Page 44 of Rock Giant

She swallowed the hard lump in her throat, but her voice still came out hoarse.“I haven’t started anything.Nash ditched me last night to watch you lot fornicate.I might have reacted a little irresponsibly in response and got a tiny bit… wasted.”She wasn’t about to admit she’d been tripping her arse off on magic mushrooms to them all.It was easier to let them believe she’d drunk too much.Excess drinking they’d be less judgy over.Maybe.

“So, what was all that shit about a handfasting?”Balin asked.She couldn’t look him in the face, but the sight of his hairy legs and Mr Tickle socks made her want to giggle.That, and had she really just seen him fucking some woman?

God, they were all disappointed with her.She hadn’t just fucked things up with Nash, she’d dented her relationship with the rest of the Ghost Boys, too.If Nash dumped her over this, they’d ditch her, too.

“Nash arranged for the pair of us to get handfasted up at the standing stones last night.”

“No one invited us.”

“It was supposed to be a romantic thing between the two of us, before the official exchange of vows.We were supposed to meet there at quarter to eleven...or midnight.”Whatever.“Except, he didn’t come.”

“Oh, he came plenty,” Jez remarked flippantly from the other end of the seating.

“Not helping, pal.”Lee levelled a scowl at him.“And don’t muddy things unnecessarily.Nash didn’t cheat on you, Jo.Can you say the same?”

“Fuck you.”Fuck him for even suggesting she’d been unfaithful.“I didn’t sleep with Rock Giant if that’s what you think.”Well, technically, she had slept with him, or at least next to him, but she…they hadn’t shagged one another.At least, not last night.

“What are we supposed to think?Seems clear cut from where I’m standing.Nash allegedly failed to show, so you retaliated by buddying up with Black Halo’s bass player and made pretty promises to him instead.There’s no way that went down without some action.”

It hadn’t been like that.Actually, it hadn’t been anything like that.What he said implied pre-meditation, and there’d been none.It’d all been the very opposite of that.

“I’m not proud of what I’ve done, Lee, but I’m no cheat.What happened is that I got wasted.Same as any of you would have done in that situation.Ever been stood up?It sucks.Now imagine it wasn’t just any date; it was a fucking significant date.The person you’re fucking engaged to and are supposed to be spending the rest of your life with, stood you—he stoodmeup.”

She guessed her words hit home, because sympathy started creeping into their expressions.“I don’t even remember what happened properly.”

An ever-increasing number of snapshots were coming back to her, enough to piece a line of events together, beginning with Rock Giant kissing her, and ending with them constructing that ridiculous bird’s nest to sleep in.

“I know I’ve fucked up big time when drunk.”To her surprise, Balin flopped down beside her and leaned his head over until it met her shoulder.“Nash’ll calm down eventually, and it’s not like you made out with the guy or actually tied the knot with him.”He laced his fingers with hers and gave her hand a squeeze.

Actually, tying the knot was precisely what she’d done, but she got what he meant.

“So, you just need to stay away from him.”

Yeah, who was going to keep Rock Giant away from her?To him, those vows they’d made were apparently eternal.

“Really it’s just like the pair of you role-played getting hitched.”

Kinda.But not really.

“I’ll talk to him,” Jez offered.She wasn’t entirely sure who he meant to speak to until he moved towards the backroom door.Right, Nash, not Rock Giant.Good, because frankly she was probably better off handling Rock Giant herself.Sitting him down, and having a nice, sensible, adult conversation with him.Once she made sure he really understood what was at stake, then maybe they could figure something out like the grown-ups they allegedly were.

She’d never felt less like a responsible adult.

But nor did she want this to turn into a high-school drama with people being jerks to one another and assaulting one another in grimy bathrooms.

Lee intercepted their drummer.“Sit back down, Jez.Nash’s better left to stew.If you try to reason with him now, it’ll just make it worse.”

Jez pitched a sigh in the direction of the door.“I’d rather he didn’t trash the place and land us with some bollocks bill for the damages.We’re not made yet, guys.”

It seemed to her they’d managed to trash the place successfully already.She wasn’t about to make that point though.

“The worst he can do in there is massacre a few pillows.”Balin gave her hand another squeeze.“He did miss you last night, Jo-Jo.He made us all swoop by your tent to try and find you, and he asked that security bird and Brian about your whereabouts.”

It sucked some of the hurt out of her to know Nash had hunted for her.And the handfasting had been a maybe, not a definite.

“Said he was going to carry you back here and roll you onto his bunk.”

“That’s what we were gonna do?”Jez said.“I thought we were going to have a Valencia style snugglefest.Remember those?”