by Violet Paige
I recognized there was a real look of worry on his face, but I also knew that it would quickly turn.
“I’m sorry,” I apologized. “I was out with a friend. I needed some time to think.”
“Think?”
I nodded. “Yes.” I crossed the room, going straight to the fridge for a glass of orange juice. “I’ve tried to talk to you lately, but you don’t want to seem to listen. I needed a little space.”
“I’m listening now. What made you stay out all night?”
I stood behind the counter. “I’m tired, Jake. This schedule you have me on is insane. And the fans want every bit of my energy. It’s taking a toll on me. I can’t keep going like this. Don’t you see it?”
He nodded as if he were considering my statements. “You and I both know this could be gone in a flash. You have to ride it while you’ve got it, Lex. It can be pulled away with one misstep. One scandal.”
I rolled my eyes. “Seriously. That is dramatic.”
“You side-stepped one last night.” He eyed me. “Thank God there are no pictures of you and Luke Canton together. I don’t know what he was doing at a charity event. That’s definitely not his scene. Maybe if it was a charity for hookers.” Jake laughed at his own joke. “Point is honey, a picture with him, the wrong headline and your good girl image is ruined.”
“And so what if it is? Why can’t I be sexy? Why can’t I wear what I want? Sing what I want?” I don’t know where I found the energy to argue with Jake. Every muscle in my body was sore and I wasn’t sure my clit wasn’t still vibrating. “Hang out with bad boys if I want?” I was definitely pushing it now.
Luke was everything I thought he would be and more. Last night was still seeping through my body, lingering on my clothes, painted on my swollen lips.
“You, sexy? Come on. That was never the plan. You are the sweetheart. The good girl. The role model every parent wants for their child.”
“I wasn’t when you met me.” I eyed him. “I never asked to be a role model.”
He raised his hand. “Shut up, Lex.”
“Yesterday you threw it in my face, but now we can’t talk about it?”
He closed his eyes. “I shouldn’t have said anything.”
I took my glass of juice with me and walked into the bathroom. “I’m going to shower. I’ll be ready to go to the hospital soon.”
“We’re not done with this conversation,” he warned.
“We are.” I closed the door in his face and turned for the shower.
At some point Jake would corner me again. There would be a time when we’d have to come to an understanding about the future of Lexi Wilde.
But that time wasn’t today. I had drinks planned with Luke later, and that was about all I could think about right now. I needed one more look in those green eyes before I left Texas. It was stupid and irresponsible. It was exactly the kind of thing Jake said was forbidden for my brand. But after last night, I didn’t care about my brand. Maybe Lexi Wilde needed a new brand.
I closed the door to room 214 behind me. I had played the little girl’s favorite song, “Hearts and Tears.” Some of the children were here for short-term treatment, but others, like the one I had just visited would be spending months under this roof.
I clung to my guitar and moved to the next room. I knocked lightly and pushed the door open.
“Hey, there.”
“Oh my, gosh,” the little girl squealed. “Is this for real? Are you really here?”
I walked over to her bed, careful not to touch any of the wires or tubes running into her arm.
“I’m Lexi. What’s your name?” I leaned in for a hug.
“Grace.” She was maybe eight.
“Well, Grace. I wanted to play a song for you. How does that sound?”
The giggling started and I didn’t know if she could stop long enough for me to get a song request from her.
“Can you play ‘Hearts and Tears’?” she asked.
“Of course.” I smiled. It was the fourth time I had played it this morning, but it didn’t matter. I wasn’t the one sitting in a hospital bed. I was healthy and strong, living my dream.
By the time I played a few songs for Grace, Jake was tapping on the glass window, motioning for me to wrap it up. I gave her a hug and waved good-bye.
“What is it?” I asked. “I was in the middle of talking to that little girl.” I was annoyed that even when I was doing what he wanted, it wasn’t enough. Jake pushed. He pushed too much.
