Everything But

by Jade C. Jamison

  Riley was late. That wasn’t like him. He’d been prompt every time they’d gotten together. Granted, she hadn’t even known him an entire week, but he hadn’t seemed the irresponsible type. The food wasn’t getting cold, because she had the chicken on low covered with a lid and the baked potatoes were in the warm oven, but everything was going to get dry and chewy if it stayed in the holding pattern for too long. And then there would be no heart access via stomach routine.

  But her doorbell finally rang at ten after. She hoped everything was okay and she tried not to seem overly eager when she answered the door, but she knew she probably couldn’t help the expression on her face.

  When she opened the door, it was Riley all right, but he seemed a little out of it. He had a bottle of white wine in his hand, unopened, and he handed it to her. “Figured we’d have a little suh-em suh-em with dinner.”

  Erin drew in a breath. “Didn’t you say the other day that you’d been sober for three years?”

  He started laughing. “Good memory. I’d say now’s a great time to jump off the wagon.”

  She took the bottle from him. “I…uh…don’t think that’s such a great idea. Besides, I have to work tomorrow, so I know I won’t be drinking tonight.”

  “Great. More for me.”

  She stood back to let him in and shut the door. Something weird was going on, but she wasn’t sure just how to handle it yet. She hadn’t known him long enough—maybe this was typical behavior for Riley. As they walked toward the kitchen, he said, “Smells good.”

  Erin couldn’t stop herself. “Is something wrong?” So much for subtle.

  Riley grabbed her around the waist and pulled her up close. “Why do you think something’s wrong?”

  In spite of how confused she felt, being up close to him stirred something in her. She swallowed. “You’re acting a little…strange.”

  He smirked. “I’m just high. You’ll get used to it.”

  Well, that made no sense to her. “Marijuana?”

  “Fuck yeah.”

  “So…you gave up heroin and drinking, but you still smoke pot?”

  “Yeah…so?” She shrugged but said nothing and pulled away, under the seeming pretense of putting food on the table. She lifted the lid off the skillet. “Like you really give a shit.”

  She put down the spatula she’d just picked up and turned to face him. “Seriously, Riley, what’s the problem?” If getting high made Riley an asshole, she didn’t like him that way.

  He frowned and looked down, almost at her knees. “Nothin’.” She sighed. “Let’s just eat.” She didn’t know that having dinner was such a good idea, but maybe a little food in his stomach would help even him out. “I got the munchies real bad.”

  She decided to just pretend like everything was normal…for now, at least. “Go ahead and have a seat. There’s a bowl for salad.” He took the hint and scooped up some salad out of the big bowl while she loaded each plate with a chicken breast piccata-style, a baked potato, and steamed broccoli. She sat in the chair next to him and grabbed the carafe of ice water to pour some in her glass. “Do you want some?”

  He shrugged. “Sure. I’ll save the wine for later.” They ate in silence for a couple of minutes until Riley said, “Shit. This is some good stuff, Erin.”

  Well, at least she’d scored there. “Thanks.” She took a sip of her water and asked, “I don’t suppose the name of your new single is ‘Still Alive,’ is it?”

  A smile spread over his face, the first genuine one she’d seen since he walked through the door this evening. “Yeah…why?”

  She smiled back. “I heard it on the radio this afternoon.”

  He put down his fork. “Hot damn. What did you think?”

  “Awesome. It kicks ass. It’s so…different from what you did with Spawn.”

  He grabbed his glass and knocked back the rest of his water. “Good or bad?”

  She took a deep breath. “Well, don’t get me wrong. I love Spawn, but this stuff…is really, uh…mature. Unique. Not much like it out there.” Shut up, Erin. You sound like a fucking fangirl. “Anyway, I want to hear it a few more times.”

  “Make sure you really like it?”

  She laughed. “No…I know I like it, but once is just enough to get a taste, you know?” She looked up from her plate. Holy shit. What was that look he was giving her? It looked…ravenous. That was at least a little closer to the Riley she’d been getting to know and, well, not love but start falling for.

