Teresa Mummert - White Trash Damaged

“Thanks, Cass,” he said as he walked off in the opposite direction of his brother.

“Now this is a fucking party!” Eric yelled drunkenly. That was probably the happiest I had seen him all night. I shook my head against Tucker’s chest. He laughed quietly.

“This is going to be an interesting tour.”

“Is it always like this?” I asked, gripping his T-shirt in my fingers.

“Sort of.” He laughed again, and I pulled back to look at his face. His stormy blue eyes.

“I should have kept my mouth shut.” I sighed, glancing over at Eric who was still shirtless and smiling. His eyes danced between Tucker and me. “Are you guys gonna fuck or . . . do you want to go get another drink?”

Tucker looked at me and raised his eyebrow.

“Not a chance.” I rolled my eyes and took his hand to lead him back into the building. Eric trailed behind us.

We made our way through the crowd that parted for us to pass, stopping once or twice for Tucker to sign autographs.

We settled in next to the refreshment table, the mood considerably lightened. I made my way to the keg to get us each a drink as Tucker and Eric chatted about songs and the next stop on the tour. Apparently, we were headed to Tennessee for a concert tomorrow. I handed the guys their cups as Eric gave his drink a funny look before his eyes landed on me.

“That’s way too much head.”

“That’s what she said!” I yelled as Tucker spit out his beer in laughter.

“No, she didn’t say that. She would never say that.” Eric shook his head and smiled before gulping down his drink. I shrugged, feeling weightless and carefree.

“Fuck,” E yelled, dropping his cup and crushing his hands to the sides of his head while his face scrunched up in pain.

“What’s wrong?” He looked like he was dying.

“You all right, man? You need me to walk you back?” Tucker put his hand on Eric’s shoulder, but he shrugged it off.

“I’m fine,” Eric said angrily through gritted teeth and pushed back through the crowd toward the exit.

“What’s wrong with him?” I turned to Tucker who looked exhausted.

“Old injury from when he was younger. He gets a lot of bad headaches.”

“So why does he seem to take it out on you?” It was painfully obvious there was tension between Tucker and Eric; I just couldn’t understand why.

Tucker shrugged and finished off his drink, crushing the plastic cup in his hand and staring off into the crowd.

“I’m tired.” He grabbed my hand in his.

“Yeah, okay.” I brushed my thumb over the back of his hand as we left the party and headed back toward the tour bus.

The bus was quiet. Only Eric was inside. The twins still hadn’t made it back from their cooling off period, and thankfully, Lizzy was long gone as well. Which reminded me of someone else who was missing.

“Where’s Dorris?” I asked as I followed Tucker back through the narrow bus.

“She got a room in town. She tries to sleep off the bus as much as possible.” He smiled. It still seemed weird that she hadn’t come to the show. “That’s her bed back there.” He motioned to the door in the back of the bus. “This is us.” He pointed to the bunk directly across from Eric’s but on the bottom. I reached out and pulled back the curtain to reveal a very small, coffin-like bed.

I stood and turned back to him in disbelief.

“How are we both going to fit in there?”

He pressed his body tight against me, his lips hovering over mine. My pulse began to race as his hands traveled down my sides to my hips, holding me firmly against him.

“We will find a way.” He smirked.

I wanted to melt into him, to wrap my legs around his waist and feel the weight of him on top of me, but it still just didn’t feel right, not after all that had happened. “You know I am not ready.” I pushed against his chest to give myself some room to breathe.

“Thank-fucking-god. I do not want to hear Tuck moaning and panting,” Eric called from his bunk.

“Hey, Eric. You need something for your headache?” I asked, changing the subject in hopes of easing a little of the tension between the guys.

Eric shoved back the curtain to his bunk and squinted his eyes at the light.

“Yeah, sure. Thanks. My pills are in the cupboard above the sink.” He gave a half grin.

I found his prescription bottle from the cupboard and grabbed a fresh water from the fridge.

“You sure that it’s safe to take with the alcohol you drank?”

“I’ll be fine.” Eric took the bottle and pulled his curtain closed. Tucker shrugged and gave me an apologetic smile.

“You ready?” Tucker inclined his head toward the bed. I nodded. Today had been amazing, and I was excited to see what tomorrow would bring.

I climbed into the cramped space, sliding over until I was against the wall. Tucker followed, wrapping his arms around my waist and pulling me tight against him. It felt good to be by his side and able to snuggle up to someone without fear. I blinked a few times until my eyes began to adjust to the light. There were concert photos and articles taped up overhead. I tried to read them, but my eyelids were far too heavy, and the alcohol made it impossible to see clearly. I slipped into a dreamless sleep.

I AWOKE LONG BEFORE Tucker. He looked so peaceful, and I knew he wasn’t going to be feeling well after a long night of drinking. I slid my body over his so I could use the bathroom before any of the boys claimed it. Tucker’s eyes stayed closed, but his hands shot up, gripping my hips and pinning my body to his. His hips grinded into mine and he smirked. I playfully smacked him on the chest.

“I was trying not to wake you,” I whispered, my lips hovering above his. His eyes slowly opened, his face serious.

“Sleep is overrated. Reality is so much better, sweetheart.”

I couldn’t help the grin that spread across my face as a blush followed like wildfire across my skin.

“Pretty in pink,” he joked as he released my hip with one hand and ran his fingers over my cheek. I leaned into his touch as he set every nerve ending in my body off like fireworks.

“I’m already hungover. You guys trying to make me fucking vomit?” Eric called out from the other set of bunks. I laughed and let my head fall onto Tucker’s chest.

“Is he always like this?” I whispered, tracing the ridge of Tucker’s pec muscle.

“A dick? Yeah, pretty much.” He sighed.

“I’m gonna use the restroom.” I pushed away from Tucker’s body a few inches, the only space the cramped area would allow. I gave him a quick peck on the lips before sliding over him and into the narrow hallway.

To my surprise, the twins were sitting at the small booth-style table near the front of the bus.

“Good morning,” I called out to them as I slipped into the bathroom. I turned on the sink and cupped my hands, gathering some water to splash on my face. I rose to examine myself in the mirror. I looked like I had been hit by a truck, and my stomach didn’t feel much better. I finished preparing myself for the morning and made my way to the kitchen area of the bus.

“You guys hungry?” I asked as I squatted down in front of the fridge and examined the contents. The twins groaned in unison, obviously feeling the effects of the alcohol and fighting.

“There’s nothing in there.” Tucker came up behind me, running his hand over my knotted hair.

“More in here than my fridge at the trailer,” I joked, but it was true. I glanced over my shoulder at him and his expression saddened.

“How about we go out for breakfast and we can pick up a few things from the store so we can cook on the bus?” Tucker said as I stood and stretched my legs.