He realized something then. Love was like the steps of a dance. Each one needed the step before it to work. It wasn’t one feeling or one moment in time. Instead, a dance was an interlocking series of movements.
And love… it happened one day and then the next. Each day, he’d fallen more in love with Lola in a different way. Even before he realized what was happening. Each time he fell in love with her was like a step to the dance of a love that mattered, one that was real. He couldn’t only love one part of her, the dancing. Instead, he had to love each step, each day, each hour.
By the time he’d finished his third song, he realized he never wanted to stop falling in love with Lola. He never wanted their dance to end.
Their chests heaved as they stared at each other before Drew turned to the audience with a grin. “So, how about them Yankees?” He laughed when he heard both boos and cheers. “Okay, I’m kidding. I’m going to tell you a bit of truth right now. I’m a little nervous up here, and that’s a new sensation for me.” A collective ‘aww’ swept through the crowd.
“There’s been some rumors about me in the tabloids lately, and I’m sorry for that.”
“What are you doing?” Lola pulled on his arm.
But he couldn’t, wouldn’t stop. “When Leah Baker was injured, it almost broke me. I wasn’t sure I could keep dancing without her by my side. But she refused to let me give up. Now, I stand up here with a new woman by my side, and she’s been put through the wringer in the media. I just wanted to apologize to her.” He flashed her a nervous smile. Prove it to her. “Lola…” He couldn’t say it.
“What, Drew?” Her eyes searched his face.
He reached down and flipped the mic off for just a moment as he stared into her fathomless eyes. “I know you aren’t Asher’s.”
She looked out to the crowd. “This kind of isn’t the place.”
“I got angry last night because Nora told me you loved him.”
“Why would that make you angry?” She didn’t deny it.
“Because I’m in love with you.”
32
Lola
Because I’m in love with you.
No guy had ever said those words to Lola and meant it. She stumbled away from Drew. “I need a minute.” His face crumpled as she ran toward the side of the stage, needing to escape the spotlight.
“What are you doing?” Piper hissed from the side of the stage out of view of the audience.
“I can’t do it, Piper. I can’t be out there.”
She sighed, exasperation plain on her face. But Lola couldn’t worry about that. I’m in love with you.
How? How could he possibly be in love with her?
The music started up again, and Lola peered out at Brooke as she took up a spot next to Drew. They were a better dancing pair. Her blonde hair and lithe frame looked good with him.
Lola couldn’t breathe. She bent over, trying to catch her breath. A hand rubbed her back, and she assumed it was Piper.
Until a deep voice said her name. “Lola.”
“Ash?” She straightened to face him for the first time since his harsh drunken words.
Everything was so messed up. She’d lost Asher as her best friend. Drew wouldn’t forgive her for running off stage in response to his confession.
Her job on this tour was surely over after that.
And yet, her best friend was here. She hadn’t lost him after all. She spent so much of her life worrying about Asher leaving her that she’d convinced herself she loved him.
“Asher.” At her strangled word, he pulled her into a hug. Her tears soaked his shirt. “What are you doing back here?”
“Brooke. She gave me a pass this morning.”
She lifted her face. “You were with Brooke this morning?” The truth was written in his gaze, but the pain Lola expected didn’t come.
“Why are you here with me instead of on stage with Drew?”
“I don’t belong out there. I think it’s time to go home.”
His brow furrowed as he stared down at her. All she could hear were his brother’s words. I’m in love with you.
How? How was Drew Stone in love with her? And why couldn’t she let herself believe it?
“I’m sorry,” Asher said. “About last night. I don’t think…” He closed his eyes. “It would be so much easier if we were in love with each other, wouldn’t it?”
She did a weird half-sniffle, half-laugh thing. “I thought I did love you. For so many years, but what I feel for…” She stopped herself.
“Him. You can say it, Lola. What you feel for Drew is different.”
That was the truth. She hadn’t realized at first the difference between a crush and what she felt for Drew.
And yet, when Drew admitted his feelings, she’d run away, in front of thousands of people.
Asher wrapped his arms around her, giving her the comfort she’d so often sought from him. “I was wrong, Lo. I knew I was wrong the moment the words left my lips, but tonight, I saw you. For the first time. That wasn’t my shy friend, Lola, up there. It wasn’t the girl who’d rather spend her time alone than in any sort of spotlight. It made me feel like I don’t know you anymore.”
She pulled away from him. “You do. You will always know me.”
“But not like Drew. When you two dance together… I can see it, Lo. This pull between you. That’s why the audience is so entranced with you, why the media has speculated there is more going on. The two of you… it’s like you need each other. I can’t explain it. Like…” He ran a hand through his hair. “Like every dance step that pulls you apart hurts you until you’re drawn back together.”
She’d felt it from the moment she’d first danced with him. Her body knew Drew before her mind caught up, it knew the danger she’d find herself in, the danger of losing herself.
Tears hung in her lashes. “I can’t, Ash. I can’t go back out there, not after I ran.”
I’m in love with you.
Those words shouldn’t have hurt.
