Hold on to My Heart (Maine Sullivans)

Suddenly, the lighting changed, and a spotlight lit up the stage. Brandon stepped into the light with a smile. “Welcome! Thank you for coming to celebrate the opening of another jewel in the crown of the SLVN Hotel Group. Everyone in Vienna has been hugely welcoming to us, and we deeply appreciate it.”

The crowd applauded, and Ashley felt so proud of her brother. Though she wished she could see him more often, she knew he had always wanted more than a small-town life. Looking around the magnificent hotel full of guests in their glittering best, she was happy for him. She hoped his life was everything he’d ever wanted it to be.

“And now,” he continued, “for the moment I’m sure all of you have been waiting for. Tonight’s special guest needs no introduction.” Ashley thought she saw Brandon’s smile turn to a scowl for a split second before he said, “Please welcome Nash Hardwin!”

The applause was deafening. It didn’t matter how young or old people were, or what language they spoke, everyone around the world loved Nash.

Walking onstage with a guitar and without saying a word, he began to play an acoustic version of one of his biggest hits. The audience enthusiastically sang along, and over the next thirty minutes, the crowd went more and more wild with every song.

Only, Ashley was frozen where she stood, barely blinking or even breathing. Listening to him sing and watching his talented hands play across the strings of his guitar, she couldn’t stop the sensual memories from flooding her. The way he’d whispered in her ear while they were making love. The feel of his hands on her skin while he’d played her passions like a maestro.

As she listened, all she wanted was to feel his hands on her again, his lips on hers, the wicked growl of his voice as he urged her to come apart for him. Thank God she was too far from the stage for Nash to see her.

After he’d played seven of his biggest hits, he finally spoke to the audience. “I’d like to play one more song before I go, one I haven’t played for a very long time. Not until yesterday when a very special friend helped me to see things differently. This is for her.”

And as the first notes of “Scarborough Fair” sounded, Ashley’s heart shattered, breaking in a way that she had steadfastly not let it break until that very moment.

She turned and fled the room, accidentally knocking into a few people and spilling their drinks. Desperate to get away, she opened the nearest side door and launched herself into a service hallway. She tried to catch her breath, still her racing heart, calm her mind. But it was impossible when she could still hear Nash playing.

The applause at the end of the song reverberated down the dark and deserted hallway to where she was standing. Brandon’s staff members were in the ballroom, cheering for Nash, celebrating his talent and artistry.

Knowing they would return to work now that the concert was over, she moved farther down the hallway, hoping to find an outside exit. She hadn’t gotten far when she heard the door behind her open and close.

Without turning around, she instantly knew who had come into the hallway from the way every cell in her body came to attention.

Nash.

For the second time that night, she was rooted in place. Unable to move. She didn’t turn around until he put one hand over hers and gently turned her to face him.

Even in the dim light of the hallway, she could see that his eyes were blazing. Blazing with the same emotion she knew must be reflected in her eyes.

And then his mouth was on hers, and he was kissing her so passionately that her entire body and soul were swept up in him as they kissed and kissed and kissed and kissed.

“I needed to see you one more time,” he said in a raw voice as he peppered her lips with more kisses. “I needed to kiss you one more time so that I can always remember how good it feels to hold you in my arms.”

She looked up into his beautiful eyes and silently said good-bye. Then she kissed him. A soft, sweet kiss she hoped told him everything that was in her heart. That she thought he was a good man. A wonderful man.

And that maybe, in another life, they could have been together. But not in this one. Never in this one.

With one last intense look, he let her go, and then he turned and walked out of her life.

Forever.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Waiting until she felt she had some control over her emotions, Ashley dried her eyes, then ducked into the nearest bathroom to make sure her mascara hadn’t run. She didn’t want anyone at the party to guess at her emotional upheaval. Especially her brother.