Naughty Professor - A Standalone Teacher Romance by Claire Adams (62)

“You can’t say that,” I said as I tried to comfort him, but he shook his head.

“He’s always looked up to me, ever since we were kids. It drove my parents nuts. I always wanted to be a musician, but they were completely against it. Even more so when Talon decided to follow in my footsteps and I got him a drum set. Because of that, we grew apart from our parents. I moved out, and Talon followed right after me that night,” he sighed, and for a moment I could swear his eyes grew a little misty.

“They were killed in a car wreck by a drunk driver the next day. So, like I said, I’m a big reason that Talon only has me. Sometimes I get so wrapped up in work, I forget that. The thing with our parents, the struggles with almost losing Talon to drugs, that’s a lot of where our songs come from. It’s the only way I know to get it all out, you know?”

He finally looked at me, and I could see the emotion brimming just beneath the surface. I nodded, knowing exactly where he was coming from. Mine and Jackson’s childhood had been no better, but I didn’t need to get into that with Owen. Not at that moment, anyway.

I gave him a gentle kiss on his cheek, feeling some comfort as a sweet smile spread across his face. At that moment, all I wanted was to give him comfort and make him feel better, and do what I could to ease some of his pain.

He squeezed me to him and kissed the top of my head. “I really like you, Nalia. You can’t know how much I mean that. I wish I had something to offer you, but I really don’t. I’ve got so many issues to deal with right now and with us being on tour, I know any sort of relationship is a bad idea. The groupies at each stop are going to be unruly. For that reason alone, I know dating is a bad idea.”

As much as the idea of girls throwing themselves at Owen did cause a little jealousy to stir up in me, I did understand. He didn’t want to start something with me during all of this. I got it. It was the rock star life, and one of the hazards of the job was relationships. It didn’t take a genius to see that. If anything, I appreciated him being honest and trying to put some distance between us.

As much as I enjoyed the sex between us, and even the cuddling and kisses at the moment, I knew he wasn’t promising me anything. If something happened on the road, I couldn’t be mad because he’d never given me any sort of indication we could be anything more than people who simply had a bit of no-strings-attached fun. Just like I’d never given him that idea, either.

“I get it,” I said. “I’m not holding you to anything. That has never been my intention, and it certainly isn't why I signed on for this job. I don’t have that to offer you, either, you know. Besides, from what Talon was telling me, things are going to get crazy on the road, and I’m not going to try and convince myself of anything otherwise. I’m here to do my job, first and foremost, regardless of what we are or aren’t,” I told him.

I leaned into him, kissing his neck and he let out a soft breath, combing his fingers through my hair. Still, if we could offer each other some comfort, I didn’t mind that, either. I understood how he could be lonely, even with groupies surrounding him and throwing themselves at him, and how it was hard to find someone else who truly understood that. Owen and I did understand loneliness; I knew that much. If nothing else, that was all we could offer each other right now and I was okay with that.

 

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

Owen

 

flickering through the window woke me the next morning, and I could see we were just getting into Seattle. I rubbed my eyes and looked down at the comforting weight lying against me and smiled. Nalia and I had fallen asleep talking and cuddling.

I never thought falling asleep on the bus could feel so refreshing, but I felt like I’d had a full night’s sleep lying there with her in my arms. Usually, I didn't sleep well on buses, even luxury tour buses like this one, but with her there, I'd somehow managed to get a great night's sleep in. I think I may have even had a few good dreams.

Gently, trying not to wake her, I brushed her hair back out of her face, studying her features as she slept. She was as stunning asleep as she was awake, her soft, even breaths reassuring and peaceful. And for a few quiet, sacred moments, I simply lay there next to her, admiring her, feeling at peace in her presence and basking in the warmth that flowed between us.

I found myself wondering how things would be if the situation were different, and realized that I definitely wouldn’t mind waking up to this every day. Hell, I probably wouldn’t even get out of bed if I woke up with her in my arms every day.

For now, though, I settled for letting her sleep in my arms. I watched the sights of Seattle rolling by as the city awoke, silently enjoying the peaceful moment and feeling quietly content with Nalia in my arms until we finally pulled up in front of our hotel.

“Nalia, wake up,” I coaxed gently, stroking her cheek. Her eyes fluttered open, and she put a hand on my chest, sitting herself up. She looked around, her eyes slightly worried, as if she was expecting the others to catch us. I smiled, not particularly caring about that myself. I was pretty sure that by now they had a good idea something was going on, anyway.

“We’re at the hotel,” I told her. “So I guess that means it's time to rise and shine, then go wake up and rally the troops. I sure hope the rest of them got as good a night's rest as I did. How about you, did you sleep well?”

“Like a baby,” she said. “I didn't think I'd be able to sleep this well on a bus, but it was as good as any hotel bed.” She smiled and smoothed her hair and clothing as she pulled herself to stand. I got up as well, helping her wake up the others. I woke up Jay and then Talon, and he gave me a sour look after he yawned and stretched. I jumped straight into an apology, though, not wanting any bitterness or resentment to simmer.

“Sorry about snapping last night, Tal. I’m just a bit stressed. I really didn’t mean to throw your shit out there like that. It was a dick move, and it was totally uncalled for.”

“Yeah. It was, dude. But whatever, I'm over it,” he said, shrugging it off as he wiped the sleep from his eyes. “We at the hotel?”

“Yeah. And, we'll have a few hours to chill if you want to rest up more before we start our long-ass day,” I told him, patting his shoulder.

He nodded, looking exhausted. “Might take you up on that offer.”

“What time did you two get to sleep, anyway?”

“Late enough to see you and Nalia curled up together,” he replied as he flashed me a sleepy grin. “That’s the real reason why you were pissy with me last night, wasn’t it? Come on, dude. I know you better than that. Don't try pull the wool over my eyes with this 'I'm feeling so stressed out' crap. Just admit it, man!”

This time it was me who had to shrug. What could I say? He had caught me red-handed with my hand in the figurative cookie jar.

“You two have had sex already, too, haven't you? And don't lie about it, man! You get this look in your eyes and this little twitch on the left side of your face when you lie — I've known that since we were little! So, tell me, what happened to the whole ‘nobody bangs the assistant’ pact, hmm?” He laughed, his signature shit-eating grin glowing on his face now, despite his exhaustion.

My neck grew a little hot. “All right, all right, yeah. I like her. A lot. Probably more than I should. Maybe if we weren’t doing all the touring and everything, there would be something more there, but, yeah. Now just keep your mouth shut about it, please? Got it?” I shot him a look.

He made a zipper-like motion over his lips. “I can’t promise Jay won’t say anything or that the others aren’t already noticing something there, but I won’t say anything else about it. I’ll tone down the flirting, though, even if I was just having fun with her. You know I wouldn’t step on your toes like that.”

I smiled warmly at him. “I appreciate that, lil bro.”

“Besides, she seems to be the only one who is able to shake that damn stick up your ass loose,” he said as the grin returned. “Hell, maybe she'll even be able to pull the whole damn thing out of there!”

I gave him a playful smack on the back of the head.

“Come on. Let’s get settled into the suite,” I suggested. He hopped down from his bunk with a loud thump and followed me out with the others to grab our bags. Nalia already had a couple of luggage carts waiting for us and had the bellman loading our bags. Little things like that made me especially thankful for an assistant — and waking up with her curled up next to me made me especially thankful that I had chosen her.

“Come on, boys, let's get moving. We’ve got a couple hours to rest up, then a busy, but fun-filled, day ahead of us,” she said in a chipper, but somewhat sarcastic manner, causing groans of dissent from the others.

I couldn’t help but laugh, as I’d actually slept great and wasn’t tired at all. Nalia had already gotten us checked in, so we headed straight for the elevator and upstairs to our suite. As soon as the doors opened, Talon and Jay headed for the bedrooms, and I heard the distinct flop of Talon throwing himself on a mattress. The others did the same, just tossing their luggage on the floor and not bothering to unpack anything. It seemed that nobody else, besides Nalia and I, had actually gotten much rest on the bus. I hung back and tipped the bellman, then turned to Nalia.

“You going to get some rest, too?” I asked her.

“Nah. I feel pretty well rested,” she shrugged. “Anyway, there are a bunch of things I want to check on for our next stop and a number of other small details about things that I just want to double check. And, I was definitely thinking of taking a nice, long, relaxing bubble bath before the guys dirty up all the bathrooms, too. I bet the tub here in the penthouse is amazing, you know.”

“Mmm, a bubble bath with you sounds amazing right about now.” A wicked grin crossed my lips, but she put a hand up.

“I said a relaxing bubble bath, and that means alone. The only company I'd want for that would be a book,” she said with a wink. I gave her a playful pout.

She added a teasing, “Maybe later,” before disappearing up the stairs. I watched her go up, wishing I could join her, but in truth, I had some more emails and other business matters to take care of myself. Despite that, a “maybe later” sounded great and was enough to keep my spirits up.

I headed to one of the rooms myself and pulled out my laptop, getting lost in emails and looking over our set list for the night. It wasn’t until Nalia knocked on the door that I realized over two hours had passed.

“You might want to get in one of the showers before the other guys get in. You know, freshen up and wash the road off of you.” She leaned against the open doorway.

I pulled my shirt off, smelling it, and my eyes certainly did not miss the once-over she gave my bare chest.

“Do I smell?” I asked. She leaned toward me and took a sniff, in the process letting me get a nice whiff of how sweet she smelled.

“Not really, just figured you’d want to get a shower in after being on the road for so long. Get yourself all refreshed feeling,” she said as she pulled her hair out of her towel. I grinned, just imagining her enjoying her bath. Sadly, she was already dressed. Otherwise, I might have offered to drag her into the shower with me.

“Yeah, probably a good idea,” I nodded, shutting my laptop and getting up off the bed. She tossed a clean towel at me.

“Let me know if you need anything.” She winked, then disappeared to finish getting ready.

Once everyone was showered, clean, and mostly awake, we headed downstairs to the lobby. Nalia had already arranged for our gear to be taken to the venue we were playing at and had a fully-stocked limo waiting for us. I climbed in last and sat next to her, feeling a lot more excited about the show that night and formally kicking off the tour. It was easier to be excited since Nalia had taken care of all the details..

Granted, the tour was just beginning, but things had never run so smoothly before. There had always been hiccups when I had tried to take care of everything myself. Sure, they made for good tour stories, but it was much better and so much less stressful having her by my side to catch anything that threatened to fall through the cracks.

Talon gave me a look when I settled in next to Nalia, but true to his word, he said nothing. We headed out to the venue, everyone buzzing with excitement and energy. We were so ready to kick off this tour. Nalia just sat silently, soaking in everyone’s excitement, but having a glass of wine to celebrate with everyone else.

