by Ciz, Alley
Each time she’s taken the stage tonight, she’s owned it. She doesn’t just sing the song; she acts it, feels it, becomes it.
If this is how she is during glorified karaoke, I have zero doubt in my mind she will win that Tony. Opening night for her show can’t get here soon enough.
I just hope my family will be enough of a support system to have her forgetting about the lack of her own.
The opening strains of the song begin with Mels and Holly sitting with their respective pianist. Mels starts, singing the first section before Holly takes over.
As the song builds and they sing about all the things they’ve been in life, they rise from the benches, circling the pianos to the front of the stage, each placing their microphones in the stand on their side.
Earlier in the night, Holly was intimidated to sing with Mels since she’s a professional, but she holds her own, and you can see how Mels encourages her.
On the second round of the chorus, they lift their mics again, meeting in between the pianos, getting lost in the song and playing off each other.
Mels has a hand to her chest, eyes closed as her knees bend to bounce.
Back and forth they sing. The audience is enthralled, cheering them on, and as Mels sucks in a final breath and belts out the longest, strongest note to end the song, the entire bar is on their feet.
“Well shit.” I hear Jamie curse as the applause dies down.
“Sorry to say this, Jam”—Sammy puts a comforting arm around his husband’s shoulders in a rare display of PDA—“but I think you lost.”
“I ain’t mad about it.”
“Well, damn.” Tiny takes the stage, the lights shining off his bald head, keeping the girls up there. “When our resident hockey player said he was bringing a ringer tonight, I wasn’t sure what to expect.”
He waits as a fresh wave of applause ripples through the packed audience.
“For those of you who have had the honor of being at The Duel on a night the famed Birds of Prey battle it out against the Storm contingent, you know we are at the point in the evening where we need to determine a winner.”
Around me, every member of BoP vamps it up for the crowd, and Tiny’s deep chuckle can be heard through the speakers.
“If you think BoP wins the night, let’s hear it.” Tiny cups a hand around his ear and leans forward.
Clapping and hollering ring out for a few moments. As it dies down, Tiny corrals the ladies to his side. “And if you think these two fine ladies”—he waves a hand over their heads—“showed the rock stars how it’s really done…”
He doesn’t even finish the sentence before people are on their feet, cheering and whooping in an overwhelming show of support.
“Yeah, I’d go with the beautiful women too.” Tiny winks, and I bite the inside of my cheek to keep from laughing. “Like we end any night here at The Duel when these nutsos grace us with their presence”—he shoots a glance at our table—“it’s time to give my guys a break while we enjoy a little ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’.”
Mels gives me a curious look as we all join them on stage. “Um…”
I wrap an around her waist and bend to place a kiss on her neck, breathing in her sweet bubblegum scent. “You’ll see, Sweet Potato.” My hand skims down her arm then I link our fingers. “Sit with me.”
I lead her to the bench of the white piano, crack my knuckles, and stretch my fingers over the keys. Across from us, Andy and Ian take the bench at the black piano.
“Jase?” Mels looks at me like I have two heads.
“Hope you know your Queen, baby.”
“Of course I do.” Her gaze drops to my hands then back to my face. “You…you play the piano?”
“Oh, baby.” I lean in, my lips brushing the shell of her ear as I speak. “I have all sorts of hidden talents.” I pull back and meet her hazy eyes. “Don’t worry—I’ll show you a bunch of them when we get home.” I emphasize my declaration with a wink.
That blush I adore makes an appearance.
Our time at the bar might be coming to an end, but the night is far from over.
Chapter Thirty-Two
“Did you have fun tonight?” Jase trails kisses along my neck, helping me out of my coat.
I’m buzzing. This night has already been more than anything I’ve ever experienced.
“I did. I can’t believe I’ve never heard of it before.”
“The Duel is one of the city’s best kept secrets.”
It’s not the only one with a secret. You can’t avoid it forever, Mels. You’ll end up with just your parents.
I shake off those negative thoughts. This night has been storybook perfect, and I don’t want anything to taint it.
I wrap my arms around his neck and push up onto the tips of my toes to kiss him for all I’m worth.
“I’m not taking any chances,” he says when I break our kiss at the sound of the lock clicking. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him use the deadbolt before. “We’ve had more than our fair share of interruptions. Not today, Satan.”
I drop my head to his shoulder, giggling. He’s so ridiculous.
Suddenly I’m in his arms, my legs automatically hooking around his waist, and we’re on the move. I have no idea how we make it to his room without wiping out.
He continues to carry me until we stop next to the massive bed facing floor-to-ceiling windows that match those in the living room. I slide down, rubbing against every one of his delicious muscles along the way.
He groans, rocking his hips into me.
“Now…” His hands slip under my sweater, cupping my shoulders, and he nudges it to fall until it pools at my feet. “I want nothing more than to spend the rest of the night burying myself inside you, but I need to know if you’re ready to take this step.”
I press onto my toes again, circling my arms around his neck and threading my fingers into the hair at the back of his head. “I think the real question is are you ready? You talked a big game while you were away this week—are you sure you can live up to the expectations you’ve set?”
