“I like going to bed with you, I like waking up to you. I like that look you give me when I throw my pants on the chair--”
She huffed. “They hit the floor half the time.”
He flashed her that beguiling grin that won her heart. “And I know it kills you to leave them there.”
“I’m not your mother.”
“Doesn’t matter. I love that you take all the closet space and all of the sink space. I like fighting with your panties over the shower rod.”
She did not. She tried to be organized about her things. “Not every day.”
“I love that your cat sleeps on my pillow.”
Magnolia would certainly not volunteer to come home with her. She was firmly on Team Travis. “I want to stay with you.”
“Then stay.”
Thank God. “You make it sound so easy.”
“It is.”
“I feel guilty about not wanting to stay in my house. As if I’m breaking a rule.” But mostly she could live with breaking that rule.
“We make our own rules.”
Her heart raced. She thought she was going to melt. “Why is that you always know the right thing to say at just the right time to make me feel better?”
“Trust me, it’s just luck.”
No way was she going to believe that. “I think it’s more than that.”
“What I want to know is, why this was a problem?”
“Because you haven’t been in this situation before and neither have I.”
“I’m not following.”
“Have you ever lived with a woman before? I’m not even sure if what we’re doing is living together.”
“I’m not sure what we’re doing either, but I do know that I like it… a lot. And I don’t want things to change anytime soon.”
She smiled. “We could also stay here.”
He shook his head. “Until I get some more songs written, I think I need to stay at the house and I need you to stay with me.”
She did understand that and she wanted him to feel like he was getting back to his true purpose. “Am I your good luck charm?” She asked softly.
“You’re my muse.”
That sent a shiver of delight through her. “Oh, my…”
Travis palmed her cheek. “Are you blushing?”
Yes. This was so exciting. “I’ve never been anyone’s anything. Do you have a muse for every album you work on?”
“Nope.”
So what was her job as a muse? “Do I have to do anything special?”
“Just keep being you.”
She felt herself smile. “I think I can do that. Anything else?”
“There is one thing you can do.”
Her eyebrows lifted.
He patted the gold material of the sofa. “Get naked and then get on the couch. Then I can start feeling inspired right now.”
“Inspired to do what?”
A slow smile curved his mouth. “To do you.”
“Are you going to get a song out of this?”
“I’m going to get something.”
She giggled and stood. She started to take off her clothes.
He sat back on the couch and put his arms out. “Maybe you can give me a preview of tomorrow night’s performance.”
She reached behind her and unzipped the dress. “No, you’ll have to wait.”
“I’m a little disappointed.”
“Hopefully tomorrow you won’t be. I intend to give you a lot of inspiration.”
“Charlotte, you are going to inspire every man there.”
She bit her bottom lip as the dress slipped off her shoulders. “Are you okay with that?”
“That’s a loaded question.”
“In what way?”
“There is the ego boost that every man there is going to know that this beautiful woman is with me. Then, there is the guy who doesn’t want anyone to have those thoughts about you.”
She never thought of the other men there. “I’m not sure what to say.”
“Charlotte, every guy in that house wants to get a piece of you.”
“I’m yours.” She straddled him on the sofa. “For as long as you want me.”
Chapter Eighteen
Travis and the rest of the band sat near the back of the small theater. He was actually sweating. Not because it was hot, but because he was nervous. He sat through seven other women doing their routines. They were all good and the one thing he learned about burlesque dancing was that it was more tease than strip. No one got completely naked and no one did any pole dancing. The funniest thing was that Henry forced Everett to come. He did okay but he occasionally mumbled to himself that he wasn’t going to watch his baby sister get naked. It was just wrong. Charlotte was next and he watched Everett excuse himself to go stand out in the lobby. The curtain opened and the set looked like a fifties style kitchen. All of the dances had a theme. One woman did a dance to Hot for Teacher in a classroom.
The lights went low and the intro to I Just Want To Make Love To You by Etta James started. Charlotte strutted out in oven mitts, a checked red and white dress, pearls, and white heels, holding a cookie sheet. She may not be dancing but she could walk to the music, then she started to toss wrapped cookies to the audience. When she’d doled out all of her cookies she began to take off her dress. Henry gave her a loud wolf whistle and so did Gavin.
Time seemed to pass quickly and before he knew it, the dance was over and Charlotte was taking her bow, jiggling her breasts –– the little red tassels on them twirling.
“Damn Travis, she is gorgeous,” Malcolm said.
“Oh yeah,” Declan muttered.
“I’m so proud of her.” Henry added.
Travis was speechless as he watched Charlotte bask in the applause. She was the crowd favorite. And the housewife routine was perfect for her.
After the show there was a small party and Travis got to meet some of the women that had been in the class with Charlotte. Interestingly, the general consensus was that the class gave all of these women a feeling of confidence. The women seemed to come from all walks of life and all body types.
Charlotte walked out in a robe like all of the other women.
“Sweet Baby, you were amazing. How do you feel?”
“Empowered.”
That surprised him. “Not nervous?”
“For the first fifteen seconds, but I couldn’t really see anyone in the audience, so it felt like I was there alone.”
