The music industry was an entirely new world for Corie. She had only gone to a handful of concerts in her life and never even thought about what went on backstage. This was a whole new experience for her. Corie held tightly onto Alek’s hand as they strolled through the backstage madness. Together, they zig-zagged around large containers and big black cases. Dozens of men were hurrying through the hallways pushing equipment towards the stage. Cables and cords hung off of necks as roadies worked to get everything set up for tonight. Instructions were constantly being called out, and questions asked via the radios that hung on their belts. Alek seemed oblivious to it, but she was in awe. It was controlled chaos at its best.

Besides the men working, there were businessmen off to the side on cell phones that Alek explained were from the record label. They typically didn’t attend their concerts, unless it was for a special occasion. Tonight’s sold-out show was a high-end gig at a thousand dollars a ticket. It was good publicity for both Make-a-Wish and the band. Corie also noticed some of the same women from earlier checking her out. Every single one of them had wanted to be in the position that she was in right now and she could feel the jealousy radiating off them in waves. It was rare for a Midnight Steel band member to have a steady girlfriend, and they all wondered who she was.

Alek returned greetings from several people along the way but didn’t introduce her. Finally, Corie saw a familiar face as Ethan came strutting towards them with another man at his side. The lead singer looked devastatingly handsome in his tight black t-shirt and black jeans. She secretly wondered if he ever wore anything else.

As he approached with the other man, she could see that his dancing green eyes were full of mischief. “So…is everything good between you two? Or do I still have to deal with his moping around?” Ethan teased.

“You’re lucky I’m still talking to you, you fucking busybody. You didn’t tell me you went up to see her,” Alek said, trying to act mad, but utterly failing.

“Someone had to fix you two since neither of you was bloody well doing it and you both were fucking miserable. Just be happy that she listened to me, mate. It’s good to see that smile back on your face.” Ethan then turned his attention to Corie. “He’s been the biggest dick to work with. I was about to start looking for a new guitarist soon,” he said with a wink.   

“Fuck you, Ethan! You know there no one better than me.” Alek dropped Corie’s hand and put his arm around her shoulders. He looked down at her and said in a loud whisper, “I am the best.”

“So, are you two girls going to bicker all day, or is someone going to introduce me to this stunning woman?” Corie smiled up at the man that was with Ethan. Alek was tall for her, but this man was several inches taller than even Alek. He had bright red curly hair and twinkling blue eyes.

“Bugger off, Stephen. I owe Ethan here a thank you first.” Alek let go of Corie, and the two long-time friends hugged. Neither of the men were ashamed to show affection to the other in public.

When they pulled apart, Corie caught Ethan’s eyes and moved in for a hug of her own. “Thank you,” she whispered to him. “We both owe you.”

“That you do!” he laughed, planting a kiss on her cheek.

“Alright, hands off my girl, Madden.” Alek pulled Corie back to him, so his hands were on her waist. “Corie, this ugly bloke here is Stephen Trowley. He’s our tour manager.”

Stephen held out his hand to Corie. “Tour manager, babysitter, and problem solver amongst a dozen other things…that’s me. It’s good to see the reason Laz is smiling again is such a beautiful woman. He really was a pain in the arse for a long time.”

“Thank you. I think I’m a big part of that blame,” Corie admitted.

“No, you aren’t, Luv. The blame falls all on me, but that’s behind us now.” Alek wrapped his arms around her. When Corie turned her head look up at him, he gave her a kiss.

“Okay, enough with all this romantic shit. A guy can only take so much,” Ethan said, rolling his eyes. When Laz held up a middle finger, everyone laughed. “So, what are you both up to now?”

“Well, I want to introduce Corie around, especially to Davey and Tony. Have you seen those two dickheads around?”

“Alek!” Corie quietly reprimanded him.

“Well, they are,” he laughed.

“Are we the dickheads you’re looking for, mate?” said a new voice. Corie turned to her right and saw two men that were as different as day and night. They were the other two band members of Midnight Steel. She recognized them from the photos of the band that she had found online when she was devouring information on Alek.

Tony, the drummer, was a big muscular guy, with long, straight dark brown hair to his waist. As in every photo she saw of him, he was smiling. Next to him was Davey, the band’s problem child. He had an angelic face, with white blond hair that hung past his shoulders. Where Tony was big and muscular, Davey was quite thin. There was sadness in his eyes that he couldn’t hide behind the forced smile. Corie knew that he had been in and out of rehab numerous times for drugs and alcohol. They were also as close as Alek and Ethan were.

