Dark Without You Read Free

into his arms. She smiled shyly and folded herself into his warm embrace. He wrapped his massive arms around her, burying his face in her hair. They remained locked together for a good minute, and he noticed her face was flushed when they eventually pulled apart.
    She broke the silence first. “Nice hat,” she said as they moved toward baggage claim.
    “It helps me keep a low profile.”
    “As low a profile as a giant can keep.” She chuckled.
    Their bodies occasionally brushed together as they navigated through the airport. Once they claimed Alice’s suitcase from the carousel, they caught a taxi outside. During all this he couldn’t keep his eyes off the girl—no, woman. She was nearly a college graduate. Where did the time go?
    “Is Rich sick or something?” she asked as the taxi merged onto the busy highway.
    “Yeah,” Andy admitted. “He drank too much last night.”
    Alice didn’t look surprised. Rich would go weeks without drinking, but sometimes he would go weeks without being sober. It was always one extreme or the other. His highs and lows were exhausting to watch, not to mention worrisome.
    “Are you just in town for tonight’s show?” Andy asked. “Rich passed out before I could ask.”
    Alice’s eyes widened, and her lips parted slightly. “No, I’ll be staying with you guys for a while.” Her eyebrows narrowed, as if she were thinking. “I don’t have anything to do for a few weeks, so Rich invited me.”
    A few weeks? A flicker of hope gave Andy pause. The prospect of spending time with Alice gave him something to look forward to. She was different from the other girls on the bus, the groupie chicks who stayed for no more than two or three weeks at a time. Right now, there were five different girls between Rich, Derrick, Paul, and Aaron. Andy wasn’t even sure who belonged to whom. He never shared a room with any of them, but he didn’t doubt that they mixed and matched. But Alice’s presence brought a sense of normalcy to the whole situation. She would be his kindred spirit for the duration of her stay.
    “Welcome to the tour.” He smiled and gave her leg a squeeze.
    Alice blushed and smoothed an errant strand of hair behind her ear. “Thanks. I’m looking forward to the concert tonight.”
    Andy studied the beautiful woman he’d known as a child. Wondering if she’d outgrown her stubborn streak, he remembered all the times he’d played big brother to keep her out of harm’s way. Alice had been worse after her parents died. Since Rich had been consumed by work, Andy had kept a watchful eye on her. This added a dynamic to their relationship that Andy couldn’t help but love. Back then, their age difference was the only thing that had kept him from claiming Alice as his. He felt like a predator now as his eyes roved over her body.
    The taxi jerked to a stop inside the theater lot where the tour bus waited, drawing Andy out of his mental lapse into the past. Come 9:00 p.m., the lot would be packed full and he’d be stepping on stage for a two-hour set. He tried to remember if this venue was sold out. Rich had probably told him, but life was such a blur on the road that most things flew right in and out his ears. The taxi ride from O’Hare had moved in slow motion compared to the rest of Andy’s life though. Something about this woman heightened his senses and made him slow down to appreciate every little moment.
    Alice looked over her shoulder, her hair bouncing lightly. “You all right?” She had one leg out the door.
    Andy snapped back to reality and focused on Alice’s face…and breasts…and legs. From somewhere in the distance, a cab driver was speaking. Andy handed him some money and raced like a fool to retrieve Alice’s bags from the trunk.
    “Are you sure you’re not the one who’s drunk?” Alice teased after the taxi sped off.
    “Yes, I’m sure. Although I could use a drink right now,” he said calmly. “Everyone in the bus is probably still asleep.