With the Band

by Natasha Preston

  "Suppose you're my shadow tonight?" Tex says to Ted.

  "Unless you end up somewhere private, and I can wait outside, yes."

  She links her arm with his, which makes his job easier. "Yeah, yeah, I know the drill."

  The only time Ted will leave her is if she's at a private after-party or event. I want them both to leave us alone tonight, so we can be normal, but it won't happen. We don't get normal anymore. It's a small price to pay, but it's still a price.

  We walk to the entrance, and the bouncer nods us through on sight.

  "Fuck yeah!" Coop says, raising his hands. "Let the shagging begin." He thrusts his pelvis and ducks inside the club.

  "You must be so proud to share a band with him," Tex says, laughing, as Coop runs ahead.

  "We felt sorry for him," Milo replies.

  We turn the corner, and fuck, the club is insane. Everything is blood red besides golden cages hanging from the ceiling.

  Cooper is in his element as girls in bikinis dance in the cages. He's looking up and, I think, praying.

  "Grab a table. I'll get drinks," I tell Milo and Tex.

  Coop wanders off, following a beautiful blonde in killer heels. He loves this.

  I head to the bar, keeping one eye on where they go. The lighting in here is intentionally dark, like the walls, giving a sexy and exclusive vibe. Only the golden cages are bright to draw your eye to what's happening up there, but people seem more interested in their drinks than the dancing above their heads.

  Along the bar is another stunning blonde who Coop will be after if I'm not quick. She's exactly what I need on a night where a certain brunette is dressed to have men falling at her feet. I've been there and done that, and it's not something I can repeat even if it makes my balls ache like fuck.

  I step next to her and offer a smile. I don't know who she is, but she must be someone if she's in here. The place is apparently full of models most nights, and judging by the look of this girl, she is one of them.

  "Bonjour," I rasp.

  She giggles, and I know I'm in.

  "Bonjour. That wasn't bad for a Brit." Her French accent makes the English language sexy.

  "Thank you very much."

  "You're Kitt Daniels."

  I flash her a smile and bump my side on the bar, so I'm facing her. She mirrors my action.

  Don't look at her cleavage before you get her a drink. You'll look like a pervert.

  "I am."

  "I'm Angele."

  I take her hand and place a kiss on her wrist. "Pleasure. Can I buy you a drink, Angele?"

  She leans forward and places her hand on my chest. Her breasts press against my body, and my cock springs to life. "I would love a glass of champagne."

  I order our drinks with Angele attached to my side, and I'm told someone will bring them over because I couldn't possibly carry five glasses anymore. To be fair, I didn't even need to come to the bar. Servers are everywhere.

  I lead Angele to our table, and we're met by a frosty Texas. Milo is off dancing with someone already, and I can no longer see Cooper, so God knows where he followed that girl.

  Angele introduces herself to Tex, and while she's polite, I can tell she doesn't like someone else coming to our table straight off. Or coming to our table with me?

  "I love it," Tex replies in answer to Angele asking if we're enjoying Paris so far.

  I get the feeling she added, Until you came along, in her head.

  I look at them sitting next to each other, and all of a sudden, Angele's beauty is questionable. She's pretty, don't get me wrong, but Texas is out of this world.

  What the hell are you doing?

  I rub a building ache between my eyes. I can't want her. Why do we want what we can't have?

  I force a conversation with them both, and the whole time, Tex is avoiding eye contact with me. But Milo rescues me minutes later. Angele is making Texas uncomfortable, and I don't like it. Milo sits on the chair next to Angele, so while he's talking to her, I slip over to the one next to Tex.

  I instantly relax. This is where I'm supposed to be.

  Fuck it!

  Tex looks over at me. She looks hurt, and I want to go up and throw myself from one of those cages. It's like a knife to my chest.

  I'm sorry. You have to forgive me.

  Jesus, what are we doing here?

  It's like we're opposite ends of magnets. I can't help it. I need to be near her. Nothing feels more right than when we're together. Since Christmas, something has drastically changed even if neither of us will admit it aloud.

