Starting From Here (Starting From #3) - Lane Hayes Page 0,31
taking a shigarette break,” Justin slurred, mussing my hair. “I gotta find him.”
I batted his hand away irritably. “Geez, how much have you had to drink?”
“Too much. Those pink things go down easy, and they’re desheptively tiny. I think I had five before I felt it. I’m up to seven now and I’m feeling very fucking dangerous. Dare me to do something.”
“No way. That never ends well.”
He threw his head back and guffawed. “Hey, if the night ends with a good story, it’s always worthwhile. ’Member that time we opened for that wannabe punk band at Mick’s bar? What were they called? The Fuzzies or The Fuzzy Wuzzies or the—”
“Wombats,” I supplied in amusement.
Justin snapped his fingers and nodded like a puppet. “Good memory. Their lead singer was such a dick. I didn’t feel guilty about the tuna fish sandwich. Not at all.”
My reluctant chuckle gave way to a belly laugh. “That was disgusting. And it totally backfired when he left his guitar on stage. Fuck, that was rank. I don’t think I ever asked how you stuffed it between the strings without him noticing.”
“I didn’t do it myself. I was just the brains,” he said, tapping his temple like a mad scientist.
“Who did it?”
“Dec.” Justin narrowed his gaze and pointed toward the bar. “You know, before all that shit went down, he used to be fun. I’m a sucker for a good sense of humor, and I like idiots who say yes to a dare no matter how stupid it sounds. Once upon a time, I liked him. You did too, huh?”
I huffed. “Your seventh cosmo is messing with your head.”
“Wanna know what I think?”
“Not really,” I admitted without heat.
“Dec was jealous of us. Me and you. I used to think it was me he wanted or something he thought I could do for him, but lately…I’ve been thinking it was you all along. I think Dec had a big fuckin’ crush on you. I couldn’t understand why he used to hang around me when you were the one he wanted. Fuckin’ mystery.”
I frowned. “That’s not—”
“There you are.” Gray grinned as he approached our table. “You ready to go, baby?”
“Are you kidding me? I’s born ready. Super ready if you know what I mean.” Justin snorted.
Gray widened his eyes in alarm. “Whoa. What happened to him? He was fine half an hour ago.”
“Must have been a delayed reaction,” I explained with a shrug. “He said he’s had seven cosmos and—”
“Seven?” Gray frowned when Justin burrowed his face in his neck and started unbuttoning his shirt.
Justin stroked Gray’s beard and nipped his jaw. “God, you’re hot. Like, so hot. We’re gonna have sex when we get home.”
Gray pursed his lips as he threaded his fingers with Justin’s. “Okay. Looks like I have a situation here. We’d better go before he gets us arrested.”
I chuckled. “Sound idea. It’s been a good event. I think.”
“Yeah, Charlie’s definitely getting the hang of this. He’s always been great about managing social media. Both bands have had plenty of exposure tonight. I was talking to Petra earlier.” Gray paused to gesture to the bar before continuing. “She’s the woman Dec’s with now. She told me she’s doing a piece for Music Box and—”
“That’s Petra?” Justin suddenly perked up, turning to shamelessly stare. “She’s the reporter, T. The reporter. Or blogger…or both.”
“Huh?”
“C’mon, I need to talk to her.”
“Not tonight. You’re drunk. We’re going home. Let Tegan handle it.” Gray tugged at his elbow.
Justin pulled away and set his hand on my chest. “Go see what the enemy is up to. You have to tell our side of the story.”
I furrowed my brow. “What are you talking about?”
Justin widened his eyes, angling his head to the bar meaningfully as Gray pulled him away.
Reporter? No thanks. I was the last guy to volunteer for interviews for a reason. I hated them and I never had anything new to add, which worked out fine because Justin was a ham. He loved the media attention and the crowds. I just wanted to play music. My “founding member” status occasionally threw me into the limelight, but I pawned off those duties to Ky whenever possible. He was better at peopling.
I scanned the area for Ky and Charlie before glancing at the bar again…just as Declan turned.
Our eyes met for a moment, and it was harder than it should have been to look away. He was the sexiest fucking bastard I’d ever met. Bar none.