Chapter 17
seventeen
L ater that night, I watched Micah sitting on my blue, tufted couch, fidgeting with the hem of his beige sweatshirt in the early evening light. I stepped to the couch and took a seat beside him, sitting on one leg. “You all right?” I draped an arm around his shoulders.
“Yeah. Just nervous, I guess. I’m not sure what to expect.” He hung his head, his dark bangs covering his stunning brown eyes.
“It’ll be fine. Don’t worry.” I leaned in and kissed his cheek. Maybe telling him what to expect would help ease his nerves. “Justin is our lead guitar player and has the big personality to match it. He likes to fuck with people, so don’t be surprised if he messes with you.” I released a quick laugh. “Dilan plays drums, and he’s more on the quiet side, but he comes up with some surprisingly funny things sometimes, which is why he runs our social media accounts.”
“Okay.” As his attention drew to me, he offered a faint smile.
Rapping sounded through the apartment. “They’re here.” I jumped from the couch and jogged to the door, then opened it. A rash of the jitters ran through me. It seemed I was excited to have Micah meet the band. “Hey, Justin.”
“Hey, man. Long time, no see,” Justin said, his black hair cut short on the sides but long and gelled on top. He strutted into the apartment like the classic male model, with chiseled features and confident brown eyes. His black fleece and black jeans outlined his muscled frame. He enveloped me in a powerful hug, then released me.
I smiled at him, then my attention turned to the next guest. “Hey, Dilan.”
“Hiya.” Dilan walked in, his bleached white hair a mop falling to the side of his head over shaved sides, wearing a white hooded sweatshirt and blue jeans. He scanned over the room as he entered, his blue eyes under black brows. He gave me a quick fist bump, then wrapped an arm around me, patting me on the back.
Wells stepped inside next. “Hey.” He embraced me and glanced at Micah. With a smile, he went to Micah and dropped in next to him on the couch. “How are you doing?”
Micah peeked at Wells, then focused on his hands, still toying with his sweatshirt. “Doing okay.”
Wells placed his hand on Micah’s back. “Good. We’re going to have fun tonight.”
He nodded.
Leaning in close to Micah, Wells whispered, “Don’t worry. I already talked to the guys. Everything’s going to be fine. They’ll love you.”
He looked into Wells’ face. “Thanks.”
Wells gave him a warm smile. “Of course.” He threw an arm around Micah for a quick side-hug and sank into the couch.
“Where’s the pizza? I’m starving.” As Justin stepped in front of the couch, his gaze caught on Micah.
“Hey, Justin, this is the guy I was telling you about, Micah.” Wells flashed Justin a grin.
“Huh.” Justin placed his fingers on his chin and looked Micah over. “Hi, Micah.”
Micah gave Justin the ghost of a smile. “Hi.”
Raising one brow and quirking the side of his mouth, he plopped down on the couch beside Micah, wrapping his arm around Micah’s shoulders and bringing his face close. “So, you’re the one that’s got Ash all love-struck.”
With a gasp, Micah backed away.
Justin looked Micah over again and tightened his hold on his shoulders. “You’re pretty hot for a guy. Ash has good taste. Maybe he’s on to something.”
Typical Justin . I strode to the couch and yanked his arm off Micah’s shoulders. “Watch yourself.”
“Yeah, yeah.” Justin snickered and rose from the couch. “Sit next to your boy, here.”
Knocking sounded at the door.
“Pizza!” Dilan jogged to the door and opened it. He grabbed two large pizza boxes from the delivery man, closed the door, and set them on the kitchen table, next to plates already set up for us. Opening the top box, he pulled out two slices of pepperoni pizza and set them on a plate. He then walked over to sit on the blue chair in the main room. “Beer?”
“In the refrigerator. I’ll get one for everyone.” I went to the refrigerator with Micah now following me and snagged three beers, handing them to Micah, and went back in for two more. “Here, hand these out.”
