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Ginny hadn’t seen Ash since they’d arrived at Spook’s place. The moment they’d stepped out of the helicopter, Ash had dumped their luggage and made a beeline towards Xane. He was doing too much—he was still as weak as a day old kitten—but there was no telling him. She’d tried back at the hospital, and caught the sharp end of his tongue as a result. There’d been a pack of fans waiting for him when he’d been released, and he’d insisted on stopping to say hello to every blinkin’ one of them. No one could fault his generosity, and those ladies and gents were now lifelong Black Halo fans, but the big dope needed to accept there were limitations to what it was reasonable for one human to do. The harm Iain Willows had done him remained significant, and whether Ash accepted it or not, he was still some way off from being healed.
The room Spook had assigned them was half guest room and half snuggly retreat. It was full of books on bleached wooden shelves, and had a large window on the left that overlooked the woodland. The sleeping arrangements weren’t quite to her tastes: one metal framed daybed pushed against the wall beneath the shelves and the other a sort of cushioned room divider. Call her a traditionalist, but she’d been hoping for a standard double that she and Ash could cuddle up together in. If she’d been in any doubt about what Ash meant to her, then the last three weeks had absolutely clarified that.
He was her world. Her soulmate, if such a thing existed.
It existed.
Their fates were entwined.
That had meant some soul searching on her part, and the prospect of facing up to a heap of shit she thought she’d left behind. In actual fact, all she’d done was shovel it onto a compost heap to rot away of its own accord. Sadly, it wasn’t the sort of shit that was biodegradable. Sooner or later, she was going to have to tell Ash about it, but not yet. He had enough on his plate. His focus had to be on healing. They could hash out the other stuff in the future.
Ginny eyed the separate beds again. Yeah, so maybe they weren’t such a bad idea. They could keep things on the burn low until they’d had a chance to properly talk, and he was back to normal. It’d be a shame not to be able to snuggle up to him at night, but maybe it would paint her in a better light when all the stuff did come out.
Or maybe it wouldn’t make any difference at all.
For the umpteenth time since arriving, Ginny checked her phone. One whole bar—she’d have to figure out some other location from which she could make private calls. The signal in the en suite proved non-existent. What it did have was a shelf. Ginny unpacked Ash’s medication onto it, making sure she turned all the bottles outwards so that he could see the correct doses. He really needed one of those pill boxes so he didn’t end up forgetting to take something.
Once the medication was organised, Ginny unpacked the rest of their bags, and then left the guest room in order to poke her nose around the house. She’d always imagined rock stars living in huge mansions overlooking tropical sea views. Spook’s place perched on a tiny island overlooking a grey lake, and there weren’t any palm trees, only huge conifers. She bumped into Dani on the veranda that overlooked the lawn.
“Ginny, I didn’t realise you’d arrived.” Her flatmate squealed and squeezed her almost in two with a hug. “When did you get here? Is Ash with you?”
“Not so long ago. Band management arranged a chopper. I’m surprised you didn’t hear it.”
“So where is he? Is he well?”
“Doing okay. He’s gone off with Xane somewhere.”
“Oh!” She patted the top of Ginny’s hand, which she was still holding onto. “He’s with Xane. Well that’s good news that he’s up to hanging out. Shall we grab some drinks and catch up?”
Dani bustled them inside towards the kitchen. “Hot chocolate okay?”
“I’d prefer a Long Island Iced Tea.”
Her friend raised her hands. “I don’t know how to make that, or if Spook even has the ingredients.”
“I guess chocolate will do.”
They settled on one of the big squishy white sofas in the central lounge.
“Things okay between you, Xane and Luthor?”
“’Course,” her friend mumbled, gaze fastened upon her drink. “We’ve not actually seen much of Luthor. He’s been off drumming for Denna Rädsla.”
Hm, it sounded like things remained uneasy. How Dani, the biggest prude on the planet, had come to be dating a recovering sex addict with decidedly fluid gender preferences, Ginny would never figure out. One thing she did know was that Xane was never going to be satisfied with a typical heterosexual relationship, which meant her friend was going to have to adapt or weather a whole lot of heartache.
“You and Ash?”
“Hunky dory. I don’t suppose you know where they’ve gone.”
“The recording studio,” Dani replied brightly. “Xane took his lyrics book with him. He’s super keen to get started on the new album. He’s been playing me some of the riffs. They’re amazing. This album is going to be their best yet. The songs are just… Ginny, they’re awesome!” Her entire being seemed to light up with excitement.
Ginny folded her arms, not the least bit infected by her glee. “I thought the purpose of coming here was to relax and recuperate, not for them to work.” Ash needed rest if he was ever going to be well enough to tour again, and while she didn’t pretend to know a whole lot about recording music, she knew enough to realise it involved actual work.
“Gin, they were never going to sit around and do nothing for six months.”
“Maybe not six months, but Ash was only discharged a few hours ago.”
