by Kenya Wright
I knew nothing about applying proper makeup, but I painted my lips with a ruby red and nodded when I stared back at my reflection.
You look good, girl. Go kill them. You have nothing to be embarrassed about.
Still, my nerves bounced in my stomach.
By the time I headed down for dinner, I felt like I’d drowned the horny monster living inside of me.
Focus. Focus. Focus.
Yet, tension gripped my entire body as I entered the huge dining room.
Gio sat at the head of the long table. Ru was on his left. An empty chair was on Gio’s right. I assumed he would remain between us the whole dinner.
Meanwhile, other people sat at the table as well—a man, woman, and three girls that looked like their daughters. They were young teens and absolutely mesmerized by Gio, stealing glances and nervously toying with their silverware.
Gio’s head had been bent, chuckling at something Ru had said, and suddenly it seemed he had heard my approach and turned his head sharply toward me.
Fuck.
Our eyes met, and there was instant sexual awareness. My heart hammered deep within my chest and my knees weakened, which made me slow my pace somewhat. The palms of my hands dampened. I blinked as if the action would will the intense attraction away, but he was still sitting there watching me as intently as I must’ve been looking at him. In that moment, there was something overpowering and aggressive about him and instead of backing away from this new perception, I found myself drawn closer.
Gio rose and opened his arms to me just like he’d done in the dream. “Here she goes. Our guest of honor.”
I forced myself to smile instead of run to him and jump on his cock. “Guest of honor?”
“I was just telling them about all the amazing music we were going to make.” He gestured to the wife, husband, and daughters. “This is Chucky, his wife Janice, and daughters—Faith, Hope, and Joy.”
“Hello,” I said to them all. “And those are beautiful names.”
They all said thank you and stared at me as if I was just as big of a celebrity as Gio. For some reason, I wanted to tell them “No.” Let them know that I was just as lucky to be invited to this dinner as they were.
“I have your spot over here.” Gio went to the empty chair next to him and slid it back. His gaze roamed over me from head to toe. It blazed with intensity as if burning to ashes every barrier I’d put up in his bedroom.
“Okay.” I walked toward Gio on wobbly knees, a pool of luscious heat between my legs.
Ru frowned and watched me head over to Gio. “How are you, Simone?”
“I’m doing well.”
Everyone’s gazes stayed on me as I made it to my chair, but Gio’s eyes held my attention. Those deep blues poured into my soul, trapped me. He bit his bottom lip and seared his scent on me as I came close to him, and I knew in that moment I wouldn’t be able to resist his sexual charm. It radiated from him like a supernatural power. Unable to see, but thickening the air just the same.
Gio was a man of power. That much was clear from his presence. I was a smart woman with self-confidence, and I had a lot to bring to any conversation. But, I didn’t want to sit so close to him. I’d be tongue-tied because I couldn’t control my erratic hormones.
I sighed, praying that I wouldn’t make a fool of myself the whole dinner. I didn’t even know how I would eat with him so close? How would I be able to drink with him right there, looking at me in a way that made my panties drenched for him? The closer I got to him, the more I wanted to turn around and race away.
Whispering, he pulled the chair out a little more, “You look gorgeous tonight.”
“Thank you.” I sat down.
He gently pushed me toward the table without my having to help him. I raised my feet and grinned. His presence took up the entire space as he remained behind me.
“We’ll start soon.” He stayed behind my chair for several seconds and brushed his fingers against my back, and then slipped them up my shoulders to caress my straightened hair. My heartbeats increased, pounding in my ears. Had no one been around, I might’ve stood and asked him to take me right on the table. I’d spent all that time trying to get my head together and he’d knocked it down within seconds.
Ru’s frown deepened as he watched. “Good. I’m definitely hungry.”
Gio moved away. “Me too.”
But it didn’t look like he was talking about food, and I doubted the meaning was lost on everyone else at the table. I fought to control the intense desire running rampant in my midsection, and the increased tingling of my breasts against the knit material. No man should have this much of an effect on a woman. No man. But Gio did, and now I didn’t know how we would get any music made with this lust bridging between us.
Focus. Fuck. Focus.
I pulled in a long, slow breath. The room had gone silent. There wasn’t even the clinking of the dishes and silverware.
I turned my direction to Ru as he frowned at us.
“How was your Christmas?” I asked him.
Did you spend it with your wife or mistress?
Ru unfolded his cloth napkin and placed it on his lap. “Christmas was complicated.”
I bet.
I turned to the family that Gio had invited. “And was all of your Christmas great?”
Thank God, one of the daughters jumped into a long story about gifts, mistletoe, and spying on her sisters as they both kissed the neighbor boy, sparking their father to lecture and mother to shake her head in pure embarrassment.
The magnifying glass left Gio and me and remained on the girls for most of the dinner as we all talked about the importance of education, books, and following dreams versus spending time kissing boys.
Gio even added his own advice which I was sure the girls imprinted in their mind. He had no idea of his power, but he’d probably changed all three of their paths with that talk. I could tell they were listening and would probably raise all their grades in school the rest of the year.