  "Are we getting drunk tonight?" I ask, slinging my arm over her chair. It's a territorial move as well as one to show Angele that she should absolutely keep flirting with Milo because I made a big mistake. This is where I need to be.

  "We?" Texas wants me to clarify. In her mind, I'm already shagging Angele.

  I lean a fraction closer. "Me and you, Tex." Always.

  There's a glimmer of forgiveness when her lips turn up into a beautiful little smile that lights up her eyes.

  You. Are. Perfect.

  And you are going to hell, Daniels.

  "I can be corrupted."

  Oh, I hope so.

  The server arrives with another tray, and I pass a drink to Texas. "To us getting drunk," I say.

  "To not being able to stand later." She necks the drink and looks longingly at the empty glass, wanting another.

  That's my girl.

  My girl?

  Two hours later and it's just me and Tex around the table. She looks up and her eyes bulge. "Cooper is in a cage!"

  Milo has left the club with two girls--I've never seen anyone smile so much--and Cooper is apparently in a cage.

  I swing my head up, and sure enough, he's being straddled by a girl in a cage. The dancers are gone now, so everyone else is allowed up there to dance.

  I won't be going.

  Coop's shirt is undone, and his arms are stretched out to either side as he holds on to the bars. The blonde is going for it, rubbing her arse in his crotch and giving the dancers a run for their money.

  Tex shakes her head. "How can she dance so sexily and elegantly in a swinging cage? I can't even walk properly on a sloped path."

  Laughing, I chuck my arm over her chair. "I'd make a dick of myself up there, too."

  A slow grin spreads across her lips. "Want to come up with me?"

  "Nope." I take a swig of my beer.

  "Come on. This club is invite-only, so there won't be people taking pictures. Besides, no one is really looking up there."

  "You did."

  "Because I saw Cooper going up there. I dare you, Daniels."

  Maybe I will be going.

  I stand up and see panic in her eyes. She didn't think I'd go through with it. I love our bets, and I never back down.

  She gets up and keeps her back straight to appear confident, but her breath wavers with nerves.

  Angele comes over from her table of friends and stops beside us. "Are you dancing, Kitt?"

  Tex's face falls, and she goes to sit down. Without thinking, I step closer to Tex, my hand circles her wrist, and I haul her into my body. I don't want to dance with Angele. I want Texas.

  I always fucking want Texas.

  "We are," I say, giving Angele a polite smile so that she knows me and her isn't happening.

  She looks at Texas and back to me. Her eyebrow quirks, like she doesn't think Tex is good enough, and then she walks off.

  I grit my teeth. Now, I don't give a shit about what people think of me, but there is no one better than the girl leaning on my chest, looking up at me.

  "Ready?" I ask.

  Instead of responding, she stares, and it silences the whole room. There is no noise and no people. Just me and her.

  "Take me then," she whispers.

  I groan. Fuck, I would love to hear her moan that in bed. Doesn't even have to be in bed. Anywhere. Literally.

  I snake my hands around to the small of her back an
d tug her flush against my chest. "Are you sure?"

  Her lips part, and I want to dive in. I'm unimaginably hard, and all I can think about is getting my mouth on hers. Last time was intoxicating. This time would be explosive. I can feel it.

  Laughing, I twist her around and walk us toward the stairs. She doesn't move far ahead in front of me. We're still touching, and although it's awkward, I'm getting off on the fact that my dick keeps grazing her back. And I get the impression that it's intentional.

  Little tease.

  I want to show her what I do with women once they finish playing that game.

  Two of the eight cages are empty, so we head for the one in the corner. It's more private. I shouldn't even be doing this, so privacy here is key.

  Texas grips the sidebars and tentatively steps into the cage. Fuck knows how they get away with health and safety here because there's about a foot gap between the edge of the walkway and the cage.

  It swings gently as she walks inside, but the whole thing is held to the ceiling tight, so it's not too bad. I don't think it would swing past five or six inches either way.

  She turns and smirks. "Your turn."

