Tonight You Belong To Me

by Cate Masters

  “Let me, before you hurt yourself.” Though what poetic justice that would be. No, first she’d take her fill of him until she was chugged full.

  Freeing his cock, she locked her legs around his. She intended to leave him ridden hard and hung up wet, too sodden with her to think about another woman.

  Another woman? “Wait.” She fumbled in the nightstand drawer and handed him a condom. “Put this on.”

  Looking sheepish, he did as she said, then guided himself into her. “Jilly….”

  “Are you all right?” She’d been so busy trying not to look into his baby blues, she hadn’t before noticed the dark circles rimming his eyes, his skin paler than normal.

  “Being away from you is killing me.” He rocked his hips, filling her a little more each time.

  Oh, just the way she loved it. Needed it. She closed her eyes to concentrate on the sheer deliciousness of it. “I caught you with your pants down, babe. You think the sun comes up just to hear you crow.” She gave an extra hip cha-cha for emphasis.

  “What?” He stilled above her. In her.

  Talk about killing her! Surely he couldn’t have run out of gas already. She thrust upward to kick start him again. “You’re full of yourself. And you’re bringing this up now? Why?” She knew he was guilty as homemade sin.

  “It’s the only time you’ll listen to me without running away.” He moved out of rhythm with her. Screwing her out of a final decent screw.

  Damn him for yapping. “Don't let your mouth overload your tail.” If he didn’t get busy soon, she would run away. To buy a vibrator, always hard and humming, without any emotional baggage or yammering. Probably her best bet. But if she could find one with a sweet mouth like his, she’d be happier. Oh, and a warm tongue that knew how to nuzzle her outer parts to make her inner parts catch fire. If they didn’t make such a contraption, she might have to invent one.

  He slowed, blue eyes crinkled in confusion. “Sorry, what?”

  “You’re talking too much, baby. Fuck me!” She didn’t care how desperate she sounded. She needed completion.

  Head ducked, he slammed into her, hard and hot again, filling her, the tip of his cock hitting all the right spots.

  “Yes!” Finally. Waves of pleasure built inside her, sending her writhing upward, her body begging for the grand finale.

  Tossing his sweaty hair back, he shuddered then fell atop her, rocking with her, cradling her. “Jilly,” he murmured against her shoulder. “Don’t leave me.”

  She pushed at his hips, pinned beneath his weight, fighting to wriggle. “Don’t stop. I’m not there yet.” The crest of the wave she wanted to ride receded, leaving her behind. “Come on, baby,” she whined.

  Their heads jerked in unison toward the door as it burst open and banged against the closet. Two burly men stomped in. The second shut the door behind him with a quiet click.

  She barked a screech, shoved him away and yanked the bedspread to cover her exposed lower parts.

  He refastened his jeans as he jumped up. “Get the fuck out.”

  “Sorry to interrupt,” the taller one said to her then turned to Danny. “But your time’s up.”

  What about her time? Lord, she’d never find completion. “What’s he talking about, babe?” The man had the scariest face she’d ever seen, all snarls and bared teeth. Maybe he was all bark and no bite?

  Danny held out an arm as if to protect her. “It’s nothing, Jilly.”

  The shorter man moved forward. “It’s not nothing to Charlie Kenton.”

  Beneath the cover, she straightened her panties and dress as she asked, “Who on earth is Charlie Kenton?”

  The taller thug leered at him. “A very generous soul who’s tired of waiting for his money.”

  The shorter man ambled closer to her. “Maybe we’ll stay here and finish your honey while you go get it.”

  She snarled to hide her quivering. “Try anything, and you’ll regret it.” She didn’t need it that bad. The man had fallen out of the ugly tree and hit every branch on the way down.

  Danny inched forward. “She has nothing to do with this.”

  “Right. I have no dog in this fight.” The way the shorter man cracked his meaty knuckles, he meant business. The kind of business she despised.

  The two thugs tilted their heads and blinked, like two monkeys waiting for the organ grinder to play.

  Danny flailed an arm. “Like I said, she’s not involved.”

  “Oh.” The taller one said, then his frown disappeared. “That doesn’t change anything.”

