When she returned to the suite, he was lounging on the sofa with one foot hanging on the backrest and the other on the arm. She quietly closed the door, lest he was asleep, and placed the food on the coffee table. She stood for a while and let her eyes wander from his tousled hair on the cushion to his bulging biceps lying across his chest.
When she would have walked away, something compelled her to keep looking. His pectoral muscles were outlined beneath the skin-hugging T-shirt he wore. His chest tapered down to define the chocolate abs she knew existed beneath. She could see them clearly from her memory. There were six or eight muscles … yes … eight, and the V-line that led to his …
“Have you had your fill?” His deep voice startled her, and she jumped, bumping her shin on the low edge of the table.
“Ouch!” she yelped.
Colt swung his feet from the sofa, grabbing the bag with the food, at which time he pulled the Styrofoam container out. Upon flipping the top open, he stared for a long time while Chelsea waited with her breath caught in her throat and her hand on her throbbing shin. She knew he was going to complain. She closed her eyes and waited for it.
“Where’s the fork?” His voice was surprisingly soft.
Her eyes flew open, and she stared. Colt grunted and rummaged in the bag until he found it. She couldn’t move and watched as he tore the plastic wrapper with his teeth before digging into the food. When he looked up at her, her breath stopped.
“I hate people watching me eat,” he said, beckoning with his head that she should scram.
She ambled over to Reid’s desk, placing his food bag there. Her shin still ached from the knock it received. She pulled her skirt up and propped her foot on the chair to take a look. The thing had a red welt that was becoming purple. She’d have to treat it because the skin seemed bruised. Chelsea sighed, mentally slapping herself at her clumsiness. She told herself that she had to wait until later to treat her leg. For the moment, she was at the beck and call of her boss.
Seven
Molly called to say she could not make it to the concert. She’d made other plans when Chelsea told her she could not get her in. Chelsea was disappointed. After all, she had been looking forward to the company of another female.
The concert, which was three blocks away from the hotel, was scheduled to begin at eight. At six o’clock, she slipped away to go take a shower, allowing Colt alone time to mentally prepare himself. Reid had mentioned that’s what he did before every concert, requesting time alone.
The manager had been out all day seeing to the final touches of the night’s event, dealing with the promoters and the press. She could see now why he’d hired an assistant. Colt seemed to require constant attention, and Reid could not always be at hand.
She had no clue what to wear to a concert. Reid had promised to give her a change of wardrobe but that hadn’t happened yet. She showered and put on the plush hotel robe, brushed her hair and pulled it back in a ponytail.
Next, she extracted a pair of jeans and cotton blouse from her suitcase. It was a new pair of jeans given her by her aunt. It seemed small, but the woman had told her it would stretch. She was about to get dressed when a knock sounded at the door.
She pulled the robe tightly around her and went to answer, wondering if Molly had changed her mind. She pulled opened the door with a smile, which faded the instant she saw Colt standing there.
He stretched his hand out with a small paper bag package. She took the bag, taking a look inside. There was a tube of antibiotic ointment and bandage in it. Her mouth opened a crack, her eyes widening in surprise.
“Thank you,” she breathed, shocked at the gesture.
“Don’t read too much into it. If you’re not well, it affects my flow,” he grunted and walked away. “Be ready in twenty minutes,” he added as he crossed the hall.
Chelsea dressed the wound. It was not as bad as it looked. The area was a little swollen and tender. She put some of the ointment on and wrapped the bandage around it. Next, she dressed in the pair of jeans, which fitted her like a second skin. She was ready in ten minutes, at which time she returned to the suite to wait for Colt.
He could kick himself. Colt had no idea what came over him. He’d watched her as she pulled her skirt up to take a look at her shin, at which time, his heart had stopped beating for a few seconds. She certainly had pretty legs. He had to tear his mind away from wandering about the rest of her in order to look at her wound. The things looked bad. Without thinking, he called the front desk and requested the items. Like a fool, he had them deliver it to him instead of directly to her.
