“We are going to stay at this hotel for a few nights,” he said. “They have a laundry room you can use so you and Cora don’t have to go into town.”
“Oh.” I frowned, noticing the lead singer had a concerned look on his face. “What’s wrong?”
“I’ll talk to everyone when they are awake,” he promised, holding up his hand. “It’s not bad, but I just don’t want to repeat myself. Check in time is at four. Take it easy until then.”
He stood up and walked toward the bunk area, lifting his phone up to his ear. I heard him greet his wife and then close the partition leading to the back. Wrapping my hands around the mug, I looked down at my left hand when the light hit it just right. My automatic reaction was to hide my scarring, but I quickly realized I didn’t need to here.
In fact, ever since I had met the band and their crew, no one had even looked at me differently. I was treated just like a normal human being, and that was refreshing. It felt good to be normal again.
My only concern was Braxton and the fact that he wouldn’t even look at the left side of my body. I knew he had a hard time, but I wanted him to look at me the way everyone else in the band did.
“I’m not a freak,” I whispered, lifting the cup of coffee to my lips.
The door to the bunks slid open and my heart galloped in my chest. Braxton was walking out in nothing but a pair of black basketball shorts. His hair was tousled and his eyes weren’t quite open.
“Morning.” I smiled, watching as he made his coffee.
“Morning,” he replied, turning from the counter. He stared at me for several seconds before taking a seat on the couch. “What time can we check into the rooms?”
“Um, Ace said around four.”
“Okay,” he replied, taking another sip of his coffee.
I waited a moment to see if he’d say anything else, and when he didn’t, I opened my book and found where I’d left off the night before. Ace returned later, sitting down with everyone to go over some interview dates they had planned for the coming week. It didn’t concern me, but I was glad they felt like I was part of the team by keeping me informed of everything. It made me feel more at home with them than before. I was starting to feel like I truly belonged.
“I have another concern,” he said, leaning forward. He placed his elbows on the tops of his knees and covered his face for a few seconds before blowing out a deep breath.
“What’s going on?” Coraline asked, making a move to be closer to him.
“After talking to Bleeding Secrets and their security,” he began, taking a second to look at everyone. “I’ve decided to hire on two security guards to tour with us.”
“Is this because of the breach?” I asked, feeling my heart drop into my stomach. The three men were not just fans who were looking to meet their favorite musicians, they had been there for Preston. I wasn’t privy to exactly what had happened, but we’d been warned to keep an eye out for anyone who didn’t have proper clearance to be backstage from now on.
“Yes,” Ace nodded. “I think it would just help us all to have an extra set of eyes around the crew.”
The men looked up at Coraline, and then over to me. I didn’t care either way what they wanted to do. This was their band, and if hiring extra help was needed, I was okay with whatever they wanted to do.
“That’s good,” Coraline nodded. “My cousin’s band has a whole slew of security that travel with them.”
“Abby?” Braxton spoke up after clearing his throat.
“Uh, yeah,” I answered. “Sure.”
“They’ll be here tomorrow,” Ace said, standing up from his seat. “Let me know if you have any problems with them. We want to make sure they are a good fit.”
Everyone agreed and went their separate ways. Braxton and I were left sitting on the couches, facing each other. We didn’t speak for several minutes. He just sat there watching me. I finally couldn’t take anymore. “What’s on your mind?”
“Your safety,” he grounded out through clenched teeth.
“Mine?” I gasped. “I’m perfectly fine. I’m hardly ever backstage anyway.”
“But you are alone a lot of times, too,” he reminded me.
“Liam is really good about hanging around,” I explained, hoping that would put him at ease. I rose to my feet and stretched lazily. “I should get my stuff so I can start my laundry.”
“We still have time,” he replied, looking at the clock mounted above the dinette.
“What are you going to do for the next few days?” I asked, hoping to get him to talk to me.
