Say You're Mine - Layla Hagen Page 0,94
holding a hot drink while standing and swaying slowly to the music. The phone was on one of the loungers.
“Look who turns out to be a fan after all,” I said with a smile.
She startled and immediately put the cup down, pausing the music.
“Brayden!”
I walked right up to her, cupping her face.
“Listen, I only have a few minutes. Sasha said fans are regrouping in front of the hotel, so we have to leave right now.”
“Oh...”
“But I didn’t want to go without talking to you.”
Her eyes widened. I felt her pulse quicken under my fingers.
“I love you, Isabelle. You’re everything to me. I don’t doubt your feelings, okay? I realize it sounded like that.” I paused, searching for the right words. “I have this deep fear that I’ll make you unhappy, and that will drive you away, but that’s all on me, okay?”
“No, it’s on us. I know you pulled away from your family after the fans vandalized their house. It’s what you do to protect those you care about, but I’m not going to let you do it, okay? I love our life. It’s crazy, but I love it. And I’ve always accepted the good with the bad. The bad: strangers being abnormally interested in our lives. The good: everything else. And the list is super long, and includes these...” Her grip on my arms turned into playful stroking.
“Careful there, or I’ll think you’re saying all this so you can feel up your favorite part of me.”
“Don’t say that. They’ll feel left out.” She reached between us, patting my stomach.
“Just saying, but other parts are starting to feel left out too.”
She narrowed her eyes in response, putting both hands firmly on my shoulders.
“I promise we’ll work through everything together, Isabelle. You’re mine, and I have no intention of letting you go.”
“Wow,” she whispered. “You have ten minutes, and you don’t need all of them to make me swoon.”
I kissed her forehead, holding her close. “I probably only have a few left. But tonight we’ll be together, okay?”
She pulled back, pouting. “That’s gonna be in a million hours.”
“Yeah, but—”
The door opened suddenly. Harvey stepped inside. “Man, are you serious? We need to go. What are you doing here?”
“Talking to Isabelle. I told Sasha I need ten minutes. Still have five left. Get out.”
“Yeah, she knew you’d react this way. That’s why she sent me,” Harvey said. “Crowd outside is growing bigger by the minute. Isabelle, some help here?”
Isabelle took her hands off my shoulders, taking a step back and sighing. “He’s all yours.”
***
Isabelle
After the guys left, I just couldn’t stand still. Waiting was not my strong suit. The concert didn’t start for six hours! They performed for another two, and then who knew how long it would take until they were back.
I tried to kill the time by watching Netflix on my phone and ordering half a dozen snacks from the menu. The pastrami beef sandwich was a highlight.
But after binge-watching four episodes of my favorite Scottish detective show, I got an idea. Maybe I didn’t have to wait that long to see him.
I called the front desk right away.
“How can we help you, ma’am?”
“Hi! I was wondering if there are still crowds outside the hotel.”
“No. They scattered about half an hour ago.” That made sense, since the concert was starting right about now. All the fans would be at the venue, not staking out the hotel.
“Thank you.” I was grinning ear to ear. Oh yeah. I had a plan. I knew they’d left a security detail behind with me, but I needed some intel from Sasha.
Isabelle: I want to surprise Brayden by being there at the intermission. How do we make it happen?
Sasha: You two are KILLING me.
Isabelle: Pretty please!
Sasha: I’m messaging your security detail instructions and alerting the security here. This is actually a good time to come. All fans are inside the venue already. Be ready in ten.
***
On the drive to the Hammerstein Ballroom, I kept twiddling my thumbs in my lap and couldn’t tone down my smile. Imagining his reaction made me giggle. I wanted to show him that I really was okay with all this, that I just had to learn to properly navigate it. And I thought I was getting better at it. Look at me, managing to surprise my sexy guy right in the middle of a concert!
Since this wasn’t a stadium but an actual concert hall, there weren’t as many entrances. Flynn, my current security detail, led me right to the back of