“School?” I said, alarmed. Kira and I had slept together a couple of times. She was one of those women that knew my expectations and didn’t have the preconceived notion that we would suddenly become a couple.
Her laugh sounded like a tinkling bell. “Don’t worry. I’m of age. I’m getting my Ph.D. in psychology. This is my last year. Figured while I still got summer’s off, I’d follow my favorite band around the country.”
“Psychology, huh?”
“Yeah. The human brain fascinates me. And despite my appearance, I have a 4.0 GPA.” Kira made a hand movement gesturing to her clothes. She did tend to put out a bad girl vibe, but as I looked over her more closely, I could see that it was all very strategic to help her get what she wanted.
“Yeah. I could see that about you. There’s knowledge in your eyes. A sort of wise beyond your year's thing.”
Kira lit up at my compliment. She definitely wasn’t like any of the other groupies in the room.
“You know what?” I said as I stood and extended my hand to hers. “Want to get out of here? Just to talk.”
“Yeah. That sounds fun.” She slipped her hand in mine, me feeling nothing more than a friendly gesture, as I moved us toward the green room entrance. I let the manager know that I would be back in an hour for the meet and greet and that he could find me on the bus for a while. While the man gave a salacious grin as he eyed Kira, I pulled her behind me as I left, knowing that she wouldn’t care what anyone in that room thought about her.
For some reason, I felt like she wouldn’t push me to talk about what had my emotions all over the place. When we arrived at my trailer, I grabbed a bag of tortilla chips and poured them into a bowl. There was an open bottle of salsa in the small fridge from the night before and I poured the remains into a smaller bowl. Carrying them over to the small coffee table in front of the couch, I chuckled as Kira immediately dove for the contents.
“Man, I haven’t eaten all day.”
“What? Why?” I asked her grabbing my own chip and scooping up some salsa. I knew for a fact that our tour managers didn’t skimp on the food for our stops on the road.
“Well, first off, it’s really for the crew and roadies. And second, I have a hard time trusting food that I didn’t prepare myself.” Well, if there wasn’t a whole story there, but I’d let her keep her secrets to herself so long as she let me keep mine.
“Well, you’re eating with me,” I pointed out.
“Yeah, but I watched you open the bag and I trust you.”
I lounged back in against the couch cushion as we snacked in silence. I had a hard time fully trusting anyone, so it always amazed me when someone was capable of putting their trust in me. Hell, Harlan and Ryker had both asked me to babysit their kids when I was younger. Younger and stupid. And yet they’d trusted me with their flesh and blood.
Hell, maybe they were just all idiots because I could barely trust my own doctor’s recent diagnosis of my ailment.
I wasn’t sure how long Kira and I sat munching on chips, but there was a sudden knock on the door to the bus and we both jumped.
“Mr. Blake?” a rickety voice called out from the exterior. “You’re being asked for by Mr. Kincaid.”
“What’s up?” I asked as I gathered the now empty bowls and placed them in the sink.
“There is a meeting prior to the meet and greet. He didn’t say what it was about.”
“Thanks. I’m coming.”
Glancing over to Kira, I gave her a sad sod. “Sorry, gorgeous.”
She walked over and pressed her lips to my cheek and then held out a piece of paper with numbers scrawled across it. “This is just in case you ever need to talk. I can tell that there is something on your mind. And I won’t even charge you.”
I laughed as I turned around and searched for a magnet to adhere the slip to the fridge; then we walked out of the bus and followed the assistant back to the arena.
“Two weeks. Two whole weeks, man.” Our drummer looked like we had just dropped him off in a toy store, and as a self-proclaimed LEGO collector, the man was ecstatic. Hell, we all were.
Somehow Dan was able to change our press appearances from in-person to virtual. They were all for radio and podcast stations. It was just the kind of break we all needed. Non-stop touring for six months was draining, but knowing we’d get a little rest and relaxation before returning for the last six months of the tour was enough to keep us all going.
After the meet and greet, Harlan and Ryker jutted off to find their wives and plan a romantic trip away. None of my bandmates were married, but Tommy, the bassist, had a steady girlfriend back home in Pennsylvania.
Had my mind and heart set on enjoying peace and quiet in my vacation home. I hadn’t been there since the sale took place last year. I fell in love with the property at first glance and had been waiting for it to come on the market. My realtor jumped on it before the listing had even been posted and I gave the owners an offer they really couldn’t refuse.
It was a large wooded lot and my closest neighbor was five acres across the woods. But the selling feature was the view. There was a natural waterfall that fell into a lake at the back of the property.
I paid for a decorator to set up the entire place for me and I’d only been there to give her my seal of approval. After that, I packed up and left for the tour.