“I got on the other side of the railing—thank fuck they’re not made of glass but metal bars—and hung from it, hopping off. Of course I landed on my ass, but it was the first floor, and that was better than a nude scandal.” Aksel shrugged as if it was no biggie.
Another round of guffaws.
“I swear your life is like a sitcom,” Xander said, clapping his friend on the back.
“Yeah, yeah, laugh it up,” Aksel said. “If it weren’t for me, these gatherings would be like a funeral.”
“Speaking of sitcoms,” Val said, a mischievous grin spreading across his face, “did you guys see the guy who was eye-fucking Noah backstage yesterday? I swear I pictured him slipping on his own drool in my mind.”
Kaj’s mouth twisted into a frown. He remembered the dude flirting with Noah, so hard the vocalist actually looked inhibited, which was ironic, considering he was a head taller and stronger.
Noah groaned, running a hand through his hair. “Don’t remind me.”
“Oh, come on, it was cute,” Aksel teased.
“Cute? He fucking tried to grope my dick.”
“But he was wearing a T-shirt with your face on it.”
“Because that’s not creepy at all.” Noah snorted.
Kaj felt another twinge in his chest that made him want to go back in time and kick the man out of backstage, but he quickly pushed it down. He had no business feeling possessive over Noah. Still, it irked him that he already had people so obsessed with him. It had been what? Two weeks since the world outside his online community knew he even existed? So much for not wanting to be the fucking main attraction.Like always.
“Speaking of creepy fans,” Frederik chimed in. “Remember that time in Berlin when that woman showed up at our hotel dressed as a maid?”
Xander groaned, burying his face in his hands. “God. No.”
“Wait, what?” Noah planted both hands on the table, leaning in with a curious eyebrow quirked. “I haven’t heard this one yet.”
“Oh man, you’re in for a treat,” Aksel said, rubbing his hands together gleefully. “Come on, big man. Don’t leave the newbie in the dark.”
“Okay…” Xander sighed. “So, there I was, fresh out of the shower, wearing nothing but a towel. I heard a knock at the door and figured it was room service with my breakfast. I opened it, and there was this woman in a frilly maid outfit, complete with fishnets and heels.”
As Xander launched into the tale, with dramatic reenactments and all, including the part where she told the bassist“I’m here to dust your cobra”while shaking the feather duster on his face, Kaj dragged his gaze back to Noah. He was fully engaged in the story, eyes sparkling with amusement, lips curved in a smile that made Kaj’s stomach flip.
Noah nearly choked on his coffee as the rest howled with laughter.
“Holy shit,” Noah managed between coughs. “What did you do?”
“I slammed the door in her face and called security. But not before she tried to shove the feather duster through the gap.”
Noah was wheezing. “Oh my god!”
The way the spine of his throat elongated as he threw his head back. The easy way he fit in with the group despite being the newcomer. It was infuriating how effortlessly charming Noah was. How he could probably have his pick of anyone he wanted.
But he wants you.
The thought stroked Kaj’s ego as much as it set off the alarms in his head. It was a constant contradiction with this man. Kaj didn’t want Noah looking at anyone else the way he’d looked at him last night. But he was terrified of the shit it would bring to their already complicated history if he caved in.
They had already played in Ottawa, Montreal, and Quebec City. Other than their flight to Vancouver after lunch, nothing else was planned for today, which was nice for a change. Going to bed late and having shitty schedules had them all in energy-saving mode, except for Kaj. He was out of whack.
So here he was, at the completely and utterly empty hotel gym, because no one in their right mind would get up before the sun was out, not the crew or those here on vacation. The only other living creature around was the reception guy outside. Kaj preferred it like this, anyway.
Breathing in sharply through his nose, Kaj lowered the barbell slowly toward his chest, then pushed it back up to the starting position as he breathed out.
The playlist he always used to train was on shuffle, currently blasting “Bad Guy” by Falling In Reverse. Although they were quite talented and knew how to put on a show, Kaj didn’t listen to them much, yet he had to admit he agreed with and, sadly, related to some of the lyrics of their “Popular Monster” album. Obsessive. Dramatic. Loner. Addict. Problematic. That pretty much defined him.
Kaj did another set of repetitions, shutting all the intrusive thoughts out. This was what he liked the most about working out; all his focus was on using the specific muscles for each exercise, breathing correctly, and counting.
