Ravensong (24 page)

* * *

This far into the tour,
everyone was tired of the back stage parties. Elliot suggested they
go for pizza and pool, just as they frequently did in the City. The
pizza parlor next to the hotel agreed to shut down for the
Avalanche
crowd.

Joshua sat in the corner of
a booth, sipping a beer and watching Elena and Elliot play against
Ralph and Michael. The game wasn’t being taken seriously. In fact,
Joshua was a little worried that they might be paying to replace
the felt on the table before the night was through.

Robert slid into the booth beside him.
He settled his own beer on the table and stretched out his legs.
Joshua gave him a smile. For the first time in awhile, he was
content just to sit and watch the world around him, not restless
and edgy as he usually felt.

“
Concert went well
tonight,” said Robert.

Joshua nodded, running his finger
through the condensation on the glass.

“
Things are going well,” he
continued.

Joshua shrugged. If you
ignored David’s heart attack and his concussion, he guessed they
were going reasonably well.

As if he caught Joshua’s
wayward thought, he added, “With a few exceptions.”

Joshua gave him another
smile.

“
I wasn’t sure how the tour
was going to continue without David, but it’s running smoothly.
Elena’s a good assistant manager.”

Joshua frowned, but he
didn’t reply.

“
It’s nice to be the main
attraction, don’t you think?” Robert lifted his glass and took a
sip of his beer. “Well, I guess you’ve already experienced that,
but for the rest of us...this is the first time we’ve had this sort
of success.”

“
We’ve been the main
attraction for years, Robert.”

“
Not like this we haven’t.
The show is drawing bigger crowds than ever. This is the first time
we’ve filled football stadiums. And a world tour? We’ve never even
talked about that before.”

Joshua sighed and lifted
his own glass for a sip. “Yeah, I guess so,” he muttered, but he
knew that for him it wasn’t about filling stadiums or touring
year-round. It was about sharing the music with people who hungered
for it as much as he did. And still, he couldn’t get excited about
a world tour. That would take him away from Tiffany for who knew
how long.

“
I was beginning
to
not
worry about
how I’d provide for my family.” Robert leaned forward on the table.
“And yet tonight I started worrying again.”

Joshua met his gaze, but
didn’t speak.

“
Whenever things are going
this well, it feels as if we’re one step from falling off the edge.
Do you know what I mean? One bad review, one bad performance...one
fight that breaks up the band.”

Joshua’s eyes
narrowed.

Robert shrugged. “It’s all
so fragile in this business. And even if none of those things
happen, we’re just a fad away from being over. You know that this
is a finite business. All of our success may not matter a year from
now when the latest craze hits the teen world.” He leaned closer to
Joshua. “So maybe it would be best to ride this for as long as
we’ve got and do nothing to ruin it, eh?”

Joshua’s brow rose. “I’m
getting the impression you mean something specific.”

He leaned back and looked
over at the pool table. “I saw you with Elena before the
concert.”

Joshua’s mouth opened, but
he found he had nothing to say.

“
You know what Elliot feels
for her.”

Joshua looked down at the table,
exhaling his held breath.

“
I thought the two of you
had a pact about women. I thought you were never going to let a
woman come between you. I thought...”

Joshua slammed his hand
down on the table. “Enough.”

Robert jumped, his eyes
whipping to Joshua’s face. He stared at him a moment, then leaned
close again. “This could break the band apart. Not to mention what
Julian would do if he found out about it. How could you risk this?
You can have any woman. Why would you risk your friendship with
Elliot for her?”

Joshua clenched his jaw.
“This is different.”

“
How? How is this
different? You’re risking the very success of
Avalanche
for an affair. This isn’t
just some fling for Elliot. He’s really serious about her. Why do
you think he’s taking it so slowly?”

Joshua spread his hand out
on the table. “This isn’t a fling for me either.”

Robert leaned back. Joshua
could feel his eyes scrutinizing him. “What are you
saying?”

“
I don’t know what
I’m saying, Bob, I’m just saying that this time I couldn’t keep my
pact with Elliot.” He met Robert’s gaze. “I’m not trying to
risk
Avalanche
,
but I’m not breaking this off with her either, no matter who finds
out.”

Robert didn’t speak. He
searched Joshua’s face.

Joshua sighed and looked
away. “I don’t expect you to take my side. I know it seems
far-fetched, but I can’t give her up. I don’t want to.”

“
Damn!” breathed
Robert.

“
Yeah, damn,” muttered
Joshua.

Robert put his elbows on
the table and braced his forehead with his hands. “I don’t know
what to say.”

“
Say nothing,” said Joshua
with a tense laugh. “Let’s keep this our secret.”

“
How long do you think you
can keep it? Don’t you think Elliot should know?”

Joshua shifted in the seat
and faced him. “No, I don’t think Elliot should know. I don’t even
know what’s happening or how long it’ll last. Maybe it ends
tomorrow. Why bring Elliot into it now? I want a chance to explore
this before everyone gets involved.” He hesitated. Robert looked
like he’d just gotten electric shock. “Please, Bob, don’t say
anything. Give me another few weeks to see where this goes. I
promise you we’ll be more discrete, but I need some time. Once it
gets out to the band, it will get out to the media and they’ll be
swarming this story an hour after it breaks. Give me the time to
see if this is something to fight for, please.”

“
Damn!”

“
You’ve already said that,”
remarked Joshua.

“
And I’ll probably say it
again. I’ve never seen this side of you.”

Joshua exhaled. “I
know.”

