Page 4 of I Just Want to be Yours

I study her, trying to figure out what they’re not saying, but all I can focus on is the pretty shade of pink that warms her cheeks. My gaze wanders to her neck, then her collar bone, her perfect breasts. She always stops me when she walks into aroom, but her outfit today hits different. If she looked like this when I had to leave this morning, I never would have made it. Her hair is down and straight, but every time she runs her hand through it, soft strands frame her face. It’s taking all my self-control not to weave my fingers through it and crash my lips against hers.

She turns around to look at the stage while the last band tears down their equipment, and I fight back a groan. All I want to do is take a bite out of her ass in those shorts.

“You’re just a cool boyfriend to have,” Rae says with a laugh, filling me in on the conversation I had already forgotten about.

I cock an eyebrow. “Yeah?” I’m glad Rae thinks so because sometimes I’m not so sure. It’s a feeling I’ve had since Margot and I started dating—like I’m bound to disappoint the girl who matters most.

Margot looks over her shoulder and locks eyes with me, but she just smiles and shakes her head, dismissing Rae’s comment.

She never acts like I’ve let her down. By some stroke of dumb luck, she acts like she can’t get enough of me.

Dave excuses himself from the conversation with the guys and pats me on the shoulder as he heads back to the stage. “We’ve got fifteen.”

“That’s my cue,” I say to everyone before finally walking up to Margot and cradling her face in my hands. I kiss her slow and sweet until her lips pull into a smile against mine. “I’ll see you after.”

“Okay,” she says, and she sounds breathless. She’s still looking at me as she backs away to catch up with the rest of our friends.

It’s only then that I take in the wider picture of my surroundings. A decent sized crowd has formed in front of the stage. My eyes widen, and I look back at Dave. Laughing, he catches my stare and mouths, “I know!”

Looking back at the crowd, I shake my head. We’ve played in front of large audiences before, but most of those people were there for Sidecar, not us. There’s a chance these people are just camping out early so they can see the bigger bands up close tonight, but they could be here for us, too.

That’s all it takes for the blood to course through my veins.

It’s easy to spot my friends trying to work their way into the crowd. They’ll never get to the front with how things are now. Jogging up to security standing at the bottom of the stage, I point to Margot. I saw Brady do this earlier for his girlfriend and hope I get the same results. Glancing down at his name tag, I say, “Hey, Mack.” The guy looks at me, his long hair tucked under a backward baseball cap. “Jackson,” I add as I hold out a hand.

He shakes it but looks like he doesn’t know why some random kid is talking to him—which I guess is fair.

I point my thumb over my shoulder at the stage behind me. “I play guitar for American Thieves. Do you think you can let those four front and center?”

His eyes move from me to the direction I’m pointing. “Them?”

I nod. “Yeah, with the gorgeous redhead.”

He lets out a laugh. “Yeah. All right.”

I jog back to the side of the stage and call out, “Thanks, Mack!” over my shoulder.

“All good?” Dave asks once I reach him and the guys.

“Yeah.” I grab my guitar and slip it over my head, securing the strap on my shoulder. “I figured we’d have an audience like the last band. Where did all these people come from?”

Dave looks out at the crowd with a slow shake of his head. “No idea. It’s been a while since we’ve played a festival, but I’d say this is a good turn out for a midafternoon slot.”

Marty comes up behind Dave and me, looping an armaround each of us. “Uh, did we have this many fans last time we were home?”

“No,” I say, not breaking my eyes away from the scene. Mack has gotten Margot’s attention and waves her to the front while Rae, Matt, and Braden trail behind. Once they’ve secured their spots, Rae bounces on her heels and excitedly says something to Margot that makes her toss her head back in laughter.

She looks happy.

The corners of my mouth lift at the sight. I like seeing her happy.

Brady lets out a slow whistle. “Damn,” he says as he looks at the still growing mass of people, lightly drumming his drumsticks against his thighs as he stands. “Let’s give them one hell of a show.”

Dave claps his hands together. “You don’t have to tell me twice.” Turning around, he reaches into a bag and pulls out a bottle of bourbon. “Ready?”

We all take a shot for luck before the show.

Dave swallows and blows out a breath before he shakes out his nerves and hits the stage. By the time we all take our places, he’s already saying something into the mic about how, even though we only have an hour, we’re going to party like we have all fucking night.

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