Between Us (The Renegade Saints #3) (29 page)

My eyes dart to Cole, only to find him glaring at Ian.

“It’s been uncomfortable, but now isn’t the time,” Cole replies calmly.

Ian hangs his head as his shoulders slump. “You don’t understand,” he slurs. “Has to be now. Just has to be. This… all this, it’s been a lot to take in,” he explains. “I wasn’t sure—I’m still not sure… But, I feel like if I don’t just confront it and get it over with, I’ll always wonder.”

My stomach rumbles uneasily.

“What are you trying to say?” Cole asks.

“I’d like…to be with you,” Ian answers.

It’s like being in a bad movie and everything seems to be happening in slow motion. When he makes his announcement, he addresses the words to me. I shake my head frantically as I rise from the table. Before I can say anything, Cole grabs him by the collar.

“Are you for real right now, coming into my room, telling my woman you want to be with her and doing it in front of an audience?”

“No! I came here to say that to you
both
,” Ian slurs. “Tyson shouldn’t even be here. This is what you wanted,” he reminds Cole. “You said the three of us—”

“I fucking said that bullshit months ago,” Cole counters angrily. “A lot has happened since then.”

Ian gapes at him stupidly as his face turns red.

“So what?” he questions aggressively. “You found someone else to join you? You just went and did it without talking to me first?”

Cole is practically on fire as he steps closer to Ian. “It’s none of your business what she and I do,” he hisses.

“It fucking
is
my business,” Ian insists. “You said you would wait!”

“Months ago!”

“Who is it?” Ian demands. “Who did you choose over me?”

Enough is enough. This isn’t going anywhere good.

“No one,” I answer. “You need to go.”

Looking over at me, he scoffs as he stumbles before finding his balance again.

“I call bullshit. He doesn’t care enough about you not to have someone else around,” Ian babbles drunkenly. “Its fucking Tyson, isn’t it? Dammit! I bet I’m right. Everyone knows this pussy can’t be with anyone unless there’s three—”

Cole’s fist smashes into the side of Ian’s face without warning. I let out a shriek as I scramble forward and yell, “Stop!”

Completely ignoring my yelling, Ian punches him back. The two of them start throwing blows as I yell at them to knock it off. Only when Tyson physically pulls Cole back does he falter.

“Dude,” Ty says dryly. “This isn’t
Fight Club
and your woman doesn’t need to see this shit. I’ll take care of Ian.”

Shaking his head as if to clear it, Cole turns to me with a worried expression.

“You okay?”

I raise my shoulders. No, I’m really not. This isn’t good.

Stepping forward, Cole grabs my hand and pulls me against him protectively.

Ty takes control, pulling Ian away when he tries to reach out and grab Cole to get his attention.

“That’s enough,” Cole snaps. “Get the fuck out of our room. And if you know what’s fucking good for you, stay far away from me and my goddamn woman. It’s one thing to insult me, but you do not fucking talk shit to her, ever.”

Ian’s dazed eyes dart back and forth between us.

“This is real?” he asks, like he cant believe it.

“This is fucking real,” Cole answers. “I love her and I’ll die before I share her with anyone.”

I suck in a shocked breath and struggle to contain a big smile. I’m dealing with warring emotions of elation at Cole’s declaration and anxiety over Ian’s behavior.

“It would’ve been really fucking great if you’d told me that before,” Ian yells.

Ty starts hustling him toward the door.

“Dude,” he says calmly, “knock that shit off. Let’s go get some coffee into you and maybe a bagel or an entire loaf of bread. You need to soak up whatever the fuck you’ve been drinking.”

As Ty starts to get him through the door and out into the hall, Ian tries to shove his way back in. “But I need to talk to them,” he says frantically. “You don’t understand!”

There are the sounds of a tussle in the hall as the door closes, followed by some thuds and then the sound of banging on the door. Cole looks through the peephole and then over his shoulder at me.

“It’s like Ty’s trying to wrangle cats,” he groans. “This is bad.”

“Goddammit,” he continues. “Now Morris is here. Great. This couldn’t be a bigger scene.”

Spinning around, he looks at me. “I’m so sorry, babe, but we’re going to have to go to a different hotel for the night. I’m afraid if we stay, it’ll get more out of control.”

I nod. He’s right, but I hate it. He just told Ian that he loves me—but now I want him to say it to me. The moment is being ruined. Biting my lip, I stare at him as he walks closer.

When he reaches me, he plants a soft kiss on my lips and then drops to his knees and wraps his arms around me.

“I’m sorry that just happened,” he murmurs. “I hate that I just blurted it out while he was here—”

I run my hand through his hair soothingly as I ask, “Did you mean it?”

His blue eyes flash as he looks at me. “Never doubt it, Devon. There’s only you, and I only ever want it to be you. I tried so hard not to because I was so afraid, but you made it impossible for me to do it just by being you. I was going to tell you tomorrow—don’t be surprised when you wake up to a room festooned in roses—but Ian just ruined my plan. I love you, Devon. I’m devoted to, crazy and completely wild for, you baby. Someday, I hope you’ll be able to say you love me back.”

