Coming Unplugged (Welcome to Carson Book 6)

by Renee Harless

  Jameson snags the remote and turns on a reality show that is so bad Norah actually feels better about everything going on in her life. The chair in the corner squeaks as Avery readjusts herself, her eyes closed as she tries to catch up on some sleep. Norah had asked her where the twins were and she explained that Amy and Joseph took them back to their house, so she had a few hours of peace and quiet.

  “Hey,” Jameson whispers from beside her. “Do you really love my brother?”

  Norah doesn’t hesitate, her answer forms freely and she responds, “I do. It happened so fast and took me by surprise, but I do.”

  “Then make sure he knows that. I know my brother, and he’s never going to feel like he’s good enough for you. He doesn’t even think that he’s good enough to be my brother. But I admire him more than anyone. He’s never held back at going after what he wants. That takes a lot of courage.

  “If you’re not ready to share him with the world yet, that’s okay. Just make sure he knows. He’ll understand. Just don’t crush him. I’m not sure he can handle that.

  “I can already see that he’d give up anything for you. You’re it for him. It’s written all over his face. If you ask he’d even give up music for you. That’s been the most important thing in his life for the past few years, and he’d stop if you wanted. You have that much power over him.”

  “I don’t want him to give up music for me. I don’t want him to give up anything for me.”

  “But remember, you’re going to be giving up a lot for him. So much so that you’ll hold all of the cards. He’d do anything for you.”

  “Jameson, he’s already giving me everything. Not just himself, which is more than I deserve, but he’s giving me the one thing I’ve always dreamed – to be a part of a family.”

  A soft knock on the door sounds and a weary Ryker steps inside with Logan on his tail. Ryker stands stock-still at the entrance with his eyes glued to Norah, and she returns his stare. She barely notices as Logan lifts Avery into his arms and carries her out of the room or as Jameson steps out after patting Ryker on the shoulder.

  “I didn’t think you’d come,” she whispers when they’re finally alone.

  “I wasn’t sure you’d want to see me,” Ryker replies as he shrugs.

  “Ryker, I. . .” she begins, but he interrupts.

  “Before you begin and tell me everything, I want you to know that I love you.

  “I love you too,” she says with a smile.

  “Now tell me everything.”

  *

  RYKER SITS ON THE edge of Norah’s bed in rapture as she explains everything that took place. He had seen most of it with his own eyes, using what he knew to answer the officer’s questions when they had torn apart the scene of the crime that morning, but to hear it from her point of view put him in a new perspective. And he is furious.

  How could someone’s father treat them so carelessly? How could that person even consider putting their daughter in that kind of danger?

  Of course, now that Anthony Moretti is dead and his brain matter spread into billions of tiny pieces in the back seat they’ll never have an answer.

  When Norah had crawled away from the car, he had thought she was freaking out over her father’s blood all over her body, which thankfully has been cleaned up. But hearing her talk, he knows that shock had controlled her. Pure unadulterated shock at the situation that unfolded in front of her eyes.

  “Are you okay now?” he asks her as she finishes her story at the point when she passed out.

  “I’m not sure. I haven’t really processed it all. But I suppose knowing that my father is dead should be some sort of reassurance that I’m free. That his mistakes won’t come back to haunt me.”

  Of course, Ryker bites his tongue as he considers the aftermath their relationship may have. Neither of them has spoken about how they plan to navigate the winding road of being in a relationship with a celebrity, but they were about to get a crash course since a slew of photographers were waiting for them at the entrance. In a situation like this one he would normally call his bodyguard Gary to escort him back and forth, but since Gary’s life was taken at Norah’s father’s hand, he had no one to turn to. At least until the record label hired him a new security staff member.

  “What do we do now?” Norah asks breaking Ryker free from his thoughts.

  “I think we take it one day at a time. We can get a therapist to help you deal with the traumatic event you witnessed if you think that will help. Someone may be able to help you deal with everything you’ve dealt with at the hands of your father.”

  “What about us? My past isn’t going to go over well with your fans.”

  “I don’t care about that. Those were your father’s mistakes, not yours.”

  “But you know how people are. They will forever associate me with the Moretti Mob. Not even a name change can fix that.”

  “Don’t worry about that,” Ryker says as he leans down to kiss her, but Norah turns her head away forcing his lips to brush against her cheek.

  “I have to worry. I don’t want to see your career tarnished because of me.”

  Placing his hands on the sides of her face he turns her attention back to him. “Norah, you don’t have to worry about any of that. No one will have to know he’s your father. I have money, and the FBI will make sure that those records of your last name aren’t made public. You’re worrying over nothing. All my fans will see is that I am in love with a brilliant and beautiful woman.”

  He lets his words sink in, and when Norah finally relents on her hold of the past, he can see as her body relaxes in his hands.

  “I’m so glad that you’re okay,” Ryker says to Norah as he brushes his lips against hers. “At first I thought you were covered in your own blood, but then I realized that it was your father’s and I had never been more relieved. I knew you didn’t mean it when you fought me, I could see in your eyes that you didn’t recognize who I was. I just hated that I couldn’t come with you. I needed to get you away as quickly as possible.”

