“Yeah, I think I’m just about ready. Should be fun, right?”
“Ooh, it always is.” Doreen grips onto my arm and she gives me an intense look. “We all enjoy your sets, you know that. Everyone says you should be on the big screen.”
“Maybe if I could afford to leave,” I joke, blaming it on my lack of funds rather than anything else. “Fingers crossed, hey? Maybe one day I will be.”
“Well, I suppose you spend most of your days so busy at the farm, it’s hard to find time for yourself.” Doreen knows why, but thankfully she doesn’t voice it. I don’t need that distraction while I’m just about to sing. “But I have to say you do a great job.”
“Yeah.” I nod enthusiastically. “That’s true. It is hard, but I’m trying my hardest.”
She rubs my arm and smiles reassuringly at me. “You’ll get there. I don’t know when, but you will do one day. We all believe in you, you know that, right?”
“I hope so.” I don’t know if it’s just a dream, it probably is. I can’t really imagine myself leaving this town and doing anything amazing, but I also can’t let go of the idea completely, just in case. “We’ll see. I appreciate all your support anyway, it means a lot to me.”
Doreen claps her hands loudly and grabs the attention of the few people scattered around the bar. They all turn to look at her, knowing what’s going to happen. Like I said, nothing ever changes in this town, it’s the same routine every single week.
“Right everyone.” Her commanding voice rings through the bar, grabbing everyone’s eyes. “It’s time for Lola so shut your ugly mouths and listen, will you?”
Everyone cheers and claps, making me feel amazing. This is why I do this, because it’s a boost. It allows me to live out just some of my fantasies without leaving my responsibilities. I step up onto the stage and smile around at everyone. The usual faces look back at me, the lonely old men who have lost their wives, the families out for dinner, the younger crowd out for a drink after a day on their own farm… the same people in the same bar, waiting for the same show…
Oh! As I scan my eyes I spot a brand new face. Any new people stand out a mile, but this guy is particularly attention grabbing. Not only is he tall, dark, and very handsome, he’s in a crisp business suit that doesn’t belong here. It makes him look a big city business man which we just don’t get here. Something about this new, exciting person causes a thrilling bolt to race through my system. I haven’t had anyone to be interested in for a very long time, so this is fun. I can almost feel my cheeks heating up as he stares into my soul.
“Right everyone,” I say into the microphone with a bit of a stammer. He’s making me nervous, even though I don’t know him at all. It has to just be his new face. “It’s good to see you all again.” Someone whoops. “Thank you, Lenny,” I say gratefully, especially because it breaks the ice and makes me feel a little less uncomfortable. “It’s good to see you all again, I appreciate your support as always. So here we go.”
I take my seat and glance down at my guitar, trying to lose myself in the music. Usually I’m fully immersed, this is my only form of escapism, but today I have something else that wants my attention and I desperately want to see him again.
But I can’t. I need to focus. I can’t let this stranger distract me.
My shaking fingers move over to the guitar strings and I suck in a few deep breaths to calm myself down before I begin playing. The last thing I want to do is make a fool out of myself in front of this awesome new person. Just because he’s new, I want him to like me.
“A midnight stroll,” I finally burst into song. There’s a bit of a tremble in my voice, but I quickly get over it as I delve into the country song that I wrote a long time ago when I was a lot happier and more content. “And I’m only with you. Your hand in mine”
Singing a love song is hard when I’ve been single for so long. As I’m writing I remember the thrilling sensation of falling deeply for someone, but the rest of the time I’m numb to it all. It’s just something that I’ve given up on for the time being. I’m sure the time will come around when I feel like I need to find someone again, but for now I’m okay just doing me.
But then my eyes drag upwards and I find him again. It’s like there’s a magnet between us, drawing me in. His eyes are only on me and he’s looking at me like I intrigue him, which is nice. I haven’t had anyone show me even a glance of interest, so this is incredibly exciting. I continue to sing, luckily I can do that on autopilot without thinking much, but my mind is all on him. He’s consuming me in every way possible.
Of course, being the dreamer that I am, my mind conducts a brand new fantasy. Only this one has absolutely nothing to do with my career. It’s more the sort of thing that would happen back stage, in the dressing room. My eyes fall closed as I picture me grabbing him and pulling him into my private room without even asking his name. I continue to sing as I think about what it would feel like to kiss him. It’s been so long since I’ve kissed someone who’s sparked such a passion inside of me. Since Rory, I’ve kissed a couple of frogs, but that’s been out of boredom than anything else and it’s never gotten any further.
I sing louder as I picture his hand slowly trailing up my leg. A shiver tears up and down my spine, as I almost feel him edging closer and closer. In my fantasy my head rolls to one side and my eyes fall closed. My breaths are desperate and needy as he roughly tugs my panties to one side. He takes me, he claims me, he has complete control of me and I’m more than happy to let him do so. This sexy stranger has me as putty in his hands and I love every second of it. I’m jelly, I’m a mess, and he’s making me feel this way.
