We didn’t even get through half of our story before Jay went unhinged. I dread telling him the rest of the story.

  Madison reaches for my hand and clasps it. She looks into Jay’s eyes, her expression commanding and resolute. “Logan was only trying to save our future as a band, Jay. Celeste threatened him into staying with her. Eventually, he told me the truth, which was when we started hooking up again.”

  “Wait, so you’re together now?” Jay’s gaze grows frantic. “What happened with Celeste?”

  Madison swallows hard and looks at me. I don’t need her to say a word. I’m the one responsible for this whole mess. None of it is on her. I need to be a man and take responsibility.

  “I fucked up and let Trevor and Celeste see me touching Mads,” I say through a tight throat. Looking at Jay and Dalton’s hopeful yet dubious faces, I couldn’t feel more like a failure. “Trevor said he’s going to talk to his lawyers about dissolving the contract.”

  Jay incinerates me with his cerulean flames. He bangs the table beside us loudly with his fists and stomps across the room. Dalton stands stock-still, shell shocked by our news.

  I wait for what feels like hours. “Dalton, please say something.”

  Dalton swallows hard. The muscles in his jaw work as he stares at a sign in the window behind us. “I mean, it’s not ideal but . . . I think it’s for the best.”

  Madison and I release a collective sigh of relief. “You’re not mad?” Madison asks.

  Shrugging, Dalton folds his arms in front of his chest. “I’m not happy about it.” He levels us with a judgmental gaze. “You should have told us what was happening. I don’t like all these secrets. But if this is the way it has to be, we can start fresh without Trevor breathing down our necks. Hell, this could be the best thing that ever happened to us.”

  “You mean it?” Madison’s face lights up with a smile.

  I stare at her, transfixed by how magnificent she is. She’s the only girl who has ever made me feel this way. I can’t stop staring at her for fear she’ll turn out to be only a pleasant dream. Madison has been my strength through everything, but especially over the last few weeks. I need to hold on to this girl with everything I have. She deserves something special to celebrate this new chapter in our lives.

  Cricket’s the best girlfriend I’ve ever had, and with any luck, she’ll be my last.

  “So when do you plan on telling me why you made me put on a cocktail dress, blindfolded me, and led me back out to the elevator?” Madison asks. She grips my arm for dear life as we walk into the hallway of the top floor of her apartment complex. I take her to the stairs that lead to the roof, snickering under my breath.

  “You’ll see,” I tease, brushing a light kiss against the petal-soft skin of her cheek.

  Carefully, I help her up the stairs and out the door that leads to the roof. A slight breeze causes stray tendrils of her dark hair to float around her face. Once we’re standing beside the table, I take her blindfold off. Madison gasps and covers her mouth with her hand.

  “Logan . . . a picnic on the roof?” Her face glows with pleasure as she looks over the spread I laid out on top of a crisp white tablecloth. Madison runs her fingers over the woven basket, the fine china and the bottle of five-year aged red wine. “This is amazing.”

  “I’m glad you like it.” I pull out her chair and make sure she’s seated comfortably before taking the chair across from her. One thing my mother drilled into me growing up was that you always have to show a woman the utmost respect, whether you’re dating her, just friends, or happen to bump into her on the street. A true Southern gentleman would never mistreat a woman. On the inside, I’ve always been a big mama’s boy. None of that has changed now or will ever change. The things my mother taught me will forever be etched upon my heart.

  I light the candles between us and watch them illuminate her gorgeous face. She opens the picnic basket and chuckles as she lifts out a bowl of spaghetti and meatballs.

  “A slightly more refined take on my favorite food, huh?” Her eyes sparkle with mirth.

  “And Ranch-parmesan cheese toast.”

  Her mouth falls open. I notice her tongue grow wetter. “That sounds a-fucking-mazeballs.”

  I pull out the food and start serving both of us. “Glad to know I didn’t disappoint.”

  Madison stops me by laying her hand over mine. “You never disappoint me, Logan.”

  My heart does a nosedive in my chest. I swallow hard, staring at the crisp white tablecloth underneath our hands. “Even though I fucked up our chances with the record company and cost you everything you’ve ever wanted since you were a kid?”

