“Kamden was being a shit,” I reply.
“Ah. Guess some things don’t change—Hey, let’s go! James is out front,” Reed shouts.
Kamden is practically squealing and fighting back. Nevertheless, he’s no match for Maddox’s grip and strength. Maddox wrestles him backward, locking Kamden’s arms to the point that Kamden has to yell Maddox’s last name as the only way to officially tap out.
I scoff when Maddox stops fighting and holds the younger brother in place. It isn’t a look of amusement in his eyes when he takes Kamden’s throat in his hand, and whatever he says in his ear, we can’t hear.
A knot twists around my abdomen at the display.
Maddox finally shoves Kamden forward, and Kamden glares at him over his shoulder, hand rubbing his neck.
“Jerk off—”
The words barely leave Kamden’s lips when Maddox pushes him into the pool.
As I predicted, Dad’s tie job was poor, and the cover snaps from the side, sending Kamden into the dirty water below. He’s beneath the water for a split second before rising up and yelling something else I don’t catch.
“The hell was that about?” Reed asks when Maddox reaches us.
Maddox stretches his hand out and curls it back in as he looks back to find Kamden pushing himself out of the pool.
“Do I need a reason?” Maddox asks Reed.
Reed glances at Kamden. “No, not really. You ready?”
“Yeah.”
Reed turns. I follow, catching Maddox’s eyes upon passing. A smirk rises on his lips and disappears beneath his mask when he pulls the fabric up to his eyes, and as he winks my way, the swagger in his every muscle causes my muscles to tense.
He pinches my elbow when I pass, and we don’t look at each other again the entire ride to the party.
Thank fuck, Maddox gave me that gummy.
If I have to hear DJ Paul tell me one more time about how he loves film cameras more than modern cameras or about the “art of photography” being lost nowadays as if I’m going to debate with him about it, I might lose my goddamn mind.
I sip my Sprite and smile politely for a few more minutes, only because I know I have to be civil with him the rest of the week and because, honestly, I don’t feel like having Cynda call me at midnight to tell me to fix my face in front of clients.
The look Maddox is giving me from across the room keeps me distracted enough to hear what the DJ is saying while not fully having to pay attention.
The mask makes him nearly unreadable, even if those eyes are always on me. I can’t tell if he’s watching because he’s suddenly attracted to me or if he’s watching out of some protective instinct because of how the DJ tried to chat with me earlier.
Someone bumps into me from behind, and I turn just in time to feel Bonnie slide her arm around my shoulders.
Her blonde hair is braided on the sides so that it falls into a horse’s mane mohawk, pink tips gleaming when the different color lights hit them. Her makeup is dark, smokey, and flawless as usual, and the way she wears black lipstick makes me totally jealous. She chews loudly on her gum and gives the DJ a sideways grin.
“Think she’s tired of hearing about her job, dude,” Bonnie says, her voice hoarse and raspy. She looks my way and proceeds to lick the side of my face. “She’s going to come sit on my lap instead,” she adds with a wink at Paul. “Maybe my face later. We’ll see how this goes.”
I fucking love her.
The DJ grins. “See you two on Thursday, then.”
And as he turns his back, we both flip him off.
“Thought he’d never leave you alone. Come on,” Bonnie says, jerking her head toward the tables overlooking the club below. “Let’s go people watch.”
A few people pause to speak to her when we move through the crowd to an empty table. She talks to them, insults a few others, and I think I love her more.
Bonnie becoming a member of Young Decay was something that was never entirely discussed. She showed up to a gig that Reed, Maddox, and Zeb were playing a year before they were signed, back when their previous drummer was so high on pills that he could hardly function. The guy passed out halfway through the set. Knowing their music, Bonnie jumped onstage as the ambulance was taking him away, and she finished the rest of the gig without a hitch.