I hope that I’m still performing well as I imagine the man at the bar spinning me around and slipping into me from behind. His fingers wrap around my hair and he pulls my head back towards him so he can kiss me all over the neck. I have to cross my legs underneath my guitar because I’m afraid that the obvious desire that I’m feeling inside will become clear o the audience, but that doesn’t stop my mind from reeling. The man at the bar sends me wild, he has my heart pumping faster, my lungs squeezed tightly and my body buzzing with sheer desire. I can almost feel myself driving towards the point of orgasm just from my crazy mind. It’s insane and something I cannot have happening while I’m in front of so many people. People I’ve known my entire life. That’s wrong on so many levels.
I really need to get laid. Either that or I need some time alone so I can touch myself. Maybe once I’ve finished this set I’ll race off to the bathroom for some ‘alone time’.
Once I glance up again, I meet his eyes once more and judging by the way he’s biting down on his bottom lip he can see the thoughts racing through my mind. My entire body heats up, like a fire has been lit inside my belly. In his eyes, there’s a cheekiness there, which makes me wonder if he’s thinking something similar. I wonder if he’s imagining thrusting into me from behind, just like I am him. I wonder if he’s imagining what my body will feel like. I want him to be, in all honesty, I want to feel desirable.
Then again, he probably isn’t. He doesn’t look like the sort of desperate freak that I am. He is absolutely, overtly gorgeous and obviously he comes from somewhere else where there are probably women in their hundreds. He probably gets laid all the time. He’s probably got a girlfriend or a wife and hundreds of lovers too. I’m just a random red haired girl from the middle of nowhere. There’s no way I’m pretty enough for him.
I fix my eyes on the guitar and try to concentrate. I need to lose the fantasy, but I can still feel it there inside me, swirling through my whole body. I haven’t realized how much I’ve missed a man’s touch until this very moment, now I’m craving it desperately like a drug addict who needs a fix. If I could, if I didn’t think it would make me the craziest woman alive, I would run across this bar and jump into his arms. I’d let him hold me until he got absolutely sick of me, but of course I can’t do that.
I have to behave.
I need to sing, that�
�s what I’m here for. He’s just a fleeting thing, this singing gig is my permanent.
Chapter 2 – Brandon
As soon as I arrived in this town I knew I wasn’t going to like it. It’s small, boring, full of tiny minded people with even less to do. I’m used to the big city, I like the busyness, the lights, the noise, the activity. I’m much more at home in a place where I can get a Chinese at two in the morning. I don’t even know what they have to eat here. It seems like the sort of place where there’s only a dirty diner, and that’s it. Not for me at all.
I even called up my father and demanded that he change his plans to develop in such a small place, but as always, he believes what’s the best. He runs the company, I’m just a manager within it. I might be powerful in front of everyone else, but to him I’m just another minion. It’s a difficult relationship, but I do my best to survive it. It makes me stronger… I think.
With an angry sensation coursing through my veins, I left the only motel in town and headed to the only bar I could find for a drink, not knowing what I was about to head into. Now I find myself in the middle of a sexually charged stare off with the sweet, innocent red head who’s singing her heart out on the little stage.
“She’s good, isn’t she?” I mutter to the lady behind the bar. “A great singer.”
“The best in the town,” she replies smilingly. “We’re all very proud of our little Lola Boots. She’s grown up to be a beautiful young woman despite all the hardship she’s faced.”
I’m not sure why, but this intrigues me so I turn to face the bar maid head on. “She has?”
I’m never usually interested in people, not like this. It’s not that I don’t care, it’s just that I have my own stuff to worry about. I might have had a lot of success handed to me on a plate because of my father, but I’m still only twenty four years old. I have to work hard to prove myself on a daily basis to be taken seriously. I do all of that to end up not in the middle of these shitty jobs… yet here I am anyway. Doing the worst job ever.
“Yes, she has. She’s suffered death, stress, and responsibilities that no one her age should have to.” She looks up at Lola with nothing but respect in her eyes. “She’s strong. She’s also suffered heart break in the middle of all of that, and she stands strong.”
A moment ago, I was only thinking about this girl in a highly sexual way. I don’t have time for anything serious, I never have done, but I certainly enjoy my time with women. I make sure they know it’s only for a one time thing, or maybe a fling if they’re lucky, but that’s all it is. I don’t find out anything about them other than their name because what else do I need? But now, I know things about Lola and I’m actually intrigued by her.
“Wow, that’s tough.” I shift on my seat and turn my eyes to look at her again. “She doesn’t look like she’s been through all of that.”
“So what about you…” the bar maid says expectantly. It takes me a moment, but I suddenly realize that she’s prompting me and that she wants to know more.
“Oh, Brandon. Brandon Heath-Smith.” In the city, in my circles, that name is big news but this small town obviously means no one knows who I am. “I’m a property developer.”
“Oh.” Realization crosses her face. “Are you here about the land at the edge of the woodlands bit? The new starter homes, isn’t it?”
“That’s it.” I puff my chest out proudly. I love talking about what I do, even the bits I don’t love. “And a shopping mall too. The hope is to turn this town into more of a destination place. Bring in more people to keep the businesses running better.”
“Well, I think we’re all doing just fine.” She shrugs at me with a blank expression on her face. “But I suppose you probably know better, right?”
