Chapter 17
Chapter Seventeen
GYPSY
Holy shit! I was standing in the middle of a room with all four members of Civil Corruption.
The room erupted into action the moment Marco stepped in as the bandmembers shot up to greet him like a lifelong friend, but all I could do was stand there and stare like a moron.
A high-pitched yelp from the corner drew my attention, and I looked over just as a gorgeous, petite blonde came running at Marco and launched herself into his arms.
“Omigod!” she cried, pulling her head back just enough to look up at him. “I can’t believe you’re here! It’s been too long!”
His large hands spanned her waist as he smiled down at her fondly.
“That it has, bomboncita,” he returned in a soft, gentle voice.
The smile on his face might have held warmth, but the effect of it sent a chill across my back.
I felt like an interloper watching this woman and Marco together; it was obvious they were important to each other.
And as I stood in a room, surrounded by celebrities, I was suddenly overwhelmed with the desire to flee.
“How about you let up so the rest of us can welcome him, sweetness?”
I jerked my head around at the sound of the deep, raspy voice, and I watched in amazement as Killian Everett, bass player for one of the best rock bands in the whole flipping world, walked over and dislodged the blonde from Marco, tucking her firmly under his arm.
A little of the tension melted from my shoulders at the realization that the beautiful woman was obviously with Killian Everett.
The gorgeous bassist lifted his hand to give my man a fist bump.
Wait… my man?
Oh hell, I was in so much trouble.
“Guys, I want you to meet someone,” Marco said, grabbing hold of my waist and pulling my back to his front, wrapping his arm around my middle and holding me to him in an intimate embrace.
A flush hit my cheeks as he said, “This is my girl, Gypsy,” making my belly melt.
“Gypsy, that’s Killian and his wife, Gina.
” He pointed to the bass player and the blonde he’d been holding on to.
“Then you have Declan and Tatum.” I gave a nervous grin at the lead singer and the stunning redhead on his lap.
“That’s Garrett over there, sucking face with his wife, Gwen.
” The Viking-looking drummer lifted his head and shot us a cheeky smirk as he pulled the brunette in his arms even closer.
Then Marco pointed toward the lead guitarist. “And that’s Mace and Lyla. ”
“And I’m Corrine,” the woman camped out on a large leather sofa declared, waving at me. “I’m the best of the bunch and married to the mountain who just walked you guys in here.”
So this was Ian’s wife. Wow. I wasn’t sure how such a tiny slip of a thing could give a man his size the hell he’d spoken of a few minutes ago, but good for her.
“I gave her a bit of a scare earlier,” Ian said as he moved farther into the room, sitting down beside his wife and pulling her against him. “She said I look like the kind of dude who’d use my enemy’s bones as a toothpick.”
The room broke into a cacophony of hoots and laughter, and I gave the giant the best glare I could muster while trying to fight my grin at the same time. “Well? Am I wrong?”
“No!” Corrine hooted. “That’s the perfect description!” She turned to the room at large and loudly announced, “I officially like this chick.”
“So how did you guys meet?” Gina asked, her shrewd eyes watching me closely.
My chest swelled and Marco’s arm clenched.
The need to flee might have dissipated, but I was still a bundle of nervous energy thanks to who I was surrounded by.
It wasn’t just that the room was full of rock and roll gods.
It was that these people obviously meant something to Marco.
I never tried to be anything more than I was, however, I was known to be somewhat.
.. abrupt. And I found myself worrying about that, because I wanted these people to like me.
No, that wasn’t right. I needed them to like me.
It mattered to me that I got the approval of the people in Marco’s life.
I could win people over, I knew that. That was why I was so close with my girls.
Tempie, Eden, Nona, and Rory loved me almost as much as I loved them.
But I had a sneaking suspicion that this Gina woman was going to make me work for it.
I didn’t know what kind of past she and Marco had—I had no clue about his past at all, really—but it was obvious she was protective of him.
And I wasn’t sure how I felt about that.
A part of me loved that he had someone who cared about him so much.
But the other part of me was being eaten up by jealousy.
“Oh, um…,” I started, but before I could formulate an answer, Marco jumped in.
“Mutual friends,” he answered. “One of her girls is engaged to my buddy Linc. We run in the same circles.”
“That’s nice.” She offered me a genuine smile, but she was still guarded. “And Gypsy, what do you do for a living?”
Marco’s arm stiffened at that. “I brought my girl here to give her a good night, babe,” he said in a low, ominous voice that made me shiver, “not subject her to a round of twenty questions.”
Gina looked at him intently. “I’m just trying to get to know her.”
“No,” he grumbled, “you’re interrogating her. You’ve got a kind heart, so you aren’t being nasty about it, but it’s obvious that’s what you’re doing.”
I wrapped my fingers around Marco’s forearm and pressed in. “It’s okay,” I whispered, turning to look at him over my shoulder. “I don’t mind answering her questions.”
