Lead Player - Alex Grayson Page 0,36

‘em, tiger,” Nikki says with a mock growl.

I laugh and shake my head as I step around her, my eyes focused on Enzo as he puts his guitar down on a chair behind the stage. He looks up and our eyes meet. I beeline straight for him at the same time he heads for me. I stop and my insides plummet to my toes when a beautiful blonde intercedes him. Her smile is big and bright as she says something to him, then puts her hand on his lower stomach as she leans up to kiss his cheek. He smiles down at her when she pulls away.

Whoever this woman is, they know each other well. And from the way she’s standing so close to him and the look in her eye, there’s no doubt they’ve been intimate, and if not, the woman wishes they were.

The thought turns my stomach sour. I try to shake it off. I’ve got no right to be upset about Enzo’s past. Lord knows he wasn’t a monk before me, just as I’ve had lovers, too. I knew going into this he’s had multiple partners. If not from James’ stories, then from the many pictures in magazines portraying his conquests.

He says he’s changed, that he no longer wants that type of life, but what’s to say he won’t change his mind? I have no idea where his and my relationship is heading—if you can even call what we have a relationship. I just know, on my end at least, I don’t want to be labeled as only a bed partner. When I gave in to him, I was giving in to the possibility of something more than a physical relationship. Now I wonder what his thoughts are.

Am I just another one of his conquests, and once he tires of me, he’ll toss me to the side? Am I simply a warm body to slate his lust until a better one comes along?

Or does he want something more?

The better question is, do I want to take the chance of being one of the former, when I so badly want to be the latter? And can I handle it each time I see one of his past lovers?

He looks up right then and our eyes meet. He must see something on my face because he suddenly frowns. He says something to the blonde without looking away from me. She turns around and glances at me, and wouldn’t you know it, the full front view of her is just as stunning as the side view. They both start heading toward me, and I’m tempted to bolt. There’s no fucking way I want to meet one of the women he’s slept with. I hold still when everything in me screams to run in the opposite direction.

He doesn’t stop until he’s at my side with his arm wrapped around my waist. Leaning down, he whispers in my ear, “You okay?”

I give him a tight smile and nod. “Sure.”

His brows wrinkle as his eyes bounce back and forth between mine. After a moment, he clears his throat and, with his arm still around me, faces the blonde.

“Alaina, this is my sister’s best friend, Heidi,” he introduces. “Heidi, this is Alaina.”

I wince, feeling like a fool. This woman isn’t one of his old lovers. They seemed so familiar because they’ve known each other for years. According to Enzo, she’s like a sister to him.

As I take her in, my words from our conversation last night filter through my mind.

You may think that, but I can almost guarantee you she doesn’t.

Then I remember the way she stared up at him adoringly when she first walked up to him. It would be natural for her to feel brotherly love toward the man who’s been a part of her life through his sister, but what she feels isn’t brotherly. Men are blind when it comes to these things. This girl wants Enzo. It’s in the way she looks at him and in the way she holds her body, as if she’s begging him to look at her.

The thought leaves a bitter taste in my mouth. I’ve never been insecure, but I’m not overly confident either. This woman is beautiful in a way I’ll never be.

Even so, I hold out my hand and offer a genuine smile. Maybe I’m projecting something that isn’t really there, and Heidi does only think of Enzo as a brother.

“Hi, Heidi. It’s nice to meet you.”

My hopes are dashed when the smile