Jace (Kings of Country 1)

For now, he was sweaty, breathing hard, and, damn it, feeling pretty good. When Krystal threw her arms around his neck, it went from good to great. Right, even. And he held on to her. Tight.

Chapter 7

“You did it,” she whispered against his neck, true happiness welling up inside her.

“We did it.” His voice was muffled and gruff. He shifted his guitar behind him, so his arm could hold her against him in the best way possible.

We. The meaning of the word, applied to them, didn’t bother her the way it should have. There was no we here, not in the long run. This was a duet, a business arrangement—a collaboration. That’s all. She understood that. Well, her brain understood that.

The rest of her…that was a different story. Dammit, it wasn’t like she had a choice. Her reaction to him was instinctual. It wasn’t just warm fuzzies he stirred; it was the far more electric and bone-melting impact he had on her that was the problem.

And it was a problem.

Like now.

When she was hugging him in front of a crowd of several thousand fans and she was in no hurry to let go. When his scent made her dizzy and the crush of his chest against hers did nothing to dampen the whole bone-melting problem. If anything, the brush of his breath against her neck and the press of his hand against her back had her aching in a way that would lead to serious consequences. Enjoyable but far too complicated and severe consequences.

So much for her frantic attempt at damage control over her Jace and Clementine Instagram post.

“Y’all were awesome.” It was Emmy who hooked arms with her and pulled her, gently, away from his embrace.

Krystal nodded, Jace’s dark silhouette moving quickly offstage before the bright white lights kicked on.

“You good?” Emmy’s hold tightened. “It was amazing, Krystal.”

“I know.” She tried to laugh, but she couldn’t bring herself to make light of it. Not yet. It had been amazing, special—too special to dismiss. She wasn’t one for sentimentality but this, she wanted to cherish.

The rest of the concert went like clockwork. They hit their marks, pulled out all the stops, and delivered everything their fans had come to expect from a Three Kings show.

“Where’s Jace?” Travis asked. “He should come out for the finale.”

Lori, the stage manager, managed to find him and send him out in time to sing their hit “Forever My Home.” The audience approved, making Jace blush and shake his head and amp up his appeal to every woman in the room.

Krystal couldn’t remember a time when she wasn’t onstage. Right or wrong, she’d grown up in the spotlight. Now, it was second nature. Not so for Jace. Still, he rallied when she smiled his way and laughed when Travis whispered something in his ear. And then they were singing and he was fine.

It was odd how easily he fit, riffing off Travis’s guitar and playing along on his beaten-up wooden Taylor guitar. He knew the words, of course; he was a fan. And “Forever My Home” was a Three Kings favorite. Upbeat and catchy, Jace had no problem jumping right in. Fans loved it, especially the way he tipped his hat at the crowd when the song ended. Because he was a gentleman.

How long would that last now? She’d like to think Jace wouldn’t fall victim to the women, parties, drugs, and alcohol followed by a round of bad choices…but it seemed to be part of the process. How far he’d fall and how well he recovered was up to him.

Not that she needed to worry tonight. Even though her surprise wasn’t an intentional groupie-blocking move, there was no denying that was the end result. One more night to hold on to gentleman Jace.

She smiled. Gentleman Jace. It was catchy.

His light brown gaze met hers and when he smiled right back, his dimples appeared. The dimples. That skin-tight shirt. The tattoos. The bod… And the voice. Jace Black was pure temptation.

Good thing she was strong.

But, to play it safe, no more staring or smiling or leaning in or spontaneous hugs. She tore her gaze from his and headed offstage, gulping down a bottle of cold water Misumi offered and heading toward the greenroom. “She here?”

Misumi nodded. “She’s waiting.”

“Did she see the show?” Her excitement didn’t make sense. But she was. Excited.

“Got her a shirt, too. Figured that was okay? She’s a big fan, you know?” Misumi chuckled. “She even brought Clementine a treat.”

Krystal smiled at that. That was why Heather was here. She was a Three Kings fan. This was her brother’s first performance with them. Heather should be here to support her big brother and have a little fun in the process. Yes, Jace was missing his little sister and that might have had the slightest impact on her decision to fly Heather in for tonight’s show. But, primarily, this was for Heather.

“It’s trending,” Emmy said, holding up her phone.