All dressed in white, the staff brought out dinner on polished silver platters, topping our plates with the most beautiful dishes. Savory aromas danced in the air.
As we ate, the conversation dwindled. Yet, Gio barely touched his food, more moving it around with his fork and stealing glances with me.
“Your hair is different,” he said.
“Yes. I blew it out.”
“Beautiful. I like both ways.”
“Have you two started in the studio yet?” Ru interrupted.
I shook my head. “No, I was recovering.”
“It’s only been a few days,” Gio said. “Plus, she needed time to rest.” He gestured to Chucky. “By the way, Chucky was the main person to save you. He got me to the car just in time, sawed through the door because it was jammed, and helped me pull you out.”
“Accident?” Ru dropped his fork. It hit the table and shook the water in his glass. “You were trapped in the car?”
“And covered in snow,” Gio added. “She needed time to rest.”
I turned to Chucky. “Thanks so much. It was crazy of me to think I could battle Utah’s roads in the storm.”
“Many have tried and failed,” Chucky said. “It was nothing, but I’m glad you’re okay.”
Ru still hadn’t picked up his fork. “Next time, we’ll travel together.”
“No,” Gio said. “Next time, she’ll use my plane and driver.”
“That won’t be necessary.” Ru picked up his fork. “I’m her manager. This is my domain.”
Gio nodded. “You’re right. As long as you know where your domain ends and begins.”
Ru and Gio stared each other off, but neither said anything else. One of the girls giggled. All I could do was watch the intensity and hold my breath. Ru was being over protective, and I understood why, but he needed to behave. While the industry was full of stars having their way with the women that worked with them, Gio had given him no reason to go so hard.
“Dinner is awe
some,” I said.
They continued to watch each other as if it was a staring contest and the one who looked away would be the loser.
As a last resort, I placed my hand on Gio. “Did you hear me?”
He turned my way and curved his lips into a smile. “I’m sorry. I didn’t. What did you say?”
“Dinner is awesome. Thanks so much.”
“You’re welcome.” He gazed down at my hand on his.
Chucky added, “Yes. Thank you so much for inviting my family. This will be a night that we’ll always remember.”
“Yes,” his wife and daughters agreed.
Conversation continued at the table again. Ru gave up on the stare off and shoveled food into his mouth as if that was all he could do.
I moved my hand.
Gio stopped my movement and gripped it, wrapping my fingers in warmth. I took a deep breath, telling myself firmly that I wouldn’t let Gio get to me.
Too late. He’s already gotten next to you.
Raw, primitive heat coursed through our hands as they remained there in that hold. With just our hands touching, my heart pounded, my blood raced. Heat settled between my legs, making my thighs shiver. I found my hand folded gently in the warmth of his as he looked deep within my eyes.
Focus. Focus. Focus.
I let go of his hold to gain some semblance of control, forcing myself to grab my glass of wine instead. Gio’s staff came next, picking up our empty dishes and asking each of us if we wanted coffee with our dessert.
As we waited for dessert, I barely heard Gio telling the others a story about his mother catching him eating up all the ice cream late at night. All I could think about was that moment of our hands touching.
Chapter 12
Giovanni
Music is
the universal language of mankind.
~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Dessert came out next. I had no idea what Simone would like, so I’d nicely asked Judy to prepare most holiday treats. Everything sat at the center of the table—gingerbread cookies and pumpkin pie, lavishly decorated cakes, and warm bread pudding to make anyone drool. So many sweet fragrances rose in the air.
“Chucky,” I eyed the man, “please, make sure you take all of this, when you leave. If this is here, I’ll need a crew of five men to roll me onto the stage.”
“I sure will.” Chucky grinned. “That’s right. We’ll take one for the team, buddy. We can’t have People’s Sexiest Man Alive become the fattest man alive.”
We all laughed.
“I wasn’t their sexiest man, I was one of the honorary mentions in the magazine.”
“Well, according to my daughters, you are the sexiest man alive,” Chucky said. “Thankfully, those good looks haven’t gotten to my sweet wife or we’d have a problem.”
His wife blushed. “Chucky.”
I raised my hands in mock hurt. “No problem, Janice. I’m okay to being immune to some women.”
“Oh, don’t follow Chucky with his craziness.” Janice shook her head and then kissed her husband on his cheek.
Their daughters rolled their eyes as if completely disgusted by the public display of affection. However, I loved it. Was outright jealous, if I could’ve admitted it to myself. I dreamed about a love like that long ago, one where a woman loved me for me and not because of my fame, music, and awards. She needed me because my love brought her life just like hers would do for me.
But the industry—the business—those people didn’t exist there. Everyone wanted something. Everyone had their hands out. Everyone hung around because it was the place to be. When Jason died, all the phone calls stopped from our friends. Too much bad press had come from the overdose. No one wanted to be associated with me, not that I cared as I’d rushed off to the mountains.
However, I did find the silence odd after several months. Out of all the women I’d fucked, dated, strolled around with on and off camera, none of them had checked on me. None had sent a card or emailed my private account. No one wondered if I’d handled Jason’s death well. They all hung out with the next big band or the up and coming actor.
