by Zoey Derrick
“What about, what are their names? The girls from last night?”
“Sam and Jess?”
“Yeah, you guys seem close.”
I shrug and sit up, still holding the pillow tightly to my chest. I push off my hood. “Maybe, but I blow them off so much. Sometimes it’s work related and sometimes not. I used the concert in San Diego as an excuse. I wanted to see the show, didn’t want to go alone. So I thought I could finally break that barrier and spend a couple of days with my girlfriends on the beach. But as it turns out, I was needed for more important things. I’ve bailed on them every single time we make plans to do something because I feel bad telling them no. And now I am supposed to make it up to them when the tour is over. I pacified them and I feel bad about it.”
“I think last night more than made up for it.”
“What do you mean? Wait, do I want to know the answer to that?”
“Probably not. I just know that two of our guys woke up with smiles on their faces.”
“Ew, damn it. Wait, two? You mean Jess and Peacock?”
He nods. “I thought you knew?” He cocks his head at me.
I shake mine. “No. I gave Sam a lecture behind the club before I went back to the bus. Tried to talk her out of sleeping with Dex. Dex came out and told her that what I said was true, that he’d have his shit buried in another pussy, or two as is the case, tonight. I told them both I didn’t want to hear about it the next day or ever. Sam is the clingy type, sleep with her once and you’re screwed. Jess, Jesus, she was always the ‘date me, woo me, love me, fuck me’ type, I didn’t think I needed to…damn it.” I throw the pillow down in frustration.
“Well, I wouldn’t worry about Jess too much. Peacock didn’t pick up a chick tonight, which is probably why he was in the hallway tonight, and Mouse and Dex were otherwise occupied. I think there may be more between Jess and Eric than we realize,” he says, and he’s absolutely serious about it. “I saw him messing with his phone a lot today, so maybe there is something more between those two. Dex, on the other hand, is being Dex. Wham, bam, thank you, ma’am and all that.”
I don’t know whether I should feel relieved or not at the information Kyle is telling me right now. I want to believe that it could be something more between Eric, aka Peacock, and Jess. And I warned Sam, so she ultimately gets what’s coming to her.
“I’m not ready to sleep with you,” I blurt.
Kyle smiles and brings his hand to my cheek. “I know you’re not, but it won’t stop me from trying to prove it to you.”
I smile. “Thank you.”
“Now, slide over, I’m snuggling with you.”
“Kyle, I…”
“No funny business, I’ll be a perfect gentleman, but I’m tired and frankly I don’t want to leave you.”
“I need to change.”
He gestures with his hand for me to go ahead and I do. I slip into my pajama bottoms and a t-shirt, ditch the jeans, bra and other clothes I’m still wearing, before brushing my teeth and climbing into bed.
Kyle wraps his arms around me and I snuggle into his chest. I take a long deep inhale, pulling his scent into me. His scent is all Kyle with a faint hint of cologne. It smells like heaven and I drift off to sleep.
When I wake up the next morning, Kyle is gone. I’m not surprised when I see it’s after two in the afternoon. These late nights are going to run me dry. But today is worse. Today dawns with a major migraine. My head is pounding behind my eyes and I refuse to turn on a light. I stumble my way into the bathroom and into the shower without the light on. I don’t want to even think about turning it on.
When I stumble out of the shower I go digging blindly in my bag for my migraine medicine. It’s too late to take it, but at this point something has got to be better than nothing. I haven’t had a migraine in over a year so I guess I was due, but damn it there’s a concert tonight and I need to be there.
I find my medicine, down the two pills with a glass of water from the faucet, throw my pjs and hoodie back on and climb back into bed, passing right back out again.
Sometime later there is a knock on the door that wakes me up. “Go away,” I moan.
“Red, you alright in there?”
“No,” I groan and suddenly the room is flooded with light. “Argh!” I groan, “turn it off. Turn off the light,” I shout as I cover my head with the blankets.
“Come on, it’s almost show time,” Talon says from the foot of my bed, then I feel him pushing down on the bed shaking it.
