Page 84 of Love on Tour
“We don’t have a car. We’re not going to be some diesel sniffers across Canada. We’re the girlfriends, not the fans. We’ll ride the bus,” Phoebe said.
Cait remained silent.
“Does Austin know about this?”
“It’s a surprise,” Phoebe said with a smile.
“The bus is pretty tight on space,” Matt said.
“I’m sure Austin won’t mind sharing his bunk with me, and you and Cait can cozy up in yours. If she can ride the bus, we can.” Phoebe pointed directly at Christine.
Christine had a horrible vision of Matt and Cait sharing a bunk.
“Alrighty then. For now, take your luggage to production. Christine will show you where it is. Christine, I need to talk to you first.” Matt pulled Christine to the side and spoke quietly. “I don’t know what’s going on here, but Austin will not be happy about this. I’m going to talk to him. Stall them as long as you can.”
“Got it.”
They returned to Phoebe and Cait.
“Christine will get you set up with credentials and then take you to catering for a bite to eat.”
“Where’s Austin? Can you take me to him?” Phoebe asked Matt.
“I don’t know where he is at this exact moment. But it’s not our tour, and you can’t just walk around looking in rooms. Go with Christine, and I’ll find him and catch up to you.”
“Don’t tell him I’m here. I want to surprise him.”
“Cait, I’ll see you in a bit,” Matt said.
Christine suddenly wanted to be back in her apartment in Nashville. As far as she was concerned, this trip was over. She decided to book a flight home. That night, if possible.
“Come on. I’ll get your laminates,” she said, leading them down the driveway and into production. Then, once their laminates were secured on lanyards around their necks, Christine took them to catering.
“This looks awesome. I’m starved,” Phoebe said. Catering had set up Italian cuisine. Bread, salad, and various types of pasta and sauces were arranged on a long table. Phoebe piled her plate high with pasta and meat sauce, pouring on the cheese. Christine watched, mouth agape. She couldn’t imagine what Phoebe’s workout routine looked like if she could eat like that.
“We didn’t stop to eat,” Cait said. “We were eager to get here.”
“Yeah, we wanted to surprise our men, didn’t we, Cait?”
“I hope they’re okay with us showing up like this. When Phoebe called, I was reluctant. But she convinced me.”
“I’m sure she did,” Christine said, knowing how persistent Phoebe could be when she wanted her way.
“Do you need some help? Matt said you were taking on a big role, practically his assistant,” Cait said.
Christine could not fathom spending time in a small production room with both Matt and Cait but was grinning on the inside that Matt had told his girlfriend about her.
Christine’s phone rang and Matt’s name popped up on the screen along with a photo of him she had snagged from Instagram. He was shirtless. She turned away, hoping Cait wouldn’t see it.
“Excuse me.” She left their table. “Matt. What’s up?”
“Can you come to the bus? Austin is seriously PO’d.”
“What can I do about that?”
“You have a calming effect on him,” Matt said.
“In this situation? Yeah, good luck with that.”
