Heart of Stone (Rock Star Fairy Tales #1)

Chapter 50

C h apte r 50

Sunrises and Coffee

Morning, Monday, Febr uary 23 rd in Margot’s Bus at The Hive in Si vas, Genc

T he next morning, Margot crawled awkwardly out of her bed, Tobin’s arm around her back as she slid off the bunk, feet thumping on the swivel seat. She nearly fell as the seat moved out from under her, spinning freely, and Tobin’s arm tightened around her back. She looked over at him. His eyes were still closed, but he held her tight for another second, waiting for her to catch her balance.

“Please don’t kill yourself before breakfast, darling,” he said, opening sleepy eyes to pee r at her.

“I blame you,” she quipped. “My legs haven’t re covered.”

“Glad to be of service,” he said, releasing her and roll ing over.

“You in coffee mode yet?” she asked, enjoying the feeling of a new routine: Tobin in her bed, the two of them spending the morning before the show together.

“Soon,” he mumbled, pulling the blanket back up over his shoulder.

Margot smiled, then headed to the kitchen for her morning routine. By the time the coffee was ready, Tobin was asleep again, snoring softly, and Margot decided to take her mug outside. She dressed in layers, noting that many of her clothes were less than fresh. She would have to do laundry soon, and if she didn’t want to find a laundromat, that meant facing the guys on their RV. Normally, she just hung out with them while washing her clothes, but lately, the idea seemed awkward and i ntrusive.

Maybe I can ask Nik to do it, she mused. He certainly owes me for not telling me he was a werewolf . She recalled the years at Maddie’s when her pleading cousin had cajoled her into doing his laundry alongside her own. Smiling at the pleasant memory, she opened the side door of her bus, reveling in the quiet hinges. The air outside was chilly but not too cold. The back lot of the arena was quiet this early as she stepped down, sliding on her boots and shutting the door behind her. She walked to the back of her bus, eyeing the ladder rungs running to the roof. It had been a while since she sat outside, even longer since she sat atop her bus, enjoying the small flat space. Balancing her mug carefully, she hopped onto the bumper, easily pulling herself up and settling cross-legged on the wooden platform. The sun was up, but barely, the sky still waterlogged with night, and she sipped in silence, soaking in t he peace.

Not even a week , she realized, running through her schedule. I’ve been fae less than a week. Well, she supposed, she had always been fae, but she hadn’t known about it. Six days, she mused, and how many new abilities? The wings, for one; then the glamour; the weather had been third; and lastly, the terrible push power. If Tobin and Ash were right, and she was as powerful as her father, she should have a new ability very soon. She wondered what it would be: elemental control like her mother and aunt? Maybe traveling, the walk-through-worlds ability Drina had mentioned, like her father? She could have something more like Tobin’s powers: conjuring items or moving things with her mind.

Or fire? The thought came with the image of Ash, and she sighed, good mood eva porating.

It doesn’t matter, she told herself. You’re with Tobin now. Ash can do whatever the hell he wants, p er usual.

Despite her resolve, and her determination to explore her feelings for Tobin, she knew that seeing Ash again would only hurt her. It wouldn’t matter what he did or said. He was an open wound, one she feared would never tr uly heal.

“Margot?” For a second, she wondered if Tobin had woken up and was fucking with her, but Ash’s wild curls peeked over the edge of the roof. The lead singer climbed up and sat next to her as if he had every right to be there. “Can we talk?”

“Apparently,” she snapped but regretted her tone. She may be with Tobin and putting her obsession with Ash behind her, but she still had to work with him for the rest of the tour—and beyond, unless she planned on getting a new job after this was over. The thought was odd: Am I really thinking about leaving the guys? She peered at Ash, trying to see him as he could be. Her friend, an old crush. Like Benjamin, she told herself, picturing the cheerful crew member who never gave her any trouble, not even hinting that they had once been together.

Can I have that with Ash? she wondered. More importantly, can he have tha t with me?

“What is it?” she prompted when it seemed like he wasn’t going to speak.

“I’m sorry,” he blurted. “I wa s an ass.”

She nodded, heart singing at the words she had longed to hear. Well, part of her heart. The rest was still angry at him, still broken. “You were,” sh e agreed.

“I just…” He held up his hands. “I don’t know how to do this,” he explaine d lamely.

“How to do what?” she asked.

“Be with you,” he replied. “You know, for real with you.”

“Ash, are you really telling me that you don’t know how to be loyal to someone?” He flinched, and part of her rejoiced, enjoying his discomfort. She remembered that Ash was raised in a world where monogamy wasn’t the norm and tried not to blame him for his promiscuous ways. “Look, it’s fine. I knew what I was gett ing into.”

“And what was that?” His eyes were big, his face soulful, and Margot could feel the pull of him, of her need for him. But she pushed it away, knowing that Ash came with so many restrictions and guidelines—and a life that was never going to be shared with her. She thought of Tobin still asleep in her bed below them, and she smiled. At least with him she knew what she was in for. Mostly. Sort of. Ash would always be unpre dictable.

“I’m not the one for you,” she reminded him. “I know that. You don’t owe me anythi ng, Ash.”

He reached for her hand, and she let him take it, cataloging the differences between his grip and Tobin’s. “I could be,” he tried. “I love you , Margot.”

She took her hand out of his, heart shattering at the words she had longed to hear for so long. Having heard them, they only made the ache worse. “I know, Ash,” she told him, surprised that her voice held steady. “But not enough—and I underst and that.”

“What does that mean?” he asked, soft tone twisting slightly as he realized she wasn’t falling right into his arms.

“It means that you have obligations, and I understand that they will always mean more than I will. It’s okay,” she reassured him. “I mean, I think part of me will always love you—will always wonder what could have been—but we don’t have to pretend this is anything truly p ossible.”

Ash stared at her, eyes wide, and as she watched, a tear slipped free. “But things are different. I can explain—” He broke off, staring. “You really don’t want to be with me?” he asked, voice thick with emotion. Margot couldn’t believe it—Ash was actually crying—and for her.

“I think you made the choice for both of us, don’t you?” she said softly, not wanting to hurt him, but knowing it had to be done. Ash never seemed to suffer the consequences of his actions. “And it was the right thing to do. I know that. Now we both have to live with it.”

She thought of Tobin in her bed, wondering how different this conversation would be if he wasn’t there. But I wouldn’t be having this conversation at all if it weren’t for Tobin, she realized. Ash would have never been with me if there hadn’t been competition for my a ffection.

“Ash,” she said finally, “tell me s omething.”

“Anything,” he blurted, wiping his face. “I mean, yeah, su re. What?”

“Why did you stay with me th at night?”

“Because—”

She held up a hand. “Tell me the truth,” she said, careful not to touch him and accidentally use her push ability. “I deserve t he truth.”