Corie was sitting in the back of the long, sleek limousine that had been sent to take her to the concert. She was a nervous wreck and had been since she had made the monumental decision to go to New York. After Ethan left that afternoon, her first call was to Kelsey. Her friend was ecstatic with the news that Corie decided to go see Alek, but she hid her disappointment about not getting to meet Midnight Steel's lead singer…again.  Twice, he was in town and twice she missed meeting him.

Kelsey came over that evening after getting out of work to help Corie tackle the biggest problem women had…what to wear. They had three days to find her the perfect outfit. Nothing in her closet screamed rock concert. In fact, it didn’t even whisper it. There weren't any stores in Ashland or the surrounding towns that would have what she was looking for. Her only choice would be to look in Portland or wait until she got to New York. Since the better option was Portland, because there wouldn’t be enough time to shop since she would be arriving on the day of the show, she and Kelsey had searched online for clothing stores that may have something suitable for her wear. Neither of them regularly shopped there, so they had no idea what stores to try. Corie was not going to wear something that was completely not her, but she knew she needed to step out of her comfort zone a little for this.

She drove down a day early to have time to search the stores before flying to New York. It was a whirlwind trying to get everything done which included packing and making arrangements for her hens to be taken care of, plus getting a hotel room for her night in Portland.

After the long drive down from Ashland, she was able to get an early check-in at the Portland Harbor Hotel. Corie dropped off her luggage and then was immediately on the hunt for the outfit that would make her fit in at the show. It was in a small boutique clothing store called Raven she found almost everything she needed. There she purchased a low-cut white lace dress that while it hugged her breasts, it flared out at the waist, but ended well above her knees.

Everything else she wore was midnight black from her stockings to the silver studded knee-high boots that gave her a good extra four inches in height. Since the boots were higher than she usually wore, Corie practiced walking in them in her hotel room and down the long corridors the night before she flew out. She finished off the look with a short leather jacket that practically matched her boots with the silver studding on it. And with a few carefully selected pieces of jewelry, Corie had her new look. She just hoped that Alek wouldn’t think it was too much. She wanted to fit into his lifestyle, but still remain true to herself.

That was yesterday. Today, she in the middle of New York City’s chaos. It was a slow drive down 5th Avenue towards the Webster. The city was filled with millions of people, all going about their business at the same time making the trip longer than usual. The suspense had her stomach in knots. Corie nervously fussed with the hem of her dress as she got closer to finally seeing Alek. Now that her decision had been made to talk to him again, she was all in. Forgiveness was definitely an option now. In fact, she had already forgiven him. Ethan had her understanding Alek better than Alek did himself.

 

Suddenly, the driver pulled down a long alleyway, and they were at the back entrance of Webster Hall. Corie barely had time to panic before the driver was opening the door for her. One second, she was standing there a bit lost, and the next she was being whisked down a dark back hallway by a man who said his name was Hank. He had given her a pass to wear around her neck and told her to follow him.

He brought her to a tiny room marked private on the door and told her to wait here. When she tried to question him, he flashed a look that had her stopping in mid-sentence. He closed the door behind him and was gone.  Corie had no idea what to do, and just as she was about to text Ethan, the handsome black haired singer walked through the door.

"I am so happy you are here," he told her as drew her into his arms for a hug.

"Me too. I wasn't going to come, but you convinced me that I needed to. I have to see him again. Thank you for that, Ethan."

"It's all my pleasure, Luv. Now, are you ready?"

"Does he know I'm coming?" Corie asked?

"No. I said nothing to him, but he keeps calling Will Call every ten minutes to see if you've picked up the ticket and pass yet. You never will, because I gave you these, so it’s driving him crazy," Ethan smiled. "But before we go, let me give you fair warning. Backstage is filled with the usual chaos which includes the groupies that follow us. Don't listen to anything they have to say about any of us even though most of it is probably true. Jealous vipers, but they do have their uses," he said with a wink. "We are all one hundred percent single, and hopefully that will end for Laz in just a few minutes, right?" Ethan had overstepped quite a bit getting Corie to come to the show. All he cared about was Laz ending up happy.

"Well, I came so we could talk at least," Corie told him.

"Well, I'm betting on a full-fledged reunion and nothing less," he vowed with complete confidence. "Now let's go find Laz.

Ethan took her hand in his as they traversed the winding hallways of backstage. How he didn't get lost was a mystery. As they came into more populated areas, Corie could see the women he had warned her about. She felt the daggers their eyes were throwing at her, and she wasn't even with Ethan. But she knew all they saw was him holding her hand as they walked along.

