I didn't know if I had the strength. The connection between Liam and I had been strong. Stronger than anything I'd felt since…
No. There was no way anything was going to happen between us. I would make sure of that. I would state my boundaries firmly and clearly.
I'd already let myself open up once before. I'd let myself become vulnerable. I wasn't going to make that mistake again.
I heard a familiar voice call out.
"Hey, Cherry Lips."
That was beginning to become a habit of his.
"If you're going to be in the band, you can't keep calling me that," I said.
Liam's eyes lit up. I tried to keep my face impassive.
"Your audition was impressive," I said.
"Did you doubt it would be anything less?" he asked.
I couldn't help but laugh inside. Liam's ego rivaled my band's.
"Did you really not know who you were auditioning for?" I asked him.
"My manager said the name of the band wasHairy Tits."
"I can see how he might've gotten confused."
"If I'd known it was your band…" he trailed off.
"You would have auditioned anyway?" I said, filling in for him.
A slow smile crossed his face.
"I definitely would've thought about it," he said.
"You didn't do this just to get close to me?" I asked.
"No." He slowly eyed me up and down. "Can't say I mind the perk, though."
His gaze lingered on my legs, on the skin exposed between the hem of my leather skirt and the tops of my knee-high boots. My stomach muscles clenched at the heat in his eyes.
His eyes snapped back to mine. "Does that mean I got it?"
"We want you to come back and play a few songs with the rest of the band. Make sure we all mesh. But if all goes well…" I took a deep breath in. "Yeah. You got it."
A triumphant look crossed his face.
"With a few caveats," I hastily added.
He turned solemn, looking at me expectantly.
"Laying down the ground rules?" he asked. "Let me guess. Rule number one: no dating within the band."
I nodded. "Band members being in relationships with each other never turns out well. I could go through a list of bands as examples if you like."
A predatory grin crossed Liam's face. "But I'm not in your band," he said. "I'm just filling in temporarily."
My heart thumped a heavy beat in my chest.
