Chapter 34

Axton

Addi: Very cute.

Me: I think GIFs are the new world revolution.

I text in response to the short clip of a baby goat walking around in a sweater.

Addi: Very possible. How’s the tour going?

Me: Fine.

Horrible. Awful. I hate my life right now.

Me: How is school?

I stare at the closed curtain of my tiny bunk as the bus flies and shakes down the highway. I don’t even have a clue where we are next. Somewhere around Colorado. Wyoming, maybe? Way too far from Addi for my liking.

Addi: I finally got a handle on that accounting class, so things are looking up.

I take the chance that she’ll answer and hit the video call button on messenger. I must have done something right in a past life. After only two rings, her beautiful face fills the screen.

I almost laugh when her eyes go wide.

“Why are you naked?”

I look down. “I’m not.” I angle the camera so she can see I have jeans on.

“You’re not wearing a shirt.” She sounds breathless and mildly agitated.

“We should be twins,” I suggest with a salacious wink.

She rolls her eyes. “I am not taking my shirt off while you’re on a bus with half a dozen other guys.”

“But you would if I were alone?” Her smile fades, and I realize I’ve pushed it too far. “Joking.”

“Will you be back in town for Thanksgiving?” she asks, effectively changing the subject.

“No. We have a show two days before and one the day after. Even if I could manage it, I would have to turn around and leave right after showing up.”

Please ask me to come, and I’ll make it happen.

“That’s sad,” she says, genuine anguish in her voice. “You should be with friends and family during the holidays.”

“With the people I love,” I say, knowing love and family doesn’t always go hand in hand. “You have the week off, right? You can come here. We could hang out when I’m not practicing or performing.”

“I can’t,” she shoots down the offer immediately. “I have my own family obligations.”

Her declaration about family and friends didn’t include me?

“I understand,” I lie. I would give up every one of my friends and all of my family if it meant spending a day or two with her.

“Maybe some other time,” she offers. “My parents would have a coronary if I didn’t show up at a holiday dinner.”

“You know I’m going to hold you to that,” I tell her with a sly smirk.

Someone knocks on her door and I already know what she’s going to say before she turns back around.

It’s her sister whispering the name Marcus so low, I can tell she doesn’t want me to hear. My blood boils.

When she turns back to the camera, her face is schooled to impassivity, and I can’t distinguish anything from it.

“I have to go,” she says, finally giving me a small smile.

“Company?” I ask, trying to keep a lid on my anger.

She nods. “Yeah. There’s a friend at the door. Talk to you later?”

“Sure,” I say, closing the video before she has the chance to say goodbye.

All the things Carson said to me on my way to the airport last month echo in my head, but I send him a text anyway.

Me: How’s Addi?

The bus comes to a stop, air brakes hissing in relief. While waiting for him to respond, I climb down from my bunk and pull on a t-shirt.

Carson: Couldn’t really tell you. I’ve only seen her once since you left.

Me: Alone?

The three dots appear and disappear twice before a message actually comes through.

Carson: She was with that dude from the bonfire.

Marcus.

Me: They’re back together?

Carson: They weren’t all over each other, but Addi isn’t the type.

I turn my neck to the side, popping it in frustration, and again on the other side when the relief isn’t immediate.

“You heading out?” Brent Johnson’s drummer asks as he stands at the small kitchen sink and washes his hands.

“Man, I don’t even know where we are,” I mutter as I slide my phone into my back pocket.

“Casper, Wyoming,” he informs.

“Where are you guys heading? We don’t have a show today, do we?”

I rack my brain for the tour schedule but come up blank.

He begins to speak before I have the chance to pull my phone from my back pocket to look it up.

“No show tonight, but we have two shows tomorrow.”

“Where are you guys going?”

They hardly ever stay on the bus when it’s parked. Being cramped inside while we’re traveling is hard enough as it is. Plus, it fucking reeks in here.

“Headlight Café,” he says. “Wanna join us?”

I watch his face, waiting for him to say he’s joking. We never hang out. I’m too busy sitting in my bunk waiting for Addi to text me back.

“Kind of a weird name for a diner,” I mutter. “But I can eat.”

“You’ll love this place,” he assures me with a slap on the back as we climb down the short set of stairs and exit the bus.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” I ask with a grin as we sit down. “How did I not know this place existed?”

“Because you’re sixteen hundred miles away from home, country boy.”

“They would never allow this sort of thing in the south,” I add as yet another topless waitress walks past my table. I smile at her, and she winks. “Nice.”

“That’s a damn shame,” one of the other band members says.

“I mean, we have a Hooters, but Jesus, this place is so much better.” I can’t stop smiling at all the gorgeous women as they serve late lunches like their tits aren’t on full display.

There are only two women sitting at tables, and they seem to be enjoying the view as much, if not more, than the other male patrons.

“There’s also a franchise of topless coffee houses in Washington. We’ll go there when we have our stop in Seattle in a few weeks.”

“Seriously?”

“Yeah, dude. You should get out of the country more.”

“No doubt,” I agree.

“What can I get you guys?” the blonde waitress asks as she approaches the table. I can’t help but notice the grin on her face and the way she angles her body toward mine.

“What’s good to eat around here?” one of the guys asks, but she keeps her eyes on me.

“Everything.” Her voice is husky, filled with suggestion. I know what the look means. I’ve seen it a hundred times. This woman is mine if I want her.

Addi flashes through my mind, and I almost turn away from the cute girl offering herself to me, but then I remember what Carson said and hearing Marcus’s name before we ended our video chat. We aren’t together, and if I don’t have a chance with the girl of my dreams, I don’t see the point in pretending things will ever be different.

“How about…” I say, leaning closer, her perfect tits right in my face. Only a few inches of space separate my mouth from the puckered tip of her breasts. “You make me what you think I need.”

“And then?” One of the guys groans at the interaction, but I give her a mischievous grin.

“Then you tell your boss you don’t feel well so you can give me a tour of your house.”

“I live in an apartment,” she corrects.

“I love apartments.”

“Perfect,” she says before turning to the others. “What about you guys?”

The drummer grins from cheek to cheek. “I want what he’s having.”

“Sorry,” she apologizes. “We just ran out.”

The guys grumble their orders and we all watch the shake of her ass as she walks back to the kitchen.

“Are you really going to fuck that chick?” the guy on my left asks.

“Probably,” I mutter.

“Don’t sound too happy or anything,” he spits at my indifference.

“What about your girl back home?” the guy across from me asks.

“There is no girl back home.”

And it’s about time I realize it.

We eat, and I flirt with the waitress on her numerous trips back to our table. Despite the sneering of the other guys, the service is excellent. I guess these ladies realize you can have your breasts on full display, but good food and friendly service is a must as well.

When the time comes and our ticket is paid, I watch the waitress walk to the front door. Tossing a saucy look over her shoulder, I stand from the table.

“Don’t wait up,” I tell them before following her out of the restaurant.