Chapter 16

She eyed Reid intently, trying to find any signs of Colt hitting him. There didn’t seem to be any. She pushed what happened that morning from her mind as the bus continued on its journey. Since the incident, she hadn’t seen Colt. She knew he was on the bus, but he closed himself off behind the screen where the bed was.

Reid had given her a bunch of things to do on the internet, including updating the social media accounts and the blog. He’d avoided her eyes though and hadn’t said much. When he handed her the to-do list, all she heard was a grunt. She was still angry with him for dumping her clothes. Still, the ones he bought were nice; they were just not her usual type.

The bleep of her cell phone caught her attention, and she tore her eyes away from Reid to check it. It was from an unknown number. All the message said was, ‘He is not who he appears to be.’ There was nothing else. She was not sure what that meant. About whom were they talking? She waited for another message to clarify things, but nothing came. She dismissed it as a mistaken number. Not long after, the phone rang. She snatched it up after two rings and answered before viewing the number.

“Hello?”

“He’s going down … click.”

“Who is this?” she blurted out as the click came.

The voice was distorted as if the person was using a voice scrambler. The click of the phone echoed in her ear.

“Hello? Hello!” she yelled.

She knew it was futile because the caller hung up. How did they get her number? Was it the same person who texted her before?

“What’s the matter?” Reid’s head snapped up from his seat. “What happened?” His eyes connected with hers the way they used to. The old Reid was back. He stared at her a moment before he rose, walked over and slid beside her in the seat.

“It’s nothing, maybe a prank call,” she said. She fidgeted uneasily.

“Look,” he began, resting his elbows on his knees while turning his head to look at her. “I’m sorry, okay?” His voice was low and calm. “I shouldn’t have thrown your stuff away, but I knew you’d want to still wear them even with the new stuff.”

“I ... you shouldn’t have done it,” she replied with a slight stutter.

“I know, I’m sorry. I just need you to start looking the part. You do good work; we all like you …” he was saying.

“That’s not true. Colt doesn’t like me,” she blurted out without thinking.

“Colt likes no one … don’t tell him I said that.” He chuckled.

She smiled. “What about what he said. You were looking at my breasts?” She cast her eyes down as she asked. Her heart fluttered just a little.

“I’m sorry about that too. I … didn’t intend to … it just was there … I’m sorry,” he said.

“Okay.” She smiled. “You did try to calm me down.”

“So tell me what happened just now, prank call? You looked concerned.”

She wasn’t sure if telling Reid was a good idea. He perhaps would have the number traced and arrest the person for harassment. On the other hand, they texted and then called. Who was to say they wouldn’t do it again? She found the text, showed it to Reid, and then told him what the caller said.

His face became like stone. His eyes hardened while she told him what the caller said. But all he told her was, “You’re probably right, prank call. You need to block your cell from receiving unknown calls.”

“Can I do that?” She was surprised that was possible.

“Yes, call your cell phone service. They will do it.”

“Thank you” She said with a smile.

“Now, am I forgiven?” He smiled back.

His face softened, and his eyes crinkled. She never noticed that before. He looked completely different when he smiled. Even his eyes softened and reflected baby blue flecks. For the first time, she saw how attractive he was.

The bus rolled to a stop, and Chelsea checked the itinerary to see where they were scheduled to be. Wild Orchids Resort and Spa. They were to spend the next 48 hours there, where they would have a press meeting, CDs and T-Shirt giveaways.

“Wait for Colt, I’ll get things settled in the hotel,” Reid told her. “Don’t leave the bus without him; he’s known for his disappearing acts.”

“Okay.” She nodded.

The others left the vehicle while Reid rushed to the hotel front desk to make sure everything was in place. Though he had called to confirm their rooms, he always did a final check when the group arrived. There was no movement from Colt’s corner, so she gathered her belongings and went to rouse him. The bus could only stay for ten minutes in front of the hotel.

“Colt,” she said his name loud enough for him to hear through the curtain. There was no answer. She called aloud, “Colt!”

When he did not respond, she pulled back the drapery just a little and peaked in. He was lying on his back with his eyes closed and a pair of headphones on. What should she do? It was seven minutes since they arrived. She reached her hand out to touch him but dropped it.

“Colt?” she called out. Her voice was not as clear as she intended.

This time when she reached out to touch him, her stomach fluttered. Slowly, she bent and reached down to touch his shoulder. That was a safe place to nudge. She gently gripped his shoulder, giving it a slight nudge. His eyes flew open, immediately settling on her. She withdrew her hand and stepped back, but he grabbed her before she could slither away. He used the other hand to pull away the headphone.

“What is it?” His lips barely moved, but his voice was still the same … deep and rich.

His grip was hot, burning through her skin. The fire shot up her arm and spread through her body. She tried to pull from his grasp, but her attempts were weak. The more she wiggled her hand, the hotter his palm felt.

“Hum … well … the bus … hotel …” she stuttered. Oh God, why do I feel like an idiot around him, blabbering like a fool?

“Oh, we’re there?” he said in a toneless manner, dropping her hand.

She rubbed the area, trying to relieve the feverishness on her skin. Colt swung his legs from the bed and picked up a notebook. When she walked out of the bus, he was right behind her. She half expected him to disappear by the time they reached the hotel lobby. He did not.