"The Green Room is right up here, and that's where he is. I can't wait to see his face when he sees you." Then Ethan whispered in her ear, "You are the hottest woman here tonight by far, and Laz is one lucky son-of-a-bitch, but if this doesn’t work out between the two of you, I just may show up at your place…again. Just do me a favor, Luv and get those potholes fixed. They’re killing my Maserati." 

 A nervous giggle escaped from Corie. The look Ethan gave her told her he was completely serious, but she couldn’t even begin to comprehend that now. She was seconds from seeing Alek.

"Thank you," she said smiling at Ethan. She placed a quick kiss on his cheek before turning and walking into the room.

Her eyes scanned the dozen or so people in there, quickly finding the man that had stolen her heart all those months ago. His back was to her, and he was talking to a platinum blonde that was poured into a red dress. Her breasts looked about to fall out of it. Corie was instantly overcome with jealousy.

When she took a step forward, her eyes narrowed with hate as she watched the woman place a possessive hand on Alek's bare arm. But she didn’t miss him shake it off. That put the smile back on her face. As she moved closer, she could hear their conversation.

"C'mon Laz. I don’t know why you keep being so cold to me. We used to heat up the sheets pretty well, not so long ago," the woman purred.

"That's the key word, Crystal…used to. And it was quite a while ago. I thought I told you in Montreal to leave me alone…nothing's changed." Corie watched him take a sip from the glass he held. She knew he favored Glenlivet.

"Geez, Laz it's not like you have a girlfriend or anything. We were so good together. Remember?"

That's when Corie stepped next to Alek. "I actually think he's trying to forget," she said to the other woman. "And by the way, he does have a girlfriend. So back off."

Crystal looked Corie up and down before rolling her eyes at her. "Seriously? Laz, tell this bitch to go away."

Corie could see the surprise on his face when he turned quickly and saw her. That swiftly changed into an angry glare that had her scared for a second, until he turned away from her to the other woman. "I will not tell my girlfriend to go away, you will go away...permanently. And if I ever hear you call her a bitch or any other derogatory name again, you are finished being a backstage whore. I warned you last time I could get you banned from the band access you live for and I will, Crystal. For now, you are simply blacklisted from any Midnight Steel event...starting now. Get the fuck out of here." 

Fury came across Crystal's face. She raised her arm to slap Alek, but Corie grabbed her first. "Don’t touch him or I'll pull every strand of that weave off of your ugly head."

Before Crystal could even say a word to Corie, there were two security guards there to remove her. She was cursing up a storm as they each took an arm and were forcibly pushing her towards the door. They stopped in front of Ethan where he was leaning against the doorframe. That's when he reached over and removed the pass from around her neck. "You're not welcome here anymore, you fucking bitch. You fuck with one of us, you fuck with us all. Now you don't just have Laz to worry about, you have me too. I never want to see that fat ass of yours around here again," Ethan growled at the shocked woman.

He stepped aside so security could remove her from the room and the ultimately the building. He flashed a big smile at Corie. She knew he had her back and that made her feel so much better. Alek had yet to say a word directly to her.

"Okay, everyone out," Ethan announced. "Laz needs the room."

Corie watched as the people hanging out in there slowly left. There were a few grumbles, but the room was soon empty. "Don't fuck this up, mate," Ethan laughed before he closed the door leaving Alek and Corie alone for the first time in months.

Neither of them said a word as they stared at each other. His blue eyes showed pain and loneliness, but there was hopefulness in them too. Corie's heart was beating a mile a minute. She couldn’t get any words to form, to tell him she was sorry, so she took a step toward him at the same time Alek moved closer to her. She fell into his strong arms and felt the tears start. How she had missed this…missed him.

"You came," he murmured into her hair.

"I almost didn't, but in the end, I had to."

"Why?" he asked as he cupped her chin and raised her face towards his. He then wiped away the tears with his thumbs.

"Because I love you."

 

 

Alek couldn’t believe that she had just told him she still loved him. For the first time in months, he had hope again. "Tell me again," he begged. "I need to hear it again."

He saw relief and happiness spread across her face. "I love you," she told him.

"Thank God. I love you, too." Alek crushed her in his arms, burying his face in the crook of her neck.  When he sent her the invitation to come to the show, he wasn't sure that she would actually show up. He hoped and prayed, but he really thought she would ignore it. But here she was back in his arms where she belonged.

