Page 78 of Fractured Frets

He drew me flush against his body and whispered in my ear, “You make me hard just thinking about that.”

I closed my eyes as the reverberation of his voice lingered inside me. Why did his words weaken my knees? “We can’t do anything about that now.”

“Mmmm.” His low voice hummed in his throat as he nibbled on my earlobe and tugged on my earring. “Are you sure about that?”

“Yes.” I wobbled on my feet, delirious and high from his touch and kisses. “Go before the crowd gets angry.”

“Let them. You’re worth it.” He cupped my face and brushed his thumb along my jaw.

“I’ll be waiting for you.” It took all my strength to step away, just like it had at lunchtime when the guys had left the hotel. “I’ll see you after the show.”

“I’ll be counting down every minute. Love you.” After another quick kiss, Slip charged over to the guys, clapped his hands, then flung his arm around Lewis’s neck. “Woohoo. Let’s do this. Let’s rock Milan.”

Giggling, I stepped in beside Sutton. Her cheeks were flushed red, and every trace of her lipstick was gone. Flint’s eyes sparkled as he wiped his fingers over his mouth, clearly trying to erase the evidence of their kiss. Penny, the band’s hair and make-up artist, rushed over to redo Flint’s hair, but he shooed her away with a big not-needed grin.

I curled my arm around Sutton’s elbow. “Our guys are crazy.”

“Yeah. That’s why we love them.”

Once the guys had clipped on their transmitters and hung their ear monitors around their necks, Sutton and I followed them and their entourage along the corridor toward the stage. Slip skipped and danced around the other guys, hyping them up for the show. It was impossible to not get swept up in his electric energy.

But as the guys gathered in a circle with their team, and Flint gave them a pre-show pep talk, Slip closed his eyes and winced. He leaned sideways, stretching his right hip and his knee, and rubbed his lower back.

“Hey?” I touched his arm. “Take it easy tonight.”

“Yeah. I will.” His devilish smile sent heat coiling through me to my core.

I raised a suggestive eyebrow. “I don’t want to play nurse the whole time I’m here.”

“But you in a tiny white uniform would be a total fucking turn-on.”

“Not going to happen. So don’t hurt yourself, okay?”

“Promise.”

The guys took to the stage twenty minutes late, but the crowd didn’t seem to mind. As Sutton and I stood in the crew area just off to the left-hand side in front of the stage, the audience screamed and sang along to the songs and ogled our guys. Sutton didn’t take her eyes off Flint, powering out the hits and playing his guitar. Swaying and dancing along to the music, she fanned her hands over her heart and mouthed the lyrics. Cole hammered out the set on his drums. Lewis blazed up a storm on the bass. But like always, Slip held me captive. The stage lights shimmered off his electric Fender and his body glistened with sweat. He flicked his hair this way and that as he strummed out the tunes. Every muscle in his toned arms flexed and bulged as he worked his fingers at pace across the strings. Damn...total turn-on.

The band hit one of my favorite songs. Flint took to the mic.

Pages full of words and lines,

Captured moments for all time.

Thoughts of you fill my mind,

Feelings unravel and unwind.

Is this love? Is this for real?

Is this forever? A true deal?

Is the answer written in the stars?

Coz my heart breaks every time we’re apart.

When you’re not here, I can’t breathe,

Is it wrong I need you next to me?

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