When we arrived, we all piled out of the limo and headed in backstage to meet with the lighting and sound crew. There wasn’t too much to go over with the lighting crew since Nalia had sent the plans over ahead of time and had made sure the road team already had all our gear set up on stage for us. I could only imagine how amazing she’d been on the other tours she’d organized. If she kept this up, I’d definitely find a place for her with Young Records. We were only on day one of the tour, and she was already proving herself invaluable.

She disappeared backstage to follow up on a few last minute things with the crew while we headed to the dressing room to hang out and have lunch before sound check and rehearsal.

“Okay, I know you might hate me for saying it, but I think I’m in love with Nalia,” Talon announced as he set his eyes on the delectable spread of food the caterer had laid out in our dressing room.

I laughed, understanding why he’d said it. Somehow, she’d managed to find out all of our favorite foods to have before a show and had them laid out before us with all our favorite fixings, right down to Talon’s favorite brand of gummy bears.

“If she doesn’t watch out, she’s going to need to make up a workout regimen for us while we’re on tour, too, bringing out all our favorite foods like this.”

“Dude, she’s probably already penciled that into our schedules and packed our workout clothes,” Talon said as he patted me on the shoulder. Come to think of it, he was probably right, I thought with a laugh. Still, I wouldn’t mind working out with her. I could definitely get used to seeing her in those yoga pants she’d been wearing last night.

“Owen, you all right, dude?” Talon waved a hand in front of my face, pulling me from my thoughts.

“Hmm?” I looked over at him.

“I was asking you if you planned on eating anything?” I noticed then he was holding a paper plate out to me.

“Oh, yeah. Thanks.” I took the plate from him and moved over to the buffet laid out, piling some fried chicken and mac and cheese onto my plate.

“Might want to get your mind off of Nalia’s ass and into performance mode there, big bro.”

I looked at him a little dumbfounded, and he only laughed. “Dude, I know you. You’re an ass man, and, I'm not saying that I’ve been checking it out, but I won't lie — Nalia’s got a nice one. A real nice one.”

I gave him a punch in the shoulder, and he only laughed.

“Hey, come on, dude. She was wearing yoga pants this morning. It was hard not to notice that booty on her. I'm only human, after all!”

I sighed. “My mind isn’t on Nalia’s ass. Just glad everything is going so smoothly thanks to her,” I said, which wasn’t a total lie.

“Right, sure,” Talon nodded, going for seconds.

A little later, Nalia popped her head into the room. “How’s everyone doing? Need anything?” she asked, looking around the room.

“We’re good. Why don’t you grab something to eat and take a load off? You’ve been running around since this morning,” I said as I nodded at the spread of food. It wasn’t like we were going to eat all of it ourselves, even if Talon was making a decent effort. She tried to object, but we all insisted she take a break.

“Everything is going good and working out ahead of schedule,” I told her, pushing a plate into her hands. “You need to relax a bit and not worry so much. You've done an awesome job as it is.” Finally, she agreed and grabbed some food before our sound check.

Once we headed to the stage, though, she was back at it again, running around to cover any last minute situations. We got through sound check with minimal issues before heading backstage to hang out until practice was scheduled to begin in another hour. The doors opened at seven and the opening band, a local group, took the stage at eight. We were letting them rehearse on stage first, taking a break before we ran through our set list.

A few of us ventured out to hear them. They were a great opening act and a band I was looking at signing. I caught a glimpse of Nalia running around backstage, taking charge and directing people while they played. She looked sexy as hell when she was being bossy, and I couldn’t help but smile. Yeah, I’d definitely found the right girl for the job.

After the opening band had finished on stage, we invited them to chow down on the buffet in our dressing room and chatted for a bit before heading out to the stage to run through our set list. Things went perfectly, as they had been the whole day, and everyone was completely pumped.

“So, about the after party?” Talon twirled one of his drumsticks as we finished off our encore song. I grinned. Hell yeah, we were having an after-party tonight.

“We can have it back at the penthouse. I can get Nalia to set up catering and drinks — but I swear to God, guys, no girls that even remotely look like they could be underage or like they’ve been walking the streets their whole life.”

“Aye, aye, captain,” Jeremiah nodded as he placed his guitar on its stand. The others nodded their agreement, and we headed backstage to hang out and change before it was show time.

I looked around for Nalia, but couldn’t find her anywhere. Did this woman ever take a break? I was so pumped and ready to go that I wanted to pull her into an empty closet and release some of this pent up excitement.

Finally, she came into our dressing room, looking smoking hot in a mini skirt and a Bleeding Heart tank top that showed off her cleavage rather nicely. She had dark, winged eyeliner around her eyes and red lipstick on with her hair down and wild, like a real rocker chick. She looked so sexy that the other guys paused and took notice of her walking in.

“Helloooo, nurse!” Talon broke up the silence and whistled at her, making her blush as her brown eyes connected with mine. I smiled at her and nodded for her to join me on the black leather couch.

“Opening band is almost done. I already found a bartender for the after party at the penthouse and took care of food for tonight. Need anything else before you guys go on stage?”

I shook my head, smiling at her. “Relax a little. You’ve been working your tail off all day. It’s time to sit back and get ready to enjoy the show, then later the after party,” I told her.

“Seriously, Nalia. You’re a Godsend. Everything has gone off without a hitch,” Jeremiah added, giving her a fist bump. Her cheeks flushed again, but she thanked him for the compliment, then checked her watch as cheers erupted.

“It’s time, guys! Get out there and break a leg!” She nodded to the door as she popped back up out of her seat. All of the guys headed out toward the stage to get ready, but I hung back so I could walk with Nalia. She smiled at me. “What’s wrong? Nervous?”

“Nah,” I shook my head, then tugged her back into a little alcove behind the stage. I pressed my mouth to hers as I rubbed her hips. She giggled but kissed me back, parting her lips for me invitingly. “I did just think of something I need, though,” I told her as I let her go.

“Anything, boss.” she teased looking up at me, about to pull out her smartphone and make whatever call she needed. I leaned in close, letting my lips brush her neck, sending goosebumps racing down her arm.

“I need you, naked and trembling later tonight.”

She bit her lip, her eyes intent on me as the stage lights went down.

“All yours, handsome,” she flashed me a downright devious smile then popped me right on the ass. “Now, get out there and do your thing.”

I smiled and ran out on stage, ready to rock.

 

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

Nalia

 

was crazy to think I could be so exhausted but completely wired at the same time. The guys’ excitement was contagious, though, and I was just as pumped for the show as they were, even though I wasn't going to be out on stage with them. Still, being right next to the stage was good enough for me – it almost felt as if I were out there myself with all those thousands of people screaming for me.

Owen looked over at me with a grin before Talon hit the drums and the stage lights came up with a bright, flashing explosion of color. As soon as the band started, the crowd roared to life. The place was packed wall-to-wall with people dancing, cheering, and singing along as Owen started to belt out his vocals.

I’d heard him singing earlier, but it was so much different with the crowd there, watching him interact with the fans. It was obvious he was totally in his element, that this was clearly what he had been born to do. He was drinking in the energy of the crowd as if it were pure, liquid electricity, and sending it right back out to them with his powerful voice. Every note was totally on point, and I could tell what had made Bleeding Heart so famous. I loved seeing it.

I could only hope maybe one day that would be me, but for now, I was absolutely in love with my job and having an amazing time just being near this experience. I’d surprised even myself with how well things had gone today and how naturally all this had come to me. It was a hell of a lot of work, but seeing Owen and the others rocking out there to a cheering crowd was a fantastic payoff.

Owen’s little request for the after party wasn’t a bad deal, either.

Still, I had to remind myself we were just having fun and that I had to draw a line at that. Things wouldn’t always go this perfectly on the road; there were bound to be some mishaps on the way. No matter how well you planned, there was always a chance something would happen that would throw a wrench in the works. I had to be prepared for that.

I wasn’t just talking about the band in this regard, but Owen, too — especially after our talk last night. I got why he didn’t want anything more, and truth be told, neither did I. But I could see how a girl could end up falling for him and subsequently getting hurt. I wouldn’t let that girl be me. I couldn't.

“How are you all doing tonight, Seattle?” Owen yelled into the microphone as they finished up their first song, and the crowd responded with cheers and screams. “We love you, Seattle, and we’re so happy to be back here. Let’s do this! You all should know this next song from our last album, so I want to hear you singing along!” he shouted before they whirled into their next song. I couldn’t help but smile as I watched them perform with the crowd singing along.

I found myself tapping my feet and dancing along, unable to help it. They really were a great band, and the on stage chemistry between them all was undeniable. Every member of the group radiated energy out from the stage, and their sound was so powerful, so energetic, and so catchy that I could understand why Grace had been surprised I’d never heard of them before. I would have definitely been a diehard fan if I had.

But, in a way, it was a good thing I hadn’t been a fan. Owen had told me about the two other girls’ interviews and how they’d reacted to being interviewed by him. I was the only one who had kept my head because I wasn’t star struck. Owen was just a guy that happened to be a musician when I met him, and I had acted accordingly.

Now, though, I could see how the other girls had gone all fangirl on him. He was handsome, talented, and sexy as hell. That deep and velvety voice of his could get any girl purring. No wonder he warned me about the groupies and why it would be a bad idea to be anything more than what we were. Several panties and bras had already been flung on stage and after what he’d said before going out there, I was close to flinging my own panties at his feet.

But, I reminded myself this was my job. I was his tour assistant, not his girlfriend, and the job was my priority, first and foremost. Maybe after hours we could play, but right now, I was working. I couldn’t be playing the part of a fangirl, not at the moment, and not after the show, either — even if part of me wanted to fawn over him while he was on stage. Even though he had said I should relax and have a good time at the after party, I knew that even there I'd need to put my responsibilities first.

The guys went right into another song as the crowd surged and danced, and I could see some of them crowd surfing now. That was one thing I’d never surfed and always wondered about. I smiled and clapped as they finished up that song, watching the crowd erupt in cheers with me.

It was mind-blowing to see the connection the crowd had to the band and their music, as well as the energy running through the place. You could see it throughout the crowd as well as on each one of the guys’ faces. They sounded incredible. The crowd went crazy with each and every song, with every member of the audience seeming to know all the lyrics, and when the band finally hit the last song on their set list, the crowd was cheering their name madly for an encore.

The guys gave in to the crowd and decided to play them one more song, and I took that cue to start getting things together for them to head back to the hotel. The show was drawing to an end, but that didn't mean my work for the evening was anywhere near done. The bus was out back waiting for them, stocked with cold water and drinks. I’d already stationed the security guys ready to escort them out of the venue to the bus and ensure that they didn't get mobbed along the way. I signaled the stage crew to be ready to start packing up their gear as soon as the band came off stage so that the guys had nothing to worry about and could head straight back to the hotel to enjoy their after party.

