Page 5 of Guarding the Shadows
“Yep, he even drank all the fancy chick liquor in the top of the wet bar door.”
I winced. “Give me five to get showered and dressed, and I’ll take over from you,” I stated.
The door beside us suddenly cracked open and Korry poked his head out. He winced at the lights from the hallway, covered his eyes with his hand, and croaked, “What the fuck, guys?”
“Shit, sorry, Korry. Go back to bed, everything’s okay.”
“Obviously, because you all love standing having a motherfucking meeting outside my hotel room door at the ass crack of dawn because everything’s fine,” he snapped sarcastically.
“Blame Greg. He’s been at it again, but it’s been taken care of,” I explained. “Sorry we woke you.” Korry banged the door shut, leaving the three of us to stare at each other.
“Right. I’ll be back in five,” I told Mikey, and hurried off to my room.
4
Beth
“Can I ask you a question?” Bernadette queried when she came out of the bathroom after brushing her teeth.
“Jesus, 7:20 a.m. and you’re asking questions already?” I teased. Yesterday had been exhausting and I had been ready for bed, but after a good six hours straight in bed, and a rejuvenating shower, I felt prepared for the day ahead.
Bernadette chuckled. “It’s just that it’s hard to talk once we step outside of this room. Once that door opens, I’m at work. I don’t have the luxury of getting organized like I would back at the office. As soon as someone sees me there’s always a task that needs to be done.”
“And you do it brilliantly. I feel so privileged that Levi let me come along on the tour. It let me see how much preparation is involved … not that I’ll ever be famous and need an entourage like my brother or his bandmates.”
“Thanks, that means a lot. Sometimes we all need a little praise to set us up for the day,” Bernadette said, smiling.
“So what did you want to ask?” I probed while I poured moisturizing cream on my hands and moisturized my legs.
“What’s going on with Raff?”
My heart immediately pounded at the sound of his name. I frowned like I was clueless what she meant by her question, when my reality was that I had a massive crush on the broody bodyguard. Surprisingly, we’d gotten close during the tour, and what appeared like a simple friendship between us to him, according to the way my body lit up at the sight of him, it was an entirely different vibe for me.
“Going on?” I asked, like I was confused, because the last thing I wanted was to cause drama or need to keep my distance from him.
She chuckled. “Beth, I’ve been around the block a few times when it comes to noticing who has the hots for someone, and you’re most definitely into him.”
“What?” I almost shrieked, then noticed how fast my heart pounded inside my chest. I huffed out a breath and softened my tone. “Now you’re just being silly. Raff’s completely loved up. In fact, all he talks about is his girlfriend for most of the time.”
“Just because he has a girl doesn’t stop how you feel,” she argued.
The last thing I’d have done was admit she was right. “I don’t feel anything … well, I mean he’s a nice guy … we like a lot of the same things, that gives us something to talk about.”
Bernadette watched me through suspicious eyes, then tilted her head from side to side like she was considering my explanation. “Well, I can see that. But you do it with a little glint of lust in your eyes.”
My eyes instantly closed like she could see how uncomfortable I found our conversation. “You’re letting your imagination get away from you,” I argued, almost in panic mode now.If she could read my feelings, could Raff read them too?
“I heard you ask if he was going to Levi’s earlier,” she pressed, nodded and smirked.
I shrugged again. “I was just making conversation,” I suggested, while I tried to look nonchalant.
“I’d believe that if I hadn’t seen how your face fell the moment he mentioned about taking his girl away for a few days.”
“No, it didn’t,” I insisted, standing and turning away from her so that she couldn’t see my face. I grabbed my jacket from the back of a chair and fed my arms into it.
“Keep telling yourself that, Beth,” she muttered, then fell silent while she zipped up her carry-on case and gathered her things together.
“Ready?” she asked, clutching her notebook to her chest. I closed the zipper on my bag, glanced up at her and nodded. When her hand reached for the door knob, she turned and caught my eyes. “Look, touring with these guys isn’t easy. Friendships form and things can get … messy. I’d hate for you to get hurt. As far as I know Raff’s a steady guy with a long-time girlfriend, but if I’m honest, I don’t think this little slow burn thing that you’ve got going on with him is entirely one-sided.”
