He turns his piercing eyes on me. “You wouldn’t think that if you knew the things I knew about him.”
“What do you mean?”
Riff shakes his head. “Forget it. I shouldn’t have said anything. Come on. I need a shower.”
He grabs my hand and tries to tug me along with him, but I plant my feet firmly. “You can’t say something like that and then blow it off. Lanie’s my best friend. If he’s going to hurt her, I want to know.”
He sighs. “What Noel does is his business. I’m not getting in the middle of it.”
“Are you saying you have secrets?”
Riff frowns and touches my cheek. “We all have secrets, Kitten. Even you. I’m not going to try to pretend that we know everything about each other, but it’s a fact of life. No one discloses every piece of information about themselves to someone else. It’s not human nature.”
He’s right. Everyone has something they don’t want others to know. Just like the information I know about this charity project. It kills me I can’t tell Lanie the truth and I’m thankful she hasn’t brought it up to me since I’ve been here. I don’t know if I could hide that from her once we’re face to face.
“Something wrong?” he asks.
I shake my head. “Just thinking about how you’re right.”
A sad smile plays on his lips. “Come on. Enough lingering on life lessons. Let’s go do something fun.”
I raise an eyebrow. “What do you have in mind?”
Riff gives me that wicked grin he’s famous for. “Something that ends with me inside you.”
Oh dear God. Every hormone in my body nearly convulses at his words. That man knows exactly what to say to nearly cause me to lose my mind.
C
ruising around the dark streets of Dallas on my bike with Aubrey wrapped around me feels like freedom. I love my job. The money’s great and so are the chicks, but I never really feel at peace.
While I would love to spend another night locked away in my hotel room with her, I figure a little excitement is in order. I told Trip I’m going to see where this goes, so to show her that maybe I can be more than just sex to her, I’m taking her out.
We pass by a small bar with a neon light shining from the window. Perfect. We can grab a beer and chat and won’t have to worry about fans or that fucker Donovan starting shit. I want some one-on-one time to see where this girl’s head is.
I back my bike against the curb and throw down the kickstand. Aubrey hops off and yanks the helmet from her head while I readjust my backwards baseball cap.
I catch myself almost mesmerized by her as she runs her fingers through her hair. I don’t remember feeling this way after I bagged a girl before. Ever. Usually, after the initial humping, they lose their allure. Not Aubrey. All I can think about when I look at her are ways to keep her around longer.
She throws her hands on her hips. “What exactly are we doing here?”
I stand and store the helmet. “I figured we could get a beer and get to know each other a little better.”
The corners of her mouth turn up. “I thought that’s what we did last night.”
I shake my head and pull her against me. “Last night we fucked, and I still haven’t gotten you out of my system, so I’m left with one alternative.”
A blush washes over her cheeks. “What’s that?”
I shrug. “To see if this thing between us can ever go anywhere.”
“Riff...”
If she’s about to give me the reasons why this can never work between us, I don’t want to hear them. “Before you say anything, give me the weekend. We only have tonight and tomorrow, and if you end up hating my guts by the time you leave, then you never have to see me again.”
Kitten pulls her lips into a tight line. “Okay, then.”
“Yeah?” I hug her to me. “One more thing.”
“What’s that?”
“In public, around the band and the fans, I don’t mind you calling me Riff, but everywhere else I want you to call me Zach.” It’s a weird request. The name she calls me shouldn’t matter, but it does. If I’m going to step out of my comfort zone and see if this can go somewhere, than I want it to be as real as possible. I don’t want her to like me for Riff, my stage persona and all that it entails. I want her to like me for Zach—the fucked up guy with loads of problems.
She’ll probably be running for the hills this time tomorrow.
I lead her into the small bar. Her tiny hand fits perfectly in mine as I hold it causally at my side. The bar is dark, with only the light over the bar providing light around the room. A few older men sit with their shoulders slumped at the bar talking to the bartender. This is exactly the atmosphere I’m hoping for. Nice and secluded.
