Cadence (Ruby Riot Book 1) (7 page)

I
don’t know how long we stand with faces centimetres apart, challenging each other to be the first to make a move in this power play. Each second that passes with Jax’s warm breath touching my mouth, darkened eyes holding me in place, and I'm a step closer to surrender.

“Five minutes!” yells a voice and I twist my head away from Jax, breaking the pull to him. The stage manager glances at us as he passes.

Jax touches my lip with his thumb and I jerk, caught off-guard. “I think you answered my question.”

I dig my hands into the back pockets of my jeans in case he sees them shaking. “Don’t be so sure of yourself,” I reply.

The intensity in his eyes doesn’t drop and I match his look. Jax may have enchanted me with his brand of rock star, but I won’t make this easy for him. As soon as I walk away from the heated evening, I’ll regain some of my senses. Hopefully.

“This morning, in the elevator, I forgot to tell you something,” he says.

“What?”

“Don’t play games with me, Tegan, because you’ll lose.”

Before I get a chance to respond, Jax moves away and I watch his swagger as he heads back to the noisy dressing room.

Oh, yeah? Game on.

Chapter Nine

JAX

The chaos of the walk through the airport two days ago is nothing compared to what faces us when walking out of the venue after the performance. We choose to leave with Blue Phoenix, taking the back exit toward waiting cars in an attempt to keep a low profile. But what else would people expect us to do? A crowd rushes forward, screaming names and pushing at each other to move closer. Flanked by security, we forge ahead; and for once, I don’t stop and talk. The Phoenix boys lead, consummate professionals, heads down, refusing to make eye contact. Usually, I stop and chat or sign autographs, but when they surge closer, grabbing at clothes, I’m fucking terrified.

“Holy shit!” yells Nate in my ear as the security guy is jostled into us, knocking me into Will. “Is this about us?”

Jem strides past with Ruby and the look on his face would keep any fan away from him. He has his arm tightly around her despite the cage-like presence of burly guys either side. She ducks her head too. I know she hates attention like this, but Ruby’s acceptance of Jem’s increasingly possessive attitude around her confuses me. Ruby broke away from a controlling guy who beat and tried to rape her. Why is she falling back into another relationship with another fucked up guy?

Our names are screamed; and as I reach the waiting black sedan, Will stops at the open door and blows the crowd a kiss. I grab his arm. “Get into the fucking car!”

He grins and ducks in. I push him across the leather seats and sit.

When Nate slides in too, Will leans around to look at his brother. “They shouted for me more than you! Ha!”

“Like fuck they did!” he retorts.

Will sniggers. “Little drummer boy…”

“Screw you!”

“Guys, give it a rest,” I snap.

The car pushes slowly through the crowd, their hands slamming against the windows and cameras flashing. I expected excitement, a few chicks wanting backstage passes, but not this. Not for us.

“This is insane,” I mutter.

“I found some girls for the party.” Nate grins.

“Yeah. Nate picked up a few who were hanging around the stage doors after we played. No idea why he went for the ones wearing Blue Phoenix tees though. Not like they want us, dude,” says Will.

“You talking about the blonde? ‘Cause she had a couple of hot friends. Besides, when they see most of Phoenix is taken, my charms will work.” Nate settles back for the ride.

Earlier, I returned to the Green Room and had a couple of beers before taking a seat in the VIP box to watch Blue Phoenix play. I looked down on the writhing throng, partly pissed off there’re twice as many in the crowd as when Ruby Riot played, and partly annoyed that I can’t be down there. Last concert of theirs, I was at the front. I laugh at myself. What’s better? Opening for Blue Phoenix or squashed in the sweaty masses.

Tegan wasn’t around. I half-expected to see her there. What’s the deal for tonight? Is this going further? Following our encounter in the hallway after Ruby Riot played, I’m a step closer to getting my hands on her. She certainly wants her hands on me, couldn’t be more obvious if she tried. Yeah, Tegan was daring me to touch her; but now I know she wants me, she’s lost her control of this. Tegan can’t pretend anymore. I’ll hold off the other girls if there’s a chance with her, but if she’s screwing around with me…

The one thing putting me off going all out to lure her into my bed tonight is Bryn. I’ll let Tegan do the work; if she wants me that much, I can’t refuse her, can I?

