21. Chapter Twenty-One
21
Mia
Surprisingly, things have been great since we came to stay with Evan’s parents for a little while. It was rough at first, when we all sat down that first day and talked about our situation — as much as I wanted to make myself look good, I couldn’t allow Evan to lie for me, so I told his parents the truth.
Lucille was more understanding than I thought she would be, and Jeffrey was just excited to finally have a little kid running around their home.
“You know,” Lucille says from the couch, a small smile aimed at me. “Why don’t you and Evan go out for the night?”
I chew on the inside of my cheek, casting a glance at Liam as he rams monster trucks into each other next to Jeffrey, and I frown. “I’m not sure that’s a good idea.”
She chuckles, then places her hand on my thigh and gives it a gentle squeeze. “I was just like you once upon a time, you know? Leaving Evan alone with someone else was torture, but I learned to accept the help being offered.”
“I’ve already been away from him while working with Evan,” I say softly.
“It’s not like you’ll be gone forever. We’ll do something fun, a movie night, and you’ll be right back here in the morning. I’m sure Evan would like some alone time with you.”
That’s an understatement. Ever since we got here he’s done nothing but let me know that he wishes we could be alone, while stealing lingering kisses when no one is looking. We still haven’t figured out what’s going on with Evan’s stalker, even though nothing new has come up for a few days, but would it be safe?
“She makes a very valid point, darlin’,” Evan says as he saunters into the living room with his hands shoved into the pocket of his jeans. “What’s the worst that could happen?”
Oh, I don’t know, the stalker could find out where your parents live and kidnap Liam as soon as we leave.
That’s what I want to say, but the hopeful expression on Evan’s face has me sighing heavily. “Alright, alright, maybe you guys are right.”
Lucille looks to her son and winks. “I told you I’d get her to cave.”
I look between the two of them with my mouth popped open, but Evan just chuckles and throws his hands in the air defensively. “It wasn’t my idea, she swore that she’d be able to get you out of here and I know better than to stop her.”
This is something I’ve realized since staying here. Lucille has done nothing but try to make this stay as comfortable for the three of us as possible, which I’ve been more than grateful for. Jeffrey lets out a deep chuckle from the floor, looking lovingly down at Liam, and I get a sharp pain in my chest.
If only I would’ve been able to see my parents' love for their grandson. I shake the emotions away and smile at Lucille. “You’re right, Lucille, it would be nice to get out for a bit.”
Evan winks at me when I rise from the couch, then he snakes an arm around my waist. “I’ve already booked a room at the bed and breakfast.” When I eye him, he smiles at me then presses a tender kiss to my cheek. “What can I say? I was hopeful.”
It will be nice to have alone time with Evan. This is what we’ve been wanting and it doesn’t come with someone following us around, which is amazing. Not that I’d mind it, especially since I can tell he misses being around the band and he’s eager to get back.
***
“Finally,” Evan says as he places our overnight bag onto the nightstand next to our bed for the night. He comes over to me, pressing against me enough that my back is flat against the door, and smiles. “Alone at last.”
As much as I want to worry about what Liam could be doing, my toes curl when Evan traces the curve of my throat with his lips. God, this is exactly what I needed. It isn’t lost on me that Lucille knows exactly what our plans are for tonight, but I don’t let that dissuade me from allowing Evan to tug the clothes from my body.
“Beautiful,” he rasps as he takes tentative steps away from me, his eyes traveling over my frame with heat in them. “As always.”
He holds a hand out to me and I place my palm into it, tingles shooting down my arm as our skin touches. I’m not sure if that will ever go away, but I know that I don’t want it to.
There’s something different about the way he’s handling my body, with so much care, and I let him ease me onto the bed as he continues pressing kisses along my sensitive skin. The bra I’m wearing is quickly discarded and tossed onto the floor, right along with his clothes as he sheds them.
He presses his lips against mine, my head growing fuzzy with emotions. It’s soft at first, full of love, but it quickly turns into something much more frantic. His hands roam over my hips, until he comes to a stop at the curve of my ass and he gives it a quick squeeze.
I shift my hips, grinding against him, and spread my legs open enough that he can slide his hand over my aching pussy. My breath hitches when he makes contact with my clit, pressing the pad of his thumb against me, and I look into his loving gaze.
“I love you,” he says softly before kissing me again.
For a moment, I pull away, wondering if this is really what my life has come to, and I smile. “I love you, too.”
Evan eases his fingers through my folds, my legs trembling against his wide frame, and he slowly sinks a finger into my entrance. I gasp, then clap a hand down on his shoulder as he thrust the finger in and out of my frantically.
