Page 110 of Reckless

The icing on the cake is the grand piano in the suite. I’m not sure how much I’ll be able to impress her with my skills, but I kind of like the thought of fucking her on the piano.

Solene is jealous as hell. She’s the only person I’ve told about how seriously I’m taking this.

We’ve talked a few times in the last couple of weeks and she assures me she is good.

Every time we talk, she is a little more excited about the baby, although anxious about Quicksilver finding out. She’s told Ethan, and he said we need a band talk, so Paul is aware. Sol is hesitant to tell him because she’s still nervous he is going to pull away.

We need to know where we stand in terms of her stepping back from the band when she can’t work anymore.

I’ve been going back and forth on whether to find the asshole responsible, because Sol hasn’t explicitly said she doesn’t want to find him. I’m not planning on confronting him or anything. It isn’t up to me to let him know. If I was the guy, I’d want to know.

It feels like I should find him, just to know who he is, where he is, in case she wants to speak to him. Only problem is I have no idea where to start. Riggs seems like the best option. He knows about the pregnancy, and he can find people.

But the way he reacted to hearing the news means it might make him feel shit. And I don’t want to do that.

“Penny for them.”

“Huh?” I raise my head from my phone, which I’ve been toying with.

Krista is driving us towards the Blaum Distillery. When I looked it up, I decided it looked too cool not to go. So, we changed plans, and Krista booked us a tour.

She is more interested in cocktails than whiskey, but I’m excited about it. It’s going to be the last outing while we’re on this adventure. It’s bittersweet, but I’m looking forward to being in a hotel with her. I’ve got all kinds of things planned. Culminating in telling her the truth about how I feel and that I want more.

It’s the easiest decision I’ve come to in years. I can’t imagine not having her in my life, and I’m willing to take a chance and find out if things will work away from the RV.

“You’ve been lost in thought for hours,” she slows down as we hit some traffic heading north into Galena.

“Yeah, sorry. There is just some band stuff we’re going to need to sort out sooner rather than later.”

Krista is quiet for a moment. I wish I could talk to her about this. Having a woman’s perspective might help, but I don’t intend to betray Solene’s confidence like that.

“I should tell you I may know what you’re talking about.”

“What do you mean?” I was stupid to have a conversation about the baby with Krista beside me when Sol admitted she is keeping it.

I’d figured she didn’t hear anything because she never brought it up. But now I know it’s because she was just being Krista. She didn’t want to pry.

“I think you know,” she says, focusing back on the road. “I’m sorry I overheard. I’ve tried not to say anything, but it seems like it’s bothering you.”

“It’s… A mess,” I sigh.

“Is it that bad?”

“She doesn’t know how to find the father, what his name is, or how it’s going to affect the band.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah, like I said. A mess. Just one more thing to worry about.”

“You’re worried about how this will affect the band getting back together?”

“No, I’m worried about Sol. She’s… sensitive. She puts on this tough girl persona, the only female in a rock band full of men. It’s tough for women in this genre of music. Many people don’t take them seriously. Being pregnant is a problem. But that’s not the problem I care about. All I care about is my best friend.”

“Why aren’t you with her?” she asks after she’s let my speech sink in. “It sounds like she needs you and you want to be there to help her.”

“I thought that was obvious.”

The RV has slowed to a crawl. Enough that she can study me as I stare back. Her cheeks flush a soft pink as she turns back to the road. She hits the brakes a little too hard and my seatbelt snaps, holding me in place. We almost rear-end the car in front that has stopped.

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