Chased (Love like Yours Series Book 4)

by Nicole S. Goodin

  She really is stunning in that dress.

  The crowd erupted into a chorus of clapping and cheering as Lexie was introduced and sauntered up onto the stage.

  I grinned as I followed her up and took my spot on my stool; I settled my guitar in my lap and waited for her to signal me that she was ready to start.

  “Thank you all so much, you’re too kind.” She cooed into the mic. “I’m Lexie, and this here is Colt.” She turned and gestured to me. “He’s been kind enough to play for me tonight.”

  I grinned and nodded towards the cheers in the crowd.

  “Let’s get this thing started shall we?”

  If the cheers and cat calls were anything to go by, the more formal part of the evening had gone well, and these suits were ready to unwind and relax.

  She turned and nodded at me. “Ready?” she asked with an excited sparkle in her eyes.

  She really is beautiful.

  I decided then and there that it didn’t really matter how well she sang, if it made her this happy, then that was the most important thing.

  I winked and strummed the first cord to ‘Titanium’ by David Guetta and Sia. We had stripped it back and were doing an acoustic version.

  Lexie turned back to the microphone.

  “You shout it out…. but I can't hear a word you say”

  Her voice was absolute perfection; it floated through the room, strong, but somehow soft at the same time. My skin prickled with goose bumps.

  The crowd went crazy.

  “I'm talking loud not saying much... I'm criticized but all your bullets ricochet. You shoot me down, but I get up… I'm bulletproof nothing to lose. Fire away, fire away. Ricochet, you take your aim. Fire away, fire away. You shoot me down but I won't fall, I am titanium. You shoot me down but I won't fall. I am titanium”

  It took everything I had in me to focus on the guitar in my hands and playing the chords she needed me to play.

  She was incredible.

  Incredible doesn’t even cut it.

  She belted out huge notes like they were child’s play.

  “You shoot me down but I won't fall, I am titanium. You shoot me down but I won't fall, I am titanium. You shoot me down but I won't fall, I am titanium. You shoot me down but I won't fall, I am titanium… I am titanium.”

  Her voice stretched effortlessly through the last few notes and the crowd clapped and cheered – I found myself joining them.

  I was completely mesmerized by her.

  Lexie turned and giggled at my stunned expression.

  “You’re incredible.” I mouthed at her.

  She blushed and turned back to the crowd.

  “Thank you, thank you, you’re all very sweet.”

  She gave me a subtle thumbs-up and we started our next song.

  She cruised through the next ten songs; ‘Like I’m Gonna Lose You’, ‘Rockabye’, ‘Fast Car’, ‘Everglow’, ‘True Colors’, ‘Love Me Now’, ‘Human’, ‘Say You Won’t Let Go’, ‘Shape Of You’, and ‘A Thousand Years’.

  By this point she had the entire audience completely under her spell and somewhere along the way she’d even started interacting with me, almost as though she were singing the songs to me. She’d gotten more and more playful as the set went on.

  She belted out the last note and the crowd burst into applause.

  She came over and whispered in my ear. “Let’s do that acoustics Hailee Steinfeld one I showed you, to finish.”

  I nodded, remembering the arrangement she was talking about. “The one with Grey and Zedd?”

  She’d shown me a video of the acoustic version and it was amazing, now that I knew what she was capable of, I couldn’t wait to hear her sing it.

  She grinned and nodded enthusiastically.

  “Whatever you say, my little song bird.” I teased her.

  She made an excited noise and went back to her mic.

  I chuckled. She was freakin’ adorable.

  And talented…

  And captivating…

  I looked up at her and my eyes landed on her perfect ass.

  And sexy…

  Shit…

  I like her.

  She turned back around and gave me her cute little ‘are you ready?’ face where she screwed up her nose in the sweetest way.

  Oh hell… I like her…

  I needed to snap out of it. I had to really focus for this one.

