“Can’t it wait?’’
He shook his head and took the seat in front of Lark and me. His elbows on the table, hands clasped together in front of him and his eyes fixing me with seriousness; I knew he meant business. I supposed the show must go on and all that crap, right?
I disentangled myself from Lark and took a sip of my now lukewarm water. But Lark didn’t put more space between us like I thought she’d do. No, in fact, she’s still as close to me as she was minutes ago and I found it easier to breathe, easier to keep my cool when all I wanted was to lose myself in this woman.
“I’m sorry, but I’m paid to look after you and the boys. That’s what I’m trying to do.’’
“You’re paid to manage Kinky Shine, Floyd. That’s different.’’
His frown deepened, and he leaned closer to me over the table, his eyes never wavering from my face. “If it were true, I wouldn’t have asked for you to go to rehab or demanded you to be tested every month to make sure you’re not spiraling out of control. You know I care about you and the boys. Stop trying to antagonize me.’’
“Whoa, out with the big words, aren't ya?’’ I replied with a light chuckle to hide how his words were touching me more deeply than they should. But I wasn’t doing a good job at it. Lark’s hand back on my thigh squeezed me and Floyd’s frown eased off, and he’s fighting off a smile.
“All right,’’ he began, serious again. “I’ve done everything I could here in New York. Your take on your marriage came live a few minutes ago, and it’s already going viral. Incidentally, it’s the perfect timing to bury your mother’s interview a little bit. But that also means the horde outside isn’t going to lessen anytime soon. Between the launch of the new clip and song and the news about you and Lark, the focus is more than ever on Kinky Shine and mostly on you, Maxen.’’
I sighed and looked next to me at Lark and her pretty face. She glanced at me for a second, questions in her eyes before I looked back at my manager. “You want the band to go back to LA tomorrow as planned.’’
He nodded and leaned back in his seat. “We can’t possibly stay holed up in this hotel forever. We have things scheduled in LA to keep promoting the new album, you and the boys have several appearances for charities, parties, movie premiers. You know how it is. Now all we have to do is go back to our lives and wait for the next move from the media because these people will probably come out of the woodwork to say something to the journalists and it’s easy to twist their words.’’
“I can’t leave, Floyd. You and the guys, go back to LA but I need to stay a few more days.’’ I put a hand over hers on my thigh and entwined our fingers. I wasn’t going to leave her to fend for herself with the mess outside.
“Maxen,’’ he said in warning.
I knew what was on his mind. Fuck, he wasn’t all wrong. I’ve been out of rehab for not that long, and it’s common knowledge that I wasn’t supposed to hook up with anybody for a while and you’d have to be blind to not see that something’s happening between Lark and me. Usually, I didn’t think Floyd would be annoyed that I was fucking a random chick, but it’s obvious Lark wasn’t random to me. He’s probably scared I was going to go off the deep end when she rejects my ass once she realizes she’s worth more than me, my issues and this damn life that made it impossible to do anything without millions of eyes on us.
I couldn’t blame him because I didn’t know how I was going to react when she left my life for good. The last time I’d heard of her getting an apartment with someone, I went out of my way to snort coke at a party that same fucking night. I wasn’t dumb enough not to realize that Lark was my weak spot, my weakness and at the same time the one person that made me feel so fucking alive. Playing in front of thousands upon thousands of people all chanting the band’s name or my name wasn’t as thrilling as having Lark with me, touching me, writhing under me. That’s dangerous.
“I’m serious, Floyd. I’m not going.’’
“Hey, you should listen to him,’’ Lark said with a forced smile on her pretty face, but I couldn’t miss the fear in her eyes. She’s on the verge of losing her job, she didn’t have a place to live anymore, her ex acted like the biggest asshole, and she’s going to be left here alone. Well, she probably had friends here, and she had Alan so she wouldn’t be exactly alone, but still, I wouldn’t be here for her.
“No. Not gonna happen. I’m staying here until we’re sure you’re safe and that you have somewhere to stay other than at Alan’s.’’
