Here lies your book boyfriend…naked.

It’s always a little bitter sweet when your favorite BL drama ends, and “My Stand In” is finally over. Poor Joe got his HEA, thank goodness! But now I’m looking around for something new to watch. I’ve been eying “Queen of Tears,” ‘cuz Kim Soo Hyun is always good. Have you seen that one?

I loved him in “It’s Okay to Not Be Okay.” Seo Ye Ji’s character — and wardrobe!! — was great too. Actually, everyone in that drama did well. But that’s why I’m eying “Queen of Tears.” Soo Hyun doesn’t really appear in flops.

Anyway, here’s another snippet from book 2 in my Idol Love series. I hope you read the first book Saints and Sinnas. If you did, thank you! Please leave me a review on Amazon, ok?

In this snippet, which picks up where last week’s left off, Vi realizes Bik is more than just a pretty face. She’s not at all sure what to think of his flirting though. Are idols even allowed to date?? And if they are, does she even want to go there?

Let me know what you think!

…

Sinna looked around to ensure she was unobserved then shook her head, grinning. “No! Their particular brand of pastel hair and slender heroin chic doesn’t exactly scream outdoor friendly. Bik will wilt like some Victorian lady of leisure in the heat, and Cong will be looking – unsuccessfully – for someplace to charge one of his many devices.”

Vi laughed so hard her eyes watered. “You know, when I was doing Bik’s nails the other day, I realized I have rougher hands than he does? His hands are beautifully shaped, very masculine, but they literally look like they’ve never done a day’s work.”

“Not the manual kind anyway,” Sinna teased.

Idols work really hard to make K-pop look so good

No, definitely not the manual kind, but Vi was genuinely shocked when she realized how hard the group actually worked. Between dance and performance rehearsals, fan signings, business meetings, costume fittings, grooming, and the other obligations they had advertising for brands and working with TV studios on variety shows and what not, they were on the go all day every day and well into the night. 

Shoot. Just dealing with the constant deluge of fan attention seemed like a job to her. And it wasn’t a job she wanted anything to do with. Anyone who got near them was scrutinized even more carefully than they were. She’d already found that out. 

“You can do it, girl.”

“I don’t think so,” Vi said honestly. “And I don’t really want to, Sinna. Promoting diversity is great and everything, but that level of attention.” She shook her head.

“You’re scared.”

“Always,” she confirmed with a soft laugh. 

“It’s just three days,” Sinna continued. “It’ll be hot since the location is tropical, but you like to camp, and given your background I don’t think there’ll be any challenge you can’t meet fairly easily. You’re already used to having cameras around, and you’re comfortable with the guys.”

“There will be girls there too. Idols at that.”

Sinna waved this away as of no importance. “You can handle them. After Min Ki they should be a cake walk.”

Vi laughed but she still shook her head.

“You’re really scared.” 

“Yup.” She sighed. It was tiresome being such a scaredy cat. It felt like she was losing, and her past was winning. “I know I should be embracing this new opportunity. Part of me wants to,” she shrugged. “I guess I haven’t shucked all of my old, bad habits yet.”

“Such as?”

Trauma from an ex can cast a seriously dark pall over the light from a new love interest

Such as staying in the background so as not to aggravate an irritable husband who didn’t like attention being diverted from him. Such as never standing in the limelight, lest her small Black self receive any praise or be celebrated for having talent, or for doing a job well done because according to him, she deserved nothing of the sort. Yet all of that happened here in Seoul quite often to her surprise. 

Now she just grinned and said, “Being too quiet. Will they pay me?”

Sinna gave her a look. “You know better than that.”

“Sorry. Forgot who I was talking to,” she teased. “I’m scared,” she said again. “But I’m gonna do it,” she said on a whim, and immediately regretted it.

“Good! And you can’t take it back. I’m calling them right now to let them know. Then we gotta get you some jungle gear that is functional but cute. We need leopard print and/or camo,” she muttered, phone already to her ear.

Well, shoot, Vi thought.

I’ve gone and done it now, she texted Candy. I agreed to go on a reality TV show with the group. We’re going to the frickin’ jungle of all places!

Waaaaaaat??!?!?!? That is so cool!

God bless, Candy. Just hearing her instant positive response made Vi feel better. Still she had to complain a little bit.

It’s not a resort! We’re gonna be sleeping in a tent outdoors, cooking meals over fires that we have to make. 

And who knew what else. She hadn’t even got all the details before she threw herself over a cliff. Sinna was dangerous. Her friend could talk anyone into almost anything.

Good thing you like that sorta thing, then, said the ever optimistic Candy. You’re good at camping and fixing things and what not. Maybe Bik will give you a kiss under a waterfall. She’d been super interested when Vi confessed how nervous the blue-eyed Korean made her feel with his consistent presence.

“Look at all these doggone heart eyes emojis,” Vi muttered, grinning at her friend’s exuberant response.

Okay, now, she answered, and got the hands folded prayer emoji in return. Just then she looked up and as usual caught Bik’s eye. He winked and blew her a kiss. Her brows shot up, and she began to worry. What if he did try to kiss her? 

You can run from a K-pop idol, but can you hide? And honestly, do you even want to?

Good Lord in heaven. She’d have to do everything in her power to make sure they were never alone. Her poor nerves and tummy were already in a near perpetual state of agitation thanks to his constant attention. That’s all she needed was another crazy man on her tail.

Logically she knew she didn’t want to spend the rest of her life alone. She wanted children, and she wanted companionship. But the idea of marriage scared the piss out of her. 

And not just marriage either. Even the thought of a relationship made her instantly want to retreat and hide. A man touching her, wanting sex, maybe demanding…she shuddered.

But at that moment she remembered something: Bik didn’t scare her. 

Not in a ‘my safety is threatened’ kind of way. He presented an entirely different kind of discomfort. He was a threat to her as a woman. He appealed to her femininity on a cellular level, and because of that he was a danger to her soft heart.

Vi liked to think that her marriage hadn’t put her off men for good. But it was one thing to say she was open to another relationship at some point in the unidentifiable future, and quite another to start something up with a blue-eyed, incredibly talented, successful, and charismatic K-pop idol. 

Ordinarily she’d have laughed it all off. She’d figure there was no way he was interested in her. He was just flirting, that endless Korean fascination with Black women rearing it’s fetish-esque head now that she was a part of the team. But something about his behavior suggested he was doing more than just flirting.

For one thing, he made no effort to hide his attraction to her. If he was just after the drawls she doubted he’d make his interest so obvious. He’d pursue her quietly so as to protect his position. Everyone knew that idols did not, as a rule, date. 

Instead, everyone had noticed his interest. The beauty girls liked to tease her, and in their efforts to matchmake, they left her to do most of the work on him. She responded by being almost entirely silent when he was around and utterly professional. But how professional could she be outdoors covered in sweat and dust tending a camp fire?

“Lord, have mercy,” she whispered. What have I gotten myself into?

I hope you enjoyed that snippet and you’re looking forward to the book. Subscribe to my newsletter, okay? I publish new content for you to enjoy every week.