But she still had one lingering question rooted in her mind.
Was she falling in love?
Deep lust? Without doubt.
Deep like? Absolutely. It was unavoidable with these two.
But love?
It wouldn’t be a surprise.
Yet she forged on with her plans for the trip. With her most recent paycheck, she could afford nice hotels, rather than the lower-budget ones. She booked her first-class seat on a flight. And felt a little thrill over it, not just because of the premium seating—but also because it’d be her first time on an airplane.
She perused the Internet when Lex and Jax were out of the mansion and found a travel group that arranged tours in the cities she intended to visit. So she wouldn’t have to be making the rounds all on her own.
Planning for Paris was the absolute most fun. There was a dinner cruise down the Seine that she was interested in. A night tour of the palaces, the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre—all the lights of Paris. And then there was Moulin Rouge. Lily and her mother had watched the movie with Nicole Kidman and Ewan McGregor and had decided it’d be a high point. So that was definitely a yes.
Her itinerary was solidly mapped out weeks later. And she was excited.
She was also excited about Lex’s and Jax’s hands and mouths on her every night when they weren’t off on business. Currently, they were in New York, nailing down studio time and booking musical venues. They were already scheduled for Carnegie Hall. That was basically mind boggling to Lily.
She was sleeping with two men who had played Carnegie Hall in the past and would be doing it again when the new CD released.
As Lily thought of this, she realized she’d come to accept that their time together was short-lived.
Perhaps fate had brought them together. For numerous reasons. Maybe for a little healing on Lex’s and Jax’s part. And for her . . . an eye-opener. Because Lily had been living her life with her head down and her nose to the grindstone. No distractions whatsoever.
But this distraction?
Priceless.
Though, inevitably . . . temporary.
* * *
Lex was in the music room the night after he and Jax returned from New York. They’d had a fantastic practice session at their recording studio of choice to ensure it was, indeed, the perfect facility for them. All good there. Then they’d wrapped up tour dates and venues. Everything was falling into place.
The only downside was that time was not on their side.
As it related to finishing the compositions, yes. Because they were now ahead of schedule.
As it related to Lily . . . ?
She’d be leaving the mansion soon. Spending the spring in Europe. They’d be off to New York, then playing all over the world.
He and Jax hadn’t really discussed this yet. But Lex sensed his friend struggled as much with the nights they spent away from her as Lex did.
He wasn’t sure what that meant.
Or . . . maybe he actually did know. Deep down . . .
Joining him, Jax asked, “Where’s Lily?”
“Greta needed to borrow her.”
“Not all evening, I hope. We just got back.”
Lex grinned at his friend’s eagerness. “Not all evening. A few minutes.”