by Lydia Cole
I told myself that he was being so easy about it because he knew it would never happen. Not because he actually was that committed to me after knowing me a little over a week. That certainly just didn’t happen.
It was early, so we headed downtown and walked around the shops that were still open until it was a decent time to show up at a club. Ben called while we wandered and I told him that Maya was going to get them and we’d meet them there. I knew people were watching Hayden and me walk. I had a feeling there would be a billion pictures of us strolling the streets of L.A. casually. I was actually sort of looking forward to seeing them.
It was easy being with him. I really loved that. And that was scaring the hell out of me.
Chapter Nine
The club was hopping by the time we made it there. We slid in easily, despite the line winding around the wall. Maya had already gotten the rest of the guys in and they were all sitting at my favorite booth all the way in the back. My hips moved with the rhythm while Hayden and I made our way to meet them. I wasn’t much of a clubber, but when I was in the mood to dance, I was in the mood to dance.
I hadn’t even gotten my first drink when I spied Jack and Vernon in the crowd. I caught their attention and waved them over, surprised to see them out. Jack looked around the table with a fake smile pasted on. He wiggled a finger at me, directing me to a quieter area when I managed to get out of the booth.
He let go of me, ran his hand through his hair, and turned away. When he turned back, he had to take a deep breath before he worked up the nerve to say what was on his mind. “Are you with Hayden or what?”
“Jack.” I started to tell him that Hayden and I were together, but something made me stop. I wasn’t sure what it was so how could I tell him. “I slept with him. I’ve slept with people before. Why are you acting weird?”
“Because, Lucy.” He sighed and ran a hand through his hair again. “Never mind. Just forget about it.”
“No. Talk to me, Jack.”
He watched me closely, then shook his head. “You don’t even see it. I haven’t seen you like this since Connor.”
I felt like someone had kicked me in the chest and knocked all the air out of me. “Like what?” I asked, breathless.
“This happy,” he said quietly. “I’m glad you’re happy, Lucy. Don’t get me wrong. But I don’t think I can stand to watch you go through that again.”
“I’m not going to go through anything,” I said, more for myself than him. “There’s not some huge conspiracy to break my heart. If and when we decide to go back to just friends, it will be just like it was before.”
Jack scoffed and headed back toward the dance floor. “You just keep telling yourself that.”
I stood there, staring at the girls’ bathroom. Why did he have to swoop in and ruin my night? That just wasn’t fair.
“Hey, beautiful.” Hayden walked up with a smile that quickly turned into a frown. “Lucy, what’s wrong?”
I shrugged, eyes still staring off into space. “Jack thinks you’re going to break my heart,” I said quietly.
“Jack’s fuckin’ jealous,” he said through clenched teeth. “Don’t let him upset you. Come dance with me.”
I let him lead me out to the floor and closed my eyes, letting the music take over. It was slow and seductive, so I was too. It wasn’t long before I felt something hard pressing between my legs.
“You’re killing me, Angel,” Hayden said huskily in my ear.
I grinned and wrapped my arms around his neck, kissing him gently. “Likewise, lover boy.”
After that, we made a quick escape, all thoughts of Jack gone. Mostly. We practically stripped each other as soon as we made it inside the mansion. I vaguely remember hoping Johnny wasn’t sitting around somewhere between the door and my bedroom.
Hayden pushed me onto the bed, then smiled widely before climbing over me. “So how am I supposed to break your heart?” He asked with a smirk as he started kissing my neck.
I was too hot and bothered to be upset. I did stutter. “Oh…um…Jesus.” My head fell back and my eyes rolled. “Because you’re going to move on. Greener pastures,” I spit out between ragged breaths. “You know, to porn star types.â€�
He pulled back a little, his cocky attitude slipping. “Are you kidding?”
I shrugged, oxygen beginning to return to my brain. “No one else has stuck around,” I said a little out of breath.
“That’s the point.” He shook his head lightly and came back, kissing me hungrily. “There’s no one on this Earth I want more than you,” he said gently, pulling back to look me in the eyes. “And I don’t see that changing unless you turn into an uber-bitch or something.”
