"Honesty!" I heard someone call from the back of the room. Jinx wrapped his arms around my shoulders and hugged me tightly. Two girls wearing short skirts and bras as shirts plastered themselves on either side of him. One with bright red lips and dark smoky eyes gave me a death glare, while the other one rubbed her hand up his arm.

To think these guys go through this on almost a daily basis is sickening.

"Did you have any problems getting in, Sis?" When he called me Sis, I could practically see relief flood through both girls as they realized that I was not a threat to them.

"Nah. I think they all recognize me. Besides, this helps too," I said, lifting the backstage pass hanging around my neck. "Where are the rest of the guys?"

"Levi's in the bathroom running through vocals. Chance is over there." He tilted his head, indicating the far corner of the room where Chance had his arms wrapped around two girls wearing very tight jeans and band t-shirts. Court's running around here somewhere making everyone's life miserable," he added. He didn’t mention Linc and I didn’t ask. I was almost afraid to know.

"Want something to drink?" He asked me, hooking his thumb toward a large snack table across the room. I couldn’t believe some of the things these guys requested. Jinx told me once that they actually eat some of it, but most of it is just to make sure they're being taken seriously. One time, Levi requested a bowl of all green candy because he claimed it made him horny.

Oh...to live the life of a rock star.

"Nah. I'm good," I answered, scanning the room, still seeing no sign of Linc.

"Twenty minutes!" someone yelled over all the chatter in the room, causing everyone to scatter as if it all had been rehearsed. Anyone who was not a part of the band walked out into the hall and the guys came together forming a circle in the dressing room for their preconcert ritual. Everyone turned when the door was flung open and Linc came staggering into the room, a bottle of Jack in one hand. His eyes were glassy with large, black pupils. He stepped into the circle and took a long draw from the bottle of dark liquid before passing it to his right. By the time the bottle made it around the circle and came back to Linc, there was not much left. He turned the bottle up; swallowing what was left of it.

Is this normal for him? How can he possibly play a show in this condition?

No one was saying a word to him about it. I clenched my jaw and kept my mouth shut. It was not my problem. I watched as they all put a hand into the circle, one stacked on top of the next. With a loud roar, they shouted, "Let's get dirty!" as their hands lifted into the air. The guys walked toward the door, but I placed my hand on Linc's arm to get his attention. He looked down at me with glassy eyes and I wondered if he saw me at all.

"Are you okay?" I asked him. I wanted to wrap my arms around him and tell him that whatever was going on, he could talk to me, but he just nodded and placed a kiss on my cheek. With a smile that I was sure was forced, he stepped through the door, and disappeared down the hall. I made my way down the hall, to the backstage area, just as the opening band finished, and the guys were getting ready to go onstage. They all stood off to the side with their heads down, as if their getting themselves in the zone before they took the stage. I tucked myself into a dark corner and out of the view of the crowd, but still allowing me a good view of the stage.

The stage lights dimmed. I could see four shadowed outlines standing stone-still until the flashing of the strobe lights began and illuminated the stage. The roar of the crowd was so loud I was almost tempted to put my fingers in my ears, but I resisted. My heart raced wildly in my chest as my brother pounded out the beat of the first song and the rhythm of Chance's guitar joined, along with the deep growl of Linc's bass. Levi's smooth voice filled the air with the words of their newest single, "Gasping for Air." The crowd went nuts and the girls closest to the stage bounced up and down as they sang along with the words. Once the song ended, Levi stepped just off the stage, onto the other side, to grab a bottle of water and a take short break as Linc and Chance stood back to back in the middle of the stage in a War of Guitars. Chance's green Mohawk was standing proud on top of his head, while Linc's dark hair was hanging in his face. Both guys were dripping wet with sweat.

God, he's sexy even when he's sweaty. The guys split and moved back to their sides of the stage as Levi took the stage once again.

Once the band had played their third encore, the lights dimmed for good this time. We all headed back into the dressing room where Court was waiting to talk to the guys. Linc grabbed a bottle of water from the snack table and wrapped his arms around me from behind. Jinx grabbed a bottle of water from the table, but not to drink. He opened the bottle of cold water and poured it over his head and down his bare chest. Chance and Levi each grabbed a bottle of beer and downed half the bottle in one gulp.

"That was a great show guys. You had the crowd going nuts during the War of Guitars, guys. Good job!" Court praised them. I was glad to hear some encouragement coming from him for a change. According to Jinx, Court had really been on their case lately because of all the bad press they had been getting. It was nice to see the guys feeling good about their performance. Court promised them that they would get a two week break after the show in Des Moines. All the guys celebrated by the lifting of their bottles, even if they were empty.

"Let's go shower and grab some dinner," Linc whispered into my ear, causing a tingle to run down my spine.

He grabbed my hand and pulled me toward the door, when Court interrupted, "The record label has reserved a room for you at The Dog Pound. They're sending a limo for you in an hour, so don't keep them waiting."

I let him lead me down the hall and out the back door, where security was waiting to help us into the waiting limo. On the ride back to the hotel, I thought about the way he looked when he staggered into the dressing room. I knew I was going to have to ask at some point. I was going to have to address the alcohol and the drugs; I was just not sure how to go about it yet. It took everything in me to force Linc to shower by himself and keep his hands off me, at least until after dinner. I knew if we started, we'd never make dinner, and I didn’t want Court to have any reason to trash the guys’ good mood.

"I promise I won't take long," he growled as he traced my ear with his nose. His warm breath tickled my neck sending a rush of warmth throughout my body.

"No," I laughed, unwrapping him from my body. His arms fell at his sides as he stared at me like a wounded puppy. I almost felt bad for him. Almost. "I promise you, I want it as bad as you do, but Court said to be down stairs in an hour," I told him as I checked the glowing clock on the nightstand. "We have five minutes." I grinned, raising my brow playfully. He sighed heavily and let me lead him from the room, toward the elevator, with the promise that he could do whatever he wanted to me when we got back to the room later, or in his words, "maybe before."

Linc

I just wanted to get this dinner over with and get back to the room. I needed to be inside her in the worst kind of way. She was all I had thought about all day, even while I was on stage. Every time I glanced in her direction, she was watching me, with eyes full of passion and something that looked a lot like love. I could handle the passion; it was the latter that worried me. I knew when I was near her I felt something too, a pull like nothing I had ever felt before. Was that love? Maybe. That scared the hell out of me. It had been a long time since I had let someone in. I wasn’t sure that I was ready for that. I did know that she was special though. I liked being with her.