A Killer Duet

by Mary Winter

  They tumbled to the mattress together, arms and legs entangled. Their lips met, a hard and hungry kiss that left no doubt where this was going to end. Their jean-clad legs tangled and she arched against him. The sensation of her bare breasts against his chest drove all thoughts except how delicious this felt from her mind, and when the need for air parted the kiss, she looked up at him. “Did you get more condoms?”

  He smiled. “Of course. And I bought them well away from here so hopefully no one will connect us.”

  She stiffened because until that moment she hadn’t thought about it, hadn’t cared. “Would that be a bad thing? I’m used to the rumors having me on the latest bad boy of country’s arm. I guess I try not to let it bother me.” She stroked his hair. “Would it bother you?”

  He shook his head. “Never. I was more concerned about you. It’d never bother me to be connected with you in any way, public or private.” He kissed her again, letting his lips and tongue convey what words made difficult to do.

  She lost herself in him. She could write songs about this, about the caress of his hands across her arms and the way it raised goosebumps on her skin, and the warm weight of his body on hers. He cupped her breast, testing its weight before caressing her nipple and then lowering his head to take it between his lips.

  She bowed her back and offered him her body. His gentle sucking went down to her core, like a guitar string drawn so taut that it vibrated with sound and tone. All her focus came to him and she slid her legs along his to rock against him. The soft sounds of his lips on her skin, mingled sighs and moans, filled the hotel room. Case turned his attention to her other breast, moving between them, before he slid lower. She sighed as he unfastened her jeans and lifted her hips to allow him to pull them down. He removed her boots, her socks, her jeans and panties, until she lay naked for him.

  Case stared at Rain’s naked body and wondered how the fuck he’d gotten so lucky. He stood long enough to strip and get the box of condoms he’d put in the night stand drawer and toss some next to the lamp. He sheathed himself, then went back to her, knowing nothing would distract him from his mission of making love to the most beautiful woman in the world.

  He kissed her, then moved down her body, pausing to worship at her breasts, across her stomach, until he placed a kiss right below her navel before moving between her spread thighs. He lifted first one, then the other over his shoulders and took a moment just to savor the fact that he was here. Gentle caresses had her soft cries growing louder, and when he circled her clit with his fingers, he sensed how close to release she really was. He stroked her, letting her juices coat his fingers until he sensed she hovered on the edge of orgasm. At that moment, he replaced his fingers with his lips and was rewarded when she came against his mouth.

  He licked and sucked, not giving her a chance to catch her breath. Instead, he drove her higher with swirls of his tongue against her clit and opening. He ravished her with his mouth, his cock hard and balls tight, at the thought of diving into her warm honey. He savored this woman. He loved this woman. And if there was any way he could show it by making love to her, he would.

  Rain tugged at his hair. “Please,” she whimpered. “Oh god, please.”

  He cupped her ass and lifted her, changing the angle just enough to thrust his tongue into her passage.

  Her low moan echoed off the walls, loud enough that certainly anyone in the next room would have heard. He worked her pussy, fucking her with his tongue until she tightened her thighs against his head and came again.

  He pulled back just enough to allow her to catch her breath. His lips and chin slick with her juices, he lowered her legs and crawled over her body to kiss her again. And when she wrapped her legs around his hips, her heels digging into the back of his thighs, he thrust into her with a single stroke that had him buried to the hilt.

  He savored the moment. The connection between them grew, and for long moments, he stared into her eyes. She tightened her muscles around him, signaling her impatience. He smiled and thoroughly kissed her before. At that moment, he began to move.

  The tempo of their lovemaking quickened, each driving toward a satisfaction that would be so much sweeter if they could find it together. He tried to stay slow, knew they had all night to explore each other. And yet, the driving need for her body, to find completion with her, kept him thrusting until the wet sounds of sex and their sounds of pleasure filled the room.