“Yes, you are. I want to introduce you to Corie,” Alek smiled ignoring the elbow that Corie had jabbed into his stomach. “Babe, these two blokes are Tony and Davey. And this is Corie. Expect to see her around a lot.”

“Ah, the beautiful reason Laz is not such a bloody arse anymore,” Tony said taking her hand. “Welcome to the crazy world of rock and roll.”

“Thank you, Tony. It’s wonderful to meet Alek’s friends. I’m really looking forward to the show tonight,” Corie said. While Tony asked her a few questions, Davey stayed quiet, but Corie noticed he couldn’t stand still.

“Alright, now that she’s met everyone, we’re going to find something to eat before the show.” Alek took Corie by the hand and started pulling her away.  

“Nice to meet you all,” she called out before turning to Alek. “That was kind of rude.”

“It’s the guys. They don’t care. Plus, I was tired of sharing you.” He put his arm around her, pulling her in tight to him as they walked.

There was no way she could argue with that sentiment. Corie smiled to herself as they leisurely walked to the room where there was a buffet set up for the band. She filled her plate even though she wasn’t too hungry. Numerous people stopped by their table to talk to Alek. Some of them he introduced her to a few, but others came and went very quickly. With all of the excitement of the afternoon and her nerves, Corie realized that she had forgotten to ask Alek about the condition he had set if she did come to the show.

“Alek, are you really donating a hundred-thousand dollars in my name because I came here today?”

She watched him nod yes since he had a mouthful of food. He was absolutely crazy. That was a lot of money just to get her to come. “Why on earth did you do that?” she asked him.

“Because I needed every advantage to get you to come and it was for a good cause. You weren’t answering any of my calls or emails, so I was desperate. But it worked, didn’t it?” Alek relaxed back in his chair, but never took his eyes off her.

Corie rolled her eyes at him. He should know that she couldn’t be bought, even though it was another incentive for her to come, but it wasn’t what brought her here. “Well, that was very generous of you, but it wasn’t the reason I came. Seeing you again...talking to you again and still loving you is why I am here. Not the donation. We still have a lot to discuss and figure out, but we have plenty of time to do that. So how much longer until you go on?”

Alek glanced at the clock on the wall. “About an hour. You are probably going to want to head out to the Hall about twenty minutes before. That way you can find your front row seat, and I need to get changed.”

Wow, I’ve never been front row. Makes me feel special.”

“You are Luv, you are very special,” Alek flashed her one of his devastating smiles. Her heart started to beat faster, and she felt like giggling like a schoolgirl. “I could have had you watch from the side of the stage, but since this is your first time seeing us, I wanted you to experience the band from the audience. I need to warn you, that I do flirt with many of the ladies, but it’s just for fun and for show. My heart will always belong to you, okay?”

"Of course. I never doubted that you loved me, it was just a shock to find out you weren’t quite who you said you were. We both made mistakes that day, but it's all behind us now." He had screwed up, but so had she by not giving him a chance to thoroughly explain. She should have been mad at him for sure, but it was something she should have forgiven him for. She did now, and everything was right between them.

"You trust me again?"

Corie placed a hand on top of Alek's. "Completely."

A beeping sound started to come from Corie's purse. She knew it was her phone letting her know a text had come in. She pulled the cell out of her purse and smiled when she saw it was from Kelsey.

K: Well, what happened? Are you going to make me throw out all my Midnight Steel stuff? Or are we planning a wedding?

C: Neither. LOL Neither. All is good though. See?

"Alek, will you do me a favor and give the camera a thumbs up?"

"Anything for you, Luv." He posed with a cheeky smile and Corie took the photo and sent it immediately to Kelsey. "Who was that for?"

"Kelsey. Letting her know all is well. Hey, did I ever tell you she figured out who you were?"

Alek gave her a surprised look. "She finally did? I was scared to death she would tell you before I could."

"It was that same day that Ethan showed up. She came by a couple hours later break the news to me even though she was afraid to. It helped to have her there."

"Pfttt," Alek muttered.

"Okay, I don’t know how to take that. She's my best friend," Corie reminded Alek.

"I know," Alek said all of a sudden looking thoroughly disgusted. "But she calls herself a big fan of Midnight Steel, yet she didn’t recognize me. That is not a fan."

Corie saw the corner of his mouth lift in a smirk. He was teasing her. "You have my permission to give her hell for that, even though I know she's always had a crush on Ethan."

"Good for her, because I am off the market." Alek looked at the clock on the wall and saw it was past time for him to get ready for the show. "It's getting close to show time, and I need to go. I'll get a security guard to bring you to your seat. At the end of the show just walk to the same place, show them the pass around your neck, and they'll let you backstage again. I'll meet you in the green room as soon as I can, but it won’t be right away. Is that okay?"

