“I can’t wait.” Bonnie closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. “If I fall asleep, don’t wake me up.”
The tattoo artist grins. “You’re almost done.”
“Freehand a little more, if you want,” Bonnie says. “I mean, if your hand isn’t tired. I know you had Reed earlier.”
“Might take a break and come back to you,” the artist replies. “We have you until five.”
“Same with me,” I mutter, my cheek smushed against the round face pillow.
“Yeah, girl,” Bonnie says.
“There’s something to be said that both of us are like, ‘keep drawing on us with a needle,’” I say, halfway joking. “Or that we’re both on the verge of a nap.”
“I blame the music,” Bonnie says about the metal music playing. “They put on the relaxing shit.”
The door opens then, revealing Reed and Zeb grinning ear-to-ear at us when they stride through the door with large bags in both hands.
“That looks dangerous,” I say.
Bonnie rests her chin on her hands. “Damn. Did you buy out the store?”
Reed looks as though he’s just gone shopping for his own birthday. “Got some things to make Saturday’s show epic.”
“The rest of the bags are in the Escalade,” Zeb says.
“Shit. What did you buy?” I ask.
“Oh, you’ll see,” Reed grins. He steps around and pulls up a chair beside me. “Bonnie’s journalist wants us to head over to The Red Attic after we stop by the venue to drop things off. You in for another party?”
“As long as there are no surprises at this one,” I reply.
Reed’s eyes shift to the door, his teeth set. “If he fucking shows up, I’ll kill him.”
“Whoa,” Bonnie mutters.
“Mads is on the phone with our manager right now,” Reed goes on. “There’s extra security inside tonight. They just want to make sure he’s okay with going out. And to remember to keep a level head.”
“Last time wasn’t his fault,” I argue.
“Yeah, they know,” Reed says.
“It’s only a reminder,” Zeb says. “Rumor about some protesters trying to crash the party is circulating on a few boards.”
“Are you sure he should be going at all?” I ask.
“That dick isn’t keeping him from having a good time,” Reed says. “We’ll be fine.”
I’m still uneasy about the entire thing.
“Maybe I shouldn’t go,” I say. “If I’m not there, maybe Adam will leave you alone.”
“I think he’ll be just as much of a problem whether you’re there or not,” Reed says. “They swear they’re taking care of it.”
I chew on the inside of my mouth for a beat.
If I know Heartless and Death Tower, I know that Young Decay means enough to them that they’ll do whatever they need to ensure they’re protected.
“Okay,” I finally agree. “What’s the plan?”