“We can arrange something with a bodyguard,’’ Floyd said, trying like hell to win me over, but we all knew how much of a butthead I could be and how thick my skull was.
I wasn’t going to say this aloud, but I wasn’t going to leave Manhattan until I had Lark with me to go back to LA. She didn’t know this yet, but until she threw me to the curb, she’s stuck with me. My womanizing days were truly over, and it’s about damn time too. I could be a one-woman kind of man, and with Lark, no other woman counted. She’s all I saw, all I wanted, all I cared about. And I honestly never thought I’d see the day when a woman would mean more to me than the band.
“Not going to work,’’ I replied and shook my head.
“You’re being ridiculous,’’ Lark butted in with her no-nonsense face on. “You have work to do. The guys count on you. I’ll be fine here.’’
“Are you trying to kick me out?’’
“What? No!’’
“Then shut up and be pretty.’’ I bumped my shoulder against hers and smiled at her before I focused my attention back on my hard ass manager. “I’m not leaving her side, Floyd.’’
“You don’t have a choice. You’re scheduled to appear on several talk shows next week with the band. Kinky Shine isn’t just about Dex, Otis, and Beckett. We can’t have one of you get out of the promotional events we have lined up.’’
“Sue me then. I don’t give a fuck. I’m not kidding.’’ I frowned at him and drilled my fingers on the table.
Next to me, Lark tensed, and I fucking hated it. She shouldn’t be worrying about any of this. Fuck, she’s supposed to have a man who could be there for her. I wanted to prove I could be that man. I needed to prove it as much for her as for myself.
“Maxen, my hands are tied. Work with me here,’’ Floyd said with a sigh. I know he’s tired. He’s been overdoing it since I told him about my drug addiction a few months ago and I didn’t like seeing him so worn out, but I couldn’t follow.
“I’m sorry.’’
“Stop it right there, Maxen,’’ Lark blurted and put space between us on the booth. Where a second ago she’d been right up against me, now cold was seeping into my body. I gritted my teeth. “You’re not being cute or charming here. You have a dream job, and you’re about to send everything to hell because of me? That’s dumb, and you’ve shown me you’re not dumb. I don’t need saving. I’m not a damn damsel in distress.’’
“But—’’
“No buts.’’ She glared at me, and it’s like I was taken back a few years when she couldn’t stomach being in the same fucking room as me. “And think. If you’re a no-show, more rumors and articles will come out, and it’s not going to help the situation.’’
I cringed at that argument. Shit, she’s right. I toyed nervously with the barbell in my eyebrow and ignored the pinching on my skin.
“She’s right, and you know it,’’ Floyd added, echoing my thoughts which pissed me off.
“Why every fucking time I want to do something right I can’t, huh?’’ I pushed away my sparkling water and closed my hands into tight fists before I couldn’t resist any longer and punched the damn table.
“There’s no right or wrong here. It’s okay,’’ Lark said and put her hand back on my thigh.
Maybe she’s trying to soothe me and reassure me, but she didn’t know how deep my feelings for her were running. She couldn’t possibly understand what it’s like for me to leave. For all I knew, I wouldn't see her for a damn long time, and when I did see
her again, she’d have another asshole in her life. Fuck, the thought alone was making me see red.
“It’s not okay, but it doesn’t look like I have a fucking say in this shit.’’ I pushed her hand away and stood up. “I’ll start packing then.’’
I walked away, looking over my shoulder at Lark once. I shouldn’t have slept with her. I didn’t regret it, and it had been the best night of my life, but leaving so soon after when I didn’t know where we stood and we’re filing for a divorce? That blew more than it probably should.
A damn boulder had taken residence in my throat and clearing my throat didn’t do a damn thing. Blinking didn’t stop the prickling in my eyes either. And rubbing at my left pec didn’t prevent my fucking heart from squeezing in my chest as if crushed.
A hand came into contact with the small of my back, and I tensed up. At one point, I’d have been all suave and shit with an unknown woman touching me, but right now, I was ready to blow a gasket. I looked down and met the almond-shaped eyes that have been haunting my mind for years. “You didn’t think I’d let you out of my sight already, did you?’’
