Page 17 of Laying it Bare Backstage

Once my breathing returned to normal, I washed and rinsed my body and then did the same with my hair. After turning off the water, I grabbed a towel and quickly dried off. Then I tugged on my clothes before brushing my teeth and taking care of business. Finished, I strolled out to my bedroom. The lamp on the nightstand was still on, so I paused to switch it off before climbing into bed but noticed Serenity was still awake.

I slid under the covers. “I didn’t expect you to still be up.”

She shimmied over toward me and snuggled against my chest.

On instinct, I wrapped my arms around her and held her close.

“I was a little worried that I would feel weird lying in your bed. Not bad weird, just weird weird.” Tilting her head back, she gave me a goofy grin.

I shot her an amused smirk.

“I know, it sounds funny.” She rolled her eyes.

“No. Well, maybe a little. But I think it’s adorable. And I love it. You’re comfortable with me. I know you didn’t expect to be, but you know you are safe with me.”

“And this feels natural, like I’m not trying to force myself to be okay with it to make things easier. I was falling asleep out on your couch, but I got a second wind, like a little thrill, when I came in here and realized this isn’t bothering me.”

Her words made it hard to keep my dick under control. He was eager to pop up and show her exactly how much of a thrill she could expect. And to make matters more difficult, while we were talking, our legs ended up tangled together. So that she couldn’t feel my dick twitching in my shorts, I angled my hips back. I didn’t think I was completely hiding it, but I didn’t need to make it obvious and have it poking her stomach.

“Don’t get me wrong; Iamhappy that being in here isn’t making me anxious, but the fact that I’m not, triggers a bit of panic for me. Does that make sense?” She shook her head, her eyes troubled. “And I like that I can talk to you about those types of things without the fear of you getting upset.”

I cupped her cheek and ran my thumb along her smooth skin. I loved touching her. “First, you never have to be afraid to tell me anything. Even if I don’t like something; I will never lash out at you in anger. Also, I know you’ve been hurt before and you are trying to work through it. I hope you can trust that your heart is safe with me too. I know those may sound like empty words to you right now, but I’m going to keep working to prove it to you.”

“Deep down, I know it’s safe with you. It’s just going to take some time for me to put that horrible experience completely behind me.” She reached up and ran her fingers along my scruff. I loved that it was as if she couldn’t help touching me as well. “Let’s talk about something more fun. How did you get into music? I’ve been listening to you for the last five years and I don’t remember seeing anything before that. But I could’ve missed it. I mean you can’t be more than a few years younger than me considering Ascher went to school with us.”

“I’m the same age as Ascher. Don’t worry; you’re not robbing the cradle.”

“I knew you were at least legal.” Rolling her eyes, she punched me in the shoulder. “Were you doing smaller performances or anything when you were younger?”

“No. My mom loved to sing. She would always sing to me or I’d sing with her. But she wanted me to at least finish high school, so I didn’t really start pursuing anything until I graduated. When I turned eighteen, I started signing up for any open mic night I could find. My parents always came to listen to me. They were very supportive. I performed at those for about six months.” I paused for a moment and hugged her tightly to me, running a hand through her hair.

Serenity’s breath caught, like she sensed something horrible was coming. I loved that she was so in tune with me.

“My mom was killed in an accident when someone who was higher than a kite slammed into her car. I stopped singing in public. I continued to write and sing at home, but I couldn’t do it outside of the house.”

She leaned back and grabbed my face in her hands. “Oh my God. I’m so sorry for your loss. I couldn’t even imagine.” Her eyes shone with tears a moment before they spilled down her cheeks. Then they grew to the size of saucers. “Your first album,Riding Out the Storm; the first three hits; “Moonlight”, “Chasing Rainbows”, and “Driving Away the Anger”; they were about your mom.” Her mouth gaped open.

Without being fully aware of my knee jerk reaction, I had leaned in and pressed my mouth to hers in a hungry kiss. Fuck, this girl got me like no one else. However, before I unintentionally pushed this further than she was ready to go, I ended the kiss. Then I locked my gaze on hers. “How did you know that?”

“I felt something between and outside of the actual lyrics every time I heard it. I was convinced you had lost someone incredibly close to you, but I never read anything about it.”

“We kept it out of the news and off of as much media as we could. We didn’t want the publicity. She wouldn’t have liked it.” Cradling her face in my palms, I smoothed my thumbs along her cheeks and swiped away the wetness there. “People thought the lyrics were just high charged words set to an angry passionate beat meant to draw in a huge fan base. Even my producer thought the same thing and was excited I’d have something so fiery to launch a newcomer into the music business. He didn’t realize those words grew out of intense grief.” I shook my head. “But you figured that out even before meeting me.”

“What made you decide to sign with him?”

“My mom would have been disappointed if I would have allowed my talent to go to waste. I spent a lot of hours with my dad talking about it. And we both decided I should go for it.”

“If you hadn’t been out in public performing, how did you get hooked up with a producer?” She brushed some of my hair off of my forehead. Her touch made is so much easier to share the story that had torn my life apart.

“He saw me perform at the last open mic I had attended. It took him several months to track me down and after talking and listening to me sing a few of the songs I had written since then, he signed me on with him.” I ran my fingers up and down her arm, relishing the feel of her silky skin. I could get lost in the feel of her. “More and more I just know you are perfect for me. I know you had said you are comfortable with me, but I feel complete when I’m with you. On stage performing was the only thing that really made me feel alive since I lost my mom. But being with you makes me whole, like I’m myself again. And I don’t need a crowd screaming my name or to be belting out songs that came from deep in my soul. Like something as simple as lying in bed, holding you, and talking, you’re right; it’s natural.”

“Maybe we are perfect for each other.” A strange expression flitted across her face, but it was gone too quickly for me to decipher it. Well, whatever it was, I was going to do everything in my power to convince her to be mine. She would eventually not even remember that douchebag’s name.

“How about something fun to talk about until we’re ready to go to sleep? What is your favorite song by me?” I shot her a mischievous grin.

“Ugh. That’s as bad as asking me what my favorite book is. It’s an impossible question to answer. And I can tell by the look on your face that you know that.”

I pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Just select two; a ballad and a rock one. And I won’t hold it against you. I’m curious what you’ll pick.”

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