by Alyson Hale
Eddie shrugs. “I was too young to remember it happening. The only things I know about them I know through Cyril.”
“That’s right, you grew up touring. That must have been a crazy life.”
Eddie nods and takes a big bite of biscuit. His face transforms from a serious expression to a look of sheer rapture. “Good God, where have these biscuits been all my life?” He looks down at Mom’s biscuits like they came from an alien planet. Eddie turns to my mom, who’s sitting in her favorite recliner. “I’m never going to eat again unless it’s here,” he declares.
“You’re welcome anytime you want, sweetheart,” Mom says with a wink. For some reason, knowing Mom likes him so much makes me like Eddie even more.
I can see why she calls him a “sweetheart.” His megawatt smile has my insides melting into a puddle and swimming around inside me like a whirlpool. Still, I know his charming demeanor is but one of his many dimensions. He has a wicked side. I know because I’ve seen it blazing off of him onstage. I’ve never met a boy I would let past my walls, but this is no boy, this is a man. I want to know what it feels like to be with a man. I want to let him hold me, kiss me, take me to my breaking point and carry me all the way past it.
Icicles crystallize and crackle down my spine when I realize what I’m doing. I keep thinking about letting Eddie take my virginity, but he’s not even staying here. Kyri said they’re going on tour again in just a few short weeks. Have I lost my mind?
I shake the crazy thoughts out of my head and try to steer the conversation in a safe direction. “So is it really rainy all the time in London?”
Eddie nods. “It is, for pretty much half the year. When it isn’t raining, though, it’s beautiful.”
“I bet it is. I’ve always dreamed of visiting Buckingham Palace.”
Suddenly uncomfortable, Eddie clears his throat around a bite of biscuit. Jace grins in his direction from across the room. Eddie glares at him.
“What on earth just happened there?” I ask.
“Nothing. Jace is just being an arsehole,” Eddie mutters, his cheeks bearing the slightest pink tinge. If I’m not mistaken, a rock star just blushed in front of me. There must be some embarrassing story that happened there he doesn’t want me to know about. Does this guy actually care what I think of him?
No way. That’s crazy...right?
As soon as Jace and Kyri turn their attention back to each other, I decide not to embarrass Eddie further and instead ask an unrelated question. “So how did my sister manage to bag Jace? I haven’t had a chance to talk to her about it yet, but I’m curious.”
Eddie shrugs. “It was instant for him as soon as he saw her. He was actually working with your dad to try to soften her up to coming on the road, but that ended up backfiring hard. Now he has her and your dad doesn’t.”
“Ah.” I frown. That doesn’t sound like the Dad I remember. He wouldn’t try to manipulate his own daughter...would he?
A shiver passes through me. I fold my arms over my chest. Either there’s a draft, or the chill in my bones is because this trip might not turn out as pleasant as I’d hoped.
Chapter 6
Eddie
My gaze wanders down to Elyza’s V-neck, where the tops of her small, round breasts are on perfect display, pushed up by her crossed arms. Her nipples are so hard, they’re starting to poke through the fabric of the soft-looking sweater she’s wearing. Every moment I spend with Elyza makes it harder and harder to stop myself from taking her. The way she’s taunting me is not intentional. She’s so innocent and clean. A dirty man like me with all my baggage is not what Elyza needs, but God, do I ever want to cover this little angel in my filth and make her mine.
She seems cold, so I set my plate down and slide my black leather jacket off my arms. I put it around her shoulders and she looks up at me, thanking me with her eyes and her mouth simultaneously.
My gaze roves down to her moistened lower lip. The pout on this woman’s mouth should be illegal. It begs to be tasted. My arms feel empty without her in them. I can’t stop thinking about what it would be like to hold her, to feel her lips on mine, to tempt her lower set of lips with my aching cock…
Mercifully, Elyza distracts me by asking another question. “What is the most interesting place you’ve ever been to on your travels?”