"Let's sit down," she suggested to him. "We still need to talk."

"Damn," he thought as he followed her over to a brown leather sofa. "Don't fuck it up, Lazare. Just be honest and if that doesn’t work, get on your knees and beg." No one had ever been this important to him before. He was willing to do anything to get her back.

Together they sat down on the couch, and he watched Corie turn towards him. God, she was so beautiful. Taking in everything about her, almost had him missing what she was saying to him.   

"First, I'm sorry. I know now that I overreacted to who I thought you are and who you really are. I should have listened to you more, but I had my reasons that you need to know about."

Why was she apologizing to him? He's the one that fucked everything up. "Wait, you weren’t wrong to get angry with me. That's why I was afraid to tell you after all that time. You had every right to hate me. I lied mostly about who I was, but not entirely. I need to tell you about Caroline."

"And I need to tell you about Jeremy,” she said softly. “Can I go first?"

Alek took her hand in his. "Anything you want. If you want to go first, then please do. We probably should have done this a long time ago," he said. He should have told her a lot in the beginning, but at least he was getting a second chance.

Corie started to explain to him how she had met Jeremy at a cocktail party in New York that was put on by her publishing house. They laughed when they found out they both lived in Boston and then spent the rest of the night talking. He called and asked her out the same day they both returned home. Six months later they were living together and a year after that Corie was hoping he would propose on her birthday. He had told her he had something important to talk to her about, so he had made reservations at one of her favorite restaurants.

That day, she had come home from work early to take extra time to get ready for their special dinner. She was dreaming of a long hot bath when she opened their bedroom door and to her absolute shock saw him having sex with another woman. It had taken her a second to realize that it was Camille, another lawyer from his firm. One who never had been nice to her. Now she knew why.

With her world crumbling before her, Jeremy got up off the bed and had the nerve to stand before her still naked and apologize that she had to find out this way.

"Here I thought he was going to propose at dinner, but he was going to break up with me instead. Camille was moving in, and I had to pack up as soon as possible. The jackass never even remembered it was my birthday,” she sighed. The memory still hurt, even though she had gotten over loving him. “He had been lying to me for months about meetings with clients after work and on weekends. I thought he was working extra to help make partner in the firm, but he was only fucking Camille. I'm sorry, Alek. I just knew you had lied and I couldn’t get past that."

Hearing Corie confide in him about her last boyfriend's betrayal had Alek curling his hands into tight fists. How could this idiot have ever wanted to let Corie go? She was perfect…in every way possible. That he hurt her this badly and that crassly, made him furious. She deserved better. A hell of a lot better.

"I hate that he hurt you so much. I can’t imagine that he thought that Camille bitch was better than you.” He cupped her face with his hand. “You are nothing short of perfection.”

Tears formed in Corie’s eyes and Alek hated himself for the pain he caused her. “Luv, don’t cry. He was nothing but a complete jackass, just like I am. You are perfect to me…for me. I hate myself for the pain I caused you. I just didn’t know what to do. I was afraid that if I told you who I was, you’d hate me for not telling you in the first place, and you did. It was my nightmare come true.”

“You really think I am perfection?” she asked, wiping away her tears.

“Absolutely. You are so beautiful that you take my breath away. Not to mention that you are extremely successful and smart. I know now that you would have treated me the same way you did even if you knew I part of Midnight Steel. I just didn’t know that in the beginning. Shit, I barely knew what was going on after the accident. I’m so sorry, Corie. I don’t trust easily, but I know I can trust you.”

Alek couldn’t believe she was actually here. He honestly never thought he’d see her again. Touch her again. He squeezed her hand gently. He needed her back in his arms again, but he knew they had to work everything out first. They would. They had to.

“What caused you to be so wary of me in the beginning? And who is Caroline?” Corie asked.

It was time for Alek to share his story.

“Okay, now don’t take this wrong, but you need to know about the life I led for the longest time. We had women throwing themselves at us pretty well from the start, even before we were famous. Something about being in a band must make a bloke look better to women.”

“Well,” Corie started to say with a smirk. “The guys of Midnight Steel are all exceptionally handsome men. So either way, you four had it made with the women.”

Alek was happy that Corie was starting to get it. “Now make the band pretty damn famous, and we could literally have whatever we wanted. And I’m not ashamed to say I did. The first bird that caught my attention was in my bed that night.”  

