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Lea - 6 months earlier
“OhmyGod,Lea.What are you doing here?” Ionee screamed as she opened the door to her penthouse hotel suite she was sharing with her rock star boyfriend… well, fiancé now.
“Well, I heard my best friend got engaged to the man of her dreams, so I needed to come see her and celebrate. Plus, someone offered me VIP tickets to see Alchemy Myth in Madison Square Gardens.”
She grinned, dragging me inside.
“So, let me see. He said he didn’t go traditional.” She held out her wrist, showing me the bracelet Archer had proposed to her with. “Shit, that’s a lot of stones. Are they real?”
“I think they are, but I don’t care if he stuck them on himself. It’s stunning and perfect and he bought it for me.”
“And that’s why you’re fiancée material and I’m destined to be alone forever. I would have had it appraised within the hour. Do you even know how much he paid for it?”
She slapped my arm, her frustration with me clear on her face. “No, and I’m not even going to ask. God, Lea.”
“Sorry,” I huffed, rubbing my temples, the hours of traveling catching up with me. “I’m a cow. Just ignore me.”
She sat on the sofa in the enormous space and tapped the seat next to her. “Come and talk to me. What’s going on?”
I dropped my bag to the floor and slumped into the seat, kicking off my sneakers and bending my legs under me as I stared at my friend, wondering if it was time to be honest. “Fox,” I let out with a defeated sigh. “He’s still texting me every day. I’m just worried that being around him will be hard.”
“Hard because you don’t want to see him again, or hard because you like him?” I could see the excitement in her eyes as she tried to pry the truth from me. I let my gaze drift to the window, taking in the New York skyline that I’d never seen before.
“Hard because I like him, alright.” Blowing out my cheeks, I let out a long breath as the truth came out. “I like Fox Garrison, and I can’t stop thinking about him.”
A knock sounded on the door, making me jump.
“Come in,” Nee shouted confidently, as if she was always meant to be living this life.
I stared up at the tall, lean man standing in front of me.
“Hey, Ionee. Are you ready to go? We need to leave in fifteen to make sure everything is set up for tonight.”
“I just need to change and I’m ready,” she replied as she stood. “Dawson, this is my best friend, Lea. Lea, this is Dawson. He’s taken over managing the band.”
My tongue flicked over my lips as I took him in; tight muscles under a fitted t-shirt, long legs, and green eyes that made me want to stare into them for way longer than was socially acceptable.
I stood too. “And you’ve not quit in the first few weeks? Either Charlie is losing his touch or you’re really good at your job.”
Nee looked between us with a strange expression on her face before she vanished from the room to get ready.
Dawson stared, his gaze flaring for a second. “Are you wearing that?” he asked, his tone flat.
I looked down at my plain t-shirt and jean shorts, suddenly feeling very underdressed. Bending down, I picked up my sneakers. “Can you let Nee know that I’ll meet her at the gig? I’ll go get changed and grab a cab.”
His brows furrowed. “You’ll do no such thing. Can you get ready in fifteen minutes?”
“I guess,” I replied, confused.
Dawson opened the suite door. “Lenny? This is Lea. Can you take her to her room and wait outside until she’s ready?”
“You don’t have to—”
“Go. Now you only have fourteen minutes.” He offered me a small smile, making my heart hammer in my chest unexpectedly.
I couldn’t get ready in fifteen minutes because it took longer than that for my luggage to be brought up to my room. I arrived at Madison Square Gardens an hour later, with a bodyguard escorting me through the entrance gate, handing me anaccess all areas VIP passand showing me backstage to where Nee and I would be watching the gig.
“You’re here,” she screamed over the warm up act.
