Page 46 of Our Deceptive Heat

When I’m on stage, I don’t feel the same way that the others do. They feel alive and like they can fly when they perform. For me it’s deeper. I play for one person, and every time I get up on that stage, all I see is that person.

Auryn.

She challenges me, encourages me. She’s intelligent and darkly capable. Her lyrics are genius, and her ability to write music is next level.

Falling in love with Ryn was as easy as breathing.

Falling out of love with her is proving to be impossible.

I groan and get out of the shower, drying myself off before I head into my room. I pull out an oversized jumper and baggy jeans. The more I can disguise myself, the easier it will be to stay away from all the reaching hands of our fans.

Just thinking about the fans makes me shudder. I appreciate them. I do, just not when they can grab me. The pack, my band, and our crew protects me. Everyone we’ve hired knows to protect my space above everything else.

I throw my clothes into my bag and check to make sure I’ve got everything, then I pull my bag into the other room and set it near the door. I wander into the kitchen and sit on the counterand check my phone.

No one calls me. I don’t even know why I have it, but I’ve become addicted to this game where I have to build a city to prevent the zombies from invading. It’s distracting and keeps me from searching for information about the band. To see if there are any more of those hideous rumours.

The things they say about us are horrendous. At the start, when we started getting famous, they loved us, then they loved to hate us. The vile accusations and rumours keep me up late and make me really wonder if this career is worth it.

Tony slams into the hotel room and glares around, stopping when he spots me.

“Where is Mako?”

I shrug. “Signing autographs, I think.”

“I’m gonna kill him,” Tony growls. “Of all the awful things he’s done, this is up there.”

“What did he do?”

“He sent a picture of that really hot rock star you guys are friends with, Locke, to my wife. Now she wants to come on tour with us!”

I study him in silence. He huffs and stomps his feet, but there’s a quiet knock at the door. He pulls it open, and Ryn steps in, her dark hair hiding her face.

“Tony, go get the others. I want to get on the road,” I say abruptly.

Tony opens his mouth to argue, but I hold up one hand, preventing him from saying anything.

He leaves quietly, leaving me alone with her.

“Auryn Raines,” I say quietly and look down at my phone. There’s a message from Locke Raines, one I’ve been thinking about a lot. Something that doesn’t make sense. Especially not the reason he sent it to me. Locke and I aren’t friends, not really. So, why is he telling me about omega purrs? And what even is it, anyway?

She throws herself down on the couch. I slide off the counter and stalk towards her.

As soon as I’m close, she glances up and narrows her eyes. On the other Raines offspring, these eyes look plain, ordinary, but on her, she’s a turquoise and teal ocean. Her dark hair is a shade of black that is almost blue and so glossy. It’s thick and begs for me to run my fingers through it. Her lips are plump and always pink. She has this habit of twisting just one side of her lips when she’s thinking, and when she smiles; she gets a dimple on her left cheek.

I move around the couch and sit beside her. “We’re going to help you.”

She jolts. “You are?”

“Of course, we are, Ryn. I’m not sure why you’re surprised. We just needed time to talk about it.”

She doesn’t believe me, but that’s okay. She doesn’t need to know that I’ve made the decision alone. The others will follow where I lead. Especially on this.

Ryn sags, and all the fight goes out of her. I scowl and get up on my knees.

“Don’t do that.”

“Do what?”

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