Chapter 33
Thirty-Three
XANDER
Stone pulls a Mariners baseball cap low on his head as he stretches out his calf muscles.
We’re both as incognito as we can be for our run this morning.
It’s not an easy feat for us considering we both stick out in a crowd just based on height alone.
Not to mention the two towering bodyguards joining us who each are closer to seven feet than they are six.
When Stone suggested a sunrise run along the beach yesterday, I couldn’t say no.
The Pacific will always have my heart, but there is something to be said for the sandy white beaches of Florida.
If I had time I’d rent a board and go find some waves, but each of our Florida shows have short turnaround times as we go city to city on the tour.
I’m the weakest runner of the group, so they let me set the pace as we jog down the sidewalk and toward the beach.
It’s early on a Sunday morning, so there are not a lot of people outside as we cut across the street.
The scent of the ocean hits me as we hang a left and start following the sidewalk north.
Palm trees sway above us in the cool breeze coming off the water.
“Is Jade still pissed at me?” Stone asks. “Hazel won’t tell me because I deserve it.” He uses air quotes around the end of his statement.
I chuckle. “She may be, but I’m not.” I hold my fist out for a bump.
After hours of fucking back in Nashville, she explained what happened before she stormed into my room. It’s good to know that despite his great relationship with her, he still has my back when push comes to shove. And fuck knows she needed the push.
I’m still not allowed to talk about us, though.
She’s adamant that we can’t go public due to her professional reputation.
It’s frustrating because I want everyone to know she’s mine.
Especially when she’s so unaware of all the people who ogle her on a daily basis.
Not being able to stake my claim kills me.
None of that to say I don’t understand and respect her stance, though. She’s worked hard to get where she is. Before we scooped her up for the band, she had a corporate job. She worked her ass off there and was on the way to her third promotion when Dad reached out about us needing help.
In all honesty, had it not been him asking, I don’t think she would have accepted the position.
None of us are afraid to resort to manipulation tactics to get what we want though, so she eventually gave in.
Her addition to the team has been nothing short of meteoric.
In fact, we all just sat down and decided after the tour to give her a raise on top of the bonuses everyone will be given.
Even if we weren’t back together, I’d take any opportunity to be able to help provide for her.
“I think we should plan something for after the tour. Not a party,” Stone clarifies.
“Like a trip?” I ask between heavy breaths.
“Yeah. My cousin has that ranch in Colorado outside of Steamboat. We could rent the whole property out for privacy. They live there, but it’s just them and their kids.”
How the fuck is he talking so normally? I drag in a breath and try not to sound like a locomotive chugging along.
“That could be fun,” I say between pants.
“Especially in the winter. Skiing, snowboarding.” He looks over and waggles his brows. “Private hot tubs at each cabin.”
He’s thinking about sex while I’m fighting for my life as we turn away from the beach and back in the direction of the hotel. I always thought I was reasonably fit, but this excursion has me doubting the workout regimen I follow. But also, fuck running.
By the time we get back to the hotel, I’m doubled over, hands on my knees and wheezing. Stone, on the other hand, hops from foot to foot and could probably run a goddamn marathon. Hans and Adam are both equally unbothered as they stretch their muscles.
Stone slaps my back. “You good?”
I look over my shoulder at him. “I’m never doing this again.”
He tosses his head back and laughs. “I mean, it looks like you need to start doing it daily.”
His laughter only increases when I flash my middle finger at him.
We stay outside until I catch my breath and no longer sound like an asthmatic cat on its ninth life.
A few people do double takes in the lobby when the four of us walk through to the elevators, but no one asks for autographs.
Not that we’d ever say no, our fans are important to us.
We’d have nothing without them, but it is nice when we’re given space to be normal people.
Jade is getting dressed when I get back to the room.
She hasn’t noticed me yet, so I rest against the door frame and watch as she buttons her high-waisted black pants and pulls on a turtleneck sweater in a deep, jewel-toned purple.
She pulls her hair out and lets it fall down her back in beautiful red waves.
“I could spend every morning watching you get ready,” I say.
She fights a smile as she looks over at me. “You say that now, but wait until you see me with dark circles and a face full of clay from one of my masks.”
“You could swim in a dumpster and still be the most beautiful person alive.”
“That’s a horrifying mental image.” She scrunches her nose.
I close the distance between us and lift her chin. She rises to her toes and presses her lips to mine. My hands wrap around her waist as I deepen the kiss. Her fingers trail over my sweat-soaked shirt and down to my abs.
“If you weren’t already dressed, I’d drag you into the shower with me,” I say against her lips.
“If only I didn’t have work to do.” She breaks the kiss and runs her thumb over my lips to wipe her lipstick off.
“I happen to know one of your employers. He said long morning fucks in the shower take precedence over work.”
“Oh really?” She slips her feet into a pair of pointy toe stilettos.
“Yeah, he’s generous like that. Could be argued the best employer in the world, to be honest.”
She shakes her head and gives me one more chaste kiss. “If only my work ethic wasn’t so strong.” She walks out of the bedroom, leaving a cloud of her subtle jasmine perfume in her wake.
My phone rings with a FaceTime call from Dad as I get out of the shower.
Making sure the towel is fastened securely around my waist, I hit answer.
His face with all its familiar fine lines fills the screen.
The sky around him is a bright blue, which means he can’t be in LA, it wouldn’t be that light out.
“Where are you?” I ask as I run a comb through my hair.
“Hello to you, too.” He chuckles and turns his head in both directions before he starts moving again. “Rome.”
