She's Still The One: A Brother's Best Friend, Rockstar Romance Kaci Rose (essential reading txt) 📖

legs up, but the touch on my hip felt more intimate. It sent shock waves up and down my back. I'm just overthinking this, right?

"Alright, let's eat!" Landon says, as he takes the food to the table, and Dallas comes over to help me off the counter.

"Man, a girl jumps from the counter once, sprains her ankle, and she never lives it down." I huff with a smile on my face. I love how protective these two are of me, even if it can get a tad bit annoying.

I sit across from my brother with Dallas between us, as Landon starts talking about his trip.

He's setting up a charity to raise money for music scholarships and to help keep music programs in schools. He’s hoping to expand it in a few years to open up spaces, where kids can come in and practice, and even use the instruments there that they can't afford to buy on their own.

"I'm really proud of you, and I know Mom and Dad would be, too." We don't bring our parents up much. Not because they were bad parents, they were the best parents. When they died in that car accident, it devastated us both. Dallas was our rock through it all. It just hurts to talk about them still, but we do it, because we refuse to forget them.

I know it’s still painful for Landon too, because his eyes mist over, and he leans back in his chair, looking at the ceiling. This is when Dallas glances at me and smiles. He turns back to his food, before my brother catches him.

We talk more about the charity and the work he has been doing, and I catch Dallas looking at me more and more, and so does my brother. When it happens the third time, my brother kicks Dallas under the table and doesn't even try to hide it.

I roll my eyes and change the subject. "This is really good, Landon. Thank you for making it. I was missing your cooking."

"Consider it an incentive to stay this time." He says.

"Done," I laugh.

"So, you know we have this tour coming up, right?" Landon asks.

"Yeah, I may be on your mailing list." I shrug.

"Well, what do you think of coming with us and singing a few songs?" Landon asks.

Wait, what?

Chapter 4

Dallas

"Well, what do you think of coming with us and singing a few songs?" Landon asks.

Oh, yeah! In my head, I'm doing fist pumps. Austin has an amazing voice, but she just isn't a fan of getting up on stage. She has sung some duets with us in the past, and the fans always love her.

Landon insisted, so she could get some of the royalties, and he could make sure she was taken care of. I insisted too for the same reason. She makes good money as a graphic designer and can support herself, but we both like to ensure she doesn’t need anything. Though, I know the money goes into a savings account that she hasn't touched other than to invest it. But that's our secret from Landon, because he'd insist she go buy something silly just because she can, but that isn't Austin.

"I think it would be a good idea. You can earn some extra money, travel, and hang out with us. Plus, you can work anywhere," I say.

"Of course, you take his side." She sighs. "Tell me about the tour."

"Well, we just got off a big tour a few months ago for this album, and it did great. We sold out shows everywhere we played. So, our manager asked us to do a smaller tour up the east coast to give it another push. One of the stops is in Asheville, and we can spend a day at The Biltmore." I try to bribe her, because I can't admit that I'd love nothing more than to have her in the small space of the tour bus with us for weeks.

"How long is the tour?" She asks.

"About six weeks. Our manager is trying to get a few more stops added on at the end, but I don't see it happening. The record label wants us to get back and start working on songs for the next album. They want one more from us, before it's time to talk about renewing our contract." Landon says, and I nod my head, finishing up the food on my plate.

"You would be on the main bus with us. We have stops spaced, so we can go out and do stuff in between. I know you like to explore, and Dallas is right. You can work anywhere, so do it on travel days and between shows. You don't even have to sing at every stop, if you don't want to, maybe just the big ones," Landon says.

I see the wheels turning in Austin's head. She's running over the pros and cons, and if she can make it work with the clients, she has now. She always thinks things through, before committing to something big. Landon and I both know this, so we give her a few moments and shovel food in our faces.

"Okay, but I want to be able to go out and explore or else." She gives her brother the stink eye.

The last or else was her putting itching powder on his clothes, before a concert. This was years ago, before we were selling out the big places, but he hadn't broken a promise to her since.

"I swear, I will make it happen." Landon holds up his hands in surrender.

After dinner, Austin clears the table, "I got dishes, since you cooked."

"I'm actually going to go up and go to bed. It's been a long few days, and I'm beat." Landon pulls Austin in for a hug. He kisses the top of her head, and then turns to me. "Night, man. We can talk tomorrow about the tour details."

"Sure, I'll call Dave tonight and get him up-to-date with Austin coming with us."

Dave is our manager