“It was so sexy, but still cute.”
“I’m glad you liked it. I hope I didn’t hit anyone with a cookie.”
Before he could answer, Henry came up and hugged her. “Ducks, you were glorious. I’m going to sign up for a class. It will be Everett’s birthday present.”
“Did he watch?”
Henry rolled her eyes. “Of course not.”
“Thank God.”
Henry was such a hoot, he thought. If he had a sister, he wouldn’t want to see her naked and he was damn sure he wouldn’t want other guys to see her naked. So, in his book, Everett was either very open-minded or batshit crazy. He hadn’t decided yet, but he did like the guy. “He missed a great show.”
Declan kissed her cheek. “I should have never let you get away.”
Charlotte patted his cheek. “You are sweet, but I’m not your type.”
Declan shrugged. “You’re too good for me.”
Yeah, she was. Travis felt a spurt of jealousy. He was upset. He was never crazy over a woman before. “Hey man…”
Declan raised his hands. “No need to explain, I get it.”
Charlotte touched his arm. “What’s wrong? Didn’t you like the show?”
The instant their skin made contact he calmed down, feeling stupid. She never gave any indication she was into any of the other guys –– most of the time she treated them like naughty children. “I loved it.”
She smiled. “Thank you for taking this journey with me. I wouldn’t want to do it with anyone else
.”
He wouldn’t want her to do it with anyone else. Then he realized. He loved her. That thought stopped him in his tracks. He wasn’t supposed to fall in love, he was supposed to have a good time. And he was having the time of his life with her. Charlotte was everything he didn’t know he wanted until he got it. Her sweetness, her kindness, her intelligence… never ceased to amaze. Her wild, passionate side inspired her. Her beauty enslaved him. In that moment he realized he hadn’t stood a chance.
Declan leaned back and listened to Travis strum his acoustic guitar. He loved the way the music embraced him.
“You want the ride, you pay the price.”
“Nothin’s free, not even your love for me.
“The cost is my soul.”
“The cost is my soul.”
“Take my money I’m willing to pay.”
Declan sat back and let the last of the chords run through his head. “So are you thinking a ballad?”
Travis shook his head. “We gotta rock this one.”
“Thank God,” Gavin muttered.
That surprised Declan. This was definitely a love song. He wouldn’t mind singing this as a ballad, but it was Travis’s vision. There were a few things he could count on, and one of them was that Travis knew what worked best for his lyrics. And he’d nailed it pretty much every time. Travis could walk that fine line between art and commerce like a pro.
Shane picked up his guitar and played a few chords. The guitar screamed and Declan let it infuse his body and he duplicated the noise. He wasn’t sure how he was able to make that sound with his vocal chords, but damn it was almost painful it was so perfect.
Malcolm hit the same note with the harmonica and it sent a shiver up his spine. “And that, gentleman, is what rock and roll is about.”
“Somebody call Cherry and tell her we got number two.” Declan looked at the rest of the band. There was a look of relief on their faces. Okay, this might just work out. “Where the hell did you come up with this one, Travis?”
“Maybe I’m growing up. I can’t write about beer and cars my entire life, not if I want to do this another ten years.”
His boy was back. Declan wanted to leap up and do the happy dance right here and now, but he calmed himself down. “Don’t get offended, but this shit is top forty material, so we might be able to score our first number one with this song.” There was a mature beat to Travis’s new songs. They still rocked and were edgy, but now it seemed like he was writing about being a man looking hopefully into the future, instead of a young buck fighting growing old. Declan liked it. Hell, he loved it. A few months ago, he was looking at the end of his career and now he was staring straight into the future. They could be Metallica, Pearl Jam, or U2. Or dare he hope the Rolling Stones, still selling out stadiums for the next fifty years. He wasn’t always a man who looked to the future. It had been too painful as a kid. All he could see was keeping a job and keeping his father in dope and chicks so the piece of shit would keep his hands off him, his mother, and his brother. Then, when he broke away from his dad, the future was uncertain and scary. He just lived in the moment because it was safer. Rock and roll didn’t look to the future. It was a job that required you live in the moment and it was such a habit, he never got out of it. Now with Travis’s new perspective, there was a hopeful glimpse into the future. He only had to let himself believe and he did feel the courage to do so.
“Declan, are you okay?”
He looked at Malcolm. “I’m good. I’m really good.”
Malcolm snorted. “You look like you might cry.”
“I’m still going to be employed, dude. I’m fucking pissing rainbows and unicorns I’m so happy.”
Malcolm cringed. “That sounds painful. We ought to take you to the clinic.”
Shane raised his hand. “Would you share the conversation with the class?”
“No, Ms. Yorke.” Malcolm yelled.
“School girls,” Gavin said as he hit a cymbal on his drum kit.
They busted up laughing.
This was who they used to be. This is the way he wanted to things to be. It was nice to get back to being normal. Now if it would only stay this way.
