“Layla, you were out for over two days. What we went through—what that man back there in that bedroom went through—while you wouldn’t wake up was one of the worst times in our lives. You can’t expect him to want to even chance going through that again.” When her sister just glared at her, Lana stood and hugged the shorter woman. “We love you, Layla. Without you no one would survive. You having another baby would be a beautiful thing, but like Jesse, I would be a basket case the entire pregnancy. Don’t be mad at him for being scared of losing you.”
Layla hung her head. “Okay. I guess I really didn’t understand how hard it was on you guys.” Her chin trembled. “I just…the twins are getting older and I guess I have baby fever with you and now Dallas pregnant.”
“Don’t go spreading that fever around, girl,” I murmured, not wanting that particular ailment anytime soon. I was lucky enough to have the change to get pregnant if the urge ever hit, but it would take a lot of work to achieve it. I’d had eggs harvested before my chemo treatments when I was teenager, something that had been more than a little controversial since I’d been so young at the time. Surprisingly, it had been Wroth who had made it possible for me to have the eggs harvested, paying for another doctor to come in from France just to have the procedure done. “I don’t need that crap right now.”
Dallas stood and grabbed my hand. “Okay, you two. It’s late and now Layla is going to go back there and fuck her man, because he’s hot and she isn’t mad at him anymore.” The other two women laughed, breaking the tension that had filled the room just moments ago. “And I’m going to go over to my bus and fuck mine. So let’s go, bitches.”
I hugged Layla and followed my friends off the bus, fighting a yawn of my own. Lana and I said goodnight to Dallas outside her bus before heading on down the row of buses. We passed the darkened bus that belonged to Shane and Harper, and then stopped outside of Lana’s. “Good night, Rissa.” Lana kissed my cheek and opened the door of her bus. I waved and headed toward OtherWorld’s bus when I heard the male laughter coming from the living room of Lana’s bus, picking up the sound of Wroth’s rough laugh easily.
Lana stuck her head inside quickly before turning back to me. “Come on in, girl. It doesn’t look like this bunch is going to leave anytime soon.”
Frowning, I stepped onto the bus and found four rockers spread around the living room, beers in three of the four’s hands while they watched World’s Dumbest on television. There were empty cartons of Chinese food littering the side tables and the place smelled like a college student’s dorm room. Lana stood there in the middle of them, hands on her hips as she frowned at the mess in her living room. “You fuckers are cleaning this up before you go home.”
“Aw, sis. You know we will.” Shane tipped his beer at her. “Can you get me another beer?”
Lana gave him a death glare. “Get it yourself, you slob.” Her gaze went to Drake and her eyes softened. “Did you save me any noodles?”
Drake held out his hands to her and she climbed onto his lap. “In the microwave, Angel.” He pulled her closer, burying his face in her neck. “Shane, get Angel her food.” Grumbling, Shane stood and went into the kitchenette to grab himself another beer—the last of them by the looks of it—and a carton of Chinese.
I let my eyes travel around the room as I stood there wondering if I should just go back to my own bus. Nik was sitting on the couch with Wroth, his ice blue eyes smiling at me as he lifted his Corona to his lips and took another swallow. I smiled back, because it was hard not to do so when you had that dream of a man flashing that killer smile at you. I might have been stupidly in love with Wroth Niall, but I’d always had a small crush on Nik. What woman wouldn’t crush a little on a man who looked like a yummy bad boy but acted like a true Prince Charming?
I knew that Wroth’s eyes were on me, could feel the fire in his gaze like a physical caress as it skimmed over me from head to toe and back again. I kept my own eyes away from him, however, feeling oddly shy.
One of the reasons I’d stayed so long over at Layla’s bus talking to my friends was because of him. I didn’t know how to handle myself around him at the moment. Waking up in his arms, followed by one of the most amazing foreplay sessions known to man, had left me feeling vulnerable. When I’d woken up with him beside me that morning, I’d just lain there watching him sleep for the longest time. My heart had ached more and more with each passing moment as I’d fought an internal battle with myself.
Could I forgive him? Damn it, hadn’t I already done so?
If I were being honest with myself, then the answer was simple. Yes, I had forgiven him. We had not made any promises of exclusivity, not really. It might have hurt—still hurt—but he hadn’t been mine when he’d cheated on me. This time around I wanted things to be different. I wanted him to make promises, wanted to know that he was mine and only mine if we went any further.
I just didn’t know how to ask for it without further humiliating myself.
Nik scooted over on the couch, making room between himself and Wroth. With a wink, he patted the seat next to him. “Come sit with us, Rissa. We could use a hot chick to even out the testosterone stinking up the place.”
“It does stink in here,” Lana muttered around a bite of the noodles she was pushing into her mouth with her chopsticks. “Does it smell this bad over at your bus, Rissa?”
“Worse,” I assured her with a laugh as I took the offered seat between Nik and Wroth.
As soon as I sat down, Nik draped an arm around my shoulders and Wroth made a growl in protest. “You wanna lose that arm, bro?”
Nik chuckled, not scared of Wroth’s threat. “I’ll take my chances.” He winked down at me again and I couldn’t help but grin back. “How you been, gorgeous? I feel like we’ve barely gotten to talk since the tour started. Em says you’re doing a great job with the kids. And, thanks, by the way. Apparently I’m adding a freakin’ dog to my family this Christmas because of you and that damn Wizard of Oz movie.”
“So Mia gets her Toto?”
“Have I ever not given my baby what she wants?” Nik grimaced. “I should probably stop spoiling her so much. She’s going to be as bad as her momma before long.”
“What planet do you live on?” Drake demanded. “She already is.”