17
Phoenix
The next few days flew by in a whirlwind of interviews, after-parties, and sound checks.
Every night, the guys put on an incredible show, the energy in the air crackling with excitement.
It was intoxicating.
I stayed on the sidelines, watching them command the stage like gods.
For those couple hours each night, I could indulge in staring to my heart’s content without anyone noticing, especially Kage.
Kage hadn’t said a word about our last encounter—about helping me out or my secret.
But something had shifted between us.
I could feel it.
Sometimes, I’d catch him looking at me, his gaze holding something I couldn’t quite read.
The softness in his eyes was confusing, and before I could figure out what it meant, he’d smile and look away, pretending like nothing had changed. But it had.
Kage wasn’t the only one acting differently either.
Parker and even Zephyr had toned down their usual snark.
Normally, they’d be throwing jabs my way or making me feel like an outsider, but this week, it was like I’d become part of the scenery.
They hadn’t scowled in my direction once.
Not even a single dig at my job or a mention of “babysitting.”
It was… nice.
Maybe they were starting to see me as more than just someone hired to keep them out of trouble.
It was our last night in Syracuse, and tomorrow we’d be heading off to Connecticut.
I found myself sitting around a makeshift firepit with Zander and Lars while their Corruption bandmates, Hendrix and Cohen, finished up a meeting with Purely Onyx and Pete.
Zander not being part of the meeting didn’t surprise me.
The guy had barely spoken two words since I joined the tour. His communication mostly consisted of grunts and scowls.
Lars, on the other hand, was a bit of a mystery.
As a Beta, I expected him to let the Alphas run the show, but I’d noticed he had a quiet strength about him that made me wonder just how much control he really had.
Either way, I was enjoying the calm around the fire as the others nursed their beers, and I sipped on a now lukewarm lemonade.
“So, Nix,”
Lars started, his voice smooth like honey, drawing my attention away from the flames. “Any plans for our weekend off in Philly? We were thinking of heading up to the Poconos for some white water rafting. You in?”
I smiled at the invite. “You know, I think I might just take you up on that offer,”
I said, placing my drink down and leaning back in my chair. “An adventure day sounds perfect.”
Lars tipped his head in acknowledgment just as someone approached from behind. The familiar scent of spiced orange and cinnamon hit me before I saw him—Parker.
“What’s this?”
His question was aimed at me, but his eyes were locked on Lars, suspicion lurking in the intensity of his gaze.
“We’re taking Nix white water rafting when we get a day off,”
Lars answered smoothly, barely giving me time to respond. His tone was casual, but there was an edge to it—a silent challenge in the way he held Parker’s stare.
Parker’s lips curled into a low, rumbling growl, the sound deep and possessive. The tension hit me right in the gut, and I found myself involuntarily squeezing my thighs together, my body reacting to the primal sound. Parker’s sharp eyes flicked down, noticing, and before I knew it, his hand was gripping one of my knees. The heat of his touch sent a shiver through me.
He leaned forward, his voice tight with barely contained aggression. “Let’s get one thing straight,”
he said through clenched teeth. “You fuckers keep your hands—and your dicks—off Phoenix. She’s ours.”
My stomach flipped at his words. Heat rushed to my cheeks, creeping up my neck, and I was thankful the dim light of the fire would hide my blush from the others. Parker had no right to be claiming me like that, warning them off like I was some kind of prize. Yet I couldn’t deny that the possessiveness in his voice sent a thrill through me.
Zander raised an eyebrow, clearly unimpressed by Parker’s posturing, while Lars merely chuckled and held up his hands in mock surrender.
“Easy, man,”
Lars said with a grin. “We’re just offering her some fun, no strings attached.”
Parker’s grip on my knee tightened for a moment before he released me, his gaze softening as it flicked back to me. Before I could fully process the look in his dark eyes, he straightened up and took a step back.
“Just making sure we’re clear,”
he muttered.
I swallowed hard, still feeling the heat from his touch. I didn’t know what to say, so I stayed quiet, letting the tension between the guys ebb slowly into an awkward silence. The flickering firelight danced across their faces, casting shadows that felt far too intimate in that moment.
I glanced at the flames again, my mind swirling with thoughts I wasn’t ready to confront. This thing with Parker, with all of them—it was getting complicated. And deep down, I wasn’t sure I wanted to untangle it.