  He couldn’t hold back. Beneath him she shuddered, tightening her fingers into his shoulders, her heels digging into the back of his legs. She was close, so close, as her keening cries attested. A moment later she came, the ripples of her body tightening around his pulling him over the edge with her, and he stiffened and shuddered. Her name was a cry of pleasure on his lips, his release a roar of pleasure that poured from his balls and raced up his spine. As the last vestiges of her orgasm faded away, so too, did his, and he slumped down, kissing her, needing the whole body contact as they came back down from their hard orgasms.

  He couldn’t let her go. He knew that now, just as he knew when the mission was over, when it was all said and done he’d have to let her go. Singing on stage might have been the highlight of his dreams. Being here with her, was more than that, and it brought a fulfillment he’d thought he never felt again. His body stirred and it took only a moment for him to remove his condom and roll a fresh one onto his still-hard cock, before he loved her again. And again.

  Chapter 10

  Rain awakened sore but satisfied. She watched Case sleep, the sheet bunched down around his hips. Red marks crossed his shoulders where she’d gotten a little too enthusiastic last night and she smiled as she tossed the covers aside and started her day. On her way back from the bathroom, wearing an old t-shirt and a pair of underwear, she grabbed her phone. It had remained on silent during the concert and she hadn’t thought about turning the volume back up once they’d gotten back to the hotel. Looking at the long string of profanity laced messages, she sighed. Not that she’d thought Roddie would take being fired well, but this fell far beyond the pale. Certainly it wasn’t professional behavior.

  She glanced at the bed and wondered about waking Case. He needed to see the messages. And yet, they’d be there when he awakened and they’d been up most of the night making love. Her body twinged at the memory and she smiled. She put her phone down and grabbed a fresh outfit from her suitcase. She really would have to deal with the carnage of her hotel room and probably at this point cancel it. She certainly didn’t see herself returning there. Not with her show ending before too long.

  The thought filled her with sadness. When the show ended, and this situation was resolved, Case and she would go their own separate ways. She made a mental note to put some clothes together for housekeeping to take to the laundry as she went to the bathroom to shower and change. Normally her morning routine was a solace, a way to find some calm before the day began. This morning, all she could think about was the pain that’d happen when Case left.

  Showered and dressed, she stepped into the main hotel room to find Case was awake and doing calisthenics on the floor by the bed. She stood and watched him for a moment, admiring his muscled male form. She started the in-room coffee maker, thinking she’d either have to get some more coffee from housekeeping or call to have a pot sent to the room. She sat down and turned on her computer to do the morning ritual of seeing what the news sites said about her, and figure out how to broach the topic of Roddie’s texts.

  Turned out she didn’t have to.

  “Let me shower and then we’ll talk. Your manager texted me overnight,” Case said. “We’ve got to make a plan. I get the feeling that things are going to come to a head here soon. Give me five?”

  “Yeah. That’d be great. I’m going to call room service. You want anything?”

  “Something with bacon and eggs would be great,” he said bent over his suitcase and pulling out clothes. By the time he disappeared into the bathroom, she had called down for two breakfas
t trays and a big pot of coffee.

  She remained hunched down over her laptop when Case signed for the food about fifteen minutes later. Only then did she close the lid, thankful to have an excuse not to read any more drivel. As she thought, not only had Roddie been talking to the industry magazines about her, warning any other manager away from her, but he’d also been scene in a major Nashville hotspot drunk and talking shit. Ugh. She should have fired him sooner.

  “You don’t look happy,” Case commented as he set her plate with a mushroom, veggie and cheese omelet down next to her. He poured her a cup of coffee adding a single half and half, just the way she liked it.

  “Thanks,” she said and sipped the beverage before she said anything else. Maybe the caffeine would hit her system and moderate her words. “Turns out Roddie was making a scene, even as he drunk texted us. He’s got a reputation. It won’t affect me or my search for a new manager. It’s just frustrating and though I’ve been approached for comment, I don’t want it to turn into a he said-she said either.” She ate several bites of her food. “It’ll blow over, I’m sure. By this time tomorrow some new scandal will have happened and people will forget all about me.” She shrugged. “So what’s our plan?”