  He blinked, his eyelids almost moving in slow motion, and said, “I’m glad you like it. Just don’t make me listen to it.”

  She wrinkled her brow, remembering how he’d come out in her living room and turned off the Spawn CD she’d been playing. “Why don’t you like to hear your own stuff?”

  He shrugged. “The music’s okay. This might sound weird, but I really hate hearing myself.”

  She shook her head. “That’s not so weird. I think most people hate hearing their own recorded voices. We never sound the same recorded as we sound to ourselves.”

  “Yeah…well, I sound like a fucking idiot.”

  She shook her head. “No way. You sound…” She took a deep breath, deciding to let it pass.

  “Come on. Finish it.”

  She looked back up from her plate. “You sound sexy.”

  He grinned. “Thanks. Not to me, but thanks.”

  She swallowed, ready to change the subject. At least they were talking again and it wasn’t strained. “There’s cheesecake for dessert, by the way.”

  “You fucking kidding me?”

  “No…amaretto…” Oh, shit. “Oh…can you eat that, even if…?”

  “Yeah. Besides, I told you I was gonna drink that wine later anyway.”

  She really hoped he wouldn’t, but she didn’t want to press the issue, especially since he was acting more normal again. They ate in a silence for a few moments and then Erin said, “I know you used to write all the lyrics for Spawn. Are you still doing that in your new band?”

  He nodded. “Yeah, but I’m also writing some of the music too.”

  She smiled. “That’s impressive. That why it sounds so different?”

  He shrugged. “That’s part of it. Johnny used to write all the music for Spawn.”

  “Johnny…J. C.?”

  “Yeah.”

  She took another bite of chicken. So far, so good, but in the back of her mind, she was worried about the wine. Maybe she could try distracting him a little later.

  Chapter Twenty-six

  OKAY, SO RILEY was coming on a little too strong in the asshole role, so he dialed it back a bit. But he got pissed at himself for that too because that had been the whole point. If Erin just wanted a little romp with a rock star, he could give her a taste of the whole gamut. He could treat her like trash, make her feel like a whore if that’s what she really wanted.

  The problem was he liked her way too much. Every time he started to turn on the heat and act like a dick, the hurt in her eyes made him pull back. He felt guilty.

  And then, goddamn. She just had to bring up the new music, didn’t she? She had to tell him she liked his new stuff. That made him feel great. He’d been so worried about what Spawn fans would think, especially because so many of them embraced Johnny’s new project and much of the buzz in the fan community was that Riley had no talent. So he’d been worrying himself sick wondering what fan reaction would be. He knew Erin was a serious fan, so having her assure him his new stuff was not only viable but good did loads for his confidence.

  He wondered if he’d be able to pull it off. She might not care about him, might think this was all just a little jaunt in the park, but he just couldn’t stop falling for her more and more.

  “Are you ready for dessert?” she asked, pulling him out of his thoughts.

  He looked up from his empty plate. Yeah, he was, but he didn’t know that she meant the dessert he was thinking about. And he really was thinking about the goddamned bottle of wine too
. That had been a fucking stupid move. But he was at war with himself. He hadn’t wanted a drink this badly for a couple of years and, even though he’d been considering it, he hadn’t even seriously thought of giving in until he’d actually bought some. But, for now, he was going to chill.

  Erin got up from the table and opened the refrigerator, leaning over to see in. He had a nice view of her sweet ass. Jesus. He wanted to take her right there. But he’d behave himself…for now. He’d already freaked her out enough by being a rat bastard. She fetched a round pan of cheesecake out of the fridge along with two bottles of the soda he’d brought over earlier in the week. Then she walked over to the counter and got two small plates out of the cabinet. Riley finally asked, “Do you need any help?”

  “No, I got it. Thanks.” His eyes moved to one of the two tall white candles on the table, the flame flickering gently, swaying to a quiet tune only it felt. It certainly didn’t match what was coming from the speakers in Erin’s living room, songs from the middle of Korn’s Follow the Leader disc. He smiled. Erin really was a metalhead. It wasn’t just a show because she’d wanted to dally with the bad boy on the other side of the tracks.

