78. Chapter Seventy-Seven
Chapter Seventy-Seven
Riley
Her name is Rachel Watts, according to the driver’s license in her purse, and she just turned seventeen. If anything happens to her because of that fucker Larry, I’m going to make sure he never sees another sunrise. Whatever he gave her, she’s still out of it.
I watched Xane put her in the spare bedroom.
I sat on the couch and stared into space.
My hands are covered in Larry’s blood.
I didn’t kill him, but he’s not off the hook.
“She seems fine,” Xane assures me. “She’s passed out, but she’s breathing and all her vitals seem good. I’ve got Mitch on speed dial, if she’s not okay when she wakes up.”
“Mitch,” I murmur.
“The roadie who used to be a doctor.”
“Oh … Mitch.”
I can’t remember what he looks like.
It doesn’t matter.
Xane’s figuring this shit out.
I don’t have to think about it.
“I need to watch the TV,” I decide, getting up to find the remote.
If I don’t do something, I’ll go crazy.
My adrenaline is through the roof.
“Will you order chips from room service?” I ask him.
“Sure,” he says.
The rest of the night passes like a TV show on fast-forward.
I pace around while we wait for the food. I don’t remember what Xane ordered, but I know it was more substantial than the chips I asked for. When it comes, I eat for a while, watching static because I’m too fucking fried to work out why I can’t get a picture on the set.
Xane is watching me the whole time.
He never gets wasted.
He’s always sober enough to know what’s going on.
I don’t know how he does it.
There’s too much good shit being passed around.
I don’t want to miss out on anything.
And usually, I don’t.
Tonight is different.
The party died when Larry brought that girl in.
I didn’t get the chance to pass out surrounded by naked party girls.
It’s nine a.m. by the time I feel semi-sober and like I seriously need to collapse into a deep sleep.
That’s when she wakes up.
She steps out of the spare bedroom, looking terrified.
“Where … where am I?”
Xane gets up from the armchair.
At some point he showered and put on jeans and a T-shirt.
He made me get dressed, too, though I couldn’t handle the thought of a shower.
“It’s okay. You’re safe,” he assures her. “What do you remember from last night?”
She blinks at him, recognition in her eyes. “I … Wait. You’re Xane Orion. I was at the Chaos Burning concert last night. I … I don’t remember meeting you.”
He gives her a sympathetic smile. “We didn’t actually meet. Our manager … He met you in the hotel hallway last night. Brought you here … Do you remember?”
“Uh … I was kinda drunk. I think I remember getting to my hotel, but … Is this The Rowan?”
“Yeah. We’re in the president’s suite at The Rowan.”
“Okay, then I guess I came up here with your manager instead of going to my room.”
She’s looking at Xane like she’s in awe now.
It’s a look I’ve seen a million times.
All the fans want Xane.
I always joke that he’s the siren of the band, luring them in with his voice.
We need to get her out of here before she gets any ideas.
I get to my feet, stumbling slightly before righting myself.
“We should make sure you get to your room,” I start.
She turns and looks at me, and it’s like she didn’t even know I was there.
The look she hits me with is the same one she gave Xane.
And it’s followed with the addition of a sweet scent on the air.
It’s like nothing I’ve ever experienced before.
A light fruity smell that’s somehow sexy.
It’s coming from her.
Holy fuck.
She’s an Omega.
“Oh my God,” she murmurs, putting a hand to her mouth. “I can’t believe it.”
She moves toward me, and I can’t seem to make myself move.
Her dark eyes are wide as she looks at me.
“I never thought this would happen,” she says, clearly beyond happy.
I don’t get why she’s so excited, but her perfume is insanely distracting.
My body’s reacting to the scent in ways I don’t like.
This is a goddamn teenager.
I’m not attracted to her.
I don’t want this.
“Nothing’s happening,” I warn her, glancing at Xane.
He’s not stepping in because it’s affecting him, too.
The confused expression he’s wearing seals it.
“But, don’t you get it?” she asks, smiling brightly. “We’re true mates!”
Those words are all it takes to make my stomach recoil.
I keel over and throw up, right in front of her.
She jumps back.
I hear Xane snap out of it and deal with the problem.
He gets her out of the room.
I don’t feel better after I’ve purged.
I feel worse.
That smell is still all around me.
It’s like it embedded into the room while she was here.
My stomach hurts like hell, my head is pounding, and some part of me is still reacting to her perfume as if it was the sexiest thing ever.
I can’t deal with this. It’s too fucking much.
I’m not the true mate of a teenager.
This can’t be happening.