake has a heart? Who knew! Emmett laughs at my surprised look, pushing away from the doorway he’s leaning against as walks to the door I assume leads to the ensuite.

  “Don’t look so shocked. Didn’t you expect Blake to put up more of a fight when you said you needed to stay here?” he asks, gesturing for me to follow him into the new room. I mull that over. Blake had conceded quicker than I had expected when I’d finally said I needed a room for the night.

  I walk into the ensuite and my mouth drops open again—I’ve been doing that a lot today. Liam wasn’t joking when he mentioned the jetpool bathtub. I eye the tub again. Well, I know what I’m going to be doing tonight.

  “Come on, I want to show you the pool.” This place just keeps getting better and better.

  Emmett drags me back to the ground floor to find the pool that’s housed in an addition on to the back of the house. One wall is made entirely of glass, part of it is able to slide back and open up onto the patio area. Beyond that, the gardens stretch into the distance. The setting sun makes it difficult for me to see much of them, but what I can see are just as beautiful as the house. The spacious room has a large skylight, giving the appearance of swimming under the stars. Comfortable looking loungers are lined up against one side of the room, overlooking the pool and the view from the windows. The pool itself is large and rectangular, one end starts shallow and has walk in steps until the water reaches probably about my chest height. The other end looks pretty deep, but until I get in there, I won’t know for certain. Wait, how long am I planning on staying here? I shake my head at my thoughts, Blake had been very clear that I’m only staying here for the night. And that’s all I would need to be here for, I would sort things out with my parents and get back home tomorrow. They just needed time to cool off. Right? I push those thoughts to the back of my mind when I see Emmett frowning at me.

  “Everything okay?” I ask with a smile, tilting my head to the side in question. He blinks as if he had been lost in thought before smiling and gesturing around the room.

  “Yeah, sorry, I was miles away then. What do you think?” he enquires, but he must already know from the smile on my face.

  “This place is amazing!” I gush, I’m pretty sure I’ve never stayed anywhere this nice before. With a house this big, you would expect it to feel empty and devoid of life, but it is completely the opposite. Somehow the guys have managed to make it homely and warm.

  After I’ve finished my tour, I sit with the guys in the sitting room, watching TV and joking about the stupid programs that come on. I have a couple of beers and have fun with the guys, but Blake’s unnerving gaze makes me uncomfortable. We steer clear of any personal talk, sticking to only safe subjects, which I think is partially because the guys are worried I would start crying—they obviously don’t know me very well. Maybe this is something that could change. I never thought this would happen, but this bunch of strippers are pushing their way into my life, and even my heart.

  Last night I slept like a rock. I thought I would struggle to get to sleep because I was in a strange bed, not to mention the reason behind how I ended up there in the first place, but I was pleasantly surprised that I was wrong. I didn’t use the whirlpool bath before bed, I was so tired I just changed into the loose t-shirt and tracksuit bottoms someone left on the bed for me. I’m not sure whose they were, but I kept finding myself sniffing the shirt, the comforting male scent lulling me to sleep. Shuffling to the bathroom, I flick o
n the water in the shower and strip off. I wash quickly and jump out of the shower, feeling fresh and clearer headed than I have in a while as I wrap a large fluffy towel around me. Grabbing a second towel I rub at my hair, trying to get some of the water out so I don’t leave a trail behind me. I walk into the bedroom and am faced with a dilemma. What do I wear? I left my bag downstairs and there is no way I’m going to walk down there in just my towel, plus I don’t want to put my dress from yesterday back on. One, I would look ridiculous in it, and two, I don’t want to think about my parents or the disaster of a meal from last night. I could put the clothes that I slept in on. I wrinkle my nose at the idea, I’ve just gotten clean, I don’t want to wear used clothes. I wander over to the chest of drawers I had been poking through yesterday, I remember seeing some clothing in there. I pull open the drawers and rummage through, surprised when I find some ladies yoga pants and loose workout tops. Shrugging, I pull them out and pick up my bra from yesterday. I drop the towel and face the bathroom, pulling on the yoga pants. I don’t mind re-wearing my bra but definitely not my panties. Commando it is then. I pull my bra on and am just reaching back to do up the clasp when someone knocks on the door. Without waiting for me to answer, they open it.

