Page 17 of Rock Out Together
Only it’s not my brother in the doorway. It’s a fucking vision in red. Red all over. From her dress, shoes, and lips and right up to her hair. It’s not auburn or reddish blonde, it’s pure fire engine red.
Fuck me, she’s gorgeous.
The others notice my focus has gone off them and all turn to look.
“Cora,” Diego says in surprise.
How does he know her? I’m gonna need an introduction. She’s staring at me with that star-struck look in her eyes. Not that I blame her. It’s not about being big-headed. I’mfamous. Men and women of all ages stare at me the same way. I’m used to it.
“What are you doing in here?” Diego asks her.
“Looking for the bathroom.”
“It’s two doors down.”
“You’re lucky I don’t have my camera,” she says, eyeing us all.
“No cameras.”
Jesus. He even made me jump. I forgot Stefan, my bodyguard, was standing watch in the corner. It’s like he morphed out of the wall.
Cora looks over at him, nonplussed by his sudden appearance and size. I’m a tall guy, but Stefan towers over me and he has arms like tree trunks. He gets his clothes custom made, for sure.
“Relax Paul Bunyan,” she tells him, making my grin grow even wider. “I said he was lucky.”
“You need to step out of the room.”
Diego knows her. She’s a guest here. Not a stalker. She doesn’t appear to pose any imminent threat.
“I never stepped into it,” she answers him, her head tilting up to look Stefan in the face.
That sass is doing all kinds of good things for me. Her gaze comes back to me, and she peruses the length of me, up and down, as if seeing a guy in a wedding dress is an everyday occurrence. Then she meets my eyes. And winks. Fuck me, that was sexy as hell.
“Try not to outshine the bride,” she says with a cryptic, somewhat forced smile.
Before anyone can say anything else, she walks away. It takes a lot to stop from following her. I’ve never seen a woman handle Stefan like that before. Even he looks perplexed.
“Who was that?” I ask my cousin.
Diego turns around. “Emma’s sister. Don’t even think about it.”
“Think about what?” I ask, all innocence.
Diego knows I’m not a player. The only person who plays up to his rock god persona in Velvet Echo is Christopher, our lead singer, who I am currently involved in a three-weeklong spat with. Taking this long weekend away from the band for Brandon’s wedding came at the right time.
Pretty sure Christopher and I were about to hit nuclear level. But that is a story for another day.
“Fuck!” Diego scrambles back into the room. “He’s coming. Get in the closet.”
Okay, the red-headed vision is forgotten. For now. As I’m hurrying to hide, I trip on the long skirt and nearly go ass over elbow into a side table.
Stefan catches my arm and sets me right. “Lift the skirt.”
“Why does it sound like this is something you’re used to?” I ask him.
“You’re not the only person I babysit.”
“Babysit? Dude, that’s offensive.”
