Page 40 of Wild and Bright

He still has his high-handed moments, but I can see that he’s trying. Instead of ordering me around when he’s annoyed, he clenches his jaw and narrows those dark eyes, which does strange things to my insides.

I never could have imagined living with him would feel this natural, as if we’ve been sharing a space for years. He’s hardly ever in his studio. Instead, he sits with his guitar and an open notebook at his side on the living room couch while I fold laundry or shoot my videos. And even though he still sometimes says he doesn’t like sharing a bed, he doesn’t loosen his hold on me at the end of the night. When Cadence is at Ryder’s, it’s become a given that I’ll spend my nights in his room, even though we’ve never explicitly agreed to it.

I’d be perfectly happy with everything if I didn’t sense his underlying unease about his relationship with Hunter. They’ve hardly spoken at all this last month. At least not when I’ve been around them, and I can feel it eating away at Cam.

My gaze drifts to Hunter. He stands near the kitchen counter, staring down into his green juice. He just spent the last five minutes purging Cam’s fridge of vegetables and sticking them all into his probably unused juicer.

I avert my eyes. I can’t explain it, but the health kick he goes on during sobriety always makes me uneasy. It doesn’t seem like Hunter, like he’s pretending to be someone else. Pretending to be sober. I try to shake off the thought, knowing it’s presumptuous and unfair.

“What’s going on with you and Cam?” I ask.

“What do you mean?”

“You only come over here when he’s gone. And you always leave before he gets home.”

The smile that tugs at his lips looks a little cynical. “I’m around him all the time.”

“Yeah, but that’s work. You never seem to want to hang out with him anymore.”

He shakes his head. “We’ve never had that kind of relationship. Not like you and Logan have. I love him, but we don’t hang out.”

“No way. You used to hang out all the time.”

His smile widens, and now there’s no doubt that it’s cynical. “No, I used to follow him around, and he tolerated my presence.”

“That’s not true at all, and you know it. I’ve never known anyone who adores his brother more. You guys barely even fought growing up, which is so unusual. There were times when I literally—no joke—considered murdering Logan. But Cam treated you almost like a son.”

“Yeah.” He raises his brows. “And that’s not normal. I honestly don’t think Cam is capable of real love. He has loving feelings, but only for people he sees as beneath him, which isn’t the same thing.”

My mouth drops open. “Do you really think that?”

He takes a big gulp of his juice. “I do.”

I stare at him, unable to believe what I’m hearing. “Hunter, that’s awful.”

He shrugs, but it’s a jerky movement, and for the first time, I sense the emotion behind his matter-of-fact tone. This isn’t an objective assessment of Camden’s ability to love. This is a deep hurt that Hunter doesn’t want to talk about.

“Cam would be heartbroken if he heard you say something like that.”

An emotion flashes in Hunter’s eyes. Something I don’t like. “Oh, no. You’re not falling in love with him, are you?”

I scowl. “Of course not.”

His piteous expression stays fixed. “Don’t do that. Seriously, don’t do it. Whatever you’re feeling right now, just…push that shit deep down as far as you can for the next… How much more time do you have? Five months? Because if you love him, he’ll have power over you. And he’s a nightmare when he has power over you.”

I’m somehow able to smile even while my heart is in my throat. “He already has power over me. I work for him.”

He scoffs. “Yeah, but the power is entirely on your side. He doesn’t even give our hottest fans the time of day. And not to brag, but our fans are top shelf. Way hotter than average. And you got him to pay over two-hundred thousand dollars for sex.” He eyes narrow on my face. “And don’t give me that look. You know that’s what he’s really paying for, no matter whatever bullshit he fed you about going to parties with him. He doesn’t even go to parties. Not even when our publicist begs him. He never would have done any of this if I hadn’t made him think you and I were going to have sex.”

I roll my eyes. “I still can’t believe you did that.”

A lazy grin spreads over his face. “I don’t regret it at all. I really just did it for fun, because he’ll never admit he has a huge crush on you, even though it’s painfully obvious to me and Janie. But still, I had no idea he’d do this. It’s beyond my wildest expectations. All for you.”

All for you. I hate how the words make my stomach flutter. I’ve been trying so hard to keep my hope in check, but if he wants me this much, maybe it means something.

“But you need to be careful, because he could throw you out at any moment.” Hunter’s words are like a bucket of ice water dumped over my warm reflections.

“And he would, too,” he says. “He does shit like that all the time. We’re now on our eighth banjoist. We’ve had eight in four years.”

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