Reckless (Thoughtless, #3)(143)

Anna looked around with a scowl on her face. “These boys are pigs. They’re going to have to clean up after themselves now that Gibson’s on board.” Her sudden concern over the cleanliness of our bus made me chuckle. Up until today, she’d contributed to the mess just as much as the guys had.

With Gibson still in her car seat, we made our way to the back bedroom. Like an overwhelmed cartoon character, my jaw dropped to my chest. The bedroom was . . . babified. There was a narrow, portable playpen crammed between the bed and the one-way window, and a mobile attached to the top had stuffed musical instruments hanging off of it. A couple of stuffed animals were on the makeshift crib, along with a pink blanket that looked plush enough for a princess.

On the other side of the bed was a slim dresser. The drawers would be impossible to open, but the top of it had a built-in tray that held a curved mattress with a belt, perfect for diaper changes. Attached to the ceiling above the table was a cute, fabric diaper holder, also decorated in musical instruments. As Anna giggled in delight, my eyes settled onto the bed. It was littered with shopping bags, and I saw nothing but pink spilling out of them.

Anna set the car seat down and rummaged through a bag. Squealing as she removed a soft pink, plush guitar, she said, “Don’t I have the best husband ever?”

I was so shocked, I couldn’t even respond.

I helped Anna put away the mountain of clothes that Griffin had picked up for his daughter. Since they’d already bought a bunch of stuff when they’d believed Gibson was a boy, there was nowhere near enough room for everything. We ended up cramming clothes and toys all over the bus. Every available cubby had something stuffed into it. We even stashed some burp rags in the pocket in the bus driver’s door. Once Anna and Gibson were comfortable and crashed, I crawled into the cubby I shared with Kellan. It had never felt so wonderful. I sighed after I inhaled our blanket; it smelled like Kellan. As I drifted off to sleep, I wondered if I smelled like Kellan too.





Chapter 25


On Our Own





Arms wrapping around my body and legs tangling with mine woke me up. The bus was still, silent, but I had no idea if we’d reached our new destination, or if we were still in Jersey. Smiling, I stretched as best as I could, then cuddled into the chest behind me.

“What time is it?”

“Late,” he murmured. “They’re still tearing down the show. We’ll leave sometime tomorrow. I missed you last night. I couldn’t sleep without you next to me.”

I turned around to face him. Due to the confined space, it took some effort. I bumped my elbow against the wall and almost kneed Kellan in the groin again. He was prepared for it this time though and nimbly backed away just in the nick of time. When we were facing each other, we melded back together.

Kellan cupped my cheek. “Hey.”

Pulling him tight, I smiled against his lips. “Hey.”

Kellan’s lips danced against mine, his tongue lightly probing. Hoping we were the only ones on the bus, I clutched at his shirt, wanting it off. Leaning over me, Kellan helped me out and pulled it over his head with one hand. I shoved it in the corner and ran my hands up his bare back as he settled over me. “Hey,” I said again, my smile brighter than before.

“Always so eager to undress me,” he whispered, his lips traveling to my neck.

I suppressed a giggle as I closed my eyes and savored the feeling of his body over me, around me. I loved getting lost in him. As his fingers traveled under my shirt and across my ribs, he breathed in my ear, “Any troubles leaving the hospital?”

Hyperaware of his hips above mine, separated from me by multiple layers of clothing, I sucked in a ragged breath. God, I really hoped no one else was awake. “Aside from some fans telling me that they wished I’d never been born? No. No problems at all.”

The tips of his fingers paused at the base of my breast. “What?”

He pulled back to look at me, concern in his eyes. I shook my head and tried to scoot down so that his hand would move up. Didn’t work. “It was fine. I’m fine.”

Kellan slid off to my side, his hand retreating. Knowing our moment was over, I sat up on my elbow. “They threatened you?” he asked, an edge to his voice.

I shook my head. “No . . . they just expressed their dislike. Nobody touched—” Remembering being shoved a couple of times, I changed my sentence to, “Nobody hurt me.”

Kellan sat up as much as he could. It wasn’t very much. He leaned over on his elbow as he rested on his hip. Even though it was dark, I could tell that he was deep in thought.

“Kellan, nobody hurt me.”

He peeked up at me, his lips in a hard line. He was pissed. “This time. Nobody hurt you this time.” Looking away, he muttered, “This is such bullshit. You’re my wife.” He looked back at me. “Tory had us doing this meet-and-greet/concert for a high school that won some contest to have us there. It took all goddamn day. I was so freaking busy that the only person I had time to talk to was you. I hate that this has festered for so long. My silence isn’t helping anything.”

He looked angry and frustrated that he couldn’t stand up for me yet, that all of this was snowballing so fast and he just didn’t have time to react. Kissing him, I pulled him back down on top of me. “It’s only been two days, and it’s not your fault.”