Page 43 of Beyond the Stix

“Weallheard the two of you fucking down there.” Pen leans back against the sofa. “Someone must have left the house intercom on,” he chuckles.

Finally, I glance around and see every single security member grinning at me.

“Fuck,” I quickly mutter in mortification.

“Who were you doing the dirty dancing with in the sound room?” Dante eyes me with a vexing glare. “Do I need to send in a cleaning crew?”

“No,” I shoot back irritably.

Tobias continues. “I don’t know what you did or said afterwards, but it had to be monumental for the entire band to be pissed off at you,” he confesses.

“Why aretheypissed off? They have nothing to do with what’s between Connor and me.”

“Clueless,” Dom says as he drops into the empty seat on the other side of me. “You’re clueless.”

“Shut the fuck up,” I spit out and stand. I need to fix this. But without knowing what the hell I did wrong, I can’t correct the mistake. “I have to talk to Connor, and only Connor.”

The hairs on my arm rise, and I realize everyone is staring behind me. I turn my head and see Connor standing there watching me with a frown. He must have been in one of the bedrooms in the back of the bus.

“We need to talk,” he says, his eyes darting away, like looking at me hurts.

“Yes,” I agree solemnly and follow him to the back of the bus where the larger of the two bedrooms are. Granted, either room is small and the beds take up most of the space.

Once the door slides closed, Connor spins around and lets his words fly. “I’m only going to say this once and then I’m walking away from this—from you.”

“What did I do?” Connor’s hostility leaves me even more confused than before. I wish I could just walk away from this mess like Connor wants to. However, I won’t be able to get him out of my mind. I care—no, I’m falling for the drummer and I simply can’t leave him. Hearing him out is the only way to fix this between us.

His mouth drops open. “Are you fucking kidding me? Don’t you remember what you said to me back in the sound room?”

What I said in the sound room?I rack my brain remembering that night. We fucked and it was glorious. Then I told him to… “Shit. Are you mad that I told you to get dressed?”

Connor’s narrowed eyes widen, and his eyebrows disappear under his fallen bangs before he starts laughing. “Is that what you think? That I’d be mad at that? It’s what you said right after, asshole.”

I run the words over in my head again, and it finally hits me. “Before we get caught.”

“Bingo. Give the man a prize. If I had known you’d keep me a secret, your dick wouldn’t have been in my ass. But don’t worry, that won’t ever happen again.”

Connor moves around me to leave, but my anger finally hits the boiling point and I growl out, “I’ve listened to you, now you’re going to hear me out.”

The bus begins to move and he stumbles back until his legs hit the mattress. “Fine.” He folds his arms across his chest and angles his face up in defiance.

I take a calming breath and go on. “It was never my intention to hurt you, Connor. I only meant that I didn’t want anyone to see you in that compromising position except forme, andonly me. Got that?” I take a step closer to him and stop. “I’m a veryprivate person. I don’t go around flaunting my ass or the body of anyone I have sex with. Do you understand that? I don’t share either—ever.”

Connor’s shoulders relax, but I can still see the hurt in his eyes. “I hope you’re not having sex with someone else while you’re fucking me.” He tips his chin more, giving me a stern glare.

“No, I’m not having sex with anyone else. And apparently not with you either,” I say, assuming this is the end of us.

With a loud exhale, Connor drops his arms to his side and his face softens. “I’m sorry for misunderstanding your meaning. It’s just that… you’re so abrupt… I just assumed the worst.”

“You know what?—”

“I know,” he cuts me off with a smile that’s healing the ache in my chest.

“Well…” I look around the room contemplating if I should just say what’s in my head, when his cell phone pings.

Connor stiffens, like a concrete pillar. His cell pings again, and I eye the phone sticking out of his pocket. “Are you going to answer that?”

“Nope.”