  Ah, yes, more of the conflicting thoughts and emotions. Wouldn’t want it to be easy to be a raging asshole. Or…what was it she’d called him a few days ago? An incorrigible ass? Yeah…he was gonna be that tonight. He had to power through his guilty feelings and make her hate him. If he saw a look of hate in her eyes, it would be easy to walk away. Right now, it just hurt.

  It was hard, though, because she was sweet and gorgeous. He glanced around the kitchen, realizing she’d put a lot of work into this meal. He had no idea how long she’d worked on it, but she’d done a lot. And then…she was in that simple, plain-Jane dress, but it hugged her curves and made him think all kinds of dirty thoughts.

  She turned around, smiling, and set in front of him a slice of cheesecake, a fork, and an opened bottle of cream soda. He couldn’t help but smile back, and she looked like she had some secret. He liked that but he also felt a little wary, and he knew why. He was feeling guilty about all the thoughts he’d had over the last twenty-four hours and he was projecting them on her. Still… “So what’s wrong with it?”

  Erin had turned back to the counter and was walking back with another soda. “What? What do you mean?”

  God, he was a fucking asshole. Look at the pain in those green eyes, asshole. You did that. “Oh, nothing.” He took a swig of his soda and avoided looking at her.

  Before he could grab the fork, she picked it up and sliced off a tiny bite from the cheesecake on the small plate between them. She held the fork out to him. God…could he trust her? Was she wanting to get him back for being such a jerk tonight? It would be so easy.

  But he did trust her. He couldn’t help it. He leaned forward and let her slide the fork in his mouth as he closed his lips over it. Then she placed her other hand on his inner thigh. Fuck…he couldn’t stop himself from feeling comfortable. He liked dessert already, and he wouldn’t be able to concentrate on his plan with the heat of her hand radiating through his jeans.

  He also couldn’t help the small, sly smile turning up his lips. She asked, “What do you think?”

  He swallowed the bite. “About the cheesecake?”

  Oh, God, that seductive look in her eyes. She had a plan. “Sure.”

  “It’s, uh, smooth and sweet.” What the fuck? Chill your shit, Riley. He was losing his cool. He was acting like he was fourteen. Of course, he was kinda feeling like that too. He felt her hand sliding up his thigh, ever so slowly, as his jeans tightened. Yeah, right, his jeans tightened. No, his cock was expanding and it couldn’t fit in there anymore. He closed his eyes. He was going to enjoy the sensation and whatever other exquisite torture she had in mind for him.

  She slid her hand back toward his knee. Oh, fuck…don’t stop now. But he knew it was all just part of it. He opened his eyes and looked at her. She had a devilish grin on her face and said, “Now my turn.”

  Yeah…he’d gladly put both his hands on her thighs, but she had the fork in her hand and snapped her wrist at him, then slid the plate closer to him. He grinned and scooped up just a sliver. He saw her hands move to her neck and she unbuttoned the top of her dress. He was distracted and paused until she furrowed one brow and looked at the fork in his hand.

  As though he were an errant slave, he blinked and moved the fork toward her mouth, but he was painfully aware that she kept unbuttoning the dress. Once he had the fork in her mouth, she clamped her teeth down on it, her lips curled in a snarl. She had a twinkle in her eye.

  And who the fuck was Riley kidding when he thought he could treat her like trash? She was too cute and too funny and…way too sexy. She stirred something deep within him. He wanted to say something but he was afraid of breaking the mood. He slid the fork out of her mouth and just watched as she moved down the front of her dress, one button at a time, ignoring the beat of Korn’s “Seed” playing in the room, taking her sweet-ass agonizing time. He could barely take his eyes off her fingers, couldn’t even clamp his mouth shut, but he scooped up another bite on the fork and brought it to her mouth. Her smile was wide and she opened her lips again. Once she had the cheesecake in her mouth, she bit her bottom lip and looked at him through half-closed eyes. He wondered what she was thinking.

  She reached over and took the fork from him. But instead of scooping up another bite for him, she set the utensil down on the table and scooted her chair closer to his. She got so close, her legs fit in between his, but she didn’t get too close. She was so close, though, that he could feel the warmth radiating off her.