“No stop.” My stomach swirls and I swallow back the bile rising in my throat. “Talon, I’m gonna…”
I bolt out of bed, not thinking about where I am and I stub my toe on the door “Fuck!” I scream as I try and get into the bathroom before I let loose what little contents are in my stomach. Finally, I manage to find the toilet.
“Fuck, Addison, what’s wrong with you?” Talon’s concern isn’t exactly heartwarming as I’m retching into the toilet. He comes to stand near me and pulls my hair off of my face.
“Get out,” I manage between heaves. “Don’t. Need. To. See. This.”
“What’s wrong?”
“Migraine,” I manage before heaving into the toilet one more time.
“Ah shit, panda, I’m sorry. I didn’t… I didn’t think. I thought you were hiding in here because you were pissed at me.”
What? Oh, the chicks last night. “No, sick.” Finally the dry heaves calm down and I’m able to slide myself to the floor, putting my pounding head on the cool tile near the tub.
“What can I do?” he asks, again his concern for me is back and this time it’s genuine. I want to cry. He makes me so angry.
“Nothing, show, must go on.” I can’t even speak it hurts so bad.
“Not the same without you.”
“And you can’t cancel the show because your PR rep has a headache.”
“But I need my good luck kiss.”
“Seriously, I just ralphed in the … and you want a good luck kiss?”
He laughs. “After you brush your teeth of course.”
“Har Har.”
“Here, let’s get you off the floor. How’s your foot?”
“Hurts,” I mumble as I feel his arms come underneath me, lifting me off of the floor.
“Alright, let’s get you in bed. I’ll get you some orange juice and some medicine. We’ve still got three hours.”
So not gonna happen, but I’m not going to tell him that. At least not right now.
He tucks me into bed, disappears for a few minutes and comes back with some orange juice along with two Tylenol and one horse pill.
“What’s this?” I hold up the white pill.
“Eight hundred ibuprofen. The combo works amazing for me.” He smiles softly at me and I take them. It’s not the first time I’ve mixed Tylenol with Ibuprofen. “Rest. I’ll come back in about an hour to check on you. I’ll leave Kyle here as long as I can.” He leans over and kisses me on the forehead. “Need anything else?”
My snuggle partner? “No. I’m good.”
He kisses me again and leaves the room quietly and I doze off.
I vaguely remember Talon coming in to wake me up an hour later and I shooed him away.
Half an hour later, Kyle comes in. “How you feeling, panda girl?” he says with a soft tug on the ear on my hood.
“Better.”
“Want to come down for the show?” I shake my head slightly. “Not even for their kisses.”
“Selfish pricks,” I mumble and he laughs. “Help me,” I tell him.
“With what?”
“Get some clothes so they can have their kisses, then I’m coming back to bed.
“You don’t…”
“Shut it and help me.” I try and fail at smiling. It still hurts but at least it’s not as intense as before.
He sets about his task helping me into jeans and a t-shirt. He manages to find my flip-flops in my mess of a suitcase and slides them on my feet. He goes int
o the bathroom when I swap one t-shirt for another. It’s tighter than I thought it would be, but I’m not going to go through the hassle of a bra and I throw my hoodie back on.
I throw the hood over my messy ass ponytail and find my big dark sunglasses and slip them over my eyes. “Start with the bathroom light,” I say. He closes the door and then turns on the light. I flinch and close my eyes, blinking rapidly. Once I adjust, I tell him to open it some more and he obeys what I’m asking him to do until I manage a light on one of the nightstands.
“You good?”
I shrug. I look over at the clock and it’s nearly eight. “I need my headphones. I’ve got to be able to muffle the noise.” He nods and finds them in my messenger bag. He gives them to me and I slide them into my ears. He didn’t disconnect the iPod so I turn it on. It’s the same soft melodies I fell asleep to the other night. The initial noise makes me jump, so I turn it down to a dull, barely there level.
“Ready?” I hear him ask and I nod.
“I’m gonna need food when I come back up.”
“I’ll take care of it.”
“And coffee,” I tell him.
He smiles. “On it.”
