"Are you sure Alex isn't planning on riding this bus?" Mackenzie asked Howie again.
"Yeah, I'm sure," Howie reassured her. "He's riding with Amy and the other dancers." He leaned closer to her and whispered, "I think Amy's got a crush on him." Mackenzie closed her eyes, wishing Howie's words didn't hurt so much. She had spent another sleepless night after that humiliating scene with AJ and she was exhausted. She had started her day by losing her breakfast. She knew it was because of all the stress and worry over the prospect of having to see AJ. She had spent the rest of her day doing her best to avoid him. And when she couldn't, she outright ignored him. She had planned on riding to the next venue on one of the crew's buses which had left earlier. Howie, however, had asked her to wait and ride with him. He had finally convinced her after promising that AJ wouldn't be on the bus. Now all she wanted was to climb into a bunk and sleep forever.
Howie threw her small traveling bag up into one of the bunks. She would have climbed in after it but Brian hollered at her from the back of the bus. "Hey, Mack!" he called, "Come watch me beat Nick at Nintendo!" Mackenzie smiled wearily. Brian and Nick. Frick and Frack. They were such big kids, she thought, shaking her head as she made her way to the lounge area. "You can watch," Nick bragged, "but it won't be me getting beat."
Brian looked surprised when Mackenzie sat down next to him. "Whoa, Mack," he said, exaggerating his already thick Kentucky accent, "you look like hell!"
"Oh, thanks, Hick," she said. "That means a lot coming from you. NOT!"
"Brian," Kevin said reprovingly, looking up from the book he'd been reading. "You look beautiful Mackenzie, as always," he told her. "Just tired," he added.
"Thanks, Kevin," she said. Kevin was always charming and gentlemanly. She sighed. Why couldn't she have fallen in love with him instead of AJ?
"Speaking of tired," Kevin said, standing up and stretching, "I'm going to bed. Y'all keep it down out here," he said, bending over to kiss Mack goodnight on the cheek.
"How come you never kiss us goodnight?" Brian asked in a offended voice.
"Because you're ugly," Kevin called back over his shoulder as he climbed into his bunk.
"I'm going to bed too," she told them.
"Are you sure you don't want to sit and talk for awhile?" Howie asked her.
"I'll probably be asleep before my head hits the pillow," she told him, kissing him and then the others goodnight. She climbed into the bunk Howie had thrown her bag in. She didn't bother turning on the small light, instead just slipping her jeans off and folding them before laying them in one corner. She unfastened her bra and slipped it off underneath her tee shirt. She slid under the blanket, making sure her feet were pointed toward the front of the bus before closing her eyes. She listened to the muted conversation between the three men as she drifted off to sleep. Her last conscious thought was that the blanket and pillow smelled just like AJ.
* * * * * * * *
Alex glanced around the restaurant impatiently as he waited for his Quarter Pounder. He did a double take as he saw the dancers' bus leaving the parking lot. His mouth dropped open. He looked over at Gordy, the Boys' driver. "They left me," he said incredulously.
"Yep," Gordy said, "Guess you'll be wanting to ride with me now."
"Guess so," AJ agreed. Damn women, he thought. They'd been eager to have him ride with them when they had left the last gig, and he had been flattered by their attention. He had even asked their opinion on how he could make up with Mackenzie. Amy had advised him to practice his groveling. Hell, he'd grovel like he never had before if Mackenzie would just let him. Every time he had tried to approach her today, she had looked right through him before hurrying off. Apparently she had left for the next city on one of the crew's buses. At least, that's what Amy had thought.
AJ thanked the counter girl as she handed him his order and headed for the bus. Nick and Brian were still up playing video games and he joined them while he ate his food. "Hey, Bone," Brian greeted him. "Thought you were riding with the ladies?" he smirked. AJ shrugged. "Where's D?" he asked.
"Asleep, I guess," Nick answered. AJ sighed. He really need to talk to Howie about Mackenzie. He looked at Brian and Nick speculatively, considering whether or not he should confide in them. At that moment Nick jumped up screaming, "I am the king! I am the king!" He danced around celebrating his victory over Brian. Brian grabbed him, wrestling him to the floor and shouting, "Well then King, let me crown you!" AJ rolled his eyes as he stood up and tossed his trash into the waste can. "Night, fellas," he said, heading toward his bunk. The other two stopped their horseplay instantly. "You going to bed, Bone?" Brian said grinning.
"Don't let the bedbugs bite," Nick told him. "Or anything else," he added snickering. Brian elbowed him in the ribs. AJ stared at them for a long moment before shaking his head and walking to his bunk. He slipped his shoes off, kicking them under the lower bunk. He stripped of his shirt and unbuckled his belt, letting his pants drop to the floor. His boxers followed. As he pulled himself up into his bunk, he realized somebody was already in it.
"What in the hell?" he cursed, flipping on the reading light.
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