by Ivy M. Jones
"I'm fucking with you, Justin," I laughed. "Calm down. Besides, I already told you, I don't need you to white knight this one for me. Your aunt Georgie and Uncle Ed are going to help me out, so I hereby release you from your offer."
I tried not to think about that fact that the reason I wouldn't marry Justin was just as valid for Tyler's parents as it was for Justin. I killed Tyler. I couldn't take that back. But I could give Ed and Georgie a beautiful baby to take his place. It wouldn't be the same, but it was the only way I had of making amends.
"The offer still stands, pussycat, if you ever change your mind." It was the first time he'd called me pussycat since before we'd kissed. I shivered at the memory.
"I appreciate it. I do." I hoped he could see the honesty in my eyes. It was true. I was appreciative of his offer. And it didn't hurt to know that a chart-topping rock god was serious in his proposal to me- regardless of the reason.
"Wow. Good to know I'm appreciated," he said, quirking a rueful smile. "I can die happy now. The most gorgeous girl in the whole world appreciates me."
"Oh God, Justin, no! That's not what I meant! You're so amazing, and I would love to be able to say yes because I bet you'd be great. You're sexy and talented and smart and-"
"I'm fucking with you, pussycat." His smile lit up the whole room.
I was momentarily floored. The sonofabitch got me. The realization had me cracking up. Maybe it was just crazy hormones, but I couldn't stop. Then Justin was laughing and tickling me and before either of us realized what had happened, our eyes met. He was pinning me to the couch, his hands were wrapped around my waist and I could feel the swirling and tightening of lust low in my tummy.
There was a battle of sorts going on behind his eyes. Did he want to kiss me? Did he want to want to kiss me? Did he know I wanted him to kiss me?
Oh, what the hell. Wrapping my arms around his neck, I pulled him down to me. I saw his eyes go wide with surprise before his lids lowered seductively and his lips met my lips. His tongue pressed against the seal of my mouth, inviting me to let him in and I moaned and granted him entrance.
His hands gripped my waist, his fingers pressing into the flesh there and I reveled in his need. He was getting hard, pressing against my hip and when I twisted slightly to cradle his hardness between my thighs, his hands immediately moved to my ass, pulling me up and closer. His mouth devoured mine and my head swam with the feel of his hands gripping my ass as his lower body rocked slightly against my core.
I felt high and drunk and euphoric all at the same time, and I couldn't have pulled away if the place had suddenly burst into flames. I was achy and needy and my body was being manipulated to bliss by the sexiest guy in the world. I felt like I could die happy.
Of their own accord, my hands moved up and into Justin's hair, gripping and holding on while our bodies moved in tiny increments- just enough to taste the bliss that could be had, but not enough to fully savor it. Feeling desperate for the full taste, I pushed up hard against his hips. The noise he made was half moan, half growl and signaled the end of his control.
His mouth moved to my neck and I tilted my head in acquiescence. With a twist, he was pulling us up, bringing me to sit on his lap, still pressed firmly against his hardness. His hands gripped my thighs and he thrust them apart, wrapping my legs around his waist. My body obliged and I locked my ankles behind his back. His hands wrapped around my hips, rocking me back and forth as his mouth continued to nip and kiss my neck.
"Justin... Ooooh," I moaned.
The ache in my belly moved to a tingle in my spine, spread out across my hips. I was mindless, needing to get closer- as close as possible to the source of the bliss. All I could hear was the quiet moans we were making and the rushing of my blood in my ears. And buzzing. Buzzing?
Pulling back, I tried to break out of the thick fog of lust surrounding us.
"Justin," I said, trying to speak despite his mouth doing things to my neck that were making me crazy. Why was I trying to stop, again? I heard the weird buzzing again and managed to pull far enough back that he couldn't kiss my neck.
"Oh, pussycat, I could taste you all day," he murmured, settling for running his hands up and under my shirt to my chest.
