Hislips touched my neck, then my ear. “Brooke can do it. She can check in onEddie. It’ll be fine.”
“Babe,I can’t expect Brooke to handle everything by herself formonths. Shehas a life too.”
“So,hire other employees!” He was laughing, smiling against my shoulder. His lipspressed into my skin again and again, elation radiating from his body like aheavy, consuming mist. “It’s ridiculous that you don’t have anybody else workingthere anyway.”
“But,”I began, regretting every bit of my hesitation. Because as much as he wanted methere, I wanted to be there even more. “We’re not making enough money to hireon more people. I mean, we could maybe swingoneother part-time employee,but we couldn’t handle a whole roster of people, babe …”
Thereality of it all brought his forehead to dip against the pillow as he nodded.“No, I know,” he sighed against my ear. The weight of his disappointmentbrought his head to press heavily against mine.
“I’msorry,” I said, interlocking my fingers with his. “Maybe it’s for the best,” Ioffered weakly. “I mean, maybe it’s good we get used to thisnow,instead of later. I won’t be able to go with you on every tour, you know?”
“Yeah,”he said with a nod. “But not every tour will be my first,” and with that, heunwrapped himself from my body and got up from the bed to walk into the livingroom.
Isighed as I sat up, wrapping my arms around my knees. His point was valid. Thiswas a once in a lifetime circumstance. He would never again have another firstconcert tour, and bearing that in mind, I climbed off the bed and went to joinhim on the couch. His fingers plucked slowly against the strings of his oldguitar, the one he never used anymore. Not since the Hummingbird fell into hishands.
“Howmany dates do you have on the East Coast?” I asked, presenting my quicklyconjured compromise on a golden platter.
“Idon’t know,” he shrugged halfheartedly. “Richard estimated about ten, I think.Two weeks’ worth, maybe.”
Icrawled to his end of the couch, taking the guitar from his hands. I eased itto the floor and climbed into his lap. “What about this?” I leaned forward tokiss him softly as his arms wrapped around my waist. “I’ll take two weeks offand travel the East Coast with you.”
Thefire in his eyes flickered gently. “Two weeks, huh?”
Inodded. “It’s really unrealistic to take off more than that, babe, but I’m sureBrooke would be fine taking care of the place for two weeks, considering thecircumstances.”
Hisfingers ran through my hair, gripping as he pushed my lips back toward his.“And those will be the best two weeks of my life.”
?
“Kylie, I’m really glad you decided to come along,” Richard called from thepassenger seat, next to Evan, the tight-lipped driver. “This gives us some timeto hang out together.”
Twoweeks after I made the decision to join Devin on the first leg of the tour, Ifound myself heading off to Pennsylvania. My expectations of a tour bus, likethe one I had seen in a Hanson VHS, had been abruptly laid to rest, when I waspresented with the black Mercedesvan. Richard explained that the needfor a tour bus just wasn’t there when we weren’t traveling great distances inbetween stops and there were hotels to stay at along the way.
Thiswasn’t the worst arrangement—what girl turns down jacuzzi tubs, room serviceand King-sized hotel beds? But sitting between Devin and Ty wasn’t the mostglamorous of travel conditions. I was the only one to fit in the middle of theback seat, being the smallest and thinnest of the bunch, and it wasn’t unlikebeing squished inside a pickle jar.
“Yeah,I’m glad too,” I said with a smile, as I listened to the thump-thump-thump ofTy’s head against the window as he slept on the way from River Canyon toPhiladelphia.
Robbieglanced back at me from the middle row and smirked. “I’m sure you are,Princess. There’s nowhere else you’d rather be than crammed in a van with sixsweaty guys, huh? Got plans for an orgy? Just so you know, I’m a backdoor kindof man.”
Sebastiandidn’t hide his revulsion as he scoffed from the seat beside him. “You’re oneclassy motherfucker, aren’t you?” And his eyes drooped as he pulled hisheadphones up.
Devin’sarm was wrapped around my shoulders and I judged the gesture as protective,from the other guys in the group. Marking his territory from men he stillhardly knew.
Hismouth dropped down to my ear. “Ignore him, okay?” he whispered.
“Considerit done,” I said, and his lips brushed against the delicate spot below myearlobe. I slumped against him, finding my happiest of places in the comfort ofhis body.
“Kylie,have you ever been to Philly?” Richard called, turning in his seat.
Ishook my head and called back, “No, I’ve never really done much travelling.”
Henodded. “Well, you’ll be able to do a lot of sightseeing during the next coupleof weeks. You can go see the Liberty Bell, and the zoo … Oh! And you reallyhave togo see the Magic Gardens. I think you’d really loveit there. Maybe we could go together, the three of us, before rehearsaltomorrow.”
Richardwas trying to form a bond between us. I suspected that was a large reason forhis insistence that I come along on the tour, and my smile broadened as Inodded. “That’d be nice.”
“Howsweet,” Robbie snickered, and Richard shot him a stony glare. “What?” hesnapped at him. “I wasn’t aware I was signing a contract with the fuckin’Partridge Family, that’s all.”
Thump-thump-thumpwent Ty’s head against the window, and I eased my own against Devin’s shoulder.I sighed, settling into the rise and fall of his chest.
