“You look amazing.”
“So do you.” She said self-consciously. The way he was looking at her with such reverence in his eyes was disconcerting. It was like he was kneeling at her feet in worship. “Do I have time to put some lipstick on?”
“Can I do it?”
“Um...sure.” More disconcerted than ever, she allowed him to lead her back to the dressing table, where her cosmetics were. His fingers trailed idly over the various items, before closing on her favourite moisturiser. He gently smoothed it over her skin, trailing his fingers down her jaw line as his thumbs brushed her ears. He gently applied powder as she watched him with wide eyes. She’d had no idea he’d paid so much attention to how she got dressed in the morning. His unerring selection of products spoke louder than words that he’d noticed everything about her. She closed her eyes without him having to ask when he picked up the eyeliner, and she didn’t flinch as he carefully painted a slash of darkness across each lid. Taking the mascara, he focused on her lashes so intently she began to wonder if he was painting each one individually. After that, it was a light dusting of blush at the apex of her cheekbones.
Her lips were
the last to receive his attentions and he painted them a deep red that matched the ruby at her throat. “Did I miss anything?” He asked when he set the lipstick down and she smiled.
“No. That’s exactly what I’d have done.”
“Then it’s time. We should go.”
There was a car waiting in the driveway and they hurried to it. Out here in the hills it was bitterly cold and the wind was picking up. Gabriel had pulled a cashmere sweater over his trousers, but he wasn’t wearing a coat and Noelle’s legs weren’t covered by anything other than the stockings.
It was warm in the back of the car and the driver pulled away without them having to say anything while they settled in for the ride. It was a forty minute drive to the stadium and at first
Gabriel seemed content to sit simply holding her hand. Then he set down the box he was carrying in the foot well, scooped a hand behind her and lifted her round to straddle his lap. Chuckling, she kissed him and he ran his hands up her legs beneath the skirt. She tensed as his thumbs teased under the edges of her lingerie and pulled back.
“Gabriel.” She murmured warningly
, but he gave her a look of mute appeal and she turned to look at the driver. “He’ll see us.” She whispered.
“He didn’t last time.” He whispered back. “You’ll just have to be quiet.” He pulled her briefs aside and thrust two fingers inside her as his thumb circled her clit.
“What is it with you and cars?” She grumbled and he laughed quietly.
“Kitten, you’re about to have an orgasm. I’m not sure why you’re complaining.”
“I’m not an exhibitionist.” Her hips rose to meet him as if they had a mind of their own and he shrugged.
“It’s just you and me.”
“I don’t see you rushing to be exposed.” She muttered and he raised an eyebrow.
“Good point.” Unbuttoning his fly, he pulled his cock out and stroked it against her belly as she gasped. “I like your style of thinking.” Thoroughly amused
, he watched the flush spread right up her neck and into her cheeks.
“That’s not what I meant!” She squeaked and he shrugged.
“That’s how I interpreted it.” Sliding slightly lower in the seat, he withdrew his fingers and replaced them with his cock, using his free hand to pull her down onto him.
“Gabriel!” Utterly scandalised, she grabbed his shoulders and tried to push herself off him.
“Settle down kitten.” He pulled her back down, impaling her deeply.
She let out a ragged breath. “You’re not going to stop are you?” She asked and he shook his head.
“No. I want this. You’re mine and I want you to come for me.”
“Please don’t make me.”
She made a soft sound as he moved beneath her.
“I’m not going to stop fucking you until come for me.” He shrugged. “The longer you fight me on this, the more chance there is of you getting caught. It’s up to you.”
“I...” She glanced over her shoulder at the driver. “I can’t...Gabriel I can’t.”
“Yes you can.” He murmured. “It’s just a little rise and fall. Give in to me kitten.”
“I can’t do it.”
Realising he was losing
her, he wrapped an arm around her and tipped them to the side so she was lying on the seat. “Then I will.” He began to move and she covered her face with both of her hands, muttering quietly to herself.
