We both turned to Sam, who was squinting his eyes in disbelief at our objectifying exchange.
Henry made the shooing motion toward him. “Go ahead, hot man. Smoke your cigarette. And, before you ask, yes, I’m perfectly okay with you envisioning it’s me you’re putting in your mouth.”
“Henry!” I scolded then burst into laughter.
“What?” He feigned innocence.
Sam curled his lip in disgust then barked a laugh while scratching the back of his head in what could only be described as astonishment. “Yeah. I…uh… Come on, Sampson.”
The dog trotted after him.
I slapped Henry on the chest. “You dumbass. Don’t screw this up for me. You know I like him.”
“Yes, I do. And I completely know why now. Fuck, that man is sexy.”
“He really is. And he’s such a nice guy.” I sighed. “He deserves so much better than me.”
Henry rubbed my arm. “Nonsense. If he’s smart, he’s probably on his knees out there, thanking God that he gets to be with you.” He swayed his head from side to side. “And, since he’s already on his knees, maybe I should go check on him.”
I slapped his chest again. “Shut up! Leave him alone.”
Henry chuckled, throwing his hands up in defense. “Okay, okay.”
Devon spoke up, interrupting our conversation. “Show’s over. I’m bored. Levee, get your clothes and let’s go.”
“I’m not going anywhere. Come get us in the morning.”
Devon’s eyes flared wide. “Us?”
“Sam’s going with me to LA. He can ride back with you after the show.”
“Awesome,” Devon mumbled.
I wasn’t sure what Devon’s problem with Sam was, but he’d made it blatantly obvious he had one. He’d always been protective of me. It was his job, after all. Literally. But our relationship was more than just employee-employer. Over the last few years together, Devon and I had forged a friendship that had eventually evolved into more of a brother-sister bond. I loved and hated it all at the same time.
It would have been nice to have an employee who just did what I said. But I loved knowing that Devon was always there for me, no matter what the task.
“So, who wants a beer?” Sam asked as he came back inside wearing a wrinkled hoodie and holding a six-pack of brews.
“Where do you keep magically producing beer from?” I inquired.
“I have a stocked fridge in my shop out back.”
“And the hoodie?”
His eyes flashed to Henry. “My Jeep. I didn’t think it was safe to come back in without a shirt.”
“Smart move,” Henry said, walking over and pulling a beer from his hand. He winked as he twisted the top off and tipped it to his lips.
“Okay. As very entertaining as this has been, can you two please leave? It’s late, and Sam and I were just about to take a shower.”
Henry’s mouth was full, and he lifted a finger as he swallowed.
“No, you can’t join us!”
“Why are you so hateful?” Henry grumbled.
“Take him home. Please,” I begged Devon, who was glowering at the whole situation—and especially at Sam.
“Levee, we need to talk. Stewart isn’t going to be happy about you being here. We don’t know this guy, and a lot of things are going down for you right now. We need to keep this among the family for a while.”
I walked over and stopped in front of him, craning my head back to meet his eyes. “A lot of things are going down for me right now, but Sam has had a front-row seat to everything for a while. There’s nothing he doesn’t already know.”
“Levee—”
“Devon, I’m good. I swear. I know you’re worried, but there’s no talking me out of this. Now, please, just take Henry and go. I’ll see you in the morning.”
He stared down at me blankly for several beats before rolling his eyes and calling out, “Henry, we’re pulling out.”
Henry set the beer down and headed toward the door, pausing to give me a hug. “I’ll see you in the morning.” Then he shouted over his shoulder, “Night, Sam! Call me if you change your mind.”
I groaned.
Sam walked over, draping his arm around my waist, and called back, “Will do! Goodnight.”
As soon as the door clicked behind them, my whole body sagged. “God, I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. That was…interesting.”
I laughed. Interesting didn’t even come close to it. But as I nervously peeked up through my lashes to get a read on Sam, he was sporting a huge smile.
“It was fun, Levee. Don’t look so worried. It’s going to take more than Henry Alexander trying to get in my pants to run me off.”
“I’ll make him quit. I swear. I’m not sure I can promise the same about Devon though.”
“Stop.” He folded me into his chest and kissed the top of my head. “You’re stuck with me.”
I breathed in deeply, praying that that was true.
“Let’s shower. You stink.” I tugged at his hoodie.
“Yeah, this thing is filthy.” He pushed me back a step and dragged it over his head. “Sorry, but there was no way I was coming back in half naked.”
“I can’t blame you there.” I giggled into his chest.
He glided a hand over my ass. “Hey, next time people show up at my door, clothing is not optional for you.”
“Oh, please. It’s just Henry and Devon.”
His other hand snaked into the front of my panties and through my wet folds. “Maybe. But this is mine now. No more peep shows.”
A moan escaped my throat, and it was only partially because the tip of his finger had dipped inside me.
“This is mine now.”
“Yes,” I breathed before his mouth landed over mine.
LEVEE AND I ended up taking a shower. Then she rode me until p.m. slipped to a.m. Neither of us was in any hurry to go to sleep, especially knowing that the next day was going to be our last for a while. But I reminded her as many times as possible that it was only temporary. She tried to argue that this kind of separation would be frequent in her line of work. I kissed her indecently every time she so much as started trying to talk me out of being with her.
There was nothing she could have said to change my mind.
Eventually, she gave up, and as the sun started to peek in my bedroom window, she nodded off in my arms.
Sleep never found me. Like a true stalker, I stayed awake watching her sleeping safely tucked into my side. Her legs were tangled with mine, and her arm was slung over my hips.
I hadn’t felt that kind of peace in as long as I could remember.
And it was going to fucking suck to lose it.
But, when the alarm on her phone started going off, I released her, knowing she’d be back. I’d make sure of that.
With only a combined three hours of sleep between us, Levee and I slept wrapped in each other’s arms the entire five-hour drive to LA. When we arrived at the arena, Levee had Devon drop me off first. She was adamant that we not be photographed together, and while it stung, I understood. With an all-too-quick kiss, I was dropped off by the tour buses parked out back, where I met Levee’s band and backup dancers.
Simon, her guitarist, greeted me with open arms and stuck by my side. Apparently, Levee had called and put him in charge of babysitting me. He was a nice guy—they all were, actually. It wasn’t at all the rock-star feel I’d expected. For hours, I chilled on a bus, bullshitting with the members of her band and a few of their wives, and I was surprised to discover that one even had his three-year-old daughter with them. They were curious as hell about me, and I couldn’t even begin to count how many times I dodged the question of how Levee and I had met.
I’d checked my phone incessantly, waiting for a message from her, but nothing ever came. I assumed she was busy, but the fact that she was in the proximity made me edgy to be with her. I wasn’t going to be that guy though. She’d left me out back for a reason. I’d give her whatever space she needed to prepare for her show.