His smile turns wolfish, and the flutter in my belly makes me wonder if maybe I’ve bitten off more than I can chew.
“Oh, baby.” His eyes darken to that familiar green. “I’m gonna rock your world.”
Projecting more confidence than I feel, I nip at the underside of his jaw and whisper, “Prove it.”
I expect to be thrown on the bed and ravished, but—like he’s consistently been doing—he surprises me.
As if he has all the time in the world, he slowly circles me, curling his body around me from behind. One of his feet taps against one of mine until I spread them and widen my stance. He cups a hand over my hip, pulling me tighter into him, the hard length of him pressing into me.
I feel him everywhere.
Even through our clothes, I can make out the bumps and ridges of his abdominals as he holds me so tight. I breathe in the familiar scent of soap and ice as my hair is brushed to the side, his lips finding the sensitive spot revealed on the back of my neck.
An electric current zaps down my spine and I instinctively arch my back, my ass rubbing against the erection I want inside me.
Jase groans, his teeth nipping at my back almost in warning, but as he continues to trail kisses, I can’t stop the pop of my lower body. The contrast between his soft lips and the scruff of his five o’clock shadow is too much.
He licks across my pulse point, my heart rate pounding beneath the drag of his tongue.
“Jase,” I plead—for what, I’m not sure.
“I’m just getting started, baby.” An arm drapes over my shoulder and his hand disappears inside the V-neck of my shirt. With zero hesitation, he pushes the lace cup of my bra down, cupping my breast in his hand. My nipple pebbles beneath his fingers as he thumbs it to life before repeating the same maddening process on the other one until both breasts are free from the lace but supported by the underwire.
The hand on my hip tightens its grip to
the point of bruising.
The fingers of the hand inside my shirt stretch until he has both my nipples in his maddening caress.
I guess it’s a good thing Jase calls me baby, because with the way I can’t stop the arch of my back and the movement of my ass, I’m pretty much dirty dancing on his dick.
I try to spin in his arms, but he stops me.
“Jase.” I let out a frustrated growl.
“It’s still my turn.” He chuckles into my neck when I growl again, the vibration of the sound making my clit beg for the attention it’s not getting.
“How is that fair?”
I don’t even care that I sound like a toddler throwing a tantrum. Though our phone sex was hot, I hated that I couldn’t touch him. Being denied now is the worst form of torture.
“I never said anything about playing fair, baby.” He removes his hand from my shirt to peel it from my body. “But I will go tit for tat with you.”
The pile of clothes on the floor continues to grow as his sweater is added.
“That’s better,” he says on a sigh, the bare skin of his torso burning mine with each brush of my heaving chest.
The cold air of the room makes my already hard nipples tighten further.
“God, these are even more perfect in person.” He cups a breast in each hand, lifting them as if testing the weight.
I moan, my head falling back on his chest. He hasn’t even touched me below the belt and I’m close to coming.
The ball bearing of his piercing drags down my neck as he moves his hands. Instead of going for the clasp of my bra, he gets to work on my jeans.
The button opens with a flick of his fingers, and I can’t hear the hiss of the zipper over the pounding of the blood in my ears.
Then he stops.
He leaves my jeans on.
He. Leaves. Them. On.
“Jase.”
He chuckles again, and if I didn’t want to use it so bad, I would totally punch him in the junk.
Finally, finally I feel pressure at the top of my slit, but like the night I didn’t get my happy ending, he maddeningly keeps his touch over my underwear.
He pushes, the lips of my pussy parting around the tip of his finger as the lace of my panties abrades the freed hardened nub.
He reaches my entrance, circling over my underwear then retracing his path.
Up.
Down.
I latch onto his hard thighs as he uses his other hand to pull on the back of my thong, tightening the front until I feel my lips part around the lace the same way they did around his finger.
I’m burning up.
Goose bumps break out over every inch of my skin.
I’m on the verge of tears, but he continues to lazily drag his finger over me.
Up.
Down.
Figure eights dance along my clit and the flutters inside begin.
At my entrance again, he presses inside, and I hear the delicate fabric rip as he takes it with him.
I explode, my orgasm crashing through me.
“Fuck, baby.” He bites my shoulder as I grind against him with his finger still inside me.
“Jase.”
“I got you, baby.”
My legs buckle, but before I can collapse on the floor in a pleasure-filled heap, he scoops me into his arms and lays me out on his bed.
He looms over me, and I’m finally able to get my hands on his magnificent body.
He groans as I drag them down his torso, thumbing his nipples the way he did mine.
I push up to capture his lips, pinching his piercing between my teeth when it whirls inside my mouth.
There is zero hint of gold in his eyes when we pull apart.
“Jase…I need you inside me.”
“I know.” He presses back, his biceps flexing as he lowers himself. “But not yet.”
“Jason,” I warn.
“Full-name me all you want, baby.” He pulls one boot then the other from my feet. “My MD isn’t going anywhere near your sweet, sweet pussy until I complete my hat trick first.”
