An Encore for Love

by Alexandra Warren

  I couldn’t help but laugh as I shook my head and told him, “Shut up, Eli,” just as the doorbell began to ring.

  “Well… that’s my cue. I got a Hot-N-Ready waiting on me and I’m not talking about the pizza. Cause unlike you, I want it to be all about sex,” he said with an arrogant smirk as he turned to head towards the door.

  I wasn’t one to knock anyone’s game, especially my little brother’s. But I also knew it was important for me to advise, “Be careful, bruh. Those Lambert women are one-of-a-kind. Not that I know a lot about Miranda, but they’re definitely apples from the same tree.”

  But leave it to him to be hardheaded the same way I was when he replied, “I don’t care what tree the apple came from. As long as the fruit is good and juicy, that’s more than enough for me.”

  Amerie

  It didn’t take long for me to come to the conclusion that this - having a camera crew following me around - would never feel normal. I found myself making way too much eye contact with the guys, acknowledging their presence far more than I was supposed to meaning there would definitely be a lot of editing to do on their part later. And considering how much footage they had already gotten since showing up to the front door bright and early, I could only imagine how much film they’d be sorting through when it was all said and done, not to mention how they’d actually piece it together to tell both Knox’s and my story separately. But instead of worrying myself trying to focus on their job, I attempted to focus on mine as I used the built-in dance studio to run through the choreography I was scheduled to teach in a week for one of the biggest popstars in the world.

  It wasn’t my first time working with her. In fact, Blaise and I had toured together as her background dancers once upon a time. But now that she had put me in charge of choreographing instead of just dancing, the pressure to deliver weighed a little heavier than usual. And knowing it was all being captured on camera for the show certainly didn’t make me feel any better about my missteps.

  I released a heavy sigh as I headed back to the sound system to restart the song. But before I could press the button, I heard a little knock on the door behind me, my body reacting long before I actually got a chance to turn around. And when I did, it honestly felt like punishment as I watched Knox brush his thumb against his lip, ogling me as usual.

  It would’ve been easy to act bothered by him barging in, easy to rip into him for invading my privacy. But I was already growing used to the fuzzy feeling in my belly whenever I was around him, was already getting used to him calling me Ri or babe, had already allowed him to… touch me, even if it wasn’t much. But I didn’t mind any of it as much as I expected to, making me wonder was I letting go of the past a little too easily.

  “What’s good, Ri? What you workin’ on?” he finally asked as he strode my way, making me feel a sudden burst of self-consciousness considering how sweaty I was, surely with a stench to match.

  Still, I tried to remain calm, tried to push the thoughts and feelings from the day before to the back of my mind as I nonchalantly answered, “Just some choreography.”

  “Oh yeah? What for? That performance you got comin’ up?” he asked, his interest obviously piqued according to the slight raise in his eyebrow.

  And as I shook my head, using the hem of my t-shirt to wipe away some of the sweat I had worked up, I told him, “Nah. It’s for someone else’s performance.”

  His eyebrow went a little higher, paired with a smirk when he asked, “Word? Can I see it?”

  While my initial reaction was to say “Hell no”, the fact that Knox was considered just as much of an expert in choreography as I was, along with the camera crew sitting nearby made me feel comfortable responding, “Only if you can help me out of this rut. I have the first couple of eight-counts down. But I keep getting stuck when the chorus comes around. Like, I know what I want to do, but it’s not flowing how I need it to be. Does that even make sense?”

  He nodded, clearly excited about the task as he crossed his arms over his chest and insisted, “I got you, babe. Let me see what you workin’ with.”

  I made quick work of restarting the song like I had meant to do all along, assuming my position in front of the mirror just as the electric guitar of Rihanna’s, Kiss It Better began to play. And once the first verse came around, I instantly snapped into performance mode, letting the sensual vibes of the song carry me to the place I had already visited a hundred times over. Though I would’ve been lying if I didn’t acknowledge the fact that Knox’s eyes alone were giving me an extra boost of sexy as Rihanna sang about getting her former lover back.

