CHAPTER SEVEN

The plane touches down smoothly at Columbus International Airport. I’ve never been to Ohio before, never had a reason to before now. Black Falcon is one of the headliners of a huge two day rock festival here. Noel assured me this is the largest rock event in the area. The sell out crowd is right around fifty thousand people. The sheer volume alone is crazy.

I grab my bag from the overhead bin after I text Noel that I’ve arrived. He insisted on picking me up himself even though I told him I’m cool with taking a cab since my flight arrived early in the morning—well, at least early for rockers who sleep until noon.

My phone chirps, and I read his message. “I’m at baggage claim. It’s crazy here. Don’t answer anything they ask you.”

Two women ahead of me on the escalator to the baggage claim complain about the crowd gathered around the carousel.

Camera flashes illuminate the center of the mob, and my heart thumps against my ribs. There he is, signing autographs and shaking hands with the people surrounding him. Noel’s dark hair is wild, sticking up in every crazy direction, like he just got out of bed. What is it about crazy rocker hair that is so incredibly sexy?

Dark glasses shield his face and emotions from his steady stream of onlookers, but I can tell he’s flustered with the whole situation. I guess I didn’t realize how little privacy he actually has.

Zero.

He can’t even go to the airport without a frenzy of fans.

Noel glances up from the chaos and notices me on the escalator. A huge smile spreads across his face. I feel myself grin and I instantly want to kick myself.

Keep it together, Lanie.

It’s undeniable how attractive he is—even more in person than on the net or TV. The entire flock of girls in our high school crushed on him. Back then, I’d never figured out why he was so into me when he could have had any girl he wanted. I’m a Plain Jane—a nobody. Now that feeling is magnified times a million.

He squeezes through his adoring fans. A couple of girls shove their chests against him when he tries to get past in attempts to gain his attention, but it doesn’t faze him. Noel watches me with every step he takes.

His arm wraps around my waist and pulls me tight against his chest when I step off the moving stairs. He smells so good, like soap, spice and man all rolled into one. “Hey you,” Noel whispers in my ear, and his hot breath caresses my sensitive skin. “Don’t say a word to the leeches, okay.”

I nod, and the rough stubble along his jaw rubs against my cheek.

We gather my luggage off the carousel, and Noel slings my duffle bag over his shoulder and picks up my suitcase before we head toward the exit. Bodies shove from every direction, all to get closer to Noel. The air is heavy, and my chest tightens. The sooner I can get out of here the better.

What do these people want?

The female fans are relentless—screaming and begging for pictures even when Noel politely tells them not now. The men with high-tech cameras keep shouting his name and asking him to look their way. A crowd smothers our every step.

Noel’s long fingers find my hand and pull me against him. It takes us longer than five minutes to make it outside where a black SUV waits by the door. We’re quickly greeted by the large man I saw at the restaurant in New York as he holds the fans back. Noel opens the trunk and throws my bags in before ushering me inside the vehicle.

When the driver pulls the SUV away from the corner, Noel lets out a sigh of relief, and then pats my leg. His skin on mine is so warm and inviting, which is very dangerous. “Sorry about that. I should’ve had security come in with me, but I figured fans wouldn’t see me if I just ran in to get you.”

I shove his hand off my bare thigh, and curse myself for wearing shorts. “It’s fine.”

His eyes gaze into mine as he leans his head back against the headrest. “You made it through your first surprise fan attack. Think you can handle all this? My life isn’t exactly sane anymore.”

The expression on his face is serious. He’s testing if I can put up with his new craziness and make it on this tour for two whole weeks. I inspect my arms under his stare. “I escaped your mob of female admirers without one scratch, so I think I’ll live.”

Noel grins—clearly pleased with my answer—and leans in and kisses my cheek. “I’ve missed you.”

Warmth spreads clear down to my toes. The things a simple kiss from this man can do to me are unreal. It should be against the law for someone to be so hot and sweet. It’s definitely an instant panty wetting combination.

Damn it. I’m in trouble.

“Kisses aren’t very professional, Noel.”

He bursts out in laughter and pats my thigh again. “I kind of like this whole hard-to-get game. It’s going to make the sex that much better.”

I remove his hand from me and shake my head. He isn’t going to give up.

When we arrive at the Crew Stadium a few minutes later, my eyes widen at the number of people milling about at ten o’clock in the morning. “Why are they all here so early?”

Noel instructs the driver to Black Falcon’s tour bus. “There are forty-four bands here total playing in two days. The first band plays at noon today. It’s one massive party for both the bands and the fans. There aren’t many events like this one.”

The SUV pulls up along side the tour bus, and Noel hops out. I sit there frozen. Do I get out now? This is so not my element.

Noel waves at a couple tattooed guys I recognize from the gaggle of Black Falcon pictures I’ve seen. He walks around to the passenger side of the vehicle and opens my door. “Come on. I want you to meet some of the guys in the band.”