“You’ve been pretty pushy about getting me back to LA,’’ I replied sullenly and didn’t try to hide my annoyance. I gave a cursory look at the elevator when the door dinged open, and a man followed by a couple left the elevator. Lark and I walked in with a man on his phone handing someone else’s ass with an uptight voice. I let the man hit the button for his floor and did the same afterward.
“Pushy? I’m not pushy, Maxen. I don’t want you to do anything you’d regret later on,’’ she whispered next to me, a hand on my forearm. The heat of her palm melted the damn ice that had been taking over the warmth she’s brought in me.
“What makes you think I won’t regret leaving?’’ I was looking in front of me at the closed door of the elevator when everything in me was telling me to look at her and get lost in her fucking eyes. But I was walking on a thin wire here. If I was being honest with myself, my reaction to her was starting to worry me. I spiraled, out of control and I was afraid of what I would be doing when back in LA and thinking of her still here with that ass of an ex sniffing around her. And the paparazzi.
“The guys need you.’’
The elevator stopped, and the door opened to let out the businessman who hadn’t looked our way once. He’s still being an ass with the other person on the phone. I watched him go with a shake of my head before I glanced down at Lark again. Our eyes collided and some of my irritation left at once. Underneath it all, I’m fucking scared anyway.
“And you, Lark?’’ My voice was rough, almost gruff. I couldn’t believe I was fishing here. My skin felt too tight for my body and warmth was creeping all over my face. I wasn’t used to this shit. I was the guy who’s been making a big show of his sexual encounters, not delving into the whole feelings stuff. And it’s pathetic how needy I sounded… but I really was needy.
She moved closer to me and pushed her face into my biceps, wrapping her arms around my arm. “Right now, I want you,’’ she whispered against my arm.
“Lark,’’ I mumbled in a growling voice and turned to face her abruptly.
My sudden move startled her, and she gasped, stepping away from me until she had trapped herself in one corner of the elevator. Seeing her like this made me feel like a predator closing in on their prey and, fuck, that damn sensation was heady and made me so fucking hard my cock was painful in my pants. I took three steps, and I was in front of her, my cock pressed against her soft stomach until I was hissing under my breath, fighting the need to thrust against her to relieve myself.
“There’s a camera, Maxen,’’ she said breathlessly. At her every intake of breath, her breasts pushed into my chest, and I had to flex the muscles in my arms to stop myself from touching them and tearing off her clothes.
“You think I give a fuck? Come on, Lark,’’ I replied quietly and watched when her skin broke out in goose bumps. Perfection. “I wouldn’t care if I fucked you in front of an audience as long as I was in your pussy and the sounds you make when I’m thrusting washed over me.’’ I put my hands on either side of her head and stared at her eyes and the pupils getting larger and larger as her breathing shortened. She wanted me to touch her.
Fuck, this teasing shit was torture, but it’s the sweetest kind.
The elevator dinged to signal we were on our floor and I had half a mind to push the red button to block the damn thing and take Lark here and there and fuck if there’s some beer belly man jerking off watching us from the camera security.
“Don’t even think about it,’’ she said breathlessly as if reading my mind. She shook her head slowly and pushed on my chest with her small hands. When she brushed over the barbell on my nipple, I couldn’t help the choked moan from leaving my parted lips.
Her eyes snapped to mine, and she let out a small noise from the back of her throat, a sound that never failed to make my cock twitch.
I took a step back and frowned when I didn’t feel her body against mine. Her hands fell down her body when I was out of reach, and she leaned farther in the corner of the elevator as if her legs weren’t supporting her. I threw an arm to stop the door from closing and extended my other hand toward her, silently asking for her to come to me, to trust me. To be with me.
Her eyes fell to my hand, and for a moment I wasn’t sure she was going to follow me. Then, her eyes climbed up my tatted arm, and I swore I could feel their warmth, their weight on my skin. When her gaze stopped on my mouth, I was ready to throw her over my shoulder and bring her to bed like some fucking neanderthal. But right when my patience was running thin, she gave me her hand and my heart flew away, right to her to beat for her alone.
