Page 99 of Snared

“Focus, Jules. Focus. I thought it was a prank, maybe a nightmare, but the marriage was real. We were going to keep it quiet and get it annulled, but then the secret came out and we decided to stay married until the end of the tour, then quietly end it when the drama had died down. The band has had so much drama over the years, I didn’t want to add to it.”

“Holy shit, that’s a lot,” Jules said.

I took another gulp of my wine.

“Your reasoning is flimsy at best,” she said.

I dropped my head. “I know. I can’t even tell you why I thought it was easier to agree to stay married.”

“And clearly you’re fucking now.” Her tone was matter-of-fact.

“We are not.” I met her eyes, hoping that would make my sister believe me.

Jules burst out laughing. “Oh, yeah, sure, that kiss was just for show. Spare me. You two could light a room on fire with the way you look at each other. And what’s the big deal anyway? I mean, you are married to him.”

“Because it’s messy.”

“Bet it’s messy in a good way.”

I shuddered.

“Yep. You’re definitely fucking him.”

“Fine. Yes, we are. But the guys don’t know.”

Jules snorted, but I ignored her.

“It’s an extra benefit until the tour ends. Sex, no strings.”

She tilted her head, studying me. “Do you honestly believe that?”

I shrugged. “I don’t know anymore. Fine, okay? I have feelings for him, but we haven’t talked about anything beyond the tour.”

“You could try taking your tongue out of his mouth for a minute and telling him how you feel.”

“Or I could keep my tongue in his mouth and just enjoy the rest of the tour,” I said with a glare.

“There’s something there and even if the rest of the guys act like they don’t know, I bet deep down they do. It’s fucking obvious. So get your head out of your ass, talk to the man, and be happy. He makes you happy, right?”

I grinned. “So much more than I’d expected. And not just the sex—which is off the charts amazing, by the way.”

“I bet. Youlookhappy, Lotte. And it’s not because you’re on tour and getting orgasms on the regular. It’s more solid than that, and I don’t want you to let it get away because you think it’ll be messy or too much drama to let this play out,” she said. “Sometimes the mess is worth it.”

“Maybe you’re right.”

“Of course I am. Now, let’s talk about Troy,” she said.

“Ugh. Can we not? The fucking asshole blabbed to the media and now they won’t let up. So we’ve ramped up the PDA, which then makes me question even more whether it’s for show for Josh.” I paused and held out my glass.

She refilled it and her own.

“I mean, Troy hasn’t even reached out to me about anything. I don’t get what he thinks he’s getting out of this beyond his name in the paper. Maybe he thought we’d pay him to shut up, but we’re not, we’re ignoring it as garbage,” I said.

“As you should. You, my dear sister, are living your ultimate dream. You’re part of goddamn Steelwolf. You’re the drummer they want, that they rely on to keep them steady on stage. You. And don’t for one second think any of the other noise matters.”

“I love you, Jules. And you should’ve been a motivational speaker instead of an ER nurse.”

“And Josh knew that you needed your sister,” she said, taking a sip of her wine.

---