Tugging my glasses off of my face, I lift my head and take a couple of steps toward her. I know when she finally realizes that I’m here. Her feet falter, then she stops, her lips parting slightly and her eyes brightening.
She’s dressed down, much like she dresses every day at home. She’s wearing a pair of tight jeans with holes in the legs, a loose-fitting black V-neck t-shirt that she has tucked in and hangs off of one shoulder, showing off her black bra strap. Her dark blonde hair is pulled up into a high ponytail on top of her head and her makeup is almost nonexistent.
She looks like my dreams come to life.
Laurie lifts her hand and gives Hutton’s shoulder a small shove, but my girl doesn’t move. My feet suddenly become unstuck, my lips turning up into a huge smile.
I close the distance between us. When I arrive in front of her, I bend slightly, wrapping my arms around her thighs and I pick her up off of the ground.
Hutton lets out a sweet squeal, her hands wrapping around my shoulders and her nails digging into my skin. Slowly, I let her down, enjoying the way her body slides alongside my own, until her face is directly in front of mine. Without a word, my mouth crashes against hers in a hard kiss.
Hutton moans as her lips part and she allows me entrance into that mouth of hers that I have been fucking craving for weeks. My fingers grab hold of her perfect ass and I squeeze, shifting my hips forward so that she can feel my hard length against her belly.
“Well, I can officially throw up now,” Laurie deadpans.
Breaking the kiss, I turn my head and narrow my gaze on her for just a moment before my lips twitch into a grin.
“Hey, Laurie. Good to see you again,” I murmur.
She raises a brow, then her own lips turn up into a smile. “I’m ready to party, and by party, I do not mean that I’m ready to watch you bone my bestie. Let’s get the hell out of here,” she says with a wide smile.
“Our luggage should be here by now,” Hutton whispers, her lips touching my jaw.
I hum, then feel a presence behind me. “Some teenagers have their phones out and I’m sure that indecent kiss is going to be viral in about an hour,” Brian says, shoving a beef stick in his mouth.
I grunt with a heavy sigh. “Let’s go. Laurie, Hutton, this is Brian. He works on all the songs with me,” I explain.
Together, the four of us walk toward the baggage claim terminal. Brian and Laurie stay back a bit, which is perfectly fucking fine with me. Wrapping my arm around Hutton’s hip, I tug her close to my body as I wait for her bags to move around the belt.
“What’s yours look like?” I ask softly.
“It’s light blue with big pink flowers,” she replies.
I smile at the description, thinking that it fits her. It fits Hutton and I’ve missed this with her, this closeness.
“Got us a hotel. It’s nothing fancy, but at least we’ll have privacy.”
“You didn’t have to do that,” she says.
Glancing down, I smirk. “I did. Laurie has her own room, at the end of the hallway,” I explain.
Her face turns pink as she blushes from my words. “Beaumont,” she hisses.
Chuckling, I squeeze her hip just as I catch a glance at her pretty feminine bag making its way down the belt. Reaching forward, I snatch it and gently place it in front of her.
“Which one is yours?” I ask, directing my question to Laurie.
She’s looking down at her phone, a frown creasing the middle of her brows. “Oh, the red one,” she mumbles as she touches the screen of her phone.
Grabbing the red bag, I set it down in front of her. She lets out a huff, then shoves her phone in her back pocket.
“Oh, thanks.” She smiles, reaching down for the handle.
“You okay?” I ask.
She looks up at me, shakes her head then gives an obviously fake smile. “I’m ready to party, let’s shake this place,” she says, tugging her bag and walking forward.
“She okay?” I ask Hutton as I reach down for her girlie bag.
Hutton is watching Laurie’s retreating form before she turns and gives me a shrug. “I don’t know. That was weird, right?”
“Yeah,” I admit with a dip of my chin.
“She has been glued to that thing for days. I don’t know what’s going on.”
Without another word, we begin to make our way outside. Brian is at the curb loading up Laurie’s bag in the back of our rented SUV. He smiles, reaching for Hutton’s and loads it up while I guide her toward the backseat.
“Buckle up, Brian is a shit driver.” I grin with a wink.
“Fuck you, man,” Brian calls out as I close Hutton’s door. Laurie giggles as she climbs in on the other side.
In this moment, my world seems whole, it seems right and I’m so fucking grateful for the calm and peace that it brings. I needed this, needed Hutton here with me.
I’m glad that I made her pick some dates and flew her and Laurie out here. Even if it’s only for a couple days, it’s already so fucking worth it.
HUTTON
When Beaumont said that he would be doing a small-town tour, he wasn’t joking. This town, Exeter, which is funny because that’s Wyatt’s wife’s name, it’s smaller than Burnet where I live. I honestly didn’t think there were any small towns like ours in California. I stand corrected.
Brian doesn’t drive poorly, he does however drive like an old grandma, but I don’t mind because this town is adorable. We drive through the downtown area and I’m in awe of all the murals painted on the side of the buildings. They’re beautiful and give that small-town homey feel.
“So where will you be playing?” I ask when I don’t see anywhere that looks big enough to hold a crowd the size that he usually brings in.
“It’s called the Orange Blossom Junction. It’s a restaurant, bar, and dance hall kind of place,” Beaumont explains.
“Sounds like home,” Laurie snorts.
“It’s a lot like Gallup, which is exactly what I was looking for when I agreed to the tour,” Beaumont says. He doesn’t sound defensive, but rather, he sounds pretty proud. “I guess there’s a lot of shopping and some nice café’s downtown, at least that’s what the city guide told us when we arrived.”
“I could shop,” Laurie says with a shrug.
I think she’s probably disappointed that this isn’t some huge party thing, but Beaumont said it was a small-town tour, and he’s trying to stay on the wagon, he’s not partying. I’m glad for it, since parties aren’t really my thing, never have been.
“The hotel isn’t fancy, but it’s a place to sleep. Usually we stay on the bus,” he continues.
“I’m okay without pizazz,” Laurie snorts. The SUV turns the corner then pulls into the parking lot of a Best Western. “And pizazz we won’t have.” She laughs.
“Nicer than any hotel I’ve stayed in before,” I mumble.
Beaumont doesn’t turn his head to look at me and I’m glad that he didn’t hear. I don’t want him feeling sorry for me or anything like that. I shouldn’t have even said it aloud.
I didn’t have money growing up, and I still struggled every month to pay my bills. I don’t go on vacations or travel anywhere. In fact, I didn’t tell him that today was my first time ever on an airplane, it’s why I wanted to just drive to the Texas events.