The man nodded, looking thoughtful. “I guess the drums aren't as bad as wasting time on those games. Would have preferred the piano, though, or a guitar; at least they unplug.”
“It could have been worse,” I offered, pointing to the brother-in-law. “He could have gotten him bagpipes.”
I took my time sipping that second tequila while the drummerkid’s dad turned to the brother-in-law and shook a finger at him.
“Don’t even think about it, or so help me, I will buy your husband season tickets to the Wild, and I don’t mean for one.”
“You wouldn’t,” the brother-in-law shot back.
“I will if some damned bagpipes wind up in my house!” the other snapped.
“Now how will that look, with Tyler’s birthday coming up?" the brother-in-law said, smirking in a way that might have been teasing but might not have been, considering the whole thing with the drums. “An uncle’s got to be consistent.”
“And that uncle can consistently freeze his ass off in the stands for a season too,” the other retorted.
Instruments, season tickets to professional hockey games, if these guys had that kind of money to throw around, it was no wonder they’d paid to have a private party with us. That was a crazy amount of disposable income I hadn’t even begun to wrap my head around yet, though there was a bunch of it sitting in my bank account now that I’d signed the contract to join the band.
Fuck sipping, I downed what was left in the bottom of the glass and asked for a third as they started bickering. It was only then that I realized that everyone else in the room had surrounded the OG band members, leaving me to entertain a pair that would have been good character studies for the creators of Looney Tunes.
This was going to be a long night, even with drinks in my system.
Out of the corner of my eye, I spied Rebel and turned to study the man, who still wasn’t smiling, laughing, or joking around like he usually did at events like this. Instead, he just looked bored and irritated as he sat on a table, treating the crowd to a guitar solo. It sucked that there was a roomful of people between us and that we’d been unable to go back to the hotel because I’d have loved to sit and listen to the new song.
And maybe, just maybe, slip in one more stolen kiss.
Chapter 10
(Rebel)
“Alright dude, one foot in front of the other, you got this,” I said as I half-dragged, half-carried Kit off the elevators before the doors could close on us.
“Why is the hall so bright?” Kit muttered, stumbling and forcing me to adjust the hold I had on him.
“Because you seriously tied one on tonight.”
“Yeah, I did, didn’t I?”
“Dude, you tried to dance on the bar.”
“Wouldn’t be the first time,” Kit slurred.
Okay, interesting. I’d definitely be asking for more details when he was sober.
“Uh-huh. Where’s your room?”
“All the way over there,” Kit said, pointing down the hall and drawing circles in the air.
“Joy.”
“I can take him if you can’t get him there,” Kit’s guard, Vale, offered.
“Naa, we’re good,” Kit muttered, curling his fingers in the cloth of my t-shirt.
Now I risked choking myself if I dropped him, so step by wavering, staggering step, we shambled past the hallway guardand the one posted outside of Jagger, Kayden, and Robbie’s door. Mickey and Robbie were finishing out the party at the pub while I’d designated myself Kit’s keeper, since it got me the fuck out of there. Draven could be pissed all he wanted, but I was looking out for my band brother, who’d been chatty as hell when I’d caught hold of his belt loop to keep him from climbing up on that bar. If anything, that should earn me brownie points, since I’d stopped him from doing anything that might get the tongues wagging even more on social media.
We were two doors from the end of the hall when he lost his footing and sent us both slamming into a door. My head hit the frame and hurt like a son of a bitch, but I still didn’t drop him. I almost had him sorted out and upright again when the door opened, and fuck my life, there was Steel. Of all the doors in the whole fucking hallway, why the hell had the universe seen fit to send us careening into his? I cursed whatever guardian angel that was supposed to be watching over me, because seriously, this was a hashtag fail! I did not need that piercing gaze raking over me, then narrowing in disapproval.
Again.