Blake's Choice Read Online Free PDF Page B

not. I’m…disappointed, but I understand.” She stretched her mouth into a smile. “I’m just tired. I can’t wait until this is over.”
    Blake smiled. “All right. Have a bath instead of a shower, it’ll help you relax.”
    She murmured an agreement and hustled out of the kitchen and upstairs to the bathroom. She closed the door and started the water running, then fished her phone out of her pocket and speed-dialled Karen.
    “Hey.” Her best friend sounded sympathetic. “You talked to Blake, didn’t you?”

    * * * *

    Mandy was already curled up in bed when Blake entered the bedroom. The lights were off, the only illumination following him in from the hall. She’d pulled the quilt up around her neck, and his stomach sank. She may have said she was all right with him not going to the picnic, but clearly she was upset.
    He went into the bathroom and closed the door before he switched on the light. He wasn’t sure if she was actually asleep, but he didn’t want to disturb her if she was.
    What the hell was he going to do? He hated that he’d upset Mandy, but he couldn’t go to the picnic. If someone recognised him… He shuddered. Maybe he could make it up to her some other way. He rushed through his usual bathroom routine. The first—and least—thing he could do was cuddle her.
    He flipped off the light—again, just in case—and opened the door. She was still huddled under the quilt. He turned off the light in the hall, then paused to let his eyes adjust to the sudden darkness before he crossed to the bed.
    As soon as he crawled into bed, he knew she was still awake. She was tenser than a bowstring. “Mandy?”
    There was a long, stiff silence. “Yeah?”
    “Are you okay?” Another long silence, then she rolled over.
    “I’m upset,” she said bluntly, and he thanked God that she hadn’t just said, ‘ I’m fine’ .
    “About the picnic.”
    “Yes!” The mattress bounced, and a second later the lamp went on. Blake squinted at Mandy, sitting up and glaring at him. “Of course about the picnic! What else could I be upset about?”
    Blake didn’t think ‘how should I know’ would be a good answer. “Baby, I know this is really important to you. But you have to understand that it’s important to me too.” He sat up and tentatively put his arms around her.
    She didn’t pull away, instead laid her head against his shoulder. “I know.”
    Guilt welled. She sounded so forlorn. He bent his head and kissed her hair, then sighed.
    “You know what happened, right? Why I stopped performing?”
    He felt her nod against his collarbone. “The thing about being a musician is that there are always people around who want photos, autographs—” he paused—“sex, or even just to talk to you. It got annoying at times, but mostly I loved it, because I loved performing, and those people all wanted to be part of the music.”
    Mandy pulled back from him, straightening, and pushed her hair back from her face. “So you genuinely liked your fans.”
    He reached out and took her hand. “Yeah. Mostly. There’s always the occasional dickhead, you know? But overall they were fun, and I did like them. And I liked encouraging them. That radio competition? They ran the idea past my publicist first. The winner got tickets, backstage passes and dinner with me and the band. It was just going to be takeout, but still. I thought it was a great idea—I loved the idea of fans competing over who loved me more.” The familiar guilt rose, choking him. He swallowed hard. “How egotistical is that?”
    Mandy squeezed his hand. “You’re a rock star, Blake. You’re supposed to be egotistical. Obviously, the radio station thought this was all normal. They do ticket giveaway competitions all the time. I’m sure their legal people have to approve them, or something.” Her tone was earnest, and he knew she wanted him to feel better.
    He sighed. “I know. But when Dale—that was his name, by the way, Dale