off the stage and kick his ass.” I open the water and take a quick drink, before pouring the remainder of it over my head and face.
“Dude is pretty pissed. Check him out.”
When I look out into the crowd, I immediately notice Brad pushing people out of his way and yelling at them. “Fuck it. People talk no matter what. Might as well give them something to talk about, right?” I slap Hendrix’s back and hand him my guitar, before jumping off the stage, making my way through the crowd.
Female hands go crazy, groping me as I make my way toward Brad and tap him on the shoulder.
“What—” He turns around and I swing out my elbow, connecting it hard with his jaw, causing him to fall back. This douchebag is really pushing his luck here tonight.
Brad is quick to jump to his feet and come at me, tackling me down to the ground. He’s bigger than me, but as soon as my head connects hard with his, I’m able to push him off me and get back to my feet.
I get a few more swings in before security breaks us apart. Aaron drags Brad away as Travis shoves me toward the back of the room and away from everyone. At least, I assume it’s Travis until I hear my cousin Chance’s Australian accent and finally look up to see his copper reddish-brown hair and blue eyes.
“Are you trying to end up in the back of a squad car again, Mate? You’re being reckless. Maybe wait until you get the wanker alone, yeah?”
“I’m good.” I shake the grip he has on me and pull out a cigarette, turning to Travis as he approaches and attempts to reach for my shoulder. “I’ll be on the tour bus, chilling the fuck out. I need some space for a bit.”
He throws his arms up, not wanting to get on my bad side, most likely. “Fine. I’ll let the guys know.”
Once outside, I take a huge breath of fresh air and run my hands through my wet hair. I really need this right now. It’s not often that I get even five minutes away from the chaos, and I’m hoping I can get at least ten while everyone else is drinking and unwinding a bit.
Lighting up my smoke, I hop onto the bus, Chance following behind me.
My cousin had a short-lived career as a soccer player in Australia until he tore his ACL his first professional game. I grew up not really knowing who he was, since he moved away when he was five—before I was born—but have recently become close to him after learning he was back in the U.S.
Whenever RISK has a concert in California, Chance and his wife come from Hermosa Beach to watch it. “Where’s Aubrey? Is she here? How are the kids?”
He shakes his head and searches through the mini-fridge as if he owns it. “Nah, she had a girls’ night with Adele. Said to say hello for you. They’re great, Mate. Finally got Bree to say Dada.” Without asking, he opens a sandwich he finds and tears into it. “Hope you weren’t planning on eating this sandwich with your name on it.”
“I saw. Pixy too.” The thought of little Chance, Bree and that damn goat of theirs, eases my mood just a bit. With a half-smirk, I shake my head. “Nah, you’re good. I can’t stomach shit right now anyway.” I run a hand through my hair again and exhale. “I didn’t see you before the show. Was wondering where your ass would pop up. Thought maybe you changed your mind about coming.”
“Nah.” He stands and slaps my shoulder, popping the last bite into his mouth. “You never know when I’ll pop up. That’s part of my charm, Cousin.” He eyes me over, slipping out of his brown leather jacket and getting comfortable while he eats It’s a few minutes before he asks, “What’s wrong?”
“Everything.” I take a long drag off my smoke and exhale, my mood quickly going back to shit. “The camping trip coming up is fucking with me.”
“Maybe’s she’s moved on by now.”
“Nope. She hasn’t. Her many texts on my phone proves she hasn’t.” I flex my jaw. “And I’m pretty sure she’s going to be there again.”
“And I’m sure you’ll be fine. You can handle her.” He stands and grips my shoulder, before shrugging his jacket back on. “You’re stronger than you think.”
“Appreciate it, man. But I don’t know. It’s easy for a guy