Music of the Heart (Runaway Train #1)(35)
Author: Katie Ashley

“Oh really?”

“Yeah, but there’s Disney shit for Jude too.”

“Hmm, let me see what we’re dealing with here,” I replied before I went over to the entertainment center. It was stuffed full of DVDs along with video games.

As I perused the contents, Jake made a pained noise in his throat. “After the dick way I treated you, you’re going to punish me with the video choice, aren’t you?”

Glancing over my shoulder, I threw him an innocent glance. “Me? How could you possibly think such a thing?”

“Whatever,” he grumbled, collapsing on the couch.

I turned around. “Okay, how does Dodgeball sound?” I asked.

His eyes lit up. “Fanfuckingtastic!”

Shooting him a wicked grin, I replied, “Good. We’ll watch that after Tangled.”

“Seriously?”

I bobbed my head. “Must I remind you that you puked on me earlier this evening?”

“You’re never going to let me forget that, are you?”

“Nope. But besides that, you have a lot of work to do to prove to me you’re worthy of my time.”

“So I have to watch f**king Disney to prove it?”

“It’s a small start.”

I eased the DVD into the player and grabbed the remote. Without even hesitating, I plopped down beside Jake on the couch. “I still can’t believe I’m letting you make me watch a f**king Disney movie,” he grumbled.

“You don’t have to watch it. You can always do your own thing. But if you really want more from me, than you’re going to have to work for it.”

He mumbled something under his breath. Although he may have hated the idea, he gave the movie his full attention when it came on. I think something about it having music in it peaked his interest as much as he hated to admit it. When I snuggled closer to him, he glanced down at me in surprise. “I’m cold,” I admitted.

“Here,” he said, digging in a drawer beside the couch. He pulled out a blanket and wrapped us in it. “How’s that?”

“It feels wonderful. Thank you.”

“No problem.” He then slung an arm around my shoulder, drawing me closer to him.

Halfway through the movie, my eyes grew heavy, and it wasn’t long before I nodded off. I don’t know how long I was asleep before loud voices and laughter, not from the movie, startled me awake. Rubbing my eyes, I looked up to see Jake begin to come back to life as well.

Back from their evening out, the boys were clambering up the bus steps. At the sight of me and Jake wrapped up in a blanket together, they froze. “What the…” AJ began.

He and Brayden then barreled forward like they were about to protect me from Jake’s unwanted advances. I snaked my hand out from under the blanket and held it up at them. “Guys, calm down. Everything is fine.”

Brayden glanced between Jake and me before cocking his eyebrows. “Seriously?”

I laughed. “Yes, it is. Jake’s apologized for his previous bad behavior, and we’re fine now.”

With a wicked gleam in his eyes directed toward the guys, Jake added, “Oh we’re more than just fine. We’re sorta dating.”

A collective gasp of shock rang through all the guys. “That’s not entirely true,” I replied.

Brayden threw his hands up in disbelief. “Excuse me if my mind isn’t able to process such a thought. I mean, just how the hell do you make the quantum leap from banging Bree earlier in the day to dating our Angel?”

“We’re not really dating—we’re just getting to know each other better. He’s going to have to prove himself to me before I’ll date him,” I explained.

Jake bobbed his head. “And I plan on working my ass off to do it.”

Rubbing his hands over his face, Brayden replied, “I’ll be damned.”

AJ’s gaze swept from the TV over to us. “He apologized and he’s watching Tangled. I think Abby brainwashed him while we were gone,” he joked trying to lighten the mood.

Jake and I laughed at his assumption. “Nah, there was no brainwashing involved,” Jake replied. He winked at me. “She just helped me to see the light about what a complete and total jerkwad I was.”

Rhys stood staring at us with a dumbfounded expression on his face. “Dude, I’m not gonna lie and say this doesn’t surprise the shit out of me.” He then stared at me. “Are you sure you know what you’re getting yourself into?”

“No, not really, but then again, does anyone really ever know?” I countered.

“I guess not.” He winked at me. “I guess that’s why I steer clear of any relationships.”

“Sure it is,” Jake snorted.

When Rhys opened his mouth to argue, Brayden cleared his throat. “Okay, okay, I think we oughta call it a night. It’s been a helluva long day with way too much crazy shit going down, not to mention we gotta show tomorrow night.”

“Yes, Daddy,” AJ teased.

“Douchebag,” Brayden muttered under his breath as he headed to the bedroom.

I unraveled myself from the blanket before making a quick bathroom break. When I got out, Jake was waiting outside my roost. He held the curtain back like a gentleman would a door. “There’s that good side showing through again,” I commented.

He grinned. “Goodnight, Angel.”

“Goodnight, Jake.”

Leaning in closer, he whispered, “Thanks for giving me another chance.”

“You’re welcome. Just make sure you toe the line from now on out, and I’m sure we won’t have any more problems.”

He chuckled. “You’re going to be the death of me.”

I blew him a kiss before shutting the curtain. “Sweet dreams, Angel,” he murmured. Drawing the covers around me, I fell asleep with the goofiest grin on my face.

***

Chapter Ten

The next morning we crossed over into Indiana—the next stop on Runaway Train’s tour. As we sat around the table eating breakfast, the electricity in the air was palpable. It was amazing seeing the change come over the guys the sooner they got to their next performance. As we got closer and closer to Indianapolis, the more restless they became. The bus could barely contain the four of them. AJ drummed relentlessly on a smaller, plastic version of his real drum set. Rhys’s Ivy League background showed through as he focused on playing golf on the Wii. Although Brayden was usually the one who was most level-headed, he paced the floors like a caged animal, occasionally stopping to text back and forth with Lily.