“I don’t mean to alarm you,” Miles said as he handed me a cup of tea. “But there’s a really scary dude wandering around outside.”

I cocked my head and laughed. “Are you usually this calm when people show up in your yard?”

Shrugging, he plopped onto the sofa, displacing at least a dozen used tissues. “Well, usually I just invite them in. You’re the one who was always so skittish about the fans.”

“First of all, he’s not a fan. He’s my bodyguard.” Miles lifted a brow like that proved his point. “Did you happen to see that little kerfuffle I got into in Paris? I don’t just have a bodyguard to keep the fans away. The fucking press is at DEFCON-1.”

“What the hell is a kerfuffle? Never mind.” He plucked a shortbread cookie from the package. “And what did you expect? Your new boyfriend is a hot piece of ass. If you want the press to stay away, you should lower your standards.”

Earl Grey flew out of my nose. “Boyfriend?”

“Don’t even front, Belle. I’ve known you since you were fourteen.” He wiggled his finger in front of my face. “You look at that dude the same way you used to look at Rhenn. All starry-eyed and shit.”

I waited for him to pull a face. But he didn’t.

Gazing into my cup, I lifted a shoulder. “We’re not together anymore.”

“Really? Do tell.” Miles sat back, folding his hands in his lap. I chanced a peek at his face to see if he was merely humoring me.

“Are you sure? I mean, Dylan’s head would explode if I even mentioned—”

“What do you expect? He’s in love with you. Or he thinks he is.” He snorted, then continued in his best Dylan voice, “‘It’s Monday, better pine for Tori now. Then flog myself for betraying my best bud.’ He does the same thing every other day of the week, too.”

I shifted uncomfortably, partly because I knew it was more fact than fiction. “Why do you think that is? After all this time, I mean.”

Miles laughed. “Because he saw you first, of course.”

“He did not. We were all in the cafeteria and—”

“Nope. Dylan scoped you out before that. He told us about you and even said you had a couple of friends. Rhenn and Beckett and I were supposed to play wingmen. Keep Paige and Taryn distracted so Dylan could make his move. But Rhenn took one look at you and it was all over. Nothing was going to get in his way.”

Singular focus in all things. I smiled. “I didn’t know that.”

Miles patted my knee. “Well, you do now, so don’t pay Dylan no never mind. What about Logan? What’s his story?”

For some reason, it was always easier to talk to Miles. No judgment. Only love.

With a sigh, I told him about Logan and the tour. Our cross-country road trip. Glossing over most of the details about Paris, I only hit the high points.

“So you love this guy, then?” Miles asked when I’d finished.

So much it hurt. I fought everyday not to call him. Beg him to choose me. To choose us. But I couldn’t admit it.

“Yes. But it’s not that easy.”

“Nothing is easy.” He snorted. “When something is too easy, you gotta figure it ain’t worth having or you’ll pay for it somewhere down the line.”

I nodded, smiling to myself. “Balance.”

“Huh?”

“Nothing.” I finished my tea and set the cup on the table. “Listen, I wanted to thank you for signing over your stake in the catalog. As soon as this is resolved, I’ll give it back.”

Miles let his head fall against the back of the couch. “I never cared about that. I have more money than I can spend, and those were your songs anyway. I’m not telling you not to fight for the catalog, but you shouldn’t worry so much about the Damaged legacy.” We sat in silence for long moments before Miles looked at me out of the corner of his eye. “So tell the truth. When you were out there on the road, did you ever think about performing?”

“A little.”

He grinned wide and shook all over, the way he used to when he was excited. “Ah … Belle, what I wouldn’t give to be up there just one more time, the four of us.”

“I know. Me too.” For a moment, I felt that shimmer, and it was like they were there with us. Paige and Rhenn. And then it was gone. “I have to go. Big scary dude is probably hungry. Walk me to my car?”

Miles pushed to his feet with surprising ease. Now that it wasn’t so painful, I looked him up and down. Tall and lanky, like always. And his arms were seriously ripped.

“You’ve got some guns,” I said, squeezing his bicep as we walked to the door.

He flexed, waggling his brows. “Control yourself, woman.”

When we got to the porch, the smile fell from Miles’s lips when he saw Rhenn’s truck.

“Do you remember when Rhenn got that thing?” I asked as I pulled the fob from my pocket. “I think you were almost as excited as he was.” Finding his hand, I pressed the keys into his palm and then smiled up at him. “Do me a favor and take care of it for him, okay?”