Page 37 of Just Wait

The bus is a mess. It’s no place for a lady, but I’m also not going to toss her out in an unfamiliar city at one in the morning.

It takes ten minutes of digging to find the bed in the room at the back of the bus. It’s been the catch-all for our shit for the past five weeks, but I finally manage to locate the mattress and put on fresh sheets.

There are four large garbage bags full of clothes and other stuff that the guys will have to go through.

If they don’t claim it, I’m sending it to the wardrobe bus. They’ve got until morning, or they can seek it out there if they want it.

I stack the bags in the kitchen area, since there’s nowhere else to shove them, and wipe my hands off on my jeans.

Lumen sits on the couch with her hands on her thighs. It seems like she’s uncomfortable. It makes sense, but it grates on my instincts.

“Are you hungry?” I ask, crossing into the living room. We opted out of having a dinette to have more space in the bunks and living room, but the couch and chairs have tray tables that fold out of the arms. “Catering delivers sandwiches and snacks after our shows. The fridge should be stocked.”

“I don’t think I could eat right now if I tried.” She shakes her head. “Thank you, though.”

“Right.” My head bobs like a chicken.

That was a dumb question.

Well, this is painful.

She probably wishes we would stop hovering and leave her alone, but my instincts won’t let me go that route.

“Would you like to take a shower?” I offer. “The staff keeps us topped up with water.” I toss a thumb toward the small bathroom. “You can get a solid four or five minutes of a hot shower before it runs out.” I chuckle. “I always shut it off while I’m scrubbing down so I don’t run out midway through rinsing my hair.”

We normally shower at the venue before the meet and greet, and not just because we’re sweaty and smell disgusting. Fighting over the tiny shower on the bus is miserable. We skipped that tonight, for obvious reasons, but as soon as they make it back, it’ll be a bloodbath as they fight it out to see who gets the hot shower.

“If you want a shower, I’d do it now,” I tell her, trying to keep my tone gentle. “Once the guys make it in, you might not get a chance for a while.”

She frowns. “I don’t want to take it if someone else needs it.”

I shake my head.

She’s far too polite.

After the day she had, she should take every opportunity she has to look out for herself.

“They’ll live through a cold shower. You deserve to rinse off the day.” I hold out a hand. “Come on. I’ll help you find a clean towel and bring your bags into the bedroom while you’re showering.”

“Okay.” Her small, cold hand lands in mine, and she lets me pull her up. “Thanks, Kincaid. Is it okay if I call you that?”

“Yeah, sweetheart,” I say, chuckling. “It’s my name.”

The guys still aren’t back by the time Lumen comes out of the bathroom wrapped only in a towel.

She holds it tight to her chest with one hand and waves awkwardly with the arm holding her clothes.

“I didn’t have anything to change into, and I didn’t want to put my old clothes back on.” She closes the door and reverses down the hallway with her wet hair falling around her lithe shoulders. “Only, I didn’t realize it until I was inside the shower.”

Damn.

I should have thought of that.

“Makes sense,” I say, my voice coming out low and gravelly. “If you change your mind about being hungry, let me know. Otherwise, we won’t bother you.”

I’m going to have a talk with the guys as soon as they get back.

Mal and Riser know better than to bring anyone onto the bus tonight, and I’m sure they’ll stop Ten and Parish from doing anything stupid. Hopefully my bandmates understand it’s going to be an early night for us. They’re not going to stay up all night partying when Lumen needs a good night’s sleep.