  When the chorus came around, I fully expected to fumble over my steps the same way I had done before. But to my surprise, my body continued to flow as I rolled my hips against the bass, using my hands to explore my curves as I slowly made it towards the ground. And once I was there, I put my hands on my knees, using them as leverage to bounce on my heels just as Rihanna doubled down on kissing it better. Then I slowly made my way back up, gliding against the second half of the chorus before tossing my arms in front of my body and whipping my head to the side as I gave my hips a seductive shake.

  The music coming to a stop surprised me since I was completely in the zone. But it made sense once Knox asked, “Where’s the problem again? Cause I didn’t see a single one, babe.”

  “I… it didn’t happen. I guess I just… figured it out,” I stammered, trying to find a reasonable explanation for how I was so easily able to overcome an issue I had been stuck on for the last hour.

  And even though I could think of one reason - one person - in particular, I didn’t have long to dwell on it when he followed up by asking, “But do you remember what you did though?”

  I nodded, catching my breath as I told him, “I think so. Let me run it again and see.”

  Knox nodded right along with me, pressing the button to start the song once again. But this time instead of standing to the side and observing, he came and stood behind me, mirroring each of my moves with one of his own. When I rolled my hips, he rolled with me. When I went to the ground, he went with me. And when the chorus came around, we flowed together like the perfect current. Though when I went to bounce, he steadied himself on his wrist to thrust upwards against my ass, making me burst with laughter while also making me panic a little on the inside because it was quite obvious that Knox wasn’t wearing any underwear.

  But instead of focusing on his dick like I was tempted to, I remained focus on the moves I would be responsible for later as I slowly made my way back up, Knox wrapping his arms around me to provide extra support until it was time for me to repeat the same moves I had done before.

  I felt proud of myself for nailing it, though I knew that wasn’t the only reason I couldn’t stop smiling. But unfortunately, my excitement was short-lived once I heard one of the cameramen exclaim, “The producer is going to love this!”

  Shit.

  The producer.

  Because all of this is on tape.

  All of this will be seen by the world.

  What had felt like a good idea in the moment suddenly felt like the worst idea in the world as I pulled away from Knox, trying to gather myself when I asked, “What are you doing here anyway?”

  Of course he wasn’t anywhere near as frantic about it as I was, shrugging when he replied, “They said they wanted as many shots of us together as possible, so I thought I’d come through since I was home. And I mean, us dancin’ does make for good ass TV.”

  I nodded, trying to think of it as plainly as he did. “Good TV. Right. Because that’s all this is about...”

  For a second, Knox looked confused by my reaction. But instead of asking me about it, he completely changed the subject. “You eat yet? It was supposed to be Elijah’s night to cook, but he’s off somewhere with your sister.”

  “Yeah, I ate breakfast this morning,” I replied with a wave of my hand, finding the answer suitable.

  Though it was clear Knox didn’t exactly ag
ree when he asked, “Breakfast this morning? Amerie, it’s almost six o’clock. And I know all of this dancin’ has worked up your appetite.”

  Again, I tried to brush him off, knowing I needed some time alone as opposed to spending anymore with him. I mean, it was clear I was no good at the whole “not getting sucked into Knox’s vortex” thing.

  But apparently it wasn’t up to me anyway as one of the cameramen stepped in to say, “Uh… not to interrupt, but we do need to get a few shots of you two sharing a meal together. It’s an integral part of every reality show.”

  Even though I knew he was right, I had no problem snapping back, “This is literally day one. I’m sure you can catch us eating another time.”

  “Amerie, quit bein’ tough and come grab a bite with ya boy. It’s really not that big of a deal,” Knox insisted as he sided with the other guy.