"Of course."

Together they left the hospitality area, and Alek searched for someone in security to take care of Corie. The guard assured him he would bring her directly to her seat. They parted with a kiss and Corie was shown the way to the inside of the venue. Because they were coming from backstage, there were many cables that she had to be careful to step over and workers to avoid. As he promised, the guard showed her directly to her seat. It was front row, with her facing the right side of the stage. From online footage of previous concerts, she knew that was Alek's side.

She looked around and saw the place was packed with people. Even though this was an expensive event, Webster Hall was filled with fans of all ages. Corie sat down in her seat and waited anxiously for the show to begin.

Next to her were two ladies that struck up a conversation with her. They introduced themselves as Tara and Whitney. Corie figured them to be in their thirties, and they were dressed to kill.

“Do you go to many shows?” Corie asked.

“Oh, God yes,” Tara laughed. “We make it to as many as we can every time Midnight Steel tours. What’s this Whitney? Concert number thirty-one or thirty-two?”

“It’s actually thirty-three. We try to get as close to the stage as possible each time. I basically work to pay off my credit card bill from all the shows. We are so excited about front row tonight. We’ll be so close to them!” exclaimed Whitney. “Wait a second! Is that a pass around your neck, Corie? How did you manage that?”

She wasn’t sure how to respond, so she went with the truth. “I know one of the guys in the band.”

“Oh my, God! Who?” asked a wide-eyed Tara.

“Alek.”

The two women looked at each other confused. “Who?” they asked simultaneously.

Corie then remembered that no one knew Alek by that name. Wasn’t that how this whole mess got started? “Laz, I know Laz,” she corrected herself.

“Ethan’s my favorite,” sighed Tara.

“Laz is mine,” Whitney said grabbing Corie’s arm. “How do you know him? What is he like? Does he…” The rest of what Whitney was babbling about was lost as the lights suddenly dimmed and everything was plunged into darkness.

The black curtain that had been blocking the view of the stage slowly opened, but Corie still couldn’t see much of anything. The sound of five thousand voices instantly hushed. The air in Webster Hall positively vibrated with excitement. Corie had never felt anything like it before. Then finally the sound of a lone guitar replaced the silence with the opening riff of their first number one song “Hard Way Home.”

Cheers and screams filled the music hall to a deafening roar. A bright spotlight flashed on Alek for a few seconds, before the entire stage erupted in pulsating colors that matched the beat of the music. The stage exploded as Alek’s guitar was joined by Davey’s bass and Tony’s pounding drums.

For a few moments, Corie stood there in awe of what she was seeing. The videos that she had seen of them performing online didn’t do justice to the energy and the feel of a live show. Ethan commanded the stage like she had never seen. His voice rang out strong and so clear, singing lyrics that she realized the entire audience was singing back to him. He was all over the stage, never standing still for a moment. Corie could tell he already had all of the female fans under his spell. When he ran to her side of the stage, she caught his eye as he sang the chorus directly to her, before giving her a wickedly sexy wink and running off.

Corie hadn’t dared look at Alek yet. She was both excited and a little bit afraid at the same time. This was what he loved. This was how everyone knew him…as Laz, a bona fide rock star. Could he still be the Alek that she loved?

When Ethan headed down the center catwalk, only then did Corie look toward Alek. He simply took her breath away. As sexy as Ethan was, nothing compared to her Alek. He stood there smiling at her with his shirt completely unbuttoned and wearing a pair of faded, ripped jeans. His muscular upper torso was already glistening with sweat.

She heard Whitney next to her shout out, “I love you Laz!” before grabbing Corie by the arm and again and screaming into her ear, “Oh my, God! He cut his hair! He’s so damn fucking hot!”

He was the hottest man she had ever seen. And he was hers.

The next hour of the show, she sang along to the songs she had learned and clapped enthusiastically along with the crowd. Corie understood why Midnight Steel was so famous. Their music spoke to everyone. Men, women, young or the not-so-young were all here having the time of their lives. The energy she felt coming from the guys flowed into everyone there. It was the absolute best concert she knew that she would ever see in her life. The men of Midnight Steel knew how to rock better than anyone one else. 

Even Davey, who barely said a word to her, seemed like an entirely different person under the bright lights. He was flirting with the woman as he played close to the edge of the stage. Corie even got a smile from him.

Every once in a while one of them would head back by Tony whose hair was flying as much as his drumsticks were. The smile on the drummer’s face never faltered. He loved every single minute he was playing. They all did.

