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He stood, bit his bottom lip and fidgeted with the edge of his shirt. “Uh, it’s my fault. And I hope none of you hate me or whatever, but I have to go to rehab. It’s not my back, well, not just my back that’s an issue. Fuck, you all know I have a drug problem. It’s not justahh…Ziggy getting high again. It’s a problem. And I’m getting help before I fuck everything up.” He sat in one of the chairs and stared at the dusty ground.
Miami stood and went over to him. He pulled him up and into a hug. “You’re my brother in everything but blood, and probably that too by now.” Everyone chuckled at that. They’d been friends a long time. “And family sticks together. I love you, bro.”
The rest of the band joined in a group hug while the staff cheered. Other people passing by looked over at us, probably wondering what was going on, but no one felt like they had to explain, and we didn’t.
Jinx pulled out of the hug first. “I don’t think we need to reschedule those shows. It’s too hard. I mean, who knows when that would be even.”
“Yeah.” Wolf looked over at me. “This has been a rough tour on all of us. We should break until Ziggy gets out and meet up in Miami.”
“I actually have an interesting idea about that.” I held my hand up as if I was in school until I had everyone’s attention. “I scheduled a meeting with Jackson Spivey who manages Blacksmith Sugar. If we can work things out with them, I’d like to have them headline the rest of the tour with Bramble Punk still opening. That way, we can honor the original tickets sold to anyone who wants to go to that show. If they don’t, we give them a deadline to get a refund so we can resell the tickets to anyone who might want to go see Blacksmith who didn’t originally buy tickets for Hunt.”
“So…” One of the roadies for Bramble Punk stepped closer. “Some of us will still be able to work on those dates. The Bramble guys, anyway. Right?”
I nodded. “I think that’s the best I can do.”
“Well, it’s not a total wash,” the guy said. And if any of our own guys were upset, they didn’t voice it. “And still good for Bramble Punk.” The actual Bramble Punk band wasn’t in attendance at the meeting though.
“I’ll be letting them know, but this is contingent on working out a deal with Blacksmith Sugar.”
So, it seemed everything would work out. Except I didn’t want to go back to Denver alone. I didn’t know what to do about that or even how to voice my worry. But it turned out I didn’t have to.
Miami stood next to me and leaned into my side. “Dude. I think you should come with us to Florida. I have a guest room, so does my mom.”
“Oh!” Wolf jumped up. “You could stay with me. I have a guest room too.”
I was choked up by the outpouring. They wanted me there. Considered me family already. “This is why you’re my favorite band.”
“What the fuck?” Ziggy jumped up, looking outraged. “I thought I was the reason we were your favorite band.”
“That too.” I pulled Ziggy to me and hugged him. “Of course you are.” I kissed the side of his head. “I’m so proud of you, Zig, and I’m here for you. I will be with your family in Miami when you get back. But I’m not staying with you losers. I’ll get my own place. Fuck you very much.”
The guys cracked up, taking it for the teasing that it was. Wolf scoffed. “You’re ruining your vocabulary hanging out with us.” But they didn’t rib me too much. And it felt like family.
Now, I needed to make the arrangements.
eighteen
What’s After After Rehab
Being back from rehab was an almost surreal experience. Landing in Coleman’s arms that first day was amazing. He kissed me like he needed my mouth to breathe. And I’m pretty sure I needed his. It brought new meaning to mouth-to-mouth but was every bit as lifesaving. He took me to a nice hotel after that. Swanky, for sure. It was near the airport, where we would be flying out the next day. I wanted to get home because it was almost Christmas, and I wanted to spend the holidaywith Coleman and the guys from Midnight Hunt. They were my family, after all.
Malibu Bluff Rehab was a five-star center. It was a super nice facility that felt more like a luxury home but still had all the counseling needed. And the first few days were not nice. Actually, it was sheer agony, and the décor of the facility did nothing to help that. Afterward, though, it was a catering and kind environment. I got to meet a few celebrities and the heir to the Melton dynasty. Of course, I hadn’t even heard of that, but Sheffield Melton informed me that their family was extremely wealthy and owned some of the country's biggest companies in banking, gas, steel, and other industries. But Sheff was pretty down to earth despite that. I figured getting over a heroine addiction would do that to you. It made me feel my issues were so much smaller than his. But I learned not to compare.
We were flying out of Van Nuys. They guys all agreed to let us have the Midnight Hunt jet, which I thought was incredibly supportive. We got a hotel close by, so it was a fifteen-minute drive from the rehab facility. Once we got there, I tossed myself on the soft bed, starfishing across the king mattress. “Where you going to sleep, Cole?”
He didn’t miss a beat. Coleman dropped the luggage and climbed on top of me. “Here.”
I wrapped my arms and legs around him. “Perfect.”
“I’ve missed you. You seem good, yeah?”
“I’ll be better if you kiss my neck…yeah, right there.” Coleman nibbled along my throat, biting down on the spot that made me crazy. He stuck his tongue under the collar of my T-shirt. “Yeah, Cole. Let’s get naked.”
“Yes. Right now.”
The flurry of clothes was like a tornado of material, until our naked bodies rubbed against each other. I needed to feel as much of his skin as possible. I climbed on top of him and heldhis always well-manicured hands over his head. Staring into his eyes was a different experience. This time, when I looked into those dark, intelligent hazel eyes, I saw the future—our future. Together. And it didn’t terrify me. “You thrill me, Cole. I don’t want to take you for granted.”
“So don’t.”