He escorts me slowly down the hall and to the elevator then through the back hallway to the backstage area of our venue. Once we go through the steel door, I can hear Empty Chamber’s last song of their set. I lean into Kyle. “Can we get into position without them seeing me?”
He nods and sneaks me quickly to my position next to the stage just as Empty Chamber finishes their song and gives their introduction to 69 Bottles. Thankful for the headphones, I can hear him clearly but the crowd is a dull roar in my ears.
A couple minutes go by as the shuffle of gear happens. Then like out of the fog, the boys, my boys, come walking down the hall toward the stage. Dex is surprised to see me. Peacock is rather indifferent and Talon is looking down at the floor. He looks so sad and I want to run to him and tell him it’s okay.
“You look like shit.”
“Ever charming, aren’t you, Dex?”
“Always,” he says wrapping his arms around me, planting a wet and sloppy kiss on my lips and the image of him chain fucking those chicks last night comes unwelcome into my mind and my stomach rolls again. “Thanks, love.”
He steps back and I can see Talon has a bright smile on his face as he looks at me. Mouse and Peacock quickly wrap their arms and plant their kisses. “Break a leg, guys.”
“Go back to bed,” Mouse says with a smile. “Dex is right, you look like shit.”
“So much fucking love,” I tease. “I crawled out of bed for your happy asses.”
He laughs. “I know and I appreciate it.” Mouse moves off to the stage behind Peacock.
Kyle takes up his position behind me, wrapping his hands around me and I slouch into him. Exhausted. “We’re almost done, panda,” he whispers and Talon saddles up to me.
“Thank you,” he breathes, taking my cheeks in his hands and bringing his lips to mine. The sensation is overwhelming and I moan into his mouth. I feel Kyle’s hands slide along my belly, up towards my chest and my clit throbs, headache forgotten. I feel Talon’s erection twitch against Kyle’s hand and my stomach.
Talon’s tongue slides into my mouth, stroking my tongue and Kyle’s hand gently strokes along Talon’s erection. Talon’s breathing hitches with each gentle pass of Kyle’s hand and since my hands are on Talon’s biceps, he knows full well who’s touching him and it’s turning him on more…dear lord, I’m in fucking trouble with these two.
Wrapped in between these two men is my happy place. I bring my hands to Talon’s cheeks, holding him to me, not wanting to let him go. He pulls back slightly, pecking me on the lips a couple more times before stepping back. “Kick some ass,” I tell him.
“Stay, for a couple minutes.”
“Only a couple.” He smiles and steps onto the stage.
He does his greeting and the band breaks into ‘Your Eyes’. Just for me. Talon is looking at me and Kyle hasn’t let me go. I smile at him and take comfort in the man holding me upright. Despite the headache, I stay through the song and into the next one before Kyle makes me leave and takes me back to my room and my bed.
Within minutes of returning back to the suite, I’ve changed back into my pjs and Kyle has me nestled in bed and he’s bringing me food on a tray.
“Thanks.”
“I wasn’t sure what you wanted so I went with,” he opens the dome on the tray.
“Mac n’ cheese. It’s perfect.” I smile at him. “Did you get yourself anything?”
“No, I’m not hungry.” I pout at him. “What? I ate earlier,” He counters and takes a seat on the bed next to me as I dig into my supper.
I get about halfway through my mac n’ cheese and drink down two cups of coffee and then finally two big glasses of apple juice. My head is still throbbing but at least the light sensitivity seems to be disappearing. I settle back against the headrest, my tummy full and my eyes are heavy.
“All done?” he asks me.
“Mmhmm. I am. That was delicious, thank you.”
He smirks at me. “I didn’t make it, I just ordered it. But you’re welcome.” He takes the tray from over my legs and back into the hallway for pick up. When he comes back, he stands at the foot of the bed. “Need anything else?”
I smile. “A snuggle buddy?”
He smiles a big smile. “I’d love to, unless of course…” he trails off.
“Of course, what?”
“You’d rather have someone else.”
“Nope, you’ll do.” I grin a cheesy grin at him.
