The crew starts filing back and forth, resetting the stage for Steele Rush. He hasn't left my side yet, and I can't lie, I kind of like it.

His band starts to collect in the area where we're standing. The back up singers also make their way over. They're dressed provocatively in short black dresses with a ton of make up and bright red lipstick. I notice one of them staring at me and Steele. It's Jasmine.

Just then, it hits me. I know why she looked familiar. When I was doing the research on Steele Rush, there was one woman who had her eyes on Steele in every photo. In the posed shots, she seemed to always be as close to him as possible.

Recalling our conversation earlier, my head fills with questions and scenarios. I briefly wonder if something is going on between the two of them. I feel a twinge of jealousy, but I let it go. I have no right to be jealous of anything or anyone.

The lights go dim out in the arena.

"I hope you like the show," Steele leans in and says into my ear.

It's quiet enough that he didn't have to. This time was more for effect, I'm sure.

He gives me a sexy little half smile, causing a chill to work its way through my body. I don't take my eyes off his backside as he turns and walks toward the stage entrance.

Steele Rush in announced and the crowd goes wild. My heart races from the excitement and also from Steele teasing me - because I'm sure that's what he was doing.

With the lights still out, the drummer begins to pound a slow, steady beat. The crowd claps along and a spotlight winds around, illuminating small circles of people in the arena as it does.

The anticipation builds with each beat. People start cheering, calling for Steele. The singers rush passed me to get on stage. Jasmine allows down long enough to shoot daggers at me with her eyes. I cringe after she passes, but let it go.

Then the stage lights up. Steele is already positioned center stage and all eyes are on him. The crowd explodes into a mix of cheers, yells, and applause at the sight.

He holds his hands up as if to quiet them down and they obey.

"Hello, Atlanta!" he shouts to the crowd. They cheer again.

Steele begins to strum his guitar for a few bars giving the audience time to settle down a bit. The lights shine on the sides of the stage and illuminate the rest of the band. They start to play along to the beat.

Steele sings the first verse of the song. I'm instantly taken back to the bar where I spent so many nights listening to him. The music is different, but the voice is the same - and so is the feeling I get when I hear it.

The chorus of the song begins and more lights go on, shining on the back up singers. They sing along in sultry voices and sway slowly to the beat. I wish for a quick second that I could be one of them, singing along with Steele like we did on his last night at The Reading Room, but I wouldn't want that. I remember that night and smile to myself.

I listen and sing along for the next few songs. They put on a truly incredible show. I'm amazed, but not surprised. Steele always knew how to captivate a crowd.

"Sorry it took me so long to find you. Are you enjoying yourself?" Steve asks, sidling up next to me.

"Yes. They're so much better in person."

"And you have the best seat in the house."

We stand together and listen to the next couple of songs. Steele announces that they're going to play the last song and gets right into it. It's a big number with a break of instrumentals in the middle. Steele walks around the stage with his guitar, stopping to play side by side with every other band member. Completely mesmerized, I never take my eyes off of him.

Steele Rush freestyles their way through several minutes before Steele takes center stage again and finishes with the vocals. The audience claps and shouts for more as the band exits the stage.

Steele walks right over to me. He's covered in sweat from his set. His chest is moving up and down in an attempt to catch his breath.

"Did you have fun?" he asks me.

"Yes," I answer excitedly, "a lot of fun."

"Good."

He quickly kisses me on the cheek and walks away behind me. I'm stunned. I feel like any other groupie would if the lead singer of their favorite band just kissed them. This is bad. This is very, very bad.

The audience cheers for an encore - which of course Steele Rush is going to play. The band runs passed Steve and I back onto the stage. They go right into one of their current hits while the fans sing and clap along.

"We're gonna end the night with a personal favorite of mine. It was one of our first hits. I wrote this a long time ago for someone very special to me," Steele announces to the crowd before playing the final song of the night.

