Page 51 of Feral Touch
“I’m so happy to hear that! It’s great to see our fans. What’s your name?”
“Holly,” she breathed through a strangled throat.
He touched her long blond hair and gave her a lascivious grin. “Nice to meet you, Holly. Why don’t you girls come join us?”
The three of them nodded so fervently I thought their heads would fall off their necks.
I was surprised at how easily Ailey and Emily squeezed over to make room for the three girls. Weren’t they upset? There didn’t seem to be a hint of jealously in their eyes. There was a business-like briskness to Ailey’s movements, her concentration still on her phone.
Emily’s eyes zoomed in on the girls, taking in every detail, examining them like specimens under a microscope. Her face was full of concentration, head tilted as if she was taking mental notes. I wondered what her job was. How she’d met Kell. She seemed like too intense a person to have just been a groupie.
Kell and Jayce chatted with the girls, answering their questions about the meaning of their songs and the cities they’d traveled to. It was warm in the venue. The air was made even more sweltering by the addition of three more people in our booth.
The brash one who’d originally spoken, Skinny Jeans, had gotten over her shock and was now grinning and laughing with Kell, his arm still around her shoulder. Jayce was surrounded by the two others. He somehow managed to pay each of them his full attention, neglecting neither.
Morris sat between the girl with Kell and the girl on Jayce’s right. Her attention drifted to him and she began to speak to him. He answered in monosyllables, his eyes on his drink. She eventually flitted back to Jayce, who gave her more attention. The girl on Jayce’s left had Ren on her other side, but she was simply throwing him furtive glances.
Out of the corner of my eye I saw Ren wipe a bead of sweat from his brow. It was starting to get stifling. He brought a hand to his collar and started unbuttoning his shirt. I nearly bit my tongue at the hint of his muscled chest. Even though I’d seen it before, the sight of his body still had the power to make me swoon.
I saw the girl on Jayce’s other side also watching, drool practically falling from her lips. She leaned closer to Ren and whispered something. He laughed and shook his head. She placed one hand on his chest, half over the collar of his shirt and half touching his skin. He spoke to her again and she replied with a coy smile.
Rage exploded inside me. Rage and a pang of hurt. I wanted to claw this girl’s eyes out. I turned around and chugged my drink before I could make a fool of myself.
“You need another?” Emily asked, gesturing to my drink. “I’m going to get a refill at the bar. Why don’t you come with me?”
“Sure,” I grunted, slamming my empty glass on the table. “Why the hell not.”
Emily took my hand and guided me down the stairs, through the dance floor of humping and grinding people, until we reached the bar. The bartender paid her immediate attention, ignoring the others who were there first.
“One Hurricane Ivan and one—” she turned to me. “What were you drinking?”
“No idea.”
“Make that two Hurricane Ivans.”
He handed her the drinks and she picked them up without exchanging money. Rock stars must have a pretty generous tab.
“Here you go.” She handed one of the drinks to me. The glass was dark brown, like a regular soda. “Cheers!” We clinked glasses and drank. I immediately sputtered.
“What the hell is in these?” I asked, choking.
She shrugged and grinned. “No idea. Morris introduced me to it.” She took her own small sip. “I don’t think that man has any taste buds left, to be honest.”
I grimaced, but tried another mouthful. It was better on the second go around.
“How long have you known Ren?” Emily asked, not going back upstairs yet. She leaned casually on the bar. “There are a lot of rumors on the internet about you two.”
I didn’t know how to answer. Forever? One month?
“We went to music school together as kids. We just recently met up again.”
Emily nodded, looking thoughtful. “I can tell this is all pretty new to you.”
“This?”
She waved her hand around. “All this. Clubs. Fans. Rock star life.” She looked at me over the rim of her glass. “There’s nothing to be jealous of, you know.”
“I’m not jealous,” I replied automatically. Emily lifted an eyebrow and I blushed, looking down at my drink. “Maybe I’m a little jealous,” I muttered.