“Oh great, second best.” I roll my eyes and it hurts so I can’t stop the scowl that marks my brow. He laughs. “I’ve always said that if you roll your eyes too many times they’re gonna get stuck, or in your case hurt like a bitch.”
“You’re not second best. Now get in here.” I pull back the covers and he strips out of his jeans and kicks off his boots and his socks. He keeps his boxers and t-shirt on.
He hesitates before climbing in. “Is this okay?”
I nod and he climbs on in. He wraps his arms around me and I snuggle into him. He rests his cheek against the top of my head and I put my arm around his ribs, pulling him closer to me and I sigh in contentment as I close my eyes and fall asleep too fast to savor my cuddle buddy.
Lying here with Addison is like pure heaven. She smells so sweet, like vanilla and spices. She’s soft to hang on too, not like most of the girls that show up at the concerts, or at least the ones brave enough to throw themselves at us. I like my women to be luscious, a little curvy is always good and Addison is definitely that. Though she is extremely slender, she’s soft in all the right spots.
She’s got a great ass, a beautiful chest, which from the slip I saw yesterday, she’s had some work done in that department, but they still look natural as hell. I shift slightly. Thinking about what I saw makes my already raging erection throb harder. I know she’s sick, but she’s damn sweet.
The way she asked for a snuggle buddy was quite possibly one of the cutest things I’ve ever seen. God, I sound like a sap. Or a stupid love struck teenager, but that is something I’m not and I meant what I told her last night.
Since she walked on the bus, I haven’t been able to think about anyone but her. No doubt the pain she’s endured since Dan’s death has been excruciating. My mom really shut down when he died, so I don’t doubt that she shut Addison out too. I’d like to find out, but it’s not something I’m ready to talk to her about just yet. I need alcohol for that.
I knew about Addison but with Dan up in New York at school, I never went up there. I was dealing with my own demons after my dad was killed. Demons that I haven’t faced in nearly a decade. Demons that brought me to Talon and the crew. Demons that I’ve never dealt with, just buried.
“Hey man.” I look over to see Talon standing in Addison’s doorway.
“Hey,” I say softly. I don’t want to wake Addi
son up. “What time is it?”
“Eleven. The guys went to the bar, I came up here.”
“How’d it go?” I ask him.
“Good. I had a hard time keeping my head and I kept looking for her off stage, but other than that, it was good. We did another encore. So all in all, it was good. How’s she doing?” he asks me while looking at her.
“She said she’s feeling better, but it still hurts. She ate half of a huge bowl of mac n’ cheese, two cups of coffee-” He snorts. “And two large glasses of apple juice then curled up and fell asleep.”
“That’s good. Glad she’s feeling better. I feel so bad because I made her puke earlier. I didn’t know she was sick and was messing with her.” I watch as he rubs his hand through his hair. I’d be lying if I didn’t tell you that his stress makes him sexy as hell. Whoa, where on earth… oh, who am I kidding? I’ve always thought that Talon is a damn good looking man.
“Mind if I join you guys?” he asks, but I can tell he’s unsure of himself. I smile and nod, then watch as he strips down to his t-shirt and boxers and then climbs in on the other side of Addison.
“Does this make you jealous?” I ask him. My voice is calm and I’m honestly curious. I know he likes her, and I don’t want to trample on his toes. I really don’t want to make him jealous and if he asks me to, I’ll stop, after tonight.
He slides closer to Addison and me. “No,” Talon answers and I can hear the honesty in his voice. “It makes me horny,” he says with a shit ton of nonchalance.
“Care to elaborate?” Before he can answer, Addison shifts slightly in my arms. She hitches her leg up over my hip, and lets my chest go as she shifts onto her back. She’s a bit twisted, but her hand comes to rest on Talon’s hip. Holding him to her at the same time she’s holding me too. Her breathing settles back into a soft steady, sleeping rhythm.
Talon and I both look at each other and smile, but it’s not awkward. In fact it’s ridiculously comfortable and I realize that I want Addison just a little more, especially since she’s now got her pussy very close to my raging hard-on which is starting to grow painful because I can’t do anything about it.