Blush

by Anne Mercier

  I suck in a breath as I meet his molten gaze. An aroused Jesse is temptation I love giving in to.

  “No time.“

  I groan and pout at his statement.

  “Cupcake, you're not really up for it right now anyway. The minute you exert yourself at all, the blood is going to get flowing and your hand is going to start throbbing.“ He kisses my nose.

  I sigh. “Maybe. I could just lay there and you could do all the work.“

  He grins wryly. “Uh-huh. We tried that once. You don't do passive in bed, baby.“

  “I could try.“

  He stares into my eyes, looking deep and I wonder what he sees.

  “We still need to talk, Luce.“

  I nod. “I know. Just not right now, okay?“

  He nods. “But today. I don't want to have anything bad hanging over us. It'll only get worse if we ignore it.“

  I lean into his chest and wrap my arm around him. “When did you get so smart?“

  He shrugs. “I guess you must be rubbing off on me.“

  I giggle and snort and he chuckles.

  “Such a naughty girl,“ he laughs and spanks my ass. I gasp and my gaze flies up to meet his.

  “No fair. You're going to make me wet.“

  It's his turn to suck in a breath. “Baby, if I make you wet and worked up, you know I'll take care of you. You'll come at least twice.“

  “Jesse,“ I whisper.

  He slides a hand between us, down the front of my pants, beneath my panties, and delves a finger into my slick folds. He slips it further back toward my entrance and groans softly when he finds me already wet.

  I reach down with my good hand and find him already hard.

  “After we eat, we're going to fuck. You're going to let me do all the work so you don't hurt yourself and I'm going to make you come on my tongue and on my cock.“

  I suck in a breath as does someone behind me. I turn to find Sera standing there, her eyes wide, mouth open.

  “Well then. I know I'll be riding on the other bus later or having Xander turn the music up.“

  I snort, noticing Jesse's hand is still in my pants.

  “We're ready,“ Sera tells us.

  I nod. “Okies. I'm hungry.“

  She nods and leaves the room. Jesse pulls his hand from between my thighs and licks his fingers. Jesus. He's so damn sexy I can't help but get wetter just watching him.

  He leans down, his mouth hovering over my ear. “I'm going to fuck you so good, baby.“

  “I have no doubt.“

  He nods then picks me up. I wrap my legs around his waist, arms around his neck and give him a look of confusion. He shrugs.

  “These pills say they can make you dizzy so it's better to be safe than sorry.“

  I put my hands, well, hand and cast on either side of his face and kiss him softly.

  “We better go.“

  I nod. My stomach growls and I grin.

  “Greasy cheeseburger with fries and a chocolate malt. Heaven for my tummy,“ I tell Jesse as we head through the bus to meet the rest of the crew.

  “Anything you want, babe.“

  “Yeah?“ I ask.

  He nods.

  “I'll hold you to that.“

  “You do that,“ he tells me with a wink.

  “Xan my man,“ I sing-song.

  “Luce my goose.“

  “That's fucked. I want a nickname,“ Meggie complains.

  “Meggie beggie.“ I snort.

  “I don't think so,“ she tells me.

  “Meggie… Meggie… uh. I'll think on it,“ Xander says stumped. I shrug. No clue.

  “Serafina has a weinah,“ Jace chants which gets him a punch in the arm.

  “Jace often gets sprayed with mace,“ Sera snickers.

  “Likely true,“ Trace adds.

  “Uh,“ Sera begins, “you know that Trace, Jace, and mace all rhyme, right?“

  “Sugar, no one maces Trace. And my rhyme would be something like Styx brings you to heaven with his licks.“

  “Please,“ Meggie rolls her eyes and Trace chuckles.

  “Are we back in grade school?“ Ben asks.

  “You want to be my teacher?“ Sera wiggles her eyebrows, rubbing up against Ben seductively.

  Instead of playing like they always do, he pulls her up to his chest and stops moving. He leans forward, his lips nearly touching hers but not quite. Sera's gasp is audible.

  “I'll teach you anything you want, darlin'. Anytime you're ready.“

  I know my mouth is hanging open when Jesse reaches up with one finger to lift my jaw closed.