  I'm not backing out. I just needed a minute because my self-control is almost out the window. She looks entirely too beautiful in there. Without taking my eyes off her, I grab a bar with one hand and step inside before closing the door behind me. The cage sways a little more but not enough to make us stumble.

  "Now that you have me in here, what are you going to do with me?" I ask.

  Her eyes burn a hole in me. In the dim light, they look browner.

  Silently, she raises her arms and holds on above her head. Stretched out, her breasts are pushed up and straining against the material of her dress.

  Fuck. Me.

  She watches my reaction as she starts to sway to the music.

  I suck in a breath. I'm so jacked up that I could come in my fucking jeans. I have to grip on to the bars on each side of the cage to stop me from grabbing her. Letting go, she wraps her arms around my neck, and the second her chest touches mine, I groan.

  "Shit," I hiss as she arches herself into me. I take one hand off and wrap it around her back, cementing her to my body.

  "Kitt," she whispers, letting her head drop on my shoulder.

  I feel like a fucking volcano ready to erupt. I'm so horny that if she's not careful, I'm going to fuck her in this cage. Consequences be damned.

  Her head lifts, and her lips are so close, too close.

  Fuck it!

  I dip my head and mould my mouth to hers. She moans and presses her body into mine. I trail my hand lower and cover her arse, pulling her onto my dick.

  I'm instantly on edge, and from the way her tongue dives into my mouth, I can tell she is, too. Our kiss is hungry and urgent. It's a battle, and right now, I don't care who fucking wins because the way she's grinding herself on me is making me lose my mind.

  "Oh God, Kitt," she murmurs into my mouth.

  I growl. I'm wound so tight that my balls ache, and all I can think about is the end goal.

  She's attacking every one of my senses simultaneously. I've never been this desperate to come before. I grip her tight, sinking my nails into her hips, and I pull her into me harder while I devour her mouth. Her fingernails cut into my scalp, and she bites down on my lip.

  She's coming.

  Fuck. So am I.

  I moan long and deep as my body shudders. My fist clenches a bar so hard that it feels like it's going to snap. If I wasn't holding on, I'd collapse.

  Texas breaks the kiss, but she doesn't move away.

  Finally letting go of the side, I wrap my arms around her. Neither of us speaks, but we hold each other, trying to catch our breaths.

  We fucked up. Again.

  But I can't regret it.

  KITT

  THURSDAY, MAY 7

  PARIS, FRANCE

  I can't get my mind off the cage last night. It was singularly the most erotic and sexiest thing that has ever happened to me, and I didn't even enter Texas. I came harder than I'd thought was fucking possible and nearly passed out.

  A replay of that night is on a loop in my head. I keep seeing her grinding herself into me. I can still taste the champagne on her tongue and feel the softness of her lips. When I wash my hair, I feel the sting from the tiny half-moons she cut into my scalp. I want to do it again. I want her pressing herself against my cock. I want to do it without the clothes.

  Filthy Sound have just finished our last appearance of the day on another radio show. Now, we're heading back to the hotel for a chilled night. Well, I am. Coop and Milo are meeting up with two models they met at the club.

  I'd love to take Texas back to that cage, but she's been avoiding me all day. She woke Milo up and told him to make sure Coop and I were awake and ready to go.

  Apparently, Texas isn't feeling well.

  It's bullshit.

  She's not ill. She's embarrassed about us getting each other off in a public place.

  It's a hot day in Paris today, which means Cooper is perving out the window and scoring women on a scale of I'd shag them once to I'd do them all week long. Milo's mind is off somewhere else, and he keeps tapping on his phone every five seconds.

  It's probably a girl. It's probably his ex, Lexi.

  We get back to the hotel, and Hank follows us up to our floor. Milo and Cooper are going to shower, change, and go straight back out. I hesitate outside Tex's door. She won't want to see me; she's made that clear, but I can't leave things like this.

  I miss her.

  Before I can pussy out, I reach up and rap on her door.

  She opens the door just as I'm about to give up. Her cheeks are pink, and she's having a hard time looking me in the eyes.

  "Hi," she says.

  "Hey. Are you okay? Milo said you're unwell."

