After Civil Corruption’s performance, and the encore I had with Garrett in the dressing room after, I thought the night was looking up. And it had been. Until the guys took the stage later in the evening to accept their award for favorite rock album. Tiffany Monroe had been one of the presenters, and she took that as her opportunity to give Garrett a wildly inappropriate kiss when he made it to the podium.

He laughed and tried to disengage while playing it up for the cameras like any performer would, but my blood boiled in my veins. The first thing I was doing when I got home was building a bonfire and burning every single Tiffany Monroe album I owned.

He apologized the minute he got back to his seat, saying it was nothing more than a publicity stunt, but I just couldn’t seem to let it go. I smiled when appropriate and tried my best to fake it, but it was pointless. My mood was ruined.

After the award ceremony, we all climbed into the limo waiting to take us to the after party. All I wanted to do was go back to the hotel and sleep. Instead, I pasted on a brave face, prepared to force myself to enjoy the night ahead of me.

If the ceremony itself had been intimidating, the after party was a whole new world. There was a table cordoned off for the band, and the minute we sat down it was like a swarm descending. Women in all different states of undress crowded around the guys, each vying for attention. Some I recognized as famous, some I didn’t. Luckily Tiffany Monroe wasn’t among the horde. The wall behind our section was made completely of glass that gave a view out to the pool area, just as crowded with people as the inside.

“You want something to drink?” Garrett called into my ear over the music.

I looked from the pool to the waitress standing before us, waiting for my order. I gave my head a small shake. “Just water, please.”

She returned shortly with my water, two bottles of Jack, and several shot glasses. Garrett and his band members all started pounding shots like it was a race. Fortunately, Garrett stopped around shot number four and switched to beer, but that didn’t stop discomfort from blooming in my chest as the levels in the bottles quickly went down. It was, without a doubt, the rock star lifestyle. It was what he was used to… but I didn’t fit.

Declan disappeared about an hour in. At one point, a woman came over and took Killian by the hand, leading him off to parts unknown. Mace had a girl on his lap, and I was afraid that if I looked closely enough, I’d see one of his hands doing something I never wanted to see. Garrett seemed immune to everything going on around him as he engaged in conversation with a group of guys who’d come to join us as the night wore on. His arm stayed along the bench behind me the whole time, but I was still an outsider. Not a single person paid me any attention. It was like I was nothing more than a houseplant tucked into the corner, giving the room a splash of color but otherwise ignored.

I let my eyes roam around as I sat silently, playing Garrett’s arm candy. Ian stayed relatively close but remained in the background, making it hard to start a conversation with him. Besides, he was on the job, so it wasn’t like he could have kept me company the whole time anyway.

My gaze landed on a familiar pair of eyes at the bar. Chris sat, surrounded by other industry types, sipping from a glass full of amber liquid. He was speaking to someone else, but that hateful glare he’d perfected was aimed firmly at me. Everything about that guy made my skin crawl.

The air around me was stifling, filled with the heavy sent of cigarette smoke and cloying perfume. Mixed with Chris’s unwanted attention, it all became too much to bear.

“Where you going?” Garrett asked, grabbing my wrist when I stood. I finally had his attention after hours of being overlooked. However, it came at a time when I wanted nothing but a moment of privacy.

“Bathroom,” I answered with a plastic smile. “I’ll be right back.”

I twisted my wrist from his hold and started pushing my way through the people standing around.

I all but ran through the bathroom door, hoping for a reprieve, only to stumble upon a group of women crowded around the sinks, lines of coke spread along the black granite countertop. A blonde head was bent over one of the lines, the woman sniffing loudly as she slid a rolled-up bill across the powder.

I was frozen in place just long enough to see the face of the woman who’d just taken a hit. Tiffany Monroe’s glassy eyes met mine in the mirror for a split second before I came to my senses, turned, and quickly hightailed it out of the bathroom.

I’d just made it back out into the hallway when the door to the men’s room across from me swung open. Killian came stumbling out, his pants only half-zipped and what looked like scratch marks on the bit of chest exposed by his partially buttoned shirt. The woman who’d pulled him away earlier followed closely behind, tugging her skirt back into place.