He turned toward the nurses’ station and I saw what he was worried about.
My heart stopped. My breath caught in my throat. For a second, I didn’t think I could talk. I clutched my strings, making an awkward squeaking sound with my guitar.
“Shit,” I muttered.
The six five sex-on-a-stick that had licked me until I came last night was walking my way.
“Hey.” He grinned. That killer grin that had me purring under his tongue last night. I wasn’t sure it wasn’t happening again. I could already feel the tight coil in my belly.
“Hey.” I smiled.
“Mr. Canton, good to see you again,” Jake greeted him nervously, but he had already fallen into the background. All I could see were the flecks of green in Luke’s eyes. I remembered the way his flesh felt rubbing against mine. His mouth sucking every curve of my body.
“You too.” Luke nodded, but didn’t look in my manager’s direction.
“If you don’t mind, I thought maybe I could join you while you visit the kids.” He looked at me expectantly.
My eyes widened. “What? You want to do visits with me?”
He shrugged. “Why not? I’m sure there might be a Warrior fan or two in here.”
“Oh no.” Jake shook his head. “We have a tight schedule. We have a hospital photographer. I think we’ll have to coordinate something another time with the Warriors. This is not a joint event.”
I ignored his warnings and his stupid excuses. “I think the kids would love it.” I smiled at Luke. “I know for a fact there are Warrior fans here.”
He glared down at Jake. “You heard her. The kids will love it.” He towered over him, and Jake took a step back to get out of our way as we moved to the next room.
“I think you scared the shit out of him,” I whispered before we walked inside.
“Good.” He winked. “He’s an asshole.”
“True, but seriously what are you doing here? I thought we were meeting after I finished here.”
He ran his thumb across my lower lip and I couldn’t breathe. He held me with his stare. With his gaze. My hand was glued to the door, but I couldn’t move. I wanted to suck his thumb into my mouth. To hell with the fact we were in a public hallway.
“I couldn’t wait that long,” he responded with a sexy smirk.
I didn’t know what was right or what was wrong about him, but I knew then that somehow Luke Canton was going to turn my life upside down, and it scared the absolute shit out of me.
I nodded. “Ready to sing?”
“Oh I don’t sing. I sign things. Hats, shirts.” He patted a bag over his shoulder. “I brought some kid-sized footballs. They love these things.”
I laughed. “Well, let this be your introduction into the entertainment business. These kids are going to hear Luke Canton sing.”
“Alexa.” His voice was firm.
I liked how it sounded over my ears. It reminded me of last night. Of the things he said to me. How commanding he was. How sexy and hot he was in his room. How I did what he asked in his bed. I didn’t say no once.
I smiled widely, pushing the door open. I didn’t give him a chance to back out. It was fun to make the big strapping quarterback squirm.
“Hey, there. I’m Lexi and this is my friend Luke. We came to say hi and sing a little for you. What’s your name?”
Luke stood next to me. I could feel him beside me. The heat emitting from his body.
“Daniel.”
“You like foo
tball, Daniel?” Luke reached into the bag and pulled out a foam ball about six inches long. The Warriors logo was painted on all sides.
The boy shook his head. “I do. And I love Lexi too.”
I smiled. “Thank you.” I bent over his bed to hug him. “You’re so sweet.”
Luke signed the ball and tossed it so the boy could catch it. “Nice grip you’ve got.”
I’d never seen a child smile like that. Clearly, I was taking a backseat to Luke.
“Really? Do you think I should play? My mom won’t let me, but maybe if you talked to her…” Daniel’s eyes were wide.
“She won’t let you play? That’s bull—”
I quickly elbowed him in the side and glared at him.
“I mean. That’s a shame.” He tried to cover up his mistake. He was an expert on a lot of things, but kids weren’t one of them.
“But could you talk to her? She’ll be back any minute.”
Luke nodded. “Sure, but I’m not making any promises. Mom’s make the rules sometimes.”
