Maid for the Rock Star

by Demelza Carlton

  Mm. Harder.

  Audra stalked to the kitchen and made herself some coffee. Her stomach grumbled a protest that breakfast wasn't forthcoming, but she ignored it. Normally, she'd be in the staff dining room by now, trying not to strangle Penny. She'd have to wait for Jay this morning. Speaking of Jay, she should check on him.

  Carrying her coffee, she tiptoed to the darkened doorway to his room. Light snoring told her he was very much alive and still asleep. She returned to the kitchen and decided to raid the fridge. The strawberries were calling her name and her self-control was so busy battling lusty thoughts about the rock star in the bed only a few metres away that the fruit won. They wouldn't last much past today, anyway, Audra counselled herself as she set the bowl on the bench.

  Slowly, she lifted the largest one to her lips and bit into the sweet flesh.

  "Fuck, that's huge! Makes me think of you putting other big things into your mouth."

  Audra choked. "Mr Felix!" she mumbled.

  Jay lifted a hand to stop her. "You're not fucking freezing me out again with the Mr Felix shit. You know my weakness and I've seen the secret you're hiding under that shirt. Been dreaming about them all night. Tonight I'll probably be dreaming about your mouth, too. It's the twenty-first century, not the eighteenth, and you're going to call me Jay. Just Jay." He eyed the strawberries. "Is that all there is for breakfast? I need protein."

  "There's the buffet up at the resort restaurant," Audra began.

  "What, Jay Felix eat in public while every girl in the place recognises me and interrupts to get my autograph? Fuck that. Order something for me from room service. Lots of protein, not too many carbs." His voice lost its edge. "Get something else for yourself, too. Even those huge strawberries aren't enough for breakfast. Now, I'm going to have a shower. Where are the gloves from the hospital?"

  Audra pointed at the bag and Jay upended it. Gloves, dressing packs and sachets of antiseptic wipes cascaded onto the coffee table.

  "If you like, I can change the dressings for you when you get out," Audra said softly. "Then you won't have to see any blood."

  Jay nodded curtly. He strode toward the bathroom and stopped. "It goes without saying, but I'm going to be naked in the shower. If...if something happens like it did last night, are you going to come help me?" His tone held a note of panic that vanished as he continued, "You're not going to go to pieces because you see the size of my cock, are you?"

  She hadn't the first time, but she wasn't going to tell him about that. Or the frog that had felt her up in his bathtub...

  Audra fought to maintain her composure. "I'm sure I'll manage. If I have any trouble, I'll just tell myself it's a large bratwurst." She continued before he could comment, "Please try not to fall or pass out, Jay. You're heavier than me."

  He grinned. "So that means you prefer to be on top, too? Good. That's what you were in my dreams. Your tits bounce better that way, too." Whistling and swinging the gloves, he vanished into the bathroom.

  Only when she heard the sound of the shower flowing did she allow herself to laugh, glad he couldn't see her blush. Evidently they both had similar dreams, but she swore that's all they'd ever be.

  THIRTY-SIX

  Jay sat on the sofa with his eyes closed, extending his hands toward Audra. She shook her head and guided them onto her knees. For a moment, she wished she'd chosen to do this at the dining table, but Jay kept his hands courteous. As long as he didn't grope her, she could manage.

  For all her first aid training, she'd never had to practise it much on real wounds, but the principle was the same. Off came the old dressings, with the peculiar ripping sound that made both of them grit their teeth at the thought of hair being pulled. Not that Jay's hands were hairy. His long, smooth fingers curved over Audra's as she pressed down each new dressing, careful not to touch the cuts or the stitches holding them shut.

  "What did you do?" she asked.

  "You mean aside from crash my car?"

  "I mean to your hands. Why are they all cut up?"

  "Broken glass. From the smashed windows. And the beer."

  Beer? He'd been drinking and driving? "You were drunk?" Audra asked carefully.

  "Maybe. Dunno. But the beer in the car wasn't for me. It was for you. A present." He sucked in a breath and winced. "I'll have to get you some more. I wonder if they deliver."

  Audra laughed. "A present for me? I don't believe you."

