I woke up and found myself lying on Jericho’s chest and still wearing Loren’s medallion. I didn’t understand why I was on top of Rich until I turned my head left and then right and found that Houston and Loren were in bed with us too.
They’d kept Jericho and me in the middle while they slept on opposite edges. The sun must have barely risen because not even Houston was awake yet.
As I admired his mussed hair, pursed lips, and naked chest slowly rising and falling, I wondered why I’d woken so early.
I knew the answer before the question could fully form. My mind was too restless to sleep through the morning. Houston, Loren, and Jericho had gotten me out of my head, but it had only lasted a short while.
The questions and doubt were back now and with a vengeance.
As carefully and quietly as I could, I left the bed and my bandmates sleeping in it.
I guess…technically…they were my boyfriends now.
I’m sure that’s what I had agreed to last night. I just wasn’t sure if I was up to deliver.
Shuffling out of the bedroom and through the bunk area, I intended to use the half bath in the front because I didn’t want to risk waking the guys. I needed the quiet time alone to think without one of them literally trying to fuck me out of my mind.
The moment I stepped through the sliding door, I stopped in my tracks at the sight of a dark-haired woman sitting with her back to me at the kitchen table like she belonged there.
“Hello?”
“Dude, why the fuck is your dick in my hip?” Loren shoved me off him before I could respond.
Slowly, my eyes opened, and I looked around.
Where the hell was I?
It wasn’t until my vision cleared that I recognized the bedroom and noticed the fact that my best friends and I were in it alone. I immediately climbed off, my motion startling Houston awake and annoying Loren, who sucked his teeth. Houston slowly rose to sit on the edge of the bed while Loren rolled over onto his stomach and fell back asleep.
After checking the bathroom for Braxton, I hurried to the front of the bus where I could have sworn I heard two voices speaking. I couldn’t think of any reason someone would bother us this early, but nevertheless, I smelled trouble.
When I made it to the front, that’s exactly what I found, but it was the last person I expected to see.
Braxton was sitting at the table with Oni fucking Sridhar.
“What the hell are you doing?” I immediately barked. She was a long way from Los Angeles, and her presence didn’t make any sense. Nor was it welcome. Braxton gave me a look that said she disapproved of my rudeness, and I found myself dialing it back.
Day one, and she already owned me.
Oni, however, castrated me with her gaze as she looked me over. Ever the professional, she wore a tailored, navy blue suit, nude heels on her feet, and dark hair falling in waves down her back. She was beautiful, but a viper, nonetheless. “Carl sent me to check on things.”
“I don’t remember that being a part of your job description.”
“It’s not.”
At the moment, I was regretting making Loren stick to our pact. I could really use a drink, and it was only seven in the morning.
“Now it’s my turn to ask the questions. I checked the bunks when I arrived and didn’t see anyone.” Her manicured finger waved back and forth between Braxton and me. “What’s going on here?”
“None of your business.”
I sat down at the table next to my girl, and because I felt like being a dick, I pulled her into my lap. Braxton didn’t fight me or pull away, but I could tell she was uncomfortable. There was nothing I was willing to do about that, though, since I refused to hide her in private. There was nothing we could do to prevent the backlash, but as soon as we found a suitable way to announce our relationship, I wouldn’t be denying her in public either.
Loren and Houston felt the same.
“I see,” Oni said in response to my claim. I noticed how her gaze immediately shifted to meet Braxton’s.
I didn’t get the chance to decipher that look because the bunk door had slid open, and Houston walked through. He noticed Oni immediately but didn’t react. As if she weren’t even there, he walked over to the table and took his time kissing