barely functioning, which was why she was so drawn to him. She knew what he was feeling, she knew the broken feeling he portrayed because it was the same feeling she lived with every day.
Under his gaze, she couldn’t move; she couldn’t even acknowledge him; she just sat there as the feeling of rigor mortis took over her body. He didn’t acknowledge her either, he just stared back. Time stood still as they communicated their first interaction through their eyes.
“Wow, this is awkward,” Cruz said, interrupting the silence that fell about the bus. “You just going to stare at her all day or you actually going to say hi?”
Rook turned to Cruz and flipped him off causing Cruz to laugh out loud as he started up another game with Landon. Rook walked toward Maisy and held out his hand.
“Rook Tyler.”
Maisy took his hand in hers and prayed to God the Almighty that she was not drooling. Rook was so strong, so handsome…so irresistible, she never wanted to let go, but thankfully she had one ounce of self-respect left in her body and released his hand as she introduced herself.
“Maisy Madison. Nice to meet you.”
Rook nodded, removed his hand from her grasp, and walked over to introduce himself to Willow and Kaid. Maisy couldn’t help but notice how amazing his butt looked in his jeans. She had it really bad for the guy, he could shit out a pineapple and Maisy would think it was gold.
“Nice to meet you all,” Rook said, as he headed for the back of the bus.
She wondered what he did in the back room all by himself. She wanted to know, but she knew she couldn’t go back there and find out for herself. She didn’t want to ask his bandmates either because she didn’t want the other guys in the band to see right through her. Her infatuation for Rook Tyler was beyond transparent and she didn’t want to make it any more obvious than it was.
The fact that everyone was at the front of the bus, doing their own thing and Rook was in the back doing who knows what, was eating away at Maisy. She couldn’t help it; she had to go back there. Thankfully, the bathroom was in the back so she had a good excuse to try to sneak a peek of the brooding Rook Tyler.
She got up from her seat as Kaid and Willow looked at her.
“I have to go to the bathroom. Set list looks good you guys. Leave it like that.”
Willow and Kaid looked at each other, then at the paper and agreed.
Happy with her input, even though it was the only thing she said the whole time, she headed to the back of the bus.
Once she passed Landon and Cruz playing their video game, the bus became quiet and almost serene. Maisy could understand the attraction of sitting in the back by yourself; it was a comforting place where one could think and not be bothered. She passed the bunks where everyone slept and got to the bathroom. Still no sign of Rook. She was about to open the bathroom door when she heard the familiar sound of a guitar and that voice, that hypnotizing voice that ate away at her gut every time she heard it.
It was as if the music was drawing her in. She had never heard the song he was playing, but it was beautiful. It touched her heart and she couldn’t help but drift toward the melodic sound.
She got to the back room where the door was barely cracked open. She peeked in and saw Rook sitting on the bed, with his guitar on his lap and head down, looking at music sheets.
The simple act of him writing and making music hit Maisy to her core. If Maisy wasn’t already head over heels for the man, she fell at that moment. He was the epitome of the perfect man for her; she knew it in her soul.
He was so entranced in his music, he had no clue she was staring at the way his hands moved over his guitar, the way his brow crinkled when he wrote a note or lyric down or the way his facial stubble made his features harsh but his eyes stand out.
She was just about to turn away when he looked up at her. He