  “Gab— Oh.”

  I look over my shoulder to see Leo standing there, open-mouthed as he stares at me. Of course one of them would burst in while I’m semi-naked, typical. I’m not going to scramble for my towel though, it’s not like he can see much since I’m facing away from him and I’m wearing the yoga pants.

  “Can I help you, Leo?” I ask, a small smile playing at my lips as he shifts uncomfortably.

  “Um- Yeah. Yeah, breakfast is ready,” he says quickly before leaving the room, rushing to shut the door behind him. I smirk at how flustered he’d gotten and stop to listen as I hear a noise outside the room.

  “Is she coming?” Liam’s voice calls out.

  “She’s getting changed. Oi- get away from the door!” Leo shouts and I laugh at the sound of scuffling outside as the door is slammed shut.

  I continue getting ready, chuckling to myself at their antics. Once I’m done, I head downstairs and see that they’re all sitting around the island in the centre of the kitchen, munching away on bowls of cereal. There’s a plate in the centre piled high with croissants and pastries.

  “Ooohh,” I mutter and head straight for the pastries, shoving half a croissant into my mouth. “Morning,” I mutter around my mouth of deliciousness, ignoring the looks of shock from the guys. I walk over to the fridge and take out some orange juice, leaning down into the cupboard to get out a glass, helping myself.

  “Has she gone commando?” I spin around to see Leo, Liam, Kingston, and Damon have their heads close together, muttering between themselves as they stare at my ass.

  I narrow my eyes as I watch them. The yoga pants are tight, so they wouldn’t see any underwear lines, but only if they were looking for them. I didn’t catch who made the comment, so I address all of them.

  “You must have been looking pretty closely to tell that,” I comment, hands on my hips as I glare at them. Secretly, I’m not cross, I’m kind of flattered, not that I’m going to tell them that. I plonk myself on a stool next to Damon who flashes me a smile.

  “How are you feeling today?” he asks quietly, and I know he’s feeling guilty about how things went down with my parents last night. I smile at him, I really don’t want him to feel like it was his fault. My parents would have found out about my job sooner or later.

  “I’m okay thank—”

  “When are you leaving?” Blake’s voice breaks through the chatter filling the kitchen as everyone turns to look at him. I’m pissed off, but I’m surprised when I see that the others look pissed off too.

  “There is no need to be rude Blake,” Emmett comments, a frown marring his face.

  “Yeah dickhead, at least let her finish her breakfast,” Liam argues, his usual playful grin replaced by anger. I shake my head and put the rest of my croissant down, pushing away from the island.

  “Don’t worry guys, I don’t want you all falling out because of me. I’ll pack my stuff and make some calls.” I stride out of the room, of course Blake couldn’t let me finish my breakfast in peace, he is so eager to get rid of me. It's a nice Saturday and we're all enjoying some time off before we go on tour, where we’ll be working every day. I grab my bag from the entrance hall and walk up to the room I’ve been staying in, cursing Blake under my breath as I go.

  Walking into the room I push the door closed behind me, leaving it slightly cracked so I can hear if anyone is coming this way. I pick up my mobile, which I had left in my bag, no messages. I sigh, that’s not a good sign. I dial my mum’s number and sit cross-legged on the bed, I’m not looking forward to this call.

  “So that’s it? You’re making me homeless, because Dad doesn’t like my job? You’re throwing your only child onto the streets,” I say down the phone, clarifying what has just been said. My voice is numb, I can’t quite believe this is happening.

  “I’m sorry Gabby,” is all my mum says and I can hear Dad shouting in the background before she hangs up on me.

  I throw the phone to the end of the bed, laying back so I can look up at the ceiling. Urgh. That did not go well. Dread runs through me as I think over my options. Mum had barely said a word to me on the phone. I didn’t think they would take it well, but I didn’t believe it would be this bad.