“God, you look so perfect like this,” he rasps against my ear, his teething scraping against my skin in the process.
I can feel my release coming over the edge, but before it can get too far he’s pulling his finger out of me and moving to grab our bag from the nightstand. I’m about to ask him what he’s doing, until I see the foil packet he’s holding in his hand.
He rips the packet open, then slowly eases it along his thick length, before looking at me expectantly. “Turn over, darlin’.”
Desire pools in my belly, and I immediately oblige his request, my ass sticking up in the air in front of him, and I melt into his touch when a large hand grips my hip. He spends a length of time running his cock along my center, teasing me with it, until I finally whimper with need.
Before I can blink, he’s slamming himself into me and, in the same process, knocking our bed against the wall. I can’t bring myself to care if someone else can hear us, not when he’s driving himself into me so deeply that I can’t think straight. Someone could walk right into this room and I wouldn’t know what to do.
“ Fuck ,” he mutters, our skinning slapping together as he keeps pushing himself into me. “I love seeing you like this.”
He’s got a way with words, I’ll tell you that much.
The desire in my belly increases with each thrust, my fingers curling desperately around the blanket spread perfectly beneath us, and I moan into the soft comforter. As if sensing how close I am, Evan reaches around my stomach and rolls my clit with his thumb.
The pressure he applies has me exploding around him, his name slipping from my mouth, and my vision blurs from the sheer force of it. Moments later, he’s jerking into me with his own release before sagging against my back and pressing a gentle kiss along my spine. While he disappears into the adjoining bathroom, I roll onto my back and get my breath under control.
Evan walks out of the bathroom, my eyes trailing over his naked frame as I bite my bottom lip, and he shakes his head with a chuckle. “I think I need more than a few seconds to go another round, darlin’.”
I swat at his chest, then snuggle against him as he comes up behind me.
Evan's phone rings, interrupting our peaceful moment. He frowns at the screen before answering. "Brent? What's up?"
I can hear Brent's agitated voice from where I'm lying. Evan's frown deepens as he listens.
"Slow down, man. What package?"
There's a pause as Brent explains. Evan's face pales.
"A coded message? What did it say exactly?"
I strain to hear Brent's response.
Evan's voice is tense when he speaks again. "Read it to me. Word for word."
There's a moment of silence, then Evan repeats, "'The phoenix rises from the ashes. 5-13-19. What does that mean?"
Another pause. Evan's eyes widen, and he sinks onto the edge of the bed.
"May 13, 2019," he whispers. "Our first big break. The show that launched our career."
My heart starts racing. I can see the realization dawning on Evan's face.
"Mack," he says, his voice barely audible. "He engineered that show. It has to be him."
Brent's voice rises, and Evan nods, even though Brent can't see him.
"Yeah, I know. It all fits. The inside knowledge, the personal nature of the threats. God, how did we not see it?"
Evan runs a hand through his hair, his face a mix of anger and disbelief.
"Have you called the police? Okay, good. No, don't do anything else. We're coming back now."
“Evan,” I say, pushing myself toward him with a frown. “What’s wrong?”
He blinks, remembering he’s on the phone, then shakes his head. “I’ll, uh, call you in a bit Brent.”
Brent says something else, but Evan just hangs up the phone and sinks onto the edge of the mattress.
He stares at a space on the floor where nothing fascinating is sitting, and I take in a shaky breath. “Evan, what’s going on? You’re scaring me.”
That seems to get him out of his head because he looks up at me, color still drained from his face, and he shakes his head. “I didn’t want to believe it,” he says softly.
“Believe what?”
There’s an uneasy feeling inside of me as he takes a few moments to answer, and his shoulders sag. “I thought about it briefly while you were working for me, but I didn’t think it was something that he would be capable of.”
“Okay… who are we talking about?”
Evan blinks and looks at me, a torn expression in his gaze. “Mack.”
His former manager? What does he have to do with anything?
“What about him?”
“He’s the stalker,” Evan says softly, almost a whisper, but I still hear him.
My heart pounds wildly in my chest, and I blink. “Are—are you sure, Evan?”
“Brent called to tell me they got a package at the house, and it had my name on it.” He runs a hand through his hair and shakes his head. “It was a coded message that only Mack would know.”
“So, what does this mean? They called the cops, right? Did they catch him?”
Evan shakes his head. “They can’t find him, Mia. He’s gone.”
That uneasy feeling turns to dread, and I immediately fumble on the ground for my clothes. If Evan’s stalker is really Mack, and he’s missing, I can’t take the chance that he doesn't know where we are.
Liam.
“We need to go,” I say breathlessly while tugging my shirt over my head. “ Now .”
Please tell me he’s going to be okay.