****

Freshly showered in clean jeans and a black shirt, I wind my leather bracelets back around my wrists and grab my necklace with the smooth, round jade pendant. My older brother brought the necklace home from a trip to China, just before I left for London, and I wear the pendant in the superstitious belief the jade brought me to the place I am now. I curl my hand around the stone as I head to the elevator and party.

Unable to lock down the hotel completely, the after party has been confined to a large function room on the tenth floor. I step out of the elevator to the immediate scrutiny of a guy who steps back and nods at me as soon as he sees who I am. This man is taller and broader than me by a big margin and, as a guy who used to be on the receiving end of pissed-off bouncers at clubs, the switch in dynamic amuses me.

The function room is further along the wide, carpeted hallway; double doors open with music and voices spilling out. Between me and the entrance are a mix of bodies, some I recognise as tour management and crew, others clearly fans who’ve scored themselves an invite. The PR company wants to run competitions for people to win VIP and backstage passes for every venue, a meet and greet with Ruby Riot. I managed to beat them down to two – one in London and the other in Berlin. No way am I spending every post-concert night being nice to some random chick when I could be doing my own thing.

At least the chicks here aren’t screaming and pawing at me, probably figured out they won’t stay long if they do. On the way past, I flash a smile to a small girl with wide eyes and flushed face, catching myself against checking her out too carefully. Encouraging one of these girls in my direction will ruin any chance with Tegan tonight. I can always come back to one of them later if Tegan isn’t interested.

The stumbling block is already here. Bryn lounges on a sofa in the bustling room, one leg crossed over his knee as he watches the door. Our eyes meet across the crowded room, but there’re no hearts and flowers here. Slowly, he looks over to the group by the bar, and back to me with an unspoken warning on his stern face.

Tegan stands at the bar, in the short black dress from last night; the one that clings to her toned figure, and stops halfway down her long legs. Her loose hair falls down her back; and my mind conjures an image of winding my hands around Tegan’s hair, which swiftly progresses to sex images.
Jesus...
Taller than the girl she’s talking to, Tegan stands out; but to me, she could be the only chick in the room because I want to get my hands on her so fucking bad. Which is why I look away as quickly as I can and head over to Bryn, aware he’s watching me.

Yeah, Bryn, look at me like I’m the guilty party; but your sister already came close to kissing me, and tonight has just started.

“Hey,” I say.

“Hey, Jax, heard you played well tonight.” Bryn drinks a glass of brown liquid and his less focused eyes suggest he’s had a few of these.

“Cheers, man. You guys were fucking amazing too.”

“Of course!” he says with a grin. “It’s good to be back into all this.”

He’s alone, despite the groups around him which is odd because Bryn’s normally happy to mingle. “Where’s everybody else?” I ask.

Only Tegan is here. The twins and Ruby are missing, and I can’t see any other Blue Phoenix guys around.

“They’ll be here.” He knocks back the contents of the glass and pulls a face. Bryn’s face brightens and he lifts a hand to wave at someone behind me. “Ah, perfect timing!”

Liam appears and nods at us both. Bryn and Liam haven’t bothered with anything outside of their t-shirts and jeans, looking no different to usual.

“Bring me another, man,” says Bryn and proffers his glass at Liam.

“Want one?” Liam asks me.

“I’ll stick to beer, thanks.”

Bryn smirks. “Yeah, I hear you have issues if you hit the hard stuff.”

This is weird. A room full of people who I wouldn’t spend time with usually – business people, a lot middle-aged, and the media brought in for good measure. Small parties in hotel suites with a select few interest me more. Maybe one on one. Sighing, aware I have duties to perform, I excuse myself and head to a group standing with Steve.

****

TEGAN

I arrived at the party with Bryn, but made it clear he’s to back off. If I’m staying with the tour, I need to meet people outside of the two bands, become part of the scenery instead of in the spotlight. When I approached the bar, a girl a couple of years older than me gave a friendly smile and introduced herself as Riley. When she tells me she’s a PR girl, her choice of attire makes sense. Most here are in casual clothes. Riley’s short skirt and silk blouse border on professional, dressed down by informal jewellery and a couple of open buttons.

Riley’s confidence at meeting people matches mine and she soon regales me with tales of Tina and the iron fist she rules the PR company with. I’m intrigued to know what a PR girl does, keen on the idea of a future in the industry. Riley began her career as Tina’s underling, and spent much of her time running around buying coffees, fielding phone calls and emails, and greeting clients. When Riley catches on to my interest in PR, she initially looks surprised, and informs me I’d need to start at the bottom as she did. Her amusement suggests she’s caught onto my personality as quickly as everybody else has.