By the time I returned to the side of the stage, the guys were bowing. Seconds later, they were running off stage, drenched in sweat from playing under the hot stage lights and jumping around. I held up a hand, hi-fiving them as they came flying by me, and shouted for them to head out back to get on the bus. There was a pressing crowd of fans back there waiting for them, but with the help of the security guys, I managed to hustle them through, although Talon, Jay, and Jeremiah all grabbed a few girls out of the crowd to join us on the bus. I shook my head and made a mental note to place condoms on the nightstands next to their beds at their rooms back at the hotel.

The bus was packed when I finally managed to sign off with the security crew. I then had to double check with the stage and road crew that all the gear had been securely packed back on the bus. I was feeling a little run down, but pumped nonetheless, when I finally managed to get through the crowd. Owen grabbed my arm and pulled me on with him, smiling big.

“You guys were amazing!” I shouted to him over the group of people on the bus. “Wow, I mean, seriously! I may not have known much about Bleeding Heart before, but I've just been converted! I'm a fan now! Like I said, you guys were just amazing up there on stage.”

He smiled, leaning close and kissed my cheek.

"As were you today. We couldn’t have done this without you. Come on, it’s time to celebrate!” He handed me a drink and grinned. The real party was just about to get started.

 

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

Owen

 

smiled and took a sip of the drink I’d handed her. She claimed she was just doing her job when I praised her for how smoothly everything had gone, but, to be honest, it was way more than that.

She wasn't just doing her job well, she was doing everything above and beyond, really going the extra mile for us. There was no way we'd have been able to pull this all off so smoothly without everything she had taken on for us. I was hugely impressed with her dedication, enthusiasm, and efficiency. I could hardly believe how incredible she was. To hell with the after party, I wanted to spend the night celebrating with her, and her alone.

“Come here.” I took the drink from her hand and put it on a cup holder, grabbed her wrist, and tugged her toward the bathroom as the bus started to move. We pushed past the guys and the horde of groupies they had pulled onto the bus with them.

“What are you doing?” she giggled as I yanked the door open and tugged her inside with me.

“This.” I heaved her against me and kissed her firmly on the lips — something I had wanted to do ever since I had seen her step into the room backstage in the little miniskirt she was wearing. After the high performing for a sold-out crowd had given me, I wanted her even more. She’d done everything, and because of all her effort, the day had gone off completely without a hitch. The woman was amazing, and I wanted her desperately.

Her lips melted into mine, and I wrapped my arms around her waist, fondling her ass before she pulled back.

“You’re making out with me in the bathroom?”

“Yeah? So? I wanted to get you all to myself,” I admitted, still breathing heavily. She smiled and leaned forward to kiss me again when someone banged on the door.

“Dude! I gotta take a leak!” Nate yelled from the other side of the door. I frowned as Nalia laughed and shook her head.

“Come on,” she said as she dragged me out of the bathroom, an act that prompted several hoots from the other guys. “Besides, I still have a few more things to take care of, and you need to mingle, not be hiding out with me. You go do your job, and let me do mine. Remember what our priorities are here, Owen. We both agreed on certain things, and we need to stick to them.”

“But what if I want to hide out with you?” I grinned.

She shook her head at me and raised an eyebrow. “Go. Mingle. Do what everyone expects you to do.” She gave me a gentle pat on the butt, then disappeared toward the front of the bus.

I did as I was I was told and hung back with the guys, even though I didn’t really want to. Talon was already doing body shots off of the stomachs of two of the girls he’d brought on the bus. He certainly wasn't one to waste any time when it came to the ladies. I shook my head and grabbed a beer, sitting down next to Jeremiah.

“Good show tonight, man.” He clinked his bottle against mine. “Nalia is amazing, man, she really is. I'm glad you found a good assistant. She's taken a huge load off of your shoulders. All the guys have been talking about how they can tell you’re way more relaxed. I know it’s because of her.”

“Yeah, she’s pretty great,” I sighed.

Jeremiah raised an eyebrow at me. “You seem rather enamored with her, too. Funny. If I remember correctly, you were the one who made us all promise that we wouldn't get involved with her, no matter what?”

I shrugged and took a swig of beer. He knew me well enough that I didn't need to respond. So, we finished our beers in silence as the bus headed back to the hotel.

Once there, we all piled out of the bus and headed up to the penthouse in a couple of different elevators. I lost track of Nalia in all of the chaos, even though I was doing my best to keep an eye on her. When we walked into the penthouse, however, she was already there waiting, still wearing the Bleeding Heart tank top, but having changed out of her mini skirt into a pair of yoga pants.

“You changed,” I frowned, looking down at her outfit. “You are partying with us, aren't you?”

She shook her head. “Sorry, Owen, but I'm afraid I'm not going to be able to join in. I have a few things I need to take care of, and I thought maybe it would be a good idea to give you guys some time away from the mother hen’s watchful gaze. I was just going to head to my room and get some work done.”

My frown deepened. “You’re not staying in the penthouse with us?”

“Nah, with the extra people you guys brought and the road crew still coming to join in, I figured you guys could use the extra room. I'm sure you all want to cut loose, and the other guys already think I’m strict as hell. Actually, I think they're even a little scared of me now!” I laughed, thinking of how quickly they now conformed when she barked orders.

“No, I'm gonna leave you all to do your thing, while I just get some peace and quiet. I’ll just be down a floor, though, in room 217, so if there are any problems just head down and get me or give me a call.” She gave me a comforting smile, but I still didn’t want her to go.

“Stay,” I grabbed her hand, but it slipped from my grasp.

“If you need anything, you know where to find me,” she said before she kissed my cheek. “Now, go enjoy your party; you guys earned it.”

“Right,” I sighed, walking her to the door. I wanted to go with her, but at the same time, I knew the guys and the rest of the crew would expect me to stay, at least for a little while. Nalia was right, I did have to stay and mingle and at least try to have a good time. As the leader of this band, it was pretty much expected of me, even if I wasn't really in the mood for it at the moment.

I watched her get onto the elevator before I headed back inside the penthouse, and couldn't deny there was a pang of sadness and disappointment that she wasn't going to be at the afterparty with me. Talon and Jay, meanwhile, had cranked up the stereo system and were pumping some party tunes, and people were starting to dance.

I made my way over to the bar where I got the attention of the bartender and ordered a couple of drinks, downing them quickly in an attempt to drown my disappointment before joining the others. Forty-five minutes later, the crew arrived, bringing a few more guests up with them. The penthouse quickly became packed with partygoers. The party was definitely on now, and I was starting to feel a slight buzz from the drinks.

“Great show tonight. Gonna be a good tour,” some of the crew members said in passing as they picked up drinks at the bar. I ended up hanging with several of the road crew guys on the sofas, bullshitting and laughing as I downed a few more drinks. I was having fun, but it didn’t feel quite right because Nalia wasn’t there with me. I tried to shake the feeling, but for some unknown reason, I couldn’t.

I had a heavy buzz going when I got up and headed to the bar for another drink. Talon came over and slung an arm around my shoulder.

“Come on! Let’s do some shots!” he said, slurring a little bit.

“You sure you need to do any more shots?” I asked, unable to help smiling.

“Hell yes!” he snorted, then slapped the bar. “This party is only just getting started, bro! Four shots of fireball!”

The bartender came over and filled up four shot glasses and Talon beamed at me picking up one.

“To Bleeding Heart!” He clinked his glass on mine, and several hoots of agreement sounded around the room.

“To Bleeding Heart,” I agreed before taking the first shot and quickly following it with the second. If I had to mingle, I might as well get a bit drunk.

“A couple more?” Talon shot me a mischievous glance. I nodded. Why the hell not?

After two more shots, I was definitely in a more sociable mood. Still, something was missing with Nalia not being there and I couldn't really get in the right mood for it, even with the alcohol flowing through my veins. I hung out for an hour or so more, then decided I’d had enough. I wanted to spend some time with her tonight.

Since Talon and Jeremiah were busy chatting up girls, I excused myself with an Irish goodbye and headed into the hall for the elevator. I knew she was just one floor down, but for the life of me, I couldn't remember her room number. You drunken idiot, I thought as I stared at my swaying reflection on the mirrored elevator doors.

Ever stubborn, I stepped off the elevator onto her floor, looking up and down the hallway, hoping that seeing the room numbers might jog my memory. What the hell was her room number? 218? 216? I remembered it was in the teens but not which one. Was it an even or odd number? I could knock on half if I remembered and find her.

No, don't do that, I told myself. It was two in the morning. I doubted anyone sleeping in any of those rooms would appreciate me trying to guess which room she was in that way. I sighed and rested my forehead against the wall. Maybe those last few shots hadn't been my brightest idea.

A door opened, and I looked up, but it was just some old man in his bathrobe who gave me a weird look when I smiled at him. Damn. Like I’d be lucky enough to have her step out of her room with perfect timing like that. I stood in the hall a little longer, hoping that I’d either remember her room number or that she’d come out to pull me into her room, but neither happened.

The longer I stood there, in fact, the more I realized what a stupid idea this had been. As shitfaced as I was, I would probably make an ass out of myself trying to be smooth with her, anyway.

With a sigh, I turned toward the elevator and stumbled back in, pressing the button for the penthouse floor. When I walked back in, Jay and Nate were hanging with some girls on the couch, but instead of more partying, I headed straight for one of the rooms to crash, no longer interested in hanging out or mingling.

I threw myself on the empty bed, grumbling about not getting to see Nalia tonight and then humming a song I had stuck in my head but couldn’t remember where I knew it from. After a minute, it hit me: it was the song Nalia had been playing at the bar. Shit, she really was starting to get under my skin.

 

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

Nalia

 

watched as Owen and the guys headed out into the conference room for their first press conference. Owen looked like a million bucks with a smile to match as he stepped in front of cheering fans and dozens of reporters. He fit the role of rock star so well. It was easy to see why all the girls loved him and why the band had such a huge following.

He was unfazed by all of the flashing cameras and screaming admirers as they walked out and took their seats. Instead, he simply stood calmly with a smile on his face, waiting to get going. Today, they were announcing the new album they’d be releasing, which they had finished recording before leaving for the tour.

I smiled as I watched them. I had never enjoyed a job so much, and I loved working with them. Some days, I still couldn't believe how lucky I was to have landed this job. Not to mention how amazing it was for my life to have totally turned around like it had. One minute I'd been almost penniless, unemployed with no hope for a decent job in sight, and now there I was, working with one of the biggest rock bands in the country and having a blast doing so. It still felt like a dream sometimes, as if it couldn't possibly be real.

It didn’t hurt that I was also working with one of the most gorgeous rock star billionaires around. And even if Owen and I hadn’t gotten any alone time the other night, he’d taken it in stride and things were good.

My phone buzzed in my pocket, and I excused myself, heading to the back.

“Hey, Jackson,” I answered, smiling.

