Page 28 of Rush of Insanity

The only sense of home had ever come from a small handful of people—her mother, Nicole, Judd.

Maybe it was just her. Maybe she didn’t fit in with a large crowd. Maybe she had only earned one or two brilliant souls.

She rubbed her eyes, demanding the tears to go away. The dark tinted windows of Judd’s tour bus crept into her periphery.

He was leaving. Not just Denver, but her life.

Her throat threatened to close over. She didn’t want to be without him again. She didn’t want to lose him. Nor did she want to be deprived of the level-headed woman who was nowhere in sight around the world-famous Judd Hart. She couldn’t commit to a temperamental future filled with uncertainty.

Or could she?

What price was she willing to pay for comfort?

“Oh, God.” She started running before she could think it through, before she had any idea of what she was rushing toward.

The bus inched through the parking lot, parting a small group of dedicated fans who screamed and banged their fists along the side of the vehicle.

Harper increased her pace, her tiny heels sinking into the grass as she aimed for the main road surrounding the stadium. She couldn’t hear over the rush of blood in her ears and the frantic thump of her chest.

She ran onto the asphalt, and stood under the glow of a street light in the outside lane of traffic. She waited, tapping her foot in an anxious beat as the bus pulled out of the parking lot and accelerated toward her. The horn sounded in a deafening blow while the flash of high beam threatened to blind her.

“I’m not moving.” She raised her hands at the same rapid pace her heart raised to her throat, but the bus didn’t slow. Instead, it taunted her with the blink of the indicator, announcing they were going to go around her. To bypass her entirely. To ignore her existence.

She squinted against the lights, pinning an unfamiliar driver with her stare. “Oh, God.” There was no way he would stop. He’d assume she was a groupie. A threat to Judd’s safety.

Oh, God. Oh, God. Oh, God.She ran into the inside lane, her hands still raised, and began to pray that the driver wasn’t as crazy as she was.

The screech of slammed breaks hit her ears and Judd came into view in the aisle of the bus, his eyes wide, his lips parted. He gripped the booth seat and mouthed something indecipherable to the driver who opened the door as soon as the vehicle pulled to a stop.

Judd jumped down the stairs, his face contorted in fury. She winced as his boots crunched into the asphalt and he began storming toward her.

“What the fuck are you doing?”

She sucked in a breath, suddenly overcome with stupidity. She couldn’t meet his gaze, instead she focused on the small group of people running toward them.

“Get in the bus,” he growled.

Maybe running was a better option. She was good at that.

“Get in the damn bus, Harper.”

She followed after him, climbing the stairs on numb legs, and startled when the door closed behind her. Something burned her cheek and she wiped it away with her shoulder, still trying to form words, still trying to understand what the hell she was doing as she stood mere feet in front of Judd in the middle of the bus aisle.

“Are you crying?” He reached out a hand.

“No.” She stepped back and focused on the floor that blurred before her. Why did she have to be entirely lost around him? Why was the world so confusing in his presence? Nothing felt right, everything was off kilter, but it was off kilter in the most exhilarating way. It was the fear of the unknown, the enlightenment of discovery. It was the aching pulse in the bottom of her belly that never ceased when she was around him.

“Yes,” she whispered and met his frowning stare. “I am crying.” Another trail burned down her cheek, the weakness there for him to see.

He raised his chin, unaffected. “Want to tell me why you’re trying to kill yourself with my tour—”

“Boss,” the driver interrupted, inching the bus down the road. “I need to make a move before these people rush onto the road. Am I still taking you to the suburbs?”

Judd’s jaw ticked as he stared her down. “No. Apparently, the person I was looking for isn’t there. Just circle the block.”

Something unfurled in her chest. Something warm and comforting. “You were going after me?”

His muscled arms crossed over his chest, shutting her down. “Why did you stop the bus?”

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