“Are you all right, man?”

I turned at the sound of the man’s voice next to me. The tall, blond guy was looking at me with concern. He waved his hand in front of his face. “You look like you’re in pain. Too much to drink last night?” He grinned, nodding to my sunglasses.

I pushed the shades up, so they rested on top of my head, squinting as a spotlight from the stage glanced off something shiny and hit me in the eye. “No, it’s just unusually…bright in here.”

He laughed. “You get used to it.” He held out his hand. “I’m Charlie, Emily’s boyfriend. You must be her new bodyguard.”

Ah, the boyfriend. I gripped his hand. The guy looked familiar, but I couldn’t say why. When I glanced over his shoulder, a very large man with a buzz cut and wearing all black stood with his hands clasped casually in front of him, but obviously watchful. Charlie’s security? He must be someone famous in the music industry too. My eyes returned to him. “Tuck Mattice. Nice to meet you.”

“Welcome to her team. It’s great to have you here. Your presence will really give her peace of mind. And me too. Especially on this tour. You never know what to expect from fans. Most of them are a hundred percent nice and genuine. But there’s always that fringe, you know?”

I’d take his word for it. To my mind, anyone who followed anyone around town, much less around the country, was less than stable. Then again, my own judgment had been questionable—to say the least—for much of my life, so I’d work to tone down my assumptions when it came to Emily’s fans.

Also, I didn’t want to undermine Emily’s talent. She was a beautiful singer. Her voice had moved me when I was nothing more than a kid. I remembered standing off to the side while she’d sung for our families. I’d always separated myself from the others when she performed, because I’d wanted to direct all my focus on her and her alone. It’d felt like witnessing a small miracle. She was a star now, or so I’d been told, but God, I’d been starstruck by her back then. Totally and completely.

Currently though? The number she was gyrating to was overly fast, the recording making her voice sound strange and electronic, doing nothing to highlight her natural velvety soulfulness. A particularly high note made me cringe as Emily danced across the stage, ending in a dramatic pose. A smattering of applause from the small crowd went up and I let out a sigh.