Page 50 of I Need You Tonight
Nolan laughed. “And that man was right. Glad you listened to him.”
“So Hailey’s not going home for Christmas?” Aaron asked, his fingers tapping away on the leather couch he was sitting on, like he was playing a piano.
“No, her family’s flying out to join us. They understand why I don’t want to go back there, even if my old house has been sold and the ghosts have moved on.”
“Which means you either have to propose in front of her family,” Jared said, “or figure out how to get her alone and propose.”
“Exactly.”
“Well, you’ve got just over two months to figure it out,” Aaron said. “Good luck with that.” He patted the lead singer on the back commiseratingly.
We chatted for a while longer before the guys went off to do their own thing. Nolan sprawled out on the couch to read a book. Jared fiddled around with his acoustic guitar, stopping every few minutes to write something down. Mason and Kirk were busy playing a video game, with Aaron every so often giving them some not-so-helpful suggestions.
I pulled out my sketchpad and started doodling a simple lily, with a bee. It was a nice flower and a nice bee. Which was another way of saying the drawing sucked. I ripped the page off the pad, crumpled it into a wad, and tossed it next to me on the couch.
“Hey, what’s this?” Mason said, snatching the paper up.
I jumped off the couch and tried to grab it from his hand. “It’s nothing.”Damn you, Mason, and your long arms.
He held the paper up so I couldn’t reach it and smoothed it out.
“This is really good,” he said once he had succeeded. “Why the hell did you throw it away?”
“Because I’m trying to come up with a design for my line of etched glassware—but this isn’t it. All I seem to be able to come up with is flowers.”
The laugh that erupted from him caused the guys to look over at us to see what was going on. “And you have something against flowers? You should’ve thought about that before opening a flower shop.”
“I just want to come up with something different. Something unique and special. Not something you would expect to see in the store.”
Now I needed a miracle to help me figure out what the heck that was.
By the time we arrived at the arena where the bands were playing tonight, I couldn’t believe we still had the radio interview and concert to get through. Even though we weren’t doing anything mentally or physically taxing during the trip, it was still exhausting.
And when we climbed down from the bus and loaded into the waiting van, I was glad they were the ones doing the interview and I just had to watch.
After another long drive, we pulled up in front of the radio station. Silly me had thought we could walk to the door like regular people. With the exception of a path between the van and the front entrance, the sidewalk was packed with screaming fans.
“Is it always like this?” I asked no one in particular.
“Pretty much,” Mason said.
I surveyed the crowd. Just how secure were those ropes? Would they protect us from being trampled if the fans wanted to get closer to the guys? Yes, they had Brian, their bodyguard, who was a former Marine, but how effective would he be against all those girls? Several men, not quite as bulky as Brian, were standing to the side, doing their best to keep the fans back, but they wouldn’t be too effective if the crowd surged forward.
“Don’t worry,” Mason murmured, his breath a warm caress against my ear. “I’ll protect you.” His arm brushed my shoulder, and the usual buzz that happened every time he touched me zinged through my body, immediately making me forget about the crowd.
Brian, who was sitting in the front passenger seat, climbed out and slid open the van’s side door. Excited screams greeted us, which grew to a deafening volume the moment Nolan stepped from the vehicle.
The rest of his bandmates joined him…and I was left to follow behind, which, when I thought about it, was the safest place to be. If the crowd swarmed them, I’d be ignored while the girls chased down their favorite band member.
Even though we didn’t have tons of time before the radio interview, the guys stopped to chat with their fans and sign autographs. With the exception of Mason, the guys stayed at arm’s distance from the girls. Mason was more than happy to pose for selfies with them.
Which was why one girl, who could’ve easily been a model, swooped in and kissed his cheek. A sensation in my stomach twisted into a knot. Jealousy, maybe? Not that I had a reason to be jealous.
Her lips had barely touched his skin before he took a quick step back. After that he didn’t pose for selfies again. But it might’ve also had to do with Brian hustling the band into the building.
Because I was a few yards behind the guys, I heard some of the girls scream out names of the individual band members, along with “I love you!” I decided I was going to take that as an appreciation of the band’s music instead of the men themselves—although in the case of a few fans, the opposite was most likely true.
Mason was the last to step into the building. He glanced over his shoulder and held the door open for me. I hurried past him.