  “You have one more show before a three night break and I want to check with the police to make sure we can clean up your hotel room. If so, then I’d like to do that tomorrow. I feel like if something’s going to happen, probably either be after tonight’s show or tomorrow. I want to talk to Dale, make sure he’s aware of the situation. If we beef up security now we’ll tip someone off. I’m sure of it. And we have more than enough manpower in place. When we go to the venue for rehearsals, I’m going to take a few moments to speak with the security. I don’t want anything to happen to you.”

  “I don’t want anything to happen to me either,” she replied, finishing her omelet. “Or you,” she added. “You really think this will be over that soon?”

  He nodded and swallowed his mouthful of food. “I do. If this is tied to the False Music group, these guys aren’t known for their patience.”

  “And then what? Will you go back to another case?” She drowned her orange juice, afraid she’d start crying on him right there. That wouldn’t do. Not at all.

  Case shrugged. “I suppose so, though I’m not sure what I’ll do. That’s why I was here to begin with. To fish and figure out things.”

  “Oh. I thought you’d had another case.”

  “I did.” The regretful tone told her more than he’d probably intended.

  She opened her mouth to ask him about it when the whump of the paper hitting the hotel room door stopped her. “Let’s see if there are any reviews of last night’s show,” she said.

  He went to the door, then brought the paper in. Turning to the entertainment section, he grinned. “New singer creates sparks with star Rain Chowden,” he read. “Country star Rain Chowden brought a special guest on stage with her last night. Though there aren’t any rumors of a romance ,it’s only a matter of time because Case Trenton’s deep baritone made the women in the audience swoon. When they looked at each other, there was no doubt they were probably in sync off stage as well, though as of press time the paper couldn’t reach either for comment. This comes on the heels of Rain’s firing of her longtime manager Roddie James and her primary security, Scott Parmeter. Local police reports show a break-in at the hotel where she had been staying and it appears her duet partner is also her new head of security. If he does his job the way he sings, then Rain Chowden is in good hands.” Case folded the paper. “There’s more but it just gives show times and ticket information. Do you really deal with things like this all the time? Ugh.”

  She laughed. She couldn’t help it. “That’s rather mild actually. And a pretty good review. I wouldn’t be surprised if you start having potential managers and promoters contacting you. When this is done, you might not need another case because you’ll be a star in your own right.” She hoped she hid her disappointment.

  Apparently not well because he put the paper down and went to her, kneeling by her chair. “I’m not going anywhere until the job is done. You don’t have to worry about that.”

  “I wasn’t,” she replied and leaned forward to kiss him in order to distract herself. I was worried about you leaving once the job was finished.

  Case didn’t think Rain worried about him ditching her for his newfound success as a singer, though it did completely change his plans for when the case was over. He also didn’t want to leave her. For now, he’d let Rain make that decision. He leaned into her kiss, wishing he could reassure her with his lips and body that he wasn’t going anywhere. He pulled back and stood. “I’m going to make some phone calls. Let me know when you’re ready to go.” After his meeting with Dale at the dry cleaners, he wondered if he should drive her to the theater himself.

  She started her morning yoga routine, and he took his phone, satisfied that she’d be safe in the room, and went down to the business center. It was empty, and he used his key to open it, then shut the door. He called Johnny. His assistant, Annie, picked up on the first ring.

  “Hey, Annie. How are things going there?” He asked.

  “Same as always. Johnny and Harley are in Minneapolis for the weekend. She’s performing a show. How can I help you?”

  Case gave her Dale’s information and asked if she could do a deeper dive than the cursory search they’d done when it’s appeared the driver had been loyal to her. He also alerted her to the manager’s texts and behavior, not that it worried him, but he felt a need to check in.”