“Research this security company.” He shrugged. “Sleep and workout some. I’ve been out of the gym too long.”
“I’d like to go with you,” I blurted, pausing when I noticed he was looking at my left hand. I closed my fist and put my arm behind my back. When I did, Braxton looked up into my eyes and I saw a fire there I hadn’t seen in years.
“Are you up for that?” he asked, standing to his full height. Jesus, he was huge.
“I’m up for anything,” I teased, knowing I shouldn’t, but the look he was giving me caused a wetness to pool between my legs. Shifting slightly from foot to foot, I tried to calm the ache, but it was useless. I wanted him to touch me so badly.
* * *
I didn’t know how we ended up in this hotel room, but my back hit the door as Braxton held my jaw in place, capturing my lips. I felt him all over my body as he took control. I didn’t move as he slid the card into the lock and pushed the door open. His hands wrapped around my ass only seconds before he lifted me off of my feet. Wetness surged between my legs, and I tightened my hold around his shoulders as he walked forward. I heard the door close, but I didn’t know if he kicked it or it shut on its own…and I didn’t care.
I could smell his unique scent of power and alpha male. It was a scent I would remember for the rest of my life. The last thing I wanted to do was get emotional, but as he held me tenderly with his large hands, I felt the stirrings of tears pricking the back of my eyelids. God, I had missed him so much.
His lips pressed against the space just under my earlobe, and I felt a chill roll up my spine. Braxton didn’t speak as he removed my cotton shirt, only pulling away to toss it somewhere on the floor. His knees bumped against the bed, and the next thing I knew, I was being laid out like an offering and my jeans were being unbuttoned.
“Braxton,” I began, but he quieted me with his signature grunt, telling me to be quiet. He was a beast on and off the stage, as well as in and out of the bedroom.
The inside of my thighs shook as he placed the back of his hand at my knee and slowly made his way to my center. My panties were still on and I rolled my head back when he traced the center with the back of his knuckle.
I wanted to beg him to take them off and touch me, but I didn’t. I wanted him to take control, and he did. I heard his belt come free and clang as his pants fell to the ground. When I looked up, he was standing over me, his thick cock grasped in his tattooed hand.
“Take them off, Abby,” he ordered, sending my hips in the air as I hooked my fingers into the waistband. I shimmied them down my legs, and I had to bend slightly to push them off to the floor.
I was left there, bare to him in nothing but my bra, but he quickly leaned over to pull my breasts up and over the cups, leaving them on display for his taking. As his tongue laid a path over one nipple, I let out a soft moan. Braxton still didn’t speak as he kissed softly across my chest, making his way over to the other one and giving it the same amount of attention.
The bed dipped when he placed his knee between my legs, using the other to nudge them farther apart. I knew how he liked to hold my hands hostage as he gave me pleasure, so I raised them above my head, hiding a wince when I felt a slight pull at my scarred elbow. I wouldn’t show any distress with him, because if I even looked like I was in pain, he would stop and leave me alone in this hotel room.
The last thing I wanted was for Braxton to be reminded of t
hat night. He needed to move on, and even if what we were doing was the worst idea in the world, I was going to let him make love to me. It might be wrong, but it was what needed to happen.
It proved to me that he still loved me.
Braxton hesitated for a few seconds, looking into my eyes, before he leaned over me and held my hands with one of his own. My hands were so tiny compared to his. As soon as the contact was made, I tilted my head back and waited for him to capture my lips, and that was exactly what he did.
He was relentless in his lovemaking. His left hand slid down my right side to grasp the back of my thigh, pulling it over his hip. I mimicked the other side and waited for him to either touch me or enter me. I never knew what he would do, and the anticipation had tremors rolling through my legs.
I bit my lip when I almost called out for him to touch me, but he knew what I needed. His fingers traced my lips again, this time with no barriers. I sucked in air through my teeth when he pressed one inside, pausing to allow me to adjust. Within seconds, he added another and then he began to move. His thumb stroked my clit and I felt the stirrings of an orgasm I’d held back for over three years.
