“What the hell, Greer? What’s the matter with you?”
“What’s the matter with me? What’s the matter with you? Did I miss something?”
Reid scrubbed his hands over his face before taking a step back and peeking down the hall. The last thing he needed was Chloe walking in on a conversation revolving around having sex with her. When he made sure the coast was clear, he turned back to Greer, and when he spoke, his tone left no room for argument.
“I get that y’all are used to a different version of me, but I can’t be that person anymore. Not after what happened.” Reid balled his fists as memories of the night that changed his life surfaced. He could almost hear the blaring music and manic laughter. Almost see the soft white lines, the red and blue flashing lights, and the vacant green eyes that haunted his dreams. With a sharp exhale, Reid relaxed his shoulders. “I need to focus on the tour. The last thing I need is drama if one of you hooks up with her and things turn ugly. There will be more groupies than you know what to do with if you need to get laid. That will need to be enough.”
Drew and Greer nodded in agreement. The tension faded from Reid’s body until a sly smile crossed Greer’s face. “What?” Reid asked with narrowed eyes.
“So, just to recap, you’re not going to hit that?”
“Oh, Christ,” Reid groaned just as the sound of approaching footsteps alerted him someone was coming. “Not another word.”
He turned toward the sound as Chloe appeared in the doorway. The moment he saw her, he knew his entire conversation with Greer and Drew was shot to hell. Her long blond and purple hair had been pulled into a ponytail, offering an unobstructed view of her face he hadn’t seen in New York. However, it wasn’t her wide-set blue eyes, the slope of her upturned nose, or the plump arch of her full lips that caused his mouth to dry. The culprit was a tank top that revealed a colorful sleeve covering her right arm and creeping up her shoulder before disappearing beneath the fabric.
Various patterns swirled over Chloe’s skin, creating a mesmerizing kaleidoscope of colors. Ashamed for staring, Reid cleared his throat and looked away. “You ready to get started?”
“Sure. Just let me set up and we can jump right in.”
Reid exhaled and turned toward Drew and Greer, who were clearly not ashamed. He discreetly snapped his fingers, letting them know to stop gawking. Drew looked away and began adjusting the drum pedals, but Greer remained unmoving. When Reid followed Greer’s line of sight, he noticed more ink peeking out from under the hem of her shirt as she retrieved her violin from its case.
With a quiet groan, Reid crossed the room to his guitar and yanked the strap over his head. “Greer, you all set?” The sharp bite of his tone was enough to command everyone’s attention.
“Yup,” Greer answered distractedly.
Reid flexed his jaw and cut his eyes to Chloe, who gave him a sheepish smile as she tugged the metal piercing in her lip with her teeth. He let out a humorless chuckle and moved into position before instructing everyone what to do. When the music started and the seductive sounds of Chloe’s violin saturated the air, Reid didn’t dare look in her direction. Instead, he watched Greer, who seemed transfixed by Chloe. Returning his attention to his guitar, Reid realized Greer’s new fixation might not be such a bad thing after all.
The sun had set by the time Reid called an end to rehearsals. Chloe rotated her shoulder and let out a grateful sigh as she packed away her things. She’d expected the rehearsals to be taxing, but the level of intensity Reid demanded from each of them was more than she’d prepared for.
“You okay there?”
Chloe looked at Drew and smiled. “I’m great. Although, with my long flight and adjusting to the time difference, I’ll probably sleep until I’m due back here tomorrow.”
Drew nodded. “I bet. You did really great today, though. I think Reid’s just nervous about having such a significant change this late in the game. He should ease up when he gets a little more comfortable.”
“Or he’ll continue to kick our ass,” Greer added. “He’s funny about his music. I have a feeling he’s going to be like this for a while.”
Chloe looked between her bandmates. They were similarly built to Reid: tall, lanky, and sporting an array of colorful tattoos. But where Drew had long blond hair that fell just below his chin, Greer’s dark hair was buzzed close to his scalp. “Have you guys always played with Reid?”
Drew gave Chloe a reassuring smile. “We were the session musicians hired when he cut his first album. God, he was a moody bastard. Hell, he still is. Only difference now is we have no problem telling him to go to hell.”