Jax watches her go, a smile on his lips. “What’s with her?... Hey, man.” He holds his hands up. “Easy with the crazy eyes. It’s just Sophie.”

Wrong thing to say.

“What’s just me?” Sophie asks, appearing at my side.

I round on her. “You.”

“Me.” She points to her chest then to Jax. “Jax. We all speak good now.”

Jax chuckles, but when I glare at him, he suddenly becomes invested in scurrying off toward Killian and Libby.

Sophie frowns. “What’s that all about?”

“Are you fucking Jax?”

Her eyes go wide and shocked. Guilty? I can’t tell. It annoys me further.

A flush rushes over her cheeks. “Are you serious with this?”

Yes. No. I don’t fucking know.

“Answer the question, Sophie.”

She glances around before grabbing me by the arm. I let her lead me away because I want an answer. She stops in the narrow gap between my coach and the band’s.

“Look, you,” she hisses, poking my shoulder. “I don’t have to tell you a fucking thing about my personal life.”

“You cease to have one if you start fucking the band members.”

“Members?” she squeaks. “So, what? I’m fucking my way through them now? Is that it?”

The thought is so repellant, bile fills my stomach. My fists clench. “Jax. Let’s concentrate on Jax now. Did you sleep with him?”

“I cannot believe you’re asking me this,” she snaps. “That you’re actually snorting like some sort of enraged bull and expecting me to answer.”

“I did not snort. I merely asked a question. Which I want an answer to. Now.”

The flush rushes down to the tops of her breasts. “Fuck you, Scottie. I don’t know who you think you are, but let me tell you, I’m not some empty-headed bimbo you can bark at. I am done with this conversation.”

She turns to go, her expression utterly closed off for the first time since I’ve met her. But I saw the hurt I caused, and the humiliation, before she shut down. The bottom drops out of my gut.

“Sophie.” I grab hold of her and spin her around.

Her shoulders meet the side of the bus before I cage her in. She struggles, even as I press close. My cheek touches hers, and she stills. For a long, painful moment we both just breathe, heavy and agitated.

“You’re right. I have no say,” I whisper into her hair. My lids lower, and I draw in another lungful of her sweet scent. “And I don’t think you’re a bimbo. I only wanted to… That is…” I choke on a curse. “Not with one of the boys, all right? Not them. Please.”

A breath shudders out of her, and I feel it along my neck. My back tenses, my skin prickling. It’s all I can do to remain still, not rock into her softness. I know she’s wondering why I’m demanding this. I won’t be able to tell her she’ll rip my guts out if she does, that I won’t be able to focus for shite if she’s with one of the guys. If she’s been with Jax…

A tremor runs through my body as I struggle to hold still.

Her breath hitches again. If she touches me, I might shatter. But she doesn’t. She simply sighs. “You’re such an ass.”

“Established.”

“A reactionary ass,” she says bitterly. “Who apparently can’t be bothered to realize there’s no way I could have been with Jax last night when I was with you.”

My head hits the side of the bus with a thud as my body sags against hers. Relief and embarrassment are a warm, sticky cocktail swimming through my blood. “Shit.”

“Yeah, shit,” she repeats with soft sarcasm. “He covered for me when everyone caught me doing the walk of shame back to my room. Though he doesn’t know who I was actually with.” Her small fist nudges my ribs. “Now get off me before someone sees us and they really start talking.”

With a grunt, I push off the bus and take a step back. Her cheeks are flushed a lovely rose, her eyes shining with anger. I feel all of two feet tall. I’m not this man—out of control, possessive, foolish.

I run a hand over my tie. “I spoke out of turn.”

She purses her full lips, her narrowed gaze demanding more.

I swallow hard. “I should have asked—“

“No,” she snaps. “You should have minded your business.”

A flush of heat hits my cheeks. “Ms. Darling, I cannot recant my earlier statement. Getting involved with a member of the tour is a bad decision and one that can affect everyone. Which means it will always be my business.”

All true. And I sound like an utter git. Fuck it all.

“You’re talking like a duke again.” She straightens and smoothes a hair back from her face. “Which means you’re feeling guilty.”

“Know me so well already, chatty girl?”

“Yes, I do.” She moves to pass me but pauses. “You’re not fooling anyone. And when you want to admit you were jealous, I’ll be waiting.”

With that, she walks away, her round hips swaying. I appreciate the view, even as I’m mentally kicking myself.

“It will be a long wait,” I call.

She flips me off without missing a step.

Hell, I do like this girl. Too bloody much.

 

* * *

 

Sophie

 

* * *

 

Men can suck it. Especially hot, suit-wearing, bossy, jealous, chest-thumping men. And he was jealous. Gabriel can deny it all he wants, but that whole freakout had nothing to do with looking out for his “boys.”

Maybe it’s weak of me to admit I’d find the whole incident a turn on if he’d done something physical about his jealousy—thrown me over his shoulder, proclaimed me his before fucking my brains out. Yeah, that would have been hot. But no, it was much more, stay away from my friends, and I’ll stay away from you. Not cool.

And embarrassing, because as quickly as I took him off to finish our discussion in private, I know people saw the start of it. You don’t bite the head off your lead guitarist in public and expect people not to talk. Especially when your guitarist runs away as though his life depended on it; thanks very much, Jax, you weenus.

I’m still fuming when Brenna seeks me out. “So sorry about that,” she murmurs, walking with me to my room.