Page 7 of Big & Burly Rockstar

Chapter 4

Elli

I follow Devon through the sterile-looking hallway and with every step, raucous male voices grow louder. I breathe in deeply, trying to calm my nerves. One arrogant rockstar I can handle. But four of them? It’ll be a challenge, that’s for sure.

Devon opens a door that’s guarded by a tall, muscular man wearing a black T-shirt. Any other man would look like a thirteen-year-old boy next to him, but not Devon. If anything, the other man emphasizes just how huge Devon is, and I hate myself for noticing.

Devon walks through the door and looks back at me over his shoulder. “Welcome to the jungle, princess.”

I push back my shoulders and follow him inside. Three men in their mid-thirties are sitting around a table, howling with laughter. When they see us, they fall silent, looking at me curiously.

“So this is her, huh?” a handsome, slender man with light-brown hair asks, looking me over. Not in a pervy way—his gaze is more calculating than anything.

“That’s her.” Devon sits down, not even bothering to introduce me. Ass.

“Hi. I’m Elli,” I say to the group at large, trying to sound confident.

“I’m Jake.” The slender man stands up and shakes my hand, a mischievous smile on his face. I wonder if he’s going to make a joke to embarrass me. Instead, he introduces me to the rest of the band.

“This is Michael,” he points at a stocky, solidly built man who nods at me, his expression serious but not unfriendly. “And this is Finn.”

Finn is tall and lanky, with skin as pale as mine, and he looks about as tired as I feel. His hazel eyes are dull and shadowed, and his cheekbones jut out harshly in his thin face. With a kind, almost shy smile he stands up to greet me. His hand is warm and dry in mine. “It’s nice to meet you, Elli,” he says, his voice quiet but confident.

“You too,” I say, smiling at him. There’s a sadness about him that I might have missed if I wasn’t so familiar with the feeling. Even though I have no idea about the cause of his sadness, it makes me feel a one-sided kinship toward him.

“She’s much nicer to you guys than she was to me when we first met,” Devon says, and I can’t tell if he’s amused or annoyed.

“Well, that just shows the woman’s got good taste,” Jake says, and I join in with Finn and Michael’s laughter.

Devon scowls. “Debatable,” he grumbles and stands up to walk over to the fridge standing by the wall at the far end of the table. “D’you want something to drink?” he asks, surprising me.

“Oh, uh, sure. Beer is fine.”

He takes out a bottle and opens it before handing it to me.

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome, princess.”

It’s strange. Ninety percent of the time, him calling me princess makes me want to throw something heavy at his head. But the other ten percent? It’s—well, it’s nice. It’s been so damn long since someone has addressed me with a pet name.

“So,” Jake asks, looking at me over his bottle of beer, “why did you agree to be his girlfriend?” He points at Devon. “You must be pretty desperate for money to agree to spend time with this fucker.”

If only he knew how desperate. “Something like that.” Out of the corner of my eye, I see Devon shooting me an inquisitive look. “So, how long have you guys been playing together?” I ask, wanting to change the subject. I’m pretty sure Devon has figured out I’m hiding something, and I don’t want to risk him asking me about it, especially not in front of the other band members.

“You don’t know?” Finn asks, an amused smile playing around his lips.

I shake my head, hoping I haven’t insulted them.

“We started playing in my mom’s garage when we were twelve,” Finn tells me. “I take it you’re not a fan?”

Again, I shake my head. “Not really, sorry. My sister was obsessed with you. So obviously, that meant I had to hate you.”

Jake clutches his chest, his face scrunched up in mock hurt. “D’you hear that, Dev? Your girlfriend hates us.”

“She’s a cruel woman,” he says, throwing me a smirk.

“Good,” Finn says, grinning at Devon. “You need someone to keep your damn ego in check.”

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