  “So no one knows that I was in the car with my father?”

  “No one, Preston said he will leave it out of the report since you weren’t hurt. The police were more concerned that they caught the real Anthony Moretti. We sort of said that he figured out Jameson had helped build the program and he was after him. It made sense.”

  “Wow,” Norah says, and then her eyes widen. “How is Alexis? Oh my gosh, they shot her!”

  “She’s okay,” Ryker comforts as he strokes his hand over her head. “She just had the wind knocked out of her.”

  “That’s a relief.”

  “Now I have a question for you,” Ryker says, and Norah grows nervous as a million scenarios flitter through her mind. “When are you getting out of here?”

  AN HOUR LATER NORAH and Ryker leave the hospital newly dressed and in a car Dylan has sent for them. The windows are tinted dark, and the driver stays quiet, just as Ryker wants. The same fast food restaurant from the weekend comes into their view, and Ryker and Norah turn to look at each other before her giggles join his laughter.

  “Are you hungry?” he asks, and Norah nods.

  “Famished.”

  Ryker asks the driver to pull into the restaurant and instead of going through the drive-thru Ryker has the driver pull into a parking spot.

  “What are you doing? Someone could see us.” Norah exclaims as she frantically looks around the parking lot for paparazzi.

  “I know. Trust me, Norah. I will never be ashamed of you.”

  Ryker holds out his hand to her as he stands outside the vehicle waiting for her to make her choice. He can already see the few teenagers in the car waiting at the drive-thru tugging out their phones and posing them in his direction. Normally the gesture would bother him but not today. Today he wants to eat a quick meal with the woman he loves, and he wants the world to see.

  She is contemplating the move, her eyes moving over his hand and then locking onto his gaze. She
would say that she looks a mess, but Ryker has never seen someone so beautiful. Finally, Norah gently places her palm against his, and he sighs in relief. He was almost fearful she wasn’t ready to proclaim their relationship yet, but again she surprises him. Ryker wants to jump up and down and show the world that this amazing woman is his. Instead, he guides her out of the vehicle, and they walk hand in hand to the burger joint.

  At first, the restaurant grows quiet, and a few of the older patrons glance around not sure why everyone else is clamoring to retrieve their phones and cameras, but they soon go back to their meals. They order their food, and Norah picks a table in the center of the room surprising him.

  “If we’re going to do this we might as well make it easy for everyone,” she clarifies, and Ryker laughs as he agrees.

  As he sets down the tray of greasy goodness, he leans down and brushes his lips against hers. “Well, let’s give them something to talk about,” he says as he deepens their kiss, plunging his hand into her hair.

  Pulling back Norah laughs as she grabs her drink. “You know, I love that song. Bonnie Raitt, right?”

  “You would be correct,” Ryker affirms as he takes a hearty bite of his burger.

  “How long do you think it will take for this to be public?” Norah inquires as they finish their meals.

  “Let’s see,” he says as he pulls out his phone and logs into one of the band’s social media pages. He doesn’t have any of his own, but he likes to check in on Exoneration’s pages every now and then. “Oh, it seems we’re already trending on a few sites. Everyone is wondering who you are.”

  Ryker’s phone rings in his hand, and he chuckles as he looks up at Norah.

  “That’s our publicist, guess she just saw the pictures, and she’s going to chew me out for not giving her a heads up.”

  Answering the call Ryker listens to Rachel, the band’s new publicist, try to tear him a new one for not letting her know he is seeing anyone. But as Ryker explains everything Rachel’s anger diminishes and she seems excited for him. He also asked her to put out a statement regarding the privacy of their relationship.

  As he ends the phone call, he looks up to Norah’s relieved and smiling face and for the first time since they’ve met Ryker feels like everything is going right.

  It takes the entire hour to travel back to Carson, and Ryker wishes that his driver would at least attempt to go faster than the speed limit. He’s itching to get Norah back into his bed. Something about the possibility of losing her today made everything real, made everything about his feelings more transparent. He didn’t need to ask her how she feels, he can see it in the way she smiles at him, at the way she laughs with him, at the way she seems so carefree in his presence.

  It’s all he ever wanted for himself, a relationship to mimic his parents’, to mimic his siblings’. He would give it all up for her if she asks; which is why her reaction to their picture being plunged all over social media warms him. She doesn’t seem deterred, and he wonders if Jameson spoke with her about it. About expectations and reality.

  He’s lucky that the band’s tour schedule is now on the back burner. That gives them a chance to settle into something solid before the threat of the road weighs on them. An obstacle known to break up many relationships.

  The car pulls into the gated community, and the moment that the vehicle comes to a stop he’s lifting Norah out of the passenger seat and carrying her over the threshold. A vision of her wearing a white dress flashes behind his eyes and he smiles at the thought.

  It’s funny to think that they met officially at a wedding only a few days ago and now he can envision her walking down the aisle toward him.

  It’s crazy, and foolish, and something he wants more than anything now that he has her.

  “Hey, why that serious look?” Norah asks as she rubs at the wrinkle between his brows.

  “It’s nothing. I’m just thinking about how many times I plan to make love to you tonight.”