◆◆◆
The rest of Corruption and Purely Onyx joined us, and Parker tugged me to my feet with a gentle hand. “Come on, little Doll. We have something we’d like to discuss,”
he said, his tone lower than usual, almost… serious. That alone was enough to make my stomach twist with nervous anticipation. Had Kage told them?
He led me to the tour bus, his large hand resting at the base of my spine—a gesture that felt both protective and possessive.
The warmth of his palm seared through the thin fabric of my shirt, making it hard to focus on anything else as he gently encouraged me up the stairs.
My pulse quickened as I gripped the railing and pushed the door open.
Inside, the soft hum of the refrigerator filled the otherwise quiet space.
Kage and Zephyr were already seated around the small kitchen bench, their eyes lifting to meet mine as I stepped inside.
Kage leaned back, his muscled arms crossed over his chest, while Zephyr sat next to him, his hands resting on his knees, looking more thoughtful than I’d ever seen him. What the fuck was going on?
Parker gestured for me to sit with them, and I slid into the bench seat next to Kage.
His familiar crisp apple and tobacco instantly calmed my nerves a little, but it wasn’t enough to stop the knot of tension forming in my chest as the three Alphas stared at me, their silence stretching uncomfortably long.
The guys exchanged glances, as if waiting for someone to break the ice.
Kage’s brow furrowed slightly, and Zephyr’s usual cocky demeanor was nowhere to be found.
Both of them looked to Parker, clearly expecting him to speak first. I chewed on the inside of my cheek.
Finally Parker cleared his throat.
His deep voice filled the small space, but it was softer and more measured than I’d ever heard it.
“We’re sorry for how we treated you, Phoenix.”
I blinked, my brain scrambling to make sense of the words.
Sorry? I must have misheard him.
Apologies from Alphas were as rare as seeing a unicorn. I opened my mouth, ready to tell them not to worry about it, that I understood, but Kage cut me off before I could speak.
“We shouldn’t have taken our frustration with needing a minder out on you.”
He shifted beside me, turning his whole body to face me, one arm resting along the back of the bench. His close proximity made my heart skip a beat, the warmth of his presence almost overwhelming.
“We knew our behavior would eventually cost us some of our freedom, but we stayed on the same destructive path anyway.”
His eyes locked onto mine, their usual intensity softened. His words hit deeper than I’d expected, and it was like a boulder had settled on my chest.
“When our label said they were sending a representative from the PR firm, we knew it was for the best,”
Kage continued, his gaze never wavering from mine. “But that didn’t take the sting out of it. It was easier to be pissed at you than to admit we had brought this on ourselves.”
Zephyr, who had been uncharacteristically quiet, nodded along with Kage’s words before adding his own. “Really, we couldn’t have asked for someone better suited for us,”
he said. “It just took us a while to pull our heads out of our asses.”
I let out an involuntary snort. “They were pretty far up there, to be fair.”
Parker chuckled softly at my remark, a small smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. But the levity didn’t last long. His expression turned serious again as he looked at me, his dark eyes filled with raw emotion.
“We’d like to start over,”
he said quietly. “If you’ll let us.”
The question hung in the air, heavy with meaning.
I looked down at my hands, which were clasped tightly in my lap.
My fingers twisted nervously as I tried to process what was happening.
I never imagined they’d apologize, let alone ask for a fresh start.
Alphas didn’t admit when they were wrong. It just wasn’t something that happened. And yet, here they were—three of them—offering me something I hadn’t realized I’d been craving.
A small, hopeful flutter rose in my chest, making it hard to breathe.
I took a long, steadying breath before looking back up at them.
Their faces were a mixture of hope, uncertainty, and maybe even a little fear.
They were putting themselves out there, taking a risk.
And in that moment, I realized I wanted to take it, too.
“I think we can manage that,”
I whispered, the words slipping out before I could second-guess myself.
The tension in the room eased immediately.
Zephyr let out a relieved breath, Kage’s arm dropped from the back of the bench to rest gently on my shoulders, and Parker’s smile finally reached his eyes.
It was subtle, but I could feel the shift—something between us, all of us, changing for the better.
For the first time in a long while, I felt like I wasn’t just some outsider in their world.
I was… part of it.
And that realization was both terrifying and exhilarating.