now too.
“Already?” Jeff was relentless.
“Yeah. Your body needs a break now and then.”
Jeff sighed, eyes rolling dramatically.
Chuckling, Rye climbed out of the pool and offered Jeff his hand. Jeff’s hands were shaking, and Rye made sure everything was steady before he let go. Grabbing a towel, he ran it over Jeff’s limbs, then handed him a robe before drying himself off.
The gate bell was ringing when they headed to the kitchen, a couple of news vans waiting.
Jeff winced. “I should call Martin. He deals with the press.”
“Okay. Meanwhile, I’m going to tell them to go away.”
“Please.” Jeff sighed and headed back up to his rooms.
Growling, Rye grabbed the phone. “Who is this?”
“Lisa Jonston from KFAA, News 12. We were wondering if Mr. January had a statement on the arrest of one of his fans last night.”
“No comment. Talk to his publicist.” He hung up.
The bell rang again immediately. No wonder Jeff stayed upstairs. He took a breath. If he answered he was going to be rude. If he went down there, he was quite possibly going to be violent.
He turned the ringer down low and put the peppers on the burners to roast the skins.
At some point he was going to have to break down and eat a steak the size of his head.
Maybe they could go to a restaurant. Him and Jeff, not Lord January.
He would like that, to see Jeff actually go outside.
Like a real person.
He’d have to broach the subject. He doubted Jeff would go out today, but Rye would wear him down, and maybe in a couple days they could do it. Somewhere quiet where they served vegetarian and meatatarian meals.
Somewhere no one would recognize Jeff.
Somewhere trustworthy.
Continuing to ignore the phone, which was still fucking ringing, Rye made the soup and grabbed a package of crackers instead of making toast. He made another milkshake with protein powder for Jeff too. It all fit on a tray, and he headed back upstairs, making sure to close and lock the door on his way.
He totally got the temptation to lock the rest of the world away and stay safe in hiding, but Rye wasn’t going to let Jeff be a prisoner of Lord January’s fame.
C HAPTER F OUR
“T HE BAND is coming in tonight, LJ, and you have an appearance Thursday night at midnight at Clockworks. Do you need me to order in food and supplies?” Donna asked, her voice warm even over the telephone.
“Yeah. Yeah, that’s fine. Call Rye and tell him when to open the doors.” Jeff stared out the window of his bedroom. It had been good, vacation, but it was over.
All of it.
“Okay, LJ. You feeling ready? The tour starts in two weeks.”
“One week of music rehearsals, one week of dress rehearsal, and then we’re off. Got it.” He was going to die.
Rye came in with a tray of food, moving easily.
“Is there anything you need?” Donna asked again.
“Bri will want M&M’S, Roach likes beer. Scooter and Brandy bring their own shit.”
One of Rye’s eyebrows went up and he mouthed, “Who?”
Jeff held up one finger. “E-mail me all the details for Thursday and make sure Rye gets all the information.”
“You’ve got it. I’ll keep you updated if there’s any change. Take care of yourself, honey.”
“I will.”
He hung up, tried to smile. “Vacation is over. Time to earn my pennies. The band is here starting tonight. The appearances start Thursday.”
“Okay. You don’t need to do the whole January schtick with the band, do you?”
“No. No, there will be some strangers, so I’ll be LJ.”
Rye made a face. “All right. But remember he’s just a shell.”
“He is.” Jeff sighed and stretched. “There will be deliveries today—food and booze, all that. They all have rooms here.”
“Do they know I’m going to search them and their stuff for drugs?”
“Oh, that’s going to go over well.” Roach was going to scream.
Rye shrugged, not looking terribly concerned. “They should be happy I’m letting them bring in
“Already?” Jeff was relentless.
“Yeah. Your body needs a break now and then.”
Jeff sighed, eyes rolling dramatically.
Chuckling, Rye climbed out of the pool and offered Jeff his hand. Jeff’s hands were shaking, and Rye made sure everything was steady before he let go. Grabbing a towel, he ran it over Jeff’s limbs, then handed him a robe before drying himself off.
The gate bell was ringing when they headed to the kitchen, a couple of news vans waiting.
Jeff winced. “I should call Martin. He deals with the press.”
“Okay. Meanwhile, I’m going to tell them to go away.”
“Please.” Jeff sighed and headed back up to his rooms.
Growling, Rye grabbed the phone. “Who is this?”
“Lisa Jonston from KFAA, News 12. We were wondering if Mr. January had a statement on the arrest of one of his fans last night.”
“No comment. Talk to his publicist.” He hung up.
The bell rang again immediately. No wonder Jeff stayed upstairs. He took a breath. If he answered he was going to be rude. If he went down there, he was quite possibly going to be violent.
He turned the ringer down low and put the peppers on the burners to roast the skins.
At some point he was going to have to break down and eat a steak the size of his head.
Maybe they could go to a restaurant. Him and Jeff, not Lord January.
He would like that, to see Jeff actually go outside.
Like a real person.
He’d have to broach the subject. He doubted Jeff would go out today, but Rye would wear him down, and maybe in a couple days they could do it. Somewhere quiet where they served vegetarian and meatatarian meals.
Somewhere no one would recognize Jeff.
Somewhere trustworthy.
Continuing to ignore the phone, which was still fucking ringing, Rye made the soup and grabbed a package of crackers instead of making toast. He made another milkshake with protein powder for Jeff too. It all fit on a tray, and he headed back upstairs, making sure to close and lock the door on his way.
He totally got the temptation to lock the rest of the world away and stay safe in hiding, but Rye wasn’t going to let Jeff be a prisoner of Lord January’s fame.
C HAPTER F OUR
“T HE BAND is coming in tonight, LJ, and you have an appearance Thursday night at midnight at Clockworks. Do you need me to order in food and supplies?” Donna asked, her voice warm even over the telephone.
“Yeah. Yeah, that’s fine. Call Rye and tell him when to open the doors.” Jeff stared out the window of his bedroom. It had been good, vacation, but it was over.
All of it.
“Okay, LJ. You feeling ready? The tour starts in two weeks.”
“One week of music rehearsals, one week of dress rehearsal, and then we’re off. Got it.” He was going to die.
Rye came in with a tray of food, moving easily.
“Is there anything you need?” Donna asked again.
“Bri will want M&M’S, Roach likes beer. Scooter and Brandy bring their own shit.”
One of Rye’s eyebrows went up and he mouthed, “Who?”
Jeff held up one finger. “E-mail me all the details for Thursday and make sure Rye gets all the information.”
“You’ve got it. I’ll keep you updated if there’s any change. Take care of yourself, honey.”
“I will.”
He hung up, tried to smile. “Vacation is over. Time to earn my pennies. The band is here starting tonight. The appearances start Thursday.”
“Okay. You don’t need to do the whole January schtick with the band, do you?”
“No. No, there will be some strangers, so I’ll be LJ.”
Rye made a face. “All right. But remember he’s just a shell.”
“He is.” Jeff sighed and stretched. “There will be deliveries today—food and booze, all that. They all have rooms here.”
“Do they know I’m going to search them and their stuff for drugs?”
“Oh, that’s going to go over well.” Roach was going to scream.
Rye shrugged, not looking terribly concerned. “They should be happy I’m letting them bring in
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