“No,” Jeremy replied. “You know Bran. He eats that shit up. Trying to keep him away from the fans is like trying to take oxygen away from a dying man.”
Alan slung his arm over Jeremy’s shoulder, and they continued walking. They only got a few steps before Felix started shouting for security, and there was a commotion as bodyguards rushed toward him.
“Oh, shit. I think a fan broke through the barricade,” Jeremy commented.
Alan froze in place and tightened his arm around Jeremy’s shoulder, while their two personal bodyguards huddled closer, ready and on guard. Alan stretched his neck to see what was going on, but all he saw was a wall of security creating a barrier between Felix, who was waving his hands wildly, and the rest of the guys. “What’s going on?” Alan shouted to Brandon, who was standing with Cam closest to the action.
Brandon leaned around his bodyguard to answer. “Some dude jumped the railing and tried to run on the bus. He said he’s a friend of yours.”
A chill ran down Alan’s back as a memory resurfaced. The last time some guy jumped the railing and claimed to be a personal friend of his, there were dire consequences. The incident was still fresh and all too real. He wrapped both arms around Jeremy, protectively, even though there were more than a half dozen bodyguards right next to them. He stretched his chin upward, trying to catch a glimpse of what was going on up ahead. Two members of the security team had some guy by the arms and was walking toward them. The dude wasn’t in cuffs, and it made Alan nervous.
“Alan!” the dude shouted, as he neared, still restrained by security. “Tell them you invited me! Tell them we made plans to meet by the bus!”
Holy shit. It was the guy from the party. “No we didn’t.”
“Yes we did! You told me you were heading to the bus in about an hour and you’d see me later. I know an invitation when I hear one.”
A sinking feeling settled in Alan’s gut. He did say those words, but they were totally misconstrued. “That’s not what I meant. At all.” Alan felt Jeremy’s eyes boring into him, and he slowly met them.
Jeremy shook his head, eyes narrowed and lips pursed to the side with annoyance.
“You know I didn’t even recognize that dude, and he misunderstood what I meant,” Alan said, trying his hardest to explain.
The guy was still calling Alan’s name as security dragged him away, and Jeremy shouted at him. “Fuck you, asshole!” He tried to take a step toward the guy, but Alan pulled him back by the arm.
“Don’t. It doesn’t matter,” Alan said.
Jeremy stared back without saying anything.
“This wasn’t my fault,” Alan protested, feeling guilty.
“I know.” Jeremy’s voice softened. “But if the situation was reversed, and some guy was waiting for me at the bus. A guy who thought I invited him. A guy I used to bang. How would you feel?”
Jealousy gnawed in Alan’s belly, and he knew Jeremy had every right to be angry, especially after the incident about not wanting to get married the other day. “You’re right. I have nothing to say. I don’t blame you for being mad, but again, this was totally innocent. You know that, right?”
Jeremy pushed his hair behind his ears and nodded, but the hurt expression didn’t disappear from his face.
It cut into Alan because he knew that Jeremy was such a sensitive guy. He had hurt that soft, giving heart twice with two slips of the tongue, and he berated himself for not thinking before speaking. Why couldn’t he ever keep his big mouth shut? He cupped Jeremy’s face in his hands and looked directly into his lover’s eyes. “I’m sorry. You’re my best friend, and I’d never intentionally do anything to hurt you or jeopardize what we have. I know you know that, but it doesn’t hurt for me to say it once in a while.”
Jeremy’s lips wrinkled into a wavy smile and his brow crinkled. “Why are you so sweet?”
“Because you make me that way.” He placed a long tender kiss on Jeremy’s lips, much to the excitement of the fans stationed behind the barricade.
“Get a fucking room, you two,” Derek said, slapping Alan on the back as he passed them in order to board the bus.
They both laughed under the kiss and turned to smile at their crazy guitarist. Enjoying the closeness of the moment, Alan squeezed Jeremy in a hug and let the fans go nuts snapping photos with their cell phones. After all, they were America’s number one rock star couple. Then he took Jeremy by the hand and headed toward the bus.
When they boarded, Brandon wrapped his big paw around Alan shoulder and gave him a playful shake. “In the dog house again?”
Alan looked up to the ceiling and shook his head. “It wasn’t my fault!”
“Better set up another one of those fancy dinners,” Cam added.