“How’s my little sis doing?” he asked, and I could almost hear his smile through the phone.

“Not bad, not bad.”

“Life on the road treating you okay?”

“Yes. The tour is off to a good start, thanks to yours truly.”

“Of course it is,” he laughed. “The reason I didn’t want you to take this job had nothing to do with me doubting you.”

“I know, I know.” He was still a little upset about me taking the job, but he obviously knew there wasn’t much he could do, especially from miles away and after the fact.

“You’re not falling for that asshole, Owen, are you?”

“I can’t make any promises, but I’m trying not to,” I joked. Jackson didn’t laugh.

“I’m serious.”

“So am I! I’m not trying to,” I laughed.

“Nalia, you know I worry about you,” he sighed.

“I know. And I’m using my head. You don’t need to worry about me.”

“Yeah, well, I’m still going to worry. It’s what I do. You’ll always be my baby sister.”

I smiled. “I know. And you’ll always be my big, overprotective older brother. I really appreciate it, you know I do, but you have got to realize I'm all grown up now and can take care of myself. I really can, I promise!”

We talked for a few more minutes, and he promised he’d be keeping tabs on me and making sure I was okay, even though I told him it wasn’t necessary. I hung up the call with Jackson and headed back inside to see the guys finishing up their press conference. Owen was just coming around the corner, looking for me.

“Sorry, had to take a phone call. How did it go?”

“Great! You ready to go get some lunch?” He smiled and put an arm around me.

“Yeah. I have us at an Italian restaurant downtown that is closed except for you guys so you don’t have to worry about a crowd,” I explained.

His smile widened. “You really do think of everything, don’t you?”

“It’s my job.”

“Come on, let’s head out.”

We made our way outside to the waiting limo and piled in with the others, heading to the restaurant. I went through a few emails about interviews and other tour publicity on the way. When we arrived, I followed them in, still answering emails that needed my attention.

It was hard to focus on anything else when there were so many details to take care of, and at this early stage of the tour, I still hadn't quite fallen into a rhythm yet. I was still finding my way and doing a pretty decent job of it so far.

What concerned me was the feeling that something was going to go wrong at some point. That was just the law of nature. Nothing could run this smoothly without any bumps in the road.

“I’m totally starving!” Talon announced as they took their seats in the middle of the empty restaurant. “I could eat a horse right now. And I'm not even joking, dudes. If there's horse on this menu, I'm ordering it!” The others grumbled in agreement, and Owen took a seat at the head of the table. I put my phone away to make sure the staff at the restaurant got everybody's drink and food orders and didn't leave anybody out.

“Nalia.”

“Yes?” I spun around to face Owen.

“What are you doing?” he asked, his forehead wrinkled together in concern.

“Just making sure you guys are being taken care of. That's my job, remember?” I smiled nervously, suddenly worried I’d done something wrong.

“Look, everything is perfect. We're here, we're relaxed, everything has been taken care of, we're all on schedule. There's nothing to worry about right now, nothing at all. Stop stressing out and come sit down and eat with us,” he insisted, pulling out a chair.

“But the-”

“But nothing. Nalia, you’re doing an amazing job. Seriously, everything is more organized and on schedule than on any other tour we've ever done. We've never been this tight and prepared. Sit down. Emails and calls can wait till after you have some lunch.”

I hesitated, and that’s when Talon led the guys in chanting my name until I finally sat down, my face crimson from embarrassment. All of them cheered as I took a seat. Talon then leaned over and put an arm around me.

“That’s our girl!” Talon started. “Come on, I know you've set yourself up in this 'mom' role and you're concerned with making sure everything happens exactly where and when it's supposed to happen — and believe me, we seriously do appreciate it — but, Nalia, you need to enjoy yourself, too. You’ve been working hard at this, and you deserve to at least sit down and enjoy a meal. You're human, just like us, not a robot or some shit – and we totally don't expect you to be a machine all the time. So, relax for a while, forget about all that stuff, and let's just have a nice meal,” he said.

I smiled and Owen laughed, passing me a menu. I’d never felt so at home in a job than that moment. If it wasn’t where I belonged, then I didn’t know where that would be.

 

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

Owen

 

hadn’t felt so great in a long time. I'd forgotten how much I used to love touring, and with Nalia keeping everything on schedule, it was even better than I remembered. And now, with things running more smoothly than they ever had before and with almost no administrative details to worry about because Nalia was doing such a bang up job covering all of that stuff, I could focus purely on the music. I was already in the mindset that this might turn out to be the best tour we'd ever played.

I looked out over the empty hall smiling, just imagining the stadium outside filled up with the crowd we expected. This was going to be a big one, and I was determined to give every single fan who had bought a ticket a show that they'd remember for the rest of their lives.

“You guys ready?” I looked back at the others and asked.

“Hell yeah!” Jeremiah smiled as he strapped on his guitar. “I've never been more ready. Let's tear the roof off this place!”

“One, two, three, four,” Talon counted off then started on the drums. Jeremiah, Jay, and Nate started in on guitars and bass, then I started in on vocals. I caught Nalia watching from backstage and smiled at her as I sang.

A reserved smile spread over her pink lips. I hoped she was getting into the music and admiring my performance as we rehearsed, but I figured it was more likely that she was probably going over the next ten tasks she had to get done in her head.

We went through the entire set of songs with no issues. A flawless rehearsal. We were on a roll, flying on adrenaline, pure energy, and passion. Everyone was in good spirits and ready to go, and I just knew we were gonna rock hard tonight. After we finished, I headed toward the side stage with Talon, and we both peeked out at the growing crowd.

“This is going to be another great fucking show,” Talon smiled, checking out the crowd. “Damn, bro, there are quite a few sexy ladies out there, eh? This is totally my vibe. Still the best job in the world, dude. The best job on earth!” he nudged my side.

I only shrugged.

“I’m going to find Nalia, see if she’s got everything under control,” I said, clearing my throat.

Talon grinned mischievously. “Riiiiight.”

I smiled at him and walked off, heading backstage in search of her. I found her alone in the dressing room checking over the catering and ensuring everything was just as it needed to be. She really had a great eye for detail and was a bit of a perfectionist.

“Hey, beautiful.” I came up behind her and put my arms around her waist.

“Owen.”

I could hear the smile in her voice as I leaned down and kissed her neck. I spun her around to face me and backed her up against the wall.

“Did you need something?” she asked, blinking up at me. I kissed her lips gently, then a bit more hungrily, tugging at her bottom lip. She uttered a soft whimper against my mouth as she kissed me back, her body pressing against mine.

“Promise me you'll spend the night with me tonight,” I whispered, nuzzling my nose against hers.

“But you’ll be busy tonight. You’ve got meet and greets, signings, another after party-”

I kissed her again to cut her off, easing my hips up against her, letting her feel how much I wanted her. “Please, Nalia. I don’t care — just promise me. I just want to spend some time with you. You're the only thing I want to focus on after the show tonight.”

She smiled up at me, once more with that hesitant look in her eyes. “Okay. I promise. I’m all yours tonight,” she whispered back.

Once more, I joined my lips to hers, happy despite her hesitance. I didn't want to give her any reason whatsoever to doubt me later. I brushed a stray lock of hair behind her ear as I studied her, wondering what was going on behind those beautiful eyes of hers. Her cheeks flushed a little as my fingertips brushed her skin, and she looked down, pulling away from me.

“I should get back to work,” she said before I could pull her back to me. “I’ve got a few more things need to take care of before you guys hit the stage.”

“Umm, okay.” I was left a little speechless as I watched her go. Something was off, and to tell the truth, it had seemed to be off for days. I didn’t feel like she was being completely upfront with me about something, and it wasn't sitting right. Maybe she was protecting herself. If so, that was a good thing, right? She didn’t want to get too attached. After all, we had both agreed on that being one of the conditions.

I had assured her I didn’t want to become too attached to her, either. Or, so I thought. Lately, I’d caught myself wondering what life would be like with Nalia. And watching her walk out of the room with that look on her face had me thinking about other things.

Not just sex with her, but settling down, having someone close, someone I could be with for...well, forever. The idea of it was kind of scary to think about but also very comforting at the same time. And as scary as it was, I could honestly say I didn't want anyone else – just her. No one had ever made me think about those things. Until now, at least.

I was still in a daze when the guys came into the room to grab something to eat. I tried to get my mind off of her as they arrived.

“Doing all right?” Talon asked, grabbing a plate of food.

“Yeah, just thinking about the show,” I lied.

“I’m sure it’s going to be great. We totally killed it in rehearsal, so, I imagine it's gonna be just as kick-ass when we actually hit the stage.” He patted my shoulder then sat down next to me. “Not going to eat, bro?”

“I will in a bit.” I looked over at the food, not feeling too hungry.

“Too busy thinking about Nalia?” he whispered so the others didn’t hear him. I only shrugged. He could read me better than anyone. “For what it’s worth, I think you two are good for each other. Just don’t fuck things up while we’re on tour,” Talon winked.

I sure as hell didn’t plan to, and that was the truth.

I left without eating much, then went and changed for the show, and finally headed out of the dressing room while the opening band was playing to check them out. The crowd was huge, thrumming with energy. It brought a smile to my face and lifted my mood as thoughts of Nalia began fading into the back of my mind. It was getting close to show time, and I needed to get in the right mindset to perform.

The opening band finished and we high-fived them as they came off stage, having a couple beers with them while the crew set up the stage for us. When it was time for Bleeding Heart to take the stage, we converged into our usual huddle, putting hands into the middle like we were on a football team before shouting “Bleeding Heart” to pump us up. It was a little juvenile, but it had been our routine since our first live gig.

When we ran out on stage, the crowd erupted in a thunderous roar of cheers and applause. As the wave of sound hit me, an electric rush flooded through me. Every time I stepped on stage, it was still surreal to see people cheering for us, even after all the years we’d performed. It never got old. Never. It always felt like it had the very first time.

“How’s everyone doing tonight?” I shouted into the microphone. The crowd roared in response, and my smile grew. “Are you ready to do this? Are you ready to rock this place down to its foundations, tear every brick out, and burn it to the ground?!”

Even louder cheers came in response, and I nodded at Talon. He slammed on the drums and headed straight into our first song, and I watched the crowd morph into a sea of swaying bodies as I began to sing.

I got lost in the music, forgetting everything else at that moment. For that brief segment of time, everything was perfect. Absolutely perfect.

 

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

Nalia

 

guys came off the stage steaming from the heat of their performance and covered in sweat. I ushered them into the dressing room to freshen up before their meet and greet. Once again, they had pulled off a killer set. The crowd had been so fanatical that they had played three encores before finally leaving the stage.

Owen grinned at me as he passed and blew me a kiss, causing those stupid, silly butterflies in my stomach to swarm in a frenzy. Before I could even realize what I was doing, I gave him a flirty wink in response.