“Nice. Work or pleasure?”
“Bit of both. How’s the tour?”
“Exhausting but good.”
“Just played Miami last night, right?” His gaze turns attentive as he scans what he can see of me in the frame. “Only three shows left this year, correct? Then the international shows start back up in the spring?”
“Yeah.” I’m not surprised he knows how close we are to the end of the North American tour. He’s always imported all our concert tour dates into his calendar, so he knows exactly what’s happening.
“How’s Jade?”
I look over at the phone. He rarely asks me about her; she made it clear in college that I was an off limits topic. Not that it stopped me from always asking him about her. It’s weird to have the tables turned.
“She’s good. Weird for you to be asking me about her.”
He smiles, a carbon copy of my own. “Just figured I could now that you’re back to being more than just work colleagues.”
“Did she say that?”
“Why are you being so cagey?” His grin widens. “Is there something I should know?”
I shove a toothbrush in my mouth, so I have a minute to stall. She’s been adamant about not telling anyone anything. The last thing I want to do is piss her off and talk about us without her knowledge.
I shake my head and spit out the toothpaste. “No. You know how it is between us.”
“Felt different at dinner.”
I shrug. “We’re on friendly terms now that she’s been on the tour with us.”
“Okay.” He enters a beautiful hotel lobby. “I actually was calling because I just submitted an offer to Hazel’s agent to option the rights for a film adaptation of her book.”
My smile is fast and genuine. “That’s fucking fantastic.”
“I’m not sure if her agent has presented the offer yet so don’t say anything.”
Knowing Sierra, she got on the phone with Hazel immediately. “My lips are sealed. I took the paternity test. Darren, my lawyer, and I are meeting with the woman and her attorney before the show in Atlanta to find out the results.”
“How are you feeling about it?”
“Fucking anxious. Even though there’s almost no possible way I could have been the person to get her pregnant, I can’t stop thinking about the what-ifs.
Then, if she is my baby, I missed so much already.
I’d never given a ton of thought to having kids, but now it’s something that’s actually on my radar. ”
He nods. “I get it, all those are valid feelings. Just take it one day at a time. If she’s your baby, your life will never be the same in a good way.”
“And if she’s not?”
“Then you’re not tied to a stranger for the rest of your life for starters. But also, a scare like this sometimes helps you understand what you truly want.”
I nod. “True.”
“When are you leaving for Tampa?” The change in subject comes as a relief.
“Fairly soon, I think. I went for a run with Stone, Adam, and Hans this morning, so I don’t know what time it was when we got back, but they had me out there for a while.”
“You went running?” Amusement laces his tone.
“Yeah. Never again.” I pick up the phone and carry it into the bedroom, setting the screen to face the ceiling while I get dressed. “I felt like I was going to have a heart attack, and the three of them barely broke a sweat.”
His rich laughter fills the room. “Why did you even agree to go?”
“Temporary insanity, I guess.” I prop the phone back up now that I’m decent and thread a belt through the loops of my jeans. “Stone is planning a vacation for the band and Darren to his cousin’s ranch in Colorado.”
“Nice. If something falls through, let me know; I’ll have the Aspen staff get the house ready for you. There’s more than enough space there, too.”
“Thanks, I’ll tell him the backup plan.”
“Good.” The bright artificial light of a computer screen hits his face. “I’ll let you go, so you’re not late to the bus.”
“Okay, talk later.”
“Love you, son,” his eyes focus on my face.
“Love you, too. Have fun in Rome.”
As soon as I hang up, I realize I only have about ten minutes to pack and get down to the bus. I make it with only a minute to spare, and I’m the last to arrive. Hazel jumps into my arms before I get two steps in.
“Thank you,” she squeals, squeezing me tight.
I drop my bag and hug her back, lifting her off her feet and swinging her back forth. Stone meets my gaze over her shoulder with a smile of his own.
“Congratulations.” I squeeze her back. “No need to thank me, it’s your work that got you the deal.”
“Yeah, but it’s your dad.”
Stone stands and tugs her away from me like the jealous bastard he is. I release her with a roll of my eyes. If I didn’t love seeing the way she’s brought out the best in him, I’d tell him he was an idiot. But I can deal with my best friend turning into a caveman for her.
“What happened?” Jade asks with a knowing smile.
“Sierra called me this morning to tell me that I have a film adaptation offer for the book.” Hazel looks back and forth between us. “I don’t know which one of you put it on his radar, but it’s from Xan’s dad.”
Jade and I share a smile.
“No clue what you’re talking about,” she says to Hazel.
“Maybe he was curious from all the good press you’re getting,” I add.
“Right,” she says skeptically. “Regardless, I’m so excited.”
“Do you have an attorney to look over the contract before you sign?” Darren asks.
I’m not offended that his first inclination is making sure she’s protected on her end of the deal.
If anything, it’s nice to see him protective of her.
When he originally suggested bringing her on tour, it was basically using her as a distraction from Stone’s battle with addiction.
As he usually is, he was a dick at the beginning to her.
We settle in for the relatively short drive we have between cities.
As usual, the girls and Darren take up residence at the table, their various electronics spread all over while they work.
Tobias is sleeping in his bunk. Stone and I power the gaming system and start a new role-playing game we haven’t tried before.
Every so often I’ll steal a look at Jade. My stomach flips when her eyes meet mine, and we share a secret smile. It feels so fucking good to finally be here with her like this. Everything is falling into place, even if we’re threading a knife’s edge with the future.