Page 29 of Heartbeat Girl
“I thought you banned all forms of fun after Monday?” Pete asked.
I tensed, not wanting to remind her of that mess. But Jayne only rolled her eyes. “It upset me that night because you’re all so clumsy at this. Truthfully, I don’t know what I’m doing with you guys. Ruth never allowed fans backstage. She never wanted to sleep with them, either. Now, I’m working for a band that does everything with no regulations or guidance. It unhinged me a little.” Jayne pinched her thumb and forefinger together to illustrate her point.
Pete scoffed and opened his arms wide. “This was more like how crazy you were.”
I relaxed when she giggled. The sound fell over me like a waterfall, calming me.
“Don’t be fooled,” I said. “She’s happy because she gets her hotel room.”
“Ohhh,yeah.” Jayne groaned enthusiastically.
The elevator pinged, and I stiffened, knowing my limited time with her would end as the doors opened. Without reason, I grabbed her hand and slid my fingers around hers. We fit like two missing halves of a whole. Words buzzed in my head. The beats of a symphony ringing through me. With her, my guitar, and pen, I’d write her a song, then whisper it in her ear if she’d let me. My heartbeat girl was the cruelest muse. A song stuck in my head. A creature never to be mine. My beatless heart and my damned soul were all ghosts belonging to her. The girl that ran away from me.
Her eyes widened, mouth parting as she stared down at our link.
“Let me walk you to your room.”
“Aren’t our rooms next to each other?” she whispered, fiddling with her key card.
I pulled her forward, stealing her attention. “Are we?”
Steve shook his head, but I ignored him.
Jayne’s hands were warm. How would she feel undead like me? I listened to her heart, that perfect sound that called me to her. I wondered if her beats would still ring in my ears when the sound died. My skin tingled, body twisting and turning with a desperate need to have her. My fangs pressed against my tongue.
A fool’s muse—a fool’s wish. I let the beautiful idea fade away. I wouldn’t let Marilyn have her. I wouldn’t let anyone have her. She was mine. I would build her up, stay close, and obsess over every precious thing she did and sound she made.
I wanted to lure her into my world, but things like fear and worry overtook my Jayne. She’d never come to my side. Never indulge herself. Never succumb to me.
This, I thought as I held her hand and watched as the red swept over her features. That was all she’d give me. And all I begged myself to take.Stop pushing, stop invading, stop taking over her space. Let her keep her privacy. Let her wield it like a weapon against me. For her own sake. Jayne’s safest if she pulled away.
ButI gripped her hand tighter as we stopped in front of room 605. “This is you,” I told her.
“And what do you know.” Steve passed us and stopped at the next door. “This is us.”
Slowly, Jayne let go of my hand and touched the top of her bun to make sure nothing was out of place. It was perfect. Not a single strand out of place. She was as cool and distant as ever, despite the blush creeping across her skin.
How am I supposed to stop?
There was only one thing that could keep me away. The second Jayne saw me for what I was,thatwould keep me in line. Her shrieking, covering her face so she couldn’t see the bloodsucker in front of her. She might look at me and scream,monster. I shuddered. Shaking the bad thought away, I stepped back, letting the distance flow between us once more.
“Well, I’m going inside,” she mumbled. “Stay out of trouble, Steve.”
“No promises,” he replied.
“I better get a promise. I’m the one cleaning up after you.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll keep him in line,” Pete said.
Jayne laughed. The sound quickly died when she glanced at me. She averted her gaze just as fast. “Goodnight.”
“Goodnight,” I called out as she shut the door.
+++
With my arms beneath my head, I closed my eyes and listened to Jayne’s footfalls in the next room as I laid on the bed. A door creaked as she pushed it.The bathroom?
Steve and Pete went downstairs and searched for someone to feed from. I fed from a worker before our concert started, so I could wait until tomorrow to feed again. Besides, if I ventured too far, I couldn’t hear Jayne.