His mood had suddenly soured. This was all her doing. Chelsea had the ability to dampen his mood. How could he allow himself to be affected by her? As he re-entered the suite, he kicked the edge of the sofa. First, it was her dawdling with Tony, and now this. This wasn’t good. He liked relaxing before a show, and now she was constantly rattling his nerves.
Someone knocked the door, which further irritated him. He yanked it open, thinking it was she. He stared into the chocolate-colored face of one of the guards Reid hired to escort him to the stadium a couple blocks away. He looked past the solid expression of the one in front and met a similar face of the dude behind.
“We’re ready when you are,” the one in front stated thickly.
“Yeah,” he replied and closed the door.
He didn’t need any damn guards. If he boarded the limo from the hotel emergency exit and disembarked right behind the stage at the stadium, he’d be fine. He couldn’t understand why Reid was so over protective.
“Where the hell is she?” he grumbled eight minutes after handing her the package.
As if on cue, she quietly entered the suite, and his fracking heart stopped again. What the hell was she doing? She was wearing tight jeans and properly fitted mint shirt that buttoned down at the front. For the second time since they’d met, he was seeing her full figure. Her outfit showed off her curves and accents. The only problem was, she looked devastatingly terrified.
“I’m ready,” she said in a shaky voice.
Something curled within his belly, and his mood began to lift. He wanted to tell her that she looked great, but that wasn’t his style. He grunted with a nod and opened the door, giving her a grave stare. She followed him out, and immediately the two bouncers flanked them.
“We’ll take the back. There’s a large crowd out front,” the leader said.
“Yeah,” he returned sourly.
They took the staircase that led to the back door where hotel supplies were delivered. The limo pulled up, followed by a throng of screaming fans. Colt gave a small wave and showed some teeth. The women rushed forward as the bodyguards fended them off and made a path to the passenger door.
Chelsea was almost trampled as she tried to keep behind the star. One of the guards gripped her arm, pushing her in behind Colt, then slammed the door shut. As the vehicle rolled out, she could still hear the deafening screams blocking her ear canal.
When she looked over at Colt, he had a pleased smirk on his face. He glanced back several times, and it dawned on her that he loved the attention. There were mostly females in the crowd that she saw, but something odd had caught her eye as she stumbled.
She glanced behind them and saw the crowd waving. She scanned the throng to see if she had been correct about what she saw. Off to the side stood a man. He had his hands buried in his pockets, and he seemed unhappy, angry even. The limo disappeared around the side of the building where it met another throng out front. That prevented her from seeing if he was still there.
She wished she’d had enough time to get a good look at the man. Who was he? she wondered. He didn’t look like a fan to her. He was just standing there as if watching. He had been looking at Colt, and the look in his slate-colored eyes was that of hatred. She could be wrong. She’d only seen him a few seconds.
Within ten minutes, they were pulling up behind the stage, and Reid was there to greet them. Chelsea scanned
the place. It was a football stadium with a stage in the middle of the field. Reid told her that it was an old stadium, now used for concerts and other events.
She looked up at the stands, observing how full the seats were. The noise was also ear-splitting. Several security guards made a barrier around the stage. A few feet behind the stage were five tiny tents, each one no larger than a cubicle. She assumed these were dressing rooms. The area was well secured with the barriers extending to about a hundred feet behind the tents.
Reid pulled Colt to one of the tents. She made out Tony with the other band members off to one side of the stage. They didn’t spend much time in the hotel, so she knew little about them except for their names. It seemed they spent most of their time in rehearsals while Colt evaded it as much as possible. Tony looked over and saw her. Immediately his face lit up, and he excused himself, coming over to her.
“Thanks for the lunch today.” He grinned. She’d asked the driver to drop his food off since he was not in the hotel when she came back.
“You’re welcome.” She smiled.
