have even touched that if he had known. He wasn’t about all the drama.
He wouldn’t have minded her being backstage and showing her support, but since then she always tried to get him to fuck her again. He had been drunk as hell when he had screwed her, and ever since then he’d regretted it.
Even if he hadn’t reunited with Tanner again he wouldn’t have been with Laura. She was just too desperate for him, and being with her had been a mistake in the first place.
“Thanks, Laura. Glad you liked the show.” He ran the towel he still held over his face once more, tossed it aside, and went to turn. She grabbed onto his forearm, and he stopped and looked down at where she held him.
“I know you have to get back out there, but maybe afterwards you and me could go somewhere quiet with a bottle of tequila?”
Gently but firmly removing his arm from her grasp, he shook his head, “Thanks, but I’m going to pass. I’m beat already.” He wasn’t, but that wasn’t the point. “Besides, remember I told you the last few times that there won’t be another time with you and me?”
She shrugged. “Yeah, I know. I just thought we could talk.” Talk, yeah right. “Anyway, I’ll see you after the show.” She turned and headed away from the stage. Her outfit was not very revealing, but it was tight as hell and left nothing to the imagination.
“Dude, if you are not going to hit that again I’m going for it. She’s got an ass that I want to break my dick off in.” Five was standing right next to him, and after he spoke he guzzled down half the bottle of water he held. Leave it to Five to come right out and say what he wanted.
“Man, she’s all yours.”
Five turned and looked at him and grinned. “Yeah, I figured since I know you wanting Tanner on tour isn’t just to do our graphics.” Five slapped him on the chest in good humor. “Come on, let’s rock it one more time before we party it down.” Five tilted his chin toward the stage, and Matty and Beats followed suit. It had only been a few days, and Jacks still didn’t have Tanner’s answer on whether she was going with them or not.
They had spoken on the phone and texted each other, but that wasn’t the same thing as being with her. He could still smell her, feel her, and imagine being inside of her. But it wasn’t just about sex with her. It was about everything.
Putting her toward the back of his mind so he could get this last thing done, he headed back on stage for the encore.
11
She was doing it, really doing it. Tanner sat in the passenger side of Zoe’s car and stared at the massive tour bus a few feet from them.
“Thank you again for doing this. I know it must be hard with the whole…” She glanced at Zoe. “The whole Beats thing and how you’re feeling.” There was a smaller bus behind, which Tanner assumed to be for Black Pearl. A few dark vans were parked off to the side, and several Twisted Feather staff members were standing by them. Some were smoking, others talking, but it was clear they were waiting.
A few employees had put the last of the baggage in the bus, and she realized the band must have stayed the night. They had this grand tour bus at their disposal, but she assumed living in a mobile home didn’t compare to sleeping on a real bed.
“Don’t be sorry for anything. I’m excited for you.” Zoe turned in her seat and smiled, but there was this sadness. “Besides, I can’t stay inside for the rest of my life because things didn’t work out the way I wanted them to.” She shrugged and tightened her hands on the steering wheel until her knuckles turned white. “That’s life, right?”
“I guess.” Tanner reached out and placed a hand on her shoulder. “But thank you.” Zoe shook her head and looked at the tour bus. “It does kind of suck that you came back only to leave again.” She looked back at Tanner and started laughing. “But who am I kidding? I am so excited for you. This is the chance of a lifetime, girl. I’ll miss you, though, but I’ll live vicariously through your awesome phone calls and texts.”
Tanner started chuckling. “You know I’ll be calling you all