“Nate, bro,” Ten said before the door was barely even open.

The second it was, Ten’s expression shifted to mild surprise when he saw he wasn’t alone. Swiftly, his stare bounced between me and Nate, a mix of emotion crossing his face at rapid speed.

“You brought a date,” he said, settling into a wide, half-teasing, half-knowing grin.

I didn’t know Ten all that well, but we’d met on several occasions. We always frequented the same events and parties because we were both signed under the same label, just with different producers, etc.

I wasn’t surprised how the media turned on him and the way he reacted. Okay, I was a little surprised by some of the stuff he pulled, but who was I to judge? I admired him, though, because I knew he had his act together now. I also knew how very hard that must have been for him. Even more, from what I understood, Ten had settled into a relationship with someone who was far removed from the spotlight.

I had to admit I was ever so curious about how that was working out.

“You’re not going to try and steal this one, are you?” Nate cracked.

Ten chuckled. “I already got the one I want.”

“You steal his dates?” I asked, incredulous.

Nate made a sound, casually draping his arm across my shoulders. “Don’t worry, princess. Ten could only steal the ones I was willing to let him have. You are not on that list.”

Ten coughed, once again his gaze bouncing between us.

I thought about kicking Nate right then and there. Clearly, he hadn’t told Ten I was coming.

“Nate brought a date?” A voice came from inside the room. “This I have to see.”

Ten slid over, and a short blond came to the door. Just as casually as Nate had touched me, Ten wrapped his arm around her waist.

“Oh,” the girl said, “You’re…”

“Are you gonna make us stand in the hallway all night?” Nate wondered. “Seriously, you invited us over for pizza, not to gawk at us in the doorway.”

“Of course!” the blonde exclaimed and waved us in.

The door was barely shut, and she offered her hand to me. “I’m Violet. I’d apologize for my appearance, but well, I always look like this.”

A genuine grin split my face, and I took her offered hand. Her shake was light and soft, but it wasn’t insincere. She had a calming vibe about her, almost innocent. I liked her instantly, which was something that almost never happened.

She was dressed in a pair of black leggings, fuzzy slippers, and a burgundy Blaylock hoodie that looked really familiar…

Nate was stepping by, and I noted the same sweatshirt in his hand. I snatched it. The second my head cleared the neck hole, I told Violet, “Now we match!”

“I hope I don’t get cold,” Nate said as he flipped open the top of a nearby pizza box.

We ignored him.

“You’re Aerie Boone, right?” Violet asked.

I nodded, a queasy feeling shaking my stomach. God only knew what she’d heard about me.

“She wouldn’t know that if I hadn’t told her Nate was working with you. Vi doesn’t follow the current music trends,” Ten said, coming to stand close beside her. Screwing up his face, he added, “She listens to classical.”

Violet poked him in the side and laughed. Her head tilted back when she gazed up at him. “I listen to your stuff, too, now.”

He kissed her on the forehead and tugged the messy bun at the base of her neck.

I could feel the energy around them. The way they looked at each other made it absolutely clear they were in love. All those reports saying Ten’s relationship was just a ploy to get good publicity, they were obviously false.

“He’s right. I don’t really follow the celebrity world.”

“I’m actually relieved to hear it,” I told her honestly.

“So you came to town with Nate.” Ten began.

I nodded. “To work on the album.”

“Where are you staying?” I could practically hear the wheels in his brain turning. The expression on his face remained passive, which made it hard to tell what he was thinking. Though, I could guess.

“I gave her your bed,” Nate said, chomping on a huge slice of pizza. “You know, since you never use it anymore.”

“Vi’s bed is more comfortable,” Ten quipped and pointed to the pizza boxes “Toss me a slice, man,” he called out to Nate.

Nate picked up a smaller box, and Ten shook his head. “That one’s Vi’s.”

“You’re eating something other than rabbit food tonight?” Nate exclaimed. “Is the world ending?”

“Must be because you brought a date,” Vi shot back, then glanced at me apologetically. “Sorry,” she said soft. “I gotta tease him when I can.”

