Songbird by Jamie Campbell Page A

more adorable with his messy hair and sleep in his eyes. God, he had a serious effect on me which wasn’t all that unwelcome.
    “Hey. ” I smiled.
    He sat up, as if trying to remember where he was. “Hey, Brie rly. Did what happen last night really happen? Or am I dreaming?”
    “I’m pretty sure it happened.”
    “Oh.” More confused face. “Good. I had a really fun time.”
    “Me too.” I leaned over the bed and gave him a good morning kiss. I wanted him to know I didn’t expect it to be a one night thing. I wasn’t the kind of girl you could use and abuse, not anymore anyway.
    I shouldn’t have done it, I put myself in his reach and that was the end of my free will. Forest pulled me close so I had no choice except to straddle him. His passionate kisses were doing nothing for my resolve.
    When he started unbuttoning my blouse, I pulled back. “I have to go meet Demi or she’ll have a heart attack.”
    “So be late.” His fingers continued to weave their way through my buttons, his lips continued to taste my neck. Finally, I had to grab his hands to stop th em exploring further.
    “I can’t. I’ll see you on the bus.” I stood to make my point, it took all my self control to do so. How easy it would have been just to give myself over to him again. One more button and I might have done.
    I threw the remaining items into my suitcase and zipped it closed, like that was my final decision. I placed it by the door and swept the room, making sure I didn’t forget anything. The only thing left in the room was Forest as he watched me from the bed. Tempting.
    “See you later,” I said as I escaped through the door.
    I had to race to find Demi in the breakfast room. She was already loading two plates with food. I took one from her and continued to fill it. “Good morning.”
    She looked me up and down, trying to decide whether she approved of my outfit. It was just a simple loose blouse with blue three quarter pants. I didn’t think I could get it too wrong.
    “Good morning, you look nice.” That was a relief.
    “Thank you.”
    We finished getting our food and found a table in the back of the room. I started eating as Demi rifled around in her handbag and pulled out her cell phone. She flicked through the screen before settling on something and laying it on the table in front of us.
    Staring up at me were images of Forest and I, taken at the Smithsonian yesterday. The photographer had managed to snap us in ways that made us look very cozy together. Holding hands and arms, looking into each other’s eyes while smiling, huddled together intimately. They were all completely innocent – those ones anyway – but to the average eye, they definitely spoke volumes.
    “You were spying on me?” I asked, shocked that she could do something like that. Surely I deserved some privacy? Especially from those I loved most, and Demi was definitely one of those people.
    “Of course I wasn’t, they’re all over the internet. You trended on Twitter last night over these pictures,” Demi explained, a little roughly. She obviously didn’t appreciate my accusation. “Do you want to tell me what’s going on?”
    I really didn’t. But I had a full disclosure policy with Demi, an agreement we had made when she first started working for me. If she didn’t know everything, she wouldn’t be able to fully help me manage the media – or my personal problems. If I kept Forest from her, it would only blow up in my face later on. It always did.
    “Forest and I hooked up last night,” I finally confessed. “But everything in these pictures is just of two band mates hanging out. We went to the museum together, that’s all.”
    “Until you hooked up.”
    “That came later.”
    “I would hope so. Were you discreet or will I find pictures of that splashed over the internet too?” Demi asked, growing angry.
    “We were in my hotel room. Why are you getting all mad about this? You said you liked Forest.” I went on the