Music of the Heart (Runaway Train #1)(4)
Author: Katie Ashley

Well, I guess, Brayden’s motives were different. He was the father figure and caretaker of the band as well as being the father to four-year-old, Jude, and eight-month-old, Melody. And regardless of the tits and ass thrown in his face twenty-four seven, he remained true to his wife. Although I gave him shit about it, I really did admire him for being loyal.

Abby gave a ragged sigh. “I’m okay. Really, you don’t have to fuss over me.” She smoothed her hair back and wiped a few dust bunnies off her dress. “I’m hypoglycemic so sometimes I pass out when I don’t eat…that coupled with the adrenaline rush of being in a stranger’s bed and seeing you all instead of my brothers made me faint.”

After taking a hesitant sip of water, Abby patted her cheeks down with the paper towel. When she glanced up, she found all of us staring at her. “So, um, I guess you’re wondering how I ended up here, huh?”

Brayden motioned to the authorized pass nestled in her ample cle**age. “I’m going to take a wild guess and say you got on the wrong bus.”

Abby nodded. She then launched into a story about why she was even at Rock Nation. When she explained about the roadie and Jacob’s ladder, I sucked in a breath. “He thought you were looking for me.”

“Huh?” she asked.

“I’m Jake Slater. He probably wasn’t paying much attention, right?”

She nodded.

“I mean, Jake Slater and Jacob’s Ladder running together kinda sound similar—if the asshat even heard anything past J. He just assumed you were coming to see me.”

Abby’s eyebrows shot up. “And you often have random chicks coming to your bus with luggage and a guitar case?” she countered.

The grin I gave her caused pink splotches on Abby’s cheeks. “Never mind,” she muttered, looking away from me.

The sound of her phone vibrating on the table interrupted us. She grabbed it and frantically brought it to her ear. “Gabe, oh my God, it’s so good to hear from you!”

The voice on the other line spoke frantically. She shook her head. “No, no, I didn’t get cold feet about the tour. It’s just…I, um, I got on the wrong bus.”

At his response, her face clouded over with fury. “Oh really? Well, maybe one of you ass**les should have come to meet me!” With his next words, she sputtered with indignation. “Don’t you chastise me about cussing! I’m a grown woman, and I’ll say whatever I want to! I can’t believe you have me on speakerphone. Eli, if you don’t stop laughing, I’m going to beat the shit out of you the moment I see you! And if you think I can’t, just remember Costa Rica!”

I couldn’t help laughing at her fiery personality. The other guys were equally amused at the spitfire in front of us.

“How did this happen? There were over a hundred buses out there, Gabe. When I asked about Jacob’s Ladder, they thought I meant Jake Slater.”

Gabe’s voiced screeched on the other end so loud we all could hear it. “You’re on Runaway Train’s bus?!!!”

“Yes,” she replied. At his next statement, she snorted. “Well, I’ve only managed to do the drummer and the bassist so far, but I’m thinking I could get a threesome going and knock out the others. Maybe I’ll gang-bang with the roadies when we stop for dinner!”

Rhys made a strangled noise in his throat while AJ muttered, “Fuck me,” under his breath. Even I couldn’t stop the below-the-belt stirring at her imaginative suggestion.

She rolled her eyes. “Gabe, would you give me a little credit? I’ve held on to my virginity this long. I think it’ll hold for a while.”

We all exchanged wild glances. Rhys tugged so hard on his stud it came out of his ear and fell to the ground. AJ fumbled for the beer next to him and drained it in a long guzzle—his chest heaving hard as he stared at Abby. Even Brayden appeared shell-shocked by her declaration. All of us had to be thinking the same thing. How was it possible for a smokin’ hot girl like the one before us to be a…virgin?

Abby whirled around and saw our expressions. A flush entered her cheeks, and she ducked her head. She sank back down into her chair and buried her head between her knees. “I can’t believe I just admitted that in a room full of men,” she whispered. When Gabe said something else, her voice broke with emotion. “Look, I just need to know how we’re going to fix this.” After sniffling for a few seconds, she raised her head and scanned our faces. “Yeah, one sec.” She handed the phone to Brayden. “He wants to know your tour schedule, so I’ll be able to get off the bus and onto a plane as soon as possible.”

He nodded as he took the phone and stepped away from us. “Hey Gabe, this is Brayden Vandenburg, and don’t worry, man, I’m gonna take good care of Abby until we can get her back to you guys—” He jerked back like he had been stunned. “That was so not what I meant. Besides, I’m a married man. Now here’s where we are…” His voice trailed off as he walked down the aisle.

Rhys patted Abby’s back reassuringly. “Hey, don’t worry. It’s going to be okay.”

With her head buried in her hands, she mumbled. “Thanks. I hope so.”

Edging Rhys out of the way, I knelt down beside Abby. Taking her chin in my hands, I pulled her head up to meet my gaze. “Don’t sweat it, Angel. Your brother and Bray will figure it out. I promise we’ll have you back to your civilized little world as soon as possible and before you can get too traumatized by being in our presence.”

She smacked my hand away. “What do you mean civilized?”

I shrugged. “I just meant that it’s obvious you’re used to a certain way of life.”

Her blonde brows shot up so far I thought they might reach her white headband. “Are you insinuating that I’m some spoiled little brat who is used to having everyone bow to her every whim?”

“Maybe.”

Abby narrowed her eyes at me. “My parents were missionaries. Do you even understand what that means?”

A smirk curved at my lips. “I know all about the missionary position, Angel. In fact, I believe I was trying to acquaint you with it earlier when you c**k blocked me.”

“You’re seriously disgusting!” she cried popping up out of her chair. She almost toppled me over before I could stand up. She poked her finger into my chest. “I’ll have you know that I’m not some prima donna who can’t survive without someone taking care of me. The lives of missionaries and their families are very simplistic, so trust me when I say, I’ve seen a lot of hard shit. Yeah, we lived in major cities like Rio in Brazil and Guadalajara in Mexico, but I’ve also tromped through the jungles and gone days without showers, least of all cell phones and WiFi. So I can assure you that there’s nothing you and your band of merry miscreants can do that would shock or scare me!”