The Hardest Set (Willow Son #4/Brothers of Rock #19) (25 page)

Two guys with flashlights on stage
flicked their lights.

That was the cue to get ready.

Van took a step forward and he felt
something tug on his shirt.

He spun around and felt like he was
going to pass out.

“
Natalie
…”

“
Hey.
Sorry I
’
m late.
”

“
Natalie.
”

She was really standing there.

“
I
’
m here,
”
she said.
“
I
had to make some last minute changes on things. But I wanted to see this show.
Is that okay?
”

“
I
sent
…
I tried
…”

“
Van!
”
a voice boomed.

The lights went out in the arena.

The audience exploded with
thundering cheers.

Van couldn
’
t hear himself think. He grabbed at Natalie,
sliding a hand to her lower back and pulling her close. There was no time to
waste. Not just because of the show but because of
…
forever. Forever wasn
’
t real. Forever didn
’
t
exist. But there were all the moments between now and then to go after.

And that
’
s what Van did.

He pressed his lips to Natalie
’
s.

She put her hands to Van
’
s hair and pulled playfully.

The crowd cheered and screamed like
wild.

Van was supposed to be up on stage
by now. He and Brantley were starting the show with the new song. But Van was
preoccupied kissing Natalie. Christ, he wanted to strip off the bass and just
run away with her.

Their lips flirted over and over.
Their tongues touched, the kiss grew hot, then became slow and gentle. When Van
broke the kiss, Natalie smiled as her hands touched his face.

“
Go!
”
she yelled.
“
Don
’
t lose your dream.
”

“
That
dream,
”
Van said and
pointed back,
“
that dream
already came true. There
’
s
another dream right in front of me, sweetie.
”

Van kissed Natalie one more time
and then ran for the stage.

“
Ready
to do this?
”
Colby asked
and patted Van on the back.

Van and Brantley took to the steps
and to the stage. The crowd cheered louder as their silhouettes were seen by
all twenty thousand plus in attendance.

Van stood there and waited for
Brantley.

When the drums started, it was
magic. A rolling and booming sound that carried through the entire arena. Van
came in with the bass line and Willow Son was brought to life.

As Jett and Ryker stepped out on
stage, the crowd got louder.

Then came Colby. He darted across
the stage and grabbed the mic. He went to the very corner and waved, getting
everyone jumping. Then he moved to the other side of the stage and did the
same.

It was by far the longest
introduction to a Willow Son show ever.

But it was so damn worth it.

The new song as the opening song
worked. As Van stood there playing, he couldn't believe how many people already
knew the damn lyrics. That
’
s
when he realized all these people weren
’
t
just fans.

They were family. They were his
family. The people closest to his heart. Just like the four guys on stage with
him. They were his brothers. And then on the side of the stage, there was the
woman he loved.

Life wasn
’
t perfect, but it was never intended to be perfect.

But Van could definitely get lost
in everything being okay.

As long as the music was loud and
the love between he and Natalie was real.

**

The show was unbelievable. Like
nothing Natalie had ever experienced in her life. Standing there on the side of
the stage she watched as Willow Son tore through song after song. They were
loud, they were fast, they were perfect. There wasn
’
t a single person in attendance that wasn
’
t jumping, dancing, screaming,
singing back to the band. Colby worked the audience with his heart open. He
talked, listened, laughed, and cheered right back.

At one point, Natalie caught
herself stepping up on the steps to see more. That was just in time to watch as
Van climbed into the crowd. She let out a gasp as she watched him climb off the
front of the stage and go into the crowd. A spotlight followed him as he held
his bass up and kept playing.

When he stopped, he cleared out a
spot and on the giant screens above the stage, it showed Van standing next to a
young kid. He was maybe seven years old, wearing headphones to help silence the
ear shattering music. He wore a Willow Son shirt and stared up at Van with wide
eyes, in complete shock.

Van then took his bass off and put
it in front of the young kid. He crouched down and lifted the kid
’
s arm. When he nodded the crowd
went wild.

Then to Natalie
’
s surprise, Van started to rush
back to the stage - without his bass. He was giving the instrument to the young
fan!

Van jumped back up on stage and
hurried to the side.

A guy ran by Natalie, carrying
another bass.

“
You
going to do this every night?
”
the guy yelled to Van.

“
Every
night!
”
Van yelled. He then
looked at Natalie.
“
I
’
ll be done here soon, sweetie.
”

There was nothing sexier than the
sight before her eyes.

Van stood there, dripping with
sweat. His shirt clung to his strong body. She watched him put another bass
around his neck as twenty thousand people screamed for him. And yet his eyes
and attention were all on her. Natalie felt like the luckiest woman in the
world.

For now.

She had managed to wiggle out of
the first plane ticket.

But she couldn't get out of the
second one. The one that needed to be used tonight. Right after the show. She
had to meet with Peter tomorrow. She had to get ready
…

Natalie shoved the thoughts away
and got lost in the show again.

