Taste of Love - By Stephanie Nicole Page 0,34

by the end of their set, impatient for Cameron to get started. She'd never seen him perform before, but had heard his songs and couldn't wait to hear him live.

Finally, he took the stage. The man she thought she knew had been replaced by this other Cameron, a man filled with swagger and seduction. It was like nothing she had ever seen before. He was always full of energy and confidence, but when he was on stage, he was raw and intense. He created magnetism when he performed. She watched as he strutted up to the microphone and belted out a line from one of his most popular songs. It was no wonder he was so popular and successful.

Madison looked around the crowd and noticed that most of the women were singing along, and many were crying. Some were reaching toward him with everything they had, trying to touch his hand, his boot, his leg. The guys were jumping around to the music, pumping their fists and singing too. Everyone looked like they were enjoying the show, and it was no mystery why. She turned her attention back to the stage, and let herself be captivated by Cameron's showmanship.

After the encore, Madison and Chase showed their VIP passes to the security guards and were led back to a large room with a bar and buffet set up. The room was already crowded, and more filtered through after Madison and Chase arrived.

The party was full of half-naked women and a lot of questionable -looking men. It was a completely different crowd than Madison was used to, and she was beginning to feel uncomfortable. She had known there would be a lot of groupies, but she hadn't expected a scene like this.

Making their way further into the room, Madison finally found the one she was looking for. He was the center of attention. He was laughing at something that a woman had said, looking truly happy. He had a beer in one hand, and what looked like a cigarette or joint in the other.

She hesitated for a moment, not sure if she should approach him. Just when she was close enough to get his attention, a woman pushed her out of the way and went up to Cameron. The tall blonde, with legs to die for, stepped right into Cameron's face and shoved her tongue down his throat. Madison's mouth dropped open. Surely that wasn't welcome! You didn't just walk up to someone and kiss them like that!

But then, Madison watched as Cameron pulled the blonde onto his lap.

She'd seen enough. She didn't belong here. She didn't belong in this lifestyle of Cameron's at all. That was very clear to her now. With that realization came disappointment and sadness. They could be friends - really great friends, at that - but anything more would be out of the question.

"Let's go home," she said to Chase, who looked at her with wide eyes.

"Seriously?"

"Yeah." Her voice was so quiet that Chase realized she wasn't suggesting they leave, she was insisting on it. He didn't say another word, but just took her hand.

"Lead the way," he said.

An hour later she was in her bathroom, scrubbing the hell out of the toilet, and cursing herself for being so naive.

Chapter Ten

Madison was rinsing suds out of the large garden tub in her bathroom when she thought she heard a knocking sound. She turned the water off and listened closer. This time, she heard it. Now it was more of a pounding.

She ran to the door, hoping that whoever it was didn't wake her neighbors. Was something wrong with Chase? Was something wrong at the restaurant? She threw the door open, not bothering to look through the peep hole, too intent on quieting the person down.

"Cameron!" she exclaimed, pulling him into her apartment and shutting the door. His eyes were a little glazed over, and he was stumbling. She was amazed to see him - he should still be at the backstage soiree, kissing blondes.

"What in the world are you doing here?"

"Why didn't you come backstage tonight?" he asked, dropping onto her couch. "I gave you those passes, and you didn't even show up on my last night in town for a while," he told her with a mixture of disappointment and amusement.

Madison could tell that he was inebriated, but not enough that he didn't know what he was saying or doing. She stared at him for a minute, not sure whether to tell the truth or not.

"I