Donna frowned, shaking her head slightly. “Why?”
“Because I noticed how faithful Cory is to you,” Mercy said simply. “Every night during that leg of the tour, I would watch all the guys with various girls … even Noah, until we finally got together. But Cory never once so much as looked at another girl. He is completely in love with you, Donna. And all those girls out there,” she said, pointing to the crowd. “Let them try, I've seen them do their best. But he shoots them down every time, because they're not you.”
The tears sprang to her eyes without warning, and she threw herself into Mercy's arms, hugging her as she felt the dampness on her cheeks. She didn't know why she was crying and she felt a little embarrassed, but she didn't care.
“Please tell me you're not making that up just to make me feel better,” she said, pulling away from Mercy and studying her eyes.
Mercy giggled at her. “I swear it is the honest truth. Ask Otis and Buzzy if you don't believe me. I'm sure they'll remember the conversation.”
Donna felt validated somehow. Tad Radcliffe was wrong about her and Cory's relationship. She had known that from the start, but for some reason having Mercy confirm what she already knew to be true just felt like a weight had been lifted. The strangling seed of doubt that she had let that asshole plant in her subconscious had just withered and died thanks to Mercy's words, and Donna was so grateful.
They watched the rest of the concert arm in arm, dancing and singing, and having a good time as Jagged Ivory brought the house down. And when their men finally came off the stage after the last encore, they had to separate them.
“You two looked awful hot over here, dancing during the show,” Noah said, taking Mercy's arm and pulling her to him. “It was very distracting!”
“But it's a good thing you looked so hot, 'cause you were so rowdy we thought we'd have to have security drag you both outta here,” Cory chimed in, taking Donna into his arms.
“We were just having a little fun,” Donna said, giving him a pretty pout.
“Oh, yeah?” Cory asked quietly, as he looked into her eyes. “Well, how about we go back to the hotel and have a little fun?”
“Yes, please! Bye, Mercy!” Donna's voice was excited and breathless, and she winked at her as she followed Cory toward the dressing room, and Mercy giggled as she waved after them.
“What's so funny?” Noah asked.
“Nothing. I'm just happy to see them together,” she said. Then she looked at him and asked, “Can we go back to the hotel and have a little fun?”
“No,” Noah answered. “We can go to the hotel and have a whole lot of fun!”
*****
“Oh, God! Cory!”
Donna cried out in blissful agony as he tortured her clit with his teeth, biting ever so gently as his tongue flicked across it again and again. She knelt on one knee over his face as her other foot helped her balance, and she clung to the headboard of the bed with one hand. She could feel his hands roaming over her butt and her thigh, and when her orgasm threatened to topple her over, his hands provided the support to keep her steady while he continued his unrelenting oral assault on her sex. When her body finally stopped pulsing from aftershocks, Cory loosened his grip and eased her down, helping her to lie back against the length of his body. Then he quickly slid out from under her.
“Turn over,” he commanded, helping her to do just that as he took her hips and helped her move.
Still panting and dazed, Donna found herself face down on the mattress, her feet grazing the headboard as she gripped the side of the mattress with one hand, and the other clutched at the sheets. She felt Cory's hands on her lower back and she moaned softly as he ran them from there down over her butt, gently squeezing her cheeks as he went. He moved on to the backs of her thighs, slowly massaging and caressing them. Then he took firm hold of each one and abruptly spread her legs wide, and she gasped lightly at the sudden movement.
Situating himself on his knees between her widely parted legs, Cory inched closer to her and slipped a hand beneath each of her thighs. Pulling her quickly to him, he lifted her ass up off of the bed behind her, bringing her sex to his groin. She yelped softly at the unexpected motion, and a second later when he entered her forcefully, Donna cried out once more.
He moved urgently, setting a steady, pounding rhythm as he fucked her roughly, and Donna could feel the tickle of his hair on her ass with each powerful thrust. Her feet caressed each of his arms as he held her tightly in place and drilled into her from behind, hitting that sweet spot inside her again and again, causing her hips to rotate to his rhythm as she moaned in ecstasy.