  He could hear her breathing. Her breath wasn’t smooth and silent, and he knew that meant she was getting a little worked up. Still, he kept his distance, because he didn’t know what she had planned. Then she brought her hands up to her breasts. At first, he thought she was going to cup them, and just that thought made his pants feel tight again. Instead, though, she moved her fingers underneath the fabric and pulled the sides apart.

  Holy fucking shit.

  She had some kind of lacy red lingerie underneath her goddamn dress. The sleeves of her dress were hanging off her shoulders now so he could only see a little of the lingerie but shit. But what drove him absolutely out of his mind was when she grabbed his hand and pressed the palm against her breast. He felt the rigid nipple against his hand and she let out a heavy breath, closing her eyes and leaning forward.

  Jesus Christ. He knew one thing. There was no way he could walk away from this.

  Chapter Twenty-seven

  THE LOOK IN Riley’s eyes was classic. The moment Erin put his hand on her breast, his pupils got so wide they nearly ate up his entire eyeball. And she’d noticed how he was bulging against his pants too. He was as hard as stone. There was no ignoring it. She’d managed to seduce him and, she hoped, taken his mind off the stupid bottle he’d brought.

  But, damn it, she hadn’t wanted to care. She’d already been feeling such strong emotions when it came to Riley and it was impossible to turn them off. She was worried about him too, worried that he might decide to throw away three years of sobriety for a cheap bottle of wine. But she was also upset with him—he was acting like an asshole off and on, and it didn’t make any sense. She hadn’t said anything to set him off, at least nothing she could figure.

  And whatever resolve she had tried to muster to resist him dissolved in his presence. Just sitting next to him through dinner had made every last nerve stand at attention, begging for his touch. Oh, yeah, like she hadn’t planned everything out. She couldn’t even pretend with herself…the red with black trim bustier/ panty set was premeditated and she’d felt hot all through dinner knowing it was under her boring dress.

  She hadn’t had a plan, though, but it had hit her when she’d decided to move them on to dessert. And it had worked. And how. Just having his eyes on her, with his body almost paralyzed while she unbuttoned the dress had aroused her in ways she could
n’t even describe. By the time she was done with the last button at the waist, all her muscles were tense and alive and her panties were wet.

  Speaking of the stupid lingerie set, it was something she’d bought for Frank, about a week before they’d broken up. But she’d never worn it for him, had only worn it when she’d tried it on in the store in the mall. When she came across it today, she knew it would be perfect. And the look in his eyes told her that yes, it was.

  Grabbing his hand and placing it on her breast had been one of the boldest moves she’d ever made with a man. She’d always been a little on the shy side in the bedroom, preferring to let the man lead the way, but Riley had opened up something in her. Maybe it was cuffing him and leaving him, Jackie style, that had lowered her inhibitions but it might have been that stupid Monopoly strip game they’d played. Maybe it was just something about him.

  But she wasn’t going to analyze her brazen behavior; instead, she was going to reap the benefits. Riley’s hand closed over her breast and he squeezed it ever so slightly before he loosened his grip and then traced the nipple with his finger. Jesus…the air rushed out of her mouth and she could barely keep her eyes open. It was almost embarrassing because it was like he could read her thoughts.

  He moved his finger from her breast to her cleavage and then traced it slowly down her torso. She could feel the heat from his flesh through the thin fabric. She wanted him right now. She moved one hand onto his forearm that rested on the table and the other hand gripped his thigh just past his knee as his finger drew its way down her abdomen, brushing lightly over her navel, and then he touched the exposed flesh between the bustier and panties. She sucked in a deeper breath, her body anticipating his touch farther down. But he let his finger move over the top of the panties. It didn’t matter, though, because it felt so intense that she closed her eyes as he followed the groove between her labia, straight to her throbbing clit. She gasped again, louder this time, and she moved her hand from his forearm to run it through her hair. Her other hand, though, gripped his thigh as though she were hanging on for a wild ride. He brushed her through the fabric of the panties and all it did was make her want more.