Slamming his hands into his pockets, he turned to the door. “Let’s go then.”
“You good?” Forest asked.
“No worries,” he said.
Forest opened the door but didn’t head out. Instead, he gestured for Ryker to go ahead. “Boys are waiting for you in their barracks,” he said. “I’ll bring Tia by in a bit,” Forest said, banging the door closed on Ryker’s face.
Perhaps he should have forced his way back inside, but he didn’t. The next time he got Tia alone, he would dig into her past. It gutted him that Forest knew more about her than he did, but he was wise enough to understand their bond. Forest had saved Tia from a bad situation, and they had a past, but Ryker intended on becoming her future.
TWENTY-NINE
Front and Center
RYKER
Even though all histhings had been brought over, Ryker still knocked on the outer door of the VIP quarters. He was greeted by the frown on Smiley’s face.
“About time,” the road manager said with a sniff. “Get your ass in here. We’re getting ready to head to the hangar.”
“That him?” Ash called out from the small galley kitchen. He walked into the room, munching on a sandwich.
It had been months since Ryker had the pleasure of something that simple. The band must’ve brought in some of their favorite foods.
“Hey,” Ryker said, lifting a hand in greeting.
“Cool,” Ash said, speaking with his mouth open while he chewed. He called down the hallway leading to the bedrooms. “Guys, Ryker’s here. Let’s go.”
The outer door opened, bringing the hulking form of Forest into the mix. “Hey, you guys are supposed to be at the hangar,” he said with a bellow
With Forest’s arrival, a rumble of doors opened and then slammed closed, the rest of the band joined Ryker and the others in the living area.
Noodles came over and shook his hand. “Hey, thanks for doing this. We really appreciate it.” The muscles of his forearm flexed, and the tribal tats on his biceps bunched.
Ryker returned the keyboardist’s firm grip, meeting strength for strength.Noodles was thankful to him? Now, that was a crazy idea.
“No problem,” he said. “I’m stoked.”
Spike clapped him on his back. “Yeah, thanks. Tour would be a bust without you helping out.”
“At least he knows how to play,” Bash said, tugging a white T-shirt over his head. “Not such a bad set of pipes either.”
“Um, thanks,” he said.
“Come on.” Smiley herded them to the door. “We’re already late.”
Ryker looked for a clock. With everything that had been going on, his time sense was shot. It still felt like early morning, except he’d spent his morning and most of the afternoon with Tia. A chuckle escaped him, thinking about the fun they’d had.
“What’s so funny?” Forest slapped him on the back, propelling him out the door, on the heels of Ash and Bash.
The band members took off, setting a quick pace, while Smiley locked the door to their barracks.
“Nothing,” he said, sobering up. He’d have to learn to keep thoughts of Tia locked up tight around Forest. “Just excited to play with Angel Fire.”
“Yeah, right, and I’m fucking Peter Pan.” Forest took off after Ash and the others, closing the distance with his powerful stride.
“You up for this?” Smiley asked. The road manager rubbed at his chin and gave Ryker a long stare.
He felt weighed and measured and not at all certain about the conclusion Smiley had drawn.