It was about an hour into their set that Ethan slowed everything down and began to talk to the audience. He thanked everyone for coming and supporting such a worthwhile cause as Make-a-Wish.

“Now we have something special for you tonight. Usually Laz and me, we write the songs together, but tonight we are debuting a brand new song that Laz wrote. So if you don’t like it, it’s his fault, but I don’t think that’s going to happen. It bloody well kicks ass. Here’s Pieces of Me that was written for a special lady.” Ethan looked directly at Corie when he said that, completely surprising her.

Immediately, her eyes flew to Alek who was heading right for her. As the music started, Corie did her best to try to listen to the lyrics while never taking her eyes off of the handsome man in front of her. Ethan sang the words that Alek had written about her…about their time together. She heard Alek say he knew he had it all, but it wasn’t enough. He had become angry with everything, and that’s why he took off. The cage of twisted metal was the car he crashed in during the blinding white blizzard. She had saved him, and together their lives were changed forever. He had come to her broken into pieces, but her love healed him.

By the end of the song, Corie was crying. She wanted to beg Ethan to sing it again.

And again.

It was the most emotional and heartfelt song she had ever heard. Alek had told the world how being on top doesn’t mean you have it all. He needed her to fix his world, and she needed him. She mouthed the words “I love you” and didn’t mind that he didn’t say it back. He had already told her in the song.

The rest of the show went by in a complete blur. The enormity of what Alek had done and the uniqueness of how he told her how he felt, simply blew her away. Corie wanted to get backstage and see him as soon as possible. She needed to talk to him and touch him again.

The show finally came to a close and all four band members of Midnight Steel came to the front of the stage to wave goodbye. Corie got a smile from each one of them, and Alek mouthed the words “See you soon” to her before he headed down the catwalk with the rest of the guys.

She slipped away before Tara and Whitney could question her anymore on her relationship with Alek. By the time she had found the security guard that would let her backstage, the lights had come up, and the band was gone. Corie flashed her pass to the guard, and he let her come through the gate. Now she was on her own to find the room where she was to meet up with Alek.

As she walked carefully in her heels, stepping over cables and trying to stay out of the way of the roadies, smells of stale beer, wet concrete, and oddly plastic were slightly overwhelming. It was an odd combination that she would forever associate with being backstage.

There were only a few wrong turns taken before she found her way to the green room where she was to meet Alek. It was still empty, which suited her just fine. Corie grabbed a bottle of water and sat down to send a few of the photos she had taken to Kelsey. Her friend was still up, so they ended up texting back and forth for a while.

Several people came and went grabbing something to drink before leaving. A couple of the girls she had seen earlier wandered in, but they stayed on the other side of the room. Corie was more than happy to be left alone. Without Alek around, she was feeling very out of place. She just hoped that he wasn’t going to be too long.

Corie was so engrossed in checking her emails that she didn’t realize that the low murmur of voices in the room had stopped. She looked up when she saw someone standing directly in front of her, and she recognized right away it wasn’t Alek. He certainly wasn’t wearing a tight red dress. Corie looked up from her phone and saw the woman that Alek and Ethan had thrown out earlier staring down at her.

“Can I help you?” she asked, trying not to let her nervousness show in her voice.

“You can get your fake, wannabe ass out of here and leave Laz to me. I don’t know who you think you are coming in here and thinking he belongs to you, but he’s mine. He’s always been mine,” the woman snarled at Corie.

She felt at a disadvantage with the angry woman standing over her, so Corie stood up. She quickly glanced around the room and saw other three other women staring at her and at this woman with wide-eyes of surprise. “What’s her name again?” Corie tried to remember what Alek had called her. Crystal. That’s what it was.

“Crystal, I don’t know what happened between you and Laz,” she lied using the name he was recognized by. “He and I have been together for over six months. I’m sorry if that upsets you, but he’s not available anymore like he was.” Corie had never been in a situation like this before. She had no idea what to do except to try to explain it to this woman, who for some reason thought, Alek belonged to her.

Crystal looked at the other three women in the room and said, “Out. Now!”

“Please don’t!” Corie implored, but the women scurried out of the room leaving her alone with Crystal. 

Crystal started to pace the floor talking to herself. “What does he see in her that he can’t get with me? She’s dressed like a fucking teenager! How can he pass this body up! I paid enough for these boobs to make him want them. I know he does, but this slut has put some sort of spell on him. Laz wants me, not her! He’s always wanted me!”

Corie realized that Crystal was completely losing it. Being alone in this room was the last place she wanted to be with a crazy woman who still thought that Alek still belonged to her when he never had. She had to find a way out of this room. And fast.