“I know you have a past Alek. I do too. Guaranteed, yours has much more to it than mine, but I can’t fault you for that.”

“Many would, Luv. Thank you for understanding.” He gave her hand another squeeze before continuing. “These women served their purpose, but they were never good for more than a night or two. Traveling to a new city meant there was going to be a new blonde or new brunette or new redhead that night. None of us wanted anything permanent. But one night, I walked into the hospitality room and saw this woman that stopped me dead in my tracks. I became obsessed with Caroline for almost two years. I know now that I never loved her, it was more of a crazy, wild lust. She used her body to get me to do anything for her. She traveled when I traveled and lived with me when we didn’t tour. I bought her most anything that she wanted. The guys didn’t like her, but I didn’t care. She was mine, not theirs. We were in Cincinnati for a show, and Caroline hadn’t been feeling well, so I left soundcheck early to check on her.”

Alek stopped for a second as the awful memory of that day came flooding back. Corie must have felt the tension in him as she placed her other hand on top of the one of hers that he was holding. “I opened the door to our bedroom on the tour bus, and she was fucking the lead singer of our opening act. I threw him off the bus first, then her. Later, I found that he was just one in a long list of musicians and roadies that she had been working through. Everyone knew but me. I was so fucking blind to it all. That’s when I swore never to get that involved with a woman ever again. I was back to one night stands and not giving a shit anymore. She messed me up for a long time, and I didn’t want to go through that again."

"Ahh, so that's who she is," Corie said. It was the name he had muttered during that long night he was so feverish. She had always wondered who Caroline was.

"What do you mean?" he asked. How did she know about Caroline?

"It was that night you were so sick, and the fever had you mumbling words that I could barely make out. But I remember hearing 'Caroline, go away' and I always wondered what she had done to you. Now it makes sense."

 "Wow, I don't remember any of that. But I think I have punished myself long enough. It’s been years, and now I’m tired of being alone. Tired of the cheap one-night stands. And tired of being Laz. That’s why when I met you, and you had no idea who I was, it was my chance to be the old me…to be Alek again.”

“I like Alek,” Corie told him with a smile. 

“I do too, but Laz has his uses,” he told her with a wink. “Now, Alek never expected to be at your house longer than a day or two. But the roads didn’t get plowed out, and the more time I spent with you, the more I wanted to stay. I just couldn’t leave without getting to know you better. I was so relaxed and happy at the farm with you that I was falling in love without realizing it. At that point, I didn’t know how to tell you who I was and you know the rest. Can you understand why I did it and find it in your heart to forgive me?” 

Corie moved closer to him still clutching his hand in hers. “I forgave you before I came to New York. Everyone was telling me I overreacted and I didn’t want to listen. Do you know who it was that finally convinced me?”

“Who?”

“Ethan.”

“Wait…what? Ethan?” Alek knew his best friend always had his back, but he was completely unaware that he had contacted Corie.

“He showed up at the farm a few days ago.”

“Ethan drove up to Maine again? That wanker lied to me. Said he had some personal business to attend to and I thought it was about him trying to get custody of Isabelle. I can’t believe he went to visit you.”   Alek wasn’t sure if he should be pissed off at his friend for butting in or thankful, but since he was the one to convince Corie to come to the show, any hint of anger quickly vanished.

“Who’s Isabelle?” asked a confused Corie?

“Ethan’s daughter.”

“I never knew he had a daughter.”

“It’s not widely known. He doesn’t see her much, not with our schedule and him living in London and she and her mother in Florida.  There’s a lot of animosity between Ethan and Sharon. She’s not a good mother to the Isabelle, so Ethan’s going to try to gain custody of her.”

“Wow, I certainly wish him luck. He was able to get me to better understand why you did what you did. I wasn’t going to come to New York. I had definitely decided not to, but he changed my mind. That’s when I knew I had to forgive you. You mislead me, but you had your reasons. It wasn’t to hurt me but safeguard yourself.  I get it.”

Alek couldn’t wait any longer. He needed to kiss her and feel the softness of her lips and her sweet taste again. It had been way too long. He leaned in toward her and Corie met him part way. He felt the same magic with this kiss as he did the first time all those months ago. His heart started to beat faster as their bodies remembered each other. The heat between them soared as the flame from their passion ignited. His hand tangled in her silky hair as he pushed her back against the sofa. Corie let out a little moan and wrapped her arms around his neck. Alektasted her, deepened the kiss, demanding more and she gave it. She had never held back with him and now was no different.

