Page 93 of Sweet as Sin (Bad Habit 1)
“Quit bein’ a dick, A.J.” Nico sounded as if this was something of a regular occurrence. “She’s my guest. And what’s your problem with her bein’ here anyway?”
Chloe put her shoulders back and lifted her chin. “Yeah, A.J. What is your problem? Considering this isn’t the first time you’ve been an unprovoked dick to me, I think I have a right to know!”
For a moment I was startled; Chloe had just called someone a name. That was unprecedented. And she seemed so fierce she reminded me of Grace. But then I saw her trembling hands, and knew it was all for show. Whatever A.J. had against her, it really hurt her feelings.
Feeling protective on her behalf, I stepped into the kitchen. “What’s going on here?”
A.J. cut me a lethal look that would have done a serial killer proud. He remained silent. Looking back to Chloe, his cold amber gaze flickered over her, taking in her bikini, her tanned skin, the look of anger in her eyes. His jaw worked. For a moment, he wore an odd expression of satisfaction, then his face closed down. “Fuck it. I don’t need this shit. I’m out.”
He turned on his heel and stalked out of the kitchen. A few seconds later, the front door slammed so hard the living room windows shook. There was an awkward moment of silence until Nico spoke.
“Sorry about that, Chloe. Don’t take it personally. A.J.’s not exactly what you’d call a people person.”
“He’s not exactly what I’d call a person,” she said, her voice shaky. She looked over at me. “I didn’t even do anything! I was just standing here, minding my own business, when he came in and started giving me grief!”
“He’s probably just agro about the tour,” said Brody, shrugging. “Brother always gets twitchy before we go on the road.”
My gaze shot to Nico. My legs became rooted to the floor. “Tour?”
“Yeah,” he said, watching me warily. “About that.”
“Just got confirmation this morning,” chimed in Ethan, smiling. He obviously wasn’t agro about going on the road. He looked positively gleeful about it. “Forty dates in thirty cities over two months. Kicks off in October in New York. Then we go all over Europe. Denmark, Sweden, Spain, Italy, Germany, you name it. Winds up in Paris on New Year’s Eve.”
“October? Europe?” I repeated, unable to process what I was hearing. Nico was leaving for Europe for two months? When had he been planning on telling me?
“Can’t wait to see if the Krugermann twins will be at the Munich show again this year,” said Chris. He and Ethan shared a high five and a snicker that told me all I needed to know about their special relationship with the Krugermann twins.
It felt as if all the air in the room had been sucked out.
Ethan strolled over to the food as if
nothing out of the ordinary had just happened. Chris and Ray followed, and soon the three of them had plates in hand and were piling them high.
Chloe intervened, knowing full well I was on the verge of a meltdown. “I think I’ll go change now. Come with?”
I tore my gaze from Nico. “Sure,” I whispered.
“Kat.”
“I’ll be right back, Nico. Just give me a few minutes,” I said over my shoulder as Chloe and I left the room. It had grown very quiet behind us.
Once in the master bedroom, I sank slowly to the bed, dazed.
“I’m sure he was going to tell you.” Chloe went to the pile of her clothes she’d left on the top of the dresser when we’d changed to go to the pool earlier. She dragged on her shorts, pulled a pretty coral-colored shirt over her head, slid her feet into a cute pair of blingy flip-flops, then came and sat next to me. “They only found out this morning, right? So he just hasn’t had a chance to tell you yet.”
I avoided her sympathetic gaze. It only made me feel worse. “They only confirmed it this morning. It must take, what, six months or something to plan a world tour? He had to have known this was coming. He had to have known for a long time.”
“I did.” Nico stood in the doorway with his arms crossed, leaning against the frame, staring at me. “I’ve known since May.”
May. Long before I even met him. He’d known about the tour for the entire time we’d been together.
I was beginning to feel queasy.
Nico pushed away from the door and moved toward us.
Chloe stood. “Um, I think I’ll head on out now. Thanks for having me over, Nico. Kat, call me later?”
I nodded. She gathered up the rest of her things, then came and gave me a hug. Into my ear she whispered, “Go easy on him. He looks worried.”