  “Yeah, to you…” I muttered more to myself than Knox. Though according to his confused reaction, it was obvious he had heard me. And I felt embarrassed by the fact that I was already falling apart, already succumbing to the pressure of Knox’s aura, already starting back down the same path that had gotten us in this predicament in the first place.

  I suppose my mixed expression was enough for Knox to pick up on as he turned to the cameraman and asked, “Can you… give us a minute? No cameras?”

  “Sure. But only a minute,” he replied, directing the other two men to step out and following behind them.

  Being left alone with Knox wasn’t exactly a winning alternative. In fact, his gaze felt even heavier, especially once he paired it with his thoughts. “Tell me the truth, Ri. Is this too much for you?”

  I snapped my head back, crossing my arms over my chest when I repeated, “Too much for me?”

  The crooked little smirk he plastered on was more than enough to soften my stance until he said, “You know, us being around each other like this. I mean, I know it makes the producers happy. But your happiness means way more to me.”

  While I was a little surprised to hear he even cared about how I felt when it came to all of this, I couldn’t help myself in asking, “Why would this be too much for me? I mean, it’s just you.”

  Regardless of how large the task was, it wasn’t as if Knox was some stranger. Though there was definitely something unfamiliar about the way his smirk turned into more of a disappointed scowl when he repeated, “It’s just me. Right.”

  Before he could turn away from me, I put a hand to his chest to stop him so I could clarify, “I didn’t mean it like that. I mean, I did. But not to… offend you or anything; as hard as that may be for you to believe.”

  He peeked down at my hand then peeked back up at me, the smirk returning when he replied, “I hear you, Ri.” And just as I pulled my hand away, he asked, “So you’re straight then?”

  “Perfectly fine,” I told him with a nod, trying to convince myself just as much as I was trying to convince him.

  And it seemed as if he actually bought it, going back to the original topic at hand when he insisted, “Well go ahead and get dressed for dinner so we can make these producers happy.”

  My response of, “Okay” came out as more of a whisper than anything, annoying the hell out of me because… why am I being so sweet to Knox?

  It wasn’t as if he suddenly deserved such a thing, wasn’t as if he had done anything special to earn it. Yet here I was, acting like the same foolish girl I had been when I let him in my life for things beyond just professional reasons.

  Then again, maybe we weren’t the same people we were back then. I mean, we had both grown up in a major way professionally, and I was sure at least some of that had rubbed off into our personal lives too.

  But then it hit me.

  What exactly was Knox’s personal life? Was he… involved with someone? On the brink of something serious? Or was he just bouncing from chick to chick the same way he had always done?

  I surely wouldn’t have been surprised to find all of the above to be true. And unfortunately, I didn’t have long to sit with the concept since I was now obligated to be at dinner in just a short hour.

  I quickly made my way upstairs, moseying through the closet Miranda had organized for me until I found the perfect dress. One that didn’t scream sexy, but also didn’t hide the fact that I was working with something. And by the time I grabbed a quick shower, did something with my hair, and applied a light layer of makeup, Miranda had finally made her way back to the house. Though her presence also meant answering questions like, “What are you getting all dressed up for?”

  I tried to sound as nonchalant as possible when I yelled from the bathroom, “Knox and I are going to dinner.”

  For a second the room was quiet, making me wonder had my answer really sounded as normal as I needed it to. But I quickly realized the quiet was only because Miranda had to come closer, leaning against the doorframe so she could ask, “Wait… did I hear that right? You and Knox are going to dinner? On night one of filming? I should’ve bet money on this shit.”

  I rolled my eyes, blowing past her to grab my dress off of the bed as I explained, “It’s for the show, asshole. And besides, what’s wrong with me sharing a dinner with Knox?”

  She turned around, crossing her arms over her chest and watching as I exchanged my towel for my dress before she answered, “Uhh... did you forget you were the one who claimed to hate him for what he did to you? The one who made it a personal mission to avoid him for years? I mean, considering how fast you’re caving, I guess I see why you did.”

