Part 24 (1/2)

As I rub the sleep from my eyes and look around I realize I'm not with Xander...or Leo. I can't remember whose room I'm in or who I f.u.c.ked last night.

The only thing I do remember is that f.u.c.king the guy was about as exciting as f.u.c.king a dead fish.

”Who's Xander?” The guy's voice is deep. I still can't place it.

I was in a bar last night with Xander. We got into a fight. Not that we hadn't been doing that a lot lately, but this time he left me sitting on a barstool and never came back.

I had no way to get back home.

Or should I say back to Rayne and Harper's place. It's not exactly my home. I just crash there when we're not on tour with the band.

The bar was filled with b.u.t.ton-down s.h.i.+rt wearing douche bags. I picked the one who looked the least douchey, or so I thought. He said he didn't mind taking me home, but he wanted something in return.

Guys always want something in return.

He told me he didn't want to leave right away. That's when the tequila shots started coming.

I don't remember much after that. He told me something about playing guitar, but I had a feeling he was just trying to impress me when I told him I knew a lot of musicians.

He definitely didn't look like a guy who plays guitar. When you've been on the road as long as I have, you get to know a lot of guys in bands. Most guys in rock bands don't wear b.u.t.ton-down s.h.i.+rts, ties and dress slacks, even when they're going to a funeral.

I remember thinking his clothes and the fancy watch he was wearing looked really expensive. He was even wearing polished black dress shoes. And his huge smile and perfect teeth reminded me of a politician's.

And there wasn't a tattoo anywhere on his body. Definitely not typical for a guy in a band. Most of the guys I know have more ink than a newspaper.

”Who is Xander?” he says again with an edge of irritation in his voice.

Who is Xander? That's a really good question. I used to think he was my best friend. I used to think we'd be together for the long haul. I used to think that I was someone special in his life.

I don't think those things anymore.

”A guy I f.u.c.k,” I say casually.

When he grabs my chin it knocks the wind right from my lungs. Fear surges through my veins and I brace myself for something even worse. His entire body goes rigid with tension and his eyes flood with rage.

”Don't ever speak to me that way again,” he spits through clenched teeth.

”Okay,” I squeak. My voice is so soft it doesn't even sound like my own.

”Show some cla.s.s.”

He's holding my jaw so tight his fingers feel like a vice grip. All I want him to do is let go of my face before he bruises it.

”Okay,” I repeat, even though I'm not sure how much cla.s.s I can show after f.u.c.king a guy I just met for a ride home.

I can't even remember the dude's name.

”Get dressed,” he demands as he rises from the bed.

”You're still going to take me home?” My voice sounds so small and fragile. I don't remember feeling this vulnerable since I was a kid, long before I met Xander, Leo and Rayne and before they became Always Rayne.

The guy scrunches his nose and looks at me like I'm a piece of stinky garbage he has to get rid of. ”Of course I'm going to take you home.”

The last thing I want to do is put on the sweaty clothes I was wearing last night. They're in a wrinkled heap on the floor.

His eyes are on me as I rise from the bed. When he licks his lips like a hungry lion my stomach actually lurches.

Before I know it he's right behind me. He grabs my long hair in his hands and pulls hard enough that the motion jerks my neck back. ”If I had more time I'd take you for another ride.”

Then he smacks my bare a.s.s so hard it stings. ”But I've got an appointment and I don't want to be late.”

The ride back to Rayne and Harper's place is excruciating. The guy is cold and distant and doesn't say a word to me. I'm not sure why I expect anything different. That's how he was when he f.u.c.ked me.

It's definitely not something I'm used to. When I'm with Xander, or when I was with any of the guys from the band-and I was with them a lot over the years-it was always fun. We f.u.c.ked a lot, but we also laughed a lot and talked a lot and just enjoyed being together.

There's nothing to enjoy about being with this p.r.i.c.k. I just want to get as far away from him as I can.

I don't want him to know that I live with the guys from Always Rayne and their girlfriends. Always Rayne is one of the hottest bands in the world and the lead singer, Nic Rayne, is a complete freak about his privacy and having it invaded by the paparazzi. He would kill me if he knew I brought some guy I barely know anywhere near his house, or even more import anywhere near his girlfriend, Harper.

”Stop here,” I state when we're about a quarter mile from the driveway of Rayne's estate.

”Why?” the guy asks without slowing down.