I stop for a moment and stroke the stubble on my chin. “I’d have to say Arashiyama in Japan. It’s this vast bamboo forest you can walk through on a railed-off pathway. I watched the sun streaming through the tree stalks and listened to monkeys chirping and thought about how incredible life is the whole way.”
The golden ring around Elyza’s pupils grows larger. She seems entranced by the image I just painted for her. This girl would love to travel and see the world. I can see it in her eyes. “That sounds amazing.”
“It was.” I take one last swig of my tea and stand to my feet. I hold out my hand for Elyza’s clean plate. The girl looks like she eats nothing but salads, yet she destroyed a down home American Southern feast. I like a girl who isn’t afraid to eat. Truth be told, even if she put on some weight, I’d still think she was the most beautiful thing on the planet, bamboo forests be damned.
Elyza’s smile warms me from the inside out as she hands me the plate. “Thanks, Eddie.”
I flash her a smile and hurry into the kitchen, beating myself harshly as I take our dishes to the sink. The rock star life is no life for a young girl with potential. I have no right to be thinking about her like this. Elyza belongs at university with her friends and professors, learning about life without my warped perspective getting in the way. There are scores of men who would jump at the chance to be hers who would let her maintain her normal life. Yet I can’t shake this monstrous notion that she belongs to me.
Those lips are mine. Those sumptuous curves are mine. And those eyes—those deep, liquid eyes—belong to me too. I can’t even fathom letting them wander to another man.
I look back at Elyza through the opening to the den. Connor has slid closer to her on the couch and is amusing her with something on his phone. She watches until something funny happens on screen. Elyza’s bubbly laughter fills up the space.
Electricity rips through me like a lightning strike. I take the distance between us in a few long strides and sink down into the cushion between her and Connor. Connor raises his dark brows and a slow grin starts on his face. A low, rumbling possessive growl crawls out of me.
“She’s all yours, mate,” Connor says softly, chuckling at me. “You’re acting as if I’m trying to steal your Scotch or something.”
I stop and ponder his words. Connor’s right. I’m possessive with things that belong to me, but I’ve never been possessive over a woman. If Jace or Damien said they wanted someone, I always backed off. After all, there was always a harem of at least ten women around us, so there were plenty to choose from.
I turn and look at Elyza, whose gaze is fixed on the Christmas tree in front of us. The lights are reflected in her eyes. I stare at her, amazed at the way this girl has turned my world upside down in the space of an hour. She’s everything soft and sweet and beautiful. Everything I won’t allow myself to want. I’ve been trying so hard to forget about my true desires, and now they’re spilling out of me so fast I can’t contain them.
I can picture taking her home to my flat in London, cooking together, leading her into my bed and making rough, passionate love to her for the rest of the night...
Pressing my fingers over my eyelids, I force myself to get a grip. I haven’t even kissed her yet and I’m imagining myself living with her. What the fuck is happening to me? I must be going completely insane.
When I open my eyes, I look over at Jace and Kyri. Jace is positioned in a reclining chair with Kyri on his lap, looking as proud and pleased as a king with his queen. Her eyes are only on him, stroking his thick beard and looking down at his lips. Before he proposed, Jace told me he knew he was going to marry Kyri from the moment he laid eyes on her in the pu
b. Their connection was instant, just like what I felt with Elyza. It must be something about the Calloway girls. They make you want to marry them.
But this isn’t just a want, this is a need. And now I have to figure out what the hell I’m going to do about it.
Chapter 7
Elyza
I snuggle into Eddie’s jacket, taking a deep inhale through my nostrils. Throughout the night, I’ve been taking hits of my new favorite drug: Eddie’s smell, the scent of sharp, sweet cologne mixed with a little hint of smoke and danger. I can’t get enough. I wish I could keep this jacket as a souvenir from the most incredible Christmas I’ve had so far.
I hadn’t even noticed they were gone, but when Damien and Alex walk back into the room, it’s obvious what they’ve been doing. Alex’s lipstick is worn off, and Damien is grinning like a bastard who just got away with murder. His hand is bandaged, and it wasn’t before. I should probably ask him what happened, but I don’t know him from Adam. Besides, if it happened while he and Alex were having sex somewhere in our house, I’d rather not know.