“Ah, fuck! Cory! Yes!
It didn't take long for her to climax again, her body writhing and convulsing as her inner muscles pulsed around his cock. He followed soon after, plunging deep into her and calling her name as his body stiffened.
Letting go of her legs, he collapsed on top of her and buried his head in the crook of her neck, inhaling deeply before lightly kissing her there. Then he pulled out of her and rolled over, panting loudly as he looked up at the ceiling.
“How many was that?” he asked, turning to look at her as he reached up and lightly ran his index finger across her face.
“Um … five,” she panted with a frown. “Or maybe six?” she said, as she brushed a blonde curl out of her eyes. “Yeah, I think it was six.”
“Six? No, no, no,” he panted. “No, your count is way off, baby. That had to be … I don't know, like seven or eight maybe. You're supposed to be keeping better track.”
“Me?”
“Yes, you,” he smiled at her. “How do you expect us to break our record if you don't keep an accurate count?”
“Well, if it's our record, how come I'm the only one counting?” she pouted.
“Because I'm the one doing most of the heavy lifting,” he smiled down at her as he leaned up on his elbow. “All you have to do is lie back and enjoy. And count!” He leaned down and lightly kissed the tip of her nose.
“Well, I'm sorry, baby,” she giggled. “But it's not easy keeping count when I forget the world over and over and over again!”
He laughed at her. “Good point. Maybe we should write it down as we go next time.”
“Mmm, see,” she said as she rolled over and straddled him, forcing him to lay back. “Now that's why I love you. You're always problem solving.”
Cory chuckled at her again as she ran her hands upward over his chest. And her golden curls fell down around her face as she looked down at him.
“You are so fucking beautiful, Donna,” he whispered as his hands traveled over her thighs and up to her waist. “Do you have any idea how much I've missed you, baby?”
“I've missed you too.”
“I was so happy to see you tonight,” he continued, reaching up to caress her face. “How long can you stay?” He saw a shadow cross her green eyes at his question, and he knew instinctively that he wasn't going to like her answer.
“I can only stay the night,” she said sadly, as she looked down at him.
Cory sighed and sat up, forcing her to relinquish her position. He crawled to the head of the bed and adjusted the pillows, then leaned back against them, looking into her eyes as she sat next to him.
“I'm sorry, Cory. But I have to get back to Toronto as soon as possible. See, I sort of … walked off the set today.”
Cory frowned at her. “What do you mean?”
Donna shrugged. “I couldn't take Radcliffe and his bullshit anymore, so I walked off the set. I told Ken that I needed twenty-four hours, just to be with you and renew my spirits. I begged him for twenty-four hours. He agreed to shoot around me the rest of the day and tomorrow morning. But in return, I have to be back by tomorrow afternoon.”
He caressed her face once more, touched that she had said she needed time with him in order to renew her spirits. But he didn't like the other part of what he'd heard.
“Baby, if that bastard is making you so miserable on the set
that you feel the need to get away from him, then why don't you just quit?”
“Because I can't quit, Cory,” she said emphatically, rolling her eyes at the suggestion. “I want to finish this movie!”
“You don't have to prove anything to that jackass.”
“I'm not trying to prove anything to anyone but myself,” she answered. “I want to finish this movie for me.”
He studied her eyes for a long moment. Then he smiled slightly, taking her hand and giving it a light squeeze. “Okay.”
She returned his smile, leaning in to kiss his lips.
“You know, while we have a little time together, we really should talk about what's been going on,” he said quietly, still holding her hand and lightly rubbing his thumb over her knuckles.
She sighed and rolled her eyes once more as she climbed off the bed and picked up her discarded tank top from the floor. “Please, I really don't want to talk about the silly tabloid crap and the fake kiss and Radcliffe. It's not worth wasting our time on, Cory,” she said as she pulled the top over her head and climbed back onto the bed beside him.