  The song was ‘Starving’. There was a lot of guitar work involved in it and we hadn’t originally planned to include it in the set, so I hadn’t rehearsed it at all. I smiled to myself, the fact that she’d asked to do it now meant that she trusted me not to screw it up.

  I gave her a wink.

  I’m ready.

  I ran my fingers over the strings.

  “You know just what to say…”

  Her voice was like an angel. I’d never heard someone sing this well, live, and completely unaided by auto tune and all that shit they used these days.

  Lexie didn’t need it.

  She should be on the radio.

  She took the mic from the stand and swayed her body to the more upbeat tune.

  “I didn't know that I was starving 'til I tasted you. Don't need no butterflies when you give me the whole damn zoo. By the way, by the way, you do things to my body.”

  I laughed as the beat picked up and she strutted over to me and sang the song to me, tapping a tambourine to the beat on her slender hip.

  “I didn't know that I was starving 'til I tasted you I didn't-- I didn't-- I did-- I did-- I tasted you. Don't need no-- don't need no-- don't need-- don't need a whole damn zoo… by the way, by the way, you do things to my body I didn't know that I was starving 'til I tasted you.”

  She looked and sounded so fucking good, up here killing it, shaking her ass and hitting every note. Her smile and bright blue eyes lit up the entire room, but all I saw was her.

  Perfection.

  Shit.

  I want her.

  I might not have wanted her to spite Quinn anymore, but damn it, now I wanted her – just for being her.

  5. Lexie

  We bowed and ran off the stage together laughing like teenagers. We busted into the back room, giant grins on both of our faces.

  “That was so much fun.” I panted, out of breath from all the excitement.

  “That was incredible.” Colt pulled me in for an unexpected hug and I found myself wrapping my arms around him too, holding him close.

  “Thank you so much for playing for me.” I murmured against his chest.

  He didn’t seem to be in any hurry to let me go, and surprisingly enough I didn’t seem to want to let him go just yet either. Being in his arms felt comfortable… it wasn’t at all like hugging a stranger should have felt.

  Our vibe up there had been amazing. I’d never had a connection with someone on a stage like that before. He knew exactly how to play for my voice – when to slow down… when to speed up, he knew just how hard to push it. He was either an incredibly talented musician who could read any singer he played for like a book, or he’d felt the same connection I had up there.

  Or both…

  He released me with a sigh, but one of his hands lingered lightly on my upper arm.

  “You have the most amazing voice I’ve ever heard.” He told me, complete honesty in his voice.

  We were standing only inches apart and it still seemed too far.

  Something had happened up on that stage… we’d clicked… I just had no idea what that meant would happen now.

  “Thank you.” I replied quietly. “You were pretty great yourself.”

  He looked down at me and tentatively reached his hand out for a strand of hair that had escaped my pins. He swept it gently from my face and behind my ear.

  “Perfect.” He whispered.

  I was so nervous; butterflies were going crazy in my stomach.

  “I don’t know what’s going on here right now.” He confessed, his voice husky. “But I’d r
eally like to kiss you.”

  God I want that too.

  “What about Quinn?” I asked timidly.

  He shook his head. “It’s not about her anymore… I’m not sure it ever was.” He dipped his head closer as his eyes burned into mine.

  He’s gorgeous…

  Could I…?

  “No.”

  I can’t.

  “She’s still one of my best friends.” I sighed and looked down at my shoes.

  I wanted to get closer to him, but I knew I couldn’t – I couldn’t do that to Quinn.

  “I can’t. I’m sorry.” I whispered.

  He reached under my chin and tipped my face up to look at him. “Don’t be sorry.” He gave me a small smile. “She’s lucky to have such a good friend.”

  He kissed my forehead softly and my stomach did one of those silly flips.

  “If you change your mind…”

  Quinn chose that exact moment to push the door open. “Oh my god! You guys were insane out there! I couldn’t belie–”

  She froze the moment she saw the two of us, standing too close, Colt’s hand still on my bare skin.