  We both know the truth.

  "Um, I'm okay now. Thanks." Her fingertips are turning white where she's gripping the edge of the door so hard.

  I breathe heavily through my nose and grit my teeth. She's lying to me, and I can't stand it.

  "Texas," I seethe.

  "What?" Her posture turns defensive, and she takes a small step back.

  "I'd rather you tell me not to touch you ever again than you lie to me. Ignoring me isn't an option."

  "All we do is ignore."

  She's right. Since Christmas, before even, so many things have happened between us, and I'm not talking about the physical stuff. There's been the sexual tension, the looks, the flirting, the way we can be in complete silence and it's still the most comfortable I've felt, and the way we feel so right.

  But we have to ignore this.

  "Look, I'm sorry about last night. We both got carried away, and I shouldn't have let it go that far."

  Her head tilts, and she looks at me like I've just grown another head.

  "You know what? I'm sorry, too, Kitt. You're right. It was a mistake, and it won't happen again."

  She can't promise that. We should be able to, but we both know if we're in that situation again, she'll be moaning my name as she comes.

  "Can I come in? I hate it when we're not okay."

  "Okay."

  I walk into her suite, and she slams the door shut.

  I'm not really sure what to do now. I'm clearly not good at this. So, I do all I know. "Coop's very put out because the girls made each other come faster than he could."

  She laughs. "Good. He needed to be taken down a peg or two--or seven. His ego has been getting out of hand."

  I made you come in minutes--without touching you.

  The thought makes me harden.

  "I think that did it. Although he's out with someone else right now."

  "One day, he's going to catch something."

  "He's probably already had everything."

  The fire in her eyes is back, and she laughs. "Probably. Want to drink all the beer? It's been restocked. I forgot to leave the note."

 
"Sounds good to me."

  It sounds perfect actually.

  She walks past me to the fridge and bends over.

  Shit. Her arse is incredible. And those legs...

  The memory of my hand on that arse, yanking her closer, as she ground against me invades my brain. I can still feel the desperation as we both battled to get off as soon as possible.

  Her hand flashes by my face, far too close.

  I look over and frown. "What?"

  She hands me a drink and wiggles her fingers toward me. "I was talking, and you were off in whatever land you were in."

  The land where her mouth was glued to mine, and she was clawing at me.

  "Sorry," I say.

  Her lips purse, and I want to launch myself at her.

  "What did you say?" I ask, putting down my drink.

  "I just offered you a blow job, but don't worry about it."

  Oh God, don't say that.

  "I would've heard that if I were on Mars, Tex, but please feel free."

  Her hands cover mine as I go to the belt on my jeans.

  Chuckling, I pick up my beer and take a swig. "You can't offer something you're not willing to go through with."

  Rolling her eyes, she pulls my hand away from my now straining erection. If she noticed it, she's not letting on.

  "It was a joke, Kitt."

  "Blowies are no joke."

  "I'll remember that for next time."

  I arch my eyebrow. "Next time?"

  "You know what I mean."

  I shake my head, half to tell her that I don't know and half to clear the filthy thoughts swirling around in my head.

  She. Is. Off-limits.

  We should've gone out with the guys. Being in a group is safer. Right now, I feel like an alcoholic in a brewery.

  "So, the BJ is a no-go then?" I ask, smirking down at her as we walk to the sofa.

  I can't help myself.

  She smiles over her shoulder. "Sorry, I'm not giving it up for nothing."

  "Hey, I wouldn't come and then leave you hanging. I'd repay the favour."

  I would love to repay the favour. Fuck, I'm rock solid, and it's becoming too uncomfortable. I want to lay her down and trace my tongue over every inch of her body. I want to taste her before I bury myself inside.

  Enough. You need to focus on being her friend and forget whatever physical attraction you have with her. She's just a girl. There are plenty of those for you in every city in every country.

  We sit down, far too close for our not-so-innocent friendship. She gently thumps me on the arm and then traces the dragon wrapped around my bicep. She's so easily distracted.

  "I want a tattoo," she says.