She took two tentative steps towards the closed door when suddenly Crystal grabbed her arm. “Stop! Where do you think you are going, bitch? Sit that skinny ass of yours down.”

“Do not touch me, you crazy bitch!” Corie demanded trying to shake free of the grip Crystal had on her arm, but failing. “I’ve had enough of your delusions. Alek…Laz is mine. He never wanted you for anything but an easy fuck. And believe me, he regrets ever touching you. He’ll never make that mistake again.”

“Mistake? Did you just call me and Laz a mistake?” Crystal shouted at her.

That’s when Corie saw the knife. Where it came from she had no idea. She started to tremble with fear as Crystal stepped closer to her holding the knife up in her hand. “I’m s-s-sorry. Please let’s just talk about this. Why don’t we get Alek to come here, and he can help us figure this out?” Corie was saying anything to get Crystal to back off.

“Alek? His name is Laz! Don’t you know anything! It’s Laz! Not stupid Alek, but Laz!” Crystal shouted.

“Crystal, Luv what are you doing?”

That was the voice that Corie desperately wanted to hear.

Alek.

She turned to him, trying not to smile in relief. She wasn’t out of danger yet. Neither of them were.

Crystal relaxed when she saw Laz, but she didn’t lower the knife. “Hi, Baby. This bitch is messing everything up for us. She says that you are with her, but I know that you are with me. You love me, don’t you, Laz? I love you.”

“Of course I do. Let’s you and me get out of here and go someplace quiet. Just you and me. How does that sound?” Alek said with a smile.

“Not her?”

“No, not her. Just us. But you need to put the knife down first, Luv. We don’t need that. I have a car waiting outside. Okay?”

Crystal dropped the knife to the floor and moved toward Alek. Corie closed her eyes briefly as the threat from the knife was gone, but they still had to deal with a deranged Crystal. Alek must have some sort of plan, so she was just going with whatever he said.

She watched as he pulled her into his arms in a stiff hug. Their eyes met over Crystal’s blonde head. Alek mouthed the words “I love you” allowing Corie to completely relax. “Let’s go, Crystal. I have big plans for you tonight.”

It was like Crystal didn’t even realize that Corie was in the room anymore. She watched them walk to the door, wondering what Alek was going to do next. He gently pushed her in front of him as they headed out the door. That was when security guards grabbed her from each side, and Alek stepped back away from her. Crystal instantly realized that she had been conned. She was screaming obscenities as they dragged her down the hall to wait for the police to arrive.

Alek turned, and Cori threw herself into his arms. “I’m so sorry. I had no idea she was that crazy. Are you okay? Did she hurt you?”

Feeling the love and strength from Alek made her feel safe again. Corie had never been so scared in her life. “No, I’m okay. She didn’t hurt me. Thank God, you came when you did. How did you know I needed you?”

“The girls that were in the room with you told a roadie that Crystal was back. They had a feeling she was up to no good, so they said something the first guy they saw, and he ran and got me. Ethan called for security while I ran here. Are you sure you are okay?”

“Yes, I am. Thank you for rescuing me. Crystal was completely crazy, and I didn’t know what to do.” Corie’s voice shook as the enormity of what just happened hit her. Tears started to flow down her cheeks as the thin thread of self-control that she had been hanging onto completely vanished.

All Alek could do was hold her as she sobbed. Ethan walked into the room flanked by the other two band members of Midnight Steel. “Is she alright?” the lead singer asked.

“She will be. The shock of everything just hit her,” Alek replied before kissing the top of Corie’s head. “I want that crazy bitch arrested. And find out who let her back in. If it was one of our guys, he’s fired. If he belongs to the venue, we are never playing here again. Got that, Ethan?”

“Got it, mate. Take the limo back to the hotel. Go now so you can get Corie out of here. I’ll catch a ride with Tony and Davey when we are done.”

Alek nodded his thanks. Corie pulled away from him wiping her eyes. “We can go now?” she asked him.

“Absolutely.”

Together they made their way towards the waiting long black limousine. This wasn’t how Corie expected to end her night. Everything had been so incredible from her reconciliation with Alek to getting to see him perform with the band and especially the song he wrote for her. Now that psycho Crystal had ruined her perfect night. But Corie was determined to reclaim it. There was no way she was going to let that woman win. Alek belonged to her.

He pulled her onto his lap as the long car pulled away from the back of the venue. It was time to reconnect with him and make plans. They had a lot to figure out to make their relationship work, but she was fully confident that they could. For now, though, she was content to just be in his arms. They could work on the details later.