  “Oh hell. Sorry… I just wanted to thank you both. I’ll… I’ll see you out there…” She stammered as she tried to turn around to leave.

  I stepped back from Colt quickly. “Don’t be silly.” I reached for her and hugged her tight. “That was so much fun, thank you for letting me sing.”

  Quinn pulled back and tried to search my face for answers. “Thanking me? Oh hell no. I owe you big time. You’re even better than I remembered, Lex.”

  You wouldn’t be thanking me if you knew what I’d wanted to do just now.

  “Thank you… I actually… I need the bathroom; I’ll be out soon okay?” I stumbled through my words as I pushed past her, not bothering to wait for a reply.

  I felt like a fraud.

  What kind of friend am I?

  Chicks before dicks.

  Chicks before dicks.

  I chanted it to myself all the way to the bathroom.

  ***

  I heard the door swing open and I sat quietly, waiting for whoever it was to leave. I’d been hiding in here for fifteen minutes, and I needed at least that much time again to regroup and get my shit together.

  “Are you coming out, or am I coming in?” She almost drawled.

  Shit.

  I should have known Quinn wouldn’t just leave it alone.

  “What do you mean?” I squeaked.

  Shit. Shit. Shit.

  Smooth, Lex, real smooth…

  “I’m not mad.” I could almost hear Quinn rolling her eyes.

  “You’re not?” I cringed at my still too squeaky voice.

  She tapped her foot impatiently. “Just get your ass out here.” She demanded.

  I cautiously stood up off the closed lid of the toilet and unlocked the stall door. I shot her a sheepish grimace as we came face to face with one another.

  She rolled her eyes in typical Quinn fashion, just as I suspected she would have been doing.

  “Spill it, Lex.” She crossed her arms over her chest.

  “Ok, just don’t be mad… it was nothing.” I insisted. “Nothing happened… I swear.”

  “Lexie, for gods sakes, just get on with it, we’re missing the party.”

  Just get it out.

  “He wanted to sleep with me – to piss you off.” The words burst out. “I said no.” I held my hands up to emphasize my point.

  The corner of Quinn’s mouth twitched with what I thought might have been a grin.

  “He joked about it earlier, we had a laugh and I told him to give it a rest… and we were good.”

  Quinn rolled her head around in a circle and gestured with her hand for me to wrap it up.

  “Then we went on stage… and it was incredible…” I sighed.

  “It was amazing.” She agreed.

  “And I don’t know… something changed up there.” I blushed. “I mean he’s gorgeous, but I knew that beforehand… I’m not sure…” I shrugged. “I guess we made a connection.” I wrung my hands together nervously, waiting for her reaction.

  “And out there just now?” She prompted.

  “Nothing happened.” I insisted quickly. “He said he wanted to kiss me.”

  “So why didn’t he?” She asked, her head tipped to the side, watching me carefully.

  “I stopped him; I said I couldn’t, because of your history with him.”

  “Did you want to kiss him?” She asked simply.

  I looked at her for a beat and weighed up my options, before deciding that I needed to be honest – this was one of my best friends.

  “Yeah.” I admitted. “I did… I’m sorry, Quinn.” I sighed and looked down in shame. “But it doesn’t matter, I’ll go back to L.A. and I’ll probably never see him again.” I mumbled.

  “Lex?” Quinn said with a giggle.

  I looked back up at her, she was grinning like a fool.

  What the…

  “The fifteen minutes it took me to get here?” She prompted.

  “Yeah…?” I answered, not sure what she was going to say next.

  “I was pumping all of that information out of Colt.” She smiled proudly.

  “What? You were?” I gaped at her.

  She nodded and smirked.

  “Then why’d you need to drag it all out of me?” I demanded.

  She mused over her answer for a moment. “Let’s just say for experiments sake.”

  “Quinn…” I warned. “You better tell me what you’re talking about.”

  “He’s over me.” She shrieked, jumping up and down like an excited little kid.

  What?

  I was so confused.