“Please,” I whimpered, clamping my mouth shut when his eyes narrowed.
“Hmm,” he smirked. “You never could keep your pleasure from me.”
I knew he was teasing. Braxton liked the control of keeping me quiet until I couldn’t handle it anymore. He’d taught me that long ago, promising that it would make my orgasms more intense, and he had been right. I liked the little bit of kink we’d experimented with in the past, and what I’d experienced with him was mind-blowing.
“Tell me if I hurt you,” he ordered as he guided his cock toward my body.
“You won’t,” I assured him, wiggling my fingers to let him know I needed to move. Once he released me, I wrapped my arms around his wide shoulders and pulled him toward my lips. As soon as I kissed him, I felt his cock enter me.
“Fuck, Abby,” he growled, moving his hips to a rhythm only he knew would send me over the edge, but I didn’t want it to end so soon. I needed more.
His warm chest pressed against mine as he rutted into my core, rolling his hips to ensure he hit the spot that drove me mad. I sounded like a tramp as he increased his speed, urging me over the edge of oblivion.
“Come for me, Abby girl,” he whispered in my ear as he buried his face in my neck, grunting with each thrust. I knew he was close, but Braxton would hold off for me. He’d never found his completion without me finding my own before him.
“More, please, Braxton,” I begged, holding him tighter to my chest.
Despite my pleas, he used his free hand to slide between us so he could press his thumb to my clit. The pressure, combined with a slow circular motion, sent me over the edge. I called out his name, giving him the clue that I was on the brink of release. My body seized as I closed my eyes tight.
Braxton thrust hard into me, his grunts of pleasure were music to my ears, knowing he was finding his own release in combination with mine. I could feel him pulsing into me, marking me with his seed.
Within a few seconds, he was still, situating himself so he could cup my face with both of his hands. The tender kiss against my lips felt more like a goodbye than a proclamation of his feelings toward me. The moment I felt a tear fall against my cheek, I knew it wasn’t from my own eyes…it had come from his.
Chapter 19
Braxton
I still loved her.
I would always love her.
Being inside her again was heaven and hell all wrapped into one. I’d fought it for so long that once I touched her again, all of the anger fled. The guilt was still sitting at the forefront of my mind. There was never going to be a time that I wouldn’t look at her and not remember what had happened that day three years ago.
“Braxton,” she mumbled as she rolled toward me in her sleep.
“Shh,” I whispered, stroking her soft cheek.
I locked down my emotions when my mind started to wander, reminding me that I wasn’t what she needed. How could I be? I was a traveling musician. I’d never be home with her. What if we did push this further? How could I let her go through a pregnancy without me? She wasn’t like Coraline who had this life in her blood. No, Abby Hampton was too innocent for my lifestyle.
We were total opposites.
“What’s wrong?” she asked, sleep clogging her voice. I looked into her eyes and saw the moment she knew I was going to walk out on her. “Braxton, please don’t do this.”
“I’m no good for you,” I said.
“You are everything to me, but I understand if you can’t do this,” she said. “Just get your things and go, Braxton.”
She wasn’t crying. Abby just sat up in the bed and used the sheet to cover her breasts. I saw the silvery scars on her arms and looked away quickly.
“I’m sorry,” I said as I got out of the bed and picked up my jeans from the floor. I heard the sheets rustle slightly, and when I looked over, she’d rolled over onto her side and faced away from me.
I didn’t waste time as I fled from the room, avoiding the elevator. Down at the end of the hallway, I found the stairs and took them two at a time down the seven flights until I came to the bottom floor. It was early morning when I pushed the door open wide and marched outside. The bus was parked at the back of the lot, and that was my destination. I entered the code to unlock the door and went inside, finding no one in the living room.
