"My undying devotion isn't enough?" He mimes being stabbed in the gut.
I laugh. "If you were single, maybe."
"I can throw in making Ethan miserable and horny," Tom says.
Dammit, I'm hot all over.
Tom laughs.
Ethan cuts in. "You want to play with Joel's drum kit or something?"
Tom laughs. "No, I'm playing exactly how I want to play. It's real good to see you, Violet. Give him hell for me."
Tom winks at me, then at Ethan. He moves on to giving Joel a hard time, grabbing one of his drum sticks and attempting to play half Joel's part.
Ethan steps closer. He's not wearing his frustration anymore. His blue eyes are bright and his lips are curled into a half-smile.
"Let me take care of this." He motions to my suitcase. "I'll show you to the bus." He looks to Piper, still hanging out by the sidelines. "You want to grab dinner?"
"Have to talk to Mal," she says.
Her eyes tell a different story. Her eyes are fixed on a handsome guy dressed in a black button-up, designer jeans, and motorcycle boots. Oh, that's Kit. The Dangerous Noise bassist has a mass of curly black hair, dark eyes, and sculpted features. He's also got an eyebrow piercing. The man is beautiful enough to grace magazine covers. And he's got that whole tall, dark, mysterious thing going on too.
Rumor has it his tongue is pierced and said piercing is divine, but then I'm not about to admit to reading celebrity gossip.
"Always going over my head," Ethan teases her.
She manages
to pull her eyes away from the bassist. "He's the boss-man."
Ethan hugs his sister goodbye. "I know it's a school night, but say goodbye before you leave, okay?"
She nods and whispers something in his ear.
He whispers back.
I try, hard, not to swoon over what a caring brother he is.
After Ethan releases her, he turns to me. "The four of us travel on our own bus. Well, plus you and our driver. The rest of the crew, roadies, and our tour manager, travel on their own bus."
I nod, but I'm not really thinking about these technicalities. I'm thinking about how Ethan and I are going to be alone on that bus.
Ethan grabs my suitcase and guides me towards the sides of the room. Piper, genius woman that she is, uses the opportunity to go up to Kit. They exchange friendly-looking words and a hello hug.
But I can't consider the implications. Ethan's arm is around my waist. His body is warm and he smells good, like sweat and like Ethan.
We move through the crowded backstage area and out through the side door. Sure enough, there are several black, unmarked tour buses parked in the massive lot.
Ethan leads me to the one on the far right. "Your drive okay?"
"Yeah, great. Piper seems really grown up."
"She is. I hate it."
"Overprotective older brother?" I ask.
He nods, pulls open the bus door, and leads me inside.