  Madison falls silent for a few beats. Then she squeezes my hand. “I would take you over a record deal any day of my life.”

  My eyes snap up to meet her gaze. A smile is etched into her face. She looks like a goth Mona Lisa—poised, confident, and seductively mysterious. I wonder once again if finally having her as my own is only a pleasant dream. If it is, I don’t ever want to wake up.

  “Are you sure about that, Mads? You said a long time ago that you’d never choose a man over your music. I don’t want you compromising yourself for me.”

  Madison shrugs, making her breasts swell over the top of her strapless black dress. My cock twitches as I watch her reach for a piece of bread. Her arm presses her tits together, deepening her cleavage. We’re having a serious conversation right now. I can’t let my genitals get involved just yet. But hot damn, this woman is miraculous.

  “That was different. He asked me to give up being a musician for him. You would never do that.” Her toast crunches loudly as she bites into it.

  I smile, twisting spaghetti around my fork. “Fuck no, I wouldn’t. Your talent is one of the sexiest things about you.”

  Madison swallows her food. Grinning, she leans forward with her chin on her hands. “Do you have any idea how much I would have ragged you if you’d called me ‘sexy’ before I hit my head?”

  I chuckle. “Now, we might as well be Lady and the Tramp.” I hold up my fork to her. Madison opens her mouth and slowly wraps it around the bite of spaghetti, keeping steady eye contact with me. She chews the noodles and flicks her tongue out to clean the sauce off her lips. My inner sixteen-year-old shudders with lust.

  Even a tiny foldout table is too much distance between us.

  I bring my chair around to hers and pull her into my lap, cupping her firm, round ass in one hand as I hold her face in the other. Madison giggles as I pull her into a tender, lusty kiss.

  Every time her lips touch mine, it’s the new happiest moment of my life.

  “I love you, Madison Daley,” I whisper. “This time, I mean it.”

  Madison stops with her face a breath away from mine. She looks over every ridge and curve of my face, as if committing it to memory. “I love you too, Logan Young.”

  Logan and I walk into the club hand-in-hand. It’s a strange feeling, having a boyfriend and being in a place I normally came to looking to score. The stench of desperation and pheromones emanating from the dance floor seems toxic to me now. I don’t even want to be caught up in it anymore. The man I love is at my side, and I’m hoping to have him forever.

  It’s been a week since Logan took me to the roof and told me he loved me. Everything since then has been a pleasant blur. I still remember the way we made love afterwards, in the bed that used to be “mine” and now is “ours.” I never thought I could be so satisfied with plain old missionary sex, but being able to look into his deep, dark eyes and feel our souls fusing together as he pumped his desire into me was the most enthralling experience of my life. I never wanted it to end.

  I never want us to end, but a part of me is still afraid this is too good to last.

  Logan brings me up to the bar and orders our drinks. I gaze at his sharp, chiseled jaw and high cheekbones, drinking in every last drop of him as he talks to the bartender. When Logan looks back down at me, his lips curl up with mischief.

  “Quit staring at me like a serial killer, Mads.”

  “Then quit being so perfect.”

  All hint of teasing leaves his face. He leans down and kisses me, sending my heart into a frenzy in my chest.

  “I love you, Cricket.”

  My face breaks into the biggest smile. I never get tired of hearing those three words. Now that we can express our feelings freely, it’s as if we can’t say them enough. We should have been saying them all along. “I love you too, Drummer Boy.”

  Logan kisses me again, sucking my lower lip into his mouth. I moan at the sensual brush of his tongue against my lips as he wraps his arm around my waist and pulls me flush against him. We haven’t been able to keep our hands off each other all week, and tonight is no exception. I’m looking forward to getting this man home and ravaging him all over again.

  A throat clears behind us. I turn and see my cousin looking mildly nauseated. For a few moments, I forgot he was the one we came to see tonight. I reluctantly detach myself from Logan.

  “Hi, Jay.”

  “Hey, Mads. Is now still a good time to talk?”

