I stopped off at Michael's office and went up the stairs, my heart pounding. Maybe I was imagining it, but I could smell Kade all over the place, catching whiffs of him in the elevator and the corridors. If I could barely handle the slight smell of him now, how was I going to deal on the road? I had to get a grip.
When I entered Michael's office, the rest of the band, as well as the entire traveling staff, were present. "Great to see you, Xander," said Michael. "You got everything? We're going to hit the road to Denver shortly."
"I'm good to go," I said.
Michael nodded and went off to check on something. I looked around the room. The only people who weren't engaged in something were the band, so I walked over to them, my eyes trained on Kade the whole time. My heart got a little jolt when I saw his smile. God, he was cute.
"Hey," I said. "I'm Xander."
"Nice to meet you," said a very hung-over looking guy with black sunglasses. "I'm Joel. I'm the bassist."
"I'm Tony, the drummer," said a quiet, slight man, sitting on a suitcase.
"And you know Kade and me, right?" asked Jareo. "We were at the interview."
"Yeah," I said. "I remember you guys. I'm looking forward to getting to know all of you better on the trip."
If I wasn't mistaken, the guys-with the exception of Tony, who looked a bit sour-all had grins trying to sneak on to their faces. It was like they had a whole history of inside jokes built up, and had a shared language. It was going to be hard to get in with this group.
"I'm looking forward to it, too," said Kade, smiling sweetly. That sent an unfamiliar flutter through my heart. I had the inexplicable and urgent urge to protect him. He was my Omega, and he was finally here with me. I was to stay by his side and make sure he came to no harm. It was as simple as that.
At least, that's what the compulsion was telling me, and thankfully, it dovetailed nicely with what I was hired for. The only problem was that I was going to develop feelings at some point, even if he didn't.
I was always told that I was the stoic type, but that just wasn't true. I could have strong feelings in my heart, and I always did when it came to romantic partners. I loved with my whole heart and soul, and I always gave relationships my all. That's why it hurt when the other person didn't care as much.
Maybe Kade would be different. But I wasn't going to bet on it. Who knew if all the fame had gone to his head?
"So, you have to know that the fans can get pretty crazy," said Jareo. "Joel, remember that time the guy threw a soda can at you?"
"Yeah, dude," said Joel, his face impassive thanks to the sunglasses. "This guy just threw a soda can at me. It wasn't even opened yet, so it fuckin' hurt."
"Yikes," I said. "I'll do my best to protect you guys."
"You'd better," he said darkly. "The bruise on my face lasted two weeks. The bloggers thought I was being abused."
Kade laughed. It was a nice laugh, I thought, not obnoxious or insincere. "What about the time that guy wanted me to sign his nipple?"
"Ugh," said Joel.
"Did you do it?" I asked.
"No," said Kade, shaking his head. "I did sign his chest, though."
"What's the point, even," said Jareo. "It'll just wash off in the shower."
"People are stupid," said Tony.
"Everyone ready to head to Denver?" called Michael. "Let's get everything loaded up in the vans."
We followed him out to an alleyway near the side of the building where people were already loading up several vehicles. "You'll be traveling with me," said Kade, "so we might as well just load you up in the band van."
I helped him and the other members store their suitcases in the huge van. It was so big that it was almost like a party bus. The driver, the band, Michael, and I were going to be the only ones in there. Thankfully, it wouldn't be too cramped, from the looks of it.
It was going to be a long drive. Denver was a few hours away. But then, that wasn't the longest drive we were going to be going on. The entire tour was about three months long, so we were going to be spending a lot of time on the road.
Soon enough, we were settled in. I was sitting in the corner, next to Kade and Joel, while Tony, Jareo, and Michael sat in the seats opposite us. There was a small area where they stored drinks and snacks, as well as a small TV, fridge, and microwave. This was a fancy way to travel.
And now we were all going to get pretty cozy. There was a bit of a silence at first, as we watched the tall skyscrapers of Lake City eventually fade to blue mountains, and then disappear entirely. The landscape around us turned into forests and then farms, growing plants I didn't recognize. We stopped for gas once.
"So, Xander, you from Lake City?" asked Michael.
"Yeah," I said. "But I was born out West, near Pattonsburg. Went to school there and everything. I only moved to the city after I graduated with my associate's."
Pattonsburg had been a nice place to grow up, and my entire pack was based there. I visited often to see my parents, relatives, and the friends who still lived there. But I personally wanted more stimulation. I wanted to meet new people and have new experiences, so I moved to Lake City after getting a degree.
"Oh, I didn't know you have an associate's," said Kade. "You didn't mention it in the interview."
I shrugged. "It's a degree in computer science, so programming. Not really relevant to the job of keeping you safe."
"Sounds cool, though," said Kade. "I'm not great with computers. Jareo handles all the electronic parts of our music."
"Still, I'm no programmer," said Jareo.
It was nice for the guys to welcome me like this, I thought. I had previously been willing to take on the role of the quiet, buff guy who was only there to listen and help out when needed. But they were including me in the conversation. And since I was in the van with them and Michael, it seemed like I was going to be part of the group.
"We're just an hour away from Denver," called out the driver.
"So we'll drop off our stuff at the hotel, and then the venue," said Michael. "And then we'll get dinner before the show."
"Good plan," said Jareo.
"Any dinner requests?" asked Michael.
"Requests?" I asked.
"We have a decent dinner budget," explained Jareo, "so if we feel like Mexican or something, Michael will try to get us a reservation at a nice place."
"It isn't going to be nice all the time," said Michael sternly. "Sometimes we'll just grab fast food. But it's the first night of the tour, so we should celebrate."
"Japanese," said Joel. "Definitely Japanese."
"Yeah, sushi," said Kade. "That'd be sweet."
"You like sushi?" asked Joel, slipping his sunglasses down and revealing his bright blue eyes for the first time.
"Yeah," I said. "I'm down for whatever."
In truth, I was not the biggest fan of sushi. But I wasn't about to be the one guy who made it difficult for everyone else. I could suck it up and eat some sushi for once in my life.
"Great," said Michael. "I'll look up some places."
"Don't you guys have to warm up or anything?" I asked.
"We'll do that after dinner," said Michael.
"Got it."
Part of our caravan stopped off at the hotel, while part of it went on to the venue to move all the equipment in. The hotel was fancy. I would never have dreamed of staying in a place like this. The lobby was modern, with slate walls and indoor fountains, and it screamed wealth.
"Looks like you're going to be in a room of your own next to our suite," said Kade. "So you'll basically be right next door."
"Awesome," I said.
Somehow, I had logically known that I'd be sleeping in hotels with Kade and the other guys, but it hadn't hit me yet what a problem it could be. Knowing that my fated mate was sleeping so close to me was going to be difficult on my wolf. Wolves didn't understand social barriers. Wolves just wanted to crash through them and do what they wanted to do. It could be hard to resist that.
And I was going to have to do it for the entire tour. Great.
Well, I'd deal with it one way or another. I walked around the suite, marveling at the fact that the room had a living room and a kitchen. It was actually just a large apartment, with plenty of room for all four of the band members.
"Tess called and said that everything was squared away at the venue, so we don't need to head there just yet," said Michael. "Dinner?"
"Yeah!" said Kade. "I'm starving."
"Those fruit snacks in the car not enough for you?" asked Joel.
Kade laughed. I followed the guys out of the hotel. I was aware, now, that I would have to be vigilant about doing my job. We were in an unfamiliar city, and I had been told that Kade had a pretty recognizable face. Even when we were walking down the street or eating at the restaurant, I had to be aware of my surroundings, watching for people who would harass Kade or cause him harm.