I heard the buzzing again and placed my hands over my shirt, stilling his. "I keep hearing a buzzing noise. Like a doorbell," I said, trying to concentrate. His fingers moved, sweeping over my hard nipples and I shivered, moving unconsciously against his lap. He moaned and gripped around my ribs to pull me hard against him.
The doorbell sound went off again and I felt Justin tense. "It hasn't been twenty minutes," he said, not bothering to finish the thought. Unwrapping my legs from around his waist, he stood.
I watched him palm himself and groan, look at me and lick his lips. My tummy flipped in a good way, seeing the hunger reflected in his eyes. He started to lean toward me like he was going to ignore whoever was ringing the doorbell but it sounded again and he leaned away, then jogged over to the door.
I heard the door open, then chaos.
"You just get up? It's, like, eleven, man."
"You forget we were coming?"
"You're in the way."
The chaos got louder and louder until it was about to enter the sprawling living room.
"Wait, guys, there's a girl-" I heard him say from the kitchen, just as three guys exploded into the living room, Justin following.
One by one, they all turned to Justin and made some expression to indicate that they were pleased. I could see him get embarrassed, and likewise, I wanted nothing more than to have the earth open up below me.
"Andy, this is-"
I cut him off and finished his sentence. "Cy Epson, Zach Moore, and Griffin Rupert," I said, pointing to each one. "Of Dark Fire."
Justin
For a second, I thought pussycat might pass out again. But as I got ready to vault the couch and catch her, she surprised me by looking at the ceiling, shaking her head and laughing. Then she plopped down on the couch and proceeded to ignore the guys as if it was nothing at all to bump into the members of what was evidently her favorite band in a random living room.
Walking around the couch, I sat next to her. "You alright?" I asked. "I forgot they were coming over today. I'm really sorry."
She was trying to suppress a smile and stared at her hands while she picked at a fingernail, doing her best not to look at me. Finally, she nodded and looked at me, then stood, walked around the couch and stuck her hand out. "Andrea James. But everyone calls me Andy," she said by way of introduction.
"Nice to meet you, Andy," Zach said, taking her hand gently and squeezing it. Zach, always the gentleman. If anyone understood my need to protect Andy, it would be him.
Next, Andy shook Cy's hand. "Sup, Andy," he said.
And finally, the guy I was most worried about, Griffin. Taking her hand, I could see him smile at her- his patented panty-dropping smile.
Don't get me wrong, I like the guy. We were best friends and had been for years but Griffin was not the kind of guy I would let my sister date, if I'd had a sister. I mean, I wouldn't let him near Nicolette. The guy went through women like people with head colds went through tissues. And he discarded them just as easily. But I'll be the first to admit, the man has this sort of presence that couldn't be denied. Charisma. People have been drawn to him since grade school.
And that included grown women.
In grade school.
I wasn't jealous. I had my own sort of charisma and it worked for me both on and off the stage. Plus, I could sing and there was no way Griffin could make that claim. True, the guy could play the drums like nobody's business, and chicks thought he was hot, but I was not about to let him turn on that charisma fountain around my pussycat.
Pulling pussycat away from his outstretched hand, I noticed an odd look on her face. "Do you frequently try to poach Justin's girls?" she asked. Griff's eyebrows lifted clear to his forehead and his mouth dropped open. Looking around for some kind o
f help, he managed some umms and uhhs, before she took pity on him.
"I just mean that I'm clearly here with Justin, right?" She stared right at him until he nodded. "And just now? Your face said you were all about trying to get into my panties." Her reproachful look had him stunned. "One look and a girl strips her clothes off for you, is that it? Does that really work for you?"
Zach, Cy and I could only look on in entertained thrall while pussycat chastised Griffin. Every now and then he would dart a pleading look for help in our direction. But there was no way any of us were going to help dig him out of his own hole. Besides, I was too proud of pussycat for not letting Griff's charismatic smiles and sex-god reputation overcome her.
"Well?" She stood, prim and innocent looking, her hands clasped lightly in front of her while she waited expectantly for an answer.
