Within thirty seconds, Noah had been pulled to one side by a tall, bald guy, whose hair seemed to have migrated from his scalp down onto his face in a giant, bushy black beard. Left standing on my own, I scanned the room for the only two other people I would have felt comfortable with.

Before I could spot Alex or Charlotte among the sea of faces, a tall figure stepped in front of me.

"Didn't expect to see you tonight."

Mikey's ice blue eyes were blank in comparison to the smile that pulled the skin of his cheeks taut over the sharp bone structure underneath.

"Yeah, it was a surprise," I smiled back, my mouth suddenly dry. "Great show, by the way. You killed it."

"Thanks," Mikey said, rubbing the tip his nose with the back of his forefinger. "It feels amazing up there, you know. Just me and the boys, doing our thing. Like it used to be."

His comment seemed thinly veiled, to say the least. It had been obvious from the few times I'd actually spent any time around him, that Mikey didn't like me. I was none the wiser as to why, but it was obvious he didn't like me being around.

Rise above it, I thought to myself, as I snatched back the smile fading fast from my lips.

"Mmm," I nodded. "You guys are so good together, I can see why people are going nuts for you."

Mikey appeared to not even hear my compliment as his eyes darted around the room.

"Where is Noah, anyway?" He asked.

"Someone dragged him off," I said. "No idea who, but he looked keen to chat."

"Probably one of his admirers," Mikey smirked, finally focusing his steely eyes on mine once again.

I let out a small laugh as I fiddled with the chunky silver and Topaz ring Charlotte had convinced me to buy once at a vintage stall in Portobello Market. "Oh no, it was a middle-aged guy."

Mikey's laugh was much louder. "Doesn't mean he doesn't fancy your man," he said, sweeping his jet-black hair back with one hand. "Anyway, the fucking Brady Bunch are over there, in case you were looking for them."

I twisted my neck to face the direction in which he nodded, quickly spotting Charlotte and Alex parading Erin around while people cooed over her one by one.

When I turned back round, I only caught a glimpse of the back of Mikey's head as he disappeared into the nearest bathroom.

I'd been in plenty of awkward environments throughout my life, but propping myself up on a stool by the bar, I had never felt like more of a square peg in a round hole.

None of the people in that room would have been interested in talking to me, not when the UK's hottest new band were within the same four walls. As I watched person after person approach Noah and drag him off into their circle, I started to doubt whether I should have even bothered making the trip at all. If he hadn't been warned by the record label to keep our relationship quiet, I could be by his side; holding his hand, being proud of my man.

Instead, as 'damage limitation' they had decided only Alex's status as a husband and father could be public knowledge. The fact he had married Charlotte then had an adorable baby made them 'relationship goals' for the younger fans or something like that.

If only they knew about Noah's past, I sneered in my mind as I swilled the dregs of my third glass of champagne in the bottom of the glass. Let's see the 'damage limitation' needed for an escort-turned-pop star.

"Mademoiselle, another glass of champagne?"

"Don't mind if I do," I hiccupped as I swivelled round on the stool to grab another delicate flute of bubbles from the silver tray perched precariously on the fingertips of a red-faced, fraught-looking waiter.

Tipping my chin towards the ceiling, the cold, tangy fizz had barely touched my lips before a hand tilted the glass back down, away from my mouth.

I let out a long sigh as I met his eyes. "I had to keep myself entertained somehow."

"I've been watching, don't worry," Noah smiled, placing my glass down on the bar and lightly brushing his fingers against my knee as he took the next stool and pulled it up close to mine. "You're getting that look on your face, Abi."

I frowned, jutting my bottom lip out slightly. "What look?"

"The look you always get when you've had a few. When I touch you, like this..."

Keeping his eyes locked onto mine, Noah dragged his fingers lightly up the inside of my thigh, to proximity of his body forming a barrier against the people milling around the packed venue.

Heat rushing instantly into my cheeks and between my legs, I darted my eyes around the room. Nobody seemed interested in what we were doing. For the first time that night, nobody seemed set on snatching Noah away for their own selfish purposes.

Smiling up at him, I uncrossed my legs and parted my knees. Only a couple of inches, but enough to allow his hand to slide further upwards. The back of his hand brushed against my centre, causing a shudder to run from the base of my spine up to my neck.

"I presume you're staying with me tonight?" he whispered.

I nodded, placing one hand on his forearm as his fingers gripped the very top of my thigh.

"Shall we get out of here then?" Noah continued.

Without saying a word, I nodded again.

As his hand slipped away from my leg, leaving a patch of cold in its wake, I swivelled around on my stool to leave.

"Noah!"