  “Fuck. Shit. Fucking shitting cocksucking—”

  “Gabs?” Emmett’s voice comes from the doorway. Crap, so much for my ‘I’ll hear them if they come’ theory.

  “Come in,” I call, knowing he’ll come in whether I invite him in or not. I don’t bother to sit up or pretend I’m okay, I just stay staring at the ceiling. I feel the bed dip, and I look over to see that he's laying next to me, looking up at the ceiling also.

  “I take it that phone call didn’t go well?” he asks and I sigh, looking back towards the ceiling.

  “Nope.”

  We both lay there in silence for a while, he's obviously waiting for me to talk. Well, I’m not going to just go spilling all of my woes to—

  “They’ve kicked me out. They won’t have me back. I have nowhere to go.” My voice breaks as I speak. I guess I’m going to talk to him after all. “I don’t know what to do Emmett.”

  I feel the bed shift as he turns his head to look at me, although I keep my gaze upward, I know that if I look at him I’ll start crying, and I really don’t want to do that.

  “You could stay with us?” he asks softly, but I just snort at his suggestion.

  “Yeah, like Blake is going to allow that,” I say bitterly. I try to push away at the feelings of rejection, bury them down. My parents may have rejected me, but I don’t want to stick around here for Blake to reject me as well, I’m not sure I could stand that too. I sit up, fighting the sting in my eyes as I blink back tears. I need to find somewhere to stay tonight. Pushing away from the bed, I walk to the chair where I had folded my clothing from last night and start packing it away in my overnight bag, before pulling out a change of clothes. I need to change, I can’t leave here commando and in someone else's clothes.

  “Where are you going?” Emmett questions. I glance over my shoulder and see he’s watching my movements, his expression considering.

  “I need to try find somewhere to stay tonight,” I mutter as I walk into the bathroom, shutting the door behind me.

  I start to change into my clothes, and at some point I become aware that Emmett is talking to someone in my room. My room. I snort, I wish. I look in the mirror with a sigh, I’m a mess. Pushing the door open I pull up short, as I see Blake standing in the room talking quietly with Emmett. He looks me up and down, his standard frown in place.

  “Gabriella.”

  “I’m really not in the mood for your shit Blake,” I mutter, walking past him and shoving the last of my bits and pieces into my bag. I swing my bag over my shoulder, I know I should sa
y goodbye to the guys downstairs, but I can’t face them right now, not with how I’m feeling. I’ll see them on Monday, I can thank them then. My mind is spinning, I’ve got some savings, I can afford to stay in a hotel tonight, I just have to hope somewhere has a room at such late notice.

  “Where the fuck do you think you’re going Gabby?” Blake asks. His voice is quiet, and he phrases it as a question, but his tone makes it obvious that he’s not asking.

  “Don’t take that tone with me. I need to find somewhere to stay. You made yourself very clear.” My temper is getting the better of me. I need to be professional and if I don’t leave this room, I’m going to say something that’s going to get me fired.

  “You’re staying with us.”

  I stop in the doorway, not quite believing what he’s saying. I look over my shoulder and see him walking towards me, then he grabs my bag from my shoulder and throws in onto the bed. I turn fully to watch him, frowning. What the hell has gotten into him?

  “You told me to go.”

  “And now I’m telling you that you’re staying.” He walks up to me so we are nose to nose. “Just until you’re back on your feet.” I laugh as he walks out of the room without saying another word. Just as I think Blake is saying something nice, he reminds me he’s an asshole.

  “I guess you’re staying then,” Emmett drawls from where he’s leaning against the four-poster bed. I walk over to him and throw myself down on the mattress, looking up at the ceiling again.

  “I guess I am.” I shake my head, a wry chuckle escaping my lips. “Blake gives me whiplash.” A heavy sigh leaves my lips and I drape my arm over my eyes, blocking out the light. I feel the bed dip again and I know he has crawled up onto the mattress next to me again. I open my eyes suddenly as he cuddles up next to me, throwing his arm over me in the process. I look at him in shock, I’m supposed to be professional here, but then I decide I don’t care and snuggle into his arms.