Page 26 of Backstage with a Billionaire Rockstar

Now, every time I notice that we are alone I give her my best smile and try to woo her with my charming words – none of which help in my case. She’s determined to make sure we don’t have another moment like we did before, but I’m also determined to show her it could be the best decision of her life.

That’s what brings me to where I am today. I want to do something nice for her, since she’s been stressing over that tabloid reporter approaching her, and I’m nervous to see what she’s going to think.

To get her out of the tour bus, I told her that Carmen needed her to run a few errands in the new city we go into before our concert starts. Carmen has everything under control, but Mia doesn’t need to know that.

I’m getting antsy, pacing back and forth in the living space, when Mia finally struts down the narrow hallway where all the rooms are located. She stumbles as she tries to come to stop in front of me, then frowns.

“Evan, what are you doing?”

I lift the small basket I managed to have Carmen grab me, claiming it was being used for a thank you present for Mia, and give her a big smile. “We’re going out.”

She scrunches her nose. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“There haven't been any other incidents lately, and you deserve a breather.”

Her eyes narrow and she crosses her arms in front of her chest. “This is highly inappropriate.”

“You weren’t saying that while your tongue was down my throat a few days ago,” I counter, arching a brow in challenge.

“You get one hour,” she mumbles before stalking past me.

As far as I’ve been able to see, that Travis guy was all talk because there hasn’t been a single thing to hit the media about the first time I ever met Mia. When I had that flashback, I let Mia convince me that she wasn’t who I thought she was — convinced myself that I had an overactive imagination.

After finding out the truth, I want nothing more than to show Mia that we could be good together. I didn’t think I’d ever see her again, but it seems as though luck is on my side and it can see that I deserve my happy ending as much as my other bandmates do.

This is what I’ve been waiting for — I can feel it.

I thought it was lust with how fast my heart would race when Mia walked into a room or the easy way I would gravitate toward her as she walked me out of a concert, but it’s more than that.

Mia still has a frown on her face when I step off the bus, her phone buzzing incessantly in her pocket, and I nod my head toward the sound. “You going to answer that?”

She snaps her attention to me and shakes her head. “No need. I can call them back later.”

It stops buzzing, only to start up again. “I insist. It seems like it might be important.”

Her hand shakes as she pulls the device from her pocket, and I cock my head to the side as I continue to study her. Something is making her nervous, and I want to find out what it could be.

She takes a deep breath, looking one more time at me, before sliding her finger across the screen.

As soon as the call connects, all I hear is the sound of a child crying uncontrollably and begging for his mother.

Mia’s face immediately transforms from nerves to fear. “Kenzie, what’s going on? Is he okay? Do I need to come back home? Did he break something?”

I can see the tears filling Mia’s eyes as her son continues to cry out for her on the line, and I take long strides over to her side. She tries to step away from me, but I’ve already got my arm placed over her shoulder, and I’m tugging her into my side.

“Calm down, Momma Bear. Take a breath,” a woman says on the line. “Liam ended up falling at the park and hurt his ankle. The doctor checked him out. Everything is okay, but he’s been crying for you since we left.”

“Oh, baby,” Mia chokes out. “Did you ask Aunt Kenzie to take you for ice cream?”

I’m trying not to eavesdrop, but it’s inevitable when I’m standing this close. I glance at the screen, and my heart stalls in my chest.

As I watched Liam on the screen, something nagged at the back of my mind. Those green eyes... they were so familiar. And the way he scrunched his nose when he was upset - I'd seen that expression before in the mirror. I shook off the thought, telling myself I was imagining things.

"Liam, buddy, can you show me where you hurt your ankle?" I asked, surprising myself with how natural it felt to talk to him.

As he pointed to his foot, I noticed he had bright ringlets covering the top of his head. My heart started racing, a wild thought forming that I couldn't quite grasp yet.

That’s not the only thing that has me stiffening against Mia, though. It’s the dip in his chin that matches my own.

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