Page 42 of Blind Attraction

Alana squeezed his hand, and he smiled. The atmosphere was different from any other time he’d had a woman behind the scenes with the band. Usually, they wouldn’t pay her attention or acknowledge the sleazy X-rated noises that would’ve been the back track to their conversation. This time, the room churned with two parts uncomfortable silence and eight parts suppressed laughter.

“There’s my dirty girl,” Kate called from the kitchen, raising her half-empty wine glass in salute.

Julie gasped, Leah took a sip from her glass to hide her smile, and his closest friends chuckled.

“See, I wasn’t the first person to highlight the latest prayer session.” Blake shot him a smirk. “I didn’t realize you were religious, bro.”

Mitch grinned back, undeterred. “I’ve definitely found heaven.”

Alana groaned. He glanced down to see her darkened cheeks and her gaze focused on the floor in front of them.

“I’m right beside you, if you hadn’t noticed,” she whispered, barely moving her lips.

He leaned down and placed a kiss below her ear. “It’s a rite of passage, sweetheart. Just go with it.”

When he pulled back, she had one brow raised, and her shoulders were straight, ready to take the room head on.

“I don’t blame you, girlfriend,” Kate continued. “Now that you’ve finally experienced what the hype is about, I doubt you’ll continue with your celibacy.”

“Oh, Christ.” Alana murmured, dropping his hand. “I need a drink.” She stepped around him, her arms outstretched at her sides as she maneuvered and bumped around furniture.

Mitch stared at her retreating form, at the beautiful long hair cascading down her back and the way her hips swayed. A knot formed in his chest, and he fought the urge to rub his sternum. Kate was right. He didn’t know why he hadn’t thought of it earlier…probably because his cock had taken over his life. Alana hadn’t experienced the pleasure sex provided before. He remembered what he’d been like as a teenager. Once he’d popped his cherry, he went around trying to pop everyone else’s. It was a new, exciting experience.

Something she would want to experiment with.

Something she wouldn’t want to wait around for.

Something Alana shouldn’thaveto wait around for.

He exhaled slowly, hoping to alleviate the pressure under his ribcage. He couldn’t ask her to put her life on hold while he did the new album promo. Or the upcoming tour for that matter.

Who was he kidding? His lifestyle didn’t come with a happily ever after package. Ryan and Julie were proof.

Mitch continued to watch as Alana took a glass of white wine from Leah and proceeded to scull the contents. He ignored the slide of a chair against the tile floor and didn’t turn his gaze away from her until Blake nudged his shoulder.

“What’s wrong?”

Mitch glowered and shook his head. He didn’t want to talk about it. He didn’t even want to contemplate what would happen when they left tomorrow.

“Alana seems like a top chick. Have you made plans for what will happen once we leave?”

Blake read him like a book.

“We’re only having a bit of fun,” Mitch lied. It was more than fun. More than passion. More than addiction. Alana was under his skin, and he didn’t want to let her go.

Blake gave a derisive snort. “Oh, OK. So you won’t mind me trying to have a bit of fun with her too?”

Mitch turned to the smug expression on his friends face. Blake was trying to push him into admitting how he felt about Alana, but Mitch wasn’t that gullible. Not when the likelihood of them having a future was slim to none. He enjoyed humiliation as much as the next person.

He turned away, focusing his attention back on Alana and the way she spoke softly with the other females in the kitchen.

“Tell her how you feel,” Blake murmured. “I’ve never seen you like this over a woman before. Don’t let her go. She seems like a keeper.”

Mitch smoothed his hands over his face, rubbing away the tension. Although his career didn’t allow for it, he felt the…yearning sounded too sissy, but something similar told him it was time to settle down. The thought of coming home from months on tour, to a wife and family seemed like a fantasy always out of reach.

He could see himself with Alana. He’d never contemplated a future with anyone else before, yet it came easily with her. With vivid clarity, he pictured how stunning she would look in white, the gleam in her eyes as he carried her over the threshold, and the way she would nurse a child.

Shaking his head, he ground his teeth together. She might be the perfect image for his future, but the timing couldn’t be worse. Her life had just begun. She still wouldn’t be able to fully grasp the opportunities the world had to offer—or the men who would eagerly fall at her feet.

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