“What’s this urgent meeting all about Mabel?” Nate asked as he opened the door to admit his PR manager into his apartment.

She walked through the door, Wade on her heals.

“Come and sit down,” she said, leading them over to his large dining table and dumping her monstrosity of a briefcase on the tabletop, spilling documents across the surface.

Nate sat down and picked up one of the escaped papers, glancing at it, “What’s this?” He held the piece of paper aloft, the Rocksteady logo displayed clearly across the top.

Wade took a seat and shared a look with Mabel before clearing his throat. “There are rumors that you are preparing to jump ship as soon as your album is released.”

“It’s not a rumor,” Nate said. “I’m moving to Derek’s label.”

Mabel nodded. “We know, but there are still rumors which means we have been inundated with offers.”

Nate sat up straighter. “What?”

“The scuttlebutt is that your next album is going to redefine you as an artist and there are people out there who are keen to get a piece of that.”

“But I already gave my answer to Derek.”

“I know,” Mabel said, “which I wish you hadn’t done without talking to us first.”

“It wouldn’t have made any difference,” he said. “I like Derek and we work well together. I liked his pitch and his vision for his label.”

“That’s all well and good,” Wade said, “and we like Derek too, it's just, some of these offers—” he paused to shake his head. “They’re pretty insane.”

“I don’t understand,” Nate said looking at the stacks of documents that Mabel was pulling out of her briefcase. “My last album tanked, who could possibly be interested in resurrecting my career?”

“There were quite a few record execs at your gig last night. They heard your new single, the duet with Stevie, and they have been bombarding me with offers ever since. Even Rocksteady wants to offer you another deal.”

Nate snorted. No way was he going to re-sign with Rocksteady after the shit contract they’d held him to these past five years.

“Now, don’t be too dismissive,” Mabel said. “It’s actually not a bad deal.”

He stood and paced over to the window, looking down on the city and running a hand through his hair.

“I want to stick with Derek,” he said. “We make good music together and I like the thought of being on the ground floor of something new and exciting. I like Derek’s vision.”

“Does this have anything to do with the fact that Court’n Jacks are also signed with him?” Mabel asked.

Nate spun around to face her. “No, yes, maybe.” He exhaled. “I like working with them, I like singing with Stevie. I want to work with them more, but it’s not the only reason. I really am excited about what Derek is offering me.”

Mabel stared at him across the table, searching his face, before nodding. “Okay, if that’s what you want—”

“It is,” he said.

“Okay, but can I at least leave these here for you to have a look at. Just read through the offers, you don’t have to accept any of them. But it would be a good exercise for you to do, just to see what else is out there.”

“Fine,” he said. “Is that all?”

“No,” she said, “I want to confirm the dates of your appearances with Court’n Jacks and I’ve booked you for a festival.”

“Another festival?” he asked, slumping into his chair. “I was playing arenas eighteen months ago.”

“Half full arenas,” Wade said, “that cost you more than you made.”

“Right,” Nate said, “don’t remind me.”

“You need these festivals,” Mabel went on. “We’ve been through this before. These are the grassroots of your fan base. You need to win these guys over and you need to get some of your new stuff out there.”

He huffed out a breath and looked down at the table. He felt like he was having to start right back at the beginning again. He was already playing bars and cafes, now he had to do festivals? He was a goddamned rock star, not some newbie trying to break into the big times.

“Nate,” Mabel said. The woman could practically read his mind. “You have to think about this strategically. I know in your mind it feels like going backwards, but you burned a lot of fans and you have to do something to win them back. If we were to book a tour for you right now, you wouldn’t be able to fill one stadium, let alone ten of them.”

“But look at these,” he said, indicating the stacks of offers. “They want me.”

“Record companies are a lot more forgiving than disgruntled fans,” Wade said.

“You broke their trust,” Mabel added. “It’s going to take a big effort on your part to show them that they can trust you again.”

“Fine,” he said, feeling like a petulant child.

“Good,” Mabel said, pulling out a spreadsheet. “Here is the schedule of appearances.”

The rest of the meeting was a blur to Nate. He thought that he had been making inroads with his fans, but by Mabel’s estimation, he’d barely scraped the surface. It had all seemed so easy five years ago when the fans had flocked to him. He could do no wrong. But two failed albums and they’d lost interest in him. Now he had to spend the next twelve months making it right. Would he ever get back on top? Right now it seemed almost like an impossible dream.

