Page 59 of Rock Giant
“Oh?”
Xane shook his head, clearly not wanting to get into the weeds of it.“Same shit that called Ulf home.I’m not sure of the details, I just know he wasn’t best thrilled with whatever decisions seem to have been made in his absence, but let’s stick with the current issue, eh?So, to confirm, we’re going ahead as planned?”
“We are.”
“Fun, fun, fun,” Ash drawled.“Right, we packing up and getting out of here?”
“Now?”Paul asked.He didn’t recall an immediate departure being on the agenda.
“Now,” both Spook and Xane confirmed.
Maybe he oughtn’t to have mentioned Elspeth.
CHAPTER 19
Jodi Castle
Norway
Jodi slid beneath the curtains enclosing the bunk she and Nash were sharing to search for her jeans and failed to find them.Gentle snores came from the bunk across the aisle, and a hairy leg dangled over the edge of the topmost bunk above where she’d slept.Balin had her jeans tucked under his head.
Damn.
She blew out a breath and tugged the shirt down lower.It’d be fine.It wasn’t like any of them were awake.
The Ghost Boys had played four gigs across Belgium and Germany, before taking the ferry from Kiel to Oslo to rendezvous with Black Halo for the next eight months.Their label owner cum manager, Harry Storm had insisted the extra shows would ensure they were on top form ahead of playing to the bigger crowds Black Halo pulled.
While Equinox had been a highlight for the guys, Jodi had enjoyed the more relaxed atmosphere of the smaller venues they’d played since.Everything was just a little more ad hoc, a little more down to earth.Also, it’d given the guys a chance to adapt to their new situation, and her a chance to get to grips with her new role as their personal assistant.No more dragging their own amps out of the back of a van or replacing broken strings for themselves.There were a team of roadies to do that.Of course, there were downsides too.None of them could just run to the shop anymore—that was now her job—as there was always a tidy group of fans around no matter the time of day.It kept their two security guards busy.
The last ten days had also given her and Nash the time they needed to work through their insecurities and spend some quality time together.Hopefully, catching up with Black Halo later today wouldn’t unravel them again.
She tiptoed through to the tiny bathroom, fixed her hair and face, and scrubbed her teeth, before heading up front to give the cats their breakfast.Mel and Zar were draped over different sections of the banquette, with Lee stretched out between them, while Flugwhump was sitting in the sink of the tiny kitchenette waiting for her to turn the tap on.He’d taken to drinking straight from the source since their arrival on their new home on wheels.“Weirdo,” she chided, giving his furry head a scratch.
“If you’re making coffee, yes please,” Lee called.
Dutifully, she picked out the last two mugs in the cupboard.By the time she’d finished making their drinks, Lee had rolled onto his front and was leaning over the edge of the seat, playing phone games one-handed.
“Anxious about later?”he asked, as she sat on the floor, level with his mobile, and pulled her shirt over her knees.
“You’re the one playing.”
He wrapped his hand around the mug and took a big swallow before letting out a contented sigh.When he put the cup down, it was half empty.Jodi blew on her own drink, as the cats came up and rubbed against her.Lee insisted on having so much milk in his brews, they barely remained warm for more than a minute or two.She, on the other hand, had mostly got out of the habit of adding milk.It wasn’t the easiest thing to transport when you lived out of a backpack, and she’d had a couple of accidents in the early days with spillages that left everything stinking for weeks.
“Rock Giant,” Lee prompted.
Yeah, she knew what he’d meant.Rock Giant was never far from her mind.She was antsy about seeing him.How could she be anything else?She’d woken the night after the festival gig, to find Black Halo had already departed.Seemed they’d come off stage and left within the hour.The guys had helped her strike camp and dispose of the stuff she seemed to have accumulated, then, she and Nash had found their way back to one another about an hour after that.She’d been up at the standing stones, hanging with Jez as he jotted down lyrics, saying a sort of farewell to them while the roadies packed the last of the Ghost Boys equipment up.She’d been beheading daisies, when Nash crouched down before her, and holding a buttercup beneath his chin asked, “Do I like butter?”
There was indeed a golden glow visible on his skin.“It’s down to the anatomy of the petals,” she told him.“Nothing to do with whether you like butter or not.”
“Right.”He sat cross-legged before her.After a moment, he stole one of the daisies.“She loves me.She loves me not.She loves me.She loves me not.”White petals scattered on the breeze.
“He loves me.He loves me not,” she countered.
“He loves you,” he insisted, delivering the denuded disc florets of his daisy to her as proof.Jodi lifted her gaze, meeting his muddy blue eyes.He offered her an apologetic smile.“Oh, Jo.I’m sorry about last night.I don’t know what the fuck got into me.No, that’s not true.I do.I’m a jealous arsehole, and apparently, I don’t take care of my woman properly.Assuming you haven’t decided to be done with me completely, I promise to do better on that score.”
Beside them, Jez shot them a glance over the top of his notebook, but dropped his gaze again the moment he figured they’d noticed him.
“How are you going to do better?”she asked, chewing on her lower lip.Honestly, it was a relief to know he was still speaking to her, and that they weren’t breaking up.She hated discord, but she also knew better than to try and talk to him before he was ready.Also, she’d be lying if she said she hadn’t been panicking over the possibility of them all leaving without her.Sure, the guys had helped her pack up her stuff and had merrily bad-mouthed Nash to her, but if it came down to it, Nash and the band would totally win over her and the cats.