When I came back to the main room, everyone was sitting with plates of pizza in their laps. Wells and Micah were on the couch, Dilan in the chair, and Justin in a dinette chair, pulled into the main room. I handed a beer to Justin, then went back to grab a plate of pizza and sat beside Micah on the couch. “So, Dilan, have you met Micah yet?”
Dilan sipped his beer and gazed at Micah. “Not yet. Hi, Micah.” He waved.
Waving back, Micah said, “Hi, Dilan.”
Justin ate a bite of pizza. “So, what’s up, Ash?”
“Well, I wanted to let you all know that I’m coming out formally.” How would this go over? I drank my beer.
“So, you’re coming out as gay,” Justin said in a sarcastic voice. “Even though I’ve seen you with about a thousand girls.”
“Well...” I peeked at Micah, gauging his reaction. “I’m coming out as being in a gay relationship. I’m not coming out as gay.”
“What’s the difference?” Dilan asked.
I huffed. “The difference is, I’m not gay, but my current lover is a guy.”
“How does that not make you gay?” Dilan laughed and bit into a pizza slice.
Wells snickered. “He has a point, Ash.”
I glared at Wells. “Don’t you start.”
Justin drank his beer. “The point is, Ash, we don’t really care. I could give a fuck who you’re fucking. As long as it’s not me.” He snickered. “Seriously, it’s all good, man. You do whatever you think you need to do, and we’ll back you. Okay?” He gave me a sly grin. “As long as those songs are good.”
“Oh, they’re good.” Wells took a sip of beer.
“One more thing.” I glanced at Micah. “I probably won’t be spending as much time in the studio as I normally do.” It sounded odd, even to me, but Micah was worth it.
“You mean you won’t be nitpicking over us the whole time?” Justin ate a bite of pizza and chuckled.
Justin would turn us into a hard rock band if he could. I glared at him, then offered a short laugh. “I’ll still be keeping my eye on you.”
“He’s right, Ash. Maybe it’s time for us to have more of a say in the songs this time around. Last time, you were in the studio more than any of us.” Dilan sipped his beer.
I chewed a bite of pizza. Dilan I could trust, along with Wells and the producer, to keep the current sound going. “So, sounds like you’re both okay with it if I step back a bit.”
“The songs we did the last few days are pretty good. I think we’ll be fine, between those and the ones we have from the tour.” Wells bit into his pizza. “Jeff is getting you a digital piano, right?”
“Yeah. With that, I can at least work with some rough tracks from here.” I peered at Micah, eating his pizza in silence. In a soft voice, I said, “You okay?”
“Yeah, just listening to everyone.” Micah sipped some beer.
So far, so good. I ate my last bite of pizza and stood, strode to the kitchen sink, and cleaned off my plate.
Wells joined me at the sink, setting his plate down.
“So, what exactly did you say to Anne and Linda about me?” I grabbed Wells’ plate and rinsed it.
“I told her you were interested in someone else. I didn’t tell her who. I also mentioned that she’s Justin’s type. She seemed okay with that.” Wells chuckled. “I don’t think she cares who she ends up with, as long as they’re in the band.”
As I nodded, I opened the dishwasher and put the plates inside it. “We’ll just have to be discreet.”
Wells leaned closer to me. “I don’t think it’s that big a deal. What’s the worst thing that can happen? They tell their friends that Ash Oakley is into guys? I mean, you already fucked her, so she knows you’re probably bisexual.”
I leaned back on the counter. “Yeah, I guess it wouldn’t be too different from what went on when we were on the road.”
“Except if you weren’t with a girl, you were with me most of the time.” Wells gave me a lop-sided grin. “And no one blinked an eye.”
I glanced at Micah, finishing up his last bite of pizza and smiling at whatever Justin was telling him, Justin gesturing over Micah’s head. It seemed Micah had found a friend in Justin. “I guess I just feel like this is different. I want to protect him and what we have.”
“Yeah, I get it. So, do what you want. I’m sure Justin will keep Anne occupied, and I plan on holding Linda’s attention.” Wells touched my forearm. “Like Justin said, we’ve got your back.”