The meeting with Wade and Mabel had put him off kilter. He knew that he was going to have to work hard to win his fans back, but it all seemed too hard. The first time around all he’d had to do was show up, smile and take his shirt off and the fans came running. Now he had to actually work to win them.

Maybe signing with Derek wasn’t the best thing for him.

It was a traitorous thought, but what did a fledgling label have to offer him? They wouldn’t have the budget that someone like Rocksteady had and he’d have to invest some of his own money to promote himself. Another label would take care of all that for him and he could take a back seat and watch his career take off once again.

Except that was what had gotten him into trouble in the first place.

Signing with Derek was all about re-inventing himself and taking control of his career. He couldn’t bail on that just because it was going to be hard work.

But taking control of his own career also meant doing his due diligence and that meant reading through the other offers on the table. How could he make an informed choice if he didn’t know what else was out there?

He poured himself a drink, picked up a contract and sat down in one of the overstuffed armchairs in his living room to read.

Three drinks and five contracts later he was impressed. It appeared that he was once again a hot commodity and some of the promises made in the offers were over the top. None of them had convinced him to walk away from Derek, but a few had tempted him. The money they were offering was insane, but he wasn’t stupid, he read the fine print. The money always came with strings attached and he’d already been burned once before by not reading the clauses.

He flipped the last one closed and tossed it on the pile with the rest of them when he heard the front door open. Stevie walked in and the heaviness that had been sitting on his chest since his meeting with Mabel and Wade lifted.

He stood to his feet and met her in the foyer, scooping her up into a hug and planting a kiss on her lips. Just touching her helped to soothe the prickles that had been itching under his skin.

“That was a nice welcome,” she said when he lifted his head from her lips.

“I missed you,” he murmured, nuzzling her neck. “Please tell me that you’re here to stay and that you don’t have a gig tonight.”

“I’m here to stay and I don’t have a gig tonight,” she said and squealed as he tossed her over his shoulder and headed for the bedroom.

“Put me down!” she cried, pounding on his back, but he didn’t let her down until he reached the bedroom and tossed her on the bed, following her onto the soft mattress.

He covered her body with his own and captured her lips in a deep kiss, taking his time to explore her mouth. The stress of the day seemed so inconsequential when she was in his arms and he was more than happy to get lost in her and forget everything else.

“What about dinner?’ she asked when he gave her a chance. “Aren’t you hungry?”

“I’m hungry,” he growled as he licked and sucked her neck, “just not for food.”

She tilted her head to give him more access to her neck and he breathed her in, relishing the taste and smell of her. Her hands found the hem of his shirt and pushed it up, her fingers tracing over his back and giving him shivers.

“I need you naked,” she breathed against his neck, struggling with his shirt.

He lifted himself from her long enough to pull his shirt over his head and then looked pointedly down at her clothing.

“Now you,” he said.

She slowly undid the buttons of her shirt revealing the sweet, soft skin beneath. His eyes devoured her as she parted the fabric and bared the pale blue, lacy demi bra, the plump flesh of her tits spilling over the top. He bent his head and buried his face between the twin mounds, nuzzling her with his nose and dragging his lips across her skin.

He pulled one of the peaked tips into his mouth, sucking her through the lace, and she arched into him, offering him her breasts and demanding more. She slipped her hands between them to release the front clasp and her beautiful breasts tumbled free. He feasted on them, taking his time to lavish them with his tongue and lips and teeth. He used the scruff on his face to heighten the sensations, brushing it across the sensitive skin. Her fingers threaded through his hair and her legs wrapped around him, grinding her pelvis up into him.

“Naked,” she breathed, using his hair to lift his head.

He wriggled down her body, nestling between her thighs so he could undo her jeans. He pulled them down her legs, taking her underwear with them, and then settled in between her thighs once again. She propped herself on her elbows so she could watch and he looked up at her, their eyes colliding as he took a long lick along her slit.

Her eyes fluttered closed and she collapsed back on the bed as he took his time pleasuring her. He would never get enough of the taste of her and he closed his own eyes as he let himself get lost in it. He sipped and sucked, lavishing her wet folds and suckling her clit until she was writhing beneath him, her hands gripping the comforter. Her back bowed as she came, flooding his mouth, her cries filling his ears.

Much later, Stevie opened her eyes slowly. The room was dark and Nate snored softly beside her, his arm thrown over her possessively. She took a moment to let her eyes wander over his sleeping form. The room was lit by the ambient light from the city and it was enough that she could make out his features, relaxed in sleep.

