Page 101 of Wild Stars

I steal a glance at Dare, who’s curled up next to the window in the backseat next to his brother, while Hailee is absentmindedly scrolling her phone.

“Are we there yet?”Dare groans from the backseat, like the little brat he is.

“Almost,” I reply.

It’s been nearly six weeks since we started this tour.And due to unforeseen circumstances, our original venue in Tucson was changed for the next show, so we’ve all got a few extra days to soak up the Arizona sun.

Which is how Hailee roped us all into this trip to the Grand Canyon today, including Geo and his friend, Zeb...which I’m actually looking forward to.

I know this newdemographic,as he calls it, is quite new for him, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t interested in meeting the man that has Geo so...bubbly.

“This place better have somewhere decent to eat because I’m damn starving,” Hailee says.

“Me too,” Dare whines in the back.

I can’t help but shake my head.“You know it’s the middle of nowhere, right?”

“They have to have a food truck or something!”Dare growls.

I sigh, knowing arguing with him is a lost cause.

When we finally arrive, Geo and his friend are not there.I shoot them off a text, and sure enough, Geo tells me they stopped at some dive bar on the way up for something to eat.

I don’t know much about what caused the rift between Geo and his former bandmate, except for the basics of what Geo’s told me.That Zeb was his guitarist, and that Geo had pursued Casualty on his own, apart from his former partner.

But that’s typical in this line of work.Bands, singers...the players are always changing.

Even those of us who think they’llneverchange.

Like when you perform with one person for twenty years and think you’ll never collaborate...only to discover you can work with other people.

And the experience isfun.

Which is how I ended up getting roped into playing guitar when Dare performsWild Starnow at our shows.

Not long after our conversation, I note the candy apple red pickup truck flying into the private tours parking lot.

When Geo and hisfriendget out of the car, I notice the smile on his face immediately.

He lookshappy.Happier than I think I’ve seen him in the last ten years.

“Hey, G!”My sister squeals with excitement as she runs up and hugs him.

Richie also pulls him in for a friendly hug while Dare slaps him on the back, and I don’t miss how Zeb stands frozen, staring at them like glaciers in the middle of the desert.

“Hi!I’m Dare!”Dare chirps happily as he approaches the dark-haired, beastly looking man.I’d seen him when we arrived, picking up Geo from the hotel, but that was from afar.Up close, I can get a good look at him.

He’s tall, almost as tall as me, with a deep, rich tan that can only come from being a native to the area.Combined with his sturdy build, medium length dark hair and beard, he looks like he could pass for a bit older than twenty-nine.

“Nice to meet you, Dare,” he replies with a polite grin, but I note the way his shoulders are tense, even as he shakes my boyfriend’s hand.He’s nervous.

Interesting.

“This is my boyfriend, Matty!”Dare says as he practically shoves me toward the man to make an introduction.

Zeb glances at me, sizing me up.I want to smirk, because the aura of protectiveness rolling off of him tells me everything I need to know about how he feels about my friend, even if he doesn’t say it out loud.

“It’s Mateo,” I advise him, sliding an arm around Dare and pulling him closer.

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