Convincing Constance (The Blow Hole Boys) (6 page)

When I got out, the bathroom was steamed over. I dried my hair and wrapped one of the large towels around my body. As soon as I stepped out, a knock sounded at the door. Making sure my towel covered everything, I opened the door to find Tiny staring back me.

I felt bad for manhandling
Constance, but she was on the verge of kicking some dude’s ass. Sure, it was hot as fuck watching her in a heated rage, but I couldn’t seem to see past the heated rage I had for the guy who kissed her.

Once I was settled into the room and got a shower, I went to her room to apologize. When she opened the door, my mouth dropped. She stood before me
, wrapped in a towel. It was thick and big enough to cover everything, but I was still able to see her sweet body.

“What are you doing here?”
she said with pinched lips.

She looked amazing in a towel. Beyond amazing. Her balmy skin glowed in the soft light coming from above. She stood in the doorway
, holding the door open, allowing me to see every inch of her thick curves. Tattoos stretched up her arms and over her shoulders. I was even able to see the tiny four-leaf clover at the top of her thigh.

I wondered to myself what other tats and possible piercings she had hiding under that towel. My mouth went dry with the want to run my tongue over the beads of water dripping down her chest and into her towel.

“I’m sorry about earlier. I had no right to touch you, but you can’t go around punching the fans.”

“That fucker kissed me.”

Again, anger filled me when the memory of him grabbing her and forcing his mouth down onto hers ran through my mind.

“I know, but you could get us sued. What he did was wrong, but you’re a part of our group for now, and you can’t do things like that anymore.”

“Are you serious? I did nothing wrong. I defended myself. I’ll always defend myself.”

She was looking at me like I was crazy. I felt crazy. She was right. She had every right to defend herself, and I had no right to be coming down on her about it.

“Next time someone tries to kiss you
, just let us handle it, okay?”

And I would handle it. The boys and
me getting mauled by women was different. When it happened to her, it was wrong, and none of us liked it. Once we got back to the hotel room, we all made a pact that the next fucker that put his hands on Constance was getting his ass kicked.

“Yeah. Okay, whatever. Are we done?” She pressed on the door like she was about to close it in my face.

I stuck my hand out, stopping the door.

“No. We aren’t done. Get some clothes on. We’re going to dinner.”

“I’m not going anywhere with you.”

Again
, her disagreement burned me and her words from earlier in the night ran through my mind.

Is that supposed to make me feel better? Have you seen yourself lately? You’re not a very approachable guy. You’re a fucking beast, Tiny. Nothing about you screams comfort.

I already knew she thought I was a monster. Hell, she was right, but it still hurt to hear it.

“Not with me, with us. The band.”

Panic rushed across her pale face. The girl never ate, and it was time she went out with us and had a nice meal.

“I can’t. I mean… I’m not hungry.” She quickly recovered.

“You never eat. We’re starting to think you aren’t human.”

“I’m human, but to be honest, I’m broke, too. I’ll eat when I have the money to pay for myself.”

Again she tried to shut the door in my face, and I held out my palm to stop it.

“Seriously? You do realize the label pays for our food while we’re touring. Order whatever you want. You’re working for it.”

I could hardly believe she was so prideful that she’d rather starve than even think about asking about the food and money situation.

Relief flooded her face. The poor girl was starving.

“I’ll meet you guys downstairs in twenty minutes.”

I let her shut the door in my face and smiled to myself on the walk back to my room.

Twenty minutes later, Constance came downstairs in a pair of tight jeans with so many holes they were pointless, black combat boots, and a top that touched her belly button. I was positive she was purposely driving me crazy.

“Looking good, Constance
,” Chet said with a nod of his head.

“Yeah. Thanks
,” she mumbled.

The expensive restaurant was used to our kind. They gave us a table in the back. Constance dug into her food like she hadn’t eaten in days, which I knew she hadn’t. I’d have to pay better attention and make sure she didn’t sabotage herself.