My mom startles me by calling out my name. “Play us some Christmas carols.” She nods over to our ancient upright piano in the corner of the room.
My cheeks burn red hot. “Uh, I don’t think that’s a good idea, Mom.”
“Go on.” Eddie’s low, velvety voice sends shivers down my spine. I look into his gray eyes and see a faint glimmer of light in them. I’m not sure if it’s excitement or the glow from the tree lights. “I’d love to hear you play.”
I freeze like a deer in the headlights. Everyone else in the room voices their agreement with Eddie. Now I have to either play for them or make a big scene out of refusing their request. Shakily, I stand to my feet and trudge across the room to the piano. I haven’t touched its worn, sticky keys in ages. I push back the dark wooden cover and sit down on the bench, keenly conscious of everyone in the room staring at me. From memory, I play a piano accompaniment to Jingle Bells.
The others continue to chatter and laugh as I provide the background music for them. Glancing over my shoulder, I make eye contact with Eddie. He’s the only one watching me. A small smile is tugging at his lips. Silly butterflies flutter from my heart all the way down into the base of my stomach. I didn’t expect to be the one entertaining him in song tonight, and especially not on our old, out-of-tune piano, but he seems to like it. Surely this vibe I’m feeling with him can’t be one-sided.
Once everyone is ready to settle down, Mom calls me back to my seat and we start the gift exchange. We didn’t plan on having this many people here tonight, but luckily there are enough presents to go around. Even Cyril is going to get a hand-knitted scarf from Tonya and a hat from my mom. They always make extras in case they need a “backup” gift, and that tendency, which I once thought was weird and paranoid, actually came in handy this time.
All of the women in the room gush over Alex’s gifts when we open them: handmade bags with our initials sewn into them. Mine is a small tote bag with black and white stripes and vintage rose prints. Alex managed to nail all our individual styles. The craftsmanship is unimpeachable. Now I feel like my gifts, store-bought phone cases with styluses, were completely inadequate. I guess it’s not my fault I was born without a creative bone in my body.
Well, that’s not true. There is one thing I used to do that was special. Composing music used to be the thing that brought life into my veins. It might have even been my dream. But that was all it was—just a stupid pipe dream. I can’t even start thinking about it, or Mom and Kyri might get suspicious.
I stand from the couch and slip out of the room amidst the chatter and distraction of the others. No one notices when I step out the front door and into the chilly air to gaze at the moon. We don’t usually get snow at Christmas in Georgia, but there’s still a beautiful calmness in the air and the ambiance from the Christmas lights in the neighborhood. My breath creates wispy clouds that billow up toward the night sky. Sighing, I close my eyes, letting the winter air sting my cheeks. Two more weeks, and I’ll know where I stand in the nursing program. If I fail anatomy again, I’m going to try some other major. I have no idea what else to try, but at least I’ll know one path is either open or closed.
Sometimes I wish the universe would give me a sign. I’m too clueless to figure out what to do with my life on my own. As I look into the vastness of the night sky, I realize I’m only one out of billions. The universe is too big to care what happens to little Elyza Calloway. I have to make my own path. I guess only time will tell what that’ll be.
Suddenly, the ancient door squeaks open. Eddie comes out to join me on the stoop. Fresh blood rushes through my veins, warming me until I’m almost immune to the cold night air. My stomach flip-flops as he steps up to join me. His eyes reflect the shimmering stars.
Eddie has been spending the entire night with me so far. I don’t know if that means he likes me or if he just feels sorry for me, but I’ll take hanging out with one of my hardest celebrity crushes of all time either way.
Eddie leans on the black cast iron railing next to me and looks down into my eyes.
“You all right, love?”
Inwardly, I beg him to stop calling me that. It isn’t fair to my fragile heart.
“I’m fine.” I give him a lopsided smile. “Just needed some fresh air is all.”