“You look great,” he said in a soft voice.
She blushed, casting her eyes down, shuffling uncomfortably. He was looking at her in a strange way that made her self-conscious. His eyes wandered her physique, and she cringed with the scrutiny. She stepped back and stumbled.
“Be careful,” Tony said.
“I’m sorry, I need to find Reid,” she mumbled and stumbled away.
She heard him chuckle as she moved off and expelled a breath. She glanced back to see him watching her when she bumped into a brick wall. Then the wall reached out and gripped her, steadying her. Her eyes flicked up to connect with hazel ones. For a moment, they stood unmoving. His eyes changed shades, becoming darker and the golden flecks in them flickered.
Her heart stopped for just a split second, and then it began with a single thud. Then another thud … and another thud. It picked up speed and started racing like Usain Bolt doing the hundred meters. She could feel the pulse at the base of her neck tick, her entire body flushing from head to toe. Colt pushed her away from him but let his hands linger on her arms until she was steady. The place on her arm where he had touched felt like he had branded her.
“Thanks,” she said, her voice squeaky. She absently rubber her arms.
He grunted, walking toward the back of the stage. There he sat in a chair, and Reid handed him a bottle of water. The crowd was now cheering while the band mates were taking their places. From what Reid told her, Colt would go on after the band played a few songs and the crowd started calling for him. That would increase the excitement, drawing maximum attention to the main character.
Chelsea couldn’t take her eyes off Colt. He’d changed into a pair of white jeans, shoes to match and white vest with no shirt. His entire torso was bare for the world to see. Her eyes traveled from his angular face with day old stubble to his Adam’s apple. Her emerald eyes sparkled as they cruised his defined chest and landed on his abs. Her heart started racing again, and her body felt strange like a drum was beating inside of her.
He stood, pacing for a few minutes, and she counted every step he made. Occasionally, he lifted his arm, running his fingers through his shimmering hair, making his biceps bulge. As her eyes followed his every move, she found she’d stop breathing. When he walked, his thighs also swelled with his strides. She could see the muscles move inside his pants.
As if he knew she was looking, he paused and turned. Their eyes locked as they did before. However, something happened at that moment. An electrical charge connected them, and she felt his eyes pull her towards him. His eyes flickered, changing color once more. She saw the light in them from the twenty or so feet away. She had to look away from the intense gaze he gave her, willing her heart to stop galloping like a wild horse.
Colt wasn’t as relaxed as he wanted to be. The minute Chelsea stumbled into his arms, he felt unsure of himself. He’d never been unsure of anything. He thrived on being cocky, that was the only way to survive in this world. With all his past demons, he needed all the confidence he could get.
He was about to hit the stage, but all he could think about was the nerd girl and her breasts as they hit his chest a few minutes before. He’d stepped out of the hot humidity of the tent to get some fresh air. That’s when he noticed the way Tony was looking at her. She seemed scared like she knew what Tony was thinking. She had bumped into him, and he found himself staring into her big green eyes. At that moment, a burning sensation dropped into the pit of his stomach.
He ground his teeth together, closing his eyes, trying to take deep breaths to cool his heated body. The night seemed unusually warm, and he wasn’t sure if the heat was inside or outside his body.
The moment their eyes met across the twenty meters was the moment he became unsure of himself. He felt like she’d stripped him of his reserve. She broke down his defense, and he was standing vulnerable for her to see. That’s how he felt at that moment in time. Her eyes had drawn him to her with a current he’d never experienced.
The crowd was cheering; therefore, he turned his attention back to the stage. He needed to rid his mind of her and concentrate on performing. He needed to shine tonight and forget about Chelsea Downing.
Eight
“Purple Crush!” the fans cheered in unison. It was a chorus, like a part of the concert. “Purple Crush … PURPLE CRUSHHHHH!”
