Page 112 of The Drummer

I’ve barely started processing the whirlwind when a knock rings out at the same moment Luke comes shuffling down the hall.

“What’s going on? Why does it sound like TJ is in the living room?” he asks.

“Because he was,” I grunt. “Also, Eli and Sweeny are at the door.”

“Huh?”

I wave him off because the guys are now pounding like they’re the freaking fire department.

“We’re coming! Chill,” I call out.

“Quit making out with your girlfriend and open it!” Eli calls back.

“Shit,” I mumble as Luke snorts a laugh.

“Guess they heard about Callie,” he says.

“I swear, TJ would give out our pin numbers if he knew them.”

I yank open the door and immediately get tackled by a world-class bass player and lead guitarist.

“Baby Casey! We missed you!” Eli cries in the most dramatic greeting of all time.

“It’s been four days since Richmond. Relax.”

I can tell by his smirk when he pulls away he’s just being an ass. Their greeting for Luke, though…

The mood changes into something more somber when the three former bandmates stare face-to-face for the first time in a year.

I bite the inside of my cheek as I wait to see what happens.

After a few seconds of stunned silence, Luke gets tackled as well.

“Little Luke! We missed you!” Eli cries in the same obnoxious voice he used for me.

It’s hard to see Luke’s face with two dudes crowding him in a suffocating bear hug, but when I finally get a glimpse, a slight smile lifts the corner of his mouth.

True to form, Eli and Sweeny release him and launch into conversation like nothing’s happened.

While the three of them catch up, I go in search of Callie. There’s no way I’m letting her walk into an Eli-Sweeny ambush without a heads up.

She doesn’t answer my first knock, so I peek into the room and see light coming from under the bathroom door.

I close the main door behind me and call to her. A moment later, I’m staring into the sun, wrapped in nothing but a towel.

Damn. This is not great timing.

She slides past me with an irresistible smile somewhere between shy and smug, like she’s fully aware of what’s happening to my bloodstream right now.

“Wow.” It’s all I can get out.

Her smile tips further into a smirk. “Don’t get too excited. It sounds like we have guests.”

“Yeah, but… Wow.”

She’s saying something else, but all I comprehend is her bare skin, still wet with lingering drops, and that inadequately fastened towel.

“You came in here for a reason?” she reminds me with amusement.

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