Free Star-Struck, Book 1 by Twyla Turner Page B

replacements. He took off his hat and grabbing one of the bottles of water he had purchased earlier for them, he took the cap off, poured some in his hands and slid his wet hands through his hair. Sunny realized he was rewetting his wavy locks to get rid of his ‘hat-hair’.
    She was enthralled at the entire process of him changing for a night out. “Well my, my, my.” Sunny said as she fanned herself with her hand.
    Gabe looked up from his reflection after fixing his hair and gave Sunny a cocky grin. “Is there something you like?”
    “Hell yes!”
    Gabe got into the truck, leaned across and kissed Sunny quickly but deeply on the lips, just a hint of his tongue flicking her lips. Now that the first kiss was over with, Sunny knew it was game on. There would be constant stolen kisses from here on out.
    “So you’ve decided to ditch the hat? Isn’t that a little risky? People are going to recognize you instantly. You’re kinda hard to ignore.” Sunny looked him up and down as he started the truck and pulled out of the parking lot.
    “I know. But a lot of the dress codes for the bars and clubs are strict. And besides, I’ve hung out around here a lot and no one bothers me too much. It’s nice.” Gabe reached over and squeezed Sunny’s hand reassuringly.
    She looked down at their hands, her heart warming. “Okay, I trust your judgment. I just don’t want a repeat of last night. That was pretty awful.”
    “Yeah it was. I got my ass pinched and grabbed several times. And a couple of girls and quite possibly even a dude cupped my junk!”
    “Ha! How do you know it was a guy?”
    “Because if it wasn’t, that chick had awfully big hands.” His face was dead serious.
    Sunny’s head fell onto his shoulder as she laughed hysterically. Shaking her head back and forth on his shoulders, she wiped the tears off her face. She leaned a bit closer and kissed him on the cheek, finding it easier and easier to show her affection towards him without the fear of being rejected.
    “Just to let you know, I told Trent last night that I quit.”
    “What? Oh Sunny, I never intended for that to happen. I know how much you love to perform, I could tell.” Gabe smoothed a tendril away from her cheek and looked down at her sadly.
    “It’s okay. I can always find someone else that can play a guitar and willing to sing in front of a crowd. Don’t worry about it.” She covered the hand he still had on her face comfortingly.
    “So are you hungry?”
    “Yeah, a little.”
    “Well I’m starving…and not for food.” He stared down at her lips. Then a horn honked behind them, making them jump apart, letting them know that the light they were stopped at had turned green. He blew out a harsh breath. “Alright, let’s go eat…food.”
     
    ~~~
     
    Gabe parked on a side street in Mission Beach, an area filled with bars, restaurants, shops and a boardwalk amusement park. Laid-back and chill enough for Sunny to feel comfortable and at ease. Their first stop would be Risqué, an intimate lounge with good food.
    They walked the few blocks to the lounge, hand in hand. He was glad that she was becoming comfortable enough to show and reciprocate affection. He was also glad that it was now evening, dark enough for people not to recognize him. Plus, most people didn’t usually expect to see anyone famous walking down the street. He wasn’t ready for his date to be interrupted, things were going too well. And Sunny deserved his full attention.
    When they got to the door, they were instantly let in without question. Gabe knew the bouncer from the previous times he had come to the lounge. Walking in, the lounge had a dark seductive feel to it. It was decorated in black, red, silver and gold. With leather booths and velvet couches. They sat next to each other on one of the cozy leather love seats. Across the room from where they sat were works of art of the naked female form, many similar to the Renaissance age, where the women reminded