Thoughtful(30)

When the doors finally reopened, Kiera was alone. I didn’t take that as a good sign. She was trying to put on a brave face, that much I could tell, but when she swiped her fingers under her eyes, I knew she was on the verge of failing. Something was wrong.

Frowning, I walked over to her. “Are you okay?”

Her eyes were red and shimmering as she avoided eye contact and looked over my shoulder. She’d been crying, and she was about to do it again. “Yep.”

It didn’t take a genius to see she was lying. “Kiera…” Talk to me.

I put a hand on her arm, hoping she’d open up. She raised her eyes to mine, and the floodgates released. I immediately pulled her into my arms. Protectiveness surged through me as I held her tight to my chest. How dare Denny hurt her! Even as I thought that, I knew I couldn’t judge what I didn’t understand, so I did my best to push that feeling aside. Resting my cheek against her head, I rubbed her back, soothing her as best I could while she sobbed. People around us stared, but I didn’t care. She needed me, and I was going to be there for her.

I was mildly surprised at how natural holding her felt. She fit into my body perfectly, like we’d been molded for each other. And comforting her was stirring things inside me. Besides wanting to protect her, save her, something else was growing…friendship, or maybe something even deeper than that. I wasn’t sure. All I knew was I didn’t want to let go.

I wasn’t sure how long we stood there embracing, but eventually Sam came up to me. I knew what he was going to say before he even said it. The band was on, it was time to go play. I shook my head at him, warning him to give me a minute. Kiera peeked up at me, disrupting our contact. She was mostly under control now, just a few sad tears escaping that she swiped from her cheeks. “I’m fine. Thank you. Go, go be a rock star.”

Concerned, I asked, “Are you sure? These guys can wait a few more minutes.” If you need me, I’m here for you.

She smiled, touched by my offer even as she rejected it. “No, really, I’m fine. I should get back to work anyway. I missed getting you your beer again.”

I didn’t want to, but I released her. With a chuckle, I told her, “Next time.”

I rubbed her arm, wishing she was as fine as she was pretending to be, cursing the fact that I had to leave her to go onstage, and wondering why the silkiness of her skin made my heart beat faster.

Shaking that irrelevant thought aside, I let her get back to work. Maybe she’d feel okay enough after the show to open up to me. I really hoped so. I wanted her to talk to me, wanted her to trust me. I would never do anything to hurt or betray her, and I wanted her to see that. She meant a lot to me.





Chapter 6





I’m Here for You




Evan was eyeing me strangely when I walked onto the stage. Relax, I’m not going to do anything with Kiera. I wouldn’t charm her, hit on her, or be inappropriate in any way with her. She was Denny’s.

I watched her throughout the set, trying to gauge her mood. I’d run off the stage and collect her in my arms if she needed me to again. She just had to give me a sign that she was breaking down. She didn’t though; she just gave me reassuring smiles whenever she caught me looking.

But when her shift was over, she sat backward in a chair and looked for all the world like she didn’t want to go home. She even wiped away some more tears, like she was starting to cry again. Hoping she’d finally open up to me, I sat in a chair beside her. “Hey,” I said when she peeked over at me. “Want to talk about it?”

She looked over to where the rest of the band was still lingering. She hesitated to answer me, and I figured they were the reason why. When she shook her head¸ I was sure of it. Instead of pressuring her to talk to me in front of them, I asked, “Want a ride home?” I understood the need for privacy, and I also understood the reluctance to talk. I wouldn’t press her.

She looked back at me with a grateful smile and nodded. “Yes, thank you.”

“Sure, just let me get my stuff and we’ll head out.”

I gave her a warm smile of assurance. Like she was embarrassed, her cheeks mildly tinted. Maybe she felt bad, like she was inconveniencing me. She shouldn’t feel that way though. It’s not like I wasn’t going in her direction anyway; we did live together. I headed back over to the guys to get my stuff. Griffin had a look on his face like he knew something. I was sure he had an assortment of kinky imagery of Kiera and me in his head. Awesome.

Sam was there with them. He had a glass of something in his hand, and raised it to me when I got close enough. “Want to have a drink with us?” He narrowed his eyes. “Just one, mind you. I don’t need to babysit your drunken ass again.”