  “Look,” he said. “I’ll have it tomorrow, after the show.”

  “What show?” She snapped straight. He never called his gigs a ‘show.’ Had he signed a contract without her?

  Glancing back, he blurted, “Opening for Bobby Benoit. I’ll explain later.”

  The shorter man chose that moment to pound his fist into his jaw. As Danny sailed downward, she scrambled across the bed to scream into his sinking face, “Bobby Benoit?” For years, she’d idolized him, especially his ability to make every song sound like his personal story.

  From the floor, he groaned, “Yes.”

  Her hair tumbled past her shoulders as she glared down at him. “With who? Lace?” Bad enough they’d cut her loose and hired Lace to sing with him instead. But to open for a big name act like Bobby? That really burned her biscuits.

  The tall man dragged Danny to his feet. On his way up, he pleaded, “Can we discuss this later?”

  Her lower lip jutted out. “You don’t have a later, buster. If they don’t finish you off, I might.” No wonder he didn’t come crawling back to her. He’d moved on! And moved up a few floors.

  The short one guffawed and smacked his partner’s arm. “Hey, let’s let her have at him first.”

  “Nah. She probably weighs all of a hundred pounds. What damage could she do?”

  “Plenty.” Glad she still wore her heels, she stomped one shoe to the floor, then the other, and furrowed her brow. “If you’re on the verge of stardom, why’d you borrow from a loan shark?” Of all the stupid things to do.

  The short man held Danny’s arms behind his back as he said, “For a blind date. Do you believe it?”

  The tall one landed a punch to his gut, and he folded over, eyes bulging.

  Jilly wanted to punch him, too. “You blew all that money on 1Night Stand? Why didn’t you just ask me out yourself?” The fool man had champagne taste and a beer wallet.

  Still winded, he wheezed, his mouth moving, but no intelligible words forming.

  The tall one scrutinized her head to toe. “If I knew you’d be waiting for me, doll, I’d buy a one-night stand, too.”

  Right, as if she did this because she was desperate? “You don’t understand. We lived together. I loved him.” Still do, but damned if I’ll admit it now.

  “Past tense?” The short guy flipped Danny back to an upright position. He hung limp in his arms.

  She huffed. “Until he cheated on me.” The pain of it came back fresh. Finding him in a lip lock with Lace. Her hands working his cute butt. If she’d arrived two minutes later, they’d have been at it like two dogs in need of a hosing.

  The short man peered around Danny’s head to wince. “You cheated on her? You must be nuts.”

  His hair flew as he shook his head. “No. Lace.”

  The tall one landed another punch that sent his head backward in an unnatural way.

  Jilly reached out. “Do you have to hurt him so much?” Although a piano player, Danny had the physique of a fighter, but avoided physical altercations. Still, he could give any movie star a run for his money in the looks department.

  The tall man flexed his hand. “If he’d pay up, we could leave.”

  “Then pay them, babe.” Before they beat you to a pulp.

  “Tomorrow,” he ground out.

  If only they still had a stash of cash. “What happened to the money you were saving? Did you blow it on her?”

  Blood tric
kled from his mouth. “After you kicked me out, Rick let me crash at his place. He must’ve found the money I’d saved and skipped town the day before rent was due. He left me broke.”

  “Oh, boo hoo.” The short man blew through his teeth.

  “It’s true.” He twisted in the man’s grip. “I was saving to buy an engagement ring.”

  The other man socked the other side of his jaw.

  Jilly could hardly breathe. “For Lace?” So soon? Oh, God, or had he been cheating with her for months? Her head swirled with too many thoughts.

  “No,” he moaned. “For you. I love you, Jilly. I always have.”

  Warmth blossomed in her heart then froze. “Then why’d you cheat on me with her?”

  The short man yanked him up. “Yeah, what’re you, blind? She’s gorgeous.”

  She sent the thug a smile. “Thank you.”

  With a sudden burst of energy, Danny flailed. “Lace kissed me. I didn’t want anything to do with her. She knew you were coming backstage. She knew you’d see us. I think she wanted to break us up.”