They cheer loudly. Steele turns his head and looks right at me, catching my eyes for a second before facing the crowd. He starts playing an acoustic melody that I recognize immediately. I know this song. The look he gave me said it was for me - or maybe I just wished it was.

They play through an amazing ballad of love lost and I get choked up listening to the words. I'm sure every woman in the arena wishes it was for her, but I'm pretty sure it's for me. Even if it's not, I feel like it is and I melt a little more with every verse.

"The ladies love this one," Steve comments. Luckily, he's watching the show and doesn't notice my reaction to it.

"I bet," I reply.

The song ends and this time the show is really over. The band exits the stage and walks right by us again. Steele doesn't stop this time, he just winks and gives me that half smile. He has to be toying with my emotions. He's trying to get to me - and it's working.

"Time for the meet and greet," Steve says.

"I think I'm going to pass," I reply.

"You sure? It's usually a lot of fun."

The thought of being near Steele right now, especially after that encore, scares me. I can't let anything happen between us and I feel very vulnerable right now. Everything - his kiss before the show, the looks, the song, the simple words, there's no way I would be able to say no.

I also don't know what kind of game Steele is playing. I can't go backstage where he will surely be surrounded by fans and groupies and women who want nothing more than a taste of him just for bragging rights. Right or wrong, I can't handle all of that right now.

"I'm sure. The show was great but we have a long trip tomorrow. I should prepare and get some sleep."

"Sure, Annika. Bus leaves at ten. I'll get in touch in the morning."

We say good night and I make my way out of the arena and back to my hotel for what is sure to be a sleepless night.

Coming here was a mistake. It might be the right move for my career, but not for my heart.

Chapter 6.

The Steele Rush tour consists of two travel buses to accommodate the band and the crew. Since I'll be traveling with them for the unforeseeable future, I opt to take a spot on one of the buses with the roadies for now. There are a couple of cars I can go in as well, but we have a long day of travel. If I go on the bus, I'll be able to get some one on one time with at least a few people and get through some of my interviews before reaching our destination tonight.

I skip breakfast downstairs and order room service instead. Really, I'm just hiding. I don't want to see Steele, so I'm going to avoid him for as long as possible. I'm going to have to see him at some point, but I plan to put it off as long as I can. I especially don't want to hear any rumblings about the after party or see the inevitable parade of shame coming from Steele's suite. No thank you. Not today.

The buses arrive at ten to pick us up from the hotel. The stares I'm getting are less than friendly to say the least. The crew is gathered together in small circles making it clear that I'm not one of them. I hold my chin up high. I can't look afraid - especially not now. I'm walking right into the lion's den. I can't show fear or they will eat me alive.

One by one, they get onto the bus. I spot Jasmine climbing onto the bus I'll be riding on - great. I haven't spotted Steele yet, which I'm happy about. I'm not looking forward to being face to face with him again. I'm not sure I'll be able to say 'no' again if he attempts to persuade me to give him another chance again.

I enter the bus last and other than giving me dirty looks, no one really acknowledges me. They are not going to make this easy for me. I take a seat on the couch across from a couple of the younger crew members. Maybe I'll have more luck with them. The girl smiles at me. It's a start.

"Hey."

"Hi," she replies.

"I'm Annika."

"We know." Her tone isn't mean, just not very welcoming.

"You know I'm not the enemy, right?" I say bluntly with a smile.

"I heard you're here to get rid of some of us. That doesn't make you much of a friend," the male replies for her.

"That's not what I'm here to do. I'm just here to talk to you and evaluate what role you each play here on the tour."

"Sounds sketchy," she says.

"It's not. I'm a pretty nice person. I'm not looking to break up your family here."

"So you're not going to fire any of us?"

"Not if you're doing your job," I reply, "which it looks like everyone is from what I saw yesterday," I add to further explain and try to ease the tension a little more.

The two of them look at one another. It seems I've gotten through to them, "so from what I've gathered, you're Tabitha, and you're Pete?" I ask, looking at each of them.

