“But nothing. Nalia, you’re doing an amazing job. Seriously, everything is more organized and on schedule than on any other tour we've ever done. We've never been this tight and prepared. Sit down. Emails and calls can wait till after you have some lunch.”
I hesitated, and that’s when Talon led the guys in chanting my name until I finally sat down, my face crimson from embarrassment. All of them cheered as I took a seat. Talon then leaned over and put an arm around me.
“That’s our girl!” Talon started. “Come on, I know you've set yourself up in this 'mom' role and you're concerned with making sure everything happens exactly where and when it's supposed to happen—and believe me, we seriously do appreciate it—but, Nalia, you need to enjoy yourself, too. You’ve been working hard at this, and you deserve to at least sit down and enjoy a meal. You're human, just like us, not a robot or some shit, and we totally don't expect you to be a machine all the time. So, relax for a while, forget about all that stuff, and let's just have a nice meal,” he said.
I smiled and Owen laughed, passing me a menu. I’d never felt so at home in a job than that moment. If it wasn’t where I belonged, then I didn’t know where that would be.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Owen
I hadn’t felt so great in a long time. I'd forgotten how much I used to love touring, and with Nalia keeping everything on schedule, it was even better than I remembered. And now, with things running more smoothly than they ever had before and with almost no administrative details to worry about because Nalia was doing such a bang up job covering all of that stuff, I could focus purely on the music. I was already in the mindset that this might turn out to be the best tour we'd ever played.
I looked out over the empty hall smiling, just imagining the stadium outside filled up with the crowd we expected. This was going to be a big one, and I was determined to give every single fan who had bought a ticket a show that they'd remember for the rest of their lives.
“You guys ready?” I looked back at the others and asked.
“Hell yeah!” Jeremiah smiled as he strapped on his guitar. “I've never been more ready. Let's tear the roof off this place!”
“One, two, three, four,” Talon counted off then started on the drums. Jeremiah, Jay, and Nate started in on guitars and bass, then I started in on vocals. I caught Nalia watching from backstage and smiled at her as I sang.
A reserved smile spread over her pink lips. I hoped she was getting into the music and admiring my performance as we rehearsed, but I figured it was more likely that she was probably going over the next ten tasks she had to get done in her head.
We went through the entire set of songs with no issues. A flawless rehearsal. We were on a roll, flying on adrenaline, pure energy, and passion. Everyone was in good spirits and ready to go, and I just knew we were gonna rock hard tonight. After we finished, I headed toward the side stage with Talon, and we both peeked out at the growing crowd.
“This is going to be another great fucking show,” Talon smiled, checking out the crowd. “Damn, bro, there are quite a few sexy ladies out there, eh? This is totally my vibe. Still the best job in the world, dude. The best job on earth!” he nudged my side.
I only shrugged.
“I’m going to find Nalia, see if she’s got everything under control,” I said, clearing my throat.
Talon grinned mischievously. “Riiiiight.”
I smiled at him and walked off, heading backstage in search of her. I found her alone in the dressing room checking over the catering and ensuring everything was just as it needed to be. She really had a great eye for detail and was a bit of a perfectionist.
“Hey, beautiful.” I came up behind her and put my arms around her waist.
“Owen.”
I could hear the smile in her voice as I leaned down and kissed her neck. I spun her around to face me and backed her up against the wall.
“Did you need something?” she asked, blinking up at me. I kissed her lips gently, then a bit more hungrily, tugging at her bottom lip. She uttered a soft whimper against my mouth as she kissed me back, her body pressing against mine.
“Promise me you'll spend the night with me tonight,” I whispered, nuzzling my nose against hers.
“But you’ll be busy tonight. You’ve got meet and greets, signings, another after party-”
I kissed her again to cut her off, easing my hips up against her, letting her feel how much I wanted her. “Please, Nalia. I don’t care—just promise me. I just want to spend some time with you. You're the only thing I want to focus on after the show tonight.”
She smiled up at me, once more with that hesitant look in her eyes. “Okay. I promise. I’m all yours tonight,” she whispered back.
Once more, I joined my lips to hers, happy despite her hesitance. I didn't want to give her any reason whatsoever to doubt me later. I brushed a stray lock of hair behind her ear as I studied her, wondering what was going on behind those beautiful eyes of hers. Her cheeks flushed a little as my fingertips brushed her skin, and she looked down, pulling away from me.
“I should get back to work,” she said before I could pull her back to me. “I’ve got a few more things need to take care of before you guys hit the stage.”
“Umm, okay.” I was left a little speechless as I watched her go. Something was off, and to tell the truth, it had seemed to be off for days. I didn’t feel like she was being completely upfront with me about something, and it wasn't sitting right. Maybe she was protecting herself. If so, that was a good thing, right? She didn’t want to get too attached. After all, we had both agreed on that being one of the conditions.
I had assured her I didn’t want to become too attached to her, either. Or, so I thought. Lately, I’d caught myself wondering what life would be like with Nalia. And watching her walk out of the room with that look on her face had me thinking about other things.