Cody? My spine straightened. Who the fuck was Cody?
I held my breath, waiting for more, but Eva didn’t cry out again. Instead, she nestled into the seat, sighing softly. The partition lowered and Fenton, my bodyguard, stuck his head through the gap, “We’re almost at the hotel.”
“Thanks, man.”
“How is she?” His eyes flicked past me to the sleeping girl opposite.
“She’ll live.”
He gave me a sharp nod. It didn’t surprise me that Eva had already won over the bodyguards. The band was a handful to protect, but someone like Eva was a dream. Unassuming, humble, and so fucking beautiful it hurt.
Two minutes later, the SUV rolled to a stop and Travis and Fenton climbed out. The back door swung open and Eva’s bodyguard peered inside. “We need to wake her,” he said.
“Help me get her out,” I said, cutting him off.
Travis’s brow rose in question, but I ignored him, scooping Eva’s ragdoll frame off the seat. Travis reached in to help me and between the two of us we got her out the SUV in one piece.
“I’ll carry her...”
“Let me.” The words tumbled out before I could stop them. Fenton had already gone ahead leaving just Travis. He glanced at Eva cradled in his arms and then looked at me.
“Should I be worried?”
“No, but I’d appreciate it if you kept this to yourself.”
He gave me a stiff nod before gently placing Eva in my arms. I should have just let him take her, but I didn’t want to let go, not yet. Not when being in the SUV with her, just the two of us, had been the first time in weeks I felt like I could breathe.
Travis led the way, waiting for me to enter the service elevator. Fenton shot Travis a questioning look, but he shook his head. Travis and his men could be discreet, it came hand in hand with protecting people like us. But this felt different. This felt like me making a statement.
A statement I had no right to make.
It was too late now though. Eva was out cold in my arms and I had no intention of letting her go until she was safely tucked up in her suite.
Seconds later, the elevator doors pinged open. Travis stepped out first, checking to make certain it was clear. “Okay,” he said. “Fenton, you take point at the end of the hall. I’ll help Rafe get Eva into her room.”
My bodyguard nodded, bringing a hand to his ear. “The other car just left. Hudson took a hit though.”
“What the fuck?” I balked.
“Don’t worry. It was just a stiletto to the head. He’ll live.”
“Jesus,” I mumbled. Same crazy shit, different fucking city.
“Let’s move out.” Travis ushered me down the empty hall. I knew the girls were sharing a suite. I also knew if Letty found me in there with Eva it would only fuel her suspicions.
I needed to get in, make sure Eva was okay, and then get the hell out of there.
Travis stopped at a door a few down from my own suite and let us inside. “Her room is on the right.”
“Thanks.” I padded across the room with Eva in my arms. Shouldering open the door, I slipped inside. It was similar to our suite, although smaller. I’d stayed in so many hotels up and down the country they all looked the same to me now.
Eva groaned, her eyes fluttering open. “R- Rafe?” she smiled up at me and fuck if it wasn’t like a gunshot to my heart. “What’s goin’ on?”
Yanking back the covers, I laid her down gently, fighting the urge to brush her cheek. “We’re back at the hotel. You fell asleep.”
“I did?” She tried to sit up, her body failing her.
“It’s late, you should get some rest. You have a big day tomorrow.”
The grueling pace of the tour would keep us busy. I’d be able to avoid her, to avoid any more moments like this.
“Where is everyone?” Eva tried to shake off her leather jacket.
“They’ll be here soon.” I smothered a laugh, watching her struggle. “Here, let me.” Barely touching her, I pulled the material free of her arms.
“Thanks. My head hurts.”
“It was those three cocktails.”
“Three? Ah, jeez, I’m never livin’ this down, am I?”
I backed up, putting some much-needed space between us. “Your secret’s safe with me.” Eva’s eyelids began to flutter, and I said, “I should go,” as I began to inch toward the door.
“Rafe, wait...” The way she said my name stopped me dead in my tracks. “I don’t know what I did wrong, but I’m sorry.” She nestled into the pillow and was asleep within seconds.
I wanted to wake her and tell her the truth—that she’d done nothing, that this was just the way it had to be.
I didn’t though.
Because her knowing the truth would only make it harder, and it wasn’t fair to her. So I buried the words and forced myself to leave her lying there. The girl who owned my heart even if she didn’t know it.
I’d moved closer, close enough to touch her. Leaning down, I ghosted my fingers over her face before pressing a single kiss to her forehead.
“My Eva,” I whispered.
My Starshine.
“What the hell happened to you?” I said as the guys all piled into the suite. Hudson had a wad of paper towels pressed up against his forehead.
“Crazy bitch almost took out my eye.”
“Let me guess. Another Die Heart you promised to call and never did.”
“Fuck off. You know I never promise to call.” He sank down onto the couch. “Not how I saw the night ending.”
“Why the fuck did we have to leave anyway?” Levi grunted, uncapping a soda.
“Eva wasn’t feeling great,” Damon replied.
“You mean Little Miss Lightweight couldn’t handle her liquor?”
“Hud.” I levelled him with a hard look.
“She’s going to need to build some stamina if she’s going to keep up with us.”
My spine snapped straight. What the fuck did that mean?
“She’s not in the band,” Damon took the words right out of my mouth. “There’s no reason she has to hang with us all the time.”
“She should though,” Levi said, a strange expression passing over his face. “She’s... different.”
“You mean you finally met your match?” Hudson cackled, wincing when Levi’s bottle cap pinged off his head. “Not cool, fucker.”
My brother flipped him off. “How’d you end up riding back with her?” he asked me.
“I was getting some air and Travis showed up with Eva. We had to scramble when the Die Hearts realized we were on the move.”
“Fucking fangirls. Can’t live with ‘em, can’t live without ‘em.” Hudson let out a heavy sigh.
“What was that anyway, back at the club when you pulled Eva up on stage?” I asked Levi. “Alistair put you up to that?”
“What do you think?”
“You did it to piss him off.” Of course he had.
“He’ll thank me tomorrow when our name is all over the papers.”
But it wasn’t just our names that would be everywhere, it was Eva’s too. But as usual, my brother hadn’t looked past his own selfish motivations.