  “That was so fucking hot,“ Meggie sighs. “I'm a little wet.“

  I laugh out loud.

  “From just that?“ Trace tsks. “Megs, I think me and you need some alone time. I'll help you with your wetness.“

  “Mmm, you're the whole package, aren't ya, Trace? Tall, good looking, eyes the color of emeralds, sweet, sexy, and I think we'll have to meet up later to see if the rest of the ‘package' is as good as I think it is.“

  “Holy fuck,“ Xander murmurs.

  “What is going on here?“ I ask no one in particular.

  “You just worry about yourself there, Little Bit,“ Kennedy tells me. “Seems to me you've got enough to handle.“

  Lord knows he's right. I certainly do. So I just let out a really pathetic grunt.

  “Speaking of,“ Celeste interrupts. “We should talk about this Blush campaign. I know you want Jake Ingrassia, that good-looking kid—“

  “Very talented, good-looking kid who worked in Mad City with the ever magnificent Milo Ventimiglia.“

  “I never heard of Mad City,“ Jace tells me as we enter the café.

  “That's because it's not out yet.“

  “Then how do you know about it?“

  “Um,“ I say, looking down at Jesse's shirt, picking off a nonexistent piece of lint, “I saw on Twitter while they were filming, Milo posted updates. One day he had one about people not falling asleep on the set and it had Jake's picture. Obviously the kid's good if he's working with Milo, so I reached out to him. Congratulated him, let him know he's awesome, you know.“ I shrug. “Every now and again I'll tweet him. He's a good kid with a good head on his shoulders.“

  “Huh. So all this came about through your everyday stalking of Milo?“ Jace asks.

  “I don't stalk him. I merely follow his Twitter posts. That is not stalking. If I were to show up at his house one day and take a shower just because I think I'm entitled like that weird chick did to Keanu Reeves, then you could call me a stalker. But reading his tweets and responding and retweeting once in a while? Not stalking,“ I sing-song.

  “Whatever you say,“ Jace replies.

  “You want to know about stalking?“ I ask and ask Jesse for his phone. He hands it to me and I hesitate. I can't help but remember the last time I asked to use his phone and got a very unpleasant surprise. I raise my eyes to his, his full of remorse. He reaches up a finger and trails it down my cheek.

  “I should check to see what's being said about last night,“ I murmur.

  We're seated in a larger area in the back and when Jesse slides into the booth, he pulls me after him. He rests his back against the wall and stretches a leg across the seat. I rest my back against his chest. Everyone piles in at the tables and booths around us.

  “I checked, Lucy,“ Celeste says. “Amazingly they're all positive.“

  “Get out.“

  She nods. “Seriously.“

  I sit back in disbelief. “Huh.“

  “I was checking around, Luce,“ Ethan begins, “the videos of you punching that bitch in the face are being very well received, the views are in the millions and there are at least a dozen different ones.“

  I grin. “Yeah?“

  “Hell yeah, Rocky,“ Jace cheers.

  “I'm having some jerseys made for us, babe,“ Jesse tells me. “Celeste said they should be here in a week or so.“

  “What kin
d of jerseys?“ I ask.

  “They're a surprise but I guarantee you're going to love them,“ he tells me and taps a finger to my nose.

  “I saw 'em, Luce,“ Xander nods, “they're kick ass and fun as hell.“

  “Sweet.“ I'm excited. Matching jerseys with my hubby isn't something I imagined I'd ever wear, but it sounds like it's going to be about more than just wearing the jerseys.

  I take a minute to look around. This café is awesome. Red and black and white checkered.

  “Hey,“ I murmur aloud. “Falling Down color theme.“

  “Dude,“ Xander exclaims. “It's a good omen. This tour is totally going to be a BFD.“

  Cage rolls his eyes.

  “I was saying…“ I find Twitter on Jesse's phone and sign in to my account. “C'mere those who want to see true stalker behavior.“ I snicker when they all crowd around, then turn around so they can all see the screen. I click on the lady's name, then show all her tweets and retweets. Every single one is of Milo.

  “Fuck, how many are there on there?“ Ethan asks.