Asher dipped his head to peer into her eyes. “You are Lola Ramirez, my favorite person in the world. You can do anything.”
“What if… he doesn’t know me, Ash? Not really. This tour is just a fantasy, and one day, he’ll wake up to discover he’s been duped into believing the maid really had turned into Cinderella.”
A growl sounded from Asher’s throat. “I really don’t like the way you’re speaking of my best friend right now. Anyone can be Cinderella, Lo. You listen to me. I love you. Okay? I love you, but it’s a selfish kind of love. That’s what last night was about. I am not in love with you, but my love wants to hold you back, to keep you from ever leaving me.”
One corner of her mouth curved up. “I’m familiar with that kind of love.” Too familiar.
He pointed to the stage where Drew still sang because even after someone broke his heart, the show must go on. “I may not get along with my brother, I may not even know him, but if his love isn’t selfish, if it’s the kind that pushes you forward instead of holding you back, then what are you doing standing here with me?”
“I ran from him.”
“So? Run back to him.”
“You really think it’s that simple, don’t you?”
“No, but I know what having you in my life is like, and that’s how I know Drew will do anything to keep you in his.”
She stared at Drew. His dance steps were a little slower than normal, like he could hardly bring himself to go through the motions.
“What if I don’t know if I love him?” She chewed on her lip and rocked back on her heels.
“Ugh, you two are infuriating.” Piper strode toward them. “At least speak louder so I can catch every word.”
Asher lifted a brow, but Lola laughed despite the pit in her stomach.
“She’s wondering if she loves him.” Asher shrugged.
Piper pursed her lips. “A few months ago, I had to ask myself the same thing about Ben. I even gave him up until he stormed
a stage to declare his love for me. These boys love their drama. Anyway, Drew has become one of my favorite people, so if you choose him, Lola, I need you to be sure. I need you to know without a doubt that you won’t break his heart. He might seem like nothing bothers him, hiding behind sarcasm and jokes, but that man out there is one of the good ones.”
“Are you done with your little protective speech?” Asher crossed his arms, eyeing the assistant.
Piper shot him a scowl. “I wouldn’t need to be so protective if you hadn’t come to ruin everything.”
“That’s not why I’m here.”
“Oh really?”
Lola left their bickering behind as she stepped back onto the stage. Drew’s song came to an end, and he stood staring out into the crowd. Lola kept moving, knowing what she had to do.
Piper was right. She couldn’t break his heart. Ever. Because if she did, it would destroy her. And that was when she knew.
Their relationship started as a series of dance steps, two dancers making sense of the world through the movements of their bodies.
But in the end, it was just them. If hurting Drew would shatter Lola, it meant only one thing.
She stepped around Brooke, who gave her a curious look.
Drew didn’t see her as she took her normal spot at his side.
“I have to admit something to you all.” He spoke to his fans. “I’m dancing up here a little broken hearted.” There was a collective ‘aww.’ He went on. “I fell in love with a girl, and she doesn’t love me back.”
A handful of girls screamed that they loved him.
“Thank you.” He smiled. “I’ve never felt this way before, and I’m not really sure what to do now, so how about you guys just let me dance through it?”
They cheered as he took up his position in the center of the stage again and the lights dimmed. A familiar song started, Drew’s voice echoing out through the arena as he sang the first words without moving. This song started slow before building up to the fast pace of Drew’s best dance number.
Brooke moved into position, but Lola waved her away. Brooke nodded with a small smile before stepping into the row behind them. The noise of the crowd grew louder as soon as they saw her waiting. When the lights rose, Drew lifted his gaze, holding a hand out to his side, probably expecting Brooke to place hers in it.
As soon as their fingers connected, Drew’s eyes shot to her. His face showed no expression as he sang, but when the beat picked up, he pulled Lola to him, going through the steps like they had so many times before.
Their bodies moved in sync like they were always meant to dance together.
Each beat filtered through Lola, pumping adrenaline into her heart. Each time she connected to Drew, she never wanted to leave him. She understood what Asher had said now, how watching them dance was different. He was right, every dance step that pulled them apart hurt them until they were drawn back together.
The song ended with Lola and Drew facing each other, their chests heaving. Drew didn’t move, he didn’t say a word. He wouldn’t, not after Lola ran from him.
His dancers ran from the stage like they’d always done after the final song, leaving only Drew and Lola as the crew worked to change out the set.
Neither of them said anything, but Lola raised a palm. Drew fit his against it, closing their fingers together.
“You came back.” His whisper wasn’t a whisper with his mic still on. He switched it off. The crowd, as if sensing something big happening, started chanting Drew’s name but not only his. The moment Lola heard her name on the lips of thousands of people was not one she’d forget.
Lola stared at Drew, wanting to memorize the way he looked at her. His lips twitched as if he suppressed a smile, and his eyes held more hope than a spurned man’s should.
“We should get off the stage.” Lola fidgeted, unable to stay still.
Drew looked around as if realizing where they were for the first time.
The noise of the crowd faded to the background until all she could hear was the beating of her own heart.