I smiled. “How about we play a song until she gets here? Any requests?”
Daniel looked at the ceiling, sorting through his choices. “Can you play ‘Heaven Sent’?”
“Of course I can. Let’s see if Luke knows the words.” I eyed my new duet partner as I settled on the edge of the bed and propped my guitar on my knee. “Ready?”
“Ready.”
After three songs we said goodbye to Daniel and his mom Stacey. She followed us to the door.
“Thank you.” She squeezed my hand.
“You’re welcome. I hope it cheered him up.”
She leaned closer to us. “He’s on the transplant list. We’re praying for a miracle.”
I closed my eyes. I had no idea Daniel’s condition was so desperate. “I’ll pray for you too.”
Her gaze drifted to Luke. He shifted on his heels. I could tell he was uncomfortable. He shoved his hands in his front pockets. “Ditto,” he mumbled.
“Thank you, both. Thank you so much.”
“Is there something else I can do? Anything else?” I didn’t want to walk out of this room with a little boy fighting for his life and powerless to help.
Stacey gave me a grim smile. “This will be something he’ll never forget. Never.”
I pulled her into a hug. Music could heal people. It brought them together, and today it had brought Daniel and Stacy into my life, but there wasn’t enough music in the world to promise him he’d get his transplant in time.
“Take care,” I whispered in her ear.
I turned reluctantly, knowing there was another child in another room waiting to hear me sing.
I felt Luke’s hand on my shoulder. “You okay?”
“I wish there was something else we could do. It doesn’t seem like enough.”
“For the kid?”
We stopped in between rooms. A nurse walked past us. She kept stealing glances at Luke. I studied the funky artwork on the wall. Even with sadness around us, there was hope and light in the halls.
“Yes. I want to do something.”
“You made him smile. That’s something. What the mom said is right. He won’t forget today.”
“I think you had something to do with that too.” I grinned.
Luke looked away. “We have some more to see?”
I nodded. “The entire hallway. But you don’t have to. It’s okay if you need to leave. I understand.”
He shook his head. “No way. I’m just starting to learn these songs. And at least now I know if I get injured I have an alternate career.”
“And what’s that?”
“Lexi Wilde’s backup singer.”
I burst out laughing. “Okay, let’s pray you never get hurt.”
I tapped on the next door and we started our show all over again.
Luke walked me to the parking garage after we had visited every child on the floor. I promised Jake I’d meet him at the airport. There wasn’t much he could say in front of Luke, and he begrudgingly let me walk away. I wasn’t sure where we were headed. Drinks at his place again sounded perfect.
I hoped drinks was code for more mind-blowing sex.
“I can’t believe you got me to sing.” Luke puffed out his chest as if it restored some of his masculinity.
I laughed. “I think your voice is adorable.”
“Adorable?” he huffed. “There is nothing adorable about me.”
“Why? Because you’re a strong, domineering quarterback?” I challenged.
I didn’t know why I was provoking him, only that the hours we spent upstairs not touching, drove me insane. I wanted him more than I wanted him last night. I sang, knowing his eyes were on me, burning into my skin, and reminding me of everything we did together.
He pulled me against his chest, pinning my arms behind me, roughly. “Call me adorable again,” he dared me.
I studied the strong jaw, the cut of his cheekbones and those green eyes that haunted me all day. “Adorable,” I whispered. “You’re adorable, Luke Canton.”
His lips crashed on mine, and his mouth moved wildly, sucking, biting, twining his tongue deep in my mouth. He let go of my hands as I reached up to wrap them around his neck. His hands snaked under my shirt, clawing at my back.
“Oh, God,” I moaned. I was going under again, being pulled by my animal need for him.
He bit my lip. “Can we go back to your place?” He nipped at my throat, grabbing a handful of hair at the nape of my neck.
“I checked out this morning.” I breathed. I looked around for a place to hide. A place to be with him. But we were in the bottom of a parking garage. There was nothing down here but concrete and cars.
