Not today. I think I’m in the clear.
The last four days have been hell.
Absolute fucking hell.
I was on the phone with the band’s PR team for what felt likehoursthe morning after their livestream. I had to make sure any strategy they came up with for keeping Rad from becoming an even bigger problem didn’t interfere with my own work. I even had to drive into LA to have a meeting at Heartless about it.
It could have been an email.
I can’t stand Rad being back in their lives, can’t stand his snappy little snide comments. I wish I could go over to his apartment—wherever the fuck it is—and threaten to cut off his dick as a warning. I want him to know that I’m eventually coming forallof him, and when I get there, his days are over.
I didn’t miss the opportunity to check on Bonnie’s apartment when I was back in town. I had to make sure her door had been changed and had to creep in on her space to see if anything was out of place. I even went as far as leaving rose petals on her bedspread and sending her a picture to continue the charade.
And Bonnie…
Fuck.
I haven’t been alone with her for more than a few minutes—a conscious decision after the other night. I lost myself in her embrace, in her pretty words. More than once, I thought I was dreaming. She had her hands on me…between my thighs…
And I stood there with my hands at my sides like touching her would be the end of the world.
I was too stunned to move, too entranced to think about anything except the fact that she was touching me. In the open—not beneath the shadows in the middle of the night.
I blow out an audible breath as I lean against the SUV door, waiting to take Bonnie and Zeb home. It’s just for a couple of days—requested not just by Bonnie begging to sleep in her own bed, but also by Andi.
“Do you think they can have two or three days off this week?” Andi asks, pulling me to the side in the kitchen.
“Ah…” I cross my arms over my chest and look back at the band jamming on the couch. “Maybe. Why? Something wrong?”
She gives me a solemn look. “It’s Maddox. I just think he needs a couple of days away from everything. I wanted to take him up to the redwoods. Let him clear his head. Everything with Rad is coming back hard, and he’s…” She sighs as she looks his way. “He isn’t okay.”
I nod because I’ve noticed him acting off. “Bonnie mentioned wanting to sleep in her bed,” I say. “So, yeah. We can do that. That’s fine.”
“Are you sure?” Andi asks.
“Yeah,” I tell her. “Avie doesn’t have to know. And even if he finds out, I’ll take the hit. I do ask that you allow Liam to drive you.”
Andi nods. “Deal.”
They still have to record a song before we head out to Radio Eleven, but I couldn’t deny them time away.
Seeing Bonnie smiling this morning as she approaches my SUV makes all the stress worth it.
God, she’s fucking killing me with this adorable little outfit.
She’s wearing a cropped black hoodie and tight cartoon pajama shorts that show off all the tattoos on her legs—most in the neo-traditional style. Some of the brighter ones she’s only had done recently. They practically melt into her clunky, half-calf combat boots.
I smirk as I open the door for her, squirming inside at the grin on her lips.
“Morning, babygirl,” she says, tongue raking over her teeth as if she knows exactly what those words are going to do to me.
I scoff. “Morning to you,” I reply, unable to keep my eyes from peering her over. I try not to think about her hands between my thighs or the taste of her skin, but it’s nearly impossible.
“Do you have more bags?” I ask.
“I travel light,” she says, huffing the bag into the front and taking out a set of drumsticks.
I grab her bag and place it into the back seat instead. “All this fucking space and you put your bag up front?” I tease her.
