But I forgot about it as we turned into a parking lot and were surrounded by huge buses. They were a mix of white, black, silver. Some had logos, but most were blank of any signage. They lined the parking lot in neat rows with small gaps for people to dodge through. Only there weren’t that many people around. The place was practically a ghost town but for Roscoe, Ben, and me winding our way through them.
So weird.
Two rows later, Roscoe stopped in front of a huge white bus that looked like all the others. He unlocked the door with a set of keys, then gestured us to go ahead.
“Call me if you step foot outside,” Roscoe muttered at Ben as we passed by. “I mean it.”
“Okay, okay,” Ben replied. “Calm down. Sheesh.”
“Ben,” Roscoe said warningly.
Ben turned and they had a whispered conversation I couldn’t hear—mostly because I was too far away, but also because I’d walked into the bus and was too busy gawking at my surroundings.
This was about as far away from camping as you could get.
It was immaculate. The whole bus was decorated in tones of gray with gray and white streaked wood-like flooring. The kitchen cabinets on the far wall matched the floor exactly, and the double-door silver refrigerator blended in seamlessly. The bus was set up with a lounging area in the front just past the driver’s compartment. There was a white leather recliner on one side and a miniscule wood-toned gray booth opposite with gray plush cushions. Behind the tiny lounge section was the kitchenette, then a hallway with a door on the left and a closet area I guessed, with a door at the end of the small hallway opposite me.
The bedroom, I assumed.
I stared at that door for a second as the ramification of coming here slapped me in the face. I’d never had a one-night stand before. In my twenty-two years, I’d been with exactly two guys—the first had been my high school boyfriend, and we’d been together for three years, and the second had been last summer with Charlie, a waiter at the diner who’d been working on his college summer break.
Charlie had been solace, an escape, while I’d been so caught up with my dad’s treatment. He’d been so sweet and tender with me, holding me when I cried after Dad’s appointments, making love to me with a tenderness I hadn’t known was possible. But then he went back to school in the fall over three hours away, and we petered out.
And in the year since, I’d lost myself in romance novels and tv shows. Just marking time in rent payments to Lydia.
So to say I was out of my element standing in some rock star’s tour bus would be an understatement.
What the hell was I doing here?
This was a mistake.
I’d opened my mouth to say as much to Ben when he walked past me to the fridge.
“I think there are some drinks in the fridge. You like soda or flavored water? There’s some gin and vodka in the freezer. And there should be some tequila somewhere if you’re feeling like drinking.” He turned with one hand on the still open fridge door and gave me a once over. “Actually, maybe alcohol isn’t a good bet. You looked freaked.”
My eyes widened. He could tell? I thought I had a better poker face than that. And then I realized he’d taken off his hat and sunglasses, and I was finally seeing his eyes for the first time.
He had beautiful, hawk-like, golden brown eyes that went perfectly with his tanned skin and the dark, dark brown hair he had up in some manbun thing. His hair was shaved close on the sides but so long on the top that he needed to tie it up. I’d never been one to go for the manbun look, but on Ben, it was crazy hot.
And those eyes! So sparkly and intelligent looking. Like he knew every thought I was thinking. Deep. Watching.
And which were now giving me a concerned look. “Caffeine or water?”
“Caffeine with gin, actually.” I smiled. Something about Ben being able to read me comforted me. Like this was where I needed to be. “Coke or Pepsi kinda caffeine if you have it.”
“I do.” Ben pulled a few things out of the fridge. “You sure about the gin? I might be able to find some rum somewhere.”
“Ooh. Even better.”
“Two rum and cokes coming right up.”
Ben rummaged through the tiny cabinets next to the fridge, and I turned to look over our surroundings again.
“So whose bus is this? I don’t remember you saying.”
Thump
I jerked back to where Ben was rubbing the top of his head and scowling. “Are you okay?”
