Page 93 of Electric Touch

“Exactly. Everyone told me I need something to look forward to. Not just getting a grant or tenure. It’s good to have career goals, but it’s not the be all and end all. I guess I’d forgotten that, and I was reminded there are things to keep me excited about life, outside of work.”

“Its good advice.”

“I agree. And I’ve been doing so many fun things. I still have so many more to do.”

“What’s the rush?”

“No rush,” she hurries. “I’m just… Me. When I have a list, I need to complete it as quickly as possible.”

“Doesn’t that take away from the purpose of it, you know, the whole not being stressed? You’re gonna get yourself stressed about the things you’re doing.”

“Don’t get all logical on me now,” she turns in my arms. “You’re starting to sound like me.”

“I see nothing wrong with that.” I smile at her.

She coughs a little and I rub her back. “You okay?”

She nods, then coughs some more. I let her go, and she covers her mouth with her hand and coughs again.

“Shit, do you need water?”

She waves her other hand and breathes deeply a couple of times. “Sorry, I swallowed funny and choked on it.”

“You choked on a swallow?”

“It’s a thing,” she says. “The human body produces abouttwo litres of saliva each day, which you usually swallow without noticing. Sometimes it doesn’t flow easily down your throat, and it makes you cough. Or worse case, choke.”

“Jesus,” I shake my head. “Don’t give me information on people who have choked to death on their own saliva, Adrestia.”

“I don’t know those statistics,” she assures me. She gets a faraway look in her eyes for a moment.

“You’re okay now?” I ask, rubbing her shoulder.

“Yeah, I’m good,” her focus snaps back to me.

We sit on a low wall around one of the air conditioning vents and stay there for an hour, just talking. She wants to know everything about my family, my dreams, beyond becoming world famous in a rock band. We just talk and be together. For the first time in a long time, I feel at peace, genuinely. She does that for me. Listening to her talk, telling her things I’ve never really told anyone, including Riley, I’m not afraid to admit. It settles me somehow.

I don’t want to get carried away with myself. Dylan will tell me not to run headlong into something else, but it’s who I am. Casual doesn’t work for me. Right now, I don’t want this to be casual. I can’t imagine walking away from her, and I’m pissed all over again that I did.

Adrestia is special, whether or not she wants to believe it, because damn, the woman cannot take a compliment. Which is another thing I like about her. One of many things. The first thing on my mind is not getting her into bed again. I’m content just talking. There is plenty of time for sex. I’m not completely immune to how gorgeous and sexy she is without even trying.

“It’s getting cold and I don’t know about you, but I’m totally zonked,” Adrestia says after we’ve sat a while, looking up at the stars.

“Yeah, let’s go back inside, watch a movie in bed?”

“Sounds good.”

She’s right, it is getting cold, especially without the blankets I brought up to keep us warm. I’m gonna have to go speak to the Super and find out what happened to them. Otherwise, Dylan is gonna flip when he gets back. They were off his bed.

Chapter Twenty-Five

We come off the stage at the small festival we’re playing. I wipe the sweat off my forehead with the bottom of my T-shirt. When I lower it, Riley is staring at my stomach. I roll my eyes and follow Jack around the sound equipment stacked backstage.

“You guys were awesome.” I pause in front of a woman dressed all in black, with a backward ball cap on her head. She has a roadie lanyard around her neck.

“Thanks.”

“Would you mind signing an autograph? For my kid sister,” she hastens to add and glances about. Technically, as a roadie, she isn’t supposed to ask, but I shrug. I’m not going to ignore a fan.

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