Tainted Kiss (Tainted Knights 1)

The crowd screamed at the mention of Kale’s band, and I got the impression that they had been missed since the Blonde Bombshells had taken over.

“Those boys are a hard act to follow; that’s for fucking sure.”

More screams in agreement. It wasn’t so much because the crowd didn’t enjoy the girl band, but because the Tainted Knights were just that damn good.

“And now they’re getting ready to head out on their first tour. Lucky bastards.”

Kale paused his teasing hands, and I could sense him starting to pull away. I turned my head to look at him, and he gave me that damn panty melting wink. Oh, fuck. What did that mean?

“But we can’t let them leave us without at least one more taste of why they’ve scored a fucking dream deal with Petrova Inc., now can we?”

The crowd was suddenly going crazy around us.

Kale released me, and Kin and Kassa were right there to surround me as he followed Jace, Gray, Cash, and Sin toward the stage.

I couldn’t contain my excitement. I was actually going to get to see Kale perform? I hadn’t realized how badly I wanted to see him in action until right then.

The guys took the stage, taking the instruments from the girls as they stepped back. Gray was on the guitar, while Sin and Cash both took a bass. Jace took the microphone from Roanna, commanding everyone’s attention, but mine was glued to Kale.

The blonde who had been on the drums said something that made him grin as she handed over the drumsticks, and then he took her now vacant seat behind the drums.

A small slice of jealousy hit me square between the eyes, but I pushed it down quickly when he turned his gaze back to the crowd and seemed to zero in right on me. I caught my breath at the hungry look he was giving me. Then he lifted the sticks and hit the drums like they were his to command, and I was lost. Lost in the music, the beat, and the way he moved so fluidly as Tainted Knights rocked First Bass one more time.

The words to the song went right over my head. The other four guys moving around the stage, playing their guitars, singing and playing up the crowd that was losing their damn minds, they all escaped me as I lost myself in watching Kale. If I had been wet for him before, that was nothing to how much I needed him right then.

The song was starting to come to an end when my phone went off again. I sent it straight to voicemail, but it started going off almost immediately. Again, I diverted the call, only for it to start up a second later. Frowning down at my phone, concern started to eat at me. I wondered if everything was okay. Maybe something had happened. Maybe Sage needed me.

“I have to take this,” I shouted at Kin, waving my phone at her.

She nodded and pointed to her left where there was a sign for the bathrooms.

Giving her a smile in thanks, I pushed my way through the crowd.

By the time the bathroom door had closed behind me, my phone had stopped ringing, but it quickly started up again. Worried now, I answered it.

“Hey, Sage. What’s wrong?”

“Your boyfriend got Wade fired!” she practically screeched at me.

Two women entered the bathroom behind me, deafening me to what Sage was saying for a moment. The door closed again, and I could hear her once more. Belatedly, I moved out of their way as I tried to comprehend what my friend had just said.

“Fired? What are you talking about? Kale hasn’t even met—”

“Drummer boy showed up at The Way at lunchtime while Wade was working.” She was yelling, but I was thankful for that because her high voice was cutting through my surprised stupor. “He threatened Wade, who has done nothing to deserve it. Said you were crying on his shoulder about your childish little argument last night. One that you started, by the way. And then, after the psycho rocker assaulted him, his boss came out and fired him.”

Ah, hell. I didn’t know what to think. I couldn’t make sense of what I was feeling. Pissed. Touched. Pissed, mostly, but still touched. Kale had confronted Wade at work. I should have known something like that would happen. He was too possessive not to deal with Wade personally.

I couldn’t let him do that kind of shit. He should have talked to me about it. Instead, he had kept quiet for the most part and gone off and done it behind my back. His possessiveness had to have boundaries. If this was something that was going to last—and I really hoped it was—then there had to be lines drawn.

“What do you want me to say here, Sage?” I asked when she just kept yelling. As frustrated as I was with Kale, I was at the end of my rope with my roommate. “He thought he needed to take up for me. You sure as fuck haven’t done that in the two years you’ve been with Wade.”

That shut her up really quick. For all of ten seconds.

“Take up for you? You’re the one who starts shit, and then goes crying to the first man who looks twice at you with some sob story that Wade is some big bad wolf out to eat you alive.”

That was a new twist to this whole thing. I had never acted like someone who needed saving. I’d had to take care of myself for too long to even ask someone to help me. I could have handled Wade on my own. I could have easily kicked his ass if it had come down to it. That wasn’t even the point, dammit!

“Oh, my God. You are the most blind person I’ve ever met. Wade is toxic, Sage. Open your damn eyes!”