Total pages in book: 132
Estimated words: 125213 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 626(@200wpm)___ 501(@250wpm)___ 417(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 125213 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 626(@200wpm)___ 501(@250wpm)___ 417(@300wpm)
“Mia, is it true you and Aleks have been dating for months?”
“Mia! I love you!”
“Whore!”
“Aleks! Can I join you two for a threesome?!”
“Mia, what do you have to say about the article from Garrett Orange?”
“Fuck you! Your music is trash!”
“Oh, my God, look at him! He’s so hot!”
“Mia, I hope you’re getting railed every night by this man!”
A round of laughs.
More lights flashing.
We were almost to the door, and I didn’t realize how tightly I was holding her and how protective I was being until Mia struggled against my grip a little to lean down and take a picture with two young girls wearing bright pink sequin skirts and shirts from her last tour.
As soon as she stood again, I pulled her into me. I wanted to throw her over my shoulder and barrel inside the building. I wanted to show anyone who tested me just what it felt like to get checked by a professional hockey player. But I knew Mia was okay, I knew she was used to this. Hell, she’d faced worse when I was nowhere near to help protect her. So, I stood by her side and kept my grip tight while also allowing her the space to move freely.
Finally, we made it to the doors, and with one last wave at the crowd, she let me surround her with my arms for the last ten steps into the building.
“I could fuck you better, Aleks!”
“Mia, your music changed my life!”
“I love you! Please take a picture with me!”
“Your music sucks and so do you, slut!”
I ground my teeth at that last one when I felt Mia stiffen in my arms a bit, and I was ready to turn and knock out whoever the fuck had said it. But Mia gripped me tighter to her as if she knew my intent, as if she wanted to remind me that she was fine, that this was normal, that she just wanted me to be with her.
I would never admit to myself how much I liked that thought — that she wanted me there not as a publicity stunt, but for real.
When we were finally inside, the doors shut behind us with the effort of four grown-ass men at least twice my size. The crowd continued screaming, the cameras continued flashing, but all of us let out a breath of relief.
“Alright,” Rina said, clapping her hands and snapping right into action. “Let’s get you to your dressing room, shall we?”
“Hello, Miss Love,” a young woman said, extending her hand for Mia’s. I still had a protective hold on her, but Mia smiled up at me and slid out of my embrace to greet the woman. “It’s so lovely to have you back at Rockefeller. If you’ll come this way, we have a room all ready for you.”
I didn’t realize my hand was still clamped hard around hers until Mia tried to walk and was halted by my grip.
She startled, turning back to me with a sleepy smile. Her hair was a fucking mess, her face showing clear signs of exhaustion. And yet, she smiled with ease, with confidence, with a silent promise to me that she was ready, that she was excited for this.
“You look a bit pale there, Suter,” she teased. “See one of your many exes in that crowd?”
“More like a line of men begging to be my new punching bags.”
“Don’t mind them. I never do.”
My brows dipped farther.
How long had she put up with that shit?
How did any man think it was okay to behave that way toward a woman?
“Is it always like that?” I asked.
She shrugged. “Not always. There’s usually a better barrier, and a lot of times people gather around to take pictures or ask their questions, but they keep a safe distance. But…” She tilted her head side to side. “All it takes is one person pushing in, getting closer, to give everyone else permission to do the same.”
My jaw tensed.
The brazen fucking audacity of people to think they had the right to do that to her, to anyone.
I was two seconds away from telling her I was resigning from hockey and joining her security team when she chuckled a bit. “I’m good,” she promised, squeezing my hand — which made me realize I still held hers in a vise grip. “See you after the show?”
Reluctantly, I nodded, my throat tight as I released her.
She held my gaze for a long moment over her shoulder as Rina, Glo, and the young show runner walked her toward an elevator. Her security team still surrounded her, which made me feel marginally better. Only once I saw Mia laugh at something Glo said did I feel the lock on my chest release.
“Now that was a good show,” Isabella whispered as she passed by me, squeezing my arm. Her eyes were on her phone as she tapped away on the screen. “The Internet is already losing their minds.”