Jeremy gave Alan a teasing smile. “Yeah. You better.”
They arrived in Amarillo sometime before dawn. No one really knew for sure what time the bus pulled into the parking lot of the hotel because everyone was sound asleep, until Felix’s voice and loud clapping woke them, and probably everyone within a twenty-foot radius.
“Let’s go! Rise and shine, people! It’s ten o’clock. You’re paying for the hotel room. If you were going to sleep the day away, I wouldn’t have booked it for last night.” Felix clapped his hands again. “Honestly, wouldn’t you rather sleep in a comfortable bed than in these shoebox bunks here on the tour bus?”
“I’ve been up and dressed since eight this morning.” Cam’s voice permeated the bus with its cheerfulness. “I even walked the dog and played ball with her in a little park I found.”
Jeremy listened, with his eyes closed, until the scent of coffee drifted into his nostrils. It was the gourmet kind that Cam liked to brew, and it made Jeremy crave a cup. He rolled over, pulled the curtain back from his bunk, and a set of silver eyes greeted him from three feet away.
“Morning,” Alan said, sitting on the bottom bunk across from Jeremy. “When did you go back to your own bed?”
“I don’t know. It was still dark.” Jeremy had gotten up to use the can, and when he returned, Alan had stretched out in the bunk. He didn’t have the heart to roll Alan toward the wall, especially since the guy had a chest like a tank and easily filled the extra-wide bunk by himself. So, Jeremy just fell out in the narrow bunk across from him.
“Why?” Alan asked, with his brows pinched together.
“You looked comfortable.”
“I don’t care. I want you in bed with me.”
“You didn’t even notice I was gone.” It was said in a teasing manner, but Alan’s shoulders fell, and Jeremy knew that Alan still felt bad about the mix-ups from the last few days.
Derek suddenly jumped down between them from the bunk above. “I’m starving! Where’s the chow?” His long black hair was bunched up in a massive knot of bed head, and he was still in his briefs.
“Maybe you should put some clothes on,” Felix suggested. “And maybe put a brush through your hair. Maybe across your tongue, as well. You do have to pass people on the way into the hotel.”
Derek tried to tame his hair down with his fingers, but it really did nothing, so he gave up. He did manage to stuff his legs into a pair of jeans, though. “Restaurant or hotel suite?” he asked, referring to where everyone wanted to eat.
Alan stood up and pulled Jeremy to his feet. “Hotel suite,” he said, wrapping his arms around Jeremy. “I want some privacy, instead of being watched by prying eyes.”
Jeremy was relishing in this sweeter side of Alan and only replied with a small smile, which earned him a tender kiss on the cheek.
Twenty minutes later, room service arrived in the suite and everyone took a seat at the dining room table. Alan scooted his chair closer to Jeremy, so they were forced to bump elbows, and he gave Alan a questioning squint of his eye.
“What? I can’t cuddle with my guy during breakfast?”
“Sure you can,” Jeremy replied, soaking up the attention.
Alan didn’t stop at the gesture. He filled Jeremy
’s plate with scrambled eggs, sausage, potato wedges and a mini slider. He even poured Jeremy a cup of coffee and a glass of juice.
“Thanks.” As Jeremy ate a forkful of eggs, Brandon finally sauntered into the suite with Cam. The dog immediately ran to Jeremy, tail wagging, and he leaned over to give her a hug. “Hi, B. Want a sausage?” Brandy let out a happy bark, which, naturally, meant that she did, so Jeremy gave her a link.
“What the hell took you so long, Bran?” Derek asked, around a mouthful of food.
Brandon stretched up to the ceiling and let out a growl. “I need my beauty sleep. Did you save me any food?”
Jeremy looked at the table. It was a mixed banquet of breakfast and lunch items, more than any of them could finish. “Why did you order so much?” he asked Felix.
“Did you forget that your bandmate has the appetite of three people?” Felix motioned to Derek with his chin. “And if his boyfriend was here, they’d probably polish off everything on the table and would be looking for more.”
Derek, who was happily munching on a triple stack of bacon strips, suddenly stopped chewing. His face drooped and he gulped, as if swallowing a brick. “I miss Travis.”
“Well, this is a first.” Felix raised his brow with surprise. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you so upset that you stopped eating. Finish your meal, for God’s sake. Think about how Travis would feel if he knew you let perfectly good greasy food go to waste.”