“This is the best meat I’ve ever put in my mouth,” she said with pleasure as she chewed her chicken.

My jeans tightened and Chet said what I’d been thinking.

“Impossible. I got the best meat right here.” He stood and grabbed himself. I expected her to curse him, but instead, she laughed and threw her spoon at him.

“I gave that one to you, ass
face.”

“So, Constance, tell us about you. We’ve all known each other for years, but we know almost nothing about you except you play the hell out of a guitar
,” Finn said from across the table.

He was full and leaning back in his chair.

“Nothing to tell really,” she responded with a shrug.

“Everyone has a story
,” I said.

Everyone did. I had one, and something told me she had a damn good one, too.

A strange expression passed over her face before she took a sip from her drink. She really didn’t want to talk about herself or her past. I could understand that.

“Wait, what time’s tomorrow’s show? We should hit the town tonight. We’re in New York. We need to take advantage.” I changed the subject.

Constance looked over at me and nodded her appreciation.

“Damn right we should
,” Chet said.

An hour later, after Constance made us take her back to the hotel, I was in the VIP section of a club with Finn and Chet, and there were naked women, alcohol, and pills. That was the last thing I remembered.

After the boys dropped me
at the hotel, I went to my room and watched TV. Nothing like a marathon of scary movies
to rock a girl goodnight.

My eyes grew heavy and I was slowly falling asleep when a loud knock on the door made me jump. Untangling myself from the sheets, I crawled out of the bed, wrapped the sheet around my body, and dragged myself to the door.

“Who is it?” I asked.

Leaning my face against the cool door, I closed my eyes and slept for a second while standing.

“Tony,” a man slurred on the other side.

“You’re at the wrong room. I don’t know anyone named Tony.”

I turned to go back to bed when the knock sounded again.

“Constance…” the voice whined
, and I stopped in my tracks.

Whoever it was knew me.

Going back to the door, I pushed the little silver door guard over, allowing me to open it a bit and keep the person out at the same time.

Opening the door, I peeked through the slit I’d formed only to find Tiny leaning against the doorframe with closed eyes. His clothes hung loosely from his body and the smell of liquor wafted into my room
, making my stomach flinch.

I closed the door, unlatched it, and opened it all the way.

“It’s three in the morning. What are you doing here?” I asked.

He stared at me with unfocused, bloodshot eyes, and then a sly smile stretched across his face. It made him look younger, more carefree. It was the first time I’d see him ever look that way.

No matter what, there was always an underlining darkness to Tiny. It festered in his center, and I understood it since I too had darkness within.

“I wanted to see you
,” he slurred.

Fear struck me. I could remember another conversation that had started the same way when I was younger. As a matter of fact, if the hotel room had been my bedroom, it was exactly the same. Same look in his eyes, same smells. I wanted to slam the door in his face and hide under the covers, but I couldn’t. I wasn’t the same helpless girl I used to be. I’d fight.

“Why?”

He looked up, ran rough hands across his face, and sighed in aggravation. “I wish I knew.”

“Tiny, listen, you need sleep. Go back to your room and crash.”

“My name’s Tony, but no one calls me that anymore. Not since I was a kid.”

“Okay then, Tony. You’re drunk. Go crash, man.”

Confusion filled his face before he fell into my room. I moved just in time for him to catch the wall.

“What the hell?” I said loudly.

He tripped across the room and fell face
first onto my bed.

“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me right now
,” I said in aggravation as I shut the door.

His large frame covered most of the mattress, and it didn’t help that he’d fallen diagonally across the bed.

“Tiny, wake up
,” I said as I shook him. “Seriously, man, you can’t sleep here.”

He turned his face to the side and took a deep breath. “Tony
,” he mumbled.

“Fine. Tony, get up.” I poked at him.

He reached out and grabbed the edge of the sheet around me. “Lay with me,” he slurred. “Lonely.”