  I yanked the dress over my hips and then over my breasts, reaching back to zip it as I defended, “Miranda, what part of it’s for the show don’t you understand?”

  Instead of watching me struggle with the zipper, my sister stepped in to help me while also teasing, “So I guess this super tight dress is for the show too, huh? Trying to look extra sexy for the cameras? For the viewers at home?”

  “That’s exactly right,” I told her with a nod through the mirror, running my hands down the front before turning to the side to make sure my ass looked good.

  Though me checking myself out gave Miranda the perfect ammunition to call my bluff when she replied, “Bullshit, Amerie. I know you. And I know when you’re trying to dress to impress. I also noticed you didn’t put on panties first.”

  I shrugged. “I never wear panties with this dress.”

  But again, I had only set myself up as Miranda smirked when she added, “You also can’t keep your panties on around Knox, so I suppose going without them is like killing two birds with one stone.”

  “Whatever, Miranda. Just because you’re running around fuckin’ with Elijah as if you don’t have speed dial dick waiting for you to come back home doesn’t mean I’m on the same mission,” I said in an attempt to take the spotlight off of me and put it on her.

  And she seemed amused by the attention, grinning as she sat on the bed and repeated, “Speed dial dick. Never thought of that one.”

  I shook my head with a smirk of my own, stuffing my feet in my heels while also being sure to tell her, “I hope you at least used a condom.”

  “We didn’t have sex. We just… hung out. Went to the mall, on a walk around the neighborhood, grabbed a bite to eat,” she trailed, gnawing at her lip which cued me in on exactly where her story turned into a lie.

  And since she had already called me out, I had no problem doing the same to her when I asked, “So which bathroom did he take you in at the restaurant? The men’s or the women’s?”

  Miranda did nothing to hide her satisfaction, blushing when she gushed, “Women’s. And it was amazing. I mean, if Knox is anything like his brother, I see why you haven’t wanted anyone else’s dick for all this time.”

  While it would’ve been easy to go down memory lane when it came to the topic, I also knew it wouldn’t be in my best interest. I mean, that was the only thing making any of this - filming shots with Knox, dancing with Knox, anything with Knox - difficult. He had done things to my
body that no one had ever been able to even halfway follow-up which eventually turned into me not even trying at all.

  And now that I had already gone farther than necessary in my mind, I brushed it all off to say, “Anyway. I’ll be back later tonight.”

  “And I’m on the first flight back home in the morning,” Miranda added, climbing from the bed to follow me out of the room.

  As we made our way down the stairs, I tossed over my shoulder, “Two dicks within twenty-four hours is frowned upon, sis.”

  “So is fuckin’ the alleged enemy, but I don’t see that stopping you,” she quickly fired back, earning a side eye just as the doorbell rang with Knox’s arrival.

  “Have fun,” she sang from behind as I pulled the door open without looking, though I should’ve considering the way I immediately gulped at the sight of Knox looking like he wanted to be my dinner.

  He was dressed casually, but not in the usual sweatpants and a hoodie kind of way. His khakis fit perfectly against his firm thighs, his collared shirt had obviously been hit with a little starch, and he didn’t have tennis shoes on, instead finishing the outfit with a pair of boat shoes. And while I appreciated everything about ready-to-dance-at-any-given-moment Knox, the Knox who was dressed like a daddy who deserved a quickie in the laundry room was definitely giving me a run for my money.

  Luckily I wasn’t alone in my gratitude as Knox put a hand to his chin, sizing me up and licking his lips before acknowledging, “You… look amazing, Ri.”

  I took a quick peek behind me to find Miranda leaning against the banister waiting for me to make my move. And the only thing I could say without caving in like she assumed I would was, “I know,” before stepping outside onto the porch and closing the door behind me.

  Knox led the way towards the edge of the porch, lending a hand to help me down the stairs as he informed me, “The camera crew is meetin’ us at the restaurant. They went early to get all set up. We can ride together in my car unless you wanna drive separately which I totally understand.”