  “But she cried, and told me how sorry she was.” Unbelievable. Lace had acted so sweet, but that’s all it was: an act. Jilly forced her fury into hiding.

  “Come on, Jilly. She took advantage of your sweet nature.” Another punch to his gut made him double over.

  Now why hadn’t that occurred to her? “I’m sorry, baby. I’m the one who’s been blind. With jealousy.” She plopped to the bed. “I’m swinging my legs from a dime.”

  “What?” asked the shorter man.

  “I’m ashamed of myself,” she said.

  The tall man winced. “You were jealous of him?”

  Shamed burned in her belly. She couldn’t look at any of them. “Of his success. We moved here six months ago, ready to take on Las Vegas. The manager hardly let me finish my audition, saying he only wanted Danny. Then he hired Lace to sing with him instead. My heart broke. I had to work as a magician’s assistant. The slimy jerk let his hands roam fast and loose.” An involuntary shudder passed through her at the memory.

  “He what?” Danny wobbled. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  Burden him with her problems? No. “We needed the money. And now you threw it all away on this ridiculous date.” Paying for what he already had. The notion made not a lick of sense to her.

  “You are such an ass.” The tall man hit him. “Makes it easier to do this.”

  His eyes rolled back, and his cough sounded bad enough to uproot a lung.

  Jilly stood. “That’s enough. You need to stop now.” Good golly, Miss Molly, why did she have to be so weak in the knees around him? It softened her brain to mush, and she never could think straight. Another reason she should dump him, but he looked so adorable with his hair mussed, his lips swollen from being beaten by those thugs.

  The short man peered past Danny’s head. “Do you have a sack of cash sitting idle?”

  Holy Moses. “No, but you’re hurting him. Just leave.”

  “That’s the idea, doll face.” The tall one clucked his tongue.

  One thing she couldn’t abide is a bully. Their mistake was turning their back on her. She’d always thought she’d go out with a bang, but not like this. She grabbed the revolver from the taller man’s belt.

  Chapter Three

  Pain seared through Danny’s head, blurring his vision. When Jilly reached over easy as pie and took the handgun, he thought he couldn’t possibly be seeing straight. But he was. Fear and shock stiffened his limbs.

  The tall guy laughed and held out his hand. “Give it back, doll face, and I’ll go easy on you.”

  “Jilly, no.” Danny struggled against the viselike grip on his arms. What the hell was she doing? He never meant for her to get mixed up in this, let alone jump in like freaking Annie Oakley.

  She widened her stance inch by inch. “Touch me and I’ll have a hissy fit with a tail on it.”

  He snorted. Oh yeah, he could vouch how terrible those fits could be.

  The tall guy reached over. “Come on, doll face.”

  A startling sound, something akin to a door slamming, froze him.

  The man’s gruff yelp as he leapt back, waving his hands, helped convince Danny that Jilly had pulled the trigger. Unfreakingbelievable.

  Realizing the other guy’s grasp had loosened, he jerked to the side. His pride at freeing himself died when he saw her level the gun at the thug just as he lunged at her.

  She aimed at the shorter man. “Keep coming, and you’re gonna be screwed, blued, and tattooed.” Elbows locked, hands gripping the gun like a pro, she dropped her arms and fired. The shot whizzed past the guy’s leg. He lurched backward, staring down. “These slacks are brand new! You blew a hole clean through.”

  Slowly straightening, she waved the gun toward the first guy, who snarled, hunched over, but ready to attack again. “Better your slacks than you.”

  Danny eased beside her. “Please, Jilly. No more.” He meant his smooth tone to calm her, but it did nothing for his frayed nerves.

  She shot him a hard look. “I didn’t start this war.”

  “No. I did. I made this entire mess. And I have to clean it up.” With shaking hands, he reached for the gun. “Take off. Get out of here.”

  Concern warmed her features. “No, I’m not leaving you. You’re hurt.”

  “I can take care of this.” He hoped. He hated guns, and hadn’t held anything more powerful than a cap gun when he was twelve.

  He mistook her crooked smile for surrender.