Van
’
s
version of
I
’
ll
be done here soon
lasted another hour and a half. The band slowed the
concert down with the five of them playing acoustic songs and interacting with
the fans. Then they picked it right back up until they were completely and
finally done. They stood at the front of the stage and threw everything they
could into the crowd.

When they came off the stage,
Natalie stood there, unsure what to do. Part of her wanted to scream and ask
everyone for an autograph. But she kept her composure and waited for Van to
come to her.

He was still a sweaty mess.

“
That
was amazing.
”

“
Yeah,
that was pretty fun,
”
Van
said.
“
And I get to keep
doing it.
”

Natalie smiled but felt a pain in
her heart. She wouldn
’
t get
to keep doing it. She wouldn
’
t
be able to be at every show. Stand at the side of every stage. Cheering on
every show.

“
Hey,
what
’
s wrong?
”

“
Just
everything,
”
Natalie said.

All around there was noise. People
shouting orders. The murmur of the crowd as they were leaving the arena. It was
just so loud. And so full.

Natalie wanted to be alone with
Van.

He must have sensed it because he
took her by the hand.
“
Let
’
s walk.
”

“
Where?
”

“
We
have a tour bus. We
’
re
testing a few out. Let
’
s go
there and talk. In private.
”

“
I
’
d like that,
”
Natalie said.

When Van opened the door to the
building, there was already a crowd of people at the fence. They broke out into
screams for Van. Natalie watched it and it was something else to see.

But Van kept walking.

He opened the door to the bus and
ushered Natalie inside.

The bus was massive. The inside
didn
’
t look anything like a
bus. There were leather seats, couches, tables. A kitchen area with a bar. A
television built in.

“
This
is bigger than my apartment,
”
Natalie said.

“
Hey,
want to do something crazy with me?
”
Van asked.

“
Everything
we
’
ve done has been crazy.
”

“
Good.
Let
’
s test the shower. I
stink.
”

Natalie turned and looked at Van.

He was serious.

Van showed her the bed he claimed.
He then stripped himself naked right in front of her and walked to the shower.
Natalie took a minute to enjoy the show, memorizing every inch of Van
’
s body.
Every sexy inch.

The water turned on and Natalie
undressed herself. Yet another wild rockstar moment with Van. Something he took
for granted; taking a shower on a luxury bus. For Natalie, this was something
impossible yet was really happening.

She approached the shower and saw
that it was pretty small.

Van opened the door.
“
There
’
s plenty of room. Get in here.
”

The water was warm. Natalie had no
idea how it all worked. How the bus got hot water. Where it went. How the
toilet worked. But none of that mattered. What mattered was watching the water
hit Van
’
s body and feeling
his hands at her hips.

“
I
’
m so sorry,
”
he said.
“
So fucking sorry.
”

“
For
what?
”

“
You
were right. About everything. I did what you wanted me to do.
”

“
You
met her?
”

“
Yeah.
”

“
And?
”

“
She
was the same.
”

“
Oh.
”
Natalie felt disappointed.
“
I
…”

“
That
was a good thing.
”

“
It
was?
”

“
Yeah.
She was radiant. Beautiful. She knew what to do, what to say, and knew how to
come after me.
”

“
This
isn
’
t what I expected,
”
Natalie said.
“
You
’
re talking about another woman being beautiful
while you
’
re in the shower
with me.
”

“
No,
no, no, sweetie,
”
Van said.
“
You don
’
t get it. I saw through it all
and it all meant shit to me. I pushed away. I let her cry. And then she was
gone. For good. Closure.
”

“
Really?
”

“
Really.
It doesn't matter anymore. I was hanging onto that small thread of the past
because of where I came from. Because I had nothing for the future. Nothing
that really got to me. Until I met you.
”

“
Oh,
Van
…”

“
I
’
m serious, sweetie. I love you.
I told you I loved you on that stage, right?
”

“
Yeah.
”

“
That
was scarier than standing on that stage with all those fans waiting for me to
play.
”

Natalie grinned. She blushed. Her
legs trembled with anticipation. Christ, how could someone get turned on so
easily?

“
Well,
if it matters,
”
Natalie
said,
“
I really do love
you, Van. I meant it. I
’
m
sorry the way that all happened. I wanted you to get your closure and then talk
about Texas.
”

“
Yeah.
Texas.
”

“
I
have to leave tonight. In like an hour.
”

“
Shit.
”

Natalie bit her bottom lip and held
back tears.
“
This sucks.
”

“
No,
it doesn
’
t. You have
nothing to worry about.
”

“
I
do though. I want to be with you, Van.
”

“
You
’
re with me right now,
”
he said.

His body pressed against Natalie
’
s. She felt him. He was there.
He was ready.

His hands traveled down her body
with the gentle, loving care she had been waiting for her entire life. One hand
cupped her ass and his other hand touched between her thighs. His fingers
explored her and then his thickness was there, pressing into her. With one hard
thrust, Van was inside Natalie. She cried out with pleasure. She then kissed
him, never wanting the feeling to end.