I giggled.

Nate put his hand over his heart and shook his head. “Didn’t I show you a good time on our date?”

“It wasn’t a date,” Ten barked.

Violet rolled her eyes and caught my hand. “Come on in. It’s not a very big space, but you don’t have to stand by the door. And if you don’t get some food now, you won’t get any with these two around.”

Nate winked at me on his way to the couch, carrying a box of pizza. Violet handed me a paper plate from the counter and pointed to a box. “That one’s the one you want.”

My eyes slid to the smaller box near it. Noticing, Violet replied, “That one is gluten free. I, ah, don’t eat gluten.”

“Or anything else good,” Nate quipped.

Ten slapped him on the back of the head.

“I don’t have to take this abuse!”

“Grab the controllers,” Ten said, motioning toward a gaming unit near a flat-screen hanging on the wall. It looked oddly out of place there. “I want to try out this new game.”

The two guys got into some deep conversation about weapons and upgrades, and my brain shut off.

“I didn’t even have a TV,” Violet said, amused, “until he started staying here. He acted like I was a cavewoman, for crying out loud. God forbid he not be able to play video games.”

I laughed and slid a slice of pizza onto my plate. I couldn’t remember the last time I had pizza. My trainer would probably kill me if he knew I was about to eat this. It was going to make it taste even better.

“You’re an artist?” I asked, gazing around at all the paintings and drawings lining the walls and floor.

Violet nodded and handed me a bottle of water. “I’m an art major.”

“She did the art for Butterfly,” Ten put in.

My eyes lit up. “That was you? I didn’t realize. It’s gorgeous. Everyone is loving it.”

She smiled. “Thank you.”

Violet slid a slice of the gluten-free pizza in her mouth and groaned. After a moment, she glanced at me and blushed. “Why does it have to taste so good?”

I knew Violet had some kind of illness or something. I remembered seeing the headlines.

Ten’s girl—incurable!

Will Ten’s money get his girl better treatment?

I didn’t know what was wrong with her exactly, though. I never bothered to read the articles. They were probably all lies anyway. Obviously, though, she had some kind of dietary restrictions.

I wasn’t about to pry. I knew what that felt like. She probably just wanted someone to see her for her and not for what might or might not be wrong.

“I wish I knew,” I replied, taking a huge bite and groaning, too.

“Are you two making a porn over there?” Nate quipped. “That’s a lot of moaning.”

“What the fuck did you just say to my girl?” Ten growled.

Violet widened her eyes at me, and we laughed.

“I take it he’s very… um, protective?” I said after a minute.

“You have no idea.” Violet sighed.

For some reason, an image of Nate standing over the intruder in my house, brandishing a gun and a dark look, came to mind. Along with it came an intense wave of longing. I wanted to be protected like that. To feel safe with someone.

“You died!” Nate intoned. “Why did you die?”

“I need more pizza,” Ten replied, standing from the couch. His dark hair was messy, and he was dressed casually in a pair of sweats and a T-shirt.

He was more relaxed than I’d ever seen him before. It looked good on him. I wondered how it would look on me.

“Violet, get over here,” Nate called out. “Come play with me.”

“I don’t know how to play that game.”

“I’ll teach you.” He cajoled.

“Go sit down, baby,” Ten said, reaching around her for some pizza. “Take your cardboard with cheese.”

“It’s good. Try it.” She held it up.

He blanched.

“Please, Stark,” she said sweetly.

His face softened, and he opened his mouth. She put the pizza in, and he took a big bite. She smiled while he chewed. “See! It’s good, isn’t it?”

“Soo good.” He agreed, trying not to make a face.

“Violet!” Nate hollered.

She took her plate to the couch.

“She calls you Stark?”

Ten nodded once. “I’m not Ten with her.”

“Who’s Stark?” I asked quietly.

“Me.”

Nate made a sound and dropped back onto the couch. “Violet! You’re terrible at this game.”

She threw her napkin at him. “I told you I couldn’t play!”

“Look, look,” he said, sitting up and holding the controller out in front of her. He began explaining each button, and she just laughed.