I don’t know if that’s a question that wants an answer or not. Developing property often comes with people disagreeing with the plans set up for them, but in my experience, they soon come around once they see what’s happened at the end. They don’t like the idea of change, but they love it when it’s done.
Instead, I turn away from her and I focus on the red head instead. She isn’t like the girls from the city at all. She’s got long legs under those incredible denim hot pants, and kick ass cowboy boots that bring out all sorts of fantasies in my mind. I would love to see her wearing nothing but those boots. Maybe some sexy lingerie as well, but definitely the boots. That would drive me insane. Especially with that hair of her spilling down her back.
She has a checked shirt which is tied into a knot just above her belly button. It cups some round breasts that actually look real, which is something I’m not used to. To be fair, my ‘dates’ are usually models or socialites who have had a lot of work done. I can’t actually remember the last time I touched a real boob and the idea causes a stirring in my pants. Then I move up to her heart shaped face which contains the bluest eyes that I’ve ever seen. They’re so stunning, I could actually fall for her… if I was that sort of man.
“So, Lola Boots.” I can’t resist, I turn back to the bar maid because I need her advice. I can’t go into this blind. “What’s her current situation? Is she single?”
The bar maid runs her eyes up and down me and as she meets my eyes again I can tell she isn’t impressed with what she sees. “I meant what I said,” she tells me firmly. “She’s a good girl and we all love her. She doesn’t need some slick city boy breezing into town and breaking her heart.” She slams her hands down on the bar and leans in closer to me so I’ll hear every single word. “Unless you’re going to marry Lola, I suggest you stay away.”
Oh God, she has no idea what she’s just done to me. She’s made Lola even more attractive because now she’s something taboo, something I need to stay away from. And to be honest as I look at her I don’t think she wants to be married herself. She looks like she’s been lonely for a while now and she wants someone to just make her feel incredible. She needs someone to corrupt her, and I’m the one who can do that.
I lean back on the bar and fuck her with my eyes. The bar maid can say what she wants, I don’t give a shit, I want this woman and I’m going to have her. At least for tonight. The words falling out of her mouth as she sings are innocent enough, but there’s something about the way that she’s singing them that’s dirty as all hell. I think I might be about to lose my mind. It’s taking all my self control not to grab her right now and to throw her over my shoulder and stalk out of here with her. Like a desperate cave man.
Oh God, I could take her back to that grubby ass motel room and make it even filthier with her in it. I could take complete control of her body and make her completely submit to me. She looks like she would as well. But then, if I really think about it, I think there might be a bit of a fire in her where she might take control of me. I don’t usually let that happen, but with her I just might. I imagine it might be a whole lot of fun.
She isn’t someone I want to hurt, I don’t think I’ll just fuck her and leave her, but I could have some fun with her during my time here. It might be something that we both need, a distraction from this shitty town. What’s the point of being here and not enjoying it? I’m stuck, so I might as well make the most out of it. Maybe it won’t be so bad after all.
“Thank you, everyone,” she finally says into the microphone once the singing is done. “As always I appreciate your time and support.”
Everyone cheers and claps around her, so I join in out of respect. To be fair she deserves the cheers, she’s an amazing singer, it’s just a shame that she’s stuck in such a dead end place. As she walks down off the stage she catches my eye and smiles. A blush fills her cheeks too which only confirms what I already suspect. She wants me, I can see it written all over her face. I know that look well and I like it from her.
“Remember what I said,” the bar maid warns from behind me, coldly. “Unless you’re going to marry her, keep the hell away.”
I nod as if I’m listening but her words are barely registering anymore. All I can think about i
s getting my hands on the beautiful Lola Boots and doing all sorts of crazy things to her.
“Can I have another drink please?” I ask, forgetting my vow to only have the one. I have more pressing things to worry about now. “Another whiskey.”
Maybe I do need to be level headed tomorrow to oversee the development of the project, but I don’t care. I’m sure it’s running fine anyway, I doubt I even need to be here. I’ll probably spend most of my time bored… or in the arms of a certain red head.
“It’s Doreen, by the way,” the bar maid tells me as she slides the drink across to me, almost knocking it over as it crashes into my hand. “I presume since you’re clearly ignoring my words that you’ll be sticking around. So you might as well know my name.”
“Thank you, Doreen.” I give her a playful smirk. “That’s good to know.”
Then it’s time for the waiting game. I get the sense that Lola is hanging around back stage because she’s nervous, maybe because she knows that I’m waiting for her. She knows as well as I do that we had a connection then as she was up on stage. I’m sure she felt me eye fucking her and if she’s had such a sheltered life from love, mostly experiencing heart break, then maybe she’s scared to delve right in. But she will, I’m sure of it. It’s just a shame that I’m not very good at being patient.
I feel her coming before I see her. There’s a prickle on the back of my neck, a set of goose bumps spreading up and down my arm, the sensation that something exciting is about to happen. I pause while I count to three inside my mind, waiting for the exact right moment to see her again to start making my move.
The Most Eligible Bachelor: A Texas Love Story Page 23