  I shrug. “I counted one day and it was only morning-time and she had twenty-six tweets and retweets. All about Milo, of course.“

  “Of course,“ Kennedy says dryly. “Christ, what do you do with that?“

  “I don't know,“ I shrug. “He hasn't done anything about it so he mustn't deem it a threat, otherwise he'd have blocked her.“

  “Or he hasn't noticed,“ Sera adds.

  “There's that,“ I nod.

  “Someone should tell him,“ Meggie announces.

  “Go for it. I'm not doing it. He'll think I'm one of them too when really I'm not. This woman befriended me and when I noticed she was off her rocker, I backed way off.“

  “Good plan, Cupcake,“ Jesse agrees, pulling me back against his chest.

  Cage shakes his head. “That's crazy.“

  I shrug. “I guess it comes with the territory?“ It's more of a question than a statement. “I can't imagine. I mean, on some level I get it. People feel close to celebrities because they're on display so much, but what they don't realize is the roles they play are just that: roles. That's not who those people are. Not at all.“

  Sera leans forward, looking at her phone. “I can see here that a lot of them refer to him as Jess or Peter. That's pretty wonky. He's not the person he portrayed in the fictional TV shows.“

  Cage crosses his arms. “You and I know that but there are people out there who can't quite grasp the reality of it all. They think because an actor plays a role, that they are like that person, that they aren't playing some other personality but their own.“

  “Part of why Lucy walked away,“ Sera sighs.

  I nod. “Before it got to that level.“

  “I hate to break it to you, Luce,“ Ben pats my shoulder, “you're already at that level and it's bound to get worse now.“

  “Lovely.“

  The waitress walks up, her mouth agape. I imagine we're quite a sight and a shock.

  “Hi Mist,“ I greet, reading her nametag.

  “Hi,“ she clears her throat. “Y'all will have to excuse me for a few minutes until I adjust. I'm just a little star struck.“

  “Ah, darlin', it's okay. We're not going anywhere for a while,“ Ben tells her, patting her arm. I slap his arm. “What?“ he asks.

  “Stop it. She's already having trouble breathing.“

  Mist nods.

  “Here, Sugar,“ Celeste stands up and takes the pad from Mist. “I'll help take the orders while you adjust, alright?“

  Mist nods again, eyes still wide, floating over all of us.

  “Gosh, Mist, your hair color is gorgeous,“ Spenser compliments.

  Her hand flies up to her lovely blonde locks. “Thank you.“

  “I'm Spenser Clarity. I, along with Carmen and Simone here, take care of this crew's hair, makeup, and wardrobe so I know amazingly natural hair color when I see it. And the highlights, even while it's up in a bun like that… fantastic.“

  “Oh, wow,“ she blushes. “Thanks.“

  “Here you go, sugar.“ Celeste startles Mist. “All orders taken.“

  “Whoa, you did a great job,“ Mist tells her.

  Celeste shrugs a shoulder. “I've done my fair share of waitressing. I commend you for holding it together, not squealing, or passing out on the floor. I've seen it done and it's not pretty. You're doing great.“

  Mist blushes. “I'll get your orders in and bring you your drinks.“

  “Thank you, Mist.“ Jesse smiles and Mist freezes. Yeah, I get what she's feeling. Those dimples could render even the most feministic female speechless.

  Xander pats her arm. “He's just a guy and I'm much better looking.“ He winks and Mist blushes again.

  “I'll be right back.“

  “You're terrible, Xan my man.“

  “What? It woke her from the Kingston trance, didn't it?“

  “True. Babe, you need to realize those dimples are lethal.“

  Jesse chuckles. “I can't help it. Should I put tape over them?“

  “Little hot pink circles,“ Meggie teases, then frowns. “Never mind. He'd still look lethal.“

  I nod. “Likely.“

  “Getting back to the original topic,“ Celeste interrupts. “You wanted to put a stop to the Blush Baby fad. We've got the guy we can contact—Jake, that you picked. We just need to find a female.“

  “Hmm,“ I murmur as Mist sets the drinks in front of us. “Have we been getting any fan mail? Email?“

  “Of course.“

  “Can I see your…whatever that thing is you've got there?“ I ask.

  “My iPad?“ she asks.

