Sinister tingles slithered down my back as a savage, steel-toed boot hit me straight in the gut. It was so savage, my body jerked with it and I sucked in breath, staring speechless at the open torment in Mace’s eyes.
Before I could say anything (not that I knew what to say), the phone rang and the buzzer went on the door.
The moment was lost.
The guard slammed down over his features and he stepped away. Snatching the phone off the counter, he stalked to the door.
What was THAT? My brain asked me.
I was stil trembling, now for a different reason.
I have no idea, I told my brain.
Juno bounded in before Hector and Mace muttered, “No comment,” into the phone again while I watched.
What are we gonna do? My brain asked.
I swal owed, more scared now than when bul ets were pounding in the dirt al around me. More scared than I’d ever been in my whole fucking life.
I have no effing idea, I answered.
Chapter Eleven
First World Tour
Stella
I had no time to figure it out.
Juno butted my calf with her nose with such strength my whole body shifted to the side, tel ing me in no uncertain terms it was breakfast time.
I’d already left her in the clutches of an unknown, but hot (not that “hot” factored in Juno’s choice for companions, stil , it must be said), Hispanic guy for her morning bathroom break. I was heading for Worst Doggie Mom of the Year if I didn’t at least take care of the bare necessities.
“Al right, baby,” I murmured, jumping down from the counter.
Juno knew what my motion meant. She wagged her tail in response and her whole body went with it.
“We gotta rol .” I heard Hector say as I nabbed Juno’s bowl from the floor.
“Yeah,” Mace replied. “Give me a second.” I looked up to see him coming my way.
I straightened and backed up two steps stil in the throes of a jumble of strong emotions, none of which I could process at the moment considering my dog was starving.
“I got things to do,” Mace told me, stopping close and I tilted my head back to look up at him.
“Okay.”
Mace going was good. No, it was great. It meant I could nap. It meant I could play my guitar. It meant I could cal Al y and process every second of the last twelve hours. Or, better yet, pul together a clever disguise and skip town.
He took the bowl from my hand and put it on the counter.
Juno whined, unhappy with this turn of events.
“I have to feed Juno,” I informed Mace.
“In a second.”
My poor Juno.
Mace continued speaking. “You answer the phone, it’s a reporter, you say ‘no comment’ and hang up. Got me?”
“Mace –”
“Stel a, no comment. I don’t want that shit in my life. Not again.”
My head jerked a bit to the side and I felt a mini-gut kick at his words and the harsh undercurrent with which he said them.
I wondered what he meant but I didn’t ask because I was tel ing myself I didn’t want to know (when, in reality, I did).
Do you see how messed up my head was?
“Stel a, tel me you got me,” Mace pressed.
“I got you,” I muttered, giving in so I could feed my dog and because I didn’t want that in Mace’s life either (and, unfortunately for Juno, not in that order).
It seemed my luck was going to be even shittier than normal that morning because we weren’t done.
Mace got closer and shifted. He did this so his back was to Hector and I was hidden from him. Mace put his hand to my neck and dipped his face toward mine.
His eyes were back to guarded but they were stil warm when they looked deep into mine.
“We good?” he asked softly.
I didn’t know if he was asking if we were good about what happened onstage last night. Or if we were good about what happened with Eric. Or if we were good about the interrupted bed action that morning. Or if we were good about the crazy-scary shit that happened in the kitchen five minutes ago.
Since the answer was the same for al of them, I said,
“No.”
This made him smile.
Which made my toes curl.
He bent in, touched his lips to mine, giving me a neck squeeze at the same time. Then, lips stil on mine, he promised, “We wil be.”
That gave the toe curl the addition of a ful body tremble.
He gave me another neck squeeze then walked away and I stood motionless in the kitchen watching him move toward one of his bags. For some reason, my skin started to feel hot so my eyes shifted toward Hector who was standing, arms crossed on his chest, gaze on me, mouth curled in a sexy grin.
Sheesh.
I came unstuck and did the only thing I could do (legal y) at that moment.
I got down to the business of feeding my dog.
Mace was sitting on the edge of the bed platform tugging on his boots when the buzzer went.
“Jesus Christ,” Mace muttered and Hector moved toward the panel.
I bent to put the bowl of food on the floor and Juno shoved her face in it before it was settled. I was rubbing down her body when I heard the disembodied voice of Hugo in the room.
“We gotta know a secret password or what?”
“It’s the band,” Hector told Mace (I wil note he told Mace, not me).