"My apologies, Andy." Then he turned to me. "I like this one." He put a hand on my shoulder. "Heads up, Jus- if you don't treat her right, I'm going to do everything in my power to seduce her from you. No holds barred." Griff laughed deep and loud, which was the signal that everything was okay.
And it was. Andy hadn't fallen for his bullshit charisma. Amen.
I pulled her close and kissed her, hard, trying to show her how happy I was that Griffin wouldn't be an issue. When I finally let her go, we were both short of breath and she had a slightly bemused smile on her face.
Well then. Mission accomplished.
During our kiss, the couch had been confiscated by Cy and Griffin, who were talking about the tour. Zach had disappeared. I sat down in the Lazy-boy and parked Andy on my lap.
"What are you doing?" she whispered covertly into my ear.
"Sitting. You?"
"I meant with the kiss and putting me on your lap," she clarified.
"Making a statement," I explained. "It's better that they don't think you're available. Or worse, a groupie."
"Because?"
I snorted inwardly at her innocence. "You ever see piranhas on a cow?"
"On the nature channel. It was disgusting." She sort of shuddered and I worried that I may have made her ill but she swallowed thickly and seemed to be alright.
"Let's just say, most of the time, bands don't travel alone. There are always girls who want to ride in the bus on tour. Girls like that get passed around like an Xbox controller. We're not the worst when it comes to handling it, and we've all been faithful to girlfriends whenever we have them, but if there's any implication that you're one of those girls, you're up for grabs and communal property, devalued in a split second."
"Seriously? I didn't think you were saints or anything, but that's disgusting."
"Yeah, but like I said... Piranha. Those women swarm all over us. They attach themselves, and if you're not careful, you can get eaten alive. Hence the piranha metaphor." I rubbed my forehead at some of the sick memories that pushed their way forward. "They just want to be associated with us because we're in the band, not for who we actually are. There's not a lot of respect on either side as a result."
"Ahh," she said, letting out a breath.
There was another ring of the doorbell and this time I heard Zach answer it. I hoped it was the food, because despite nearly causing Andy to toss her cookies with my horrible piranha-cow visual, I could still hear her stomach rumbling.
A minute or so later, Zach stumbled into the living room, his arms loaded down with carry-out bags and his hands holding a take-out cup of hot coffee and a half gallon of juice. He could barely see where he was going.
"Help here, assholes?"
Cy jumped up and took a few of the cartons from the top and skittered into the breakfast nook with them. Griffin followed suit, pulling a couple of the bags free, and Andy and I followed Zach, taking seats around the table.
"And we thought you forgot about us!" Cy laughed and started to pull one of the cartons in front of him.
"Actually..." I pulled the carton back and left it in front of Andy. Then I unwrapped the plastic fork and spoon and placed them next to the carton. "Do you want a glass for the juice?" I asked her.
Smiling, she nodded. "Please."
When I returned to the table, it was to see the drummer, vocalist, and lead guitarist for Dark Fire all sitting there with their mouths hanging open while Andy proceeded to open and organize all the cartons on the table.
"Hey, she's feeding two. Don't judge," I snipped.
"Dude!"
"Are you shittin' me?"
"Congrats, Dad..."
I sighed and shook my head. Assholes. Every one of them.
"Not my kid, idiots." I saw three pairs of cheeks go slightly pink in embarrassment and then there were three mumbled apologies. To me or Andy, I wasn't sure.
"Maybe one of us should explain," Andy grinned at me and in that moment, I really wished that it was my kid. I wished that I'd knocked her up so I could claim marrying her as the right thing to do, because damn, every time she looked at me with that smile, I wanted to find some excuse to make her mine. I wanted her by my side.
Besides, I'd become the hero in this piece for her. And I'd be damned if I let some other guy step in and fill that role while I was still breathing.
Andy and I took turns explaining what had happened and I noticed that she sort of glossed over the timing of it in regards to Tyler's death. It had to suck, not even knowing he was dead by the time she realized she was pregnant.
