Page 6 of Heartbreaker

I’m excited to simply bask in his presence.

Royal Ewing is a legend.

One of the most talented guitarists in rock and roll.

Well, he was.

Until a car accident robbed him of the use of his right hand.

My heart breaks for him every time I read something about the accident, and I notice that his right arm hangs limply athis side. I can’t help but wonder if it hurts. If he spends all day everyday thinking about the fact that he’ll never play guitar again.

His accident was big news when it happened, the gory details all over the media.

Then his divorce had been so ugly, and so very public.

I can’t imagine what he went through.

We’ve never met but I feel for him every time I read another news article about him.

Now he’s in my dressing room.

And even more intoxicating than I imagined.

I catch his eye in the mirror and he is, indeed, watching me, as if he’s reading my mind.

A warm flush covers my body.

Not because I'm embarrassed or doing anything wrong, but because his gaze is dark, penetrating, almost as titillating as his touch was.

And I’m completely under a spell.

“Are you going to any after parties?” I ask, desperate for some semblance of normal conversation.

“No.” He pauses. “You?”

“My producer, Rico Galagos, is having a small get-together at his place, so I’ll head over there for a while. After I change out of this dress. I don’t know what I was thinking wearing something I can barely move in.”

“You look beautiful.” His voice is deep and it sends shivers down my spine.

“Thank you.” I turn, cocking my head slightly. “If I’d known you were going to be here, I would have brought you on stage with me.”

His brows furrow. “I’m glad you didn’t. I prefer to stay out of the spotlight.”

“Why?” The word pops out before I can stop it, and I immediately back pedal. “I’m sorry. That’s none of my business.”

“It’s all right.” He leans against the door. “I just get tired of the Hollywood bullshit sometimes. It’s all so fake.”

“But you came tonight.”

“I knew you were going to win,” he says softly, “and I wanted to be here for it.”

“Well, I appreciate that. I’m so glad we got to meet. Our song changed my career—my life. It’s been the craziest year.”

“Good crazy or bad crazy?”

“A little of both, to be honest. There’s been a lot of good. Money, success, an incredible tour, TV shows, interviews—all the things we dream of before we’re successful. But the down side is…the constant attention. The lack of privacy. I can’t even relax at home now because the press is camped outside twenty-four seven.”

“Wherever you’re living when you hit it big,” he says quietly, “has to become your former residence. Or a secondary residence. You have to move or they’ll never give you any peace.”

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