Well, this is going great. “I know his reputation, considering I was the only one in this household who didn’t fall head over heels every time he walked into the room. Maybe you remember that the first time I met him, I drugged him to try to get him to stay away from me. You were the ones pushing me toward him. I know you don’t want me to get hurt, but you can’t just get all concerned BFF when it actually works out.”

Cheyenne sighed. “Well, I just have one question.”

“What?”

“Does this mean I get to see more of Vin?”

We all broke down into giggles.

“Yes, I’m sure it means that.”

We spent the rest of the time talking about the upcoming ski trip. I was really ready to just get through finals so that we could get away. I loved school, and I worked hard, but I’d never really had something like this to look forward to. I always just jetted off back to Boston to see my family.

Cheyenne, of course, was making it a much bigger event than just the four of us traveling up to the Poconos with Grant and the band. From the sounds of it, she had invited everyone that she knew whether they liked ContraBand’s music or not. I didn’t really care as long as Grant and the girls were going to be there.

I made it to calculus just in time. Grant’s dog tags jangled as I found the last available seat. We had a pop quiz, and after hearing everyone’s reactions, I seemed to be the only person prepared for it.

Soon, I was rushing to the chemistry building, ready to turn in my lab work before the final. I set my assignment down on the desk at the front of the room, and then I made my way to my regular seat.

Kristin took the seat next to me and then started messing around on her laptop. She had been acting strange toward me ever since I’d freaked out on her about Grant and I not having sex. Kristin and I weren’t close to begin with, but we did have mutual friends, and I didn’t want it to be awkward at the ski lodge.

“Cheyenne was telling me that you’re coming to the ContraBand show in the Poconos!” I was terrible with false enthusiasm, but I was trying.

“Yep.”

“Have you ever been skiing before?”

“Once.”

Seriously? One word replies? I took a deep breath. “That’s great. I’m rooming with the girls. Are you rooming with your friend Kimberly?”

Kristin shot me a disbelieving look. “You’re not staying with Grant?”

I fiddled with his dog tags, and her eyes were instantly drawn to them.

“Oh, no, he’s staying with the guys.”

“Huh. Yeah, I’m staying with Kimberly, Tina, and Jodi. We’re really looking forward to it actually. ContraBand has never played a venue this big before. Did you know that?”

I shook my head. Well, now, she’s talkative.

“Yeah. They played a show in the city that was pretty big, but the music festival is by far the biggest lineup. They’ll get to hang out with other celebrities. They could even get picked up there. It’s a great opportunity. I mean, I’d be sad if they had to tour the country, but it would be worth it. They’re so amazing.”

Tour the country? Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. They had been picked up on a whim for the Poconos music festival when someone saw them at the Halloween show, and that show had only happened because another band had dropped out of the lineup.

No need to jump too many steps forward. I’d just gotten Grant. I didn’t want him to leave to tour the country. I knew what the groupies were like here. I couldn’t imagine how much worse they’d be if ContraBand got signed.

Good Lord, Cheyenne’s pity warnings are getting to me. Grant and I had been official for less than three hours, and I was already doubting everything.

Chapter 25: Grant

The week of Thanksgiving, Ari left to visit her family in Boston. I spent the time with my guitar.

Music lifted me up, tore me open, infused others with my very being, and then healed all our wounds. It had been for a very long time what made my world tick

But I’d never been a particularly good lyricist. I knew what I wanted to say, but that would never translate to what I actually wrote. When Miller wrote songs, they had a life force, a beating heart, an inherent energy. Yet, when I sat down to try to make that happen, I would end up tossing out more pieces of paper than were left in the notebook.

All of a sudden, I couldn’t shut my brain off. The voices were there, incessantly calling for me to give them meaning. Every time I ignored them, they would come back full force until it was all I could do to get the words down.

When I handed the sheets of paper to Miller on our first day back to rehearsal, he looked at me like I was mental.

“Who’d you steal this from?”

“Your mother.”

“And here I thought you reserved Mom jokes for Vin.”

“I’m happy Grant is banging someone else’s Mom for once,” Vin chimed in.

“You know, I always give preference to Italian pu**y.” I smacked Vin on the arm and retreated to my guitar stand.

“Sounds like you’re only giving preference to a certain pu**y lately,” Vin said.

I shrugged and slung my baby over my head. “And?”

“And…” Vin glanced at Miller and McAvoy for support.

Miller just ignored him, and McAvoy looked half-baked in the back of the garage.

“Bro, you’re a f**king king, a f**king legend. You’ve bagged more chicks than anyone else. Your reputation is f**king off the charts. What the f**k are people going to say if you give all that up for some bitch?”

“Vin,” Miller warned.

I didn’t know what happened. I just reacted. I grabbed Vin by the front of his shirt and threw him into the nearest wall. “I’m going to f**king tell them to mind their own f**king business.”

Miller and McAvoy were there in a split second. I hadn’t even realized that McAvoy could move that fast in his state. Soon, they had my arms behind my back and were hauling me away from Vin. My own brother, and I had been ready to f**king destroy him over one dipshit comment.

I shrugged the guys off of me and ran a hand back through my hair. I needed to f**king get my shit under control.

“What the f**k is wrong with you?” Vin yelled.

“Why the f**k are you provoking him?” Miller asked. “You’ve known he’s been with the same chick for a while.”