Page 55 of Heart of a Rebel

I stand up and create some distance before I do something stupid.

Order.

Control.

It’s what I’m best at.

Stopping at the doorway to my room, I hold the frame and turn to face Eloise, where she’s still perched on the couch deep in thought.

“I’ll be right here if you need anything.”

“You can take a night off, you know. I’ll be okay.”

“I know.”

“Good.” She stands up and crosses her arms over her chest. Her stare darts between my room and me. I’d really love to know what it is she’s thinking because the darkness in her eyes is overwhelming. “Enjoy having an actual bed, and don’t worry about me.”

I chuckle. “Not possible.”

Her eyebrows furrow, and I realize I probably shouldn’t have said that out loud, but fuck it. If there’s one person on the planet I spend an unhealthy amount of time worrying about, it’s Eloise Kane. Her career, her image, fans wanting too much from her. Now we’ve added a stalker who assaulted her to the mix and I’m not sure I’ll ever not worry about her again.

At least that much I keep in my head. Because if she knew all the ways I’ve imagined peeling off the flesh of the man who hurt her one layer at a time, I’m not sure she’d ever look at me the same again.

Eloise stands up and starts walking toward her room, directly across the suite from mine. And in this moment, the number of times I’ve watched her walk away creeps up on me. Because I’d love nothing more than to tell her we’ve spent too long playing these games and we both deserve it to each other to give us a real shot. But as she pauses in her doorway and looks at me with unmatched vulnerability, I’m smart enough to keep my mouth shut.

“Goodnight, Adrian.”

“Night, El.”

She disappears into her room, and I walk into mine, not shutting the door so I can hear anything that might happen.

As much as it tortures me to be this close to her day in and day out, especially in our current situation, she feels too far away.

Laying down on my bed, I stretch out under the covers and stare at the ceiling. For once I’d like to be impulsive. To act before thinking. For once I’d like to pretend that I’m brave and actually fucking do something. But as I close my eyes and see Eloise’s face behind my eyelids, I know that what I want and what she needs are different.

She deserves to be safe. And I’ll do everything in my power to make that happen.

20

Eloise

I’veneverhadasolid group of girlfriends. Maybe it’s that I’ve spent so many years in a band with all guys, but female friendships have been few and far between. Something Merry and Cassie seem intent on changing as they force me to tag along with them.

At least they’re amusing to be around. Even if they’re close, they’re very different people, which makes for some entertaining hang-outs. So when Cassie suggests a girls’ spa day in my suite before our final show in Phoenix, Merry’s frown wasn’t surprising, seeing as she’s been vocal about the fact that she’d rather hit up a tattoo parlor.

“Where’s Adrian?” Merry looks across the suite to Adrian’s room.

Through the door, I can see his bed perfectly made and not a thing out of place. He’s the tidiest man I’ve ever met, and over half a decade out of the military hasn’t made him sloppy.

“If I had to guess, making himself scarce.”

Cassie holds a hand on her hip. “Smart man.”

Merry smiles at her and drops down onto the couch. “All right, what is this shit you think you’re going to put on my face.”

“Gold-flecked exfoliator mask,” Cassie says smiling. “Quinn swears by it.”

Cassie hands one to me and one to Merry, who frowns.

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