A crinkled smile spread across Derek’s lips. “Yeah. You’re right,” he said, stuffing another strip of bacon into his mouth. “I guess I’ll just have to eat Travis’ share and tell him how good it was.”
After breakfast, they hit a vintage music museum. It was a collection of original instruments played by giants from the past, like Elvis Presley and Jimi Hendrix. Some were for sale, with hefty price tags. Others were behind display cases, safe from grabby hands. There were replicas available for demo of some of the priceless instruments, and Jeremy immediately picked up a remake of the monstrous purple steel bass guitar that John Paul Jones used when he played with Them Crooked Vultures. It had eight strings and a MIDI controller, and it was the most incredible instrument that Jeremy had ever seen. He felt as if he was holding a piece of history in his hands, even though it wasn’t the original. The sound it emitted was unprecedented, and he was fascinated by the hipshot bridge tuning system that enabled three different open tunings by moving levers. He fell into another world and got lost in playing the incredible bass, until he realized he was holding up other people who wanted to pass through the museum.
Security had created a barrier between the guys and everyone else, so people had to wait before they could continue walking through the museum. No one seemed to mind following Bulletproof around, though, and watched with wide, excited eyes. They even gave Jeremy a loud round of applause when he replaced the bass guitar to its stand. “Sorry!” he called to them.
“That sounded sweet,” Alan commented.
“It was. Man, that was rad. I felt like I was back at Coachella when I saw John Paul Jones play that thing live. So fucking cool.” The rest of the museum was one head-turning display after the other, but nothing compared to the replica of the Hugh Manson custom bass that belonged to the legendary Led Zeppelin bassist. Jeremy couldn’t stop thinking about it.
On the way back to the hotel, he pulled out his phone in the limo and found a video of the Them Crooked Vultures track, Nobody Loves Me and Neither Do I, where John Paul Jones could be seen playing the one-of-a-kind instrument. “Look at him playing this thing!” Jeremy showed Alan the video. “I can’t get over it!”
“It’s a beauty,” Alan agreed.
Once back in the suite, they all spread out in the living room and someone clicked on the TV.
“Why is there never anything on?” Derek complained, flipping through the channels. He settled on the Hallmark Channel and they watched a sappy, feel-good Christmas movie.
“I can’t believe we just sat through that,” Jeremy said, staring at the credits as they rolled across the TV screen.
“You didn’t like it?” Alan asked. “It was sweet.”
It’s not that Jeremy didn’t like it. It was just not exactly the type of movie a bunch of dudes sat around and watched. He went to the credenza and found a deck of cards. “Let’s get a game of poker going.”
“I’m in!” Derek said, jumping up from the couch. “Who’s making snacks?”
“I will.” Cam headed toward the kitchen, and the rest of them settled around the dining room table.
“I hope he’s not just making some crudités,” Derek said. “Maybe we should order room service.”
“I’m on it.” Brandon picked up the phone, placed an order and was back at the table before Cam emerged from the kitchen with a platter of fresh vegetables, crackers, and some kind of dip. But, to everyone’s surprise, there were also big bowls of potato chips, nachos, and fresh-popped popcorn. Everyone filled up their plates with handfuls of the greasy snacks and left the vegetables untouched.
Brandon leaned over and kissed his husband on the cheek. “That’s my guy. He wants us to eat healthy, but also brings the junk food.”
“You can lead a horse to water…” Cam trailed off, with a smile.
Jeremy felt bad and grabbed a few carrot sticks, although he was secretly feeding them to Brandy.
“I hope you’re ready to drop your wallets,” Derek warned. “I feel lucky.”
Luck and Derek didn’t exactly see eye to eye, but it didn’t deter him from betting wads of cash on mediocre hands. Brandon was the big winner of the first two rounds of poker, and the cash was piled high in front of him. Jeremy won the next hand before Derek finally claimed the pot in the middle of the table.
“Fuck yeah!” Derek exclaimed. As he pulled the cash toward him, room service knocked on the door. “I’ll get it and take care of the tip,” he said, holding up a crisp twenty.
“Twenty bucks? That’s it?” Brandon questioned. “Here,” he handed Derek two more twenties. “Make someone’s night.”
Derek snatched the bills. “Happy to. As long as it’s with your money, Bran.”