  Jay shrugged. "Don't believe me, then. But I've been completely honest with you."

  "Jay, I'm just a random member of staff at the hotel where you're staying. Why would you even remember my name, let alone buy me presents?"

  Even with his eyes closed, his grin was sexy. "Audra, your name was the mantra I chanted the whole way back from the pub. The bottles in the back were the same as the one you'd wrapped your lips around the night before and I couldn't get the image out of my head. Do you know what I did in town?"

  Audra set his bandaged hand back in his lap and lifted the other one. "That's the day they announced Chaya's farewell tour, and you were all over social media because you had drinks with some tourists in the pub."

  He laughed. "So you even got the news out here. Those girls wanted me. They always do. And they made no secret of it. I could've had any one of them, or all at once."

  "So why didn't you?" Audra challenged before she could stop herself.

  "Is that what you'd have told me? If you'd been there in the pub with me, and I'd said, 'Audra, do you think I should fuck these girls senseless until my cock's sated and all my frustration at the band's breakup is gone?' Would you have told me to go for it and bonk my brains out?"

  She bit her lip. "That's what you usually do, or at least that's what the news always says. I'm sure you didn't need anyone's advice. If that's what you wanted to do, why didn't you?"

  "I was going to," he admitted. "And then one of them mentioned the band breaking up. Looked at me all accusing, like it was my fault and I could fix it. Those bitches were angry at me for something that's not even my fucking fault!"

  "So Jay Felix doesn't do hate fucks? That's why you didn't bring them back here?" Audra swallowed. "Reception called me and said to prepare your villa for guests. I assumed you were looking for romance, so I tried to help. The fondue in your fridge, the rose petal stuff in the spa, the champagne, the candles...What changed your mind?"

  His eyes opened and bored into hers. "You. All those voices yammering at me and all I could think of was your quiet sympathy. Someone who saw me as a person and not the rock god they feel is their personal property."

  Audra snorted. "If they think a rock star's their personal property, they're delusional. Maybe one day you'll be someone's, but I hope for your sake it'll be a girl you love and care for, someone who'll give you her heart as she treasures yours. When I was a teenager, I remember thinking like they did, and maybe occasionally I dreamed...but I woke up. Someone like you will never settle for someone like me."

  "I keep telling you, but you're not listening. I want you, Audra. In my bed. In my arms. Wrapped around me with nothing between us. Fuck everyone else. I want you."

  Audra dragged her hands out of his grasp. "But that's it, isn't it? You have fucked everyone else, except me. I'm just a challenge. One night and you'll forget me, never to think of me again, but that night will cost me my job. My self-respect. If you have any respect for me, you'll quit with the sex talk and let me do my job. Until you leave me in peace to go back to your rock star life."

  "It wouldn't be like that, I swear." Jay swallowed. "Fine. Give me two days. You're supposed to be watching me all day anyway, and tomorrow, too, so you're stuck with me. Give me two days to demonstrate you're more to me than a night's conquest."

  "Sure." She still wouldn't sleep with him, she swore. But she could admit she'd been wrong about him. And it'd make the next two days a lot easier. At least, she hoped so.

  THIRTY-SEVEN

  Jay threw down his fork. "So, what do you want to do today?"r />
  Audra swallowed her mouthful of muesli. "What do you mean? I'm supposed to tag along with you. I should clean the bathroom, too. After the mess last night..."

  Jay waved as if he could sweep it all away. "Not your problem. I'm not staying cooped up inside. I had enough of that in hospital. Let someone else clean the damn house. Come with me to a secret beach I found at the south end of the island. You have to scramble a bit and you'd have to watch the tides because it looks like it might be cut off from the rest of the island at high tide, but it's worth it."

  "But you shouldn't swim. Doctor's orders. You'll get your stitches wet."

  "We won't. Last time I just took a book with me. I've read the ones you gave me, though. Is there anything else?"

  Audra permitted herself a small smile. "Oh, plenty of books. I'll take you to the resort library and show you. You can pick your own then."

  Jay nodded. "Sure. Can we get lunch sent down to us?"

  "Can we get a room service trolley to your secret beach?"