Mom had always said that tragedy was the best time because it revealed the truth of our lives. It told us who really loved us and who really didn’t give a fuck. It made us stronger and humbled us too.
One of Chucky’s daughters turned to Simone for the first time that night. I believed her name was Faith. “What’s your favorite Gio song?”
I pretended to be into my dish as I waited desperately for the answer.
Why is her opinion so important?
“Hmmm,” Simone said. “There are so many that I love, but the one that I’ve probably played at least two hundred times is, Serpent.”
For some reason, I made note of that, not knowing how I would use that information for the future.
Hope and Faith screeched with joy. They happily talked Serpent and some of my other songs. After a few minutes of chatter, Faith returned her attention to Simone. “So, you sing too?”
“Yes,” Simone said. “However, I mainly write music.”
Faith opened her mouth in shock. “So, you’ll be writing Gio’s music?”
Simone stirred in her seat. “That’s the goal.”
Faith widened her eyes. “Will you replace Jason?”
Simone opened her mouth and turned to me. “While no one could ever replace Jason, I think Gio and I are going to try to make some amazing music.”
“Oh my God.” Faith went to her phone.
Chucky took it from her. “No, remember the rules. No social media. No announcements. No twigging and tweeting and whatever else. This was a private invitation from Mr. Ferraro.”
I nodded at Chucky. “Thank you. I’m not big on being out in the public right now.”
Appearing embarrassed, Faith took her phone back and put it in her pocket back. “Oh my God. I’m so sorry. I just got so excited. I’m the President of GioKnights here and—”
“Oh.” I tapped the napkin against my mouth. “Well, why didn’t you say so? GioKnights get special permissions.”
Faith froze, unsure of what to do. “We do?”
“You do.” I rose from the table, walked over to her and her sisters, and bent down. “Let’s take a quick selfie.”
The other sisters shrieked.
“Oh my God. Oh my God,” Faith mumbled. “Okay. I’ll just…”
Her fingers shook as she held up the phone in front of us. I ended up having to get the phone and take it. When I handed it back to her, I asked, “What do you want to say?”
“I-I don’t know.” Faith stared up at me as I towered over her.
I winked. “Maybe you can say that you all are hanging with Gio for the holidays.”
Faith gasped.
“And that I’m working on music and you’re so excited to hear the next album.”
“Y-yes.”
“And of course,” I winked, “hashtag GioKnights.”
“Of course.” She typed into her phone.
Chucky mouthed “thank you” to me.
I returned to my seat.
Ru sipped on his coffee and watched Simone nibble on pumpkin pie.
“Have you been writing since you’ve been here?” Ru asked her. “I know you’ve been recovering, but I’m just wondering?”
“I played around with a few lyrics, but nothing yet,” she said.
“Okay.” Ru nodded. “Do you need anything?”
She gestured around my huge dining room. “I’m good to go.”
Ru turned to me. “How many songs do you think you’ll need to finish the album?”
“I haven’t decided,” I said.
“How long do you think this will take?” Ru asked.
“You’ve been making albums for years,” I said. “You know there’s no set time.”
Ru set his coffee down. “I have plans for Simone, when she returns.”
Simone paused with her fork halfway to her mouth. “You do?”
&n
bsp; Ru straightened in his chair as if he was about to announce something grand. “After this work with Gio, you’ll be ready to launch your solo career. We’ll need you in the studio—”
“I have a studio here where she can work on anything she wants,” I interrupted.
“Thank you, Gio,” Ru said, “but it would also be good for her to have a space that she can call her own.” He turned back to her. “What do you think, Simone?”
I waited for her response and couldn’t imagine her leaving to go off to some other studio she’d have to pay for. As far as I was concerned, we could work on both albums here. She didn’t need to leave. In fact, I didn’t appreciate the new topic of conversation at all. I’d already been trying to figure out how to keep her in my bedroom for more nights, and Ru was already trying to entice her back to New York.
She looked at both of us and then ate the piece of pie, taking her sweet time to enjoy it. When she was finished, she said, “Let’s just focus on everything, one song at a time.”
“I like that idea,” I said.
“You would,” Ru muttered.
Simone gave me a look, and I saw something in her gaze. Need. Desire. A craving so bad she couldn’t keep it out of her eyes.
My mind went back to when I’d watched her on the bed. She’d woken me up with her moans, and it was the way I wanted to be woken up from now on.
She had writhed from side to side on the bed, kicking off the fur blankets and diving her hand into her jeans. I had no idea what she’d been dreaming about just that I wished I was in her head. And then there was the moment that I couldn’t get out of my mind.
“Gio, fuck me, please baby.”
It had torn me open. My cock went stiff. I’d gripped it not even thinking how it would look and the whole time, she moaned my name and gyrated that sweet pussy on her hand. Her panties and jeans must’ve been drenched.
Was that why she changed into that sexy dress? She was too wet. Damn, I wish I knew.
That sweet body rocked back and forth, shaking the bed, and her moans were just as sweet as her singing voice. It set me on fire. I’d risen from my chair and rubbed my cock. I’d lost all goddamn control, towering over her and rubbing my cock as she dreamed about me.