  “You’re not fishing for a permanent assignment are you?” Annie asked with a chuckle.

  “A what?”

  “A permanent assignment. Seems like the cases we’re getting are more like hookups. I’m not working for a dating agency, you know?” She laughed. “You’ll have the results back this afternoon. And hey, we read the reviews and caught a clip of your performance last night on YouTube. You’re good. I mean all of our agents are, but I hadn’t heard you sing before. If you do make this a permanent assignment, you may have found your gig. There are worse things than singing duets with Rain Chowden. Okay. It’s all in the computer. I’ll let you know when it’s ready. Anything else?”

  “Not at this time.” He grinned because Annie’s no-nonsense demeanor was what made Treble Security run so smoothly.

  “Okay then. Get off my phone. I’ve got a couple other agents to check in with. Call us if you need anything.”

  “Thanks, Annie.” He hung up, then made another phone call. As expected, he got voice mail. “Hey, I just wanted to call and say hi. Make sure you were doing okay. See if there was anything you needed. You might not believe this, but I actually had a professional singing gig last night and got great reviews. I know dad didn’t want me to follow…” His voice grew rough. “Well you got my number. Love you, mom.” He swallowed hard and took a few moments to compose himself. Then, he hurried back to the hotel room, arriving just as Rain stepped out of the shower again. He wished he’d been in there with her, but then again, if he had been they probably wouldn’t reach the venue on time. He checked that his pistol was secure in its holster and grabbed his guitar, carrying hers as well.

  When they got to the parking lot the bus wasn’t there. Damn it, he should have looked out the window and checked or something. “I’ll drive you,” he offered, and when he caught the worried look in Rain’s eyes, he didn’t bother to hide his own concern.

  Once at the theater, he made sure Rain was on stage, then went to talk to security. Just as he was finishing, the bus pulled up. He strode from the building and rapped on the door. Dale opened it, his face flushed, his eyes darting back and forth.

  “What the hell? You weren’t at the hotel on time,” Case said as soon as the doors opened.

  “I know. I’m sorry. I’m truly sorry. I wouldn’t do anything to hurt Rain. You know that.” When Case didn’t reply, he added. “You got to believe me. I don’t believe Ra
in’s False Music. Not like Scott.” He pressed his lips together, clearly aware he’d let something slip.

  “What did you say?” Case asked as he stepped on board the bus.

  Dale shut the door behind him. “I’m sorry. I’ve got to do this.” He started the bus.

  “You don’t have to do anything.” Case reached for the lever to work the door. “Whatever’s going on we can talk about it and get this straightened out. I know you’re a good guy, Dale.”

  Dale pressed the accelerator.

  From within the bus the click of a gun sounded. “It’s too late for that,” Scott said. “Everything was just fine until you showed up. We’d get this tour cancelled. Robbie would cash in on the insurance. If a disgruntled fan took matters into his own hands, well…” He shrugged as if it’d be no big deal.

  Dale whipped the bus into traffic, sending Case sprawling against the rail. He grabbed it. Anything he might say would sound cliché. And if Scott and Dale were here, then perhaps Rain was safe. He reached into his pocket and swiped his cell phone and pressed the volume to vibrate. The bus headed down 76, presumably up to 65 to reach the interstate. That was if they didn’t kill him first.

  Scott pointed the gun at him. “Don’t be stupid, Case.”

  Case glanced at Dale. For all his apologies, he drove with a stony expression on his face. “What’s he got on you, Dale? Gambling debts? A mistress? Whatever it is—”

  “Shut up!” Scott said. “Take this exit like we planned, Dale. Don’t go trying to be a hero now.”

  “Yes, sir,” the driver replied and took an exit.

  Case reached into his pocket and checked his phone’s orientation. He swiped the screen once more, then pressed the icon he kept in the lower-left hand corner. No matter what happened, a signal had been sent to venue security to watch out for Rain and this encounter was being recorded.