A fairly modern juke box plays an old-school country song as we make our way over to the bar.
The thirty-something bartender raises an eyebrow and shoves her brown hair over her shoulder. “IDs?”
It’s been a long time since I’d been carded to drink. It’s nice to know she’s completely oblivious as to who I am.
After she’s double-checked them, she asks, “What can I get you?”
I turn to Aubrey. “Ladies choice?”
She smiles. “Two
Budweisers
, please.”
The bartender nods and meanders off to get our drinks. I lean against the bar as I wait with Aubrey. She’s looking exceptionally beautiful tonight. Her long, red hair falls around her shoulders in loose waves and the green halter-top she’s wearing accentuates her fantastic rack.
She grins at me when she catches me staring at her tits. “You see something you like?”
I laugh. “I’m trying to determine if it’s your ass or your tits I like best. I’m usually a breast man, but your ass in those jeans...I literally want to bite it.”
She giggles. “I think you already did once or twice last night.”
I run my fingertips down the length of her arm. “And I can’t wait to do it again.”
Memories of last night flood me, and she’s right. I do remember giving her love bites on that tasty, little booty. My dick twitches at the thought of getting her naked again and I reposition my legs.
I’m about to say screw talking and let’s get back to fucking when the bartender hands us our beers. “That’ll be seven fifty.”
I pull out my wallet. “No tab in this place?”
The brunette shakes her head and glances down at my tattooed forearms. “Not to strangers.”
If only I can tell her I can buy this place with the swipe of my debit card, but that would make me seem like an arrogant jackass, not to mention blow my cover.
I lay down two fifty dollar bills. “This should cover us for a while.”
She picks them up and holds them up to the light as we turn and take a seat at the end of the bar. Kitten sits on one side of the corner and I on the opposite side so we can sort of face each other.
She takes a sip of her beer and stares at me expectantly. “So what do you want to know about me?”
I swallow hard. This is a totally new experience for me. The confidence I typically have falls away from me. “I, um, I don’t know. How about we start with why you decided to give me a chance.”
She picks at the label on her bottle. “I’m not really sure. It goes against everything I came down here to do.”
I lean back in my chair. Interesting. “Exactly what were your intentions when you hooked up with me?”
She hooks a strand of hair behind her ear. “I’m almost embarrassed to say.”
“I’ve already seen you naked. There’s no shame between us anymore, Kitten. Spill.”
She takes another sip and my stomach clenches. Whatever she’s about to say is going to suck. I can tell by all the tension in her body.
After a couple long seconds, she sighs. “You’re sort of my last hurrah.”
I scrunch my brow. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“My mother has been on my case to quit going after your type.”
I raise my pierced eyebrow. “
My typ
e?”
A blush creeps over her cheeks. “Yeah, you know. The
bad boy
. The
assholes
. Guys that are notorious for breaking hearts.”
I hate the idea that there were jerks before me that couldn’t see how amazing she is. Not saying that I’d be any better, but at least I recognize something special when it’s in front of me. It makes me want to show her even more that I am worth a shot.
“So what changed your mind?” I ask.
She bites her lip and stares at me through those innocent eyes of hers. I hold my breath as I wait on her reply.
Z
ach’s quest for answers takes me by surprise. I never imagined that he would ever be interested in more—seems like I’m definitely standing out to him.
He waits patiently for me to reply. I know I can make or break a relationship we might have with what I say.
I shrug. “I can’t explain it. I feel like there’s a connection between us...”
He frowns. “But? That sentence sounds like there’s a
‘but’
coming.”
“My family is a little...uptight.”
“What does your family have to do with us?”
My eyes drift from his pierced eyebrow to the bulging muscles in his tattooed forearms.
He stiffens. “Are you saying you’re afraid of what they would think of me because of the way I look?”
I bite my lip. “It’s not just your appearance. Your career...”