His attention hit me and a lazy smile stretched his lips. “Hey there, slugger.” He and the other guys had taken to calling me slugger since Garrett told them about me breaking Chris’s nose.

I looked between him and the woman he’d just screwed in the bathroom of a club. Just more proof I didn’t fit into their world. “Uh… hi.”

“Where you off to?”

“Just looking for fresh air. Don’t mind me. Back to—” I waved my hand between him and his hookup. “—whatever it was you were doing. Sorry to interrupt.”

I moved to go around him, but he caught my arm before I got too far. “Hey, you okay?” Concern laced his voice, mirroring his expression.

I did my best to appear calm and collected, giving him a small nod. “Yeah. I’m good. Just going to head back to the party.”

“You sure?”

He really was a good guy. They all were. I was glad Garrett had people he was close to, and that they’d been friends for so long. People needed other people. I knew that better than anyone. But right then something about his worry for me was just too much. Tears pricked the backs of my eyes and burned my nose, and I blinked rapidly to keep them at bay. It was a ridiculous response, but the whole night was so overwhelming and I couldn’t control my emotions.

“I’m great,” I lied with a fake smile. “You guys go have fun. Don’t worry about me. I’m going to find Garrett.”

I must have pulled it off because Killian finally released my arm and took a step back. “All right, darlin’. Stick close to him. Don’t wander too far.”

I stupidly gave him a salute and turned to head back to our table. I’d just cleared the hall back into the main part of the club when I stuttered to a stop. The guys Garrett was talking to were gone.

In their place was a redhead with curves that would have put Jessica Rabbit to shame. She sat with her legs crossed one over the other and her entire body angled toward his. Her smile was so big it practically swallowed her face. Garrett said something and the woman giggled, placing her hand on his chest. It looked like she whispered something to him, and I watched, a piece of my heart splintering, as his head fell back with abandoned laughter. He looked happy, completely at ease, as if the woman was someone he’d known and cared about for a long time. She wasn’t just another one-night stand.

I’d officially reached my limit. I was fed up with the scene, my heels were pinching my toes, and I was just… over it. All of it. Instead of going to Garrett, I wound my way through the crowd, heading straight for Ian.

“Hey, I’m going to head back to the hotel.”

He looked down at me with the same expression my father used to wear as I got older and started venturing out on my own. It was one of apprehension. The look tugged painfully at my heart.

“I don’t think you should go by yourself. Let me just get Mr. Wilder—”

“No. He’s enjoying himself. I’m just tired and want to go to sleep.” He scanned the room, his gaze stopping on Garrett and the redhead several feet away, and let out a heavy sigh. “Please, Ian,” I said quietly, trying to mask the break in my voice. “I just want to go.”

He regarded me closely and finally nodded. “All right. But I’m taking you myself.”

“You don’t have to do that,” I insisted. “I can catch a cab.”

His face was hard and unrelenting. “No arguments. You want to leave, I’m taking you. That’s final.”

I nodded and followed closely behind as he led me from the club to a shiny black SUV waiting at the curb. Once inside, I finally pulled in a much-needed breath and rested my head against the seat, closing my eyes tightly.

I was so exhausted that I was nearly asleep by the time Ian pulled up outside our hotel. “You want me to walk you up?”

I opened my eyes and shook my head. “No, thanks. I’m good. You go back to the guys.” I climbed out of the car and made my way through the expansive lobby to the elevators. Pulling off my shoes on the ride to our floor, I fantasized about a nice, relaxing bubble bath in the room’s massive Jacuzzi tub instead of picturing Garrett with that woman.

I should have known better than to let my guard down.

The hotel room door clicked shut behind me, and I heaved a sigh while dropping the offensive heels to the carpeted floor. I headed toward for the bathroom while reaching back to find the zipper to my dress at the same time, but came to a screeching halt just outside the bedroom of our luxurious suite.

“Rough night?”

My eyelids lowered into angry slits at the sight of Kimber sitting comfortably on the edge of our bed. “What are you doing here? How did you get in?”

She smiled viciously. “I’m the assistant for Civil Corruption. I have a key to all the guys’ rooms.”

“Must be convenient when one of them is looking for a quick, sloppy lay.” I moved to the bureau across from the window and started removing all my jewelry. “Leave.”