Room service wheeled in platters of food and set everything up on folding tables. After Brandon made everyone sign a menu and take photos with the five bellmen, which was three bellmen more than necessary, the hotel staff left the room. They weren’t gone for more than a minute before they knocked on the door again.
“Did they forget something?” Jeremy wondered, rising from his seat.
“I got it,” Alan dropped his plate on the side table. “You stay and eat.”
It wasn’t room service, though. It was a package for Jeremy. “Who’s it from?” he asked, when Alan presented him with the huge rectangular box. It weighed a ton and Jeremy almost dropped it. “What the hell is this?”
“Open it and let’s see,” Alan replied.
Jeremy took a seat on the couch, placed the large box on the coffee table, and eyed it warily, wondering about its size and weight. “Maybe I should call the bomb squad. Or at least Felix.”
Derek laughed. “Just open the thing already.” He reached for the box. “I’ll open it if you’re—”
“No way.” Jeremy placed a possessive hand on top of the box. He was skeptical as he pulled at the big red ribbon, now thinking it was a gag gift and expecting something to pop out and hit him in the face. He carefully lifted the lid while the guys all gathered and watched intently. Jeremy’s eyes widened and his mouth fell open when he saw the rich black leather guitar case inside. “What the hell?” He slowly opened the latch, still expecting this to be a joke, but it wasn’t. Housed inside the case was the replica of the gorgeous purple Hugh Manson custom bass created for John Paul Jones that he’d played in the museum. He picked it up, too shocked to say anything, and eyed it with disbelief. “What the fuck?”
“I knew how much you loved it. And it was for sale. For the right price.”
Jeremy’s eyes shot to Alan. �
�This is from you?”
Alan nodded, smiling from ear to ear.
“Are you serious?” This was crazy. The cost for something of this magnitude must have been astronomical, but it was the thoughtfulness behind the gift that affected Jeremy the most. “I can’t believe you did this.”
Alan shrugged, modestly. “I’m trying to make up for my big mouth. I wanted to show you how important you are to me.”
Jeremy almost collapsed from the sentiment, but he was holding back his emotions. “Are you trying to buy your way out of trouble?”
“Come on, Jeremy. Give me a break. You know it’s not like that.”
Those pleading silver eyes just about did Jeremy in, and he smiled. “I know. You really outdid yourself with this one. I can’t thank you enough.” With his new masterpiece in his hands, he gave Alan a kiss and went to sit at the window overlooking the city.
“Does this mean I’m off the hook?” Alan called to him.
Jeremy glanced up at his lover, and his heart almost burst. He lowered his head and let his hair fall into his face in order to camouflage his smile.
Cam sat down next to Jeremy and peered at the bass, nodding his head. “Nice.”
“Hell yeah.” Jeremy plucked some chords and reveled in the rich sound.
“I know how you feel,” Cam said. “Guys hit on Brandon all the time. Sure, it pisses me off, but I know he’s loyal. So is Alan.”
“Yeah. I know Alan didn’t invite that guy on the bus.”
“So you’re not really mad at him?”
“Nah. Not really.” Jeremy stared at Cam and exhaled as he let his true feelings surface and finally admitted them. “You and Bran are married. He’s been saying that he’s wanted to marry you practically since the day he met you. Alan laughed in that lady’s face when she mentioned the idea of us getting married.”
Cam started to say something, but Jeremy cut him off. “Do you know what it’s like to be in love with your best friend and agonize whether or not you’ll ever get to be with him the way your heart aches to? Worse than the pain of not being together was worrying that I was going to lose him as a friend if I told him how I felt. I thought I almost did.” He shook his head, re-living the turmoil that almost broke his heart in half when he and Alan first accidentally fooled around in the dark, and the fight and awkwardness between them that followed. “I couldn’t believe it when Alan told me that he started to have feelings for me. And then, by some miracle, he fell in love with me. It was something I dreamt about for years. I used to fantasize about it all the time. So here I am, living my dream with the man I love, who loves me back, and someone asks if marriage is in our future. And Alan shoots down the idea without a moment’s hesitation, as if the idea of marrying me was ridiculous. Or a joke. It fucking broke my heart.” Now that Jeremy finally admitted how much it really bothered him, his heart folded in on itself with rejection from the only man he’s ever loved. “How would you feel if Brandon did that to you?”
A Bulletproof New Year (The Holiday Collection Book 2) Page 3
