Preston walks into the room and drops down in the chair next to me. “Hey, Dan. Nice to see you again.”
I reach out and shake his hand. “You too. How have things been?”
He smiles. “As good as ever. My wife is in there driving your girlfriend crazy with questions. Sorry about that.”
I laugh. “I’m sure she’s not bothering her. She’s probably used to it, and if she’s not, she’s going to have to get used to it sooner rather than later.”
“Guys, dinner is ready!” Piper says, sticking her head into the room.
The three of us get up and go into the dining room where Riley and Luna are already seated. I take the open chair next to her and take her hand in mine. “Everything okay?”
She smiles. “Mm-hmm.”
Preston and Riley sit across from us with Calvin and Piper at either end of the table. We all take turns making our plates of spaghetti, garlic bread, and a side salad. Based on Calvin’s warning, I prepare myself for the first bite, but to my surprise, everything tastes amazing. The salad is fresh and crisp. The pasta is cooked perfectly and the sauce has a nice balance of sweetness and robustness. The garlic bread is perfectly toasted and it’s smothered in butter and garlic. It’s easily the best home-cooked meal I’ve ever tasted.
“This is all amazing. Thanks for having us,” I say before stuffing another bite into my mouth. With all the extra hours I’ve put in at the gym lately, my hunger has been insatiable. I can’t get enough.
“We’re happy to have you both,” Piper says.
Riley nods. “So when are you guys moving out here?” She offers up a sly grin.
Luna and I both laugh nervously. “Well,” Luna starts, “we’re not exactly sure of our future just yet. This is all so new that it’s hard to know if we’ll make it or not. That, on top of my busy schedule and the fact that the band is going on tour soon, just makes it feel like the odds are against us.”
“That’s right. I forgot about your tour,” Calvin says, looking only at me as a way to remind me of what I’m getting myself into.
She nods. “This isn’t, like, a big tour. We’re not headlining yet. Our first single is scheduled to drop next week then we’re going to be playing a lot of local shows and festivals. Then we’ll go on tour to open for The Metal Heads. That’s just a short six-week tour. After that, we’ll come back and take three months off while we release more singles, then the real tour will come. It will be a solid six months of touring the United States and Europe.”
Riley’s eyes stretch wide. “That’s so exciting.”
Luna forces a smile and nods. “It is,” she replies, but the tone of her voice is off. She doesn’t sound as excited as she should, and I make a mental note to talk to her later and find out how she’s feeling about the tour and us.
We finish our dinner and leave for the night, heading to our hotel. The four of them offered us a bedroom in one of their homes, but I didn’t want to impose. Plus Luna and I need a little alone time. I guess, in a way, I’m using this weekend to live out my regular relationship fantasies that will never come true. This could be our last chance to do something like this . . . especially if the band’s first single is dropping next week. She’ll blow up before our eyes.
When we get to our hotel room, I pull the curtains closed and set down our bags. She uses the bathroom before coming back out to dig around in her bag for something more comfortable to wear.
“Want to go down to the hot tub?”
“Yeah, okay. I could use some relaxation,” she agrees, pulling out a swimsuit.
We both quickly change, grab some towels, and head downstairs for the hot tub. There’s an inside and an outside pool, with a hot tub on the inside. The place is deathly quiet, but according to the sign on the door, the pool is still open. I push the button on the wall and get the jets going, then I slide in beside her.
She stretches out her arms along the sides of the tub and leans her head back, enjoying the heat and the massaging jets.
“Can I ask you something?”
Her head pops up with my voice. “Shoot.”
“Tonight at dinner, you didn’t seem all that excited about the tour. May I ask why?”
She sucks in a long breath and lets it out slowly. “Honestly, I don’t know.” She rolls her eyes and sits upright. “I should be happy. Hell, I should be downright excited. The band and I have worked years for this. And I’d worked years for this before even forming the band. I mean, even as a kid, I slept, ate, and breathed music. I didn’t go outside and play after school. I went to the music store and took lessons, worked off my first guitar, and gave lessons when I got better at it. My life has never been normal and I’ve always been okay with that. Until recently. I met you and all of a sudden, all these things that used to feel awesome no longer do unless you’re there to do them with me. And that’s so . . . I don’t know, stupid. No offense. But we’re still so new. This might not work out at all, but I’m already trying to fit you into the picture any way I can. And I know that isn’t fair. This isn’t your life and I wouldn’t expect you to give up anything for me. But I also can’t give this up for you. I have people who wouldn’t let me even if I wanted to. So I just kinda feel stuck. No matter which way this goes, I know I’m not going to be completely happy.”
I nod as I think about her words.
“You seem surprised. Why?”
I shrug. “It’s just that you’re always so cool and collected that I didn’t know if this was anything more than just fun for you. I didn’t realize things had gotten so serious.”
She starts moving closer as she crawls into my lap. “Does it scare you that we’re getting serious?” Her arms wrap around my neck.
“A little. This whole time, I thought it was just me—that I was falling for you faster than I’d ever fallen for anyone. But if you feel the same way, then I guess we are stuck.”
She presses her lips together and nods once. “Yep, but I’d rather be stuck with you than free and alone.” Her mouth touches mine and she gives me a long kiss. It’s so soft that it could be a dream, but it awakens my body in a way I’ve never felt before.
I place my hands on her hips and move her back and forth, rocking her core against my hardening cock. She breaks the kiss and lets a gasp fall from her lips. The sound is soft and teasing, only making me want to do more—explore more.
“What do you say we take this up to our room?”
She nods. “I think that’s a good idea.”
I stand and pick her up against me, walking us out of the hot tub. I don’t set her on her feet until we get to the towels we’d placed in a nearby chair. I put her down, pick up her towel, and envelop her in it. I grab my towel and wrap it around my hips. Hand in hand, we leave the pool area and make our way back to the elevator to hide away in our room for the rest of the night.
We spend Sunday apart. I meet up with Calvin and Preston at the new office to help them with repairs. Luna stays with the girls at the house, helping with the baby and hanging out.
Then we all meet back up for another home-cooked meal, I stuff my face until I can’t handle any more. After dinner, we sit around and shoot the shit, enjoying each other’s company. Luna and I are set to leave first thing in the morning since we’ve taken Monday off, then it’s back to our real lives where we never know what’s going to happen.