“That’s what I like to hear,” she beamed, letting go before her eyes moved to Liam. “And you’re him, huh? The man who has fallen in love with my niece?”
“Yes, ma’am. I didn’t have a chance from the second I met her.”
“I like you already. And it’s Celeste. None of this ma’am nonsense.” She winked at him before introducing him to Reed.
The hostess came up to them, menus in hand, and led them to their table. Liam walked behind Harper, his hand on the small of her back as they made their way through the room. Her eyes caught on a couple of the plates, the delicious smells filling her nose.
Good Lord she was already starving. She wanted to order everything she saw. And when she sat down and looked at the menu, she was even more confused.
“What are you going to get?” Liam asked, leaning in close to her.
“Well, the pan-seared filet with the mushroom bacon risotto sounds amazing. But then so do the pork chops in the cherry wine reduction with the asparagus soufflé.”
“You just want to share? Both of those sound good to me.”
“This is why you’re my favorite.” She grinned as she folded her menu.
The meal was perfection. Per-fec-tion. And by the time they were done eating and talking, Harper was so full it would be a wonder if she could walk out of there…especially after the caramel crème brûlée.
But she somehow managed.
After dinner they said good-bye to Celeste and Reed at the door. They were taking advantage of their evening out. While Harper was ready to crash, Celeste was ready to party.
“Reed is taking me dancing,” she said as she shimmied. “But I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Liam had gotten three tickets for the concert he was performing at a club in downtown Nashville. It was a smaller venue than the arenas he’d been opening in, but he was the headliner for this one.
“Tomorrow.” Harper nodded as she hugged her aunt and then Reed.
When they walked outside, the hot summer air was still a tad bit stifling, and the crowd outside was making Harper a little claustrophobic. The two guys manning the valet station were having trouble keeping up with the current rush.
Liam braved the crowd while Harper stood off to the side. A group of women—all dressed to the nines—moved to make way for him. It was like Moses parting the Red Sea.
When he walked past, the brunette in the purple stilettos leaned over and whispered into the ear of the blond in the hot pink romper.
“Nuh-uh.” Romper’s mouth dropped open as her head whipped back around to get another look at Liam. But while she was getting another look, Stilettos was telling the other girls in the group.
Before Harper even knew it, three of the five women had pulled out their phones and were blatantly snapping pictures of Liam. At least one of them tried to make it look like she was taking a selfie.
A possessiveness that was still very much new to Harper took over. She wanted to reach over and throw every one of those damn phones on the ground and stomp on them with her heels.
Romper caught Harper’s eye, which she was doing her damnedest to not let turn into a death glare.
“That’s Liam James,” she whispered to Harper in explanation.
“I know.” Harper nodded. “What do you think his girlfriend is going to make of the fact that you guys were just taking pictures of his ass?”
“Who cares? He’s hot.” The blond with the bob shrugged as she touched up her bright red cherry lips, pouting them as she looked into the mirror of her compact.
“Isn’t he dating Kiki Jean Carlow?” The redhead in the skintight black dress looked around. “You think she’s here?”
“Nah.” Cherry lips shook her head. “She’d be surrounded by people fawning all over her. But more is the better for me. I’m going to get him to take me home with him.”
Oh, look at how quickly that had all morphed into a boiling rage coursing through Harper’s veins.
“And what makes you think you’re the one he’s going to want to go home with?” Stilettos fluffed her hair as she pulled the top of her dress down more than just a little bit.
“It’s obvious. He prefers blonds.” Cherry smacked her lips together as she closed her little compact and tossed it, along with her lipstick, into her purse.
“Harper, honey,” Liam called, pulling her gaze away from the women. He was waiting just on the other side of the stand, holding out his hand for her. “They’re pulling the car around now.”
The group of girls all openly gaped at Harper, and as she walked by Cherry she couldn’t help herself. “Actually, he doesn’t prefer blonds and he’s going to be taking me home tonight.”
Liam’s eyes narrowed, studying her face as her hand slid into his. “What was that about?”
“Nothing, I just told her I liked her hair.” The lie might’ve fallen easily from her lips, but it felt wrong. All wrong.
He took a step forward, his free hand going to her face. “You sure?”
“Yes.” She nodded, forcing a smile as she leaned in and kissed him.
But even the taste of his lips couldn’t take away the bitterness in Harper’s mouth.
Chapter Twenty-One The Power of a Lie
The bitterness was still lingering the next day. Harper did everything in her power to not let the little incident at the end of dinner the night before upset her. But it had gotten under her skin and was now festering.
It was one thing to be out somewhere and see other women checking out your man. It was quite another to know that there were women out there who had absolutely no regard for the fact that he was in a relationship.
But this was what it was going to be like if she was with him.
No, there was no if.
She was going to have to get used to it. His fame was only getting bigger, so this was the life she was signing on for.
She’d been living in a bit of a fantasyland perpetuated by the bubble that was Mirabelle. That tabloid article a week ago had been a small taste of reality, and it had been just as bitter as the events of the evening before.
But it was nothing, nothing, to what Harper went through on Saturday night.
In the beginning she’d been excited about seeing Liam perform live onstage. It wasn’t something she’d experienced and she wondered what it would be like to be a part of the crowd.
And as always, Liam’s music resonated through her body, settling deep in her bones. And it wasn’t just Harper who was enjoying the music. Sofia was moving, like really moving. She was kicking up a storm in Harper’s belly.
“He’s talented.” Celeste shook her head in awe as Liam got to the guitar solo for “Music Shaker, Money Maker.”
“He is.” Harper grabbed her aunt’s hand and pressed it to the spot that was being used like a soccer ball.
Celeste grinned over at Harper. “She likes Daddy’s music, too, huh?”
“Apparently. She’s having a rave in there.”
The last chords of the guitar solo faded away and the crowd around Harper cheered, screaming Liam’s name. It was one of those moments that she couldn’t quite process. Watching him up on that stage. Seeing him, hearing him sing his heart out.
And he was hers.
But not all hers. Not when he was up on that stage. This was the part that she had to share. In a way, when he was performing he belonged to everyone in that room. Belonged to his fans that knew every word of his songs…and the women in the crowd who were eye-sexing him.
Just like that Harper’s heart started beating hard and her stomach rolled, but this time it wasn’t from Sofia’s acrobatics. She closed her eyes, taking deep steady breaths.
“You okay?” Celeste asked.
“Yeah.” Harper nodded, opening her eyes and looking over at her aunt. “I just need to go to the bathroom.”
“I’m coming with you.” She turned to Reed next to her and said something to him before they headed through the crowd.