fuck, I really knew how to stir a pot full of steaming shit, didn’t I?
Wearing only a thong, I quickly squeezed my ass into my tightest pair of blue jeans. I then paired it with a cropped black corset that pushed my tits up to my chin.
Perfect.
If only those assholes could see me now.
Bound’s first impression of me hadn’t been exactly accurate. They’d been too quick to judge me by my cover while ignoring the pages inside.
As I shoved my feet into a pair of thigh-high boots with fake crystals and silver spikes adorning the black straps running the entire length, I considered biting the bullet and calling them. I wasn’t a fan of the self-involved who assumed communication was only found from one end, so if the three of them couldn’t be mature about this, I would.
Perhaps it would be for the best.
Houston, Loren, and Jericho were undoubtedly expecting me to cower. If Oni was right and Bound was splintering, a new threat would force them together. I just wasn’t thrilled at the idea of turning myself into a target. It wasn’t quite what Oni had asked me to do, but I didn’t see any other way.
Carrying my ruck and guitar case into the living room, I found my backing band in the living room pregaming with my roommates. I’d met Liam, Mason, and Abe two years ago in a dive bar. Liam had hit on me first, followed by his brother, who somehow thought he had a better chance after I’d turned down his twin, who was identical in every way.
It wasn’t their fault they had no shot. The night we met, I was a skittish kitten still adjusting to my surroundings even though I’d been in L.A. for two years. Once upon a time, their blond hair, blue eyes, and the boy-next-door charm would have won me over. I turned them down because I knew what they were inviting into their bed while they had no clue.
Abe, their equally hot but too shy roommate, hadn’t bothered trying after watching his friends get shut down. Apparently, rejection had never happened to the Miller brothers before. I was grateful that at least one of the trio could take a hint since Liam and Mason, usually when alcohol was involved, hadn’t entirely given up on getting down.
They might not have been able to weaken my resolve, but they had convinced me to let them back me on stage since I was more adept at scoring gigs, and they needed the extra cash.
Tonight was one of those nights.
The guys were decent musicians with Liam on lead guitar and backup vocals, Abe on bass, and Mason on drums while I doubled up on vocals and rhythm. It’s just that their hearts belonged elsewhere. The twins were both studying to be doctors and Abe an engineer. Music was just their side bitch.
“You ready for this?” Liam greeted after pouring a shot and handing it to me. He studied me so intently that paranoia had me fearing he knew my secret. I hadn’t told anyone, not a single soul, that I was Bound’s new guitarist, so I knew it wasn’t possible. I doubted anyone would believe me even with my tour contract bearing Savant’s letterhead along with Houston’s angry scrawl, Loren’s practiced one, and Jericho’s lazy loops beneath my effeminate signature.
Stupidly, I’d stared at our names for hours that night, and it wasn’t awe over my fast road to stardom that made me do so. It was seeing my name mixed among theirs. The strangest part was how right it all seemed—like lost pieces connecting at last.
Nodding at Liam, I took the shot glass, tossed it back, and decided as liquid courage burned its way down my throat that Bound’s time was up. I’d give them until morning before I broke down the walls they’d built and stormed my way into their lives once again.
“Aren’t you cold?”
Bundled in a magenta winter coat with a fur hood, Maeko peered up at me through dark eyes while waiting for my answer. Despite it being winter, it was seventy degrees today and wouldn’t get cold until much later. I’d give it another hour before Maeko gave in and peeled off those unneeded layers.
Griffin, the most daring of us, wore even less than I did. Her entire ensemble was red—faux-leather skater skirt and sheer, long-sleeved crop top. She didn’t leave much room for guessing, even though the stares she caught lasted an uncomfortable length of time. She’d turned