“Oh, I agree. Radcliffe is not worth our time,” he said, reaching for her. He pulled her into his arms and brought her close, kissing her temple. “But, there are other things we need to talk about, babe.”
His voice was low and serious, and Donna could hear that same uneasy falter that she had heard there before. Something about it frightened her a little, but she knew she had to let him say what was on his mind. Settling into his side, she looked up at him. “Like what?”
Cory frowned, studying a spot on the unattractive bed sheets as he wondered where and how to begin. He knew that they needed to talk about the whole starting a family thing. But they also needed to clear the air about all the time spent apart, and how it was affecting their relationship. He took a deep breath as he lightly ran his hand over her arm as he held her.
“I'm not really sure where to begin,” he said truthfully.
“Just tell me what's on your mind,” Donna said softly, thinking about Mercy's advice.
“Well, I guess the time apart has become more of an issue for us than it has been in the past,” he stated cautiously. “During Jagged Ivory's last tour, you weren't making movies. You had more of a set filming schedule on your show. So, when you got free time, you joined the tour and traveled with me. That works well for us. And I know that you're really enjoying this movie thing but … I just feel like things have been so stressed between us lately, you know?”
Donna nodded her head. “Yeah. I suppose they have.”
“I mean, I know the Radcliffe situation didn't help,” Cory continued. “But, it's not the real issue. I don't know … I just feel like things will get better once shooting on your movie is over and you don't have to be gone so much. Then you can travel with me again.”
Donna cut her eyes at him and then stared blankly at the wall for a minute. Something about what he'd just said didn't sit right with her, and she shook her head slightly as she mulled it over.
“What?” he asked, trying to read her expression.
She sighed and rolled her eyes once more. “I just … I don't understand why it has to be my career that gets pushed to the background.”
Cory frowned at her. “Pushed to the background? That's not what I meant.”
“Isn't it?” she asked, finally meeting his gaze. “I mean, you don't want me to pursue a movie career so that I'll be available to travel with the band while you're on tour. That sounds like pushing my career to the background to me!”
“Donna, that's not …”
“Well how about you take some time off from Jagged Ivory and travel with me for a change?” she asked him sarcastically. “Come to Toronto with me tomorrow! How does that sound?”
Instantly pissed, Cory stood up and stalked around the room. Bending down, he picked up his briefs from the floor and began pulling them on.
“Yeah. It sort of sounds like pushing your career to the background, doesn't it?” Donna snapped.
“It sounds like bullshit, Donna!” Cory fired back as he glared at her. “It sounds like yet another thing that you're backpeddling on without talking to me about it first!”
“Another thing? What are you talking about? I haven't backpeddled on anything!”
“Oh, the hell you haven't!” he practically yelled. “Okay. You know what? First of all … you knew that Jagged Ivory was on the rise when we met. You knew that the band always tours with every new album. That's how it's done, Donna! I can't take time off to go watch you shoot a movie!”
“Benji took time off,” she said flippantly, instantly regretting using Benji's misfortune in her argument. She looked away contritely.
“Benji was in rehab! And the band suffered for it!”
“Oh, and God forbid the band should suffer, right!”
“Damn right!” he yelled, his face reddening in anger. “This band is my family. And you knew that when we met too! But secondly … yeah, you're backpeddling. First on having a baby, and now on settling down.” He frowned as he paused a second. Then he laughed slightly. “But now that I've said that out loud, I guess it's really just all the same issue for you, isn't it? Do you even want to start a family with me?” he said, asking the one question that filled him with the most fear.
Donna looked at him with wide, scared eyes. “What are you talking about? You know I want to start a family with you!”
“Really? 'Cause it doesn't feel that way, Donna,” Cory replied. “It feels like you keep changing the plan at every turn. I've got whiplash trying to keep up!”