I needed to wash the scent of her arousal off of me. The last thing I wanted was to wake up with a reminder of the line I’d just crossed. Fuck! What have I done?
The water in the small shower was hot, and I made quick work of lathering my body and shampooing my hair. After I let the water rinse all of that away, I closed off the taps and climbed out, wrapping a towel around my waist as I walked out.
“So, this is how it’s going to be?” Abby barked from behind me. I gasped and spun around, shocked to see her standing there. Her hair was still in disarray and her lips were swollen from my assault on them.
“Go back to your room, Abby,” I growled, turning away from her to search for some clean clothes in my bunk. When I found none, I yanked out a pair of basketball shorts and a tank top that were somewhat clean. I really needed to do some fucking laundry.
“No, Braxton,” she continued. “You can’t just fuck me and walk out the door the next morning.”
“Yes, I can,” I replied, slipping my shirt over my head. I didn’t warn her before dropping my towel. I noticed how her eyes zeroed in on my erection, proving that I wanted her again. My damn cock had a mind of its own around her.
“You’re an asshole,” she huffed, turning on her heel and storming from the bus.
That was what I needed to hear from her. Abby shouldn’t put me on a fucking pedestal like a goddamned saint. I was better off being labeled as the devil’s sidekick for all the things I’d done in my life.
* * *
Ace called us all out to the bus the next morning. Our new security guards were there, and I immediately liked them. Both wore suitcoats and slacks. Neither one of them wore a tie, but their polo shirts were pressed so much, there wasn’t a wrinkle in sight.
“This is Hayden Lewis and Marshall Harris,” Ace informed us as the men stood at attention in front of us as we waited to shake their hands. After our introductions, the band and crew took seats in various places on the bus. Abby was sitting on the couch, so I took the spot next to her and tried not to curse when she scooted away from me.
Hayden was my size and had the look of a MMA fighter. He couldn’t have been older than thirty, and I saw no wedding ring on his finger. From the scar over his eye, I was sure he’d been in a few scuffles in his life. He kept his dark brown hair to military standards, but sported a short beard.
Marshall was slightly younger, and his black hair was long enough to touch the top of his shoulders. He had a pair of aviator sunglasses on that hid his eyes from my view. He wasn�
��t quite as big as Hayden, but he was still built like a goddamn tank.
No one was going to get through those two, and I relaxed knowing Abby would have someone else around to keep her protected when I couldn’t be there for her.
“We would like to sit down with everyone and go over a security plan,” Hayden announced as he held up a manila folder.
“We would like to keep you guys away from the public during the rest of this tour,” Marshall continued. “If you are to go to a radio station for an interview, an appearance where you will be in front of fans, or even an outing for dinner, Hayden and I will be with you.”
“What about the crew?” Taylor asked.
“Our main concern is the band itself,” Hayden spoke up. I saw the moment when Taylor realized Coraline would be unprotected. I reached out and placed my hand on his wrist to calm him, but it didn’t work.
“My wife is part of this crew,” he snarled. “And if you haven’t noticed, she’s pregnant.”
“I will not be regulated as to where I can or cannot go,” Coraline argued, crossing her arms over her chest.
“I think the entire crew will need to be aware of their surroundings,” Marshall interrupted. “We will be able to provide the proper security, but we will need your help by making sure everyone is watching what’s going on around them. The incident with Bleeding Secrets is more common with bands than you realize. Fatal Cross has skyrocketed into the public eye, and you all will need to change your way of thinking about safety.”
“We understand,” Ace replied, standing from his seat. “We have two female employees, and they are very special to us. Their safety, along with the males on our crew, is extremely important. Would it benefit us to hire on another person to work with you?”
Everyone was on edge. The two men who were sent by the security company Coraline suggested didn’t look as if they were worried, and I wanted to trust them, but when we were at a show, the band and crew were so separated most of the time there was no way they could watch over everyone.
Fatal Seduction (Fatal Cross Live! Book 3) Page 8