His gaze hit mine, his brow furrowed. “You don’t have to.”
“She’s your friend.” Shifting my focus back around to Gina, I lifted my chin high and gave it to her straight. “I’m a stripper.”
Marco went rigid behind me, and the entire room fell into complete silence.
“Well, I strip at night,” I explained further.
“During the day I work as a checkout clerk at a grocery store. I know they aren’t the most glamorous jobs in the world, but my parents were worthless pieces of shit who were good for nothing but popping out a bunch of kids.
Because of that, I had to drop out of school to get any job that might bring money in so I could take care of my siblings.
And to spare you from having to ask, I have five.
Three brothers and two sisters,” I added flippantly.
“Anyway, no education or experience made getting a well-paying, respectable job kind of hard, so now I’m doing whatever I can to keep a roof over their heads so they don’t have to worry about anything other than going to school, getting good grades, and, god willing, going to college. ”
I could see by their expressions that they were trying to wrap their heads around everything I’d just dumped on them.
Seconds later, Corrine broke the silence by stating, “All right. I know I said it before, but it bears repeating. I like this chick.”
While I appreciated that more than she could know, I kept my focus trained on Gina, waiting for a reaction.
But when all she did was stand there, flabbergasted, I carried on, softening my voice so she’d know I wasn’t offended.
“I get what you’re doing, and I totally dig that you care enough about Marco to grill me.
My friends are the same way. So if you have any more questions, fire away.
I’ll give it to you as honestly as I can. ”
That guard of hers finally dropped, and relief flooded me as acceptance and sympathy filled her gaze. “I’m so sorry for everything you’ve gone through,” she said quietly, and I could have sworn she was about to cry.
“It’s life,” I answered, shrugging casually, even though I was feeling as raw as an exposed nerve at that moment. “I’m okay with my lot. My brothers and sisters are a handful, but they’re pretty freaking awesome.”
Her chest shook as she pulled in a breath. “I swear, I didn’t mean anything by—”
“I know,” I said quickly, waving her off. All the animosity I might have felt toward this woman drifted away at the sight of her sincerity. “And we’re cool. Shoe was on the other foot, I’d have probably done the exact same.”
Corrine spoke again. “Well, that’s just great. She’s got killer long legs, all that hair, a heart of gold, and she can swing around a pole in sky-high stripper heels?” She threw her arms up in frustration. “The rest of us mere mortal women don’t stand a damn chance.”
And just like that, the tension was broken.
Marco
The small showdown hadn’t lasted long and had fortunately ended without consequence, but it had put me on edge.
Gypsy and the rest of the girls were across the room, laughing and chatting like nothing had happened.
They’d accepted her and pulled her into the fold just like I knew they would, because they were good people.
But I hadn’t been able to shake myself loose.
“Will you relax?” Mace clapped me on the shoulder, forcing my attention from where Gypsy was standing, too far away from me for my liking. “You’re watching your girl like you’re afraid they’re gonna tear her to shreds.”
“Just keepin’ an eye out,” I muttered sullenly.
“She’s good, man,” Declan insisted. “You know the girls’ll take care of her.”
I’d seen the look on Gina’s face, the determination in her eyes to dig into Gypsy and find out if she was worthy. I appreciated the reasons behind the action, but I didn’t like how she’d put Gypsy on the spot.
My girl was tough. Tougher than most. But I’d felt the way she tensed, as if she was bracing against the onslaught of emotion that little speech caused, and it pissed me the fuck off.
“Gina was just doin’ what any friend would do,” Kill said in defense of his wife. “Take a breath. You know she didn’t mean anything by it.”
Like it always was whenever we were in the same room together, the pull of Gypsy was too goddamn hard to ignore, and I looked back to her at the same time her gaze shifted to me. She graced me with that gorgeous smile I was quickly becoming addicted to, and suddenly I felt light again.
Ian’s deep voice hit my ears and drew my attention back to the guys. “I suspected this girl meant something when you called about getting into the show, but you didn’t say it was this serious.”
“Because it wasn’t at the time.” I cast a quick peek over my shoulder. “She’s… prickly.”
He gave me a big toothy grin. “You always did like a challenge, bro.”
He wasn’t wrong, but… “She’s more than just a challenge,” I confessed.
He examined me closely, the wheels in his head turning. “I can see that.”
“You’ve seen her up close, and you just heard part of her story. Tell me that’s not a woman you get serious about.”
“I feel you,” Garrett chimed in. “But just saying, five brothers and sisters? That’s a lot, bro.”
“They’re great kids,” I quickly defended. “They adore their big sister. The six of them are a package deal, and I’m absolutely fine with that.”
“Then we’re happy for you,” Declan stated seriously. “And we’re glad we got a chance to meet her.”
I was too, and I was looking forward to giving her a night she’d never forget.