Once again, Arla Breeze looked immaculate in person as she swept across the room, the crowd seeming to almost part in her presence. Sweeping Noah into her arms she placed a lingering kiss on his cheek as his hands came to rest gently on the small of her back in the embrace.

As she pulled away, she kept her arms around his shoulders. "That was so much fun singing with you," she smiled, her perfect row of pearly whites gleaming against her glossy, red lips. "I'm going to have a little party back at my suite if you don't have other plans?"

As though he suddenly remembered I was stood right next to him, Noah dropped his arms and stepped back, gently pulling Arla's arms from around his neck and placing them back at her sides.

Following his eyes, she glanced in my direction. "Abigail?" she said.

"Hey Arla," I smiled awkwardly.

"Do you two know each other?" she asked, cocking her head to one side with a smile.

"Abi's a good friend of mine," Noah replied. "She came all the way from London to see the show tonight."

"Oh, wonderful!" she beamed. "Then you must both join the party. It will be fun, I've asked the management to make sure the champagne doesn't run out and there's a huge hot tub for later."

The way a slight smirk crept up at the corner of her mouth as she mentioned the hot tub, looking directly at Noah, didn't go unnoticed.

"It's a lovely offer," I smiled politely, "But I think I'm just going to head back to the hotel and get some rest."

Noah's cheeks were bright pink as I glared at him.

"Same here," he said. "It's been a long day."

Taking a small step closer to him, Arla placed her manicured fingertips around his elbow and smiled. "It sure has," she laughed, "So we definitely deserve a bit of fun, don't you think?"

I'm not sure how old Noah was when he first learned to talk, but in that moment he seemed to have forgotten everything he'd ever known about forming words. The sight of Arla's thumb gently rubbing the ink on his arm made me bristle. Why couldn't he just say who I was? She wasn't doing anything wrong; for all she knew he was a young, single guy. The same as what the rest of the world knew.

Clearing his throat, Noah seemed to snap back into reality. "I'm sorry," he smiled, "I'm sure it's going to be brilliant, but I really need to get some rest. Thanks though."

"Are you sure?" she smiled sweetly. "It could be like that night in Berlin all over again..."

I didn't want to hear any more. Grabbing my bag, I swung it over my shoulder, knocking the glass of the woman stood to my right as I did so.

Noah and Arla both looked towards me as I apologised to the woman. I could feel my cheeks beginning to flush as I flicked my hair back and tried to brush off the near spill.

"I'm going to head off," I said, flustered. "It was lovely to see you both."

"Abi, hold on," Noah said, holding a palm out flat to signal that I should wait.

He turned back to face Arla. "I'm going to escort Abi back to her hotel. I don't want her taking a taxi on her own."

His choice of words made me snort silently to myself. Once an escort...

Arla's eyes ran up and down my body. Had she figured it out? Did she finally realise that Noah and I were more than just 'good friends' as he'd put it?

Her lips spread into a soft smile as her eyes made contact with mine. "Okay," she said. "You two have fun."

She placed another kiss on Noah's cheek, then stepped towards me. As she leant in to kiss my cheek, she took a second to whisper in my ear. Her perfume was as divine as everything else about her, shrouding me in exotic flowers and spices as her lips brushed close to my ear.

"You're a lucky girl," she whispered quickly, before gently pressing her lips on my cheek.

With one last smile at us both, Arla slipped back into the throng of people. A couple of awkward seconds silence lingered in the air, before Noah turned to face me.

"Sorry," he muttered. "I should have dealt with that better."

"Yeah," I replied, "You should. Just like you did in Berlin."

"Abi, don't," Noah said, rubbing his palm against his forehead. "Nothing happened in Berlin, it was just a party."

"A party between you and her?" I shot back.

"It wasn't like that," he said, shaking his head. "It was just a stupid party the label hosted. Everyone was there."

"Everyone except me, Noah," I snapped, feeling a lump catch in my throat.

Noah tapped his temple furiously with his forefinger. "You've been with me everywhere I've been, Abi," he said, his voice full of frustration. "In here."

"No," I said, battling to hold the lump down. "No I've not. I've just been hiding away, watching as the whole world fawns over the man I love."

"Abi..." Noah began.

But, without thinking, I span on my heel and started to make my way towards the exit.

"Abi, wait," he called behind me.

I had no idea what I was actually planning to do; I just wanted to get out of that room. The tears were already stinging my eyes as I burst out of the doors and into the lobby of the venue.

All those fake people, all those fake identities. Including Noah. Noah the young, single rock star. Free and available to anyone rich and beautiful enough to get close to him.

Just the way he used to be. Except now they wouldn't need to pay.