Willow scoots next to me. "You do have a nice ass." She laughs. "I see a lot of them. I'm a photographer. Mostly shoot boudoir."

"Oh. Thanks." I guess.

"I'm all shoulders." She motions to her small hips. "But, uh…"

Ethan laughs. "Everything Tom says about you is true." He turns to me. "Think she wants to say that Pete looked like he was gonna take you in front of all of us."

"I would not talk about him that way," Willow protests. "He's like a brother."

"No, your brother is a lot more protective." Ethan turns to me. "Willow's brother, Drew, is the Sinful Serenade guitarist. Actually, he was the original Dangerous Noise guitarist."

"Don't talk about how you're better than he is," Willow says. "I don't need him in a mood."

Ethan laughs. "Sometimes, the truth hurts." He turns back to me. "Where is your brother's girl?"

"She went backstage with him," Willow says.

Ethan raises a brow. "So he was warming up his hands the fun way."

"Gross. Don't." Willow turns bright red.

"It works." He winks at me. "Should work just as well for Pete. I'll give him the tip."

I turn the same bright red shade.

They're both incredibly friendly. Like I'm already part of the family, all by virtue of being Pete's potential girlfriend.

Will they stay friendly if I call this off? If I go through with it and we break up? I thought Nathan's friends were my friends. But after everything happened, they took his side. Didn't even consider that he cheated on me.

Only person I can still stand to talk to is Kathryn.

There's no way they'll be this friendly if they find out I'm deceiving them.

"Sorry, Aiden is gross," Willow says. "I shouldn't repeat gossip but… steer clear and you'll be okay."

I nod.

Ethan and Willow go back to teasing. From the sound of things, he's close with Tom and Pete.

The stage goes dark. Everyone in the room goes quiet. Then, like a burst, the lights go on, and Sinful Serenade starts playing.

The crowd goes insane. All conversation upstairs ceases. Everyone in this place must be cheering. The band plays their award winning mega-hit, No Way in Hell.

All the light is on the handsome, blue-eyed singer, Miles. The man croons. He sells every single line. Even with his hand wrapped around the mic, his emotionality at 11, he has all his attention turned on the crowd. He's a hell of a frontman.

When the song ends. He moves towards the front of the stage. He waves at half a dozen girls. I swear, I hear fainting.

"Been a while since we played LA. You miss us?" he teases.

The crowd cheers and screams.

He turns to the back of the stage, to Tom at his drum kit, and he motions come here.

Tom stands. He looks to the crowd, raising a brow dramatically and teasing pulling up his t-shirt.

And then the shirt is gone. Miles shakes his head but he's smiling.

"You hear the tragic news?" Miles asks the crowd. "Tom Steele is now engaged."

The crowd is a mix of cheers, awws, and boos.

Willow giggles. She grabs my hand like it's a reflex. Wow. We're fast friends. Or she's that excited about her engagement. It's sweet, really, how transparent she is about her love.

Tom too. He's looking in our direction, squinting like he can't make anything out. No doubt, the stage lights are far too bright for those details.

He blows her a kiss anyway. She squeals and blows back.

My attention goes to Pete. He's standing on one side of the stage, his guitar strap tugging his t-shirt down enough to expose a lot of chest. Mmm. He looks grander on stage. A presence. There's something inviting about him. But it's not like Miles or Tom. He isn't welcoming the crowd in.

He's like a cat. He's there. And I want his attention all the more because I don't have enough of it.

Miles is an engaging performer but my focus stays on Pete.

When the next song starts, he shifts into this amazing concentration. He's damn sexy playing, lost in music. He looks up, moves towards the front of the stage like he's teasing the crowd.

Girls cheer. They want him. Hard to blame them, but, tonight he's mine.

Then he's back, lost in the music again. I watch his shoulders flex and relax, his hands speed over his bass, his hips shift in time with the music.

Mmm. Those hips.

Damn. It's not like he's the only sexy guy in the band. I force myself to take a moment to watch each of them. Miles is already without his shirt, clawing at his tattooed chest like he can't help but touch himself. Tom plays his drums like a God damn animal.

And the guitarist—must be Drew—is intense, focused, and playful at the same time. His arms are thick with tattoos, his dark hair is short, his tight jeans show off a sculpted lower body.

I went to a Sinful Serenade show once with Madison. How did I not notice how hot these guys were? It was the night before finals. I was distracted, but still… how could I not have seen the way Pete's hips and hands and lips move?

* * *

Ethan disappears in the middle of the third song. My attention stays fixed on Pete until the band finally takes their leave.

A few minutes later, he's back. Tom too. And there's another couple with them—the tattooed guitarist and a short, curvy woman in a gorgeous cream dress. She's completely clean cut except for the tattoo of an ornate key on her shoulder.

She squeezes his hand. Oh, there it is. Another shiny rock. So she's his fiancée. They are a cute couple. He slides his arm around her waist protectively, pulling her body into his.

