36. Creed
Chapter 36
Creed
I go unseen and unheard for several minutes as I watch Riley and Collins laughing while he twirls her around in the kitchen. She’s wearing nothing but one of my worn out, oversized t-shirts with another tiny pair of shorts underneath it. The moves are soft and sweet in contrast to the Snow Wife song that’s currently playing at volumes that rival that of the concert we just wrapped up. I slink to the couch and sink into the cushion, wishing I had popcorn to watch the show in front of me.
She’s got her hands clasped in his as they twist and turn, dancing and bobbing to the beat. Collins surprises me when she drops down, her back straight and her knees spread wide. The move isn’t overly sexual, but it’s got me hard in an instant. She says something about being stuck and holds her hands out for Riley to help her up. They both stumble when he yanks her upright and they embrace each other while laughing.
I swear I feel my heart melting within my chest cavity. Riley wants to leave this?
When the song ends, I start to clap, only that seems to have broken the happy spell because they fly apart like they’ve done something wrong and that just won’t do. I’ve got to fix this shit, tonight.
Collins has the nerve to look guilty and it pisses me off. Not at her, but at the fact that she thinks I would ever judge her for creating her own happiness, even if it’s with my best friend.
They both stand stock still as I approach them and step up to Collins first. Careful of my movements, I give her my most genuine smile, cup her face, and give her a quick, soft kiss. I tell her to go pack an overnight bag and to meet me outside the bus in twenty minutes.
She looks hesitant but nods and disappears to the back of the bus. When I turn to Riley, the poor guy looks like he’s about to throw up and I’m not even certain he’s breathing right now. The fact that I’ve made him feel this way feels like a stab in the gut. I reach for him but he flinches and my heart cracks. Wanting him to feel reassured and to get rid of that god-awful fear that I see in his eyes, I softly grasp his face between my palms and offer him the same smile that I gave to Collins, hoping like fuck he can read the intention without me having to spell it out.
He releases a harsh breath that I fucking knew he was holding in and his whole body deflates in relief when I press my lips against his forehead and hold him there for a moment.
After tonight there’ll be no more of this fear bullshit. None of us should be living in fear.
Speaking of?—
I glance down the hall and see that Collins has busied herself with picking out clothes for tomorrow while she’s got her new cellphone pressed to her ear and laughs at something that whoever she’s talking to said. My guess is that it’s either Asher, her coworker, Cozy, or Jett, the bouncer I know she’d bonded with while working at Viper. I let it go and let her enjoy her conversation. For now.
I look back at Riley who now has a huge glass of milk in one hand and a sub sandwich in the other. He’s already eaten nearly half of it in two bites. He and Collins are similar in that fashion. They eat everything and I have yet to see where the hell it all goes once they swallow it because they’re both so damn slender.
I stifle a laugh and focus on what I need to ask Riley. I nod toward the door that leads out of the bus. “Talk with me for a minute?”
“Yeah,” he says, still sounding nervous. But he sets his sandwich and drink down to follow me outside. It doesn’t escape my attention that he had also set a similar drink and sandwich out for Collins, as well.
See? He’s perfect for you, too, Stardust.
As soon as the door shuts Riley’s mouth starts running with apologies and it wasn’t what it looked like’ comments but I quickly silence him with a series of odd shushes and a finger over his lips. I shake my head, “I’m not worried about you and Collins, Ri.”
His shoulders slump in relief again and I want to punch something that isn’t his perfectly freckled face.
“Then what did you?—”
“Have you checked Collins’ old phone since you got back to the bus?”
He stops and stands still for a moment. “No, I didn’t get a chance to look yet. Should I?”
I nod, sweeping a hand through my hair and lean back against the bus. “Yeah. I know shit isn’t good, but I don’t think I could check it again without going batshit crazy. But I want to know right away what it says.”
“Okay,” He says quickly, turning to get back on the bus, but I catch him by the back of his shirt and yank him back.
“Not now,” I hiss. I feel like shit for snapping so I take a breath and try again. Riley doesn’t deserve crazy Creed. “Check it once I get Collins out of here.”
“Wait, what?” He asks, his dark eyes swimming in confusion. “Where are you going?”
“I think the better question is, where do you think you’re going, Ri?”
His brow furrows further before realization hits him. He knows that I know what he sent to Bear. Good. But I plow on before he can try and justify himself. “I’m taking her to a hotel for the night. My goal is to give her some luxury maybe once or twice a week while we travel. I know the bus can get stuffy and I don’t want her to feel suffocated.”
I also plan to fuck her into oblivion and hopefully turn this twosome into a threesome. In the best way, but still. I digress.
“Oh, o-okay.” He says softly, then the rest of the implication of tonight sinks in. “That make’s sense. She needs?—”
“Us.”
“What?”
“What?”
“You said?—”
“Meet us at the Emerald Palace Hotel at midnight. I’ll have the front desk leave a key for you.”
Riley is looking more confused by the second and I can tell that I’m starting to slip from sanity with how deep the need to fix this entire situation is. Riley’s shoulders shrug at the same time his hands fan out, palms up, and his voice bordering on panic mode. “Creed, what the hell are you talking about? I’m not barging in on you and Collins tonight. Fuck that.”
“It’s not barging if I just invited you, Ri.”
“She’s not gonna want me there.” He rasps, his face looking so defeated.
I just grin at him and his head tilts slightly in confusion. I lean in like I’m in on this big secret—which I am—and quietly say, “Says who?”
He rears back as if I’d slapped him right in his pretty face with a heavy dose of insanity. In one swift move I reach around Ri and yank the bus door open. “ Stardust ?” I call out.
“Just give me like, five minutes, please?” She calls back, her husky voice on the verge of cracking from trying to yell. Fuck, she’s so cute.
“Take your time, baby.” I quickly shut the door and turn to face Riley. He must read the crazy on my face because he’s refusing to fully look at me. It’s like the world’s most skeptical side-eye and it makes me want to laugh. But I don’t. I’m a man on a mission and I’ve got, like, five minutes to lay out the cards for Ri.
I grab the back of his neck gently and pull him a few feet away but keep close to the door so I can be near Collins when she steps out.
“Let me ask you something, Riley Benjamin.” He tenses beneath my hold and stands stock still. I grin at him, ready to just plow through this dumpster fire of confusion and emotional turmoil that’s got him looking so sickly right now. “Do you have feelings for my girl?”