Her brow furrowed, and she squinted her eyes like she was thinking back. “Well, only the women I’ve known. My parents divorced when I was young.” A flash of pain shot from her eyes.
“Divorce is tough on kids,” he said.
But she shrugged like it had been no big deal.
“And you believe the curse did it?”
She threw him a look as if to say haven’t you been listening to a word I’ve said? “Yes, it did. Why else would my dad leave his family?”
Nate could think of many reasons, some men were arseholes, but he kept his opinion to himself. “You don’t see him anymore?”
She threaded the edge of the sheets through her fingers. “He’s a pilot and is away a lot, He visits when he can.” At her clipped tone, he could tell talking about her father was a touchy subject, so he dropped it.
“Who else has experienced the curse?”
“My sister Kaitlin is also divorced. It only lasted six months. Liz was about to get married, but he ran off before the ceremony. My grandfather died.”
“Wait… This curse causes death too?” He lifted onto an elbow.
“He’s been the only one.”
“How old was he?”
“Eighty-one,” she answered.
“Did your grandparents stay married until he died?”
“Yes.” She blinked with surprise like it had only just occurred to her that there was a relationship that had lasted.
He raised an eyebrow. “Then it didn’t curse everyone.”
“I guess not, but their relationship wasn’t a loving one.”
“But it lasted. Your grandfather never left your grandmother. Maybe this curse is just an old wives’ tale.” No maybe about it. “And relationships can last.”
She pushed away from him and sat up. “That’s just one amongst hundreds.”
“Hundreds? These men had to last a while in relationships to have hundreds of ancestors to have this curse continue to the present day. Or did they go around getting every woman they met pregnant?”
She bounded off the bed, dragging the sheet with her and holding it to her chest to cover her naked body. He inwardly sighed. Roadblock. There would be no more sex tonight. Or ever. Why didn’t he just agree with her and shut his big mouth?
“Jade, I’m sorry.”
He reached out a hand to pull her back into bed. She turned her nose up at it and went searching for her clothes. What she didn’t know was that while she covered her front with the sheet, her back was bare-arsed naked. And he was getting the best view in the house.
He leaned back on the headboard and placed his hands behind his head. Damn, she looked amazing. Even with her flaming hot temper.
When she glanced over her shoulder, following the direction of his gaze, she squealed and wrapped the sheet around her whole body, throwing him a dirty look.
He shrugged. “Can’t blame a guy for looking.”
That earned him an eye roll.
“Jade, come back to bed.”
With her clothes held to her chest, trying to keep the sheet in place, she sighed. “I’m always getting teased. It would be nice if one person, especially the one I just bumped bodies with, took me seriously.”
Well, now he felt like shit for upsetting her. “It’s not every day you hear about witches and curses.” He rubbed a hand along his jaw. “Stranger things have happened in the world. I’ve always tried to be open-minded, and I will about this too.”
It was all he could come up with without pissing her off again. And for now, it was for the best Jade believed in the curse. Because whatever was going on between them couldn’t go past the bedroom. He couldn’t offer her more.
One day she’d stop believing in the curse because she’d love some lucky bastard who fought hard enough to stay. Unfortunately, it couldn’t be him.
“Come back to bed,” he said again. “I’ll make it worth your while.”
A line appeared between her brow as she bit her lip. “Because you’re only here for a few weeks, we should make the most of it. Not argue. It would be a shame to go home now.” The clothes she held dropped to the floor.
“A big shame. But you know what can be better than sex?” he asked.
Jade raised an eyebrow.
Grabbing the sheet still wrapped around her, he tugged her onto the bed. “Make-up sex.”
She laughed as he rolled on top of her. “I’ve never had make-up sex before.”
“Freckles, you’re in for a treat.”
Chapter 15
Jade listened to the year three and four students practicing the first verse of Wanted Dead or Alive Nate had taught them. With his patient instructions, they’d picked it up quickly. He had a knack for keeping the kids entertained and interested in music. And they adored him. Who wouldn’t? He was a rock god, and it showed in the way he moved, played, and sang. And he made every one of those kids believe they could be just like him if they kept practicing.
But her gaze wouldn’t stay focused on the students; it kept getting drawn to the music man strumming his guitar. She watched the way he caressed the strings, and flashbacks from the night before played in her mind. Those callused fingers got her singing a sweet tune too. She crossed her legs and fanned her face with a notepad. Was it getting hot in here?
Then, as if Nate could read her dirty mind, he pierced her with a sizzling look and winked. The kids stopped playing and laughed.
“Okay, guys and gals. You’re sounding pretty amazing. And because you’ve picked up that verse super-fast, we’ll learn the chorus next lesson.” They all smiled at the compliment. “Put your equipment away, and I’ll see you next week.”
As soon as the last student left the hall with a parent, Nate came from behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. “I didn’t hear you leave this morning.”
She was glad for his support, because the feather-light kisses he was gliding up and down her neck were turning her knees to jelly. She’d been tempted to wake him up with a good-morning quickie. But she knew once she started, there’d be nothing quick about it and she’d never make it to work on time.
“What are you doing tonight?” he mumbled at the sensitive spot under her ear.
“Hopefully doing you.” She sounded breathless.
