AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Raleigh
Night after night, city after city, the tension worsens.
It’s been two weeks since being with Ezra in the pool, and when I say that there hasn’t been a single moment where I haven’t thought about it, I’m not exaggerating. Even in my dreams, I replay it over and over again. I’ve been wondering what it’d be like to be physical with him since I was fifteen years old, and it was just as incredible as I always imagined.
I had no idea it could be like that. The emotion, the pleasure, the connection . . . holy shit. I need to do it again. I need to feel him inside me. I need to feel the way he claimed me, and I don’t ever want it to stop. It was such a rush. In terms of experience, I can’t exactly claim to be an expert. Apart from what happened back in Michigan, my experience with sex is non-existent.
The moment Ezra pulled away from me and left me in that pool, I’ve never felt emptier. How can a life without him be worth living? Hell, I don’t even know how I’m going to make it through the rest of this tour. Seeing him every day and not being able to touch him or fall into his arms and tell him how much I’ve loved him over the years is killing me, and if it weren’t for my need to succeed at this job and prove myself to Lenny, I surely would have crumbled already.
I see it in Ezra’s eyes every time he looks my way. This is killing him just as much as it’s killing me, but I refuse to go running back to him, not while I’m holding onto so much anger and resentment. I don’t want to be with him that way, and deep down, I think he understands.
So for now, I continue to watch him from the sidelines.
Night after night, as Demon’s Curse performs for sold-out stadiums, I stand at the side of the stage, watching as the only man I’ve ever wanted pours his heart out in lyrics that I was too foolish and broken to hear.
Night one in Paris, he had turned to me and sung about one day giving me the love he always thought I deserved. And every night since, he’s done the same, picking a song, turning to me, and making sure I truly hear him.
Paris, night two, he turned to me and sang about the way his heart raced the first time he ever met me, and that still to this day, it was the greatest moment of his life. And I cried.
Italy, night one, he turned to me and sang about the anger he felt when he realized he’d allowed me to slip away, and how he’s never felt whole since. And my heart shattered.
Night two in Italy, he serenaded me with lyrics about how he would look up into the stars and picture wherever I was in the world, staring at the same dark sky. And the loneliness overwhelmed me.
And now tonight, as he waves his hands back and forth in sync with fifty thousand other souls, his gaze locks on mine, and I listen to the whole stadium sing about how he will love me unconditionally until his final breath. And with that, I feel the anger and resentment finally begin to fade into a distant hum.
The moment is too much, and as I hold his dark stare, my knees give out. I crumble to the ground as tears stream down my face, my heart pulling me in a million different directions, but there’s only one direction that feels like home.
I can’t take my eyes off him as he captivates the audience, his words speaking right to my soul, and when he makes his way toward me, my heart races for a whole new reason. He doesn’t skip a beat or miss a single lyric as he strides across the massive stage, past Rock and Dylan, and right into the wings of the stage where I remain a crumpled mess out of sight from the rowdy crowd.
Ezra offers me his hand, and as he sings the deep lyrics that shatter my soul, he helps me back to my feet. I expect him to walk away, to get back to his captivated audience, but instead, he pulls me into the warmth of his loving arms, wrapping them around me as he continues to sing.
I don’t say a word, simply hold him with my face pressed against his wide chest as the beat of his heart matches the bass of Rock’s drums.
A moment passes, and as the lyrics fade into Jett’s guitar solo, Ezra pulls back, lowers his microphone, and drops his intense stare to mine. His fingers brush beneath my chin, raising it until my lips are barely a breath from his. “Fuck, I love you,” he tells me.
All I can do is swallow over the lump in my throat as I hold his piercing stare, and when I don’t respond, he leans in and kisses me. It’s only a brief kiss, his lips lingering on mine for only a second before he pulls back. “I’m sorry, Rae. You’re too fucking beautiful to be on your knees for any man,” he tells me. “I needed you to hear it. I needed you to know what it’s been like all these years without you.”
“I know,” I murmur, clutching his strong arms. “It’s been the same for me.”
He nods, and as Jett’s solo comes to an end, Ezra takes a step back and lifts his microphone once again. His lyrics flow out of him so beautifully, it’s impossible to believe such words could have been written about me, and as he makes his way back to the center of the stage, all I can do is watch, completely mesmerized by this incredible man—a man I so desperately wish to call mine.
The rest of the show goes off without incident, and I manage to remain on my feet right until the explosive finale. Just like every night, I watch in awe as the pyrotechnics team does their thing. It’s incredible. Axel would have gotten such a kick out of it.
Dylan comes off the stage first, and just like every night, he scoops me off my feet and spins me around. “Fuck, that was a good one,” he says, completely pumped up. “You heard that crowd, right? Fuck. We were on fire.”
“You were,” I laugh as he settles me back to my feet.
He doesn’t release me though, simply holds my arms as he captures my stare, a seriousness washing over him. “You’re good though, right?” he murmurs, his gaze subtly flicking toward Ezra as he makes his way toward us. “That moment . . . you know, seemed a little intense.”
I give him a beaming smile and push up onto my tippy toes as I brush a kiss to his cheek. “I’m good,” I promise him just as Ezra comes past us, only he slows right down and takes my hand, gently squeezing it as he passes. His gaze locks onto mine, and for just a moment, my heart completely stops.
Everything that I am belongs to him.
Ezra continues, and our hands fall apart but my fingers feel as though they’ve been infused with electricity.
Rock crashes into me and Dylan, his arms locking around us both. “You know,” he muses, his grin way too suspicious. “If Rae wasn’t so head over heels in love with Ez, you two would make a cute couple.”
My gaze flicks back to Dylan’s, and a wave of awkwardness washes over us. “Ewwww, gross,” Dylan sputters, trying to get away from me. “She’s like my little sister.”
