Page 56 of Beyond the Bright Lights

At that, Mylan’s tense shoulders relax, and he lets out a long breath. His hands comb through his hair and I can’t help myself, I run my fingers through the dark locks as well.

Shit. What am I doing?

You know what? Fuck it. I want to run my fingers through his hair, and I don’t care who sees. Our relationship has been outed, so all bets are off.

After making sure Mylan is calm, I return behind the taps to serve the busy crowd.

I watch him to see how he’s handling the aftermath of the encounter. He sits back on the stool, rolls his neck, his shoulders, and cracks his knuckles before inhaling half of his water. He needs an outlet. I assume he’d turn to drugs and alcohol in situations like this. Despite me wanting to stab Jensen, he might be right. My bar is the last place Mylan should be.

And maybe I shouldn’t be with a recovering addict.

“All right guys, gals, and non-binary pals.” Heads turn to the back of the bar to the stage and the hum of chatter transforms with excitement. “My name is Harkin, and we’re Silo’s Symphony. It’s seven o’clock. Time for?”

“Rock Star Karaoke!” the entire bar screams and cheers.

Mylan lifts his head, and his mood shifts to excitement. Once again, I'm amazed at how quickly he can shut off emotions, flipping to a new one as if he’s changing the channel on the television.

“If you were here last weekend, you’ll remember we started with a special guest. Well, he’s back tonight, and he asked if he could kick things off. Mylan Andrews, will you do us the honor?”

The crowd goes crazy. Mylan nods his chin at Harkin, who nods back. Before heading up to sing, Mylan turns back to me.

“In case you have any doubts, this song is definitely about you.”

He winks, and I roll my eyes but damn my mouth for smiling against my will. And damn Ginger for clawing at my arm and squealing like a banshee.

Bruno and the extra security Mylan hired, not only for himself but also for my bar to keep the crowds in line tonight, escort him up to the stage.

He doesn’t tell Harkin the song, but the band starts playing anyway. My eyes narrow. Did they plan this? The beat is light, fun, easy to dance to. Wait. I recognize this. I haven’t heard it in ages though.

“Come over here,” Mylan whispers into the microphone, pointing at me.

What?

He’s summoning me with that finger, and I'm shaking my head ‘no’ fast.

When an electric guitar starts strumming, the name of the song comes to me.

Need You Tonight by INXS.

My cheeks heat as I watch Mylan dance across the stage. He jerks his hips back and forth, in sync with the music. His dancing is atrocious, yet I can’t keep my eyes off him. Everyone in the bar can’t keep their eyes off him.

He’s magic up there.

He starts belting out the lyrics. Man, he’s such a bad singer. Why does that make him even more charming? When the song says slide, he slides, and he’s rewarded with deafening cheers. When he sings the part about being one of his kind, he points at me again, curling his fingertip, begging me to join him on the stage.

A combination of feelings passes through me: embarrassment, excitement, awe, lust.

Then I’m being pulled through the crowd by Ginger, protected by Bruno and the extra bodyguards. My best friend, who I will certainly murder after tonight, shoves me onto the steps, and I walk up on stage. I hide in the corner, arms wrapped around my stomach as if that will protect me from what comes next.

The song talks about sliding again, at which Mylan slides his way over to me. He's so tall, it feels like he’s smothering me as he sings at the top of my head. He gyrates on me, grinding his dick on my hip before leaning down and giving me a big, wet smack of his lips on my cheek.

I cover my face as if that will turn me invisible, as if to hide from Mylan and the fact that I'm super embarrassed right now.

And super turned on.

Mylan finishes the song to an explosion of applause, praising the amazing performance, despite the out-of-tune singing voice and the off-beat dancing. I don’t give him time to bask in the accolades. Instead, I latch on to his arm and pull him off the stage to the hallway leading to the back exit. Bruno and two other bodyguards follow. We manage to sneak out without any fans stopping us.

Mylan doesn’t question me as I walk us up the stairs to my apartment, leaving his small protection team at the bottom. They’ll likely stay out there, keeping watch until the bar closes and the crowds disperse.

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