"And we got back late from Tyler's parents' house last night. I crashed in the car, so Justin let me sleep here."
"Ohhh, of course," Cy said, obviously not believing in a purely innocent motive on my part.
"She sort of skipped over the parts where we kissed. And also how I keep asking her to marry me. She keeps telling me that I don't have to."
"Sorry to break it to you, but it really isn't something you have to do, dude." Cy looked confused, and I couldn't blame him. If it had been my kid, I would have to offer myself for the sake of Andy's honor, or so the kid wasn't a bastard, or some other antiquated reason that women toss out the window these days. But it wasn't my kid.
"I don't have to, but I still want to. You've met her. Can you blame me for wanting to keep her to myself?"
Andy blushed and I wrapped my arm around her shoulders and kissed her temple.
"You're just saying that to make me feel better, since I'm sitting here eating all this food like a pig," she said, embarrassed.
"Well, you could share. Then we wouldn't think you were a pig..." Griffin offered.
"I, personally, like French toast," Zach said, not-so-covertly moving his hand toward the carton with the steaming cinnamon French toast.
"Sorry," Andy said, gesturing as though she might stab Zach's hand with her fork. "In that case, I'm a pig and you can order your own food."
I laughed. Then I watched as one by one, the guys all dropped their jaws and stared at me just as they had stared at Andy earlier.
"What?" Nervously, I looked at myself and the space around me, trying to understand why they were staring at me. "Seriously, what?"
"You haven't laughed like that since before Tyl-" Zach quickly shut his mouth and looked at the table.
"You did a great job finishing out the rest of the tour," Cy said, taking a deep breath, "But you haven't really 'done happy' since you got the news about the accident." He cracked all his knuckles, one at a time. "It's nice to see you smiling and laughing again."
Griffin was staring openly at Andy now but she shrugged him off and went back to her food. "You sure it isn't really your kid and you're not just fucking with us?" He narrowed his eyes on Andy and she narrowed her eyes right back for a minute then went back to eating, taking quick sips of her mocha latte in between bites.
"Sadly, since I can't claim to have gotten any further than the kissing, I'd have to deny the kid's mine."
Andy gave me a sad look. I wasn't sure why. Because I'd reminded her of Tyler? Because the kid wasn't mine? Because we hadn't gotten any further than the kissing? Because I was
sad about both of those things?
"Anyway, you guys can order something if you want. Just leave Andy's food alone," I warned. Then I pointed to a menu on the table. The cafe had stapled it to one of the carry out bags.
There was a commotion of tangling arms as they each tried to grab it first and I left to go grab a paper and pencil for them to organize their order.
I had laughed in the last few months, hadn't I?
Andy
"I'm officially stuffed, guys. You're welcome to what's left," I said, gesturing to the open cartons on the table.
Zach swiped the box with the remaining French toast slices and hauled it in front of him. Cy snagged the bagel breakfast sandwich I hadn't gotten to. Griffin just shrugged. "I'll wait for our food," he said.
"How much do I owe you, Justin?" I went to get my purse but stopped when I heard him answer.
"Nothing. I got it covered."
"You've got to stop doing that, Justin. I already owe you and your family so much! I just can't be this... this indebted to you all." I continued my walk to get my purse and when I turned to head back into the kitchen, Justin was right behind me. He grabbed my arm and hauled me into his bedroom where he slammed the door closed.
"Spill it. There's more to this than principle."
"No, there really isn't," I argued, not quite able to meet his eyes.
"Bullshit, Andy. You've been acting like it's some big inconvenience to help you out. It's not, and you know it. My family is over the moon with you being pregnant. I've got enough money to set you and the kid up for life. If it was about not wanting me, I think we've both proven that's not even close to true. Yet, every time I offer to help you, you brush me off like you're not worth it. Why?"
I started to answer and he cut me off. "And I don't want some bullshit answer about not needing the help, either."
I felt the tears welling up and turned my head to stare at the comforter, still folded over from where I'd slept the night before.
