Campbell jumped to his feet. Everyone stared at him, waiting to see what exactly he was going to say. I was the most eager to see how this was going to play out. There were enough slightly drunk, half-naked women in here, all vying for Campbell’s attention. Blaire shouldn’t have even been on his radar. Even in her mid-length designer dress and heels with her hair down straight as a board to her waist, her curtain bangs falling forward, nearly into her blue eyes. But she was on his radar. He looked ready to rip Santi’s hands off of her. And he hadn’t even been that upset about his own sister.
Blaire arched an eyebrow. “Got something to say?”
Campbell looked down at Blaire, who met his eyes defiantly. It was a what are you going to do look.
Finally, he sat back down, grinding his teeth together. “No. Nothing.”
Conversation was stilted for a few moments after that. Jennifer yawned and gestured for them to leave. I should probably want to leave. Everyone else seemed done. Blaire certainly was ready to escape. She hadn’t wanted to come in the first place. Nora even came to her feet to stand beside Jordan and Julian. Annie pouted a little about leaving so early…even though it was nearly midnight, but eventually, she relented when I caught Jordan squeeze her ass suggestively.
“Piper?” Blaire asked. “You coming?”
“No, come on,” Campbell complained. “Someone should hang out a little longer.”
“I think I’ll stay,” I said, which was a surprise, even to me.
“Me too,” Hollin said. “I can make sure she gets back safe.”
Blaire arched an eyebrow at me. “You sure?”
I was not. But this was fun. I was pleasantly drunk and not worrying about anything at all. I hadn’t thought about work in hours. That never happened. What would a few extra hours hurt?
“Yeah. I’m good. Love you.”
She squeezed me extra tight. “Have fun.”
Campbell slung an arm around my shoulders as we both watched my best friend head out. “Glad you’re staying.”
“You going to tell me what happened with you and Blaire?”
Campbell blinked down at me, donning the casual rocker vibe immediately. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Sure you don’t.”
He laughed. “Why worry about the past when the future is so bright?”
“You tell me.”
Hollin interjected mid-conversation. “What are y’all whispering about?”
Campbell faced his brother with his arm still around my shoulders. “Your girl sure is blunt.”
“I am not his girl,” I said.
Hollin gestured to us. “The bluntest.”
“Who said they wanted a blunt?” Viv cried. “I’ve got one or two here. Mostly joints though.”
Campbell released me with a laugh. He took the joint she’d offered and took a puff. He passed it back to his bandmate and lounged on one of the couches. Girls crawled under his arms. Both looked ready to do whatever he asked right then and there. This was a side of Campbell I wasn’t used to. Of course, there had been thousands of girls out there tonight who would have been just as happy to be in their position. It still wasn’t how I saw him. This was showman Campbell. Not back home in Lubbock Campbell.
Hollin glanced my way. “Shots?”
“Might as well,” I agreed.
Hollin ordered another round of tequila shots. Campbell hopped up almost instantly and was beside us as the shots were poured, as if he couldn’t sit still for a second. The bartender added a third for him. We held them up, clinking glasses before tipping the drinks back.
I coughed around the tequila and reached for the lime on instinct. I bit hard into it. This was the most I’d had to drink in a long time. If I kept going at this pace, I was going to black out.
“How do you do this every night?” I asked Campbell.
“I don’t know.” He fluffed his hair. “It’s the life.”
Hollin laughed, jostling his brother. “Don’t be an ass. There’s no way you could drink this much every night and still perform the way you do.”
“Hey, I can…sort of.”
“He doesn’t drink this much or smoke usually. This is Campbell’s hosting skills.”
Campbell snorted. “Hosting skills?”
“Yeah, you’re like a housewife. Except for the concert.”
“So, you’re saying, he’s showing off?” I asked.
“Obviously,” the brothers said at the same time.
I couldn’t help it; I laughed. “Well, that makes sense.”
“Speaking of showing off,” Campbell said, waggling his eyebrows, “want to see the tour bus?”
“Oh, yes!” I said, suddenly giddy with excitement. It was another thing I’d always wanted to see but never had.
Campbell and Hollin shared a look that I didn’t comprehend. Brother thing.
“Yeah, let’s go,” Hollin said. “After you.”
Campbell muttered something under his breath. Then, he gestured to the back of the room. “Let’s go this way. Security is going to have to check for a clear walk-through.”
We followed him through a maze of back hallways. Security stood in rapt attention at the door. They nodded at Campbell and checked for the all clear.
“Usually, the parking is pretty secure for the band,” Campbell explained while we waited. “But sometimes, superfans find their way through all the security to get back here. It’s happened a few times.”
“Do they try to kill you?” I asked.
Campbell sputtered in surprise. “What? No. They want a picture and an autograph.”
“You don’t arrest them?”
Hollin’s eyes were wide. “What do you think happens on tour?”
“There are lots of crazy people out there.”
“We try not to resort to violence,” Campbell said with a laugh. “Most people are cool, leaving when we tell them to. I’ve had a few stalkers and crazies, but security handles most of it.” A security guard nodded at him. “All right. Let’s go.”
We stepped outside, and there was the Cosmere tour bus. It had their logo in blue and gold on the side, almost like graffiti. Campbell opened the front door, and we followed him inside.
“Well, this is it. Our little slice of home.”
It was nice. Not anything fancy. I could see why they’d chosen to stay in a hotel while in Dallas. The beds were small though cozy. The space seemed cramped for five people to be stuck together all the time.
“This little nook is mine,” Campbell pointed out. “Viv gets the back room. We offered to get her a solo bus, and she told us to fuck off. Michael asked if he could have the solo bus, so he wouldn’t be with us all the fucking time.”
“Or so his wife and kid could travel with y’all?”
Campbell gestured to me. “Or that. But the record label nixed it. Said they could do gendered buses but not family. I don’t get the big deal, but here we are. One bus.”
“It’s not what I expected,” I said as I settled into the plush couch and leaned my elbows on the table.
“Nah, it’s nothing special. Gets us from point A to point B,” Campbell said. Then, his phone buzzed noisily in his pocket. He looked down at the screen and grinned. “I have to take this. I’ll be back. Help yourself to the booze.”