These days she runs her own accounts and has managed to worm her way into PR for Ruby Riot. At twenty-two, she’s closer to the age of their fan base and more in touch with social media than her boss, whose knowledge comes from what she’s fed by focus groups and reports she asks Riley to collate. I offer to help, keen to see what happens. I have a few ideas of my own; but after Tina shot me down, I’ve kept quiet. I get to know Riley better, I can find a way to become involved. Maybe even help out with tour PR.

“Are you here for the full tour?” I ask.

“One and off. I have to keep things running back at the London office and I’m not a fan of staying away for long. How about you?”

I smile. “Yes.”

“Lucky!”

“Bryn promised me for years.”

Riley pushes an escaped strand of hair from her face. “Are you a Ruby Riot fan too?”

“Kind of. More so since seeing them tonight.” I’m not letting on how much. I swear it took my heart rate an hour to return to normal after Jax walked away, and images of him and me in the hallway have progressed beyond what actually happened. “So, yeah.”

“They’re tricky to deal with,” Riley says in a low voice.

“Really? Worse than Blue Phoenix?”

“Oh, yeah. Ruby’s the least co-operative person I’ve come across, and Jax isn’t far behind. He won’t listen to any attempt to push the Ruby Riot brand in the direction we want.”

“Maybe he wants the band image to be how he imagines?” I understand that, I can’t see any of the band allowing the media to manipulate them. However, the most successful people have their fame carefully orchestrated; Jax may not have a choice.

She shrugs. “Sure, but Jax and Ruby need to compromise. Jax’s growing ego isn’t helping.”

I laugh at the frown creasing her brow. “Good luck with controlling that. I’ve already seen him action.”

Riley runs a finger around the rim of her wine glass. “Has he hit on you yet?” I widen my eyes. “I guess he wouldn’t because of Bryn. Sorry.”

The skin on my neck prickles. “Has he hit on you?”

“I’m female. He thinks any girl is fair game. I keep business and pleasure separate, and I don’t like guys like Jax.” She looks across the room, and I turn my head. Nate and Will cross the room to where Jax stands with Tina and what looks like local media. When I glance back at Riley, I realise she’s looking at the twins.

“But you like the twins?” I ask.

“Who wouldn’t? They’re hilarious, great guys. But I guess you’d need a sense of humour to deal with Ruby and Jax on a daily basis.”

“No, do you
like
them. One more than the other?” I tease.

Riley drinks and looks away from me. “Like I said. Business and pleasure.”

“They seem into the groupies too,” I remark as one of the twins turns and beckons a trio of wide-eyed, teen girls loitering in the doorway.

“Don’t get tangled with anybody famous,” she says with a laugh. “Believe me, rock stars, reality TV celebs and everything in between. Bad news.”

I want to ask why she walked into an industry where she’d deal with them on a regular basis; but despite my interest in Riley’s career, I don’t want to be stuck here all night talking about her.

A tall guy touches Riley on the shoulder and she turns to him, briefly introduces us, before they launch into a conversation about work. Wrinkling my nose, I lean against the bar and watch proceedings around the room.

Bryn hangs with Liam, and stopped his supervision, thankfully. He’s smiling for once, him and Liam joking around, and their voices growing louder. Weird seeing my big brother in his real life.

I absentmindedly watch Jax whose back is to me, appraising the fact he looks just as good from behind as the front. Nice ass. I’m distracted from him when Dylan and Sky walk into the room. I haven’t seen them around since I arrived yesterday, and it’s a few years since I’ve seen Dylan. None of the guys seems to age well; but for some reason, the damage from their lifestyle gives them an edge I can see people find attractive. I reckon it would take a lot for Dylan to lose his looks, anyway. Dylan heads over to Bryn and Liam, and Sky to me.

I’m more nervous about meeting Sky than the others, even Ruby. As Dylan’s wife, she must have something special to be able to cope with the fact he’s the most scrutinised band member – and him. I’m worried she won’t like me. I’ve no idea why. I don’t usually care. Maybe because she’s more central to the world, and I’ve heard she’s as sharp-tongued as Ruby. My worries are blown away as she graces me with a warm smile.