His hands slide out, gripping my waist. “Nothing. I keep fucking up. She fucked me up, and I don’t know how to fix it.”
Turning my head away from him, a tear rolls down my cheek as I glance out the window, needing a moment. His hand comes up, holding my chin, and he turns me to face him. Danger swallows hard as his eyes meet mine, his glistening so intenselyI can’t be sure he’s not about to cry right along with me at any second.
“I’m fucking broken, Annalise… every part of me is fractured, even my fucking vocal cords. Theonlything in my life that’s completely whole… that isn’t ruined is my heart. And that’s becauseyouown it. Entirely, undeniably, irrevocably.”
My breath catches as I do a double-take, studying his eyes.
They appear sincere.
“Iown your heart?” I repeat, seeking the confirmation I need, my voice tinged with hope.
He lets out a small sigh, a smile crossing his face. “Yes… I love you, Lunar. I don’t know where this leaves us, and it fucking terrifies me. I don’t do long-distance, and when Recoil finishes in Australia, we will eventually head back to the US. So I have no idea what that means for us. I honestly don’t know what to do for the first time in my life. I want to be with you. Ineedto be with you. I don’t want to live my life without you in it. The thought of it makes me lash out when shit gets hard because I guess it would be easier to break it off than to grow even more attached and then have to end it when we leave for the US. I certainly didn’t plan on falling for you…” He scrubs a hand through his hair. “But there you have it.”
Smiling, my heart races frantically in my chest. It’s never been a question for me. If I knew it was for him, this could have all been avoided. I shake my head, taking his hands in mine. “Well, I’m following you, obviously.You go to the US, I go to the US, Danger. Wherever you go, I’ll follow. I’m not giving us up because…” I swallow hard, “… I love you, too.”
Danger’s breath catches while his hand slides up, caressing my cheek. He wraps his arms around my body, pulling me to him tightly, and his eyes light up. “You know the song Effa and I have been working on forever?” I nod, smiling wide. “We finished itthe night of the gala.That’swhy she was in my room. We were finalizing the last part of it.”
I gasp, widening my eyes. “You did?”
“Yeah, and once my voice is back… at the first show, I’m gonna sing it to you.”
My heart skips a beat as I bite down on my bottom lip. “I can’t wait.”
“I love you. I mean it,” he says firmly, his tone leaving no room for doubt.
I lean closer, my lips almost touching his. “I love you, too. And Danger, honestly, I will follow you anywhere.”
“Good. ’Cause I’mneverletting you go,” he whispers, then forcefully presses his lips to mine.
Seven Months Later
Danger’s voice is at his all-time best, and Luke wasted no time resuming the tour. We’re in New Zealand at the start of a six-month global tour that concludes in Australia in five months, with a month for the Australian leg.
Danger has recovered incredibly well and is better than ever. It was rocky. Challenging. We fought—a lot—but I never gave up on him, and now we’re stronger for it all.
Right now, he’s commanding the stage, rocking it out. His deep, gravelly voice has returned even better than before. It filters through the stadium, sending a wave of overwhelming pleasure through me.
Suddenly, a pair of arms wraps around me from the side, and I turn to see Effa. I giggle as she sways me from side to side.
“It’s so good to be back on tour finally. I was so happy when I got the call that Recoil was about to hit the road again and wanted Luminous to open for them. Not to mention, Dangerwants to release our song tonight. I’m so excited!” Effa bounces up and down on her toes in her excitement.
She lets me go, and I widen my eyes in shock. I had no idea Danger had decided to release their song, so I ask to be sure, “You’re performing your duet tonight?”
She nods. “Yep! Right about now…”
Danger finishes the song he’s singing, and the crowd erupts into a thunderous chorus of appreciation.
“Now we have something special for ya’ll tonight. Something Miss Effervescent and I have been working on for a long time. This song is dedicated to my beautiful woman, Annalise. She’s off to the side…” He glances at me, his smile so fucking wide, our eyes meeting as he continues, “She once told me that she’d let me doanythingto her backstage.” I burst out laughing as the crowd erupts with hoots and hollers at the obvious meaning.
My cheeks flush instantly while Danger laughs, waving his hand through the air to calm them down.
“What I mean to say is that Effa and I wrote this song, and I knew the first time I’d sing it to you, you’d be right there, like always, standing backstage. So baby, this one’s for you,” Danger calls out.
I can’t contain my excitement as I smile back at him, the crowd erupting in their frenzied excitement as he turns back to face them, leaning into the mic with a deep and gravelly voice. “And then when I am done with this set, I’ll come backstage and doanythingyou want me to do to you, baby.”
Bursting into a fit of laughter as Effa runs up on stage and grabs a microphone, the crowd goes wild. Some laughing, some screaming as if they are the ones going to be spending the night with Danger. I thought that his talking about me would make his fans go completely insane and start hating on him, but it is doing the exact opposite.
They are ravenous for him.
