Page 480 of Rock Me All Night
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Time passes slowlywhen half a dozen people are trying and failing not to stare. The clock on the wall suggests that it's only been ten seconds. Feels like ten hours.
There are no sounds in the bedroom or in the kitchen around the corner or in the bathroom.
There's no sign of Tom.
No one assuring me that he's on a beer run. Come to think of it, I never see beer. Everyone jumps straight to liquor.
Might not be a bad idea, enough whiskey to dull my thoughts.
"Tom, um, he said he wanted to give Drew some space." Kara steps forward. "Why don't you catch a ride with us?"
Yeah, I'm sure he said that.
Pete motionscome hereto Kara. She does. He whispers something in her ear. It wipes the worry from her expression. Mostly.
The bassist shifts away from the crowd. He makes eye contact with me. "I'm going to stay the night at the hotel. You should too."
"Please tell me you're not offering rebound sex," Meg says.
"Tom would do it," Miles says.
"True." She nods.
"No, sorry, Willow." Pete motions for us to leave. "I'm sure you'll cry yourself to sleep over missing out, but I'm not offering to fuck you."
"Thanks for clarifying that before I got my hopes up," I say.
"Now let's get out of here." Pete throws warning glances at everyone in attendance. "Last thing you need is attention."
I follow him to my hotel room in a total daze. How could Tom bail without a single word? I check my phone for any sign of contact—a text, a tweet, an Instagram photo. Nothing.
Pete not so gently orders me to change into my pajamas and brush my teeth. He's just as bossy as Tom is, but it's a much calmer way. His deep voice is soothing. I can't imagine what possessed his ex to leave him for anyone.
Don't get me wrong. I'm far too head over heels for Tom to even fathom being interested in Pete. But he is interesting. Sexy, deep, playful and mysterious at once.
When he catches me checking texts on my phone, he plucks it from my hands and turns it off.
"You're going to drive yourself crazy checking that thing all night." He sits on the bed next to me. "It's not you, Willow. Mom, Ophelia called during the show. She's getting scared. Tom went to be with her."
"Oh."
"I'll knock when I pick you up tomorrow. Ten a.m. How do you take your coffee?"
"Almond milk and plenty of sugar." I pull the covers over my shoulders. "Why are you picking me up?"
"You're coming with us to see Mom."
"I'm not sure that's a good idea."
"It's your decision." Vulnerability fills his eyes. "I don't know what happened with you and Tom. Where you guys are. He might not realize it, but he needs you. The way he acts around you... I've never seen him care that much about anything besides the band."
I bite my lip.
"You have to put yourself first. If you don't want to be around him, I get that. I won't push you. But he needs you tomorrow."
"What if he doesn't? What if he left because he doesn't want to be with me?"