  Jay eyed the breakfast trolley doubtfully. "Don't think so. It'd probably get bogged and if it doesn't, it won't handle the rocks too well."

  "Catering make up picnic baskets for day trips. People take them heli-fishing or sightseeing when they're out on a charter flight. I can pick up one of the menus on the way to the library and we can order one, if you like."

  "A picnic for two, yeah? You're joining me for lunch."

  "If you insist."

  After stacking the breakfast dishes on the trolley, Audra found Jay pacing around the lounge room.

  "Get your shoes on and let's go."

  Audra balked at the note of impatience in his voice, but let it go. She'd seen the bruises hidden under his shirt and she was fairly sure she was responsible for a few fresh ones last night. He was allowed to be grumpy from the pain. She nodded, then watched in amusement as he shoved a cap on his head and put on an enormous pair of mirrored sunglasses. "You're trying to hide from people? I thought you loved the attention."

  His mouth set in a grim line. "Not today."

  "It's harder to smile when you're in pain. I understand."

  Jay flashed a smile. "And that's why I want to spend today with you. You're the only one who does. So show me this library of yours."

  Audra let Jay set the pace at a leisurely stroll and walked beside him instead of hurrying like she normally did when she was working. A pair of rainbow-coloured birds she'd never seen before flew across the path to a palm tree, where another pair screeched at the uninvited guests.

  "Bloody lorikeets," Jay said. "We used to get them all the time at home. Drove me nuts early in the morning."

  "Where did you grow up?"

  "Perth, of course, but I had this old place in Cottesloe and they used to screech in the trees by the beach over the road. Working gigs late at night, then coming home and being woken up a couple hours later by those feathered pests almost made me want to take up shooting."

  Privately, she thought they were pretty and she'd have welcomed their chirping over the neighbours screaming as they beat the shit out of each other at all hours of the day and night. Her parents might've been poor but she had nothing to complain about; with five children, it was a miracle they'd never tried to kill one another.

  They walked in silence until they reached the fork where the path branched off to the staff accommodation and kitchens. "I should get a catering menu for you. I'll be right back," Audra said.

  She darted down the path at her usual pace, slipped through the screen door to Catering and stopped dead. Backed up against the wall was a chef with his eyes raised to heaven as a kneeling girl deep-throated whatever she'd found in his unzipped pants. Audra squinted at the girl's worn sneakers and recognised them as Penny's. That made the chef Patel. If they knew she'd reported them yesterday... Silently, slowly, Audra retreated the way she'd come until her backside met something that shouldn't have been there. Shit. Luckily, the chef emitted a groan that drowned out the sound of her squeak. She squeezed past Jay, shaking her head, but he grinned and started forward.

  "Oh, sorry, I didn't realise this place had an onsite brothel. I thought this was the kitchen," Jay boomed and Audra clapped both hands over her mouth so she wouldn't burst out laughing. The sounds of choking, coughing and frantic zipping only made it worse. "I hope you didn't pay too much for that one. She didn't even swallow. I'd ask for my money back, if I was you." He raised his voice. "OI! Where's the service here?"

  "I can help you," a shaky male voice said. Patel, Audra presumed. She heard the squeak of running sneakers and ducked behind a linen trolley, hoping Penny didn't see her as the girl rushed past, the front of her uniform streaked with fluid that Audra could only presume had come from Patel.

  "Oh, so this is the kitchen! And the call girls come to you, to service you on shift. Shit, that's a nice perk of the job. Wish I could get a blowjob while I'm working."

  Audra snorted. If the stories were true, Jay had enjoyed more such perks than Patel would in his lifetime.

  Jay ordered a picnic basket, which the chef promised would be delivered to his villa in an hour. Jay waved and thanked him, then marched outside, shooing Audra ahead of him.

  "Library," Jay managed to say as he fought down the same laughter that threatened to make Audra lose control.

  They made it to the library before Jay fell to his knees on the floor and laughed so hard that tears streamed down his face. "Fuck, Audra, your colleagues are worse than roadies with groupies! Did you see that bloke? If he can get a blowjob, no wonder this place has rules about staff sleeping with guests. That chick would fuck anything with a boner."