My heart was pounding, but that last comment made me smile through the anxiety. I grabbed him and pulled him back to me. “For now,” I said quietly.
He growled a little and kissed me hard. “Stop talking like that.”
“Okay.” I agreed easily. “I’ll stop talking if you do.”
He chuckled, but there was no more talking.
I grabbed his cock and he hissed as he tipped his head back, his hips rocking slightly. I lingered, enjoying the feel of him in my hand. Then he leaned down and pushed me back, kissing me deeply on the way. He sat back on his heels and grabbed my knees, pushing my legs up. At first, he sat there, his hands caressing my inner thighs, sliding along my folds, his thumbs pushing inside me and along my core until I was whimpering and flexing and begging. “Please, Hayden. Please.”
He leaned over me again, propped on one hand, and held himself against my core. Impatient, I surged up myself and pushed him in part way, then he released himself and put his hand under my buttocks and pushed in fully. I arched my back and moaned as he filled me.
He just held there, deep in me, at first, not moving. I opened my eyes to see him. His eyes were closed; he looked tense. I flexed my hips against him and gasped at the deeper penetration.
He moaned, his jaw flexing. He opened his eyes then and looked down at me. I flexed again. And he started to move, pumping steadily into me, his hand clutching my ass and holding me tight.
The pressure between my legs started right away and grew and grew. I’d never felt anything like this. I was certainly no virgin, but what I was feeling now was nothing like I’d felt before. This was deeper and wider, as if he were sliding against every nerve in my body.
Hayden was grunting with every push, each grunt louder and longer than the one before it. Then his grunts became words. “Fuck, babe. Fuck. You’re so tight. Come on, baby. Come on.”
Then he pulled out of me and flipped me over, so fast I didn’t know what was happening until I was on my knees in front of him. He grabbed my hip and pushed into me again. And oh shit! The angle was totally different and even deeper, and I started to come on his second thrust.
I cried out, “Fuck, yes!” and Hayden pulled me up against his chest, moving his left hand between my legs, massaging my clit. His right hand went to my left breast and squeezed and rolled my nipple. I was bucking on him in a frenzy. It all felt so unbelievably good.
He was pushing even deeper into me, his hand moving hard and fast on my clit until—the world just exploded. I arched back against his chest and threw my hands around his neck and keened as my whole body spasmed. Then Hayden pushed me forward and grabbed my hips in his hands and slammed into me several times until he held, deep in me. And then we collapsed in a heap, Hayden careful to keep most of his weight off me.
I was panting and dazed. I felt almost stoned. It was like a new world had opened up to me. I rolled over to face him, his leg still resting over both of mine. He looked pretty dazed himself, but he smiled at me and brushed my hair back from my face. “You okay, Angel?”
“Can we go again?”
He laughed hard at that. “Gimme a few minutes to regroup, then we’ll go again. We’ll go as many times as you want.â€� We stayed in my bedroom for the rest of the night. And well into the morning hours.
>
***
I actually woke up before my alarm clock went off the next morning. That was unheard of for me. Especially considering that we hadn’t actually gone to sleep until after three in the morning. I rolled over and snuggled into Hayden, watching him snore lightly. This was definitely not good for my mental health. I made the decision right there, though, that I would not break down for Hayden like I did for Connor. I would not give my entire self to him. I would never make that mistake again.
I pushed up and headed for the shower, being extra quiet so I didn’t wake him up. I wandered down to the kitchen with my towel wrapped around my damp head and started digging for breakfast. Something else I almost never did.
Johnny smiled when he saw me in the kitchen, glanced at the clock on the microwave, then smiled wider when he turned back to me. “Had a good night, Lu-Lu?”
I shrugged. “It was long.”
He grimaced. There were things Johnny didn’t like to hear, no matter how close we were. “It’s Saturday. You going to give yourself the day off?”
“Are you?” I shot back.
