Insider (Exodus End #1)(97)
Author: Olivia Cunning

Toni flushed remembering all the naughty things he’d done to her body in the hotel. She was definitely missing their alone time today and couldn’t wait until their next day off.

“We had a great time,” Toni said.

“He’s treating you right.”

Toni nodded. “He’s the best.”

“Are you still planning on riding up on my platform tonight? I have the cutest outfit you can wear.”

Toni cringed. Not about the outfit, about the platform. “About that . . . Apparently my fat ass broke Logan’s platform last night. They were under the stage trying to fix it earlier.”

“Fat ass? Where?” Reagan slid her hand over Toni’s rump to flatten her skirt. “Please. If your ass is fat, mine is a vat of lard.”

Reagan stuck her butt out to prove that hers was bigger than Toni’s.

“Damn, woman,” Trey said from behind them. “Can I get through one meal without you giving me a hard-on?”

Reagan giggled. “I hope not.”

A pair of strong arms circled Toni’s body from behind. Logan’s hands cupped her breasts and lifted them. “So I heard your enormous tits broke my hydraulic lift last night.”

“Now that I believe,” Reagan said.

Toni flushed as everyone within hearing laughed at her expense. She shoved Logan’s hands from her boobs and turned sideways to discourage him from grabbing them in public.

Logan kissed her briefly. “Thanks for saving my spot.”

“Back of the line, Schmidt!” Steve called from several feet behind them.

Toni grabbed Logan’s arm to make sure he stayed beside her. She felt they hadn’t spent any time together all day and if standing in the chow line was their best opportunity to see each other for a few minutes, so be it.

They did get to sit together through dinner, but Dare chatted with Trey, which meant Reagan talked Toni’s ear off about customers she’d had when she worked as a barista, and Steve told Logan—yet again—about his latest adventure with some twins and a couple of other women named Candice and Tonya. Steve’s mantra of “You missed out, dude!” was starting to play on Toni’s last nerve. Even though she didn’t talk to Logan much through their meal, his knee was pressed against hers beneath the table and he had a wonderful habit of touching her bare wrist whenever their hands weren’t otherwise unoccupied. Strange how after all the intense sexual encounters they’d shared the days before, those little touches meant so much to her.

She was almost finished with her dinner when a strange rumbling seeped through the walls and into her bones. She cocked her head to one side, listening. “What is that? An earthquake?”

“The first opening band is starting the show,” Logan said.

The rumble was greeted by enthusiastic cheers and screams, all muffled by the thick concrete walls of the corridor. “Oh!” she said. “Sinners?” No, that couldn’t be since their rhythm guitarist was still at the table deep in conversation with his brother.

“Sinners is on third tonight. That would be Riott Actt.”

She knew of them. She’d listened to some of their music when she’d been researching Exodus End and found out that they’d be one of the two opening bands on this tour. She’d also done research on Hell’s Crypt, but that band hadn’t lasted long in the lineup.

“Do you ever watch the opening bands?” she asked.

“All the time,” he said with a smile. “I might be a rock star, but I’m still a metal fan. Do you wanna watch from backstage? It’s a perk of the rock star gig; we always have a backstage pass.”

She nodded eagerly. This was a neat little glimpse into Logan the metal fan. Logan the man. It was just the kind of thing she wanted to include in their book, the kind of detail that the fans wanted to see—a peek into Logan’s reality. Toni reached into her pocket to set her camera on record. She’d captured a ton of footage that day, so she hoped there was enough memory left to record Logan enjoying Riott Actt. It certainly sounded like the audience in the stadium loved the band’s set. She was sure the entire state of Montana was vibrating from the combined sounds of the band and the audience. Could that much noise trigger an actual earthquake? She wouldn’t doubt it.

Making their excuses and leaving the remnants of their dinner behind, Logan took Toni’s hand and led her through the backstage area. They passed many security guards, but no one stopped them or questioned them. They recognized Logan, and it was clear that she was with him. Walking with Logan was much different from her experiences of trying to make her way through the backstage area on her own, where she was stopped so frequently, she’d started showing her press pass to anyone with eyes.

Logan pushed open a set of swinging doors, and Toni was assaulted by sound. She winced. Logan squeezed her hand and led her around the side of the stage to a set of steps. He didn’t even hesitate climbing them to stand in the wings and as he still had Toni’s now sweaty hand trapped firmly in his, she had no choice but to follow him. The band was finishing up their first song. Their lead singer jumped from a riser to the stage on the final note, punctuating the sound with the thrust of his arm and the microphone in his fist.

Logan cheered with the rest of the crowd, but Toni was too busy staring at him to give the band onstage its due. Logan had come alive. Switched on in a way she hadn’t seen before. She’d watched plenty of footage of him onstage and witnessed secondhand what an outstanding performer he was, but being here with him in the flesh gave her an entirely new insight that no video could convey. So how could she show this side of him in the book? Could she capture the life in him, the vibrancy? She wasn’t sure it was possible. The energy coming off him was almost tangible. His love for music, that was what she was seeing. No, what she was feeling. But how did she show the world how remarkable it was? How remarkable he was?

Matt Chesterfield was onstage chatting with the crowd in a heavy British accent. Toni tore her gaze from Logan to look at the vocalist.

“We’re amped to have the opportunity to play for the amazing metal fans in the Billings area. How many of you came to the show just to see us tonight?”

There was a mild spattering of applause, mostly from a small sector in the pit near the front of the stage. The lead guitarist leaned toward his microphone and said, “Well, that’s a bit disappointing. I don’t think we’ve rocked their faces off enough yet.”