Page 22 of Beast

Piper and I headed back upstairs.We found the twins sitting on the sofa watching a rerun of an old movie.They looked up when we walked in.

“Hey, Dad, what’s up?”Jasmine’s gaze dropped to our clasped hands, and I could see her eyes sparkle.I knew I’d hear about that later.

“Can’t a guy just visit his two favorite girls without a reason?”I tried to look hurt.

They shook their heads in unison.“Nope.You have that look on your face that says there’s a reason.”

I gave Piper’s hand a squeeze.“Fine then.I have a big favor to ask.”

“Does it involve you increasing our allowance?”Jewel grinned.

“No, but it involves shopping.”

“Almost as good, but you’re already taking us shopping.”Jasmine raised one eyebrow.“How is that a favor?Unless you’re bailing on us?”

“I would never back out on spending the day with you two.This is more of an addition to the day.”I glanced over at Piper.“I’ve been assigned as Piper’s bodyguard for the next little while.Since she just got here from California, she needs a new wardrobe.I was hoping you’d be okay with her coming shopping with us this weekend.”

The girls looked intrigued, and in typical teenage style dove right into plying her with questions.

“How’d you get stuck with an old grump like our dad?”asked Jasmine.

“Right place at the wrong time?”Piper wrinkled her nose.

Jewel laughed.“Sounds about right.How come you need to go shopping?Didn’t you bring clothes with you?”

“I left in kind of a hurry.”Piper shrugged.“And I just accepted a gig, so I need something more glamorous than anything I brought, or anything I own actually.”

“What kind of gig?”

“Lead singer for a band touring the southern states.”A note of pride crept into Piper’s voice.

The twins squealed in excitement, throwing questions at Piper faster than she could answer.The shopping trip was obviously going to be a go.I sure hoped my credit card was up for the challenge.

Twenty minutes later, the twins had relegated me to driver and ATM machine for the shopping trip.As a bonus, they were so excited about getting to go shopping with an honest-to-goodness singer that they forgot to tease me about the handholding thing.

Chapter Six

Piper

I peeked out at the crowd from behind the curtain.They were loud.Restless.The butterflies in my stomach swirled faster.I smoothed down the top of the silk outfit Jasmine had insisted I buy.

What if they hated me?What if I froze?What if I forgot the words to the songs?

“You ready to go?”The drummer, a young Mexican named Jose with an incredible amount of talent peeked over my head.“Nice crowd for opening night.”

I sighed.“I’m nervous, Jose.What if they don’t like me?”

“That’s just stage fright talking.”He smiled encouragingly.“They’ll love you.The minute the curtains open, you’ll be fine.Trust me, I’ve seen this lots of times.”

“Thanks.”I tried to smile back at him.I wasn’t so sure.I looked over at Beast, standing off to the left of the stage.He was out of the way of the bustling stage crew but could still keep me in sight.

He’d become my rock.Solid.Dependable.He winked at me, and I suddenly had to squelch the urge to burst out in nervous laughter.

What could go wrong if I had big bad Biker Beast watching over me?

“You’re on in five.”The stage manager held up his hand as he strode by, motioning to the lighting guys above before disappearing into the sound booth.I could see him fiddling with things on the control board, lights flashing on and off randomly as he tweaked it.

The band lined up, just like they’d done every time we practiced, and one of the roadies adjusted my microphone so it wasn’t pointing over my head.He gave me a quick thumbs up before rushing off to move one of the guitar amps to a better position.

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