Robert didn’t respond for a
long time. Elena’s laughter carried to them in the booth. “All
right,” he said finally, “I’ll keep my mouth shut and I’ll even
help you keep it a secret, but you’ve got to be more
careful.”

“
Done.”

“
Whew!” Robert said, “I
didn’t think I could be more worried, but now I am.”

Joshua smiled.

* * *

Joshua crawled onto the end of the
bed, moving toward Elena. She laughed and held out her arms as he
dropped into them. He kissed her and then braced his head with his
hand, smiling down at her.

“
Are you ever getting out
of bed, woman?” he said, reaching up to pass a curl through his
free hand.

She ran her finger along
his lower lip. “It’s your fault I’m exhausted.”

His smile widened and he tickled her.
She squealed and tried to squirm out from under him, but he pinned
her with his hands, then lowered his head and kissed her. She
returned his kiss, slipping her hands from his and wrapping them
around his neck.

He drew away and traced the
side of her face. “Move in with me,” he said.

By the widening of her
eyes, he knew she was as surprised as he was by the request. “What
did you say?”

What had he said?
He felt a moment of panic, then it subsided. A
wave of calm rushed over him. “I asked you to move in with me when
we get home.”

She eased out from under
him, sitting up beside him. He rolled into a sitting position as
well. “I...I don’t know what to say.”

“
Say yes. It’s
simple.”

“
Not so simple,” she said,
shaking her head. Brown curls spilled over her shoulders. “That’s a
huge move, Joshua. Are we ready for that?”

He shrugged. “Who knows?”
His eyes narrowed. “Actually, I know. I’m ready for it.” He reached
out and took her hand. “We’re good together, Elena. Why shouldn’t
we make it permanent?”

Her eyes drifted away.
“Because...”

“
Because what?” He placed
his fingers under her chin and drew her face back to his. “Tell me
what bothers you.”

“
Nothing, except how
quickly this is progressing. I never even thought of moving in with
John.”

“
So? What does he have to
do with anything? I’m not John, Elena.”

Her eyes searched his face.
“No, you’re not.” She drew a deep breath. “Wow! I didn’t expect
this.”

He lifted his brows, silently agreeing
with her.

She rose up on her knees
and moved closer to him, placing her hands on his shoulders. He
banded her waist with his fingers. “You’re serious?”

“
Completely.”

She placed her forehead
against his. “It’ll be hard to hide the relationship if we move in
together.”

“
You think?”

She laughed and bent down,
catching his lower lip with her own. “You’re going to have to
convince me,” she said in a seductive purr.

He returned her kiss,
sinking his hands in her hair. “I can do that. I’m good at
convincing.”

“
Yes, you are.”

He deepened the kiss and
pressed her back on the pillows. “Say
yes
first.”

She pulled him down to her
and moved her lips against his own. “Yes,” she
whispered.

* * *

“
You did what?” panted
Robert, jogging alongside him. They were running in the early
morning hours down a path beside a river. Dominic was keeping pace
just behind them. So far, they hadn’t encountered anyone
else.

“
I asked her to move in
with me.”

Robert stumbled, but caught
himself and returned to his rhythmic stride. “I’m still not sure I
heard you right.”

“
You did.”

“
You
asked
her
to move in with you? In
your
house?”

“
That’s the
idea.”

Robert faced forward again,
his arms pumping with each step. “That’ll make it hard to keep it a
secret.”

“
Obviously it won’t be once
we get home.”

“
Then you’re going to have
to tell Elliot soon.”

Joshua sighed. “I know.
It’s getting harder and harder to keep it a secret even now. And I
feel so damn guilty every time I look at Elliot.”

“
Does Elena know he has
feelings for her?”

“
I think she suspects
something, but she’s never mentioned it.”

“
Whew!” breathed Robert.
“What a mess. Julian’s also gonna have a fit.”

Joshua merely nodded. That went
without saying.

“
What if he fires
her?”

“
Do you really think he
would? He’s come to rely on her so heavily.”

“
I don’t know. He’s
vindictive and if he thought it would hurt you, he’d do
it.”

Joshua dropped down to a
walk. Robert eased back beside him. “I can’t live the rest of my
life in fear. If he fires her, she’ll just have to find another job
somewhere or take some time off. After this tour, she should have
plenty of money for that.”

“
I suppose.” Robert glanced
over at him. “Do you think you’re moving a little fast?”

Joshua shrugged. “Who can
tell? It feels right. I mean, when I asked her it came out
naturally. Maybe there isn’t a time restriction on these things,
Bob. Maybe when it’s right, it’s just right. How was it with your
wife? Did you worry about how fast you were going?”

Robert didn’t answer for a
moment, then he stopped walking and faced Joshua. “No, but then I
didn’t have so much at stake, Josh,” he said. He reached out and
put a hand on Joshua’s shoulder. “I don’t want to hurt you, but it
worries me about what might happen if this doesn’t work
out.”

Joshua looked down.

“
I’m sorry.”

“
No, don’t be. You’ve got a
point, one that I need to always consider.”

“
I didn’t
mean...”

Joshua looked up and met
Robert’s gaze, then glanced over his shoulder at Dominic. The
bodyguard had come to a halt and was looking around warily, keeping
an eye on the few people who had begun to show on the
streets.

“
Don’t apologize. We both
know what I am and what I could become again. But this just feels
so right, Bob.”

Robert gave him a wistful
smile. “Then go for it. Who am I to tell you otherwise?”