Logan chuckled and squeezed her close. “That rhymes.”
“Maybe I should try getting into the music business,” she said. “I could write lyrics for your new album.”
“Uh, let’s not and say you did.”
She huffed at him. “Are you trying to stifle my creative genius?”
“I’d rather encourage it. You’re coming back on tour with me, right? You have to finish your book. Your mom and grandma will take good care of Birdie. If you need to get home, we’ll get you home. I don’t know why you’re hesitating—don’t you want to stay with me?”
“I do,” she admitted, but there was one more thing holding her back. “But I’m not sure the band wants me there.” There, she’d said it. How could she spend weeks in close quarters with four people who hated her guts?
“I don’t give a fuck what they want. I want you there. I’ll do whatever it takes to keep you with me. We belong together. Always.”
She stood on tiptoe and captured his lips for a kiss. “Don’t say it if you don’t mean it.”
“I mean it.”
He deepened their kiss, heightening her arousal, filling her thoughts with nothing but him.
Always.
Thirty-Nine
As Toni stepped onto Exodus End’s tour bus, her stomach took residence in her calf-hugging boots. She clutched the strap of her messenger bag and tried to swallow her queasiness. Would these guys ever accept her apology and let her close to them again? Or would she be forced to leave? The wall of muscle and mean that suddenly appeared in her path did nothing to put her at ease.
“No fans on the bus,” Butch said, his mustache twitching with disapproval.
“Then I guess I’d better leave,” she said.
“Is that Toni?” Max said from the back of the bus.
“Logan actually did something right for a change,” Steve said with a laugh.
“Toni’s back!” Reagan cried, nearly knocking Butch on his ass as she shoved him aside to grab Toni in a rib-crushing hug. “I’m so sorry I yelled at you. And that I pushed you. And I thought you were responsible. I should have known you weren’t a backstabbing whorebag. We’re going to get back at those bitches, aren’t we?”
Well, considering one of those bitches was her mother, probably not.
“Welcome home,” Dare said, his green-eyed gaze warm and inviting. Toni knew he reserved that look for people he trusted.
“It’s good to be back,” she said with a happy smile.
“What? No one cares that I’m back too?” Logan said, shifting sideways so Toni wasn’t blocking their view of him.
“Not really,” Reagan teased, but the guys smacked him around a little to let him know he’d been missed.
With the man she loved at her side and a bright future before her, Toni no longer had to reach for her stars. They were right there beside her.
June 2
Dear Journal,
It’s been a while since I wrote. I’ve been super busy. Today is the last day of Exodus End’s North American tour. We’re heading to the UK in two weeks for the Download Festival. I can’t wait to get that first stamp in my brand new passport. The band has the next two weeks off while their equipment ships overseas. Of course, I had to record footage of them loading the semis on the freighter, so Logan and I are currently down at the docks. Yes, it was cool to see the cranes lifting those big containers, knowing the tour was packed inside. Yes, this is all going into the book. I don’t know if I’ll ever completely finish gathering data for this book. I’ll probably need to break it into two volumes. Or maybe three.
Logan and I plan to spend the next few days in Key West—he insists I’ll love parasailing and sex in the ocean (sharks, anyone?)—before we head to his place in Southern California. Apparently he has a dirt bike track on his property, and he wants to teach me to ride. Not sure how I feel about that one, but he already ordered a bike for me, so I have to at least try it out. We’re going to California because I’m his date for Sed Lionheart’s wedding next weekend. Jessica will be such a beautiful bride—even if she has packed on a few pounds (don’t tell her I noticed)—and I’ll get to see Sinners in tuxedos! It should be a blast. Then Logan and I are heading north to spend the rest of our vacation time with my family.
Birdie can’t wait to show Logan her new horse. Mom is probably rethinking