He tips his bottle up finishing his beer and then signals to the bartender for another. “I know you’re too good for me. Trust me. I know this, but I think if you give me a chance. I’m great at charming moms.”
I reach over and touch his hand. “I’m not saying this to be mean. I think you’re an amazing person, but I’ve been hurt by men before. I’ve never really had a good relationship. My mom, she’s been there after each heartbreak to help pick up the pieces. She’s been telling me for years to find a nice guy—one that will love me and be there for me—to settle down with. After the last man I dated crushed me, I’ve decided she’s right. If I want to be happy I think I need to change things.”
He traces patterns on the back of my hand with his finger. “So you want to hide the person you truly are? You think that will make you happy?”
I shrug. “It’s better than being miserable all the time.”
Neither of us says anything for a couple of moments. Being completely honest with someone is draining. I can’t tell what he’s thinking, but I can tell by the slight slump in his shoulders that he’s disappointed. If we lived in the same city and he wasn’t a famous rock star with temptations of other women in his face constantly, I might be more into the idea of having a relationship with him. But as it is, I can’t go through heartbreak again. I might not make it through another.
“You’re right,” he says. “I’m probably not that guy you’re looking for. I’m not the white picket fence kind of guy. Things between us would probably end eventually.”
Even though this is basically what I said to him, it doesn’t lessen the pain of rejection. I fight back my emotions and give him a casual smile. “Good. I’d still like to spend more time with you and end this thing as friends.”
He pulls his lips into a tight line before he picks up his beer and clinks it to mine. “Friends it is.”
Even though I’m getting exactly what I asked for, why do I have this pit of disappointment in my stomach?
“Well if this weekend is the end for us, I saw something a couple shops down I want to buy for you,” he says with a wicked grin as he grabs my hand.
The look on his face tells me it’s not a souvenir keychain. “What is it?”
He shrugs. “Something I want you to keep an open mind to.”
We leave the bar and head out into the cool Texas night air. Zach’s long, guitar playing fingers wrap around mine as we walk hand in hand down the street past all the little shops. A glowing white sign with red letters catches my eye. It simply says
Naughty Land
on it.
I instantly giggle as he holds open the door for me. “A sex shop? Really?”
He bites his lip toying with his lip ring. “You seem to be down with the kinky sex last night, so I figure we get the right equipment this round.”
Intrigued by him, I ask, “What do you have in mind?”
We step inside and my eyes widen. There’s everything from battery-operated boyfriends to full on bondage beds lining every inch of this place. “Wow.”
He steps behind me when I walk into a secluded aisle and places his hands on my bare shoulders. “Wow as in your down for some of this, or wow like you’re scared to death of it?”
I shake my head. “I’m not scared.”
“Then prove it,” he growls in my ear. “Find something you want to try out and we’ll buy it. Since this is my last time with you, I want to pull out all the stops and give you the fantasy fucking you’ve always dreamed of.”
I swallow hard. His sexual forwardness in combination with the sight of all this stuff is enough to cause me to get a little wet.
He allows his fingers to trail down my arm and then down my waist before finally finding their way onto my ass. He squeezes it with enough force to let me know he means business as he grinds himself into me backside. “I want back inside you. Feel this? This is what you do to me.”
The hard length of him presses into my back through his jeans. I lay my head back on his shoulder and let out a soft moan. The things this man does to me.
“That’s it. Now keep this feeling in mind and go find us something to play with.”
Before I can say anything else, he pulls away, leaving me panting. A cold rush of air fills the space against my back where his body used to be and reality sets in that I was so turned on for a moment I was just about ready to fuck him right here in this store.
I walk around the room and pass all the vibrators. I don’t have any problems having an orgasm with Zach, so I don’t feel like those will be exciting enough for us. The sex game boards don’t interest me either, so I drift over towards the fetish section.
A black riding crop catches my attention and I think about how much Zach enjoyed being blindfolded last night and how something like this could be fun.
“You ever used one of these?” he asks, startling me.
I shake my head. “No, but it looks interesting.”