Now, I fucking knew it for sure. I didn’t have anything in my chest other than room for her heart and love if she ever gave that to me.
I was such a sap.
I tugged on her hand, and she willingly collided with me. I wrapped her tightly against me and started walking down the hall toward my room. My hard length made walking an unpleasant business, but with Lark against me and the promise of her naked and wet in minutes, I had the biggest smile on my face. Sex for me could distract me from the biggest mess that was part of my life. At that moment, nothing mattered. I didn’t give a damn about the paparazzi outside, my departure from NYC tomorrow morning or my fears for what the future held for Lark and me.
***
LARK
“Turn around, babe,’’ Maxen demanded in a hoarse voice that made me shiver and curl my toes on the plush carpet of his room.
Standing in front of Maxen in only my underwear, I felt both exposed and sexy. With the hot, hungry look in his eyes, I didn’t wonder if he liked my body. I knew he did. He didn’t shy from praises either, and he was all the more irresistible for it.
I turned around and nibbled on my lips. With my back to him, I didn’t know what he was doing, what he planned on doing. I heard the hiss of his breath, the sound of him taking off his t-shirt and unbuckling his belt. Not seeing him but only hearing him strip rendered me wetter by the second and my arousal permeated the air. I clenched, wishing to feel Maxen inside me. My taut nipples ached, pushing against the lace of my light blue bra.
“Shit, babe,’’ he groaned, and his hot hands landed on my hips. I startled and brought my hands over his. He leaned closer to me until his cock was nestled between my ass cheeks. His lips brushed the shell of my ear, and I tightened my fingers on his hands clasped firmly on my hips. “I’m going to take you from behind and watch my cock disappear in your pussy. I’m going to palm that ass and turn it pink, babe. And you’re going to be fucking mad for it.’’
I gasped and dug my nails into his thick fingers. The dark lust in his voice stoked my need for him. It wasn’t just an itch I needed to scratch. It was like I couldn’t breathe any longer if he wasn’t inside me, touching me, kissing me.
I pushed my ass into him and clenched again on nothing when I heard his low moan right in my ear. His
stubble prickled my skin at my ear as he nibbled lightly on my earlobe, tugging the small pearl earring with his teeth until I arched and brought a hand behind his head.
“Maxen,’’ I moaned his name in a voice dripping with need and bordering on begging. I weaved my fingers through his thick blonde hair and pushed his head harder into me.
He brought a hand to my left breast, and I knew he must feel how hard my heart pounded under my flesh and bra. He squeezed once and thrust against my ass, hissing again. His right arm wrapped around me until his hand cupped me over my panties. I groaned when his thick fingers pressed on my sensitive clit.
“You’re so wet, babe. You like it when I talk dirty?’’ he growled in my ear and pressed rhythmically on my clit and pinched my left nipple until I was a mess of mewling noises and undulations of my hips to seek more pressure and pleasure.
Warmth spread everywhere through my body, mounting from my toes and concentrating in my core. I closed my eyes and dropped my head on his shoulder behind me, exposing my neck to his lips.
“Take off your jeans,’’ I said between soft pants, running a hand from his waistband to his thigh covered with thick denim. His belt was hanging open, but his hard length was still too covered for my liking.
He pushed his cock harder into me, and his hands shook on my breast and over my panties. “How much do you want my dick, babe?’’
“What?’’ I asked with a moan when he slipped his hand inside my panties.
Upon feeling his thick fingers circling my clit and putting pressure on it, spreading my wetness all over me, I tensed all over, digging my fingers into his thigh and on his skull. He growled in my neck and trailed his unshaved cheek against my soft skin. The prickle had me bowing, mumbling his name in a broken whisper. He’s crowding me with his big body, hard muscles surrounding me.
Slowly, he dragged two fingers from my clit and down to my core, spreading me until his thick fingers started penetrating me, drawing out bone shaking shivers from me. My mouth opened in a choked gasp.
Maxen (Kinky Shine Book 2) Page 17