I waited outside of the dressing room for them and watched all the fans that had won a backstage meet and greet as they headed for the area set up for them. I tried to stop myself, but I couldn’t keep from eyeing them up and down.

A lot of them were women, and almost all of those women were dressed rather revealingly in halter tops, micro-minis, and clothing that revealed more of their bodies than most swimsuits would have. There were midriffs showing at every turn, plenty of cleavage, legs exposed almost all the way up to the point where you could see panties, and of course, pierced belly buttons and tattoos. To say that I wasn’t thrilled about these girls possibly throwing themselves all over Owen was an understatement.

Relax. They’re just fans, and he already said he wanted to spend the night with you. Talon and the other guys will be all over these groupies. Not Owen. He's not like that, and he's only got eyes for you. He's said it himself more times than you can count, Nalia. So, just breathe. You don't have anything to worry about.

It was easy enough to tell myself all of that, but when the guys came out, and I saw panties and bras go flying and girls begging to have their tits and asses signed, it was much harder to swallow my own advice.

This is how a rock band tour goes. Owen warned you that this is how it would be, and Talon has told you plenty of stories about the crazy things fans did on previous tours, I reminded myself.

Still, I ended up excusing myself and heading to the bathroom. I just couldn't take being around all the scantily-clad, turned-on groupies and watching them do everything they could to get their grubby, little paws all over Owen.

I felt panicky, nervous for some reason. I splashed a little water on my face and took a few deep breaths to calm myself. I knew coming into this job that this was how some fans acted, especially around attractive rock stars, and these guys were certainly that and more.

As much as I hated that I needed to, I once again had to remind myself that Owen wasn't like that. I kept repeating to myself that it would be the other guys doing unheard of things with these girls. Not him. He would simply be polite and sign autographs for them. I pulled my makeup out of my purse and freshened up my face, then fixed my hair before walking back out.

I was beginning to feel a little better — until I saw Owen. He had two girls sitting in his lap for a picture. Both chicks had their tits out on full display, and he had his tongue sticking out toward them like he was going to lick them. Waves of something I couldn’t even describe started rippling through my body, and an uncomfortable heat flushed through my face.

I bit my lip hard and turned on my heels, heading for the back door. I needed air, and I needed it fast. Fans or not, there was no reason for him to join in like that. Then again, he had made it clear we weren’t an item...or anything, for that matter. He’d also made it clear that crazy things happened on tour. I was just an idiot for starting to care more deeply for him than I really should have.

“Nalia?” I spun around to see Talon standing outside.

“Hey, Talon, did you need something?” I plastered a smile on my face, even as tears began to rim my eyes.

“No…no, I didn’t need anything,” he said, lighting a cigarette. “I came out here to check on you.”

“On me? Why would you do that? I’m totally fine,” I assured him, trying to keep it together and put on my most hardened expression. “You should get back in there with your fans; you're going to leave a lot of them disappointed if you don't. Go on, have fun; don't worry about me.” I waved a hand, managing a laugh, even if it sounded hollow.

He sighed and put a hand on my shoulder. “I saw your face, and I think I know you well enough by now to be able to see that you’re not fine.”

I tried to laugh it off, even as more tears formed. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Owen. With the two practically topless girls. You can't tell me that's not going to bother you on some level.” He stared me straight in the eyes and the tears finally began to roll down my cheeks.

“It’s my own fault. I’m an idiot, a stupid idiot, nothing more. I actually started feeling something for him. Even after he told me….” My voice trailed off as Talon pulled me into a strong hug, and I sniffled, hugging him back.

“Look, sometimes my brother can be an idiot just like me. It's a family trait, sadly. He cares about you, too, you know. A lot. He really does, believe me. He just got caught up in joking around with the fans.”

“By trying to lick their tits?! That's what you call 'just joking around?!’” I looked at Talon like he was nuts.

“I’m not excusing him! Fans get crazy, and, to be honest, it’s easy to get caught up in it, but I know he wasn’t going to do anything more than just humor them by playing along. Yes, I know they pulled their tits out — they want attention from us. And yeah, a lot of them want, you know, the whole package. But most are satisfied with a smile, an autograph, and maybe a flirty touch. But trust me, he's not going to go any further than that with them because of how much he likes you.”

“I shouldn’t even be here right now. Everything is organized, and you guys don’t need me to get back to the hotel. I should just go back to my room,” I sighed.

“You sure?”

“Yeah, I don’t want to stay and watch him with….” I shrugged.

Talon gave me one more strong squeeze. “It'll be all right, I promise. I know him better than anyone. He is my brother. And, he's not going to do anything stupid. Don't worry; he's not like me in that respect,” Talon gave me a playful wink intended to reassure me. I wasn’t feeling too reassured. “Anyways, we’ll meet you back at the hotel, no worries, okay?” he added.

I nodded, feeling a little sad, disappointed, numb, and angry all rolled into one. Without another word, I headed around the building to the front to hail a cab. I finally caught one and simply headed straight up to my room when I arrived back at the hotel.

I wanted to go to sleep, but I was too agitated and upset over the situation and over the fact that I cared so much. Maybe Talon was right. Maybe Owen didn’t mean anything by it. Maybe he was just posing for a picture and didn’t think something like that might hurt me. Maybe, since I lied on my resume, he assumed I’d been on tour with other bands before and knew those kinds of things happened and were simply par for the course. But if I was being honest with myself, I didn’t know what to think anymore. I felt like I was unraveling, and I needed something to calm me down.

I suddenly remembered that I had passed a piano in the lobby of the hotel earlier. Without a second thought, I slipped my shoes back on and headed downstairs.

I sat down at the pristine black bench and started playing. As I did, I started to forget everything and just focused on the music.

 

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

Owen

 

felt great after the meet and greet had finished, invigorated even. The show had been a spectacular success, and we had been on fire from the very first song to the final encore. Having the fans pretty much refuse to let us go off stage until they'd heard a third encore really had felt amazing. My earlier thoughts were spot on – this was definitely turning out to be one of the best tours we'd done, if not the best ever.

Even though confidence had never been something I had an issue with, it was nice to know so many women were still attracted to me. Every man needs a little ego boost now and again.

Not to mention, I had to face the facts: I was getting older, and damn if I didn’t feel less attractive in recent years. Damn ego. I mean, I'd stayed in shape, and my genes had gifted me with a full head of hair that showed no signs of thinning, and good, smooth skin that remained pretty damn youthful, but even with all of that, I'd began to feel as if I wasn't as attractive as I had been in my twenties. So, the attention from these star-struck groupies, well, it was nice in that regard.

Not that I’d given a lot of thought to women in the last couple of years. Mostly, I’d been working so hard and been so extremely focused on the record label, I hadn’t had time to think much about relationships or even one-night stands. Actually, I hadn’t really much cared what women thought of me until recently. And when I say “women,” I actually mean one woman in particular.

Knowing Nalia thought highly of me was more than enough for me, even with all the attention from the young, hot groupies. Something about her was so much more captivating than any of them could ever be. Speaking of…

I stopped and looked around the tour bus as I got on with the others. Where the hell was Nalia?

I walked to the back of the tour bus in search of her, but she wasn’t there, so I climbed off and headed back toward the building.

“Oh, my God! Owen, I love you!” some girl shouted and before I knew what was happening, she flung herself at me and wrapped her arms around my neck, her lips connecting with mine before I could even protest. The click of several cameras sounded before I could push her away with as much gentleness and calm demeanor as I could manage, as annoying as she was.

I was a little irritated as I walked into the building, but was focused on my search for Nalia. I’m a rock star, and stupid shit like that happened all the time. I was pretty used to it by now, but it still had a tendency to catch me off guard sometimes and get under my skin.

I walked all around the backstage area, searching everywhere, but couldn’t find her anywhere. Finally, feeling both disappointed and a little worried, I headed back to the bus. When I got on, Talon was lounging up front swigging on a beer.

“Have you seen Nalia?” I asked him, thoroughly concerned. He stared at me for a moment, and there was a look on his face I wasn’t sure how to read.

“She went back to the hotel. Wasn’t feeling well,” he said flatly. I looked at him, now more than a little confused. If I hadn't known any better, I’d say he was mad at me, but what the hell for, I didn’t have a clue. I hadn't said anything even remotely out of the way to him for days now.

Whatever it was, though, I wasn’t going to let it get me down. I was in a good mood and still feeling pumped. I went to the kitchenette on the bus and grabbed a beer, then went to the back to hang out with the other guys while the bus driver drove us back to the hotel.

When the bus stopped, I followed the others off and headed into the hotel lobby. Talon stopped abruptly in front of me, making me almost run into him. I started to say something about him being a dumb shithead, but stopped when I saw, and heard, what had made the others stop in their tracks.

Nalia was sitting at the piano in the lobby, playing one of the most beautiful renditions of “Unchained Melody” I’ve heard. Other people had stopped to listen, even some of the hotel staff had stopped doing their jobs and were simply standing there, utterly mesmerized. In fact, the whole lobby was silent except for her playing.

I walked closer until I was right behind her, my heart feeling as if it were going to burst as I watched her. She was incredibly talented. I could listen to her play for hours.

I closed my eyes, getting lost in the beauty of the music as the notes flowed around me. Not only around me, but through me, stirring my heart and soul. I hadn’t realized I had started singing until the music suddenly stopped and she was saying something. I opened my eyes and found her facing me, a slight frown on her lips and a sad look in her eyes.

“Nalia, what’s wrong?” I asked.

“Nothing. I’m just tired,” she sighed and turned away from me. I followed after her as she got up from the piano and headed for the elevators.

“Wait, where are you going?”

She spun back around as she reached the elevator doors, something else now clearly present in her eyes. Was it anger?

“I’m just going to go to bed, all right? It's been a long day, and there's still plenty more for me to do tomorrow. So, I need a good, quiet rest. Goodnight, Owen.”

I grabbed her arm before she could turn away from me again and pulled her back against me. My heart pounded heavily in my chest, my mouth went dry. I wasn't sure what exact feelings were ripping through me, but there was definitely a tidal wave of them. “You promised me, Nalia, remember? Tonight?” I said, kissing the side of her neck. She pulled away a little and gave me an icy glare.

“You sure you don’t want someone else?”

I felt a little wounded at her words but pulled her back to me once more. “Hell no. Why would I possibly want anyone but you? Not a chance. Never,” I whispered in her ear.

 

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER THIRTY

Nalia

 

elevator dinged, and Owen pulled me inside with him.

“Come here, beautiful,” he muttered in a gruff, sexy voice, drawing me against him.

I still felt a little upset and more than a little jealous about the incident with the groupies earlier, but also suspected I was being ridiculous. We had agreed not to get too attached, and we were just having fun. Why was I worrying and not just living a little? I was young, I was supposed to be living it up, not taking things so seriously. I relaxed against him, and Owen groaned in my ear, pushing his hips against me, letting me feel that he was already a little hard. I turned my face to him, and he kissed me deeply, making me moan into his mouth.