  Audra agreed, but didn't dare say so. Anyone could be listening outside the door and Penny hated her enough already.

  Instead, she swallowed and headed for the bookshelves. "What do you want to read? There's plenty more rock star books." She grabbed the three nearest and held up the bouquet of shirtless men. "Pick your pleasure."

  "I'm not into naked men," Jay said, wincing as he clambered to his feet. "Shit, that one looks like me. I should send a copy to my agent and get him to look into it."

  "I doubt you can copyright even your sculpted six-pack," Audra said, lifting a couple more off the shelf. "What about these?"

  Jay pulled off his glasses and grinned at her. "I knew you'd noticed! They're sexy, right?"

  "That's why they're on the cover of so many books here, I imagine."

  "What's with the shelf markers? I've never seen bookstores with labels like this." Jay scanned the shelves and pointed as he read, "Rock stars. Billionaires. Motorcycle clubs. Kilts. Seriously? Cowboys. Mail-order brides? Fuck, who gets a bride by mail order?" He grabbed one off the shelf.

  "They're historical romances. When Australia and America were settled, it was mostly men, and they got lonely, so they put ads in newspapers and things for brides and were pen-pals for a while before they finally met." Audra didn't want to admit it, but she'd had a thing for mail-order bride romances when she'd first arrived and she'd read every one on the library shelf.

  "Sounds like it's still a thing. This one's an email-order bride," Jay remarked, reading the back of the book in his hand.

  "Seriously?" Audra snatched it from him. Sure enough, he was right. "I haven't read this one."

  Jay snorted. "Be my guest. I don't want it. There's something you'll never read. The rock star's email-order bride." He eyed the pile of books Audra hadn't put back. "I should check out this one, just to see if he's anything like me."

  Exactly like him, and yet completely different, Audra thought, recognising the book as one she'd read. No fictional rock star compared to the complex reality of Jay Felix and she was okay with that.

  "Right, got your book? Let's go back to the house and get our stuff for the beach. We should have lunch delivered in fifteen minutes or so, and then I can whisk you away to my secret spot." Jay winked and beckoned. Shaking her head, Audra followed him home.

  THIRTY-EIGHT

&nbs
p; "Got your bathers on?"

  "If you're not going in, then neither am I," Audra said. "It's my job to keep an eye on you, and if I'm underwater while you're on shore, I'm not doing my job."

  "And here I was hoping to see those perfect tits again." Jay sighed. "You're cruel. I'm going topless. You should, too."

  Audra frowned at him. "It's not the same. And you promised you wouldn't talk about it. That you'd try to forget about last night."

  "I said I wouldn't tell anyone about it. Judging by your blush, you remember it as well as I do. Better, maybe, because you were conscious for all of it."

  The blush heating her cheeks crept lower, warming her throat and reminding her of how hot his hands had been as they traced the curve of her breasts last night. Shoving the memory out of her mind, Audra draped the towels over her shoulder, hiding the curves in question. "We going or what?"

  "Sure." Jay hefted the picnic basket and led the way outside. They passed the other villas – Pinctada, Albina, Margaritifera, Akoya and Penguin, the southernmost house – before the paved path gave way to a combination of crushed rock and beach sand, marbled into swirls of rust and cream.

  "I wish I had a camera to capture this," Audra breathed, staring at the ground. No one would believe the spectacular artwork nature had wrought in this place.

  "Capture this?" Jay's voice was sharp and unpleasant. "Your day with the rock star?"

  Audra glanced up in surprise. "No. Everything isn't about you. I was talking about the rocks under my feet. The colours and the patterns..." She traced a curlicue with her toes.

  She wouldn't need a photo to remember her time with Jay, even if she had a camera and was allowed to take one. Not just a day, but the whole week of working with him.

  "Don't you have a camera on your phone?"

  On her cheap prepaid one that didn't work up here? Audra shook her head. He wouldn't understand and she didn't want his pity.

  "I'm sorry. I thought..." Jay didn't seem able to articulate his thoughts, so he changed tack. "Never mind. I'll get you a camera next time I'm in town. I want a photo to remember the girl who saved my life and won't let me thank her properly for it."