* * *
An hour later, I sat on a towel in front of the bonfire with Micah on one side, Wells on the other. Across from me sat Justin and Dilan, laughing and clinking their beers together in a toast. The ocean breeze rustled my hair back from my face. The waves rolled in, keeping up a rhythmic pounding in the background, the moon shimmering off the water. I glanced at Micah and bumped him with my shoulder. “Hey, come here.”
He turned his dark head to me.
Resting my fingers on his chin, I drew him nearer, placing a long, sensual kiss on his lips.
He smiled and whispered, “I love you.”
With a wide grin, I said, “And I love you.” All my favorite people were here, in one place, and he loved me. My heart bloomed with emotion.
A silhouette of three people with billowing hair caught my gaze, making their way over the sand toward us.
I glanced at Wells and smacked my thigh. “Incoming.”
Wells’ attention drew to the figures. “Yep. Looks like they brought a friend for Dilan.”
“Good. Wouldn’t want him to be left out.” I chuckled.
Anne and Linda stood at the edge of the fire, looking down at us all. The light flickered over their faces, jackets, and jeans. Anne raised her hand. “Hi. I’m Anne, and this is Linda.” She pointed to a young woman with long, straight, blond hair. “And this is Ashley.”
Everyone waved and greeted them.
Linda took a seat next to Wells, while Anne sat between Micah and Justin, and Ashley, next to Dilan.
“Beers all around?” Justin dove into the cooler.
“Yes, definitely.” Anne grabbed a beer from Justin, then peered at Micah. “Hey, I’ve seen you around. You hang out in the taproom all the time, right?”
Micah switched position on his towel, crossing his legs in front of him. “Yeah. I’m Micah.” He held out his hand to her.
Anne took Micah’s hand and shook it. “You live around here?”
Micah glanced at me. “Yeah, I do.”
Anne leaned backward and tapped me on the shoulder. “So, how are you doing?”
“Good.” I sipped my beer.
“How were you feeling after all those shots of bourbon the other night?” Anne giggled.
“Oh, ah...” I knitted my brows and peeked at Micah, now frowning. “I was all right. I stopped early.”
Anne’s attention returned to Micah. “Wells was trying to get him drunk.” She gave me a sly smile and sipped her beer.
Micah smirked at me. “Was he now?” He reached behind me and pinched my arm right above the elbow.
“Ow.” I set my beer in the sand and rubbed the pinch.
“Wells and Ash seem really close.” She smirked. “If I didn’t know better?—”
“We told you, we grew up together. We’re like, like brothers.” I didn’t need her putting any thoughts in Micah’s head. I gave her a pointed look.
Micah glared at me and clenched his jaw.
With Anne’s gaze flicking between us, she said, “So, how do you two know each other?”
“We’re neighbors. I rented the apartment right next to his.” Micah drank his beer.
“Oh. Ash and I met at the taproom and hooked up. What was it, a week ago?” She gave me a seductive smile. “He’s a great kisser.” She giggled and stretched across Micah to touch my arm. “Maybe we can hook up again sometime.”
“It was more than a week ago.” This wasn’t what was supposed to be happening. I huffed and studied Micah.
Micah glared at the fire and crinkled his nose.
“Did you guys decide to do a show around here?” Anne took a sip of beer.
I kept my focus on Micah and said, “Yeah, we’re looking into it.”
“You’re going to invite me, right? You said you would get us backstage.” She flashed another seductive smile at me.
Micah cleared his throat and glowered at me.
“Uh, yeah, sure.” Micah looked pissed off. I rested my hand on his lower back. How could I stop this?
Micah shook his head once and finished his beer, then reached behind Anne to tap Justin on the shoulder.
Justin turned to Micah. As Micah whispered to Justin, Justin widened his eyes and curled his lips in a sly grin. He twisted to the cooler to get Micah a new beer.
Grabbing the beer from Justin, Micah snicked it open and took a few gulps.
Justin threw an arm around Anne’s shoulders and tugged her into his side, then offered a charming smile. “Hey, I heard you might have some good weed.”
With a smile at him, she said, “Sure do.” She pulled out a Ziplock bag from her front pocket, then held it out in front of him.