I watched them, my throat tight. “They’re so…”

“Real?” Ten finished.

I glanced at him and nodded. “Normal.”

He half smiled. “It’s strange, right?”

“Entirely.”

“You get used to it. And then when you’re around everyone else, you wonder how you never realized just how fake they all are.”

“Oh, I know,” I murmured. “Can’t trust anyone.”

The lid to the pizza box closed. “That why you here with Nate?”

I glanced around at him.

He made a face. “I know it’s not just work.”

“No.” I admitted. “It’s not. I needed somewhere to—”

“Hide?”

“Something like that.”

“I’ve seen the headlines. What the hell is going on with you and Will Solberg?”

“Nothing,” I said swiftly.

He gave me a quiet look, a look that called me out on my bullshit.

I glanced away.

Ten shifted, leaned in closer, and spoke low. “I know Nate acts like an idiot—”

Instantly offended, I demanded, “He’s not!”

Ten smiled slow. “So that’s the way it is, huh?”

“It’s not any way.”

He made a bland face. “I know all too well the draw of someone like Nate. The chance to be someone other than who you are.”

My eyes flashed up to his. Was he warning me off his cousin? “I’m not trying to be anyone else.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Right now, it sure as hell looks like you’re trying to be single when we both know you’re married.”

I felt all the blood drain from my face. “It’s complicated.”

Ten held up a hand. “You don’t have to explain to me. I understand complicated.”

“Then why bring it up?”

His stare went over my shoulder, toward the laughing pair on the couch. “Because he’s my family. Because I know what it feels like to hurt someone you love with lies you never meant to tell.”

I bristled.

Ten reached out, laying his hand on mine. I stilled and looked down. He pulled back, knowing he had my attention once more. “All I’m saying is you two look familiar.”

I blinked, confused.

Ten chuckled. “You should talk to him. Tell him all the shit you’re scared to say. Starting with that douche Solberg.”

I felt my shoulders sag. “It’s all such a mess.”

His hand covered mine again, but this time he didn’t pull it away. “Sometimes it’s easier to clean up a mess when you have extra hands.”

I glanced down, avoiding his eyes. “I don’t have anyone,” I whispered.

He squeezed my hand. “Yes. You do.”

“He’s not going to stick around once he knows how weak I am.”

A rude sound ripped from his throat. “I see the way he looks at you. He’s not going anywhere.”

He made it sound easier than it was. My past was a lot more complicated than peeing on a crowd and a stint in rehab.

“What the fuck is this?” Nate’s voice boomed close behind me. I jumped, surprised, not realizing he was so near. His arm shot out past my body, pointing with accusation at where Ten held my hand. “That’s a hell no!”

Ten smirked and didn’t withdraw his hand.

Nate lunged forward as though he were going to go over the tiny island and tackle him. I made a sound of distress and yanked my hand from under Ten’s, placing both on Nate’s chest, pushing him back. “Stop!”

Nate rocked back on his heels and glanced down at where I touched him. Jade eyes bounced between mine, and beneath my palm, I felt his heart hammering.

“That was for asking Vi out on a date.” Ten seemed amused.

I really didn’t think this was funny. Clearly, Ten had no idea what Nate was capable of.

“Oh my God, Stark! Get over it already!” Violet exclaimed.

“Not cool,” Nate told him. His voice was all rumbly. It made my insides tingle.

I started to pull back, but he moved swiftly, covering my hands with one of his, effectively pinning them against his chest. “You know I was just trying to help you out.”

Clearly, I really needed the story behind Nate and Violet’s “date.”

“That’s exactly what I’m doing right now,” Ten answered quietly.

Nate’s stare came back to mine. “What’s he talking about, princess?”

I worried my lower lip as I wondered what to say. Nate reached out, tugging my lip from the confines of my teeth. “Don’t do that.”

“We should talk,” I finally said.

Maybe Ten was right. Maybe I should just spill everything once and for all. Then I’d really find out if Nate could still think of me as a princess, or if, after everything, he too would see me as a toad.