“It’s a Mustang Shelby GT350,” he says. “Beaut, right?”
“Yeah.”
He smiles at me and I have to remember to breathe, he’s so gorgeous, with his darklit eyes and his thick hair. With his tanned skin and his taut muscles. My stomach does a little flip as I remember gripping those muscles. As he thrust his big, spilling cock into me. As we came together.
He seems to read my mind. He reaches for my hand. “If I didn’t have a show I would’ve kept you in my bed with me all night long. I would’ve tied you up,” he says, “so you wouldn’t run away.”
I run my thumb along his palm. I love his hands. They’re strong and brown with callouses exactly where mine are. They’re the callouses of someone who spends a lot of time strumming a guitar. “I wouldn’t have run away,” I tell him.
I gives me a look that starts me going again. I feel the delicious soreness as my body responds and remembers. Him, claiming me as his own.
His hand slips from my grasp and he takes his phone from a little shelf on the space-age dashboard. “Here. I won’t listen in, I promise.”
I take the phone. “You can, but I’m going to have tell a few lies, I’m sorry to say. My mother probably wouldn’t be too happy about me taking off with you for the night. I don’t want her to worry too much.”
“I’ll never tell.”
He turns the radio down a little and I dial the number. Daisy answers and she sounds upset. “Daisy? It’s me.”
I hear her sniff, like she’s been crying again. “Sadie, where are you?”
“You remember how I got that job cleaning the neighbor’s house?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, I’m going to stay here tonight. The owner’s not home and it’s a big job, so I might as well just keep going.”
“Are you sure? You’re all alone?”
“Yeah. He’s got another house he spends most of his time in.”
“Who is he?”
“I don’t really know,” I say. At least that part’s true. “I’ve only seen him a couple of times.”
“Do you want me to come over and stay with you? I’ve always wanted to see the inside of that house.”
“No, it’s fine. I’ll lock the doors.”
“You sure?”
“Yeah. You all right?”
She sniffs again and blows her nose. “He hasn’t called. He said he has another gig tonight so I probably won’t hear from him until tomorrow. It’s just … I don’t know. He told me he would call even if he was playing.”
“Maybe he’ll call a little later.”
“Maybe.”
I can almost hear her thinking it: what have I gotten myself into?
“You know what, Sadie? He told me he loved me. And I believed him. That’s how I got into this mess, the bastard.”
“Everything’ll be okay. You’ll see.” My attempt to comfort her sounds hollow, though. There’s no way we can know that for sure. If only we’d gone to the free clinic after Delilah got accidentally knocked up, all three of us. If only we hadn’t waited for lightning to strike twice. Now that I actually understand how hard it is to resist temptation, I can relate to Daisy’s sorrow even more. I wish I could track down that jerk she’s so in love with, and shake him. “I won’t tie up the phone line, in case he tries to call. And I’ll see you tomorrow, okay? Tell Momma.”
“I will. Have a good night. Sweet dreams.”
Sweet dreams. I’m not sure how much dreaming I’ll be doing tonight.
I end the call and put Elias’s phone back onto its shelf. “Thanks.”
He looked over at me. “Everything okay?”
“My sister’s pregnant. And her boyfriend goes AWOL on a regular basis. It’s a problem.”
“What an asshole,” he says.
“Yeah.”
He looks over at me. “Sadie?”
“Yeah?”
His gaze returns to the road. The sunset is dazzling tonight, painting the sky with swirling ribbons of orange, pink and purple light. “I told you earlier that I was yours. Only yours. I meant that. What we’ve done means something to me. I promise to be honest with you. Okay?” He takes my hand again.
“Me too, Elias.”
It’s touching to hear him say that, and I believe him. I never had designs to find myself tied to a man before I got my career going, ever. I still don’t really know how tied to Elias I am. Whatever it is we’ve got going on seems to have all the momentum of a runaway train. It scares me a little, how good I feel when I’m with him. How addicted to his presence I’ve become. I love how sweet he is, and how beautiful. I love how confident he is, and how his soft side shines through his cool swagger like he can’t help giving me anything I want. I love how his dark eyelashes make little jagged shadows against his face. How the grip of his strong, tanned hands on the steering wheel reminds me of his uncontrolled ecstasy, of how his grip feels on my body when he comes. I love how just being near him makes me feel like the most sensual, desirable girl in the world.