He was slurring and mumbling, but I could understand him. Then his breathing deepened and soon he was snoring softly. He was out cold and I knew there was no way I was going to be able to wake
him up.

I could remember my mom getting so trashed that she’d sleep through anything. I would poke her and pinch her and she
’d just lie there without even flinching.

I pulled the cover from beneath him the best I could, covered him, and pulled away. The smell of smoke and stale beer teased my nose and made me gag.

Stepping away from the bed, I went to my duffle bag and pulled out a pair of jeans and a Cage the Elephant T-shirt. I locked the bathroom door behind me and got dressed. If I was going to be stuck in a room with a drunk man, I was going to be fully clothed.

When I was done, I sat in the uncomfortable chair next to the bed and continued to watc
h TV. As tired as I was, I didn’t trust Tony not to wake up and take advantage. I barely knew him, and I knew drunk men did stupid things. Even more stupid than they did when they were sober.

Every time I felt myself getting sleepy, I’d stand up and walk around the room. Once morning came, I went down to the lobby and got some coffee and a muffin. I charged it to my room and ate alone in an empty breakfast area.

When I got back to my room, Tony was still sleeping. Pissed off and so sleepy I couldn’t stand it anymore, I went to the windows and pulled back the thick curtains. Sunlight spilled into the room and lit up his face.

He was attractive. Too attractive for his own good. His softly sleeping face made him even cuter. His mouth was slightly opened
, revealing a line of perfect white teeth. And I didn’t hate the facial hair that surrounded his mouth. Actually, I liked it entirely too much. It was sexy.

His shoulders lifted with his breaths and I was able to see how truly thick his muscles were. He was huge. That could’ve been a good thing or a bad thing. He was either one hell of a protector or a seriously scary predator. Either way, I never planned on getting close enough to him to find out.

“Tony, get up,” I said loudly as I shook him harder.

A tiny growl slipped from his lips before he started to mumble. Flipping onto his back, the blanket pulled tightly around his legs. He lifted his thick arms over his head and his already lifted shirt pulled higher
, allowing me to see a beautiful set of perfect abs. Tattoos covered his chest and worked their way down his sides.

My eyes followed the ripple of his muscles and took in every inch of his tattooed skin until they landed on a sexy patch of dark hair that started at his navel and worked itself down into his jeans. That’s when I saw it.

His perfect abs weren’t so perfect after all. A thick, angry scar cut into his side above his hip, worked its way around his side toward his back and around his front before it disappeared into the side of his jeans. Looking at the other side of his body, the scar also wrapped around that side as well. It was as if he’d been almost chopped in half. It wasn’t awful, but I imagined when it first happened, it was something that had almost killed him.

I reached out and let my fingers drift across his muscled stomach. He didn’t move, so I moved my hand lower. I had a sick desire to touch his wounded skin. I felt bad for him. I knew what it meant to be scarred, even if my scars were hidden inside.

When my fingers reached his scar, he made a tiny noise.

“Constance
,” he whispered my name in his sleep, and I pulled my hand back like something bit me.

I could hardly believe I’d been touching him while he was passed out. Something strange had come over me. Something I couldn’t explain. Quickly, I shook away all my crazy thoughts and pulled his shirt down over his body. Something told me his scars were something he never wanted anyone to see.

When he was all covered, I poked him in his chest before shaking him.

“Tony, get the fuck up.”

He caught me off guard when he reached out and pulled me into the bed with him. He was much stronger than I imagined, and I flopped on top of him like a fish out of sea. I reached out, planting my hands into the mattress as I struggled to get away from him and out of the bed.

When I stood and looked down, he was still knocked out. At that point
, I was livid. It didn’t help that I was so fucking sleepy my eyes were starting to cross.

“That’s it! Tony! Get your ass out of my bed
,” I said loudly as I lifted my leg and kicked him.

I meant business. He was getting out of my fucking bed and out of my room. If I didn’t get some sleep soon
, I was going to go into a rage, and that was the last thing anyone wanted.