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“Sure, Marcus. That’d be great.”
Now Miriam was frowning at me. “You sure that’s a good idea, Stef? You look a little?—”
Fuck.“I’m fine. We’ve all had a big night, and we deserve to celebrate.”
“But—”
I knew exactly what she was about to say, so I cut her off. “But nothing, Miriam.” My tone was harsher than I meant it to be, but I knew Grayson was paying close attention. “Marcus has invited us out, and I’m going. End of story.” Dragging myself from the sofa, I ran my fingers through my hair. “Before that, though, how about we go out and say hi to our adoring fans?”
Reggie and Evan followed me out. Thank fuck, since I’d look like a total loser otherwise. We spilled out backstage and I almost balked. Fuck, Marcus wasn’t kidding. This was a lot of people and the way they all cheered the moment they saw us was something else.
“Hello, my little blueberry muffins! Thank you so much for coming out to see us. What a night, hey?” My legs felt a little stiff as I moved toward the nearest huddle, and I could see Grayson lingering nearby.Fuck off, why don’t you?
I plastered on my best stage smile, signing autographs and taking selfies, but my movements felt mechanical. A nap would be real good right now. Scratch that. A week long sleep would do me the world of good.
Then I heard Grayson’s voice, low and irritatingly calm, cutting through the noise. “What did Miriam mean?”
He stepped close enough that I got a whiff of his cologne. After everything that he’d done, the least he could do was buy a new fucking brand. One that didn’t hit me so hard every time he got close enough. I barely glanced at him as I smiled at a young woman and handed her sharpie back. “What the fuck do you care? Worried about your precious investment?” My words were sharp, edged with defiance.
Grayson’s expression didn’t change. “Something like that.”
I scoffed. “Well, there’s no need to be. I can handle myself.” My voice was pitched low enough that only he heard it.
But he didn’t move away. “If there’s something wrong with you, if you’re sick or something, you should tell someone. We can work around anything, as long as we know about it.”
“Wow, you almost sound like you care.”
“Stefania…”
I ignored him, and the little frisson of heat that curled in my belly when he said my name like that. Instead, I focused on the two guys in front of me, signing their album cover with more force than necessary. “Thanks for coming out tonight.” My voice was bright and cheerful, but inside, I was seething.
At last, our van pulled up at the end of the alley and security came to move the fans along. I felt the weight of Grayson’s eyes on me, heavy and unsettling. “I don’t need your concern, Grayson,” I said, not looking at him. “I’ve got this.”
He sighed, a sound of frustration that somehow made me even more annoyed. “Fine. Just remember, I’m here if you need...” His voice trailed off as if he knew how hollow it sounded.
“If you really want to do something useful, you can start by staying the fuck away from me and letting me work. You know, instead of hovering around me like some fucking…Whatever!” Jesus Christ, I just couldn’t think of the perfect analogy to describe him and that fact annoyed me more than anything else!
I was done. I walked away without looking back. Every step was a struggle, my body screaming for rest, but I refused to give in. Not here, not in front of him. I needed to be strong, untouchable,even if it was just a facade. Grayson and his concern could get fucked.
CHAPTER 14
Stefania
Holy fuck!Was all I could think as the limo glided up the long drive of Rivers House. I mean, sure, I’d expected it to be enormous. And grand. But this was something else entirely. Perfectly laid out gardens, a cobbled driveway, elegant gray stone walls, dormer windows and a slate roof. It looked like the set of a movie, not an actual home. Like a fairy tale. Which made it the perfect location for Esme and Wolfe’s wedding, of course.
The car pulled to a stop in front of the shallow steps that led up to two huge wooden doors, and I gulped a little. Imagine growing up in a place like this. I couldn’t, so I pushed open the car door without waiting for the driver and dragged myself from the car.
As much as I was excited for Esme, I was also absolutely exhausted. I’d definitely pushed myself way too hard since Atlanta. It had been a total whirlwind. We’d played five more shows, each more intense than the last. All of them sold out. The last one, in Chicago, had been in front of four thousand people.Four thousand people!
On top of that, we’d had a few early morning interviews, two of which were those high-energy breakfast shows where you had to be ‘on’ even when your body screamed for just five more minutes of sleep. Then there were the late-night studio sessions, squeezing in every moment we could to lay down tracks for the upcoming album.
Through it all, Grayson had done exactly what I’d demanded - stayed the fuck away from me. I hadn’t seen him since Atlanta and now here I was, about to spend the entire weekend with him. Well, not with him, obviously. But around him. All I had to do was get through that. Then I’d have a full week to crash. A week to sleep without alarms, calls, or commitments. Just me, my bed, and a whole lot of nothing. Thank fuck for that.
Pushing open the heavy front door, I stepped into the grand foyer. Its opulence almost knocked the breath out of me. Honestly, how could you raise kids in a place like this?
Before I’d taken more than two steps on the polished marble floor, my gaze landed on the man who’d haunted my dreams for the past month. With his arms around a woman. A redhead in tight-fitting jeans that hugged her perfectly toned ass and a black singlet top that showed off her equally perfectly toned arms. Something hot and painful hit me square in the chest, making me freeze on the spot. Although I told myself I couldn’t give a flying fuck who he hugged, I let out a high pitched, squeaking sound as I tried to force myself to move.
That had Grayson raising his head, his eyes locking on mine. Was it my imagination, or was that a flare of heat when he saw me? He pulled away from the woman and she turned to look at me. Her pale blue eyes were a little red, and she hastily wiped at her cheeks. She’d clearly just been crying.