Page 55 of I Need You Tonight
Chapter 19
Nicole
The woman who had just declared to the room that she was going commando licked Mason’s face like a dog licking her prized bone.
I didn’t need to see any more to know what would happen next. Luckily for me, Kirk had no issues with confirming my suspicions. “Sorry, Nicole, but this is who Mason is. He always gets restless before a concert. He goes off, has a good fuck, then he’s ready to go.” He really did sound sorry, but it didn’t take the sting out of his words.
I gave him my best Mason-is-just-my-employer-nothing-more smile. “It’s getting a little claustrophobic in here. I’ll wait for you guys outside the room.” I didn’t give Kirk a chance to say anything before I bailed. Aaron, Jared, and Nolan were too busy with their fans to notice me leaving.
Outside the room, I checked to see if I had missed any calls or texts. I sent Heidi a text, telling her that I couldn’t believe how crazy things got on tour, but so far I was enjoying it.
I shot a few backstage photos that I figured the fans would be eager to see. What better way to get the fans involved than by showing them a taste of the band’s day-to-day life on the road? I’d already taken a few photos during the radio interview. I checked their media sites to see if anyone had responded to them, and was met by tons of variations on “They’re soooo hot,” “Wish they were coming to my town,” and heart-eye emojis. Nothing said it better than a heart-eye emoji.
I posted the new pictures I’d taken at the meet-and-greet. People were still trickling out of the room, so I leaned back against the wall and brainstormed an idea for a giveaway to help increase the band’s exposure on the sites. The other thing I wanted to talk to them about was setting up a newsletter. It was easy to miss things on the social media sites unless you lived on them 24/7.
By the time the last of the fans staggered from the room, I had come up with several ideas. The guys appeared a moment later, and we headed to the room set up with food and drinks for everyone involved in the show. Some people were already there, eating and drinking, enjoying a short break before returning to work.
We grabbed paper plates and loaded them with food. I selected a bottle of water, while Mason pulled a bottle of beer from the cooler. I sat on the ugly green vinyl couch. Mason didn’t. Instead, he paced while eating his food. Back and forth. Again, and again, and again. I was getting nauseated just watching him.
The guys didn’t appear to notice. Maybe this was what Kirk had been referring to earlier. Which meant after Mason finished eating, he would meet up with Miss Commando.
I chewed on a slice of pizza while I contemplated what I should do. Obviously I wouldn’t be the one to help him with his “problem,” because that would be crossing the line of professionalism.
Not that making out with him in the elevator was standing on the right side of the line either.
I checked the time on my phone. The band would be playing soon, and he still hadn’t left to hook up with the woman from the meet-and-greet.
“Mason, can I talk to you in the hallway for a minute?” I said it loud enough so no one would think we were sneaking off for a quick fuck. At least I hoped they didn’t, because it was the truth.
“Sure,” he said with a shrug, obviously perplexed that what I needed to tell him couldn’t be said in front of everyone. He set his plate down on the empty plastic chair next to the couch and followed me out the doorway.
I led him down a hallway that didn’t look like it got much traffic.
“So what’s up?” he asked. The distant sounds of cheering could be heard coming from the arena, where the audience was getting ready for the show.
An uneasy energy buzzed from him that was hard to explain. It seemed like a combination of the excitement a child experiences the night before Christmas and exam apprehension. “Are you okay?” I asked.
“Sure. Why wouldn’t I be?”
His comment would’ve been more believable if he hadn’t been fidgeting.
“Well, for starters, you were pacing in there. I haven’t known you for long, but I’ve never seen you do that before.”
His shoulders hiked up in a quick move. “I’m always like this before a concert.”
“Kirk mentioned that.”
His eyes narrowed. “What else did he say?” His tone was sharp enough to cut, yet not sharp enough to inflict serious damage.
“Not much else, other than that you usually burn it off before the show by…um…” I could feel the heat of my face increase to a new record temperature.
“By fucking some random chick?” The edge was still there, and I cringed.
“He didn’t go into specifics, but it was kind of obvious.”After the woman you were talking to announced it to the room.
“What are you getting at, Nicole? Are you offering to find me some random chick to screw?”
“Of course not,” I bit out. “But there must be something I can do to help you.” At his suggestive grin, I added, “Something in the realm of my contract.” Which the label had forwarded to Nolan while we were on the road, and I had printed off and signed.