"Yes," she replies.

"Skitz," he answers, somewhat offended that I used his real name and not his nickname.

"Why don't you both tell me a little about what you do? How did you end up working with Steele Rush?"

They each fill me in on their own story of how they came to be with Steele Rush. After a few questions and answers, they loosen up quite a bit. By the end of the conversation, I think we all felt much more at ease. We continue to chat for a little while and I notice some of the others glancing over every now and then. Hopefully they will follow suit, but I'm not so sure.

From what I gathered from our conversation, Tabitha and Skitz are the newbies here. The others have been touring together for a few years now. They will be a lot less willing to let me in. That's something I know from experience.

I excuse myself and take a seat at the table. I remove a small notebook from my bag and write a few key points down while they're still fresh in my head.

"Is that the list of lives you plan to ruin?" a deep voice asks from behind me.

I laugh and roll my eyes, "yes, that's what I do. I ruin lives and make lists."

"That's what I thought," he replies dryly.

"You must be Jesse," I say as pleasantly as possible.

"Fuck off," he replies and walks to the back of the bus.

Ouch.

Oh well, can't win 'em all. He doesn't have a choice, he's going to have to talk to me, but maybe I'll save him for later.

I turn back around and the only face I see is Jasmine's. I was hoping to avoid her as well, but I spoke to the only other two people not evading me at the moment.

"Hey, Jasmine, do you have a few minutes?" I ask. I try to sound amicable but businesslike. I'd be lying if I said she didn't make me a little nervous.

"For you? Of course," she replies sarcastically.

Jasmine takes a seat across from me at the table and crosses her legs in an exaggerated move.

"So what can I do for you, Annika?"

Oh my God. Even if I didn't suspect some kind of romantic relationship between her and Steele, I would not care for this woman. She has been on the defense with me since we met. I wonder if she's like this with everyone or if it's just me.

"I'm just trying to spend a few minutes with everyone to get a feel for what their specific job is with Steele Rush." I sound formal, which is fine. I don't expect much from her.

Jasmine leans back against the seat, "well, I sing back up vocals, obviously, you know that already."

"Obviously." I smile, "how long have you been with Steele Rush?"

"I've been with the band for three years now. I've been with Steele Rush on and off since I started," she looks at me with a self satisfied smile.

I try not to let it affect me, but I'm sure my facial expression isn't hiding much. I take a minute to digest what she just said before answering. The smirk on Jasmine's face tells me she's happy with my reaction.

"I'm just teasing, Annika, it's not like that. I'm just a singer - nothing more."

This woman is evil. She's so far under my skin right now. She's fucking with me, of course, but what's true and what's not?

"I know what you are, Jasmine," I reply, just as snide and cryptic as she has been. Does she not know that I have the power to make her disappear? Not that I would ever do that for personal reasons, that wouldn't be very professional, but a girl can dream.

I ask a few more basic questions about her background and how she got to where she is now. We keep it friendly, but there is clearly a lot of animosity on both ends. It doesn't matter. This is my job and I have to get it done regardless of how I feel. I'm just trying to make it as quick and painless as possible.

"Well, thanks for your time, Jasmine."

"Of course, Annika. It's not like I have a choice or anything."

"That's true, you don't, but thanks for making it slightly pleasant."

She rolls her eyes and gets up. Without anything further, she struts away to the back of the bus.

That was extremely uncomfortable. I don't know what to make of her at all - other than she's not happy to have me here. Honestly, no one is, I get that, but she is especially disturbed by my presence. I just have to do my best not to pay her any mind. She's making a conscious effort to get to me which only gives me more reason not to let her. Whatever her story is, I'll find out when the time is right and deal with it then.

We still have a few hours left until the buses stop. I set my notebook out on the table and take out my laptop. I'm going to bide my time and get some work done. Talking to Jasmine killed the positive vibe I had from my first conversation with Tabitha and Skitz. I'll catch up with some of the other guys as they trickle out from the back of the bus.