“My place.” He kissed me harder, reminding me how tender my lips still were from last night. It was a beautiful kind of torture.
I nodded. “I have some time before we fly out.” I couldn’t let go, though. My lips were seared to his in a heated kiss. I swear there was fire in his lips. They were glazed in cinnamon.
Somehow my one-night stand, my one night to fly my hellcat sex flag, had slowly started turning into something else. Luke had compassion under that tough exterior. Under the tattoos and the chiseled muscle he wasn’t selfish. And as much as the bad boy image had drawn me to him, I knew the new things I was learning about him were the reason I wanted to stay longer. There was more to him than the dangerous fire he lit inside me.
I clung to him, wanting all of it. The kisses. The fucking insane sex. I wanted my body gliding over his. We had to get back to the ranch before we both burst into flames.
“Luke, I want you,” I whispered.
“Me too. Last night all over again,” he growled, his hands dragging through my hair. “I want to fuck you here, Alexa. Right here.”
I moaned, feeling him press his erection against my hip bone. He was hard as steel. Steel that knew no limits. I wobbled on my knees thinking of how he could use that steel to make my toes curl. To make my limbs tremble. To make me claw out for more.
“Take me home, now,” I urged.
And then we both heard it and saw it. The flashes. The clicks. We had been so lost in our own world we hadn’t heard the footsteps or the whispers.
We froze. I stared into Luke’s eyes. Whether we wanted it out or not, the world was getting ready to find out I kissed Luke Canton in the basement of the newly christened children’s hospital.
“I’ve got this,” he whispered.
He threaded his fingers through my hand and pulled me behind him.
“Come on, I’m parked over here.” He took off, tugging me after him. I ran, trying to keep up with his long stride.
But we could hear them. The press was behind us. I thought they had left through the front entrance of the hospital after I posed with the nurses and doctors. It was the final picture. Jake had checked to make sure they had cleared out before he let me venture near the parking garage, but somehow they had outsmarted my devilish manager.
�
��Lexi!”
“Luke!”
“Are you two dating?”
“How long has this been going on?”
“Lexi, do your fans know?”
“How are they going to feel about this?”
I felt his hand clamp down harder on mine as we got to his truck. He unlocked it with his remote, shuttled me into the passenger side, and we peeled out of the parking garage. I didn’t know what to say, and looking at Luke I realized what he meant last night when he said he didn’t talk.
We both stared at the road, neither one of us able to come up with the first words. I didn’t know what I felt. The shock had wrapped around my body. Luke still held my hand tightly, while he drove with the other on the wheel. That felt like something. He was some kind of anchor. But was it the kind that was going to make me sink?
My phone started to light up with texts and phone calls from Jake, but I hit ignore. I’d never cut him out like this before. I could imagine the things he was thinking. The things he would say if I answered.
I needed time. And right now I needed Luke.
Eleven
Luke
Fuck.
Alexa was terrified. I didn’t have to know her long to see every glimmer of fear reflected in her eyes. I stared ahead at the road. The only thing that broke the silence was the sound of the cold air whirring through the vents as I drove us farther outside of Austin.
It had been a fucking ambush. Cameras. Questions. We were swarmed and I felt like a damn caged lion trapped while the shots were fired.
Every time Alexa’s phone beeped she tapped the side to silence it. I could tell the calls made her anxious. I caught her scrolling through some sort of newsfeed, but I couldn’t read it while I drove.
I clicked the button on the truck to open the double gates when we reached the ranch. I heard Alexa sigh, but maybe it was a whimper. I shook my head.
“No one followed us,” I announced. I had watched the rearview mirror. The press had been on foot. No one bothered to tail us once I peeled out of the hospital’s garage.
She threw me a nervous smile. “That’s good.”
I made sure the gates locked securely behind us before we were inside the garage. Levels of security were exactly what we needed. Layers that kept Alexa safe.