Lia whistled when she came into my dressing room to get me. “Look at you.” She smiled. “Mike isn’t going to know what hit him.”

I stood next to her, watching our reflection in the mirror. She’d paired high waist black short shorts with a black halter top and a pair of bright red knee-high stiletto boots that made my legs look amazingly long. My hair was pulled back into a ponytail, bangs swept to the right. The makeup had been done to perfection, giving me dramatic eyes and lips that matched the boots.

I didn’t look like me. I looked like a model about to walk down a runway. Either that, or a trick about to troll the street in the red-light district. Hey, it worked for Julia Roberts.

Lia put her arm around me. “Your interview in the morning should go relatively smooth. They’re going to have listeners calling in, but I talked to them and they’re going to screen each one before they put them on the air. You’ll be fine.”

“You’re not coming?”

She shook her head. “Just you and Mike. Nate has a meeting here first thing in the morning, which is why we’re staying at a hotel instead of taking the buses into the city tonight.”

I frowned at her reflection. “I thought we were going back to the cabin. I didn’t pack anything.”

She smiled. “No worries, I got it all.”

“Mols, you’re…” I didn’t have time to remind her how much I hated people doing those things for me because Mike had walked in and stopped mid-sentence. He swallowed as his eyes moved over my body, down and back up again. “You’re on.”

I nodded, following him out of the room, down hallways, around corners, and up a set of stairs. As we walked, someone pushed my headset into my hand, and then someone else handed me a microphone. The music of my opening number started, but before I could step onto the stage, Mike was next to me. “You look fucking amazing. Go kick some ass.”

There was nothing like walking out into the spotlight and belting out the songs you wrote to a sold-out audience. Especially when that audience sang your words back to you. It made all the self-doubt, all the nerves, and all the negativity fade away, and reminded me why I loved my job so much. I wasn’t one who sat on a stool on stage with a guitar. I was a performer. I had my guitar during a few songs, but the rest of the time, I bounced and danced around stage, trying to spread positive energy around and give the audience a show that was worth every cent they’d spent on their ticket.

When I walked off stage at the end of the night, every one of my muscles ached and my feet hated me. Mike handed me a Gatorade and a towel. “We headed to the after party?”

I shook my head. “I’m beat. Someone kept me up all night.” I grinned at him over my shoulder.

“Wanna grab takeout and go back to the hotel? Maybe watch a movie?”

My shoulders slumped. “Oh, thank God. You read my mind. I can’t wait to get out of these boots.”

His hand found the small of my back, making me break out in goosebumps as his lips touched my ear. “I can’t wait to get you out of everything else.”

*****

I was exhausted. We’d been on the road since a little after five and driven three hours to get to the city. We’d only gotten lost once, and that was simply because I was too busy staring at the driver to pay attention to where we were going. Once we crossed the George Washington Bridge, we got stuck in traffic and were almost late to my interview. Almost.

By some miracle, though, we strolled into the Nash 94.7 studio ten minutes before I was supposed to be on air. Thank God it was radio, because I hadn’t had a chance to stop and change—my hat hair, yoga pants, and Mike’s tee shirt didn’t even make the show’s hosts blink an eye. Instead, the producer led me straight into the booth and handed me a pair of headphones.

“Wow, Molly Ray!” Jeff, one of the radio personalities, smiled. “I can’t believe that you are actually sitting here with us right now.”

“Let me just tell you that he has the biggest crush on you,” Joe, the other DJ, told me with a grin.

“Crush? I’m not twelve.” Jeff scoffed, winking in my direction. “But I won’t lie. I’ve spent a good amount of time trying to figure out how to ask you out.”

The admission made me laugh. “Well, I’m here for a few days. Now’s your chance.”

I grinned as his cheeks turned pink and he stuttered his reply. Chuckling, his partner took advantage of the topic and segued into his next question. “Does that mean, Molly Ray, that you’re single? Is that what you’re telling us?”

I hesitated, just a fraction too long. Jeff, calming from his embarrassment, chimed in. “You’ve been linked with Nate Kelly for years, but we all know the bullshit in the tabloids is just that. Bullshit.”

I nodded, unsure of where this was going, but thankful someone didn’t believe it.

“But, what we don’t know is if there is some other mystery man in your life. So is there someone? Do I have competition?”

“I live on a bus loaded with men, so there is always a man in my life.” I pointed over my shoulder at the picture window that looked into the waiting room. “Right now, I spend all my time with my security detail.” Lowering my voice, I whispered, “And he’s kinda scary. Most men run away, terrified.”

Both their eyes shot to the window, where Mike now stood, arms crossed over his chest and eyes narrowed. “Yeah, he’s kind of scary, folks,” Joe told listeners. “Think of The Hulk during a roid rage.” Looking back at Jeff, he shrugged. “Sorry, man.”

I laughed my way through the interview, talking about my songs, the city, and life on tour. Before I knew it, it was time to leave. Once the “on air” light went out, I took off my headphones and looked at the men. “We didn’t take calls from listeners.”

Joe shook his head. “Nah. We’re all big fans here, and people can be assholes. We decided earlier that we didn’t want to give them a chance to ruin your visit. Maybe you’ll come see us next time you’re in town.”

“Absolutely!” I nodded, making a mental note to come back every time I was in town. “Are you coming to the show?”

Jeff shook his head.

“Do you want to?”

He looked at me in disbelief.

“I can get you tickets if you want.”

“The station had a giveaway, but—”

Mike tapped on the glass, letting me know it was time to go.

“Okay, if you guys want to come, give my manager a call.” I wrote down Lia’s number and held it out. Jeff just stared at my hand, so I shoved the paper at Joe. “If not, I’ll see you next time I’m in town.”

I was almost through the door when Jeff said, “Holy shit. Molly Ray just invited us to her concert.” The disbelief in his voice was almost laughable. He acted as if I’d just performed a miracle. I was just a regular person, not someone to be in awe of.

“Finally done?” Mike’s voice was gruff, almost grumpy as he stepped in beside me and we headed for the elevators.

“Why are you so cranky? I thought it went really well.”

“It did.” He didn’t say anything else, pulling me into the elevator as soon as the door opened. It had barely closed when he pushed me against the wall, and stepped into me. “You were fantastic. It’s them I didn’t like.”

I rolled my eyes at his caveman response to someone flirting with me. Then his lips were on mine, kissing away any irritation I had with him.

Timing it perfectly, he stepped back just as we stopped on the bottom floor. “Where to now, Miss Ray?”

I pulled out my cell phone, checking the time. We had hours to kill before I had to be back at the venue and in makeup. “Let me show you my city.”

He tipped his head, looking around as we stepped out onto the busy street. “I’m not sure that’s a good idea.” He sounded unsure, almost nervous.

“There are eight million people here, Mikey. No need to worry.”

He shrugged. “Millions of people. Only one you.”