  “Yeah. Maybe open it up to the emails so I can scan through. We may find the female Blush Baby in there.“

  “Oh,“ she says, firing up her tablet. “Good plan.“ She hands it to me and I start scrolling down. “Damn. I've got some haters.“

  “Screw them, baby,“ Jesse kisses the top of my head then leans over my shoulder to read through a few with me. “What's this one?“ he asks, pointing one out.

  “Let's see.“ Instantly tears well.

  “Lucy, what's wrong?“ Sera asks.

  “This girl. She's seventeen and she's been diagnosed with cancer.“ I hear murmured expletives. “She is beautiful… gorgeous. She's bald from the chemo, but look at those eyes, Jesse. You can see the wonderful person inside through those eyes.“

  “Let me see,“ Sera murmurs and I put the iPad down on the table and spin it around for her and Meggie to see. The rest of the gang tries to catch glimpses, some do and others are too far away so they pass it around.

  “Damn,“ Damian curses.

  “What is it?“ I ask.

  He shakes his head. “She's got leukemia. That's a hell of a thing for a seventeen year old.“

  I nod. “On top of that she's in the foster system, has been for the past seven months since her mom died of an overdose.“

  “Fuck,“ Ben exclaims.

  “Man, that sucks so hard,“ Ethan adds. “Isn't there anything we can do?“

  I tap my left index finger to my lip in a very uncoordinated fashion. “Maybe.“ I look to Celeste as Mist delivers our food. Celeste raises a brow already knowing what I'm going to say. I nod. “Her. She's our Blush Baby.“

  “Lucy,“ Cage begins softly, “she may be too ill to be able to handle that stressful of a job. Let's not forget she's in the foster system which means it's next to impossible to get any kind of leeway, especially as she's sick.“

  “Hmm,“ Meggie murmurs, pouring some ketchup in the corner of her plate. “You'd think they would want to get her out of there. I mean the burden of the expense alone would want CPS to find her a place that could take care of something like that.“ Meggie slides a look my way and winks.

  “I was thinking the same thing,“ Kennedy adds. “I don't know about you, but I remember when we were kids and when Linc got sick how they found an adoptive family and it took less than a w
eek to get him out of CPS and into that house. Glad they did too. He'd never have made it otherwise.“

  “What was wrong with him?“ Simone asks.

  “Leukemia.“

  “Damn. He survived?“ she affirms.

  “Yep. He's one tough son of a bitch. Don't get me wrong, it was touch and go for a while there at first, but he's been in remission for years. Doing great too,“ Kennedy explains.

  “That's amazing. I always thought Leukemia meant a death sentence,“ Jace admits.

  “For some there's nothing anyone can do. It's all a matter of how the body responds to the treatment,“ Kennedy informs us.

  “You all were close with Linc?“ I ask.

  Jesse hugs me softly. “Yeah. He's our sixth. You'll likely meet him at our stop in Chicago. He had to get a late start with this tour but he'll be here.“

  “Excellent. I can't wait to meet him.“

  Xander laughs. “He can't wait to meet you either. The woman who tamed the Jessman.“

  “The ‘Jessman'?“ I ask.

  Jesse shrugs a shoulder. “It's what Linc calls me. Always has. He's a good guy and I know you're going to love him.“

  I nod then sigh. Jesse notes my dismay and scoots me over. We both sit up and he cuts my cheeseburger into quarters, then into halves of those. I could cry right now, honestly. He does all this without me having to say a word. He's an attentive man. Loving, caring. He just needs to learn how to be this way when the excitement of the music gets to him. I can understand how he got caught up. Hell, I got caught up in it on stage. It's an incredible high and the admiration of the fans is really something I can appreciate, being one of them myself. I just don't understand the whole “groupie“ thing from the perspective of these guys. They lived it for years and, yeah, it's going to take some doing to realize how much has to change. If he seriously didn't get fazed by any of the groping for however long, then it's understandable what happened last night. God, was that only last night? We need to talk, but it will be more enlightening and understanding for both of us than the bitchfest that likely would have come about last night.

  “Thank you, baby,“ I tell him and kiss his cheek.

  “Welcome, Cupcake.“

  Mist is standing there watching us, her hands cupped together in front of her mouth, tears welling in her eyes.