“I—”
Drew took a step toward her, not letting go of her hand, their connection. “You what?”
“I think—”
“You think…” Another step brought him chest to chest with her.
“I mean, I know…”
He grinned, the smile reaching all the way to his eyes. “What is it you know, Lola?”
“I love—”
He didn’t let her finish as he crashed his lips to hers, stealing her confession and keeping it all to himself. Her hands slid up his back, gripping his shirt to keep him from disappearing.
But this was real. She knew that now.
Maybe it had always been real.
The crowd exploded, reaching levels Lola had never heard before.
“You didn’t let me finish,” she whispered against his lips.
He brushed a strand of hair away from her eyes. “I knew what you were going to say.”
“Really?” She smiled up at him.
He nodded. “You love… dancing. You love… fried things. You love…”
“You.” She clapped a hand over his mouth. “I love you.”
He grinned against her fingers. “That too.”
Drew switched his mic back on. “I never thought I’d tell someone I loved them for the first time in front of my fans, but it’s fitting. You all brought me to this place. Your love of music makes so many things possible. Thank you!”
Noah’s voice broke them apart as he stepped out on stage and spoke to the crowd. “You all think we can convince our favorite lover boy to give me my stage now?”
Jo started a beat on her drums, egging them off the stage.
Lola grabbed Drew’s hand and pulled him toward the side of the stage where Piper awaited them. Asher was nowhere to be found, but she hadn’t thought he’d stick around for this. He’d come to help Lola, it was why he’d flown from Florida. He just hadn’t known at the time what kind of help she’d need.
Drew shot Piper a wink and yanked on Lola’s hand, leading her down the hall to his dressing room.
“I thought the only girls you let in your dressing rooms were Piper or Jo.”
He shot a smile back over his shoulder as a security guard unlocked the door and opened it. Once they were through and the door was closed, hiding them from view, Drew pushed Lola up against the solid wood. “You’re not just any girl, Lola.” He pressed a soft kiss to her lips. “The rules don’t apply to you.”
She knew he didn’t only mean rules about his dressing room. Drew Stone didn’t date on tour. He didn’t kiss dancers or flirt with them. His principles were the bedrock of who he was.
But he’d said it himself. The rules didn’t apply to her.
Because from the moment they first danced together, everything changed.
As she looked into Drew’s eyes, she wondered how she couldn’t see it before.
She was in love with superstar Drew Stone, and she finally believed he loved her too.
33
Drew
“I hereby call this meeting of Rockstars Anonymous to order.” Drew banged his fist.
A collective groan came from his tablet where each of his friends was a tiny square on their shared video chat.
“I thought we told him he wasn’t allowed to say that.” Ben rubbed his eyes. “Is my girl there?”
“No,” Jo snapped.
Noah threw a balled up piece of paper at the screen, yelling “Boo.”
Dax only shook his head with a grin.
“Are you guys seriously booing Piper right now?” Ben lifted one eyebrow.
Drew leaned in, unable to keep the smile from his face. “Dude, this is a Rockstars Anonymous meeting. We don’t talk about girls here.”
“Except yours.” Noah relaxed back in his chair, and Drew recognized the room in his London apartment. “How’s my girl, Lola, doing?”
Two weeks ago, Drew kissed Lola in front of thousands o
f fans. Videos of their moment went viral, sparking interview requests from all the major media outlets. Drew turned every one of them down. His relationship with Lola only belonged to them. He wasn’t ready to share it with the rest of the world. They could speculate all they wanted.
His smile widened. “She’s perfect.”
Jo groaned. “Okay, you know I like Lola and all, but wipe that cheesy grin off your face, dude. Please. It’s so not like the Drew we all know and sort of, kind of love.”
“Maybe it’s the new me.”
“Say something sarcastic. Please. I’m begging you. Do something ridiculously stupid to make us believe you haven’t had your body snatched.”
Noah’s laugh boomed through the speakers. “She’s right, man.”
“Okay, okay.” Melanie, always the calm voice of reason. “Lay off Drew.”
“Thank you, Mel.” He sighed. “I don’t know why they’re so mad at me. They’re probably just jealous of my success.”
That elicited arguments from every rock star on the line as they talked over each other. Drew watched them explain how they had more success than any of the others.
Well, all of them except Dax. He’d never tout everything he’d accomplished, even though it was more than the rest of them combined. They were all rock stars, but Dax…he was one of the biggest names in music. And his fans didn’t even know the man behind the music.
Dax stared into the camera and ran a hand through the messy hair on top of his head. “Everything is good though, right?” He asked the question with so much sincerity it made the rest of them stop.
Drew thought back on the last couple weeks of dancing with Lola on stage and spending every other free moment with her. They hadn’t gotten a chance to tell his family other than Asher before the video was everywhere.
Nora called him, apologizing profusely for telling him Lola was in love with Asher. He didn’t tell her how much damage that almost did.
His mom had gushed about how happy she was that one of her boys figured out Lola was destined to be a part of their family. He got the impression she loved Lola as much as she loved him.
Love is a Dance Step (Rockstars Anonymous) Page 24