Page 94 of Malice and Surrender
“Of course. Avro told me the moment he met you and felt a connection. I knew he’d want to bring you into the fold at some point. I was just sick of hearing him go on about you without meeting you, so I forced his hand. He needs that now and then.”
“Oh,” she said, and nibbled her lip. “So you actually do media stunts?”
“Yes, that happens. Not everyone does, but I find it works for me and what Avro and I wanted for our private life.”
I ran my hand through my hair as I thought about the last time Allen made me do one of those fake shoots and play the role of the jerk boyfriend for ratings. He made a deal with the father of a Princess from some country I couldn’t even pronounce. We made it look like we were living together in a fancy hotel suite in Paris.
We were in the same hotel for a month, but other than the staged photos, we never spoke or touched or anything else. The images circulating of us on a balcony, half-naked in a hot tub for the paparazzi went viral overnight. Fans started calling me Rock Prince, which I hated with a passion. I had no idea what she and her father got out of it, but I had a million more downloads than anticipated of the band’s newest release in just two days.
“How does this work, then? You feel the urge to get yourself off with someone else and ask Avro for permission?”
“You and Avro,” I stated. “If you’re serious about being in this with us, then it’s an ‘us’ thing. Not a ‘you and him’ thing, not a ‘him and me’ thing, an ‘us’ thing. Get it?” I pulled off the highway that led toward my old stomping grounds.
“I guess I get it,” she said. “This is all very strange. I went from not having a boyfriend ever to two very different ones overnight.” She made a little exasperated noise that was fucking adorable.
It made me so damn hard how she was sweet and naïve in many ways and yet so much more. I really wanted to draw that out of her, and the thought had my cock stirring again.
“Did you know Avro wants me to move in? I mean, isn’t that a little soon? It seems a whole lot soon to me.” She crossed her arms. “He blurted it out while we were at work today. Took me completely off guard.”
I laughed hard. “Gee, I wonder what that feels like?” I said, and Raine blushed. “Look, Avro is an all-in kind of guy. He wants you to be with us, so he pushes all his chips to the center of the table. My suggestion is to compromise,” I said.
“How?”
“What bothers you the most about moving in with us?” I asked, and she sucked in her bottom lip as she thought.
“I guess losing my own place,” she said, her voice soft.
“Then don’t. That’s an easy fix.” Putting on the turn signal, I pulled into the driveway of Terri’s Place. This was the best chicken and pizza place for miles. It was a hidden gem far outside the city limits, but Avro and I used to come here at least once a week before I started to tour.
“You mean keep my house but still move in for now,” Raine asked and tapped her chin.
“Why not? When Avro gets an idea in his head, he will chase that shit down and bug the fuck out of you until you agree, and good luck saying no. So you might as well give it a shot unless you want him harassing you every day.” I swung my eyes to hers as I put the car in park. “And you know he will. Have you ever been able to say no to an idea of his?” I cocked an eyebrow and picked up my phone to put in my order. “Besides, you could rent it out after a couple of months of feeling comfortable and earn another income. If things go really well, you can then sell and put the money away or buy a different house when it’s a good buying market. Many options.”
Terri and the manager knew us by name and would bring the food out to the car, so I didn’t run the risk of being spotted.
“Now that you mention it…No, I don’t think I’ve ever said no to Avro. That’s a little terrifying,” she said, and I laughed.
“It’s worth it, though. Trust me, he will fill you, and I don’t mean with his cock, although that will happen too.”
Raine laughed and gripped her stomach. The sound was as cute as she was.
“He does have a knack for making you feel like everything will be okay.” Raine looked at me while I typed in the text message to Terri.
“Yeah, he really does.” I held up the phone to show her the message. “Do you want anything, or would you like to share my pizza with me?”
“What are you getting on it?”
“Spicy buffalo chicken with barbecue sauce.” Raine scrunched up her nose. “Trust me, you try it once, and you’ll wonder how you ever lived without this in your life.”
“Then sure, I’ll share with you.”
I finished typing in the message and waited for the thumbs up before setting the phone down. We lapsed into silence as we waited for the food. I took the time to gather my thoughts about what I was going to show her.
“How much farther do we have to go?” Raine asked as Terri pushed out the door with bags and a cooler. The man was always thinking.
“Not far,” I said and then hit unlock on the car doors. Terri opened the back door, a dance we’d done many times in the last three years.
“Jace, it is good to see you,” Terri said as he arranged the food that made my stomach growl. He still looked the same. Terri’s dark hair was now going grey, but aside from that, the same smile was always on his face.
