“We can have the hotel dry-clean your dresses and pick them up tomorrow if you’re doing rehearsal here again.”
“Shoot, you know how much a hotel’s gonna charge for that?”
“It’s kind of a business expense, isn’t it?”
She scowls at me. “I guess. Maybe we’ll stick it on Greg’s tab, since he made this mess.”
“Works for me.”
“I’m kidding. I wouldn’t do that.”
I shrug. “We’ll work it out later. Grab the stuff you need cleaned.”
Inside the hotel, while Shelby’s talking to someone in guest services about her laundry, I text Greg to give him the heads-up about the massive fee that’s about to be tacked onto his bill and to let him know we’re staying at the clubhouse tonight. He responds with a time for her to be here for rehearsal in the morning.
“You’re awfully intense.” Murphy’s rumbling voice pulls me away from my phone and I set it down.
I stand and slap his outstretched hand in hello. “Where you been hiding, fucker?”
One corner of his mouth lifts, and he strokes a hand over his beard. “Just enjoying kid-free time with the wife.”
“Where is she?”
“In our room.”
“Poor Heidi. Can she even walk?”
He lifts his hand, wobbling it from side to side. “I came down to find some Gatorade.”
“Jesus Christ.” I laugh and shake my head. “Too much info.”
“You need to get back to that?” He nods at my phone that’s now blinking and buzzing across the table.
I check the message from Greg, send a quick response, and set it down again. “Her manager.”
“You’re like her go-between now.”
“I guess.” I glance over his shoulder, watching Shelby still chatting about her dresses. “Someone needs to be. After everything she just went through, I don’t want her to feel pressured, you know?”
“I hear you.” His expression flattens into something more serious. “I was only kidding. You’re right. No one else is gonna look out for,” he taps his chest, “her well-being.”
“Since when do you say things like well-being?”
“Don’t be a dick. She’s got Greg to look out for her business stuff. But no one’s looking out for her.” He throws his arms wide. “Enter, Rooster. Cock-a-doodle-motherfuckin’-do.”
I roll my eyes but can’t help laughing. “I can’t sit by and watch when she needs something and not fix it, you know?”
“Trust me, I get it.”
“We’re heading over to the mall to find her some luggage. You two want to join us?”
He shrugs. “Sure. Wrath and Trin will probably want to go too. She said she needs something for her camera.”
“Hey, Murphy.” Shelby walks up alongside him.
“How you doing today, Shelby?”
“Meh. Rehearsal sucked. My momma went home. And I just handed over half my wardrobe to this hotel. Hoping they can clean it without wrecking or losing it.” She returns his smile. “How are you doing?”
He shakes his head. “Better than that. You mind if Heidi and I tag along on your shopping trip?”
Shelby’s gaze slides my way. “Shopping trip?”
“The luggage?” I remind her.
“Oh, right. No, of course not. The more the merrier.”
SHELBY
Rooster pulls the truck into a parking spot and I glance at the mall entrance. “You know where we are?”
He checks his phone, swiping through a few screens before nodding. “Yup. Should be right inside.”
“What should?”
“Don’t worry about it.”
We’re supposed to meet up with his brothers in the food court and the flat brick wall with the big white department store sign on the side doesn’t look like it’s serving up pizza and hamburgers. But I follow him anyway.
He stops in front of some fancy-ass luggage store and pulls me inside.
“I can’t afford anything in here,” I whisper.
A saleswoman approaches us with a blank expression. Maybe we don’t look like her usual customers. “Can I help you?” Her eyes widen as she gives me a second glance. Shit, I hope she doesn’t recognize me or something.
I fidget and squeeze Rooster’s hand. He squeezes back but doesn’t take the hint that I want to leave.
“Yeah, I called a little while ago about the expandable hard-side set in blue?”
My jaw drops and I cock my head, peering up at him.
“Sure!” Now the saleslady has a pep in her step. She waves her hand in the air, inviting us to follow her to the register. “I have three pieces. Large traveler. Medium traveler. And carry-on size.”
She wheels all three pieces in front of the counter for us to inspect. Rooster takes a step back, studying them intently. “Do you have another large one?”
“Sure. I’ll be right back.” She disappears into a door behind the register.
I grab Rooster’s arm, yanking him toward me. “What are you doing?”
“Do you like the color?” His lips curve up. “Online it looked kinda close to electric teal.”
Oh. My. God.
My heart absolutely melts. When we first met, I told him electric teal was my favorite color. I was sort of being silly, wanting him to understand I wasn’t a pink, frilly girly-girl type. But he took it to heart. First, buying me a pair of boots in that color, and now…
“Shelby?”
“When did you…How’d you even?” I’m too overcome to spit out the right question.
He holds his hands in the air, tapping his fingers as if he were on his phone. “I told you, my google-fu is strong. I looked up what would be appropriate for touring musicians. This set had good reviews. Found a place not far from the hotel that had it…and here we are.”
Maybe it’s a mundane thing to get all love-buzzed over, but that he did all that to solve my rather banal problem is so sweet, I’m not sure what to say. Not that I can’t google stuff myself, but I probably would’ve gone to the closest Walmart and picked out whatever looked big enough. “Thank you.”
“Do you like the color?”
“I love it.”
“Good. Open ’em up and see if you think the compartments will work for how you like to organize your stuff.”
“You’re acting like I organize at all.” I nudge him with my elbow. “You saw what my trunk looked like.”
He huffs a quick laugh. “Yeah, I remember.”
I crouch down, turn the biggest suitcase on its side, and unzip it. It’s full of pockets, hidden compartments, and straps to keep everything secure. “It’s great.”
The saleswoman returns with a second large roller. Rooster eyes all four pieces together.
“I don’t think all that’s gonna fit in the van or on your bike,” I whisper.
He slides his gaze my way but doesn’t say anything, then lifts his chin at the clerk. “Can we break up a set? The two large bags and the carry-on?”
“Sure. Whatever you want. They might be heavy when they’re fully packed.”