“Wait, I thought it was a week?” Penn asks, crossing his arms over his chest. He moves next to Tanner, looking down at what I’m guessing is our schedule.
“Originally, it was, but after analyzing our timeline more, I realized it’ll be better to get back on the road sooner. Thatway, we can get another rehearsal in before our first show back. We don’t want to get out of swing.” Tanner tucks his clipboard under his arm protectively, pushing his black-framed glasses up his face.
“Bullshit! We’re not going to be ‘out of swing,’ it’s one week,” Penn snarls.
Tanner shrugs him off, but Penn isn’t backing down. No, he wanted extra days with Olivia. The vein in his neck bulges as he puffs his chest into Tanner’s.
Tanner is tall and broad with wide shoulders, but Penn has two inches on him.
“We’re staying the whole week like we planned. You can’t just spring this shit on us. We make decisionstogether,” Penn grits out, and my lip twitches. Finally, someone is standing up to Tanner besides me. Liam is always kissing his ass; he never wants to piss anyone off, and Penn is always so goddamn quiet. Unless it comes to his girl—girls—then he’s a feisty motherfucker.
“It’s too late. I already made arrangements.” Tanner’s voice leaves no room to argue, but he should know better. Penn might have lain low before, but now he’s got a reason to be home. Fuck, of all people, Tanner should understand, his girl is home, too.
“I don’t fucking care about your arrangements,” Penn growls, and my eyes don’t know where to land. They bounce between Tanner and Penn, then to Liam, who looks nervous as fuck, spinning his drumsticks in the corner with wide eyes. “I’m staying the full week. So is the bus. If you want to leave early, by all means. ButIwon’t be there until the original date,” Penn says, shoulder-checking him on his way out the door.
Tanner sighs and shoves his papers in his folder before trailing behind him.
“Welp.” I slap my knees, glancing at Liam. “What are you gonna do, am I right?”
He gives me an uneasy smile before he hops up and follows the others.
I stay in the room a little while longer, eyeing the bottle of unopened vodka on the table that none of my friends bothered to touch. “Fuck it,” I mutter to myself before grabbing it by the neck and twisting it open. The bus leaves in twenty minutes, on to the next city. We don’t even have time to enjoy the places we’re in.
I take a heavy drink, barely tasting it at this point. I wish I had a joint to go with it, but Tanner put a ban on drugs on the bus. Even my edibles didn’t make the trip.
Shaking my head, I have another gulp. Once I’ve washed away the itchiness in my throat, I take the bottle and head to the bus that’s idling behind the venue. As soon as I step outside, I’m hit with screams. I’m used to them by now, but I can’t believe I’m already sick of them. I didn’t think I’d ever tire of this shit.
Walking with the vodka in one hand, I continue to drink as girls hurl compliments at me. I wave and blow them kisses with my free hand, and I think one starts crying. I pick up my pace and hop on the bus.
5
ELLIE
“I’ll bein town in three hours. Find us a coffee shop and send me the location. I’ll meet you there.” Calvin’s voice invades my ears as I’m trying to sleep. I peek one eye open. He’s driving, his cellphone pressed between his shoulder and ear. I sit up and stretch. It’s still dark outside, and I swear I only dozed off minutes ago. I was flipping through some of last night’s footage, searching for the best stuff, when I couldn’t keep my eyes open any longer.
The bus is quiet, only the hum of tires rolling across the blacktop filling the silence. All of the guys are in their beds, hopefully sleeping. I stand up and roll my shoulders, feeling the stiffness there.
Calvin’s eyes catch mine through the rearview mirror. He lowers his tone to a whisper before hanging up altogether. I make my way to the passenger seat and plop down, gazing out the window. There are no other cars on the road, but that’s not unusual for this hour.
“Can’t sleep?” he asks.
“No.”
Calvin and I have a strange relationship. I don’t particularly like him. He’s arrogant, self-absorbed, and at times, a total dick. But he’s done a lot for the guys, so I tolerate him and try to remain professional. He’s not horrible to look at with his tanned skin and short brown hair that he always styles too neatly. He’s fit, like he worked out regularly before coming on tour, and always dresses in slacks and polo shirts. But he’s uptight and bossy. I bet that carries over into his sex life.
And one thing I don’t like is to be bossed around, ever. Especially in the bedroom. I like to be the one to take charge, but most guys are put off by that. So, I play along, and it’s fine. As long as I get off, I’m good.
“Ellie, Earth to Ellie,” he says, sounding annoyed. I shift to face him. He glances over, then fixes his attention back on the road. “Did you hear me?”
“No, what?”
“I said, put on some music if you want. I know you need that noise to sleep.”
My head tilts to study him. It’s no secret I love music. Lots of music—all sounds and genres, but it’s weird that he paid attention to anything other than how crisp his shirt is. Seriously, not a single wrinkle.
I turn on the radio, twisting the knob until I land on alternative rock, leaving the volume low.
It’s quiet for a while before Calvin speaks again. “Are you homesick yet?”
