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Fuck yeah!

The fire in my belly burned.

I didn’t want to get my hopes up. My dreams and ideas had been crushed before. But fuck, it was nice to ignite them again.

Bring on recording.

Bring on milestone one.

Chapter 9

TIA

During the last two days at Big Bear, the guys snowboarded during the daylight hours while Sutton and I watched movies and soaked in the huge hot tub on the back deck. My ankle thanked me for the therapeutic spa. At night, the guys had worked on their songs.

On our last evening, after dinner, I sat on the sofa, sipping my un-spiked hot chocolate, listening to the guys finesse another track. With every tweak they made, note they changed, or finalized version they ran through, warmth filled my chest. I loved every demo...except “Miss You.” It was an incredible single, but it was about Phil. I hadn’t been able to listen to it without shedding a tear. I didn’t know how Flint managed to sing it. Every other song they’d written was full of raw rock and possessed their unique quirky edge. The excitement and buildup to hitting the studio after New Year’s grew every day. Their energy was truly contagious.

I missed spending time with the band. Life and love had kept us apart for too long. But I’d need to move away again if Lewis’s constant inquisitive glances, cute smiles, and smart, sexy one-liners kept stirring the butterflies in my belly.

They had to stop.

I wasn’t stupid. I’d fallen for flirtatious crap like that before. I wouldn’t do it again.

Lewis was gay. I fully respected that with all my heart and soul.

But shit. I tapped my fingernail against my mug. What if he was into women too?

Nope. Don’t go there. He wasn’t.

So why did my body keep messing with my mind?

As I watched him play and sing softly, heat coiled and swam through my core, rippled through my chest, and tingled the base of my scalp. Every time I looked at him, I wanted to do dirty things to him...in bed, in the hot tub, there on the sofa. Fuck. These thoughts had to end. If they didn’t, it would only lead to heartache...mine!

Near midnight, the guys packed their gear away and headed toward bed. I wasn’t tired, so I made another hot chocolate. After putting on my coat, beanie, and gloves, and slipping my cell phone into my pocket, I headed outside onto the front deck. Standing beside the gas heater, I leaned against the railing. I cradled my cup, letting the steam warm my face. In the dark of night, I peered down the valley toward the lake. Cabin lights twinkled through the trees. The soft, gentle breeze carried fresh snow onto the ground. The snow groomer engines hummed in the distance as they zoomed over the slopes. I closed my eyes, inhaled the mountain air, and savored the silence. You didn’t get that often in LA.

The French door behind me creaked open.

“Hey?” Lewis said. “Are you okay?”

My heartbeat jumped a fraction. “Yeah. Fine. Just enjoying our last night here.”

He tugged his beanie lower onto his head. The ends of his blond hair fanned beneath the bottom edge. “It’s freezing out here.”

“I lived in Chicago.” I sipped my drink. “This ain’t cold.”

“Yeah, I suppose Boston and Brooklyn were worse than this too.” He stepped closer to catch the warmth from the heater. “So, I was just talking to Sutton. She got an email saying that your show’s cast and crew meet-and-greet has been delayed until the fourteenth of January.”

Shit. I placed my mug on the railing and grabbed my cell phone out of my pocket. I scanned my messages and read the one from the director. Damn it. He was right. “She’s going to come to New York with us. You should too.”

Tucking my cell phone away, I pursed my lips and slowly shook my head. New York? Lewis? Nope. “Not sure that’s a good idea.”

“Why?” His brow furrowed. “I’d love to show you around my hometown before I move.”

I picked up my mug, blew into my hot chocolate, and arched an eyebrow. “Are you confident you’ll be relocating to Cali?”

Not every time the guys had played together had gone smoothly. They’d argued, bantered, been pissed with each other. But when they finally nailed a track, it had been magical to listen to.

“Not exactly.” He tucked his hands into the pockets of his parker. “So come so we can celebrate New Year’s. See the sights. You can’t stay stuck at home and do nothing.”