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“But are you having second thoughts?” Concern flooded Slip’s eyes; he was no doubt looking out for Tia.

My heart thudded hard against my ribs. Am I? Is that why I’m bothered? I sucked in a deep breath and stared out the window. Did I miss Em?...Yes. Did I want to get back together?...Fuck no. Did I miss being with men? ...No. I missed being loved. Tia had turned my world upside down, but there was no doubt about how I felt for her. None. She was it. I just wanted her to feel the same way about me. We’d gotten together in such a hot blaze; I wasn’t handling that we were now traveling at different speeds. I wanted her to catch up. “I’ve run through those scenarios and questioned my feelings, but no. He hurt me too much. Em was selfish, self-centered, and used me.”

I clenched and unclenched my fist. I wanted to say, ‘No, I’m not having second thoughts, because I’ve met someone new’. But I didn’t. Tia needed more time.

I hated being in limbo. We were crazy about each other.

What was holding her back? What had I missed?

Oh, shit!

A wave of nausea flooded through me and rolled through my gut. An electric shock jolted through the center of my chest. I winced and clutched my bass against my belly.

Was she just using me?

She’d loved sneaking around with Phil, and now she loved doing it with me. And she loved her games. Was that all I was to her? A game? Was that why she didn’t want to tell the guys about us?

No! Don’t go there. She was into me. I knew it. I felt it. Do I? Or was I being delusional?

A chill shot over my skin. Was this Emilio all over again? Had she let me believe she was crazy about me but was afraid of commitment?

Fuck. Stop!

Being tired had messed with my head. I trusted Tia. I trusted us.

I had to kill those thoughts. We had enough challenges ahead without adding more worries onto the pile.

Cole twirled his sticks. “Dude, go out. Get drunk. Get laid. You’ve had countless opportunities during promo and at functions.”

“You guys have been my priority, not hooking up with someone. I’ve been too focused on music, on finding my feet in LA and passing the milestones. I’ve had some personal curveballs to deal with—some were unexpected and left wing. But I’m sorting them out.”

“Are you sure?” Worry flooded Flint’s eyes. “Do you need help? We’re here for you. There is nothing you could say that would change the way we feel about you.” His gaze burned into me, pinning me to my stool. Shit! I hoped he meant that about Tia and me. He leaned forward. His voice deepened with true sincerity. “We’d do anything for you. You can trust us. You’re a Flintlock.”

I wished I could be one hundred percent certain about that. “Thanks. I’m good. It’s nothing a good sleep won’t fix. But we need to practice first.” I strummed my strings. “Let’s play.”

“Oh yeah.” Slip struck his guitar.

But I didn’t miss the shake of his head.

Secrets caused problems. I’d learned that. I didn’t want mine to blow up in my face. I just had to make it through promo.

Tia was worth the wait. Worth the risk.

But as I left LA with the guys and our promotional schedule kicked in, my palms sweated during every interview when the reporters asked about my love life. My head ached every time Cole encouraged me to hook up with some hot dude who’d batted his eyelashes at me when we were at a party or a function. My gut knotted every time we performed and practiced. It was getting harder and harder to lie. More importantly, I didn’t want to. I wasn’t being true to myself, which I’d always prided myself on. Every phone call I’d had with Tia, tension hovered between us.

Fuck.

I wanted to be with her.

What issues hadn’t we resolved?

Why did I feel like I was standing on the San Andreas Fault, and everything was about to rip apart?

Chapter 30

TIA

So much had happened in the past three weeks while the guys had been away, I’d struggled to keep up.