his body from the stress of the morning. There might still be plenty to hassle with on the tour, more drama to diffuse, but Zen sensed that him and Braylin were going to be each other’s calm.
* * * *
“You done yet, Braylin? Me and the guys were gonna grab some lunch if you want to join us.”
Braylin glanced up at Pete from where he was squatted on the stage, rifling through the gig bag that held the replacement batteries that went to the wireless unit for the guitar. The one connected to Sal’s axe had gone out, and more than ever, Braylin felt the hammer of doom poised to come down on his head if Sal were to get angry at him.
“Thanks, but I still need to finish up a few things here.”
Braylin smiled in reassurance. Pete had been tripping over himself all night during the bus ride, apologizing for blabbing about Zen and Sal.
“No problem. We can wait.”
“Um, actually, I kinda have to go do something.”
Braylin’s face heated—which had become increasingly annoying as of late—and Braylin observed as the dawn of realization lit up Pete’s features.
“Ohhh… Gotcha.”
He made a zipping motion across his lips and Braylin gave him a weak smile then exchanged waves with him. At this point, Braylin wasn’t sure trying to fly under the radar was possible. Unless he and Zen decided to stop before they even started, that is. He sighed then went back to digging through the bag to find the battery.
Braylin had spent most of the night on the bus trying to get comfortable and force his thoughts away from what Pete said about Zen and Sal. He also faced the real possibility that he’d overreacted. Even if his worst fears were realized and Zen was hiding something hurtful from him, he hadn’t even given the guy a chance.
Maybe he wasn’t ready to be a rock idol’s boyfriend. Or sub. He’d never had a real relationship before. He’d sort of dated a guy he met at a rock club at an all-ages night, but that only lasted a month or so before the dude moved on to someone else. His romantic experience was probably too limited for someone like Zen. Braylin needed to face the real possibility that Zen was out of his league.
Once he’d found the battery and rechecked the wireless box, he took a deep breath and rose to his feet. Dragging his heels any longer wasn’t making things better. Even if a part of him was ready to accept this would be his last afternoon alone with Zen, the louder part was desperate for them to have another chance together.
By the time Braylin reached Zen’s door, he was a wreck. Deep inside he knew Zen was a decent guy, that no matter what, he wouldn’t make Braylin feel small. In other words, he wouldn’t treat him the way Sal had.
“Hey baby.”
Zen opened the door with a wide smile, as if nothing had changed between them and they were back to the closeness they’d shared on their day off, back to the joyous bubble they’d existed in with Zen holding Braylin in a comforting, strong embrace as they got to know each other.
“Hi.”
God, he felt like an idiot.
Zen chuckled then wrapped his hand around the back of Braylin’s neck and guided him inside the room. He gazed down at Braylin with fondness.
“Are you still too mad you won’t allow me a kiss?”
Braylin relaxed a bit, hoping against hope that Zen wasn’t trying to soften him up before he revealed some awful truth about what Pete had blurted.
But he really, really wanted that kiss.
“Not that mad.”
“Good.”
Zen leaned down and pressed his lips to Braylin’s, the kiss as chaste as all the others they’d shared, yet also glorious. Perhaps he was imagining it, but Zen seemed to keep their mouths connected longer than before. When he finally drew away Braylin was mortified to discover he was half-hard. So much for viewing things from a practical angle. Clearly his dick wasn’t interested in giving up on Zen.
Zen wrapped an arm around Braylin’s shoulders and guided him to the small sofa, a piece of furniture that seemed to be a staple in all hotel suites. Braylin drew his eyebrows together, noting that Zen had draped a blanket over the couch. Then he noticed something else, and it wasn’t Zen’s inviting scent that he’d been aware of as they embraced.
“What’s that smell?”
Zen barked out a laugh and Braylin covered his face with one hand. Why