Page 80 of Queen Of Clubs
“Ugh,” I groan, my belly feeling funny. “I don’t think doing that much running after eating ice cream was a good idea.”
“Are you okay? Do you need water? Are you going to be sick?” he asks. I love his concern and need to take care of me.
“I’m good.” I straighten up and wipe my brow. “Just can’t do any more running.”
“Let me call a car to come pick us up.”
Griffin makes a call and tells me they will be here in ten minutes.
We find a spot in the shade to wait, and Griffin pulls me down onto his lap. I go willingly, placing my head on his chest, and listen to the beating of his heart.
“Is it always like this?” I ask him.
“You mean the fans?” he asks and I nod. “Nope, sometimes it’s worse. This is the best case scenario. Normally, we don’t have any security with us because we don’t go out much. Always working leaves little time to enjoy life. We’re so stupid for not even thinking about it this time. You could have gotten hurt.”
“I’m fine.” I shift my head to kiss his neck before snuggling my face there. “But yeah, that was crazy.”
“I’ll talk to Calvin about getting some men to trail us for the rest of the tour.”
I nod and just enjoy the feeling of his arms around me. “Not going to lie, that was fun.” I laugh.
“It was, wasn’t it?” he chuckles.
The car comes and picks us up, taking us back to the hotel.
“What on earth are you wearing?” Everett asks when we walk into the hotel room. He’s there with Zane, Calvin, and unfortunately, Gianna.
“We got spotted, and needed something to cover up with,” Griffin answers.
“Are you okay?” Zane is in front of me in a flash.
“Relax, big guy, I’m fine.” I roll my eyes. “We ran, it was fun.”
“You guys know better than to go out so carelessly. What if you got hurt?” Gianna directs this to Griffin.
“It was a group of girls. We would have been fine,” I tell her.
She swings her gaze to me. “That shows just how little you know about their lives,” Gianna states with a scowl. “Sure, it’s a group of girls now—but what if it was a bigger, rowdier group? Or someone who isn’t a fan of the band and feels the need to express that, ultimately putting their lives at risk?”
Embarrassment fills me, and I feel like a scolded child for a moment. “Sorry.”
“You have nothing to be sorry about,” Griffin reassures before looking at Gianna. “She’s not to blame here.”
Gianna’s eyes widen. “I—I wasn’t blaming her, Griff, I was just stating facts.”
Why does it bother me so much that she uses his nickname? I hate it.
“It was our responsibility to bring security, and we didn’t,” Zane adds in. “We should be fine for tonight, but I think it’s a good idea to bring a few guys along for any future outings.”
“I agree.” Gianna nods. “I will assign a few guys for this tour.”
“Thank you, Gianna,” Calvin says. “Is there anything else needed from the guys? If not, we have dinner plans in an hour before going out again.”
“Oh.” Her face falls as she looks around at the guys. “You have more plans?”
“Yup.” Griff pulls the hoodie off and tosses it onto the couch. I don’t miss the way Gianna’s eyes drop to the patch of skin that peeks out when his shirt rides up. I grit my teeth, holding back my impulse to stake my damn territory. This is something I’m going to have to get used to. I’ve never felt so possessive over someone before. Lie—I’ve always felt this way about how the girls in high school acted toward the guys, but it’s been years.
“What are you going to do?” she asks, looking back up at him.