I bite my lip, trying not to get ahead of myself wishing Pete would touch me like that. Falling for him is out of the question. Falling for him is a surefire path to my heart being torn to shreds.

Pete joins me on the couch. He nods to the guitarist. "Drew—" then to the pretty twenty-something woman, "Kara, this is Jess. My friend."

My shoulders relax. The truth is such a relief.

"Oh. Of course." Kara beams as she shakes my hand. "Nice to meet you. It's great that you could come to the show."

Why does everyone keep looking at me like they're already sure I'm Pete's girlfriend?

His fingertips skim the edge of my skirt. It makes it difficult to think about anything but coming on his hand.

"You want to get out of here, Kendrick?" Drew pulls Kara into a tight embrace.

"That's her last name," Pete whispers. "It's their thing. Don't ask."

"After I see the ring." She bounces to Willow. "Show me again."

"You picked it out," Tom says.

"Exactly! Need to see if it looks as gorgeous as it did in my mind." Kara takes a long moment to check out the ring then she whispers something in Willow's ear.

Willow laughs. Motions go. Then Kara and Drew nod a series of goodbyes and descend the stairs.

It's bizarre, being surrounded by this much affection. Even before the divorce, my parents hated each other. I've never seen two people so happy in love.

It stirs something inside of me, this empty spot that wants to be filled. There's no one in the world I trust. The only two people I love are Dad and Madison and I can't talk about my feelings with either of them.

Madison doesn't care that she hurt me. Dad still expects me to lie for him.

My eyes find Pete's. There's an earnestness to his expression. I feel like I can trust him. Like I can talk to him.

That might be worth lying to everyone else.

His hand slides under my skirt. My thoughts fade away. My shoulders and back relax. I want to feel the way I did at the park, like there's nothing in the world but the two of us.

Sex first. Decision second.

I lean in to whisper. "Do we have to stay to talk?"

"Have to clear something with Aiden but I can do it after."

Mmm. After. I nod. "Yes please."

"Yes please, what?"

I can hear the smile in his voice. "Yes, please… will you… Do I have to say it?"

He chuckles. "I'll get you there."

His fingertips skim my thighs as he pulls his hand back to his lap. He pulls back enough he can stare into my eyes. I still can't figure out what the expression in his deep brown eyes means, but damn if I don't like staring into them.

They're gorgeous eyes.

That vulnerability returns. He blinks and it's gone. I shift backwards, breaking his touch. But it's too loud to think. Ethan's band Dangerous Noise is in the middle of their first song.

They're good. Ethan is quite the attention whore on stage. He holds up his guitar, tugging at the bottom of his t-shirt, teasing the audience with the promise to strip.

The audience likes it.

Pete stands and pulls me to my feet. He nods to Tom and Willow. "Excuse us."

Tom raises a brow. "This is a classy place."

Pete nods.

Willow whispers something in Tom's ear.

He smiles. "After Dangerous Noise."

"You have too many pet projects," she says.

"You work eighty hours a week, kid."

"Sixty," she protests.

Tom motions for us to go. He pulls Willow into his lap and runs his hands through her short hair.

Pete slides his arm around my hips, pulling my body next to his. It's almost like he's tense over the happy couple's PDA. But that doesn't make any sense. He's not looking at Willow with any kind of romantic or sexual interest.

The man is an enigma. I want to know more.

He leads me to the back of the VIP area. There's a roped off area with a NO ENTRANCE sign. He scans the room. A cocktail waitress has her eyes on us. More likely, she has her eyes on him. She licks her lips hungrily.

He could easily take her home. But he looks at her with apathy. He doesn't want her. He doesn't want any of the gorgeous models in this place.

He wants me.

Pete leans in to whisper. "Wait for me on the balcony. I'll lose her." He motions to the closed door in the corner of the roped off area.

He wants to do this on a balcony? Damn. First the bar bathroom then this. He has a thing for public sex.

I should say no. I'm going to be a lawyer. I can't get caught having sex in public.

I try to force the word to my lips but it refuses. "What if we get caught?"

"This is private property. They'll ask us to leave. That will be it." His eyes meet mine. "We can hold off till we get back to your place."

I shake my head. I don't want to hold off. I want him. Now.

I trust his assessment of the situation.

"No. Let's do it now," I say.

He nods.

I wait for him to grab the waitress's attention and I sneak past the velvet rope. The door to the balcony is frosted glass. You can't see in or out. I turn the handle and check my footing. All good.

We're overlooking the alley. No one can see us, not from the street, not from the club.

No one is going to catch us. Not on camera—it's too dark for that.

Thoughts swirl around my brain. I like Pete. Find him interesting. Hell, find him fascinating.

Can I play his girlfriend without falling in love with him?

I press my hands into the smooth metal railing. It's the only cold thing here. The sounds of the street—conversations and cars—flow into my ears, competing with the music coming from the club.

There’s only one thing I know: I can't leave without being with him.

Period.