Page 41 of Grip Me Tight
“So what? Mom and Dad love you. And Noah…” I trail off. Noah loves Tanner, but I can’t imagine him not being weirded out by the thought of me being with Tanner. But to be fair, Noah is an over-protective older brother. He’s not going to like me being with anyone. “Noah doesn’t get a say in my relationships, any more than I get a say in his.”
Tanner pauses, one arm braced on the wall, but he doesn’t look at me. “I’ll call Hamish to come and escort you to your room.”
Anger bubbles up inside me. “What about what I want? What if I want you too?”
“You only think you want me. A teenage crush. A rock star. It looks good on paper, but the real thing? Come on, Silver. It’s not a fairy tale.”
“Well, I’m glad you explained how I only think I know what I want.”
Tanner remains silent.
“So that’s it? Only you get to call the shots here?” I move past him, taking care not to touch him. “Fine. Call Hamish. I’m only here until tomorrow anyway. The shows are done, and you guys are on a break for a few weeks until we fly to Europe in August. I need to spend time with Avery and Emil anyway to schedule the posts while you guys are on vacation. I’ll see you around.”
“Sterling.”
I keep walking into the bedroom, throwing off my robe and grabbing yesterday’s clothes. Just as I shimmy into my jeans, I feel him behind me.
“What is it, Tanner?” I keep my gaze on the wall.
“I’m trying to do the right thing here. I want you. I want you so badly it physically hurts me to be this close to you and not touch you. But I also know how this will end and then I’ll lose everything.”
I spin around searching the sadness in his eyes. “What are you talking about? No one can predict the future.”
“I can’t do relationships, Sterling. So, yeah. I know how this will end.”
“Last time I checked, I didn’t ask you for a goddamn thing, let alone a relationship.”
We stare at each other for a heated moment, tension strumming between us and for a second I think I’ve won. I lean towards him, drawn by the flare of desire in his eyes, but he jams his hands in his pockets and takes a step back.
“That was Noah on the phone. Ajax has gone AWOL. I guess Natalie – the girl from the concert? She’s missing and he’s not leaving Chicago until he finds her. Serge wants the rest of us to get out of town because the guy who was pushing her around last night? Apparently, he’s Ajax’s brother and he’s a big deal in this town, but for all the wrong reasons.” He shakes his head. “Mafia, of all things.”
Flustered by the sting of rejection, I button up my jeans, tucking the front of my t-shirt in and sit on the bed, feigning casualness. “What are we supposed to do?”
“Well, Noah wants you on a place back to Connecticut this afternoon.”
“But what about the scheduling? No one knows me. I’m hardly important in the grand scheme of things. I’ll lay low with Emil…”
“I don’t want you laying anywhere with Emil.”
“Tanner.” I look up at him. “I work with him.”
“And he’s clearly interested in doing more than working with you.”
“It only matters what I’m interested in. Emil, or you for that matter, doesn’t get a say. Especially when it seems like you can’t make up your mind.”
He rakes a hand through his hair. “I know I’m acting crazy but so much has happened in the last few months.” He sighs. “Look, Laird wants us to meet tonight before we all go our separate ways for a couple of weeks. He’s spooked by the bad press.”
“What bad press?” I reach for my tablet. “We’ve cut that off, pretty well.”
Tanner reaches out, taking my tablet. “It doesn’t matter what a great job you did, or how much our PR company throws at it, crazy sells and right now I’m sure there are a ton of stories rehashing any bad behavior ever rumored about Kingmaker. Ajax’s blackout partying. The sex tape. Noah’s stalker.”
“Your threesome pregnancy,” I raise my eyebrows.
Tanner sits on the bed. “Yes, my threesome pregnancy.” He idly plays with the ends of my hair. “You know it’s not true, right?”
“You don’t owe me any explanations.” See, I can be cool about his life. I ignore the pang in my stomach when I think about him touching someone else, his low, sexy voice rough with passion. I’m pretty sure it’s not his baby, but there’s generally only one way a woman can claim pregnancy and it’s not just from hearing Tanner’s voice.
He frowns. “You think I wouldn’t own up to my responsibilities?”