  I nod as Logan hands me my drink. I look up at him. “Hey babe, this might take a while. Just hang out nearby.”

  “Sure, sweetheart.” Logan brushes a sweet kiss against my forehead and heads to the end of the bar. I watch him leave, trying not to stare at the way his jeans hug his round ass.

  Why does he always have to look so goddamn delicious?

  “Mads, can you stop eye-humping your new boyfriend for two seconds to talk to me?” Jays voice holds equal measures of irritation and amusement.

  My cheeks grow warm. “Sorry, Jay.”

  Jay and I find two open stools at the bar and sit down. He orders a Jameson mule and fidgets with a napkin before addressing me with a sigh.

  “Look, I just want to apologize for losing my shit like that. It was a lot to process. I mean, you and Logan have been platonic for years—”

  “I know, it’s weird.”

  Jay’s lips quirk up, but his expression remains dubious. “Are you sure he isn’t going to hurt you again? Celeste was our ticket to stardom. It’s possible he could still change his mind.”

  I shake my head until my brain rattles in my skull. “Fuck no. Logan and I have talked about this. I know this is what he wants.”

  Jay leans down to look me straight in the eyes. “He slept with you while he was still with someone else. Are you sure he knows what he wants?”

  I glance down at the end of the bar where Logan is nursing his rum and Coke. He stares vacantly at the bottles on the shelf in front of him, then looks down at his phone and starts texting someone. A wave of sick heat passes through me.

  I know he’s probably not texting Celeste, but my PTSD from being with Jenks flares up again at the mere thought of losing Logan. Losing Jenks to another woman was hard enough. Losing Logan, again, would destroy me.

  “Look Jay, this is all really new to both of us. I know he loves me, and I love him. That’s all I can say for now.”

  Jay taps the side of his mule mug. “And you’re sure this is worth losing Norman Records over?”

  I roll my eyes. “We probably would have lost them anyway. Celeste is a total psycho. She would have found a way to get rid of us one way or another once Logan came to his senses and realized he was with a crazy bitch.”

  Jay snorts. “I’ll give you that one.” He takes a sip of his mule, and his expression turns thoughtful. “You seem really happy with him.”

  I can almost feel myself glow. “He makes me happier than I ever thought I could be.”

  “Then, cheers.” Jay holds up his mule. I clink my martini glass against it. “To new—and hopefully better—horizons.”

  “Cheers to that.” I smile as we take sips from our drinks. “It’s nice to know you’ll still go all ‘Brother Bear’ for me.”

  “Well, who else is going to keep your crazy ass out of trouble?” Jay grins.

  Someone taps me on the shoulder. I turn around and see Ana with Slater. It’s his night off. I’m surprised they didn’t go somewhere else.

  “Hey, girl! What’s up?”

  “You’re with Logan, and you didn’t tell me?” Ana wrinkles her nose, furrowing her brows in offense. She thinks it makes her look threatening, but she actually just looks cuter than ever.

  “How did you find out?”

  “You haven’t picked up your phone for a week, so I texted Logan to see if you were still alive. He said you were here talking to Jay about your relationship. How come everyone else heard about it before me?”

  I smile at the knowledge that Logan was texting my best friend for me instead of the other thing I imagined. I knew he wouldn’t go back to Celeste. He’s too smart for that.

  After all, I’m the best lay he’s ever going to get, and he knows it.

  “Sorry, I guess I forgot to mention it.”

  “You mean you were too busy having sex to mention it.”

  Jay covers his ears and sings in monotone. Ana groans in exasperation and slaps him on the arm.

  “Come on, Jay. Stop being such a child. You and I have been calling this for years.”

  Jay drops his hands and guffaws. “I said ‘maybe you’re right’ when you said they belonged together, Ana. Doesn’t mean I was rooting for this. It’s gonna be weird the next time we’re all on a tour bus together.”

  I give a belly laugh. “So you and Dalton can have loud, obnoxious sex with club whores on the bus, but now that Logan and I are together, it’s weird?”

  “It’s . . . it’s you two. It’s weird.”