Charlotte took a deep breath and smiled at the audience. “Ladies and gentlemen, I’m thrilled to announce that the auction has garnered eight hundred seventy-two thousand dollars, which has doubled our expectations for this year and our take from last year.” She applauded. “The Lambert Educational Fund is going to be able to send a lot of deserving students to college. Thank you so much, I’m humbled by your generosity.” She stopped and smiled. “We have one more bachelor for the evening. Our next prize is a Grammy award-winning songwriter and ranked the seventh best rhythm guitarist in music history by Rock Talk Magazine. Ladies, I give you one of the handsomest men in rock and roll, Mr. Travis Rexford.”
Travis walked on to the stage and smiled and waved.
Charlotte looked into the audience and spotted her friend from dance class, Kate Bolan, sitting in the fifth row and gave her a slight nod.
Kate winked and raised her auction paddle.
“Travis, please say hello to the ladies.”
“Hello, ladies.”
The audience applauded politely, but Charlotte could see the lustful looks on the women’s faces. So far the band had brought in a lot of money. She was going to have to invite them next year. Shane was bought by Henry via text bidding, and Gavin had ended up with a rich widow who was known for her taste in younger men. Declan ended up with a rich daddy’s girl who had come all the way from Boston to bid on him. Malcolm and Vaughn would be entertaining a pair of twins from Shreveport, and Travis was going to be all hers even if she had to raid her trust fund. “Shall we start the bidding at five thousand dollars?”
Tami Deaver raised her paddle. Charlotte forced herself not to grimace. Tami liked to throw her money around and be nasty.
Looking into the audience she smiled, hoping to heaven she was not perspiring. “I have five thousand. Do I have six?”
Kate raised her paddle.
“Do I hear seven?”
Then Tami bid again. Which was all right, Charlotte was wealthy. Unlike Tami who was only rich. Charlotte and her trust fund could outbid her until the second coming if she had to.
After a few more rounds, the bidding had made it up to thirty-five thousand.
Travis was getting expensive, but well worth the price.
“One hundred thousand.” A reedy voice from the back called out.
She’d recognize that voice anywhere. Holy crap, she was in trouble.
“I have a new record. One hundred thousand, do I have one hundred ten for an evening with Mr. Rexford?” She looked at Kate starting to raise her paddle and shook her head slightly. She had to let him go. There was no way she could outbid this woman. No one would dare.
Travis looked at her and she smiled, hoping against hope that she didn’t look like she was about to cry.
“One hundred thousand going once, going twice, sold.” The audience applauded and Charlotte left the stage. Travis joined her on the floor. “I thought you were going to bid on me.”
“I was going to, but I couldn’t bid against her.”
Travis looked at her as if she’d lost her ever-loving mind. “Who is she?”
She walked up to Travis as bold as you please. Her sleek gray hair cut in a
bob, her blue eyes sparkling. “Mr. Rexford, I expect you here at 11 a.m. tomorrow. I’ll have
a car arrive for you at 10 a.m. sharp.” She shoved a card in his face. “Please do not be late, I
don’t abide by tardiness.”
Travis took the card. “Of course. Ms.--”
“Charlotte, you’re looking well.”
“Thank you, ma’am.” She leaned over and kissed the weathered cheek. Then watched her walk off. Charlotte finally let out a pent-up breath.
“Who was that?”
“Mary Elizabeth Cather Lambert.” Charlotte held her stomach, she was f
eeling a bit nauseous.
“Lambert?”
“My grandmother.”
“Grandmother?”
Charlotte nodded. “Yes, she seems to be back from Paris. Two weeks early.” Now, how did that happen? Hmm. One guess, she thought, mother. This was going to be a long, dirty war.
“I’m fucked, aren’t I?”
Charlotte took a moment and smiled at him. “That is to be determined.”
Chapter Nineteen
Travis adjusted his tie. His palms were sweating. There was a part of him that wondered how bad can that sweet looking old lady could be? But he did get a glimpse of her steely blue eyes as she looked him up and down. Charlotte couldn’t even talk about it. She watched him go off this morning with her lips trembling. Okay, he was going to be charming and polite. He could do that. No problem. God help him, let him remember all the manners he’d been taught since he was a boy. For a second he wondered if this is what condemned men felt like before walking to the electric chair.
The car stopped and the tall driver hurried around and opened his door. The first thing he saw was a giant ring surrounding four horses with riders trotting around in a circle. Then he saw that little woman leaning against the fence. What she was wearing surprised him, tall black boots tucked into tight beige pants and a white blouse. She was dressed the same as all the riders. The gray suit and tie was going to be too much, so he unknotted the tie and slipped it off, stuffing it into his suit pocket.
“Stephanie Estrella, what are your knees telling that poor beast? Let’s head to Memphis or should we go to Denver. Make up your mind. You are confusing that horse.”
The Hispanic teenager’s shoulders slumped. “Yes, ma’am.”
Maybe Travis could slip back into the limo and head home without her even seeing him. Yeah, he could be a coward.
“Mr. Rexford, you’re almost late.”
Travis checked his watch, it was five minutes to eleven. “Sorry ma’am.” That just slipped out of his mouth.
She turned around and walked over to him, never taking those inquisitive blue eyes off of him. Now he knew what a germ under a microscope felt like.
You Shook Me All Night Long (Scorned Lovers Book 1) Page 21