She could no longer deny that what was happening between them was more than a fling, but she wasn’t yet ready to name exactly what it was. Was she in love with him? She refused to answer yes or no. She had loved Nate since she was a teenager, but whether or not it had progressed from a teenage crush to something more real, she wasn’t yet prepared to acknowledge.

What she did know was that he made her body sing in ways no one had before. There was something so electric between them that couldn’t be denied and her body yearned for his. But was that enough to build a relationship on? They hadn’t even gone out on a date yet so how could they be sure that they would survive the real world? What they had was protected from outside influences, but the real test would come if they went public.

And then there was the tour.

It was mere days away now. They only had one more gig before they boarded the bus and headed off with Lily Ames. By this time next week, they would be doing sound check in a stadium and trying not to freak out. Would what she and Nate had survive the long absences and rigors of the tour?

His album was just about to drop too and he was about to head out on his own promotional tour. Sure, his was a much more cut down version, playing festivals and small gigs with other artists, but there would still be the groupies and the late nights and the distance.

Stevie rolled away from Nate, slipping out of the bed and heading into the living room. She needed a distraction or she was going to drive herself crazy.

She padded through the dark apartment and realized they never had made dinner. Her stomach growled and she changed direction for the kitchen. She opened the fridge and pulled out some bread and cold chicken. She made a sandwich, slathering mayonnaise on the bread before topping it with chicken and then some Jarlsberg cheese.

With a cold bottle of soda in one hand and her plated sandwich in the other, she made her way into the living room and sat in one of the big armchairs. The blinds were open and afforded her a beautiful view of the city and she was happy to sit and eat her sandwich and watch the world go by.

She had no answers to her earlier questions, but the one thing she did know was that she wasn’t ready to call it quits with Nate just yet. Whether she was in love with him or not was immaterial. She liked being with him, she had fun in bed with him and loved waking up beside him. She was not ready to walk away from that.

They would have some short breaks on the tour and she hoped that they would coincide with time off for Nate as well. It’s not like they wouldn’t see each other for three months. There were even one or two dates when he would be joining them to perform ‘No Good for Me’ and those were hotel days, meaning they wouldn’t have to sleep on the tour bus, which in turn meant that they could have naked time together.

She smiled as she finished the last of her sandwich and reached out to put the plate on the side table, knocking off a stack of papers in the process.

“Shit,” she whispered as she slid off the armchair to pick up the scattered documents.

There wasn’t a lot of light to see by, but she recognized the logo of Gordon and Sparks, a major Nashville record label. She pulled the stack of paper closer, realizing that it wasn’t the only record label in the pile.

She stood to her feet, clasping the stack against her chest and walked over to the dining table, flicking on a light on the way. She sat down at the table and began reading through the documents. They were contract offers, record deals, recent ones.

Hadn’t Nate already agreed to sign with Derek? If so, what were all these?

Dread curled in her stomach. Was Nate seriously considering backing out of his deal with Derek? She knew it was an uncharitable thought, but he’d done it to her before. She knew they hadn’t signed anything, but still, they had shaken hands on it. Was it disloyal of her to doubt Nate’s integrity? Could she trust him to honor the agreement he had with Derek, especially in the face of all these offers? And they were genuine offers, promising him the moon. Would he be able to walk away from them to sign a contract that was a whole lot less lucrative?

“Hey.”

Stevie looked up to see Nate standing in the doorway, his eyes still sleepy and his hair a mess.

“Hey,” she murmured, searching his face.

“You found the offers,” he said, coming to sit down opposite her.

“I did,” she said, pushing them away from her. “I’m sorry, I probably shouldn’t have looked at them.”

He shrugged. “I don’t mind,” he said.

She bit her lip and closed her eyes briefly before looking up at him.

“Are you going to take one?”

He exhaled a breath and looked down at his hands that were clasped on the table. “I have to be honest,” he said. “When Mabel first told me about them I said no, but she wanted me to take a look at them anyway.”

“They’re very generous,” Stevie said, feeling like the other shoe was about to drop.

“They are and I would be an idiot to not consider them. Even the one from Rocksteady is worth consideration.”

“So… what does that mean for Derek?”

Nate stood and came around to her side of the table, taking her hands and pulling her to her feet.

“I made a commitment to Derek and I’m going to stick by it.”

“But these other offers—”

“Look good on the outside, but I still think what Derek is building will be better. I like the idea of Derek’s boutique label and the opportunity to build something with him.”

Stevie felt the tension leak from her body as he folded her into his arms. He was staying true to his word. Maybe he really had changed and there was a chance that there could be something between them.