There’s far too much to love about Elias Hayes.
And he’s tuning in to something. Maybe it’s the way I’m looking at him. At the tantalizing skin at the base of his throat. The strong line of his jaw. The perfect shape of his mouth.
“While I’m being honest,” he says, “there’s somethin’ else I want to say.”
“What’s that?” I’m the tiniest bit distracted, remembering how his rough stubble felt when he kissed the high, soft skin of my thigh. I’m going wet just thinking about that, and about what he did next. With his tongue.
“Ever since I saw you that day by the pond,” he says, “I literally can’t think of anything else. I’m obsessed. Once I tasted you I thought I was gonna lose my goddamn mind with desire for you. I thought making love to you would get some of this fever out of my system, but it’s only made it worse. Just knowing you’ve got nothing on under that skimpy little dress is given me such a raging hard-on I think I might have to pull over and take you into the back seat so I can rip off that dress, get you on your hands and knees, eat you ‘til you’re dripping wet then take you from behind ‘til you scream and cry and come hard around my big cock. I want to fill you with my hot cum so I know your pussy’s all wet with it while I’m out on that stage, where I won’t be able to see you, where I’ll be losing my goddamn mind because I’m not with you.”
I’m staring at him and he’s staring back. He takes the occasional look at the road, then meets my eyes with an arrogant, challenging sneer. I don’t even know how to react. But my body does. His crude delivery has lit some fire in me that wants out. He thinks he’s so tough, so mean and rough. I’ll meet his challenge, damn him. I’ll meet every challenge he gives.
I ease the straps of my dress down my shoulders. “You’re a big talker, Elias Hayes.” I push the fitted halter top of my dress down over my breasts so they’re bare and plumped. I pinch my nipples lightly and breathe a gasp. “You know what? I’m already wet. For you. For that big cock you keep goin’ on about.” I reach over and run my palm over his zipper. Wow. Under his jeans, he’s rigid and huge. “When you gonna let me suck on all this? And come in my mouth again so I can taste you? You know I love how good you taste.”
His eyes are crazy-dark and I wonder if this might be dangerous but I don’t care. I unbutton the button of his jeans and slide his zip down. I get onto my knees and lean over the stick shift. I take the head of his cock into my mouth and lick the beaded moisture from the slit, sucking strongly as my palm slides lower to cup him and squeeze him.
“Oh, fuck, Sadie.”
I feel the swerve of the car as he pulls over into some parking cove. It’s darker now and I’m glad. Especially when he pulls to a stop and opens his door to jump out. Before I know it, he’s around at my side, opening both doors on this side of the car and hauling me roughly into the back seat, where I crawl in, getting onto my hands and knees. I look behind me and he’s there. His j
eans are fully open now and holy God, his cock looks so big and so hot.
I pull the skirt of my dress up to my waist, revealing myself to him and he groans. “Sadie,” he murmurs, but his hands are on my ass. He spreads me open and leans in, licking me in slow laves, flicking his tongue against my clit. He forces my legs further apart, pushing his tongue deeper, licking everywhere. I arch my back and offer myself fully to him. He sucks my clit into his mouth and I almost come, but then he’s moving, climbing over me and I can feel the plump head of his cock sliding against the slippery lips of my pussy. He positions himself, and I hear his low murmur. “You like it rough, Sadie? You want me to fuck you hard?”
“Yes. Yes. Do it.”
He thrusts all the way into me, burying himself to the hilt.
I cry out as he takes me. There’s pain but it’s a pain that billows instantly into a wave of mind-blowing pleasure as he drives his hard cock deeper into the silky constriction of my body.
He squeezes my clit and my nipple as he thrusts again and again and oh God I’m going to come. He’s forcing the bliss and I’m arching back against him, rocking and meeting each drive. I’m so wet and he’s so thick that the tight, slick friction is almost too much to bear. “I’m gonna come, darlin’,” he groans. “You feel too damn good.”