“It was getting a bit stuffy in there,” Eddie agrees. He shakes out his shoulders to loosen them. I move to give him his jacket back, but he refuses, holding his hand up in protest. Eddie digs in the back pocket of his distressed jeans and pulls out a cigar and a lighter. I’m suddenly jealous of an inanimate object for having touched his firm-looking, round ass. All he had on under his jacket was a tight white t-shirt, and it’s clinging to every muscle. His tattooed arms are on full display, and underneath his shirt I can see the outline of his pecs, his abs, the V leading down to his…
“Mind if I light up?”
“Only if you’ll share.” I give him my best flirtatious smile. Eddie laughs from his stomach and lights up his cigar. After he takes a drag, he hands the same cigar to me. I put my mouth over the same place his mouth just was and suppress a moan. This is the closest I’m probably going to get to kissing him.
When I suck in a breath, my throat and chest burn as if I just tried to breathe fire. I cough violently, choking on the unfamiliar sensation.
Eddie thumps my back until I stop coughing. “Have you never smoked before?” he asks.
Cheeks flaming, I give him a sheepish smile. “I take a hit of weed every now and then, and I’ve vaped a little. I guess I’ve never had a real smoke before.”
Eddie holds out his hand. “Here. Let me show you how it’s done.” My fingers brush his as I hand him back the cigar. I watch as he wraps his full lips around the place where my lips just were. He takes in a slow breath, letting the end of the cigar burn a bright red before taking it out of his mouth and blowing the smoke up toward the moon. When he hands me the cigar again, I mimic his actions and find the smoke a lot easier to take when I breathe it in slowly.
We stand in silence for a few minutes, looking up at the moon and passing the cigar back and forth. He speaks again as I take a long drag, starting to enjoy the flavor of the tobacco. “It would seem our two families just merged into one big one.”
My lips pull upward on their own. “I like that you consider your bandmates family.”
“They are family,” Eddie asserts. He leans over the railing, tucking one arm underneath him. His muscles bulge out underneath the tattoo of his band logo. I work hard not to stare. “Cyril and Damien are the only ones blood related to me, but Jace and Connor might as well be blood brothers. I can’t imagine doing anything without them.” Eddie turns his head to examine me. I feel naked in front of his probing gaze. “But enough about me. I want to hear about you now.”
Sighing, I angle myself back toward the moon and shrug. I don’t want to tell him how boring and plain I really am, so I resort to using a
cliche. “I’m just a girl trying to find her place in this crazy world and going crazy in it. I’ve done too much partying and not enough finding myself lately.”
Eddie gives a soft chuckle through his nose. He doesn’t have to say so, but I know he gets it.
“Well, if you’d ever like to get crazy with me and my mates, just let me know.” I look up at him and see him smiling at me. “We rockers know how to party.”
I smirk. “I wish I could, but I haven’t hit the legal limit just yet.”
His facial muscles tighten. He swallows. “I forgot, American drinking age is twenty-one, innit?”
“Yeah, you won’t be able to get me in anywhere. However, if you promise not to rat me out, I do have a few fake IDs I can use.”
Chuckling, Eddie leans down to my level. “You’re quite the little rebel, aren’t you, Elyza?”
My face falls. There it is again. “Little.” I’m the cute one. The sidekick. He probably sees me as a little sister. I’ve been trying to fight that categorization all my life by being a “rebel,” but it’s not working. Somehow, going against the rules just makes me even cuter to the rest of them. They don’t take me seriously. No one does. I’m almost twenty-one, and they all still treat me like I’m a little kid.
Of course, it probably doesn’t help that I’m currently dressed like a sixteen-year-old. I need a new image. Lance is back in town visiting his parents. I’m going to have to enlist my gay BFF and his makeover talents before I go out partying with rock stars.
“I think I might be able to get you in somewhere,” Eddie says with a naughty grin. “Or you could always meet us at The Blarney Stone. Pubs don’t have an age limit, after all.”
“True.” His grin is contagious. I can’t help but mirror it.
“Give me your number,” Eddie says. He holds out his phone with a contact form open. I put my number in. Once it’s saved and I’ve given the phone back to him, I get a text.