  “Oh. Well, you go on and keep imagining then,” she whispers as she nips at his earlobe sending a jolt through his body.

  Ryker tosses her on the bed as he enters his bedroom and follows closely behind as she scoots up toward the headboard being mindful of his injury.

  “You look very determined,” she says as he rests his hips against her.

  “I am very determined. Very determined to get you naked.”

  With a twist of her hips, Norah flips them over until she is straddling him, the heat of her core searing him through his pants. Without saying a word, Norah begins to slowly remove her shirt as she rocks her hips back and forth to a silent beat. Her bra soon follows, and Ryker is mesmerized by the soft swaying of her naked breasts.

  Just as Ryker attempts to reach for the puckered tip, she stands on the bed above him and shimmies her pants and panties down her toned legs, kicking them off to the side of the bed.

  A growl sounds from his chest as she crouches back on the bed above him, her pink pussy on full display.

  “God, I want you to sit on my face,” Ryker groans as he reaches for her hips trying to bring her forward.

  She holds still against him not budging until he grips her hips tighter practically bruising her skin.

  “Well, I suppose if that is what you want.”

  “Fuck, yes,” he barks as he maneuvers himself underneath her sex ready to devour her.

  And he knows that she won’t disappoint him.

  FROM THE BED HE watches as Norah sleeps soundly beside him, his princess lost in her own world. He pulls back a tad as a song filters through him and his need to write the words bears down heavy. But as he pulls away Norah’s grasp tightens around his waist.

  She grumbles slightly but relents her hold as he presses a kiss to her head. As he moves from the bed, he grabs a new notepad from the nightstand and makes his way to the chair in the corner.

  But instead of writing words he stares at Norah, her beautiful face and one of her bare breasts exposed from the sheets. She’s perfection in his eyes. Everything he ever dreamt of. Her soft body curves against the sheet, the swell of her breasts convexing upward toward the strawberry tip. Ryker can almost taste it in his mouth.

  He continues to stare as he jots down the words ringing in his mind until Norah moves on the bed and reaches out to him. The sunlight is beginning to filter through the windows casting the room in a warm pink glow.

  “Mmm, morning,” she says in her sleep-filled husky voice.

  “Mornin’”

  “What are you doing out of bed? Trouble sleeping?”

  “Naw. I had a song wake me up, and I wanted to write it down before I forgot.”

  “Does that happen a lot?” she asks as she comes more awake and sits up some resting her head on her bent arm.

  “Every now and then. I do my best work early in the morning. I’ll probably see if Harlan wants to record the demo with me today or tomorrow while it’s fresh in my mind.”

  “That sounds great. I need to call the University and the Commissioner and straighten everything out. I don’t even know if I still have a job to go back to.”

  His heart lurches. Ryker hasn’t considered her going back to Virginia to finish her position. He hasn’t thought past today.

  “Oh. Do you want to go back?” he asks curiously as he sets down the notepad and ambles back to the bed, back to her.

  “I suppose so. It’s one of the few labs where I can practice using the grant.”

  “So I guess we need to make the most of our time this morning,” Ryker points out as he settles in her arms, his growing erection pressing against her thigh seeking out her sex.

  “Whatever shall we do?” she jests.

  “I’m sure I can come up with a few things,” Ryker claims as he presses his mouth against hers and slides his cock deep inside her to show her what he has planned.

  Chapter Eleven

  NORAH ISN’T SURE HOW the phone call with the University and the Department of Defense is going to go this mo
rning. She definitely never suspected that they will praise her for a job well done and commission her to complete a new project using the same technology.

  But does she want to?

  Sure, the University has been her home since she was eighteen and it was where she had met Jameson, but her life doesn’t seem confined there any longer. Her friends have moved away, her favorite professor Dr. Lewis is no longer on tenure since he was found to be working with her father, and her best friend hasn’t lived on campus in two years.

  She has missed so much, but if she left what does she do? She doesn’t want to encroach herself into Ryker’s life by guilting him into letting her stay. And what if he doesn’t want her to stay? They have discussed the day to day, but there has been no mention of their future.

  Norah takes the steps down to the basement in search of Ryker knowing that he and Harlan had planned on knocking out a few demos in this studio today. She has missed him since most of their morning and afternoon have been spent apart, but she surmises that the distance is good for them, especially if they are going to spend more time apart than together.

  Remembering that his band just finished a tour she’s certain that he will be in the studio for a few months and then preparing for another tour. The thought of him being surrounded by women, groupies, is almost too much for Norah to bear and she turns to head back up the stairs until she hears her name called out.

  “Norah! Hey, I was just coming to look for you,” Ryker says as he wraps her in his arms with Harlan behind him rolling his eyes.

  “Well, you found me,” Norah jokes, but it falls down flat as Ryker’s smile changes to a frown.

  “Everything okay?”

  “Sure,” she lies. “Why wouldn’t it be?”

  “I don’t know. Anyway. We just finished up. We got six songs knocked out, so we’re going to send them to the record company tonight. Do you want to hear them?”

  The earlier notion of Ryker having to go back on stage and tour claws at Norah. It seems like everything is working against them