It wasn’t technically a lie. I’d gotten a scholarship, but I just never thought twice about it.

His face went from somber to radiant as a big smile stretched his sexy lips.

“That’s great, babe. Why didn’t you say something before? I’ll work and you go to school. It’s a perfect plan.”

“No,” I said again as I laid my hand on his bare chest. “I can’t let you leave the guys. I don’t want to be away from you, but if you’re willing to do it for me, would you consider a long distance thing until you’re done touring or until I’m done with school?”

His face dropped again.

“But… I just got you back.”

“I know, but it would only be for a little while. We’ve been away from each other before. At least this time we can visit each other all the time. You just said anytime I wanted to see Syd, all we had to do was jump on a plane. Couldn’t it be the same for us?”

He didn’t look convinced.

“Please, Zeke, please do this for me. I want to be with you, but when we’re ready. Blow Hole is just getting started and you have to be there for the guys. I can’t say no to school.”

He sat down on the edge of the bed and ran his hands through his wet hair, then roughly down his face. I got down on my knees in front of him and rested my hands on his thighs.

Sad brown eyes looked down at me. I could see the conflict in his eyes and I understood it. Running his fingers along my jaw, he took a deep breath.

“If this is what you want, we’ll make it work,” he said with a sigh.

I lunged from my knees and into his lap. Wrapping my arms around his neck, I pressed a heavy kiss against his lips. He kissed me back and laughed in the back of his throat.

When I broke the kiss, he captured my cheeks in his hands. With a forced smile and sad eyes, he took me in. “You’re going to be the death of me, woman.”

“Then I better torture you first,” I said as I pushed him back on the bed.

He gripped my hips and pulled me on top of him so I straddled his thighs. “I’m all about torture. Do your worst, pretty girl.”

A loud knocking on the door put a stop to everything and brought us both back to the situation at hand.

I slid off of him and snatched my shorts from the floor. He waited until I was decent before he opened the door and let in Chet and Finn.

“Dude, get your ass dressed. We have a flight to catch,” Finn said as he fell into an armchair beside the TV.

Zeke’s eyes met mine from across the room before he went over to his suitcase and pulled out some clothes. Needing to be away from the thickness in the room, I went into the bathroom to brush my teeth and freshen up before it was time to check out.

When I came out of the bathroom, the boys were gone and Zeke was standing there fully dressed with his bags packed. His dark skin looked paler and his eyes were those of a lost little boy. I’d never seen him so helpless and part of me wanted to look away and leave, but I couldn’t. This time we needed to say a proper good-bye. I had confidence we could do this and I needed him to see that confidence. I wanted him to feel the same.

I walked up to him and put my arms around his waist. Leaning down, he placed a soft kiss on the top of my head.

“We can do this,” I whispered softly.

His arms got tighter and he pulled me closer.

“I hope you’re right.”

Four

Zeke

How could I say no to her? Especially after seeing her freak out and almost pass out.

I wasn’t sure what made her suddenly so pale, but I hoped it wasn’t the thought of being with me. I loved her. I never thought I’d say that and mean it, but I did. The only reason I stepped away from her was because I could tell it was something she really wanted, and I didn’t want to cause her anymore stress.

So I rode with her instead of the boys to the airport, and she walked me inside and held my hand as I checked my bags and took care of final flight arrangements.

An hour. That’s how long I got to say good-bye to Snowflake. I wasn’t sure what kind of wicked web she weaved around me to get me to agree to a long-distance relationship, but I was doing it. The fact of the matter was I’d do just about anything she asked of me. I’d never let her know that, but it was the truth.

Her argument made sense. Couples did it all the time. She’d go to school and play soccer, which I knew she loved, and I’d go on tour and play with the band, which is what I loved. We could visit each other as much as possible, and when I wasn’t on tour I’d be with her. Once she was done with school, we could go from there.