It’s also disconcerting as hell. You’re fully aware that you’re trapped inside your own body, stuck there until it wears off.
“When we were kids, he used to do it all the time. Playtime was no fucking joke,” I add.
Sin shoots me a grin that has my heart pumping harder in my chest. “I can’t imagine you as a kid or any smaller than you are right now.”
My size is something I’m usually self-conscious about. Chairs threaten to break under my ass and I can never find a bed that works for me when we’re staying at hotels. But right now, I smirk at her.
“Tell me I’m wrong,” Dorian continues. “Tell me there’s nothing more you could be doing.”
“Lay off,” I growl at him, still feeling weirdly protective of the woman smiling up at me.
“As much as I appreciate you coming to my defense, Cal, he’s right. I’m thinking about it, all right? It’s not every day you get an offer like this.”
“This tour’s supposed to be our last before a big break,” I blurt out. “We want it to be a big sendoff.”
She nods. “Iri said as much. You want to make it an experience people will always remember.”
“Maybe it’d be a first step in doing something positive. We could help you find connections or whatever so you can do what you like afterwards. Plus, maybe we could help you with whatever it is you're running from,” Dorian adds, causing Sin’s face to pale.
It seems like he’s hit the nail right on the head.
He might be an ass, but that doesn’t mean he’s not perceptive behind those douchey looking shades.
“You don’t have to decide now,” I tell her.
Dorian raises an eyebrow at me and then lets out a long-suffering sigh. Because we both know she needs to decide pretty quickly.
“We’ll grab a coffee down the street,” he says. “We’re gonna be spending a long time on the road today.”
“You could meet us there.” I suggest. “If you have questions. We can answer them.”
She nods and lets out a long breath. “Yeah, that sounds good. I’ll meet you down at The Daily Grind in like ten minutes.”
I turn on my heel and get out of the shop without knocking anything over. Neither of us speaks as we head down the street, butDorian’s jaw is tense and the back of my neck is prickling with an awareness of more eyes on us.
As we head along the main street, there are people gawking out the windows, their phones in hand as they no doubt video our movements.
I guess our appearance in this sleepy town is big news.
It’s a similar story in the café. Micah and Iri have grabbed a table in the corner, but they both look conspicuous as hell. The queue is held up with people clamoring around to get their autographs, including a couple of women wearing Daily Grind uniforms.
“I guess it looks like we’re not getting served soon,” Dorian mutters.
The café is not large, and it’s crowded and airless inside. Standing in the doorway, I’m hit with a wave of scent and heat, and my instincts urge me to return to the fresh air outside.
“Gonna head back and see what Sin wants to order,” I grunt.
It’s mostly an excuse to get out of there and Dorian knows it.
“Sure, man.”
I stride back along the street, sucking in the fresh air and shaking off the claustrophobia from the café. It only takes me a couple of minutes to return to the shop, carefully opening the door and closing it softly behind me.
It can’t have been more than five or ten minutes since we left the shop, but I can feel immediately that something has changed.
Sin is standing by the counter, looking kind of pale and staring down at the cellphone in her hand with a bemused expression. I clear my throat a few times and say her name, but it takes a couple of attempts before she responds.
She eventually looks up and gives me a stiff smile. “I’ll do it. I’ll come on tour with you.”