He smiled knowingly as he poured a cup of coffee. “I’m meeting with that band today.”
“Oh, really? I’m coming in, then. I’m anxious to see the porn star play the piano with her band.”
Johnny looked at me with an eyebrow cocked, obviously questioning my mental health. “Porn star?”
“Hayden and I decided Tiffany Tully sounds like a porn star name.” I said with a shrug, cracking eggs into a bowl. “And, looks like one,â€� I muttered under my breath.
“Please tell me you didn’t tell Tiffany that.”
“Of course not. The poor girl would probably die of embarrassment.” I rolled my eyes. “Honestly, Johnny. I think you’ve located the most naïve rocker in history. She doesn’t even drink.”
“She’s under age.”
“Right,” I nodded dramatically. “And that always stops people.”
“Sit down and talk to her, Lu-Lu. You might find she’s a lot older than you give her credit for.”
Hayden wandered into the kitchen, plopping on a stool as he watched me scramble eggs. He was shirtless. I never quit perving on the way his muscles flexed with any slight movement of his body. “Who’s old?”
“Good morning, Hayden.” Johnny smiled slightly, then headed for the door. “See you at the studio, Lu-Lu.”
“The porn star is apparently older than she seems.”
Hayden chuckled quietly, his hair a sexy mess. He got up and walked behind me, wrapping his arms around my waist. The feel of his hard body made me wish I was naked. I felt cheated my clothes were in the way of him. “You left me,” he whispered in my ear.
“I was hungry.”
“I’m hungry for you, babe.â€� His lips caressed the spot under my ear, and I fell into him as my legs gave in. “It was very disappointing not to wake up with you.”
“Well, we ought to try that again sometime.” I moved out of his arms to grab plates out of the cabinet, scooping the eggs onto them and snatching the toast that had popped up. “I hope you’re hungry.”
He groaned a little, pulled me back toward him, and kissed me gently while I struggled to keep my grasp on the plates in my hands. I hid the smile that wanted to erupt, giving him just a fraction of one, and put the plates on the little breakfast nook in the corner.
“Something’s wrong,” he said quietly after a few minutes of silence.
“Nothing’s wrong,” I argued, taking a sip of orange juice.
He sat back and crossed his arms over his chest, watching me intently. “You get a kick out of this, don’t you?”
I scrunched my eyebrows together. “Huh?”
“You get a kick out of confusing the hell out of me. It’s like you thrive off it.”
I shrugged, then went back to my breakfast. “I’m going to head into the studio.”
He watched me for another minute, then stood up and took his plate to the kitchen. “Ben wants to check out the Grammy Museum, so I guess I’ll go with him. We might head over to the studio later and just jam for a while. Nate’s been after me to go to this bar he saw, too.”
“I don’t need an itinerary,” I said, catching my voice coming out a little harsh.
He stopped rinsing his plate and turned to me with narrowed eyes. “What the hell?”
I waved my hand in front of my face. “I just don’t want you to feel like I need to know where you are all the time,” I explained, feeling dumb for once again letting my emotions take control.
His eyes burned into me as I took tiny bites of egg. Finally, he took a breath and wiped his wet hands on the back of his shorts. “Whatever, Lucy. You just call me when you’re finished PMS-ing.”
That comment effectively set me off. “You’re such an asshole, Hayden!” I stood up and left my plate on the table, running up the stairs and locking myself in my room. I knew I was being moody. I didn’t need him to point it out.
There was a knock on my door a few minutes later. I gathered his clothes off the floor, opened the door just enough to get my hand out, and threw the pile of dirty clothes at him. He cursed a little before I heard the sound of heavy footsteps move down the hall.
“Asshole!” I called again, just for emphasis.
***
I escaped to the studio while Hayden was still in the shower. He could take one of the cars to get back to the hotel, for all I cared. All I knew was that when I woke up that morning and saw him, my first thought was, I could get used to this. And I didn’t want to get used to it because, despite his insistence otherwise, Hayden was going to move on.