Justin took the bag, opened it, and pulled out a joint. “Who’s got a light?”
After producing a lighter, she handed it to him. “I came prepared.”
He lit the joint, took a drag off it, then handed it to her.
Anne dragged off the joint and held it out to Micah.
Shaking his head, Micah said, “No thanks.” He glanced at me.
I should follow Micah’s lead. “Me neither.” I gave him a careful smile.
Smirking at me, Justin shook his head. “You don’t know what you’re missing.” He grabbed the joint from Anne, took another drag, and handed it to Dilan.
My gaze caught Wells, sitting close to Linda in deep conversation, one hand holding hers. I should put Anne’s comments about Wells to rest right away. I drank some beer, leaned in close to Micah’s ear, and then whispered, “I’m sorry about that. You know nothing happened with Wells.”
“Yeah, I know.” He sipped more beer.
“Are you mad?” I grabbed his hand and let it go.
“Maybe, but not at you.” He twisted his head toward Justin. “Justin better keep her away from you. That’s all I’m saying.”
This was a different side of him. I liked it. I gave him a sly smile. “Or what?”
“You’ll see.” He finished his second beer and stood, leaving his empty beer in the sand. “I have to go piss.” He walked off down the beach.
Anne snuck into Micah’s spot. “So, why aren’t you getting high?”
“It’s just not something I like to do all that much.” It was a half-truth. I sipped my beer.
Anne placed her hand on my thigh. “I had a lot of fun when you came over that time.”
Looking at her hand, I said, “Yeah.” She was all right, but I wouldn’t mention to her I’d thought of Micah most of the time we were together.
“Wells says you had someone coming, but I don’t see any other girls here.” She squeezed my thigh and moved it higher on my leg. “Maybe she won’t show up?”
I released a nervous chuckle. “Uh...”
Bringing her face in close to mine, her gaze dropped to my lips.
Micah appeared, squatting next to Anne, then seized her hand that was resting on my thigh, and flung it off. “You’re in my seat.” His dark gaze was hard.
“Oh, sorry.” She blinked and crept next to Justin, chatting with Ashley and Dilan.
With a scowl, Micah slipped in next to me and grabbed my chin. As he turned my face toward his own, he placed a long, possessive kiss on my lips, opening his mouth and claiming me fully.
My heart skipped a beat with the intensity of his kiss. Caught up in the moment, I wrapped my arm around his shoulders and slanted my mouth over his.
The conversations around the fire faded, leaving only the crashing of the waves and the crackle of the fire. All my senses centered on his kiss, the hot, wet pressure of his lips against mine, his slick tongue dancing against my own, the heat tingling over my skin.
Wells howled. “Damn. That’s one way to let everyone know, Ash.”
Micah freed me and spread a satisfied grin over his lips, then picked up his empty beer can. “Hey, Justin. I need another beer.”
Staring at Micah, I hung my mouth open, still tingling from the passionate kiss. I touched my lower lip. “Damn.” I definitely liked this side of him.
With a smirk, Justin reached in the cooler and handed a new beer to Micah, taking the empty can. “Here you go, lover boy.”
After taking the new beer, Micah shimmied close to me and tossed an arm around my shoulders, drawing me in close.
My face heated. There shouldn’t be any doubt now. With a smirk, I glanced at Anne.
She pouted, then tossed a flirtatious smile at Justin. “So, where are you from, Justin?”
Justin gave her a coy grin. “Wisconsin.”
“Oh, another Midwesterner.” She shimmied in closer to him.
Micah opened his beer and took a long gulp.
“What were you thinking?” I cuddled into him.
After a quick shrug, he lowered his brows and pursed his lips. “I was thinking I wouldn’t put up with her flirting with you all night. I put a stop to it.” With a grin, he said, “You’re mine.”
I laughed. “Yes, I am.” I placed a quick kiss on his cheek. “I like this better, anyway.”
“Me, too.” He smiled. “I actually hope she posts something on your fan page. Then maybe people will stay away from you.”