“Mmm, God, you’re so sexy. All I’ve wanted was alone time with you for days,” he whispered, running his hands over my hips. “I've waited so long for this, too long. It's been driving me out of my mind.”

I didn’t say anything back, but I leaned back against him, pressing my ass against the growing bulge in his jeans. He pressed gentle kisses to my neck and slipped one hand over my ass, letting his fingers slip between my thighs.

“I want to lay you down on the bed, kiss every inch of your body,” he moaned, his fingers starting to rub over my panties. I couldn’t stop a moan escaping from my lips.

The elevator dinged again, and this time it opened on our floor. He led me out, forcing me against the wall and surprising me with a deep, passionate kiss. I put my arms around him, and he lifted me up, wrapping my legs around his waist.

Maybe I had been all wrong about what happened earlier. Maybe all it had been was a stupid pose for some bimbos’ Instagram accounts. It had bothered me, but maybe that was just a part of the rock star life that I wasn’t used to, and it really had meant nothing to Owen at all. The way he was acting now, it seemed like those girls were the furthest thing from his mind.

After a moment, he lowered me back to the floor and fumbled with his card key for a few seconds before finally getting the door to the penthouse open. He led me to his room, stopping every now and then to kiss me as we went. Once we were in his room, he backed me up to the bed and laid me down, kissing me again, his tongue flicking against mine.

“Nalia, I want you. Only you,” he said to me in the gruff, low voice that made heat pool low in my belly. I pulled him harder into a kiss, massaging my tongue against his as I rolled over so that I was lying on him.

His hands cupped my face tenderly, sweetly, threatening to make me melt in ways I wasn’t emotionally ready for, so I took one of his hands off my face and slid it down to my breast. He groaned into my mouth, dropping his free hand down to my other breast, massaging them both. His touch felt like drops of pure fire on my body. It soon made me want him even more. When his hand slipped down on my stomach, and started to head even further south I grabbed it, giving him a smile.

“No.”

His brow arched high. “No? Are you fucking kidding me?”

I shook my head and leaned against him, allowing my breasts to flatten against his chest. His hardness was pressed in the V of my thighs, the thought of what was about to happen was nearly driving me crazy with need. “I want to do this.”

His lips flattened into a thin line, and he dropped his hands from my body, folding them behind his head. “Go ahead. Do your worst, then. Let's see what you've got, Nalia.”

I gave him a cat-like smile and sat back up, grabbing the end of my shirt and pulling it over my head, throwing it on the floor beside the bed. Tonight, I wanted him writhing under my touch, begging for me to finish. I wanted to be the one in charge this time. My bra went next, and I heard the swift intake of his breath as his eyes feasted on my bare breasts, the fire simmering in their deep blue depths.

True to his word, though, he didn’t move or try to take charge of the situation. I smiled, pleased with his obedience, and promptly grabbed the edge of his shirt, slowly and achingly revealing his washboard stomach. “Take it off,” I instructed in a tone that suggested there would be no compromise on this.

“Gladly,” he agreed, pulling the shirt the rest of the way and throwing it off to the side. His hand reached for me, and I mimicked the arched brow he’d given me, forcing him to put his hands back where they had been above his head.

“Not yet,” I scolded him. “I told you, I'm the one in charge here.”

“Damn,” he answered, his breath ragged. “Are you trying to kill me, Nalia? Shit, I'm not sure how much longer I can hold out like this!”

I didn’t answer. Instead, I simply smiled at him – a lustful, flirtatious smile that I could see had the effect of driving him even wilder. I kept my eyes locked into his as I ran my hands over his chest, marveling at the way he was built — so powerful, muscles so hard and chiseled, without an ounce of flab anywhere on him. He really was close to perfect. And this body was mine, all mine for the whole night.

Leaning down, I trailed kisses along his chest, right above his heart. Silently, I considered what I was doing as a thought suddenly entered my mind. It had been an unconscious action, but I guess I had just wanted to be close to his heart. He probably wouldn’t understand the meaning, and I wasn’t so sure I fully understood what was going on, either, but tonight, it didn’t matter. Tonight, we were just going to lose ourselves in the moment.

I allowed my tongue to trace a trail over his pecs, slowly tasting the saltiness of his skin as it moved over it. He didn’t flinch, but I could hear the change in his breathing, feel the strain of him against his jeans. When I reached his belly button, I allowed myself to slide with tantalizing slowness down his body, my fingers working on the button of his fly.

“Nalia,” he warned as I flicked it open and pulled down his zipper.

I looked up and gave him a stern shake of my head. “No talking, Owen. Don’t forget, I’m the one in charge here,” I murmured. “Now, do as I tell you and raise your hips.”

His expression was stormy, but he did as I instructed so I could pull his jeans down over his hips and to his ankles, sliding back up to free him from his boxers. He was pulsating against my hand, hot, swollen, and as hard as a rock. I ran my thumb over the tip, causing him to jerk ever so slightly beneath my touch. He was ready and so was I.

“What do you want?” I asked softly, looking up at him. His eyes were hungry, his jaw clenched tightly as he stared at me.

“I want you.”

“How badly?”

“Like I’ve never wanted anyone before in my life. Please, Nalia, you’re killing me.”

I squeezed him gently, earning a groan in response, knowing that I couldn’t last much longer myself. But I was determined. He wasn't going to get me just yet. I wanted to drag the experience out a little more.

It didn’t matter that I wanted it as badly as he did, I was enjoying the feeling of control. I caressed the head of his long, powerful member with gentle fingertips, and he shuddered and moaned at the pleasure it brought.

“Jesus, Nalia,” he uttered as I began to stroke his shaft up and down in a gentle rhythm. It wasn’t easy to maintain the feather light touch, only just brushing my hand over it when I wanted to wrap my fingers around his hard length and have my way with him. He twisted and turned, gasping loudly with ecstasy.

“Are you ready, Owen?” I purred.

“Are you kidding? Damn, Nalia, I can't hold on for another fucking minute! I need you. Now. So fucking badly.”

I wiggled out of my skirt and panties and slid up his body, rubbing his hard planes against my already heated skin. “I won’t make you suffer for too much longer. You've been a good boy, and you deserve a reward, I think.”

“Thank God,” he breathed as I brushed my lips over his. “How long before I can touch you? You don't understand how bad you're torturing me right now.”

“Soon,” I promised, sliding back down again, my stomach gliding over his. God, he was so hard. Moisture pooled between my thighs in anticipation. Reaching into the back pocket of his jeans, I located the ever-present condom and opened it, pulling out the slim rubber before reaching for him again. He groaned and hit his head against the headboard, his hands clenching the sheets as I pressed my lips to his bulging tip before sliding the condom over him.

The anticipation was building and becoming far too intense to hold out for much longer. I rose up on my knees and positioned myself above him, looking him directly in his eyes. “Do you know who you are fucking tonight?”

“You,” he growled, his eyes boring into mine. “Only you, Nalia. Only you.”

Satisfied, I lowered myself on him, not stopping until he completely filled me. I was groaning as I felt his length press as deeply as I could take him. I caught my breath and spoke. “You can touch me now.”

His hands gripped my hips and I rose again, moaning as he filled me quickly and completely.

“Yes,” he forced out as my hands blindly touched my own breasts, my orgasm coming hard and quick. His hands tightened on my hips and I rose up again, allowing him to drive into me. “Come for me, Nalia; only me.”

“Only you,” I whimpered as another wave of pleasure hit me, nearly causing me to collapse against him. He held me in place, his hips pumping into me hard and fast, the bed squeaking from the force. “Owen!”

“Yes!” he shouted, sweat building on his forehead as he gripped my hips, his pace quickening. “God, yes!”

I felt him stiffen, and then he let out a guttural groan as I collapsed against his chest. For a moment, I heard nothing but the harsh breathing and the rapid heartbeat under my cheek. I felt strangely sated, though some of our other sexual encounters had been longer. I had felt the need tonight to keep my heart tucked away in my chest, yet, somehow, I had lost myself in him — heart, body, and soul.

His hand drifted to my hair, and he chuckled, the rumbling under my cheek. “God, you’re amazing.”

“I didn’t do anything,” I said as he slid over and allowed me to fall into the bed.

He disposed of the condom and climbed back naked into the bed, reaching for me and pulling me close to him. “The hell you didn’t. It might have been quick, but it was the hottest connection I have ever had.”

I smiled as his arm tucked under my breasts, the warmth of his body against mine a comfort. My heart was in turmoil, enjoying the moment that oozed so much aching tenderness that I wanted to cry into the pillow. Why had I developed feelings for him? Why had I put myself in this position to be hurt and hurt badly?

It wasn’t long before Owen’s breathing evened out and I realized that he had fallen asleep, though my own body was still revving from the encounter. Just like earlier, I was antsy, unsure of what to do. Careful not to wake him, I slid from his arms and gathered my clothes, throwing them on in case someone had come to the penthouse while we were busy.

I took one last look at the bed and sighed. He looked so different when he slept, not the bigger than life rock star that I watched on stage, but somewhat vulnerable, actually. His lips were curved into a slight smile, and I could only hope I had put it there. I tenderly kissed his forehead.

Opening the door, I was relieved to see that the living room was void of anyone else. Good. I didn’t want any awkward encounters tonight. I had done exactly what I had planned on not doing, and though I knew in my head it wasn’t smart to keep this attraction going between Owen and me, my heart was saying something completely different.

I flopped on the couch and pulled my phone out of my pocket. I needed to make sure that no awkward photos or comments were being made about the band. Plus, I needed to update their social media pages with the new shots I had taken tonight.

Pulling up one of my favorite media sites, my heart dropped into my stomach as I saw the photo plastered all over the front page. A photo of Owen and some woman wrapped around him in the back of the concert venue, her lips on his. What the hell? Weren’t those the same lips that had just kissed me senseless all the way to the bedroom? My stomach sank.

Throwing my phone on the couch, I ground my eyes with the palms of my hands, feeling nauseous. I was no different than the rest of those women. I was easy access, nothing more than a bed partner.

Well, I was so done with being such. I was going to finish this round of concerts and go back to my normal life, even if I wasn’t going to feel normal. They could find someone to replace me for when they started up the next leg of the tour.

 

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

Owen

 

The last strains of the song faded away, and I just stood there, unsure of how I felt about it. Before me was the stadium we would be playing in later that night. While empty now, it would be packed to the rafters with screaming fans in a matter of hours, yet, I felt strangely detached from the excitement I normally felt. We had played out a few songs, but they hadn't sounded quite up to par.

Of course, with all that was running through my mind, the music hadn't done too much for me. I couldn’t shake the void I was feeling inside me. The worst part was that I knew exactly why I was feeling that way, and it was pissing me off.