We were both busy people and while we were going to be on tour together this year, who knew what was going to happen after that. I wasn’t going to give my heart away, again, just to have it broken to pieces. Again.
“Lucy,” Tiffany caught me as soon as I made it in the back door of the studio. “I’m so glad you came. I’m so nervous!”
“Tiff, you’re not trying out. The band is. You already have a contract.”
She sighed. “But what if they don’t like me? Or they think I suck?”
I put my arm around her shoulders and directed her toward the recording room. “You have an amazing voice and your songs make me want to cry. And that’s a compliment because I don’t cry. Take a small dose of my confidence and go kick ass.”
She took a few deep breaths, nodding slightly. “You’re right. I’m good. Johnny Gold thinks I’m good. I can do this.”
“Johnny Gold is a pretty good motivator,” I agreed with a smile. “Now, let’s meet your people.”
We walked into the room and all conversation stopped. The guys had been chatting happily, but they were pretty much stunned to silence between the two of us. Me, mostly because of my fame. Tiffany because she was drop dead gorgeous. I had a feeling they wouldn’t mind playing with her.
Johnny turned around and smiled. “Ah, there you are. Guys, this is Tiffany Tully. She’s the one looking for a band.” He moved his finger toward me. “And I’m sure you all know Lucy.”
They all nodded.
“That’s Chris Weeks and Wes Samuel on guitar, Logan Johnson on bass, and Aaron Samuel on drums.”
Chris looked like he was of some sort of Central American descent. Dark skin, dark hair, brown eyes, strong bone structure. Definitely hot stuff. Wes and Aaron were identical. Brown hair, brown eyes, tall and lanky structure. Logan was pale as a ghost with bright blonde hair and shocking blue eyes. They were an interesting crew, in all.
I eyed the two Samuels. “Twins?” I asked over the intercom.
They both nodded enthusiastically.
“Well, I was at Fowler’s the other night when you guys played. I don’t know if Johnny told you, but I sort of recorded you and made him listen to it. So you can all thank me later for this.” I smiled wickedly. “Diamonds, chocolate, flowers, expensive dinners. Whatever you decide is sufficient.”
They relaxe
d a little with my joke, which was my intention. I was a little jealous that Tiffany was going to get two guitarists. But, to be fair, I played when the need arose, so I took the spot of the second guitarist.
I pulled a chair up for Tiffany to sit, and stood next to Johnny as he talked to them. When they started, I had to sit. They were much better minus the noisy bar. Not exactly my sound, but perfect for Tiffany. Hard, but gentle somehow. And adding her mesmerizing voice was going to be a match made in heaven. Johnny had the same idea, I could tell by the look in his eyes when he turned to stare at us.
“This is perfect,” he said quietly. “Tiffany, get in there. Let’s put it together.”
She blushed uncontrollably. It was adorable. I helped her set up her keyboard, then started distributing the music Johnny had helped her put together.
“So, uh…are you at every audition?” Chris asked as I handed him a sheet, mischievous brown eyes watching me.
I shook my head. “Nope. Only the ones I like.” I gave him a wink and moved on to the next one.
The song started slowly, just Tiffany playing and singing. It was gentle and pulled at my heart instantly. Chris and Wes jumped in just as Aaron started the beat. When Logan plucked that first bass note, I dropped into my chair. It was too perfect. I was too good. That was the end of it.
“Lu-Lu, I think you have a knack.” Johnny turned to me with a wide smile. “And I think we just found our final spring band.”
“Definitely,” I agreed, still amazed by how it had all fallen together. “Can I work with them?”
Johnny sighed. “No. I have to give my employees something to do, Lu-Lu. But, feel free to work with Tiffany. She’s amazing with lyrics, but she’s having trouble combining everyone.”
I nodded absently, not even able to put up a fight. “Got it.”
Five minutes later, we all headed to Johnny’s office to sign a contract. We had added a new clause to our paperwork after the Decaying Love fiasco. Now, when someone signed that paper, they were putting in writing that they hadn’t signed with anyone else. That no one but us held copyrights on any of their music.