  “Honey,” she said, “they’ll eat you up and spit you back out. Let’s both go. Now. As far away as possible.”

  “Go where?” Nowhere would be far enough away. They’d track him. He couldn’t live like that, always waiting for the sting of a bullet.

  Desperation shone in her beautiful green eyes. “Away. Anywhere.”

  He cupped her face. He couldn’t love her any more than he did this moment. “No. Not when things are finally going right.”

  Her wide eyes accused him of insanity. “You call this right?”

  A hard knock sounded at the door. “Security. Open up, please.”

  He whispered, “Hide the gun. Quick, under the mattress.”

  Her mouth tightened. She glared at the men. “Don’t get any funny ideas.”

  He released a breath as she did what he asked, straightened her dress and her hair then strode to the door. “Evening, gents.” The three hotel security officers surged inside, scanning the room.

  He forced a smile onto his swollen lips. “Evening, officers. Is there a problem?”

  She returned to him, silently questioning what the hell he was doing.

  He winked a bloody eye to signal it would work out fine if she’d play along.

  The two thugs braced their backs, warily eyeing him.

  The lead officer advanced. “We had a report of gunshots.”

  He rubbed Jilly’s back. “Really? I didn’t hear anything. Did you, babe?”

  Smile wobbling, she shook her head.

  “What about you?” The officer glanced pointedly at the thugs.

  “We were having such a good time, I didn’t hear nothin’.” He chuckled and shook his head. “Unless someone heard us roughhousing, and mistook it for a gunshot?”

  Danny blurted, “Yes, that must be it. Sorry, we were a bit loud.”

  The officer cocked a brow. “So you’re saying there’s no problem here?”

  He pressed his lips together. “None.” He hoped his voice didn’t shake as much as his knees.

  “How do you explain your wounds?”

  He hoped Jilly could help him cover the bruises before the show. “We got carried away wrestling. You know, guy stuff.” Guy stuff? It sounded ridiculous even to him.

  The officer studied the two men. “You corroborate this story?”

  Their heads bobbed. “Absolutely, yes.”

  Raising his hands, the officer asked, “No one wants to press any charges?”
r />   Danny and the two thugs blurted, “No.” Jilly clutched Danny’s shirt tighter, and he drew her closer.

  For a tense moment, the security team kept them fixed in their sights. The lead officer nodded and backed away. “Sorry to have bothered you. Be more careful next time.”

  The three left as quickly as they’d come.

  Jilly tensed in Danny’s embrace, and he gave her a light squeeze of encouragement. He’d lay odds she was thinking about the gun, gauging who could get to it first.

  He heaved a breath. Moment of truth for Kenton’s men. “So. Are we good?”

  The tall man propped an elbow on the bed and struggled to a stand. “No. You still owe Mr. Kenton.”

  At least the guy hadn’t lunged for the gun. A small ray of sunshine in this otherwise dismal night. “I know. I swear, he’ll get everything tomorrow night.”

  The two exchanged a look, whether silent acknowledgement to leave, or to continue kicking his ass, he couldn’t tell. Until the tall one nudged the other man. “Get your gun. Let’s go.”

  After feeling under the mattress and retrieving his weapon, the man sneered, “We’ll be in touch.”

  “I’m counting on it.” He held in the breath he wanted to exhale, but feared he might deflate before the men fully exited.

  The two swaggered out. As soon as the latch clicked into place and signaled their departure, Jilly ran to the door and shoved the dead bolt across, locked the knob and secured the chain. She turned toward him, a frail little girl where the fierce warrior had stood.

  Barely audible, she said, “We should have gone while we had the chance.”

  We? His heart roared into overdrive. “I can fix this, Jilly. But not by running away.”

  Fists balled, she stalked toward him, green eyes glittering. “I hate this city! We can’t stay here now.”

  She said we. Joy made him forget the pain slicing his muscles. “I have to make this right. But I need you with me.”

  Her bottom lip curled down. “What, do they need a bar server during your act?”

  He tried not to smile. “No. I need my partner on opening night.”

  Still pouting, she fingered the buttons on his shirt. “You have your partner. Lace. Remember?”