She wasn’t one to sleep in, and normally her daily life was scheduled down to the minute. She was beginning to realize why.
Steven’s warm hands wrapped around hers. “I’m buying. And you can make it through one meal without your phone, right?”
She froze, wondering if she actually could make it through a meal without her phone. She couldn’t remember the last time she had. And he was buying? And holding her hand? So this was a date? Her head filled with questions she was still too hungover to answer.
“Okay. But, um, I eat like a dude, so consider yourself warned.”
Steven grinned as they left her apartment building. “Maybe take it easy on me then. I’m out of a job.”
Kylie stopped and turned to face him. “You’re what?”
Placing a hand on her lower back urging her forward, he continued. “It’s not a big deal. Band’s just taking a breather.”
“The hell it isn’t a big deal. You guys are about to be freaking huge. You’re like the unsigned band to be right now. I thought there was interest from Electrick and all that?”
He shrugged as he held the door to the diner open for her. “Things got…complicated.”
Kylie raised an eyebrow at him but he didn’t offer anything further. She watched as Steven nodded to a pretty redheaded waitress. As she took in his tight black T-shirt and the tattoos banding his thick arms, a slow smile spread across the woman’s face. Kylie barely managed to keep from laughing out loud.
The woman gestured to an empty booth Kylie would’ve bet money was in her section and they slid in.
“So, Miss-Eats-Like-A-Dude, what’ll it be?”
“Come on, Blythe,” Kylie began, using her hand to lower the menu he held. “Talk to me. What’s really going on?”
He sighed, setting the menu aside and turning the full force of his bright blue eyes on her.
“Chris isn’t feeling the new sound. He says we’re letting the media influence make us too ‘mainstream.’” Steven used air quotes on the last word. “I don’t know. Maybe he’s right. But lately he and I have just…” He smacked his two fists together as an illustration. “Just been coming up on opposite sides of every discussion you know? And BJ is tired of it. He gets stressed out really easily. Kid had a rough home life.”
“So what are you guys going to do? Just break up? That’s asinine.”
Steven ran a hand through his already messy black hair and shifted in his seat, but before he could answer, the redhead appeared to take their order.
“What can I get for you?” she asked, green eyes locked on Kylie’s breakfast companion.
Kylie didn’t miss the flirty grin Steven shot the waitress before motioning for her to take Kylie’s order first.
She thrust her menu at her. “Yeah, I’ll have the pancakes and bacon with extra syrup please. And an orange juice and a large coffee, black.”
The waitress gave her a tight-lipped smile. “And you?” she said, taking Kylie’s menu and turning back to Steven.
“Same, I guess.”
When she was finally gone, Kylie turned back to Steven. He was spinning a saltshaker back and forth between his large hands.
“You do her or what?”
“What?” His eyebrows shot upward as he looked at her with wide eyes.
“No? So all women get ridiculous around you like that? Because if they do, this is our last breakfast date. It’s too early for me to watch some chick ogle you. Her desperation is making me nauseated.” Kylie yawned, which nearly made her giggle at the perfect timing of it.
“Aw, Ryans, you’re jealous.” With a wink, Steven leaned in closer to her. “Actually, that’s kind of a turn-on of mine.”
“You’re a jackass.” Kylie sat back and folded her arms. “For one, I don’t do jealous. For two, I’m more interested in hearing what the hell’s going on with the band than what turns you on. And for three, can we just focus on one thing for a second? I swear I think you have an attention deficit issue.”
He chuckled and slid the saltshaker aside. “For one, I was just messing with you about being jealous. For two, the band is on a break…indefinitely. And three, I actually do. My parents made me take medicine for it when I was a kid but it made me feel dead so I stopped.”
Kylie huffed out a breath. “Figures. Okay, so tell me the truth. You and Chris butting heads—is it really over the direction of the band or a certain brunette we both know and have likely seen naked?”
“You’ve seen her naked?”
“We toured together, so the answer should be obvious. It was a small bus. But I’m guessing from the way you nearly fell out of your seat that you haven’t. And that’s the issue.”