I’d just thought the fight would come from Jace… because no way in hell was my best friend just going to let bygones be bygones with theonlygirl he’d ever loved.
Grayson let out a low sigh before he shot me a small smile. “It’s not a fair fight, I know.”
A snort of laughter escaped me. “No shit. She’s naked in my bed right now, passed out from this morning when she came three fucking times on my dick and tongue.”
Yeah, I was an asshole, but no one had said we had to play fair.
To my surprise, Grayson laughed too. “Three. Barely even seems like a challenge. Enjoy your opening round because I’m all in. Thanks for convincing her to stay, by the way. That makes things easier… for me.”
A tinge of annoyance hit me. “This isn’t just a game for you, right? Because she’snota toy. So if you hurt Billie, I will fucking kill you. Brother or not.”
Grayson got to his feet and crossed to stand at my side. Giant bastard towered over me, and I somehow managed not to cringe when he dropped a heavy hand on my shoulder. “If I hurt her, I’ll probably let you kill me.”
He gave my shoulder one final squeeze, rendering me near broken-armed, and then he moved into personal trainer mode. For the next hour he kicked my ass from one side of the gym to the other, and by the time I was crawling my ass to the shower, I had to admit I felt better.
Calmer. More centered. And more ready than ever to show Billie Bellerose that I was the only fucking man she needed in her life.
Grayson was waiting for me in the hall when I emerged, and we walked silently toward our floor. No lie, my mind was already back in bed, anticipating what I’d find when I stepped inside my room. Would she still be asleep? Naked… those fucking tit—
A hand slammed into my chest, halting my steps, and I glared up at Grayson, about to snap at the heavy-handed fucker. Second time today he’d almost broken me. Only I realized a moment later why he’d stopped me in my tracks.
Florence.
Florence and Tom, to be more accurate, arguing in the hall.
“It’s going too fucking far,” she hissed at our scumbag temporary manager. “We just need to be done and worry about the rest later.”
My gaze shifted to Grayson, who held a finger to his lips. I agreed with him that if this was a breakup fight, we definitely shouldn’t interrupt. Thankfully, they stood in a small alcove in the hall, slightly hidden from view, which also meant we were hidden from them too.
“We could lose everything, you stupid bitch,” Tom hissed back, and I wanted to crack that motherfucker in the face for the way he spoke to Flo. We’d all expressed our annoyance about it, but she’d asked us to stay out of it. We had to respect her wishes, but the moment he went too far… the moment I saw a bruise or loss of spirit from her, Tom was dead.
Dead and buried without an ounce of remorse or regret.
“How do you know that?” Flo whined. “Maybe it’ll all be fine. Nothing has happened so far.”
Wait.Was this a breakup fight?Or was there something else going on?
“Just remember the plan. You signed up for this. For us. And I’m not letting you ruin everything because you’ve found a fucking heart. You were nothing before me, and if you fuck this up, you’ll be nothing again.”
This time I held Grayson back because that fucker really would kill Tom. And we just didn’t have time for the paperwork. Not today.
Florence didn’t respond to her piece-of-shit boyfriend, and we straightened when they popped out of the alcove and continued down the hallway. Neither of them bothered to look back to where we were half-crouched. It pissed me the hell off to see they were holding hands as they went, so clearly, no breakup.
“Does he have her fucking grandma tied up in the basement or some shit?” I said with a sad shake of my head. “Like, in what world does it make sense for someone as awesome as Flo to get caught in the web of someone as fucking pathetic as Tom.”
“I know she asked us not to interfere,” Grayson rumbled, his voice lower and more pissed than I’d heard in a while, “but something has to be done about him. And soon.”
I nodded as I thought it over. “We should try the label again. Surely there are better-qualified managers that can fill in for the rest of this tour. By then Brenda will be back from maternity leave, won’t she?”
“Florence asked us not to fire him,” Grayson reminded me.
“Right. But maybe we just do what we think is best for her. An intervention of sorts where we kick his ass right out of Bellerose. I’m sick of having his slimy fingers in our music.”
I wasn’t one for taking people’s rights or choices away. Florence was a grown woman, hence the reason Tom had been here for this long, but I’d about had enough.
I’d seen the way that bastard looked at Billie, with calculating disgust. He wanted her gone—without even a cent of her rightfully owed royalties—and I knew that he was going to cause issues the moment he found out I’d asked her to stay.
And if it came down to Billie versus Tom…