“That's not fair,” she said loudly. “We talked about it. You agreed to wait two years!”
“Yeah, you're right. We did talk about it,” Cory agreed. “Before we got married. And you agreed to having a baby right away! But that changed the second we said 'I do.'”
“Cory …”
“Now you don't want to settle down and concentrate on us at all? You want to pursue some blockbuster movie career instead!”
“Cory! I agreed to have a baby, and I still want that for us! I just asked for a little time,” she yelled tearfully. “And you agreed.”
“I agreed because I was blindsided,” he shot back. “We talked about our future before we got married! We made a plan together! Then you changed that plan without telling me. You knew that you wanted to concentrate on your career when we talked about kids. So why didn't you just tell me then?” She said nothing as he stood looking down at her. “Why Donna?” he shouted.
“Because I was scared,” she yelled as the tears rolled down her face. “I was scared, okay? I know how much you want a baby, Cory. And I want to give you that. I want us to have two or three healthy babies with your beautiful blue eyes and your laugh. I want to watch you fall completely in love with our baby girl, and see you teach our little boy how to play the guitar! I want that just as badly as you do! I just want to give us a little more time first. Yes, to pursue my movie career! And yes … I should have had the guts to tell you that sooner, and I'm sorry I didn't. That was a mistake on my part. But please, don't think that I don't want us to have a family, because I do! It means everything to me.”
Cory ran both his hands through his hair as he took a deep breath and let it out slowly. He wasn't sure where to go from here. She said their priorities were still the same – starting a family. So, why didn't it feel that way?
“Donna …” He didn't continue. He just stood with his hands on his hips and a bewildered frown on his face.
“We're still on the same page, Cory,” she said quietly, wiping her damp cheeks. “We still want the same things. I'm just asking for a little bit of time. I just want the opportunity to have it all. Other actresses have it all. Why can't I? Why can't we build two incredibly amazing careers and a family? Can't we support each other in that? Can't we find a way to make that work for us?”
“So what you're saying is that … you think I'm being selfish?” Cory asked quietly.
“No! I didn't say that,” Donna sighed. “That's your conscience talking, not mine.”
Cory smirked at her, shaking his head. But maybe she was right. Maybe he was feeling like a selfish jerk. He sighed once more and then slowly climbed back onto the bed and settled in, facing her. With his index finger, he reached out and slowly began to trace the veins on the back of her hand.
“We can build two high-profile careers and a family, Donna. We can support each other, and have it all, and be this amazingly successful couple. But we can't do shit if we don't talk to each other, baby,” he said looking up into her eyes. “You say we're still on the same page, but we're not. We stopped being on the same page the day you let me think one thing about our future, when you knew that you were thinking something else. We can't build the life you want with that kind of communication.”
“The life we want,” she whispered softly. He didn't respond as he held her gaze, his finger still lightly touching the back of her hand. It was distracting and sweet all at the same time. “I really am sorry for not talking to you about wanting to wait. I just didn't want to upset you.”
“Good job,” he answered flatly.
“I know! I messed up, okay?” she said, running her hands through her hair in frustration. “You're right. It was stupid. I should have known better. I don't know what I was thinking! But can't we move on from here now that everything's out in the open?”
He stared at her for a long moment and then laughed slightly, shaking his head. But the laughter didn't make his eyes sparkle. “We have to move on from here,” he said looking at her intently. “'Cause if we don't, then we've got a real problem. But going forward Donna … you cannot keep things from me. Not when it's going to affect both of our lives. That's not fair to me and it's not fair to our marriage. The marriage we promised was going to be our priority, remember?”
“I remember,” she whispered.
He sighed then, suddenly feeling bone tired. Without another word, he flicked off the light and lay down. And he could feel Donna moving beside him as she slowly lay down too, pulling the covers up over them. They lay in silence for several minutes, their bodies as isolated from one another as their thoughts.
The Essential Jagged Ivory (Jagged Ivory Boxed Set) Page 32