Chelsea had made her way around to the front of the stage to the VIP section. Reid was at the back to do damage control, insisting that she enjoy the performance. She had her cell phone on vibrate. He would message her if he needed her.
The lights went out, and the crowd went silent. She felt the anticipation and excitement. She could also feel the heat and smell a few sweaty bodies. A girl she didn’t know leaned in, saying something which she didn’t hear.
The girl’s mouth moved a second time and shouted in her ear, “Are you with the band?”
“Yes,” she replied.
“We’re with Cory!” the girl indicated three more besides herself.
Chelsea smiled and nodded, turning back as the lights came on and the crowd roared. On stage stood a god-like creature. The lighting gave Colt a luminescence, which made his eyes sparkle, and his white outfit glowed. She gasped as he took the mike and the base guitarist played a few notes.
His voice rumbled from his chest when he began to sing, and soon she was hanging on to every word. The throng in the stadium knew the song and sang along. She felt like an idiot and out of her element not knowing any of his songs. Still, her heart raced and her feet moved to the beat of the music.
Then her mouth fell open, and her eyes widened when he tore off his vest and threw it into the crowd. She followed the white garment as it hit the bleacher’s stand, and the mob attacked it. There was a lot of scuttling to snatch the vest. She was certain someone must have hurt an arm to get it.
Her eyes went back to him, and his skin was gleaming with sweat. He’d put the mike back on the stand and grabbed an electric guitar. He fell to one knee as he played. His eyes were closed, and his face twisted in a grimace with the emotions he must have been feeling. Chelsea could feel whatever it was that he was trying to portray through his music … or maybe it was the energy in the stadium that pulled her in. Regardless, she was just as breathless and swept away as the rest of the crowd.
Colt’s eyes shot open, and the crowd stood in applause as he played the last note. She licked her lips as the beads of sweat trickled from his forehead and ran down his nose bridge. His damp hair hung loosely over his shoulder, and she could tell he was breathing heavily. The pounding of her heart drowned out the noise of the crowd, and for a moment, she was standing alone in the stadium as Colt’s eyes rested on her.
Nine
“Well done!” Reid slapped Colt on his shoulder. “All these years, I’ve never seen you this … this … electrified. It’s like you had something inside you that you wanted to feed the crowd.”
&n
bsp; Chelsea drew back into the shadows behind the stage, watching the group as they stood around complimenting each other on their performances. Colt was looking around as Reid spoke. Was he looking for his special fans? she wondered. She had noticed his friends from the bedroom incident come into the VIP area after the show began.
“Right,” he grunted in his usual monosyllable.
“By the way, where is Chelsea?” Reid peered through the surrounding crowd.
She stepped from her hiding place. “I’m here.”
“You’re all in one piece. Nice outfit, now lose the glasses,” he said with a grin.
Chelsea shrugged. “I can’t see well without them,” she said in her low soft voice.
“We’ll get you new ones. What did you think of the concert ... of Colt?”
Her heart flew to her mouth. Why did he have to ask her with Colt’s eyes burning into her? Colt had settled his eyes on her the minute she stepped out of the shadows, and now she could feel his stare pierce her.
She gave Reid a wide-eyed stare, not knowing what to say. Her stomach fluttered nervously as well. Both he and Colt were waiting for an answer.
“Good,” she replied.
“That’s it?” Reid sounded disappointed. “Only good?”
She could tell that her chest was heaving with each breath she took. She felt the rise and fall of her breasts against the fabric of her blouse. What was she to say? Her eyes flicked to Colt, and he was still looking at her.
“He was …” she said, her breaths were now coming in gasps. “M-magnificent.”
“Wow, Colt, Chelsea gave you the thumbs up!” Reid gave him another slap on the shoulder, but he didn’t take his smoldering eyes off her, and they seemed to scorch her flesh.
The Billionaire Bachelor - Box Set: The Billionaire's Hunt - A Complete Ten Book Alpha Billionaire Romance Box Set Page 69