  “It’s not weird, it’s fucking amazing.” Logan appears, seemingly out of nowhere. He wraps his arms around me from behind and kisses the top of my head. “Sorry, Cricket. I felt left out.”

  I lean against him, happiness enveloping me from all sides. “It’s fine, we were done talking anyway. We’re good. Right, Jay?”

  Jay stares at us for a moment, a soft smile taking his lips. “Yeah. We’re good.”

  Two months have passed since I moved in with Madison. The transition has been so smooth, it’s almost as if we’ve been living with each other all our lives. Sometimes, I still can’t believe how easy living with her has been compared to the harpy I was living with before.

  Celeste wouldn’t let me take my action figures and comic books outside of the moving box. Madison bought me a bookshelf to proudly display them in. Celeste hated listening to me play the drums. Madison insisted on storing them in the living room where she could always hear me practice. If I dared leave an empty beer bottle on the table at Celeste’s place, she acted like I was trying to spread the Black Plague. Madison is so kind about her rebukes, I almost don’t even notice she’s doing it.

  “Hey babe, are you done with that beer bottle?”

  “Yeah, sorry.” I scoop it up in my hand and toss it into the open trash can. It lands inside with a perfect swish. “Three points!”

  “Nice.” Madison smiles and takes her foot off the pedal, letting the trash can lid fall back down. She joins me on the couch to watch the final season of How I Met Your Mother with two fresh beer bottles and a bowl of chips and salsa. Her hair is pulled into a messy bun with little tendrils of baby hair falling all around her face. The usual dark makeup she wears is off, and she’s wearing a Green Day t-shirt over yoga pants. She looks like the perfect girl next door. This is my favorite out of any look I’ve seen on her in fifteen years.

  As she sits down beside me, I surprise her by leaning over and kissing her on the mouth. She smiles. “What was that for?”

  “You just look really cute today, that’s all.”

  Madison snorts, digging a chip into the salsa on the side of the bowl. “I look like shit. I haven’t bathed in two days, and these clothes? I’ve owned them since high school.”

  I feel a spark behind my eyes. “I used to imagine you taking off those yoga pants for me.”

  The same spark ignites in her baby blues. “Did you, now?”

  I slide my hand over the curve of her hip and down the length of her leg. She shivers with excitement as I bring my hand back up the inside of her thigh, gently feeling my way up to her hot center. Leaning close, I whisper in her ear, “If you need an excuse to buy new yoga pants, I can think of a perfect place to rip a hole.”

  “Aw, but I like these pants.” Madison giggles as I kiss up her neck.

  “Fine, then I’ll slide them off.” I set the chips on the side table and lean her back against the couch. Madison spreads her legs, letting me land right between them. She holds me and kisses me as I run my hands up and down her body, letting delicious waves of lust build up inside me.

  “You’re so fucking hot, baby.” I nip her earlobe, and she bucks her hips against me, moaning. “I can’t get enough of you.”

  “I’m all yours, Logan.”

  Her words drive the need welling up inside. Just as I’m hooking my fingers underneath the waistline of her pants, a knock sounds at the door. I slump against her, groaning miserably. Madison chuckles.

  “It’s probably just some door-to-door salesman,” Madison says as she swings her legs around me to stand from the couch. “I’ll scare him off and we can pick things right back up again.”

  “That’s my girl.” We exchange an intimate grin.

  Madison opens the door and gasps. “Dad?”

  I sit up rod-straight on the couch, my stomach tying up in knots. Mike hasn’t been here since Madison and I moved in together. I still don’t know what he thinks of me being with his daughter.

  Mike walks in with Cass and they take turns hugging Madison. I hover over to the side, waiting for the right moment to step in. When Mike notices my presence, he pulls me into his side and digs his knuckles into my scalp.

  “Fifteen years, and you finally got up the guts to ask my daughter out, eh?”

  My eyes bulge out of my skull. I turn to face him. “You mean you’re not surprised?”

  Mike lets out a loud, booming laugh. “You two have no idea how obvious you were. I figured it would happen one day. Just didn’t know how or when.” His amusement dies in his throat. “What I didn’t know is that you’d be dumb enough to let it screw up your record deal.”

 

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