exit,” he growls.
Darn. If I’d been paying attention instead of figuring out how to explain this hot mess, he wouldn’t be driving around looking for a place to turn in an unfamiliar city.
I hurry to reset the GPS and help him find the new turn-off. Guilt knots my stomach. But he’s trying to focus on the road while he’s in the middle of doing yet another favor for me. Not the best time to blurt out that I have a stalker.
He follows the signs for the arena and I read him Greg’s instructions for how to find the loading area.
As soon as we pull into the lot, I spot Bane’s big frame hanging out by Dawson’s bus.
You’ve stalled long enough. Time to fess up.
“Uh, Rooster. I, uh, have to—”
“Who is that guy?” Rooster asks. “He was with you last night when I picked you up.”
“Well, that’s what I wanted to tell you.”
He blinks and waits. Doesn’t accuse me of cheating or anything silly like that. “I got this letter the other night…it’s stupid, honestly. But Cindy made a big deal out of it and got Greg involved. Then Greg told Dawson, who assigned one of his guards to stick with me.”
“Whoa. Slow down.” He closes his eyes for a second. “That obsessed fan thing the DJs mentioned was true?”
“I don’t know about obsessed. It was, like, two letters.”
“Now it’s two letters?”
“Well, three. That I know of.”
“Shelby, are you fucking kidding me? How long has this been going on?”
“Since right after Baltimore, I think.”
“What?” His sharp question punches through the air. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“It was a letter! Paper, ink, and some stupid, creepy words. It’s not like it was a bomb or something. Dawson assigned one of his guys to watch me. I didn’t want to make you worry about something so silly.”
“You let me decide what to worry about. Dammit.” He stabs his fingers through his hair and won’t even look at me.
“Rooster.”
“Don’t. I’m really fuckin’ furious with you right now.” While he claims to be furious, he’s awfully gentle as he pulls me into his arms, crushing me against his chest. “I hate that you’ve been worrying about this and didn’t think you should tell me.”
“I didn’t want you to worry or think you had to do anything about it.”
He rests his hands on my shoulders and pushes me back so he can meet my eyes. “Of course I worry about you. And you’re mistaken if you think I’m gonna sit around and do nothing.”
“Rooster.”
“You’re a ballsy little brat, giving me grief about my job when your life’s in danger. You know that?”
“My life isn’t in danger. And I honestly think I took the news of your job rather well, considering.”
He kisses the tip of my nose and flicks a glance at Bane again. “At least I know why ol’ beefcake was following you around.”
“Stop. Bane’s been nice to me.”
Rooster continues scowling.
“Don’t you dare,” I warn him. “You start pissing a circle ’round me ’cause you’re mad I didn’t tell you sooner, I’ll kick your firm, sexy ass back to your porno ranch right this second.”
“Love to see you try, chickadee.” He smirks. “I’m not going anywhere.”
Now it’s my turn to growl some frustrated noises.
He hooks his arm around my waist and leans down to kiss me. I lace my arms around his neck, tugging him closer. “That’s better,” I whisper.
After one final kiss, he pulls away. “Let’s go.”
We unpack my stuff from the truck quickly. Bane meets us halfway, giving Rooster a serious once-over.
“Bane, this is my boyfriend, Logan.”
Rooster sets my guitar down and shakes Bane’s hand. “Thank you for watching out for her.”
Gee, and here I expected Rooster to go all caveman and tell Bane he’d handle things from here and to get lost.
“Just doing what the boss told me to do,” Bane says.
Rooster smirks at me. “My girl didn’t feel it was important to tell me about this until just now, or I would’ve been here sooner.”
“Still woulda been watching out for her.” Bane’s serious expression doesn’t change. “Come on. I’ll walk you guys back to her room. Greg was lookin’ for ya, Shelby.”
Rooster keeps his arm around me, tucked so tight to his body we keep bumping into each other.
“You wanna just pick me up and stick me in your pocket?” I ask.
“Yeah, it’d be easier.” He squeezes my hip. “Quit being a smartass.”
Bane stops at an unmarked white door and twists the handle, gesturing for us to go inside. “I’ll be right