For over a month, Nalia had been avoiding me like the plague — exiting the room when I entered, refusing to answer my calls, and only responding to texts that were directly related to the tour. If she needed to speak to someone in the band or give instructions, she would only talk to Talon or one of the other guys – never to me. It was like the moments we had spent together had all been nothing but a dream and she had no idea who I was. And not only that – it was like she had no interest whatsoever in knowing, either.

“Owen.”

I turned to see my brother right behind me, a concerned look spread across his face. It actually looked a hell of a lot more like pity more than concern, and I hated to be pitied more than anything. It was getting to me.

“You were fucking off on that beat,” I blurted at him.

“What?”

“You heard me,” I said, the anger I was feeling over Nalia ignoring me was starting to wash through my core. “You were off.”

Talon’s eyes narrowed, and he took a step closer. “Get a grip, dude, and stop dishing out bullshit just because you’re in a shitty mood. Because what you just said is pure bullshit. I was far from being off.”

“Tell yourself what you want,” I shot back.

“Ask any one of the other guys in the band. You're the problem, Owen. Your singing sucked, man; you missed half your cues and were hitting off key all over the place. Where the hell is your head?” he questioned.

I flexed my hands. “It’s on your damn playing. That shit was awful.”

“Whatever, you fucking asshole! Stop trying to blame me! You know it's on you, and you're just not willing to admit that it was your fault!”

“The hell it was. Shit, maybe I should just bring in the drummer from the opening band to take your place. At least he can keep a beat.”

Anger flickered through Talon's eyes.

“Back off, Owen. You're full of shit right now and you know it. Quit fucking blaming me for your fucked up issues. We both know this has nothing to do with the music.”

“Fuck you, Talon. You're dragging this band down.”

Talon’s jaw clenched, and suddenly his hands were shoved against my chest, causing me to stumble across the stage.

“Go to hell, Owen!”

I caught my step and charged toward him, taking him down to the stage floor with a diving tackle.

“You asshole!” he shouted as I clocked him once, my fist landing against his chest.

With every punch, I felt myself get madder, wanting to deck him again and again to release the tension that was so tightly wound up inside. I was pissed about Nalia and her cold shoulder routine, pissed that nothing I could do or say could fix it, that I couldn’t figure out how to fix it. My seemingly perfect existence was falling down around me, and I didn’t know how to deal with it. So, naturally, I did the mature thing and exploded in a rant of pure rage.

“Get the hell off of me!” Talon shouted.

I felt the jerk of someone on my shoulders, and moments later, we were pulled apart, allowing Talon time to get to his feet. I snarled and wrenched my way out of the person's grasp, charging at Talon once more, determined to finish what I had started. We tumbled into the equipment, the clanging of drums and cymbals sounding loudly in my ears as we crashed against them. Two seconds later, Talon’s fist collided with my jaw, and I felt a shudder rock my head from the outside in. I sure as hell was going to feel that tomorrow.

It didn't matter though; I still had plenty of fight left in me. I stumbled back, and Talon charged in to try to press home while he still had the upper hand.

He hadn't done a damn thing wrong, and in spite of that I was using him as a punching bag to take out all of my frustration on. It was a downright shitty thing to do, really. For a brief moment, a flicker of guilt about what I was doing shot through me.

But then, Talon's fist crunched against my ribs, sending a shock of pain crashing up my left side. My mental focus kicked straight back into fight mode, and any sense of guilt about my behavior quickly vanished. He tried to land another punch on my ribs, but I was expecting the second one, and I blocked it before countering with a right cross that caught him square on the jaw. As he stumbled just a bit, I tackled him again and we both crashed to the floor.

“What the hell,” I heard from somewhere else in the room just as Talon managed to grab my head and pull me into a headlock. As we wrestled, I punched at his sides, a movement that was rewarded with the sound of grunts in response. As messed up as it sounded, a good fight was just what I needed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

Nalia

 

“No, that light goes over there. They like it for photos.”

I put my hands on my hips and watched as the stage hand moved the light for the fourth time, judging it with a critical eye. I had been doing a great deal of that lately, second guessing myself, and I knew exactly why. It was because I couldn’t concentrate and I hadn’t been able to truly stay focused over the last month.

After the night in Owen’s penthouse, when I had seen those photos of him and the other woman, I had kept my distance, bidding a silent — and permanent — farewell to anything we had once had together...if you could even say we’d actually had anything together. I was probably just fooling myself all along.

I’d gone over it and over it in my head a thousand times. The conclusion I had finally come to grips with was that I had latched onto Owen at the completely wrong point in both of our lives, and since it was quite clear that he had never had a single thought in relation to possibly having something with me, I had decided to do the same.

After all, I was with the band, right? Wasn’t it all supposed to be free love? Wasn’t is all supposed to be attachment free, guilt free? Everyone always says that you're only young once. They say you have to go out and live while you’re young. They say to have a wild and crazy time while you still can.

But it seemed that maybe that was all just an illusion. Maybe people were always going to hurt each other even if there was never intention of more than having a good time – just like Owen had hurt me. Maybe I had hurt him, too. I doubted that was the case, but I supposed it was possible. After all, I hadn’t told Owen the reason I was avoiding him.

Part of me didn’t feel as though I owed him a reason. Part of me just didn’t want to face him. Instead, I had simply been choosing to leave the room whenever I could if he was present. Not once had I given myself any opportunity to be alone in case he decided that he wanted answers.

And considering all the phone calls, I was guessing he did. I knew if I found myself alone with him, he would demand an explanation for what had been going on and I would probably cave and give it to him.

What I was most concerned about was saying too much, giving more than just a reason. My feelings had become too involved, too raw, and too painful to be able to explain. And while some would call me a coward — and maybe they would be right for doing so — the fact was that I simply couldn’t do it. I couldn’t find the words without revealing my true feelings for him.

So, with this in mind, I had done the only thing that I knew to do – I cut off all direct contact with him and then avoided him as best I could. I admit, I harbored a slight sense of shame for my behavior, but it was outweighed by anger and disappointment when I thought back over it all. Of course, what could I really do?

“They’re fighting!” a voice called from the side of the stage, pulling me out of my mental turmoil of thoughts and emotions.

I looked up to see Jay in the doorway, a concerned look on his face. “What? Who’s fighting?”

“Owen and Talon,” he said, slightly out of breath. “They're fighting! Totally going at it, fists out, knock down, drag out! We have to do something!”

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” I blurted out.

“Wish I were,” Jay fired back.

Great! I thought as I hurried toward the door Jay was holding and then on to the smaller stage where they were practicing. Brothers fighting was all we needed. If this made its way onto social media, it would mean an even more massive workload for me, and the last thing I wanted to do was explain why the two brothers who were famous for being such great friends were getting into fist fights with each other.

I hurried to the stage and climbed up, gasping at the sight of the two brothers rolling around on the floor, each trying to block the other’s punches. I had never seen either of them so red faced and full of anger, and they definitely looked as if they could really beat the hell out of one another.

Looking up at the group, I pointed to the mess of jumbled up limbs and couldn’t believe no one had managed to break them up. “Somebody stop them!” I commanded.

If one of them got hurt this close to the end of the tour, it would be impossible to find a replacement. Not to mention, it would mean the entire tour would end disastrously and most likely totally ruin the success we had accomplished up to this point in time. I mean, how do you replace the lead singer of a band in the middle of the tour?

A few of the stagehands grumbled, but dutifully stepped in. And after a bit of swearing and scuffling, they eventually succeeded in pulling Owen and Talon off of each other, though it did take a few attempts.

I immediately stepped in between the two brothers as Talon rose from the floor, his shirt ripped in more than one place and a cut across his forehead bleeding. Owen didn’t look any better, his white t-shirt dirtied with flecks of blood, his lip cut, swollen, and bleeding.

“What the hell are you both trying to do? Destroy this band and absolutely ruin the rest of the tour? Can’t you two manage to keep it together for one more night? Is that really so damn difficult to do?”

“He started it,” Talon grumbled like a five-year-old who had just been caught fighting on the playground.

“Shut the hell up,” Owen growled, his eyes narrowing at his brother. “You fight like a pussy.”

“Just quit it, both of you,” I announced loudly, securing the attention of everyone present in the otherwise empty stadium. “Stop acting like a bunch of damn elementary school kids fighting over who got picked last at kickball and just get it together, for Christ’s sake. If you don’t, I swear to God I will call off this concert tonight, and then I'll leave you two to deal with the pissed off fans.”

They both stood silently staring at the stage floor.

“And, which one of you dumbasses is gonna pay for my busted guitar?” Jeremiah asked from the wings of the stage, holding up his guitar in two pieces held together only by the strings.

Owen sighed loudly and raked a hand through his hair. Our eyes collided and a painful reality hit me head on. There was hurt, anger, and sadness staring back at me, and I knew right away that it wasn’t all directed at his brother.

It was a stab to the heart, but what could I do? I had seen the way that girl had kissed him in that photo, and from where I was standing, it didn’t appear as if he hadn’t done a single thing to stop her. Hell, he had probably been sleeping with anything he could get his hands on – including me, of course.

The thought wounded me more than anything. The last thing I had expected was to get emotionally involved, but that’s exactly what had happened. Now, as much as I wanted to, I couldn't control how I felt. Even after washing my hands of it and avoiding Owen and whatever it was that we’d had together as best I could, looking into his eyes scared me to death.

“Let’s just get back to practicing,” Owen finally said, tearing his gaze away from mine. He turned to Jeremiah and inhaled sharply, his shoulder slumping in defeat. “It was my fault. I’ll buy you a new guitar later, Jeremiah. Right now; sorry, man, I guess you'll just have to use your backup. We do have a gig to play in just a few hours.”

Seeing my out, I stepped off stage and walked out into the stadium where chairs had been positioned for the highest paying concert goers. The stage hands picked up the tumbled drums and put them back into place then everyone took their respective positions. They launched into one of their ballads as I sat down on a chair, watching as they performed.

Unfortunately, the song they began to play had always been one of those that got to me. The way Owen sang it was soul wrenching and, at that moment, it was stabbing at my heart more than usual. His voice worked its way through what felt like every vein in my body, filling every hurting corner of my soul. When his eyes met mine, I was forced to look away from him, afraid that I would burst into tears at any moment. He owned that stage just like he owned my heart without even trying. Damn him.

I somehow made it through the rest of the set without losing it. When they were done, I watched as Owen stalked off the stage without another glance in my direction. It shouldn’t have bothered me. After all, that was how I had planned for it to be. I just hadn’t accounted for how much it would hurt to know that I was done with him.

Talon walked my way as I stood to go, blocking my path. “You’ve got to talk to him.”

I rubbed my arms with my hands, warding off the coolness I felt. “What?”