“Kitten.”
He growled warningly under his breath.
“What?” She gasped as he let loose with a hard thrust.
“You
will
watch me while I fuck you.” She peeked at him through her fingers and he wanted to laugh, but her body was so tight and hard, constricted as it was by the leather corset, that the heat flaring in him didn’t leave enough breath. “Look. At. Me.” He punctuated each word with a thrust and she had to throw her arms up to stop herself from sliding headfirst into the door. “That’s better.” He smirked.
Noelle wanted to die of mortification. They had come full circle from that first car trip
, to find her flat on her back with him leading her straight down the garden path to hell. He felt so good inside her and, as his hand travelled back to tease her clit, she knew she wasn’t long for this world. She just couldn’t let go of the fact that the driver could probably hear them.
“Focus on me.” He breathed and she found herself captivated by his lips. They were soft and sensual and they said such deliciously wicked things. Right now they were hovering
close to her own and she could almost taste his tongue on hers. As though reading her mind, his lips descended that last inch and she abandoned herself to the wildest of kisses. As his tongue plundered her mouth in search of a duel, he increased the pressure of his hands and she felt the first tightenings of a climax deep in her core.
He broke away with a choked sound.
“Fucking hell!” He gasped, his pupils dilated with wonder.
“Shh!” She giggled, covering his mouth with her hand
, even as she writhed beneath him. He sucked her fingers between his lips and swirled his tongue around the pads.
“Gabriel.” Her breath was coming short as she tried to hold it together
, but he was relentless in his pursuit of her abandonment and eventually she went crashing over the edge into freefall, shuddering all over with wave after wave of pleasure and taking him with her.
He laughed breathlessly as he relaxed into her, shifting them sideways so he wasn’t squashing her. “I think I just found my new pre-show ritual.”
“I thought you didn’t do live shows?” She joked, feeling much more relaxed now that endorphins were flooding her body.
“If this is what happens when I do live shows, I’m booking one every night from now until next year.”
“I thought you didn’t want me to come over on school nights?” She teased and he growled.
“You’ll be lucky if I ever let you go home again.”
“You promised I could go home for a couple of days tomorrow.” She pointed out and he sighed.
“Don’t remind me. I’m dreading it.”
She reached up and cradled his head, running her fingers soothingly through his hair. “You’ll have to get used to it Gabriel.” She said softly. “The holidays are over in a week’s time. I won’t be able to come up to yours every day.”
“You could stay at mine.” He offered and she laughed.
“Gabriel, staying at someone’s place indefinitely is known as moving in. It’s too soon. You’ll cope. In fact, I’m pretty sure your waistline will thank me.” Not that his waistline was looking anything other than trim and sculpted in those almost painted on trousers. He would never be anything other than beautiful to look at.
“We’re almost there sir.” The driver called back tactfully from the front of the car and Noelle winced. He must have heard a right earful.
“We’d better get you cleaned up.” Gabriel sighed regretfully. “Lie still.” He pulled out of her and pushed himself upright, grabbing a packet of tissues from the side door of the car. By the time the vehicle came to a halt, he’d straightened her up and she’d repaired her hair. He’d left his with that wild just-tumbled look and she eyed it resignedly. There was no way they were going to get out of this car without everyone knowing what they’d been up to. The sole saving grace was that, apart from the band, no-one would know who she was. Gabriel tied his mask on and gave her a wicked grin from behind the black leather. He looked like some exotic highwayman out to steal her virtue. Not that he hadn’t taken it already, but still...she smiled when he lifted the box he’d brought into his lap. “Are you ready for your mask?” He asked and she nodded, wondering what he had bought her. He’d refused to let her see it until now. She gasped when he opened the box. It was beautiful. Leather the colour of her corset, moulded into ripples and studded with tiny gems, formed a mask that would cover her eyes. It was extraordinary.
