Page 54 of Just Wait

I didn’t get the vibe that he’s dangerous.

I’m still going to check in with Mal and Kincaid when they get in. Lumen needs a personal bodyguard, and not only to help with overzealous fans.

Theo grabbed her twice. From what I could see, it was more of a desperate attempt to continue the conversation rather than a violent grip, but any physical contact when she asked him not to touch her is unacceptable.

It’ll be better to have a neutral third party around to intervene.

That way, it doesn’t end up with one of us beating his face into the concrete the next time he doesn’t want to let her walk away.

Lumen hops off the couch, excusing herself to the bathroom.

I fall back into the cushion and bring my hand to run over my face. The door closes, and Parish leans forward, doing another line.

I’m glad I saw firsthand that Tangled Desires’ bus was just as much of a mess as ours. Even knowing she’s used to the rock-star lifestyle, it feels like we shouldn’t be exposing her to our ugliness.

“And I thought this tour was going to be boring when we got saddled with Randy.” Tennyson chuckles. “Malcolm is already half in love. You’re looking at her like you’re having to bite your tongue to keep from begging her to let you solve all her problems.” He rubs his hands together like a cartoon villain. “This is great.”

Lumen pops out of the bathroom, but rather than coming into the living room, she disappears into the bedroom at the back of the bus.

“You’re dying to go check on her.” Parish laughs. “Go on. Comfort her without us cramping your style.”

I roll my eyes.

If I had to guess, Malcolm and Kincaid aren’t back yet because Kincaid finally snapped. He’s probably giving Mal a lecture about respecting the poor woman’s space while she comes to terms with things.

It’s only going to make him more obsessive, but just like there was no talking Kincaid out of confronting Mal, there will be no stopping Malcolm from doing his best to win Lumen over.

I ignore their laughter as I push out of my seat.

“I’m pretty sure he gets off on counseling people,” Tennyson says. “The rest of us watch porn to get our dicks hard. Then you have Riser, out here chasing down sad girls so he can fix their problems.”

“Dude,” Parish says, laughing. “Do you have to run to the bathroom to jack off every time⁠—”

“Fuck you both,” I toss over my shoulder as I head down the hallway.

Lumen lies stretched across the bed on her stomach. She was doing something on her phone, but she drops it onto the mattress. “What’s up?”

I take a seat on the edge of the bed, wondering what I’m even doing here. I wanted to make sure she wasn’t having a breakdown completely alone, but she seems okay.

My nose twitches, breathing in her pears and roses scent.

It’s not burnt or tart. I’m still baffled that I can’t be sure whether she’s an omega or a beta. The fact she and Theo hadn’t bonded after a year of being together leads me to think that she must be a beta, but that doesn’t feel right.

“How ya doing?” I ask, lying down next to her. My head comes to rest on my palm as I study her face.

“I’m fine.” She shrugs. “I was trying to be proactive and see if I could rent a car from Columbia ahead of time, but apparently, since I’m not twenty-five, they might not rent to me, and if they do, there will likely be an extra fee. I was going to check prices for flights, but I guess I could take a bus if there’s a bus station close to where you guys will be staying.”

“How old are you?” I ask, wondering if I should feel like a creep. I assumed she was only a couple of years younger than me, but that was just a guess.

“I turned twenty-two in July,” she says, grinning. “Why? How old are you?”

“I’ll be twenty-seven soon. This month, actually.”

“An October birthday, huh? Are you a Libra or a Scorpio?” she asks.

“The second one, but that’s the extent of what I know about zodiac signs.”

“I’m a Cancer.” She laughs. “It seems to fit me pretty well from what I know about it, but it’s not like I’m an expert or anything.”