“This...this whatever you had with my brother, I don't know how you want to classify it, but whatever it was, you have to talk to him about it. He’s being a total dick to everyone, and I, for one, can’t take it anymore. I mean, look at the shit that's just happened!”

“That’s not my fault,” I shot back, aware of the anger glowing in his stare. I wasn’t about to tell him that his brother was a total douche. He probably already knew.

Talon took a step toward me, his fists clenched at his sides. “Yes, this is your fault, Nalia. God, you really are totally blind to how he feels about you, to how much he cares about you, aren’t you? The man has been sleeping by himself for the last month, right down the hall. And when he’s not sleeping, he’s in a mood that, frankly, I’m sick and tired of. So, quit dicking him around and wrap this, whatever it is, up with him. Sort it out, and stop avoiding the damn issue.”

Hurt and angry, I pushed away from him. “Do you have any idea what he did? This is not my fault! Quit sticking up for him! If he cared about me at all, he wouldn’t have…” I couldn’t bring myself to say it.

Talon looked at me for a moment, recognition dawning on his face. “Shit. You’re in love with him, aren’t you?”

Tears blurred my eyes and I stepped around him, not wanting him to see me cry. Yes, I was in love with a man I couldn’t trust, a man I couldn’t have. I was so done with this entire business, with every one of these assholes! I couldn’t take another minute of dealing with it all. They could pull another woman out of the crowd tonight to be their assistant, because I was through.

 

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

Owen

 

I cracked my knuckles and flexed my hands — anxious, angry, and nervous all at the same time. My hands were aching from my stupid ass altercation with Talon earlier in the day. They hurt to the point where I’d had to soak them in hot salt water to relieve some of the pain. Now, the pain and the aches were coming back, but I fixated on it to keep my mind off of what was about to happen.

From my vantage point, I could see the packed stadium and hear the roar of the crowd as they waited anxiously to watch us perform. While the scene normally jacked me up and got my motor revving, tonight it put me on edge and stirred a building force of anxiety within me. What I couldn’t figure out was why.

Behind me, the stage was a buzz of activity, the guys running through their last-minute checks or warming up their voices before we would be stretched thin for an hour or two. I wished I could just find a quiet place and think for a moment; my thoughts were still dwelling on how Nalia had marched in and taken control of the situation earlier today.

It was the most she had spoken to me in over a month. Seeing her hadn’t brought on the reaction I had expected. My heart had fucking ached like an invisible knife had been stabbed into it repeatedly the entire time I was near her. And even though she had been pissed at the time, I had wanted nothing more than to drag her off stage and kiss her senseless in a corner somewhere until she started talking to me again.

I didn’t understand what the hell was going on, and she was refusing to talk to me, so she wasn’t telling me anything. It was maddening, and it had been tearing me apart from the inside for more than a month now. My whole world had been stuck in a crazy cycle of irritation, anger, frustration, uncertainty, and hopelessness the entire time. And even though I was always able to push it out of my mind for the few moments that I was on stage, the rest of the time there was no way to escape the awful feelings that swirled through me.

Did I mention it was maddening? But at least I had the stage. At least I had some form of escape for a little while.

The lights dimmed, and I took in a deep breath, preparing for the performance. The screaming from the dark amphitheater grew louder. Typically, I enjoyed this moment. It was usually like the moments just before the roller coaster dips into a one hundred foot drop. That moment where you know the rush is coming and you can’t wait for it to begin.

Tonight, I couldn’t totally say I was amped up to do this. In fact, I was just looking forward to the moment where I walked off stage, when it was all over. For the first time in my life, I didn't want to walk on stage; I just really wasn't in the mood. And that scared me.

“Ready?” Talon asked, slapping me on the back as he stepped up next to me. Though we hadn’t officially put our differences aside, we were brothers and brothers fought from time to time. It wasn’t the first drag down we’d had, and I doubted it would be the last.

“Ready,” I lied.

He shot me a grin and walked out from behind the curtain, followed by the rest of the guys. I caught a glimpse of the cut on his forehead as he turned to smile at me. It had been cleaned up, but it was still noticeable and I immediately felt like the ass I knew I was. A pang of guilt shot through me. I had been a total asshat for taking all of my built up, pent up frustrations out on him.

I’d been an even bigger dick for not having had the decency to properly apologize for it. Unfortunately, that would have to wait. We had to a show to play at the moment, whether I was ready to step on stage or not.

I shook the tension from my arms, rotating my neck a few times to loosen some of the tightness there. It was show time. I activated my mic and ran out onto the stage, the crowd screaming in a frenzy, the lights of their cell phones and cameras flashing left and right.

“What’s up, Florida!” I yelled as the guys launched into the song we always opened with. “Are you ready to do this? Are you ready to rock?!” It was my typical concert opening line, so I tried to sell it even though I knew it fell a little short of my usual enthusiasm.

They screamed back, and I grinned, sliding my gaze to the wing where I knew Nalia liked to stand even though she was avoiding me. It was like she knew I couldn’t just run off stage and force her to talk to me. But she wasn’t there. The spot was empty. Intense disappointment washed over me with its bone-chilling certainty, and even the roar of the crowd couldn't do anything to lift my spirits when I saw the empty spot.

Nearly missing my cue, I caught it just in time and started to sing, the weight of her absence as heavy as a rusty anchor dragging itself across the sea floor. Where the hell was she? She couldn’t possibly be so mad at me that she wasn’t going to support the rest of the guys. The thought that she might have left scared me shitless.

I tried to focus on the songs, but I was on autopilot; my thoughts kept swirling around the fact that she still hadn’t shown up to keep an eye on things from the sidelines. She couldn’t have just up and left. We hadn’t even discussed whatever it was that had happened between us.

Somehow, I made it through the songs without screwing any of them up. It certainly helped that the crowd was one of the better ones we had performed in front of in a while. For that, at least, I was grateful. As I started into the last song, I focused only on the top deck, hoping Nalia was listening somewhere, hoping she was somewhere that she could hear the words and the way I sang the ballad.

Earlier, she had been a distraction when I practiced it, but this evening all I could think about was her — wishing she was sitting there listening once more. I had hoped she was going to be my saving grace. But she wasn’t there.

“Encore! Encore!” the crowd screamed as I finished the final notes of the last song, knowing that our set was complete. I gave them a smile and a wave of my hand and walked off stage, just like we always did, so that we could catch a breather before launching into two more songs.

“God, those people are amazing tonight! They've really got me all revved up!” Talon announced. “I totally feel like I could play another full set right now!” he remarked as he grabbed the towels we had placed backstage, or rather that Nalia had placed there for us. The thought of her had me scanning the wings again, looking for her face, even if it was an angry one. I just needed to see her.

When I didn’t find her amongst the sea of faces, I grabbed a stagehand who was walking past. “Hey, have you seen Nalia around?”

He looked at me a little confused, like I should have known something I clearly didn’t. “Dude, she left right after you guys went on stage.”

I let go of his arm. “Thanks,” I said as all of the fight left me. I couldn’t go back out there and pretend that everything was okay when my world was on its side. “I’m done,” I announced to surprised looks from the rest of the guys and the staff close by. “No encores tonight.”

“But, it’s our next-to-last show for this tour,” Talon said, frowning. “Why wouldn’t we do an encore?”

“Because I just don’t fucking feel like it,” I growled, yanking my mic off and walking away, not caring what they thought. “Fuck the encores. You guys can go out there and jam an instrumental if you want, but I'm done. I can’t do this tonight.”

I needed to find Nalia.

The private car ride to the hotel was excruciating. I checked my cell phone a dozen times; each time ended with my thumb hovering over the button that would dial her number. I was afraid I wouldn’t get her or that I would get her and not know what to say. What would I say? This was a serious Catch 22 moment. Any blind man could see there was something wrong between us, something much more than just her not wanting to see me anymore.

As I rode, I fantasized that she just wanted to surprise me back at the hotel, to make up for whatever had been going on for the past month. But deep down, I knew that couldn't be the case. I wished it were; it would have been beyond amazing if it were. But, I knew in my heart that it couldn't be. Still, the thought raised a flare of hope just fantasizing about the possibility. I prayed it was true, needed to hope that it was true. But I knew better.

The car pulled up to the front door, and I hopped out. For the first time in my career, I walked in ignoring the fans gathered there as I made my way inside. Nalia was the only thing on my mind. I hurried upstairs and pushed open my hotel room, still half expecting to find her standing there, that small smile on her face. Instead, I found an empty room, no different than I had left it. Dammit.

With a heavy sigh, I walked over to the bed and plopped down. The flashing indicator on the phone caught my eye. A message. There were never messages in the hotel. A funny feeling attacked my stomach as I picked up the phone and pressed the button. The moment I heard Nalia’s sweet voice filling my ear, I wasn’t sure if I should smile or throw up.

“Owen,” she began, her voice not breathless like I had heard it in the past when she said my name, “by the time you hear this, I will have already headed for home. I’m sorry. I can’t do this anymore. I’m not cut out for this and, obviously, my presence is causing more of a distraction than a help, so I think it’s best that I go now. I want to thank you for the opportunity again.” She paused, and I felt a glimmer of hope, hoping that she would say something about us and not this business-like response she was giving me.

“I hope you can find a replacement quickly for the next leg of the tour. I’m sorry. I was looking for something on the road, and I… Well, I didn’t find it. Goodbye, Owen.”

The line went silent, and I stood there, totally unable to believe what she had just done. She had fucking left. And, left me with nothing more than a cold voicemail and no explanation of why she had done this. I didn’t buy her story, not even a little bit. She was beyond cut out for this. She was a natural.

I threw the phone down, causing the rest of the receiver to fall to the floor as I sank back onto the bed, my head in my hands and my heart twisting painfully in my chest. She had left me. The woman that I had come to realize was meant to be mine, the woman I had looked all my life for, was gone.

 

 

 

 

 

 

CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR

Nalia

 

I headed toward the kitchen, following the trail of the aroma of percolating coffee until it completely filled the air. After a long flight and a layover from hell, I had finally arrived sometime after five in the morning. Falling into my own bed was indescribable, but I only had a few hours of sleep before my dreams had morphed into nightmares. And since then, I had barely slept, tossing and turning. I finally realized there would be no way to get any more rest, so I stopped trying.

I knew it had been crazy for me to leave like I had, but at least that way I had avoided any painful goodbyes and awkward conversations. I was done with the tour and the road. It had been a nice fantasy to entertain, but the reality of it had turned out to be something more than I was able to deal with.

Grace stood in front of the sink as I approached, already dressed in her running attire for her early morning jog.

“Hey,” I said quietly.

She all but screamed and whirled around, her eyes widening when she saw it was me. “Geez, Nalia! You nearly gave me a heart attack! What on earth are you doing here?”

“I’m home,” I said, reaching for a mug from the overhead cabinet. “It’s all over with.”