Ignoring my demand, she stood on her sky-high stripper heels and placed her hands on her hips. “You don’t belong here. You know that, right?”

I met her gaze in the mirror but refused to turn around. “Funny, seeing as you’re the one who broke into my room.”

“I don’t mean the room. I mean here. With the guys. With Garrett. You don’t belong. You never will. He’ll see that eventually and get sick of you.”

After the night I’d just had, her words packed a solid punch they normally wouldn’t have. Back in Seattle, Garrett, Liddy, and I were in our own protective bubble. The outside world couldn’t touch us. But after tonight, the rose-colored glasses were off and I was second-guessing everything. But I’d be damned if I let her know she was getting to me.

“Jeez, you really are a jealous bitch, Kimber,” I said with a dry laugh, finally turning to meet her face-to-face. “I’d be careful if I were you. All that bitterness causes wrinkles. And with a personality like yours, you can’t afford to lose your looks so soon.”

Her pretty face twisted with rage, showing the true ugliness that lay beneath the surface. “You’re a joke,” she spat. “You think he cares about you? About that girl?”

“Watch it,” I warned through clenched teeth as I took a menacing step in her direction. “You don’t talk about my daughter. Ever.”

“You mean nothing to him. You never will. You and that daughter you tried to trap him with are nothing more than something to keep him entertained while the guys take a break. You think he’ll want anything to do with you when he’s back out on tour?” She cackled loudly, setting my teeth on edge. “He’ll forget all about you the moment he fucks a groupie after their first show. All that adrenaline pumping through his veins after each performance… yeah, he’ll be looking for an outlet. And where will you be?”

Fear and pain knifed through my heart as she picked at the fresh wound. My heart threatened to beat out of my chest. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do more, beat Kimber into a bloody pulp or lock myself away in the bathroom and bawl my eyes out. Embarrassingly enough, I was leaning toward the latter.

“Then, when he gets tired of groupie whores—and he will get tired of them—he’ll come crawling back to me, just like always. Because I belong in his world. I get what he needs, unlike you. I can give him what he wants. I know a man like him can’t be tied down. You’re just a burden. If you really cared about him, you’d take that girl, pack your shit, and get out of his life. All you do is hold him back. Just ask Chris. He says you’ll destroy Garrett and the rest of the band.”

I opened my mouth to defend myself, only to let loose an embarrassing sob. Kimber’s face shined with triumph, and I could tell she was just about to go for the kill when a loud, furious grumble sounded from the doorway.

We both jumped and spun around just in time to see Garrett stalk into the room. “Get out,” he thundered. His rage was tangible, filling every inch of the room and making it hard to breathe. It was a terrifying sight to behold.

Kimber’s face blanched with fear. “Garrett, I—”

“Bitch, I said get the fuck out! You think after the bullshit you just pulled I won’t physically remove you myself, you’re wrong. And if you ever come near me, Gwen, my daughter, or the band again, I’ll make you wish you’d never been born. You get me?”

“Please,” she began to beg, rushing him and twisting her fingers in his shirt. “You don’t understand. I’m just looking out for you! She can’t give you want you need, Garrett. I can!”

He pushed her off with so much force she fell against the mattress. All I could do was stand frozen in place as Garrett pulled his cell out of his pocket and hit a button before bringing it up to his ear. “Ian, get the fuck up here now,” he barked. “And bring hotel security.”

He disconnected just as Kimber regained her footing. “Please don’t do this. I’ll stay away from her. I swear.”

“Yeah you will, because you’re fuckin’ fired. And I’m getting a restraining order on your ass the second we touch down in Seattle.”

I clamped my hands over my mouth and watched as Ian and two hotel security guards entered the room and dragged a crying, inconsolable Kimber from our room. It was like witnessing a train wreck—gruesome and horrible, but I couldn’t bring myself to look away.

“You need me to stay, boss?” Ian asked, eyeing me up and down, checking for signs of distress.

“Go,” Garrett commanded in a rock-hard voice. “Make sure she’s on the next fuckin’ plane out of LA.”

He nodded and disappeared from the room, leaving me with Garrett and his palpable fury.