Page 30 of Something to Believe In
She stepped to him and wrapped her arms around his waist. He hesitated for only a moment before securing his arms around her body and holding her close.
She closed her eyes and absorbed as much of his strength as she could. He rested his cheek on the top of her head, and she squeezed her eyes closed.
After a few moments, she stepped back. "I'm sorry. It was a reaction to your anger."
"I wasn't angry. I'm frustrated."
She nodded. "Yeah. Me too. This hasn't been the smoothest beginning to our relationship."
"Fact."
He took her hand in his and led her to the sofa. He sat and tugged her hand to sit next to him. "Let's start again. At least this part of it." Turning to face her, he picked up her hand, kissed her fingers, and looked into her eyes. "I love you, Maddyn Nolen. I have for years."
Emotion swelled in her throat and eyes. Taking a shaky breath, she blew it out. "I love you, Axel Peters. And I have for years."
He leaned forward and kissed her lips. His were warm and soft and felt so good pressed to hers. When his tongue slid into her mouth, she tasted his drink, and she felt the warmth and softness as he explored her. It was exciting. He ended their kiss with light nips on her lips.
He pulled back slightly and smiled the sexiest smile she'd ever seen on him. "That's more like it."
Her heart was full. And the stress of the band finding out was over. Thank goodness for that. Now they could go out in public and be a couple. Her tummy tingled at the thought.
Chapter Nineteen
Axel woke with Mads curled up into his side. He watched her sleep for a long time. He'd never known a peace like this. His shoulders were relaxed, his neck wasn't stiff, and he'd slept like a baby.
He slowly reached over to the nightstand and pulled his phone close. Carefully moving, he opened the camera on his phone and snapped a picture of her at rest. Her dark hair spilled over her shoulder and onto her left arm. The same arm that lay lazily across his belly. Her skin was a soft tan from her time in the sun; her tattoos were pretty flowers. His skin was darker as he tanned more easily. He liked the color for when he pulled his shirt off during a gig. The women screamed and danced all that much harder. That meant more excitement for the band, which meant more gigs. They were all smart about that part of the business. Jami, he had it figured out in spades. That half smile when he sang had the women swooning for him. Sean was their silver fox, being more gray than he and Jami. And the two women, they kept on singing and dancing as the women in the crowd screamed for more.
Looking at the pictures he just took, he smiled. Those were good. It was hard to believe there'd be a bad picture of Mads. She was photogenic and beautiful. She was also sweet and got along with all the others in the band. And she sang like an angel.
He clicked to see if he'd gotten any texts last night. Just one from Jami.
Meet at the barn around eleven.
He sent a thumbs-up.
Mads stretched. He set his phone on the nightstand and watched her wake up. Rolling to her back, she stretched again, and the sheet slipped down, exposing her lovely breasts. He enjoyed the view; his fingers tingled thinking about touching her. Instead, he decided to watch. Voyeurism at its best.
Her eyes opened and landed on his. A soft smile turned her lips up. "Morning." She turned and rested her chin on his chest, then kissed him where her chin had been. She sat up and shuffled off the bed. He enjoyed the view of her backside as she sauntered to the bathroom. Yeah, this was the best.
He got out of bed and slipped on his sweatpants. Stepping into the living room area of the hotel room, he made the coffee. She loved her coffee and the sweeter the better. He didn't like sugar in his, it made him jittery.
Moving to the window, he opened the curtain and stared out at the morning sky. The sun was going to be out in full force today. Glancing at the time on his phone, he began looking for a dealership close to the hotel to get his car turned in for repair. In the meantime, he'd get a loaner. He found one near the hotel and hit the call icon.
Mads stepped from the bedroom wearing his t-shirt. He watched her stop at the coffee pot and pour two cups of coffee. She poured two sugars into one cup and nothing in the other. She turned to see him watching her and grinned. Carrying his coffee to him, she winked, then went back to the bedroom.
He heard the shower turn on, and he envisioned her taking his T-shirt off and stepping under the warm spray. He was eager to get this call over with.
Making his arrangements, he hurried to the bathroom to take a shower with Mads, but the water turned off before he could get inside. Dang it. Maybe tonight. He'd love to press her against the wall of the shower and slide into her.
He sat on the foot of the bed, waiting for her. When the door opened, she smiled at him. "Hey, there. Are you waiting for me?"
"Yes, ma'am."
"You could have joined me."
"I planned on it, but I was too slow."
She giggled and wrapped her arms around his shoulders. He pressed his face into her breasts and inhaled her scent. Yeah, that's how he wanted to start every day.
