To my shock, he takes my hand, clasping it loosely and comfortably as though he’d done it a million times. I glance up to a street sign on our right that reads: Houston Street. Biting my lip now that I’m alone with Alec, I look around the small scatters of people walking home around us. Some are just hanging out, talking after a late night. It feels like it’s around one o’clock or something, but that can’t be right.

“What time is it?”

“Half past three.” He glances down to hold my eyes for a heated second. A flutter in my chest quiets me and we walk in silence. A part of me is still hoping he didn’t see me kiss that guy… that only Jack saw, when he came and yanked me away. Maybe he yanked me so hard because he didn’t want Alec to see. Yeah, right.

Glancing up at Alec’s profile, I’m gratified to find the cloud has left him, now that we’re alone. Maybe he wasn’t looking at me in the limo because the crowd had upset him, or he didn’t like how Jack was acting. I open my mouth to ask him, but shut it again before I kick up dust that’s finally settling. With our hands lightly held together, I allow a calm to overtake me, letting go of any need to do anything but just be here with him. This is what I wanted when we were driving here from the airport. I’d wished Alec was here with me, and now he’s here. Just enjoy it.

Occasionally someone recognizes Alec as we wordlessly make our way west, but most of the people we pass don’t even look at us. There’s a peaceful anonymity to this stroll that we’re both enjoying after the chaos.

Alec squeezes my hand and informs me, “The bigger cities are better, usually, because people see more celebrities here. They’re used to it.”

“Then what happened back there at the club?” I ask, looking up at him.

“Mob mentality. People in the club tweeted you were buying drinks for everyone. News had already spread online about you from the reporters at your house. Didn’t you see the news?” I shake my head. “Well, it’s not as big a story as what’s happening in Israel, but it’s up there.” He smiles at me, but I’m not able to return it. His eyes get serious and he continues, “When it hit twitter about you buying drinks, and where, that was all it took to ignite the blaze. It was a very cool thing of you to do, by the way. I was impressed.”

I make a little noise and say, “Thanks.”

“But then teenagers showed up, too young to get in, and so the crowd outside just grew, especially after we arrived. I’m sure that went viral, too. But it started with you. You’re having quite an impact.”

“Yay,” I say, dryly. I’m piecing together the missing chunks of the puzzle, and only some of what he said, fits. “So, that’s how you guys knew I was in New York? The drinks happened late… how’d you get here so fast?”

He pauses and for the first time, looks very self-conscious. Almost awkward. Deciding how to answer, he struggles for a couple long seconds. “Um… that was me. It was when someone posted pictures of you at JFK on their blog. I’d set up a Google alert with your name.” The corners of his eyes tense, and he won’t look at me.

I stop walking, and pull on his hand. “You signed up to know when my name is mentioned on the Internet?” He doesn’t respond, his quiet profile cold and distant. The shield is up again, but his fingers tighten slightly around mine and I give them a squeeze.

He asks, pulling out his phone to look at the time, “How are you feeling? Better?”

If only he knew. I’ve got the image of him taking the time to type my name into Google Alerts. If he did that, he really wanted to know when I showed up on the Internet. Excited by the revelation that he cares, I take a bold step toward him. “You’re the one holding my hand. How do I feel to you?”

A smirk pulls at the left corner of his mouth and he looks at me from the corners of his eyes. “That’s a pretty sexy thing to say, Rue.”

“Yeah, well... I may be young, but I’m not a virgin, Alec.”

Turning his head to face me full on, I feel a heat rush over my body at the light that just exploded behind his eyes. “Guess what, Rue?”

Gulping, I whisper, “What?”

“I’m not a virgin either.” All of a sudden he lifts me up, his muscular body crushing me against the cool glass of a storefront window. He glances quickly around to see if we’re being watched. We’re not. There’s no one nearby, and he locks eyes with me and parts his lips. Huskily, he says on a groan, “Fuck, I shouldn’t be doing this.” I push my hips forward and feel the hard heat waiting for me there. He groans again, more deeply, and the sound is like heaven. I can feel him pulsating, growing and pushing against the soft skin above my mound.

“Who says you shouldn’t?” I whisper, aching to feel his lips on mine. That’s all I want. Just come a little closer…

“You know who said it.” He searches my eyes, longing for permission. I’m granting it, but he needs it from someone other than me. He’s barely holding back his animal instincts. “He was right, Rue. But still I can’t stop thinking about you. Fuck me if I haven’t tried.”

I part my lips and nuzzle my face into his masculine neck, breathing him in. He smells so good. Hiding so I can be more brazen than I’ve ever been, I murmur against his skin, “They don’t own me. You do.”

He grabs me by the back of my hair and pulls my head back with just enough firmness to make my panties dampen instantly. He searches my eyes and says on a rasp, “God help me.” He takes my mouth in his, coaxing mine to succumb to his sensual kiss. His lips mold mine and when I taste the heat of his tongue, a fire explodes in my body. My arms slide around him and he grabs my ass roughly, pulling me into him. “You’re mine, you got that?”

I nod from behind hooded eyes and he devours me again, leaning into me like we’re alone in a bedroom and not on a New York street, pushing my legs open with his knee so he can rub in between my thighs, giving me the type of friction my body aches for.

“Is that Alec Gabriel and Rue Stone?”

“Oh my God, get your phone out!”

“Already got it.”

“Video?”

“No. They stopped too soon.”

“Holy shit, that was hot.”