I’m there. I’m at the peak and the rushes start, squeezing tightly around him. He drives deep in again and holds, and I can feel the hot throbbing gush of his climax inside me as he lets go.
Reality drifts away. It’s just me and him and this hot, wet pleasure.
When the rapture finally releases me, I can’t move.
“I don’t want to share you,” I whisper. I didn’t really mean to say that. I guess it’s okay to be honest, though. That’s how we’ve decided to do this.
“You don’t have to share me, sweetheart. I’m yours. I’m so yours it’s not even funny.”
He pulls out of me and positions me on his lap. He takes a t-shirt that’s lying on the back seat and wipes some of his seed from between my legs, doing his best to clean me up a little. He smiles and kisses my lips.
“Trust me, honey,” he says. “I’m so far gone I can’t see straight. I’m finding it a little hard to function beyond kissing you and making sweet, hot love to you. I can’t see past your golden glow.”
I kiss him. God, I’m so crazy for him. I don’t even want to be this crazy for him, but I just can’t get enough of him.
Elias’s phone rings. “Shit,” he says. He helps me climb into the front seat. Then he gets out and slides through the driver’s door, slamming it. When he starts the car the phone call projects through the radio system.
“Elias,” some guy is yelling. “Where the fuck are you? You’re on in ten fucking minutes.”
“Keep your shirt on, Vaughn, I’m almost there.”
“What the fuck’s the hold up? Why didn’t you call?”
“Something came up,” Elias says.
“What came up? Let me guess: your goddamn overactive dick. You were supposed to be here, at the stadium, tuning up, an hour ago.”
Stadium? And how does he know what Elias was doing? With me?
“Tune up for me. I’ll be there in twenty.”
Another conniption on the other end of the phone. “I already have tuned up for you. And done your sound check. And placated the goddamn concert organizers. The second opening act finished half an hour ago. The crowd’s getting fucking restless, Elias.”
“I said I’ll be there in twenty. Just tell them I had car trouble.”
“Car trouble? You drive a brand new fucking Shelby, Elias.”
Elias seems completely unperturbed by the guy’s total outrage. “Sometimes it’s good to make them wait. Feeds the frenzy. Adds to the anticipation.”
“You’re an asshole, Hayes. Just hurry the fuck up.”
The line goes dead and the music comes back on.
Elias glances over at me. “Sorry about that. My manager’s a little high-strung sometimes.”
We drive in silence, holding hands and listening to the radio, and it’s not long before we’re driving into the center of Nashville.
“Tonight,” he says, “if things get crazy, just stay with me, okay? You’ll have to wait backstage while I’m performing, but I want you to stay close, so I can find you when I need to.”
“Okay.” It’s cute how over-protective he’s being. I mean, how crazy can it be?
All the guards and gatekeepers know Elias’s car and wave him through. We’re at LP Field and the parking lot is completely full. It’s only just starting to really hit me: all this is for him. He’s performing as the headline act at the Nashville stadium to what appears to be a sold-out crowd. I guess in hindsight, all the clues have been getting more and more obvious, but I just never imagined that Elias was this big. He’s famous. He’s a superstar.
Why hadn’t he told me?
“Elias –” I suddenly feel like I need a whole lot more information but we’re pulling up at the back entrance and a crowd of people wearing back-stage passes and security badges and headsets are swarming around the car. Elias’s door opens and they pull him out. People are yelling and talking and trying to usher him away. He literally has to fight them off to come around to my side of the car. I’m almost afraid to get out. But Elias wraps his arm around me and hugs me close to his body and we’re led by his entourage into the back-stage area of the stadium.
It’s chaos.
Everyone wants Elias.
Someone must have told the crowd that he’s here because a huge roar goes up from inside the stadium that’s deafening.
He’s being led directly to the stage and he’s still holding me close, taking me with him.
Some make-up person tries to do something to his hair but he tells them to fuck off and we keep walking.
