Standing so close to the action was magical for me. I forgot everything but the music, the band, and Declan. He was godlike on stage, and I was mesmerized. His long hair was back in a ponytail and he had no shirt on, so I saw every ripple of his muscles as he moved, his hands practically flying back and forth along his drums. He sang background vocals on most songs and mouthed all the lyrics to the others. He was completely immersed in the show, his face morphing from deep concentration to broad smiles whenever one of the guys in the band caught his eye.
“This is the sexiest thing I’ve ever seen,” I yelled in Avon’s ear.
“Agreed!”
As the show went on, sweat glistened on Declan’s skin and I watched him down an entire bottle of water while still keeping the rhythm of the bass drums with his feet. God, he was sexy. I now saw what hundreds of thousands of other rock fans saw every time he was onstage. It was so fucking hot. And he was all mine.
It had taken far too long for me to realize that, and we hadn’t been together very long in the grand scheme of things, but two months was plenty of time to see the man he was beneath his rock star persona. Seeing this version of him up close and in person was pretty cool, too, and I couldn’t wait to tell him about it later tonight. Maybe even show him how much all of this turned me on.
I figured as a rock star’s girlfriend I probably shouldn’t be singing and dancing like a fan, but when they played “Wicked X,” I couldn’t help myself. I loved the song and watching them play it in front of a huge crowd made it that much cooler. I could see people in the first couple of rows from where I was standing and they were diehard fans, singing every word to every song, which made me believe Nobody’s Fool was definitely on the way up.
They ended the set with “Wicked X” and I was sad for the show to be over. The band took a bow and then came jogging offstage and Declan came right to me, grabbing a towel from Lance, and wiping his face before turning to me. He started to say something, but I kissed him before he could. I didn’t care how sweaty he was or that everyone could see us; I was completely swept up in everything that made Bash part of Declan and Declan into Bash.
“I guess you liked the show,” he said when I let him come up for air.
“So much. It was amazing. You’re amazing.”
“Thanks, Red.” He took my hand and we headed for the dressing room. As the opening act, they all had to share one, but everyone was in a good mood, drinking water and talking about a guy in the front row who seemed to be following them from show to show.
“Does he work?” I asked, mystified.
“Don’t know,” Tyler said. “But I recognize him. If he shows up in Anaheim tomorrow, maybe we’ll send him a backstage pass. He’s a diehard.”
“Can we stay for Onyx Knight?” I whispered to Declan. “I know you probably want to get back to the hotel and relax, but I’m excited to see them.”
“I don’t know if you can stand in the wings,” he said, “but let me ask Kingston.”
“Who’s Kingston?”
“The lead singer, Kingston Knight. Hang on.”
“Oh, you don’t have to—” I began.
“Sure I do.” He winked. “Let me find him and tell him about my rock and roll virgin.”
He disappeared out the door and I hung back, wondering how this had become my life but loving every second of it. So far, nothing that had gone on, other than the magic of the music, was what I’d been expecting. The band was professional and busy, and with Avon and I here, even the groupies I’d seen seemed subdued.
Declan came back a few minutes later and said we could stand in the wings to watch Onyx Knight and that made me stupidly happy. This trip had been epic so far and it was all because of the gorgeous man holding my hand. I’d seen a few women giving us wistful looks, as if disappointed he wasn’t available, but he seemed oblivious, and I’d finally convinced myself that a guy didn’t need groupies to cheat. I had to believe in him or I’d risk losing him anyway, which was the last thing I wanted.
* * *
“Have you had fun the last two nights?” he asked when we were finally in bed the next night. We’d had sex in the shower so now we were just relaxing, legs twined and my head resting on his chest as he stroked my hair.
“This has been one of the best weekends of my life,” I said honestly. “The music is…I can’t even describe it. You guys are amazing. And I mean that.”
“You’re not just trying to get me into bed?” he deadpanned. “Cause, you know, using me like that wouldn’t be nice.”
I laughed. “Nope. I’ve already got you in bed, mister, and you’re not going anywhere until I say so.”
“I kinda like it when you’re bossy,” he chuckled.
“Seriously, I didn’t know what to expect. I knew the music after watching you rehearse and stuff, but an actual concert, with all the lights and fans screaming and everything that goes into a live show, I wasn’t sure I’d like it.”
“But you do?”
“I loved it. It had my heart racing and at some points it felt like every nerve ending in my body was on alert. But in a good way. Excitement and energy and feelings I can’t quite describe. Is it because of you? Us?” I asked honestly.
He kissed the top of my head. “I’m sure that’s part of it, but I don’t think it would feel quite like that just because we’re together. I imagine if I played in a jazz band you wouldn’t have the same visceral reaction you did to this kind of show.”
“You’re probably right. It’s so exciting. And I’m starting to get into the music. Even Onyx Knight has a few songs I like.”
“I’ll be sure to tell the hottest rock band in the world right now that my girlfriend thinks a few of their songs are good.”
I giggled, lightly pinching him. “But your girlfriend thinks all of your songs are good.”
“I’m enjoying watching you discover your love of rock,” he said. “It brings some of the magic back for me too. I love what I do, but doing the same thing over and over, every day, gets monotonous. Watching it from your perspective has made it fun again. I wish you were here on tour with me more often.”
“I’ll come as often as I can get away,” I whispered. “Next year could get tricky if I start culinary school, but we’ll figure it out.”
“I want you to move in with me,” he said after a moment. “I mean, officially. No more keeping stuff at the apartment, no more paying half the rent over there. I love you and want to know you’re part of everything in my life.”
“Kiki can’t afford it,” I protested. “Noah’s doing well but he can’t pay my share of the rent and—”
“I’m going to handle that. Stu loves having him on the team, so keep doing what you’re doing one more month, and then the band is going to pay your share of the rent as unofficial pay for Noah. We don’t want to bring him on for this part of the tour because it complicates the bookkeeping and everything, but don’t worry about Noah, okay?”
“How can I not worry about him?” I asked.