Chapter Thirty-Three
I may be a defender on the ice, but in bed I’m 100% offense.
As much as I enjoyed how Melody’s legs looked in her painted-on jeans all night, it’s time for them to go.
My own jeans are a painful restriction, doing their best to choke the life from my dick, but if I’m going to succeed in my hat trick goals without blowing like I’m back in high school, they need to stay on.
Kneeling between Melody’s legs, I take a moment to appreciate the vision spread out before me.
That blush I love so much covers her down to her navel, and as much as my dick would protest, I could spend the rest of the night just looking at her.
I could, but I’m not going to. I skim my hands up her calves, cup her behind the knees, and hook her legs around my hips. My control comes close to snapping when she uses the strength in those dancer legs of hers to pull me closer.
I place one more hard kiss on her mouth before setting out on my mission.
I nip and suck down the strap of her bra, letting it finally fall from her shoulder. I kiss and lick over the curve of her breast then take her nipple into my mouth.
She moans and arches up off the bed as I roll my tongue ring over the peak then trap it between the ball bearing and my tongue.
Her hands clutch at my hair, and I couldn’t care less if I lose any of it as I move to her other breast.
Her core writhes under me, trying to find relief against the blatantly obvious bulge in my pants. “Nice try, baby.” I widen my stance just enough to keep her lower body suspended away from mine. “You’ll come from me riding you, not the other way around.”
“Jason.”
I can’t help but grin at the use of my full name. Usually I hate it, but knowing she’s using it because she’s out of control makes it hot.
My scalp burns as I travel down the length of her body.
Nip.
Suck.
Bite.
A drag of my piercing.
Over and over I continue my slow torment.
“You have the prettiest pussy.” I hover over it, taking in the way the bare lips frame the white lace I’ve pulled between them.
“How would you know?”
“I’m looking right at it, baby.” I lick a line from her entrance to the top of her slit. I spread a hand over her belly, easily spanning it, to hold her in place.
“Yeah, but—” Her nails scratch my shoulders, looking for purchase. “You can’t really see it since you refuse to take off my underwear.”
Looks like my little sweet potato is spicy.
Ignoring the taunt, I latch my mouth onto her pussy—lace panties and all—and don’t remove it until she’s coming for the second time.
Without giving her the chance to come down, I tug the fabric until it rips, finally removing them like she wants.
My tongue, teeth, and lips continue to work her. Without giving her a reprieve, I add two fingers to the mix, the walls of her pussy still fluttering from her orgasm, and push her back to the edge for number three.
“Jase. Jase. Jase,” Melody chants, and I pump my fingers inside her.
“Jase.”
Pump.
“Jase.”
Pump.
“Jase.”
I pull her clit between my teeth and roll the ball bearing over it, and it’s time for hats to rain down around us as I complete my hat trick.
I start to slow my movements to help bring her down, but she tugs on my hair again and this time I know I’ve lost a few strands.
“If you don’t fuck me right now, I’m going across the hall to see if Cali is up for the job,” she threatens.
I growl and haul her to me. “That’s not the least bit funny, Mel-o-dy.”
She laughs, not intimidated by me at all. “Then stop teasing me and make me yours already.”
I shift back to stand, removing my jeans and retrievin
g a condom from my wallet, the bedside drawer too far away.
I grind my molars to keep from spilling inside the rubber. Protection in place, I blanket her body with mine, hooking a leg over my hips and wrapping my arms under her back, sliding home in one push she’s so wet.
“Oh, baby.” I pull back and push in again. “You’ve been mine since the night we met.” Pull back. Push in. “This only binds you to me more.”
From the glint in her dark eyes, nothing else needs to be said.
We move together in sync like it’s the hundredth time we’ve come together this way and not the first. As I fill the condom, semen isn’t the only thing I’ve lost to this pink-haired beauty. I’m pretty sure my heart has followed like a BOGO special.
Chapter Thirty-Four
The sound of voices filters into my consciousness and I stretch my sore muscles. Man, I thought Zoey and her choreography were tough on my body, but they have nothing on Jase Donnelly in the bedroom.
If I’m this wrecked after sleeping in, I can’t imagine how he’s surviving his morning skate.
Morning skate. Shit!
I shoot up, lifting the sheets to cover my naked chest. I grab my phone, and sure enough, Jase shouldn’t be back from the Storm’s practice facility yet—so why do I hear voices from inside the apartment? Did I really have to date a guy who gives out the code to his place like it’s a Playbill?
Spotting my overnight bag on the dresser, I remind myself to give my boyfriend an extra kiss for the thoughtful gesture.
I quickly get dressed in a pair of leggings, a sports bra, and my loose-fitting long-sleeved ‘There WILL be drama (and singing and dancing and music and jazz hands…)’ shirt. What? I’m a theater nerd.
Teeth brushed and hair tamed in a messy bun, I take a deep breath and brace myself for who I might find on the other side of the door.
It’s probably one of the Covenettes.
Yeah, that’s it. No big deal.
I can hear multiple voices as I make my way down the hallway, and it also sounds like someone turned on the television.