I dash at the tear that escapes my right eye as I stare down at him. “I love you, too, you idiot.”

He jumps up from his knees fast, wrapping his arms around me and swinging me around in a circle as he rains kisses on my lips.

“This feels fucking amazing,” he whoops.

When he sets me down, I cup his face.

“Why were you so afraid?”

“I’m going to tell you everything, but first, we’ve got to get out of here. Let me talk to security real quick and get us hooked up in another hotel. I promise once we’re settled, we’ll talk.”

I nod my understanding, knowing he’s right. The situation will only get worse if Ian comes back and says more. Our best option is to leave so that doesn’t happen.

It takes just under ninety minutes to pack and move to a hotel down the street. As soon as we got into our new room, Cole took my hand and guided me to the couch. After sitting down, he pulls me right up against him and starts talking. By the time he’s finished explaining why he has never wanted a traditional relationship, I’ve shed more than a few tears.

He kisses me softly as he wipes the remainder away. “It’s okay,” he assures me. “Together, there is nothing we can’t conquer. We love each other, which is all that matters.”

I kiss him back, melting into his arms, happier than I’ve ever been. The rocker who was so afraid to settle down is now officially mine—and mine alone.

The sound of my cellphone ringing wakes me up. Reaching across Devon, I pick up the phone and bring it up to my ear.

“Hello?”

“Hey, it’s Lacey. You and I need to talk.”

Looking over Devon’s head to the bedside clock, I groan. “It’s really fuckin’ early,” I grumble.

“Well, we’ve got a situation,” she answers.

When she explains what the situation is, I know I’ve got some work to do. I feel Devon shifting against me as Lacey and I talk, and I know she’s getting the idea of what’s happening. Hanging up the phone, I let out a sigh. Turning in my arms, she looks up at me.

“Did he really quit?”

“For the most part, yes. He told them he has all he needs to write his book, but you and I both know he doesn’t. He’d be missing the whole end of the tour, and it’s important.”

“What do you want to do?” she asks.

We talk it over for a while before coming up with a course of action. Once it’s decided on, I feel better.

Ian answers the door with a shocked look.

“Shouldn’t you be in Kansas?” he asks.

“The show is tomorrow,” I answer, “so this was the perfect time to come see you. I was a dick the other night and I owe you and apology. Can we talk?”

His head rears back and his eyes go wide. “Okay then,” he says. “I really didn’t expect this.”

Stepping back, he gestures for Devon and me to enter his house. Closing the door behind him, he gestures to where his couch is. I’m a little startled by how pristine his home is. It’s done in whites and creams, and nothing is out of place. For some reason, I’d expected surfboards and Buddha posters or something. Clearly, I was wrong.

“You want anything to drink?” he asks.

Devon and I both shake our heads as we take seats side by side on the white sofa.

“Nah,” I answer, “but thanks for offering.”

He nods as he drops down into a cream-colored chair across from us.

“I’m sorry things got out of control the other night—”

I hold up my hand to stop him. “You don’t need to apologize,” I assure him. “It’s all on me. I should’ve been man enough to admit long before now that I’m in love with her, and that I only want to be with her,” I admit.

“It was wrong of me to have let it get to this point,” I continue. “I’ve got issues and I let them cloud my judgment because I’m a moron. It was obvious you weren’t feeling it, and—”

“I have to take some responsibility for that, too,” Ian asserts. “I’m the one who threw my hat in and said I wanted you to wait for me, when I wasn’t sure that’s what I really wanted.”

“I kinda pressured you though,” I counter. “Nothing that happened is on you.”

“It would be great if that were true,” he says dryly. “But it isn’t. Like I said, I’m the one that announced I wanted in. And I’m the one who turned up in your hotel room drunk as shit claiming I was ready. For the record, I wasn’t. That was the vodka talking. I’d just decided I needed to get it over with.”

Clasping my hand, Devon leans forward and looks at Ian. “I was wondering what brought that on,” she admits.

Ian’s face flushes as he looks away nervously. Looking back to Devon, he runs his hand through his hair and stares at her.

“This is so fucking embarrassing,” he murmurs.

“What is?” Devon prods softly.

“I’m… a virgin,” he croaks.

Jesus. If I didn’t feel like a giant asshole as it is, that would’ve done it.

“Oh sweetie,” Devon says sympathetically. “That’s not embarrassing!”

His head snaps up and he stares at her in confusion. “You don’t think being a twenty-three-year-old male virgin is just a little pathetic?”

“No,” she assures him firmly, “I most certainly do not. You have your reasons.”

He swallows as his eyes dart between us.

“It’s cool,” I second. “Even if you were fifty, that’s your business. I feel like a real fucking dick for coming on so strong—”

“You
were
a dick,” he agrees quietly.

His tone is not combative or hostile, so I don’t take offense. Not that I could—I’ve completely bungled this to hell.

“But really, most of this is about me,” he continues. “I’ve never really felt… attracted to anyone who came back at me strong. It forced me to step outside my box. I know it probably hasn’t looked like that to you, but this has changed me. I’m just sorry because I knew I didn’t want to do anything with either of you since my heart wasn’t in it—but my head is a jumbled up mess and I just completely freaked.”