“Gabriel, it’s beautiful!” She ran her fingers over it as he lifted it onto her face.
“It has to be, or else it would shame the glory of your face.” Deft fingers covered the bands with her hair. “Is it secure?”
“Yes.” It fit her face like a glove.
“Then we should go.” He took her hand and then hesitated. “Noelle, there’ll be photographers here.” The noise outside the car was growing and he was grateful for the tinted windows. “Are you sure you’re ready for this?”
No. She wasn’t. She wasn’t even close to being ready. She forced a smile onto her face and squeezed his hand. “Just don’t let me go.”
“I won’t.” He stepped out first, into a blinding array of camera flashes, and turned his back to them, shielding Noelle as she followed him into the frigid air, steadying her on the ice. “Are you okay?” He mouthed under the shouts from the paparazzi and she nodded, what was visible of her cheeks paling slightly. He tucked her under his arm and turned towards the venue. When the crowd realised he had a woman with him, they went wild, surging forward as security tried to hold them back. “Smile kitten.” He leaned down and nuzzled her ear as he whispered into it. “They’re like piranhas. They can smell fear.”
“
I’m trying.” She fixed a bright smile to her face and hoped like hell no-one noticed her trembling. She couldn’t seem to stop shaking. The crowd was pressing in against them now as the security gave up trying to hold a line and reformed instead as a bubble of protection around the two of them. She could hear shouts up ahead as more security staff forced their way through the mob towards them. She’d never felt so tiny and vulnerable in her life and, considering her recent visits to Gabriel’s play room, that was really saying something.
Somewhere beyond the immediate crush she could hear chanting. At first she couldn’t hear what it was, but when Gabriel stiffened slightly beside her she began to make out hate-filled words. The concert was being picketed. Grateful she couldn’t see any placards, she wondered briefly what they would think of her, the woman who made love to the darkness. Not that they made love, she reminded herself grimly. Other than the brief glimpse of gentleness after midnight
mass, they hadn’t done anything that wasn’t born entirely of lust and darkness.
When the reinforcements finally battled through, they moved them swiftly into the building and into blessed quietness as the journalists and photographers were left outside.
“Are you okay kitten?” He pulled her round in front of him so he could look in her eyes.
“That was crazy.” She dropped the smile and started shaking all over.
“I’m sorry. I should have warned you before we came out.”
“If I’d had half a brain I would have expected it.” She admitted. “I’ll be okay. It just took me by surprise.”
“We’ll get you something to drink.” Recognising the signs of an adrenaline spike, Gabriel sent someone running for tea laced with brandy and sugar as they moved on towards the dressing room, where the rest of the band members were sitting quietly, zoned out as they played through the music in their minds.
They waited for almost an hour as a couple of support acts rumbled distantly through the walls of the arena. When he had stopped fussing over her, Noelle sat quietly and watched as Gabriel transformed before her eyes into a complete stranger. It was eerie. Gone was his bold stride, leaving in its place a languid feline prowl as he moved about the room, lost in his thoughts. It was like he had stripped down his humanity until all that was left was predator.
A roadie stuck his head through the door. “It’s time.” He said quietly. No-one nodded or acknowledged him, the band simply got together and linked arms, brother to brother. Gabriel spoke quietly to them as everyone else jumped into action. They were the eye of the storm, the calm at the centre of all that frenetic activity. When he was done with whatever he was saying, they pressed their heads together briefly and then the circle broke.
“Come with me kitten.” Gabriel growled and Noelle didn’t dare argue, following him quietly as they moved through the underbelly of the stadium. It was like a great beast, she thought wonderingly. All around her the walls breathed with the sound of thousands of voices
raised in anticipation, and the earth rumbled with the purr of just as many thousands of feet drumming. The atmosphere was so electric it could have been sentient. To Noelle it was almost in slow motion. She couldn’t imagine what it would be like to do this on a regular basis.