  Quinn must have seen it on my face, because she carried on her explanation. “Colt finally looked at me without hurt in his eyes. He didn’t try to make me feel bad, and he seemed genuinely happy.”

  She was visibly elated by this realization; I however, was totally confused.

  “That’s great, but I don’t see why you’re bringing it up now.” I looked to her for another explanation.

  “Oh… sweet, little, Lexie.” She reached for me and squeezed my shoulders.

  “Colton likes you... and you like him.” She raised her brows at me. “The two of you have a little somethin’-somethin’ going on.”

  “He just wants to sleep with me.” I stated.

  She shook her head slowly. “Colt’s not like that.”

  “He told me that’s what he was trying to do.” I insisted, even though I had a feeling that his hair brain scheme was long forgotten by now.

  “I know. I heard him yelling after you earlier.”

  I went to tell her ‘I told you so’, but she didn’t give me a chance.

  “But he would have never gone through with it. He’s too nice… he’d never use a woman like that.”

  I thought about it and realized she was right. He was a nice guy and I had a feeling he would never set out to intentionally hurt anyone.

  “Look, all I’m saying is that he’s interested. I’m not mad, hell, I’m not even a little bit mad, and if you want to see where it goes, or even just have a little bit of holiday fun, then you should.” She said it as though it was exactly that simple and uncomplicated.

  “But he’s your ex.” I stated stupidly.

  “He’s hardly my ex.” She scoffed. “And besides, the fact that I’m in love with his brother probably cancels out any right I’d have to be pissed off. Agreed?”

  She’s got a point.

  I swallowed deeply. “Agreed.”

  “Good.” She frowned slightly. “I will warn you though, Colt can get…. attached… so just be careful.”

  My stomach did a little flip of excitement at the thought, but I pushed it down. I barely knew the guy.

  We got caught up in our on stage chemistry, that was all.

  Now I just needed to convince myself of that.

  “Alright… I’ll keep tha
t in mind.”

  “Oh…” Quinn shot me grimace. “There might be one other teeny tiny little obstacle.”

  “What?” I murmured nervously.

  “Harrison’s friend Jake was pretty smitten with the sight of you… he wants an introduction.”

  My mouth gaped. “Seriously? I go months and months in L.A. without a second glance – five minutes in this place and I’m already getting hit on.”

  Quinn rolled her eyes like she didn’t believe me as she tugged on my arm and led me out of my hiding place.

  “Welcome to the jungle.” She laughed as we walked into the crowded room.

  6. Colt

  “Jake Roscoe can fuck right off.” I snarled at Harrison as I watched his childhood friend falling all over Lexie.

  The poor girl had barely set foot in the room when he’d swooped in and monopolized her attention.

  She had been looking at me too, our eyes had locked and we’d had that whole silent communication thing going on.

  Then cue the jackass…

  I watched her now, she was chatting with Jake, but every so often she’d look over to me and smile shyly when she realized my focus was still entirely on her.

  Harrison looked backwards and forwards, following my line of sight.

  “Ohh I get it now… you’re hot for Lexie.”

  I growled as Jake put his hand on her forearm.

  “Did you just growl?” Harrison asked with a chuckle.

  “He fuckin’ touched her.” I hissed by way of explanation.

  “Maybe she wants him to touch her.” He taunted me.

  “Fuck off, Harrison.”

  “You got a mouth on you when you’re pissed off, don’t you?”

  I pulled my eyes from Lexie and looked over at my older brother. “Seriously? Are you trying to make me mad?”

  “Nah.” He shook his head. “I’m trying to get you to grow a pair and go get the girl.” He smirked.

  His stupid, smug face was only making me more agitated.

  I’m not letting this one go.

  I gave Harrison the finger and stalked off in the direction of Lexie.

  She spotted me coming and her whole face lit up. I grinned back at her.

  Jake doesn’t have a shot.

  I slid in next to her and slipped my arm around her waist. She leaned into me gratefully, so I decided to push my luck and kiss the top of her head.