A man with longish wavy brown hair and glasses with yellow lenses rushes up to us and starts talking to Elias but I can barely hear what he’s saying, it’s so loud. It must be Vaughn, though, because he’s handing a guitar to Elias. There are so many people. We go around a corner and I can see the crowd: a huge, colorful mass of humanity, yelling and cheering for Elias.
Elias is yelling something to Vaughn. He’s all insistent about it, even grabbing a fistful of Vaughn’s shirt and yelling in his ear to make sure he’s clear about whatever it is he’s saying.
Then Elias turns to me. He takes my face between his hands and he kisses me. Then he puts his mouth close to my ear and says, “Don’t go anywhere, darlin’, okay? I need you right here when I come off.”
Then he turns and walks onto the stage, slinging his guitar into place.
The crowd goes absolutely wild. It feels like an earthquake’s going on.
Vaughn’s watching me. He takes in my hair, my face, my dress. He signals for me to follow him and he leads me to the edge of the stage so I can see everything: Elias, the band, the crowd, the busy, back-stage mob. He gets a tall stool for me to sit on before he gets distracted by a lady with a headset and clipboard.
Elias is standing there in the triple spotlight. He looks like a god, with his halo and his tall, lean body. If I ever tried to dream up perfection, it wouldn’t look nearly as good as Elias Hayes looks right now.
He strums one chord. The crowd quiets by a degree and Elias starts to sing.
Oh my God.
It’s the song.
The song. The one from the radio. It’s his song. The one I’ve been humming and using for inspiration and getting turned on by, all this time. From that very first day.
It’s Elias.
This realization makes my eyes sting and I have no idea why. Maybe because I’m in awe of his talent and his beauty. Or because I’m inspired by how much I love that song and the way that he sings it.
By how much I love him.
And by how true it is: he’s singing that song to forty thousand people but it’s me he’s singing for.
&nbs
p; You’re a wild, wild girl and I know what you like. I know how to tease and I know how to please.
Elias sings for almost two hours and does two encores. And then he does something I’m not quite prepared for.
“I have to apologize to y’all for being late tonight,” he says to the crowd, “but I think you’ll forgive me when you understand the reason why. I’m gonna show you.” The massive audience cheers for their idol. At first I think I’m imagining it but then I hear it again, over the chords of the first song I sang for him, on the bench by my window in the moonlight.
“Sadie, come on out here. I want you to sing a song with me.”
What? No.
I hear Vaughn’s outrage somewhere outside my scope. “What the fuck’s he doing?” he says to someone.
Elias calls me again. “Come on out here, darlin’. Don’t be shy.”
Oh my God. Is he serious?
“Don’t keep the crowd waiting, honey. We already did that once tonight. Come out and sing a song with me.”
He is serious.
I’m frozen.
But then I do it. I take that first step and keep going.
I walk out to him.
There’s a hush and the vast, murmuring hum of the crowd. The lights dim except for two spotlights. One on me and one on him. Someone whistles.
Elias makes room for me at the microphone, lowering it just a little so I can reach it easily.
“This is Sadie,” he says. “A friend of mine.” To me, he says: “You ready?”
It’s strange: I am ready. I’m more ready than I’ve ever been. I feel weirdly like I’m home. Like this stage is exactly where I belong. I nod and he starts playing and we sing that song together, like we’ve done it a thousand times before. Our voices dance around each other, entwining and merging in the buzzing night. It’s the most amazing thing.
When the last note fades, the crowd erupts.
Elias waves to them and slings his other arm around me. “Goodnight, Nashville. You know I love y’all.” Then he kisses me, right there in front of all his adoring fans, and leads me off the stage to the thundering cheers.
As soon as we’re off, we’re enveloped again by his pushy entourage, Vaughn included. Vaughn doesn’t look as angry as I might’ve expected, though. In fact he’s staring at me with a completely different expression that I don’t have time to analyze, since I’m now being led to Elias’s huge black tour bus. I climb the stairs and inside it’s like a swanky and very expensively-furnished lounge. There’s gold and black furniture and tinted windows and funky little lamps glowing their gold light. It’s already full of people and someone hands me a glass of champagne.
Hot Summer Lust Page 9
