Rhythm, Chord & Malykhin Read Online Free PDF Page B

brought up to jab Eli in the rib was an after thought. “It’s Gaby, actually,” I tried to correct Sacha AKA hello-how-are-you-sexy, shaking the warm hand a little longer than I needed to. “It’s nice to meet you, too.”
    Eli snorted again. “Don’t listen to her, her name’s Flabby, man.”
    Sacha smiled again—a pull of sensual lips and straight white teeth—before he dropped his hand, eyeing Eli and me. “Are you two—?” He drew a straight, horizontal line in the air between us.
    “Eww…” Eli and I both groaned out at the same time, shaking our heads quickly. It didn’t make us pull apart, though.
    “I just barfed in my mouth,” Eli gagged. “This is my baby sister.”
    The slow nod that Sacha gave us in return made it seem like he wasn’t entirely sure whether Eli was lying or not. Smart guy. You could never trust Eli Anthony Barreto. Ever.
    “We’re twins,” I explained. “I’m filling in for Zeke the rest of the tour.” When Sacha quirked an eyebrow—a very dark one on his smooth, almost pale skin—I remembered that tonight would only be the bands’ fourth tour date together. He might not know who exactly Zeke was. “He was the old merch guy.”
    By the way he nodded and snapped his fingers, it was obvious he hadn’t known Zeke’s name. “Right.”
    Someone yelled from inside the bus, telling us to hurry up. Eli squeezed my shoulder. “Grab your stuff, stinky, and I’ll meet you inside.”
    My stuff. The stranger’s butt. Ugh. My face got all hot again, and I found myself smiling nervously.
    I nodded and watched my brother and Mason retreat into the bus, leaving me with the man whose ass I’d just kicked. He smiled and gestured toward the open compartment. “I’ll get your bag if you promise not to kick me again.”
    Throwing my hands up in surrender, I shook my head. “No ass-kicking, I swear.” I couldn’t help but choke a little before adding, “I won’t call you a dick again either.” What was wrong with me? What I’d done was bad enough, and then calling him—well, Mason really—a dick was the cherry on a shit sundae.
    He tipped his head back and laughed, the sound uninhibited and wonderful. “Deal.” A moment later, he was asking me which suitcase was mine prior to pulling it out. I started yanking out clean underwear, a shirt and sweatpants while he finally managed to retrieve the big black suitcase he’d been rummaging through when the ass-kicking incident happened.
    Dread knotted my stomach as I remembered what I’d done. Humiliated, I zipped up my suitcase and shoved it back inside the compartment. “Your show was amazing,” I squeaked out, keeping my eyes toward the trailer hitched up to the bus. “I wasn’t sure what to expect, but it was great.”
    “Thank you,” he murmured softly. It was impossible not to absorb the tone of his voice when he thanked me. There wasn’t a hint of superiority or conceitedness in it at all. He sounded pretty genuine. “First time?” he asked.
    “Yes.” I found myself toeing the ground, feeling awkward. “I hadn’t heard of you guys before tonight.” For a split second, I thought about telling him that I thought his voice was beautiful, but I didn’t want to sound like a suck-up.
    “I’m glad you liked it.” Sacha zipped up his suitcase, holding a bundle of clothes to his chest. He turned to look at me, a kind smile on his five o’clock-shadowed face. “Did you get what you needed?” I nodded and followed after him silently before he waved me into the bus first with the towel in his hand. He winked. “Don’t want you to forget about our deal so soon.”
    Ugh. I was never going to live this down.
    “I’m really, really sorry,” I insisted, still feeling horrible as I climbed up the steps into the bus. My face was getting red all over again.
    Why the hell had I done that? My subconscious answered: because you really believed he was Mason, and if it had been, no one would have thought