Page 80 of Play Fast (Brooklyn Dawn 2)

“I don’t like it.”

“Noted. Still gotta sing.” I drank deeply from my box of water. Right now, I kinda wished it was a box of those individual white wines I’d been stashing in my overnight bag.

Between Nash and the team of security that was following me around like I’d suddenly become part of British royalty, I was ready to take up day drinking.

I finished off the water and reached into my bag. Handily, it wasn’t daytime anymore. I didn’t even have to feel guilty. I found the last of my stash and my glittery tumbler I’d bought in SoHo during one of my afternoon shopping trips with Jamie.

She had a purple one. I, of course, had a pink one. I never had anything stronger than wine in mine. I could not say the same for Jamie.

I popped the top and splashed half the box in.

Alex gave me a dark look. He was a little touchy about drinking—recovering alcoholic and all. But he never minded if I had a glass. Usually.

And today, I definitely needed it.

I set the tumbler down before taking a drink. “Look, I get it. Lila is making all of us a little on edge with the security, but I think she’s mostly doing it as a preventative measure.”

God, I hoped so. What had happened last fall with Kyle was still on my mind far too often. The current situation was not helping.

“I don’t trust any of them. Donovan is dodging my calls.”

I crossed the living room of my tour bus and shimmied my skirt up a little to sit astride my man. His hands went to my ass immediately and pulled me tighter to the perpetually ready shaft of his cock. The temptation to lose myself in some quick and dirty sex was overwhelming.

It might even chill him the hell out.

Me too—win, win.

I toyed with his shaggy hair. His inky hair was nearly to his shoulders and I couldn’t say I was mad about it. His winter blue eyes were serious and direct. Strain lines bracketed his lush mouth.

He was intense in the best of circumstances, and I loved him more than I thought was possible. However, when he got like this I wanted to toss him onto his exceptional backside.

“You don’t need to do meet and greets. You’re beyond that.”

“First of all, I’ll never be beyond that. Our fans are why we have jobs in this fickle music environment. You, of all people, know time with the ones who support us is important.”

His eyebrows furrowed and his jaw went as stony as his eyes.

“You know it’s true.”

“I don’t fucking care. I’m not chancing you—ever. There is no discussion.”

I climbed off of him, letting my knee apply enough pressure on his dick that he grunted. “You’re not my keeper, Alex. I understand that you’re worried, but we have it under control.”

That sounded credible…ish.

“What, because you have a few tossers in black T-shirts and cargo pants clustered around you and the band?”

“You know the Roth people are way more than that. Noah and his team protect far more important people than us.”

He stood. “No one is more important than you.”

I rushed back over to him, pressing my hand to his chest. His heart was racing, and the telltale glint of his obsessive side was peeking out. It was warranted. We’d seen more trauma and drama than anyone should endure in the short time we’d been together.

His childhood friend had tried to lead us into his path of destruction. Nash had almost lost me. It had taken a good long while for either of us to be comfortable without hourly check-ins.

But dammit, we’d been doing so well. I was not going to let him spiral again. Work-life balance was new for both of us, but we were making it work.

“I’m not saying that.” I cupped his scruffy jaw with both hands and smoothed my thumbs over his cheeks. “What I mean is that we’re in good hands.”

---