Page 49 of Tempt Me-

I shoot her a concerned look, not really buying theI’m fineclaim, but what can I do?

I lead her to the house, and before we can open the door, it flings open.

“Austin!”Dan says.“I saw you coming up the walk and I wanted to greet you and your pretty guest.”

I glance at Mia, who blushes at the compliment.“Dan, this is Mia Atwood.Mia, meet Dan Wilson, my boss.”

“A pleasure,” Mia says with a smile.“Thank you for having me over.”

“The pleasure is mine.Come in, you two.Everyone is in the kitchen.You know how it is,” he says to me.“We all gravitate there.”He laughs and gestures inside the house.

I lead Mia toward the kitchen and family room, where my friends and coworkers have congregated.

I introduce Mia to Ava Talbott, Jared Wilson, Dan’s son, and Ben Hollander.The other members of the team, Shane Landon and Tate Shaw, are away doing freelance work, which makes it a small party.

“Where’s Summer?”I ask, knowing how much Mia wants to meet the pop star and Ben’s fiancée.

“I’m here!”Summer strides out from the back of the house, a wide smile on her face.

With her jet-black hair and stunning, wide brown eyes, she is beautiful.These days I prefer petite blondes with green eyes, but I can appreciate Ben’s good fortune.

“It’s good to see you!”I pull her into a friendly hug.

“You, too.”

Ben wraps an arm around her shoulders.

“Summer, this is my—Mia Atwood.”I’m not sure what I was about to say, and I quickly change the subject.“Mia’s a huge fan.”

Summer flushes.“I still can’t get used to people saying that,” she murmurs.

“It’s well deserved,” Mia says.“I’m so glad to meet you.I love your music.”

“Thank you.”

“Hey, man, let’s let the women talk.I want to catch up,” Ben says.“I hear Dan has some fun new gadgets in his office.Let’s go check things out in there.”

I shoot Mia a questioning glance, and she nods, a big smile on her face.Obviously she is feeling better because she definitely doesn’t mind being left with Summer.

I give her shoulder a squeeze, a gesture that I need more than her, if only to reassure myself she is fine.Her mood lately has been off, at least since she’s been sick.

Ben and I each grab a bottle of beer before I follow Ben out of the kitchen and down the hall, past the bathroom to Dan’s office.He broke down a wall, making two rooms into one large room so that when he works from home, he can still monitor things going on with work.

I roll the bottle between my hands, not really in the mood for a drink.

“It is good to be home,” Ben mutters, sinking into a chair across from Dan’s big oak desk.

“I bet.Where are you staying?”Ben and Summer both have apartments in the city.

“My place is bigger, so we moved in there.”Ben tips back the bottle for a sip.“But I want to find something larger.More space, more… I don’t know.Windows.”Ben laughs.

“So what’s it been like?”I ask my friend.“Insane fans and living out of hotels?”

“Pretty much but I have to tell you, as long as I’m with Summer, it’s all good.”Ben’s satisfied smile says it all.He is settled and happy with his choices.

“I’m happy for you.Where are Dan’s new gadgets?”I ask, glancing around the room and seeing only the usual monitors, cabinets, and documents scattered around.

Ben grins.“Actually I just wanted to catch up and didn’t know how much you’d talk around your guest.”