After a few minutes, Alek broke the kiss, resting his forehead on hers. They were practically panting as they both trying to catch their breath. “I want you so bad,” he said hoarsely. “But not here, not the first time together, we don’t.”

“Oh wow, I almost forgot where we were. Thank you, Alek,” she said shyly to him.

“I’m not going to have sex with you here like any of those throw-away women that backstage is full of.  It’s going to be you and me...alone tonight after the show. Where are you staying? I’m at the St. Regis.”

“Me too. That’s where Ethan booked my room.”

“I owe that man more than you could ever know.”

Corie placed a hand on his chest. “He’s a very good friend to us both. So, when do you go on? How does all this work?”

Alek explained everything to Corie that was going to happen. It was still a while yet before they went onstage, but he wanted to introduce her around. Plus, monopolizing this room wasn’t fair to the rest of the crew. It wasn’t his style to abuse his VIP status, but today was an exception. 

He stood up and offered her his hand. “I want to show you around and have you meet the rest of the guys.”

“Okay, but can I ask you a question first?”

“Of course. What is it?”

Corie looked Alek directly in his blue eyes and smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes. “Who was she?”

“Who?” Alek looked at her confused.

She rolled her eyes at him. “The bitch in the red dress who wanted me to go away.”

Alek burst out laughing. This was a new side to Corie he was seeing. “I like seeing the claws come out. That’s sexy as hell, Luv.” He kissed her before answering. “That bitch was Crystal. And yes, I did sleep with her a few times, but that was a long time ago. Every time I see her, she tries again, but I’ve turned her down many times. She’s nothing to me. Absolutely nothing.”

  He saw the relief in her eyes. There was no way he’d ever cheat on her. Corie meant way too much to him to ever do that. He would never again touch another woman again. There was only one woman he wanted in his life and in his bed, and she was sitting right next to him. But, he saw that she was still unsure of something. “What else is bothering you?”

“Is that the type you of woman you go for?”

“Not any longer.” Alek was done with the easy hookups he always found while on tour. He could understand her needing his assurance that he wanted no one but her. “You know I have a crazy past, right? Any rocker does. I went for easy, hot, and big tits. Standard hookup for a guy like me. Didn’t care if she was blonde, brunette, redhead or whatever. Unfortunately, I tapped that one too many times and Crystal started to get possessive and clingy. That’s when I had enough. She has trouble understanding the word ‘No,' but she’s gone now and won't be allowed backstage again. She’s nothing to worry about,” Alek explained. He went to stand up, but Corie tugged his hand, so he stayed seated. “What?”

“You know I don’t wear clothes like this usually, right?  I don’t look anything like Crystal. She’s much more well-endowed than I am.”

“Thank fucking God, that you aren’t anything like her. I want you, just as you are. Don’t think that’s what I want. I want you and nothing else. Got that?” He hoped that Corie could see that he loved her and no one else. There was nothing for her to worry about. She had his heart, and he had hers, and that was all that mattered.

“Thank you.” Corie gave him a heartfelt smile.

He never imagined he could feel this happy again. As much as he didn’t want to leave the room they were in, it was time for her to find out who Laz was. “C’mon, let go.”

She stood up and smoothed the skirt of her dress with her hands. “Let’s go,” she said with a nervous smile.     

Only now did Alek see how she was dressed. Gone were the jeans and casual shirts she had worn in Maine. This was a totally new Corie standing before him. As beautiful as she was, she was hot as hell dressed the way she was. “Hold on, let me look at you.”

A blush flooded Corie’s cheeks as Alek stood up and looked her up and down. “Damn, girl. You look fucking amazing. Wow, I am so damn lucky.” He pulled her into a hug that had them just holding onto each other for the longest time. “I love you,” he whispered to her.

“And I love you, too,” Corie replied. “Forever.”

“Forever,” Alek said agreeing with her. “Abso-fucking-lutely! Now it’s time to show you off. C’mon, let’s get out of this room.”

Together they headed to the door. Corie put a hand on the handle before turning back to Alek for a quick kiss. He could feel her nervousness but knew she didn’t have anything to worry about. The door opened and hand in hand, they headed down the busy hallway. He couldn’t believe how happy he was. Right now he had everything he had ever wanted – his music, the money, and the woman he loved more than he ever thought possible. He had experienced her world and loved it. Now it was time to see if she could handle his.