He chuckled. God, that low, sexy laugh vibrated through her body, awakening all her good parts.
“Want to go to dinner?”
Jade turned in his arms. “Dinner?”
“Yeah, you know…when you put food into your mouth around six PM. It’s called dinner.”
“I’m offering to give you all-access sex and you want dinner?”
“All access?” He raised an eyebrow.
“Well, there’s one area that’s a no-go zone, but everything else is wide open.” She grinned.
“I love it when you talk dirty, Freckles.”
He was teasing, but his words caused her stomach to do cartwheels. “And you should see the underwear I’m wearing.”
“More superheroes?”
She slid a hand up his chest and hooked it behind his neck, drawing his mouth an inch from her lips. “You’ll have to find out for yourself.”
* * * *
Puss in Boots. This time her undies were a cartoon character, and Nate couldn’t be more turned on. It made him want to see her whole collection. What kind of sicko did that make him?
After ditching his dinner ideas they’d ordered pizza and came back to his house. Now they laid on the bed in a tangle of arms and legs. The sound of rough, heavy breathing was the only noise in the room. Damn, sex with Jade just kept getting better and better.
He pushed the mass of red hair from her face and peered down at Jade’s expression. His chest puffed. Hell yeah, he put that satisfied look on her face.
Her pretty blue eyes blinked up at him. “I think I’m dead. As in I’ve died and gone to heaven. Even though what you did was definitely sinful and could only come from the devil himself.”
There was no hi
gher compliment. “You were pretty wicked yourself.”
She stretched, placing her breasts dangerously close to his mouth. “We make a good team. I could get used to this.” Her eyes widened. “I mean for as long as you’re in town. I’ll totally forget all about you once you leave. No, no, that sounds so slutty. I’ll remember you, but I won’t be pining for you…” She buried her face in his chest. “I should stop talking now.”
He tugged lightly on her hair, making her look at him again. “I’ll remember you too.”
Their eyes locked. But the sound of his mobile phone broke the connection. Reaching to take it off the bedside table, he read the caller ID. Mike. With the time zone differences, they kept missing each other’s calls.
“Sorry, I need to take this.”
He quickly put on his boxer shorts, gave one last, longing glance at Jade, then left the room.
“Hey, man,” Nate said.
“Finally,” Mike answered. “You’re a hard man to catch.”
Nate chuckled. “I can say the same thing about you.”
“Are you sure you can’t get back sooner? You staying in the land down under is not making things easy for the band.” Although Mike said it in jest, Nate could hear an underlying tone of resentment.
“Sorry, mate, I’ve got things to do here.”
“I thought you were taking time off to relax?”
“I’m helping a friend out.” Mike would crack a rib from laughing if Nate told him he was teaching a bunch of primary school kids music.
“You like the new songs I sent?”
They were typical Harvey’s Territory stuff. Mike did a great job. But did Nate like them? No, because they didn’t move him when he listened to them. He didn’t feel the emotions in the lyrics.
“The songs are awesome.” It wasn’t a full-blown lie. They were awesome, just not what he yearned to play.
“I’ve been talking to Temp Rock magazine, and they want to do an interview with you about the next leg of the tour.”
“Okay, when I’m back in New York we’ll set it up.”
Mike was silent for a beat. “Umm, they don’t want to wait that long. I told them you’d do a Skype call.”
Nate pinched the bridge of his nose. “When?”
More silence and then, “Now.”
“Now? What the fuck, man? I’m not ready to do this shit now. And what if I wasn’t available?”
“I took a chance. And I know you have your gear with you, it won’t take you long to slap it all on. The interview will only take twenty minutes, tops.”
“Why the hell can’t you do it?” Nate asked.
“I am, but they want you too or it’s not happening.”
“Then it’s not happening.”
Dorito was meowing and rubbing his body against Nate’s legs. He went into the kitchen, opened a can of cat food he’d picked up that morning, and dumped it out into the bowl he’d also bought. He needed to feed the animal on something, and the dishes he ate from were not for cats.
“Come on, man. I already told him we’d do it. If we back out now, we’ll look like dicks, and he’ll no doubt write that about us.”
Nate didn’t care what the journalist wrote about them, but his band mates did, and he couldn’t let them down. Shit. Now he had to suit up and play Nathan Harvey.
“Fine. I’ll call you when I’m ready.” With that, Nate hung up.
He strode into the bedroom, intending to tell Jade he had work to do. He knew he’d seem like an arsehole asking her to leave, but he couldn’t stand for her to see him dressed up as Nathan Harvey. It never brought out the best in him. She’d already witnessed it firsthand.
But she was fast asleep, curled up on her side with the sheet pulled up to her chin. He didn’t have the heart to wake her. Hopefully, the interview would be quick and he could get back into bed with her and wake her in a more pleasurable kind of way.
It took him about fifteen minutes to get on the costume that he kept stored in the spare room. The colored contacts were always the hardest. No matter how many times he put the suckers in his eyes, they never went in the first time. And the wig scratched like a bitch. He pulled on jeans, an old, worn-out t-shirt, and a denim jacket to hide his tattoo-less arms. He didn’t need his stage clothes for an interview.
Now ready, he sat at the small kitchen table and opened his laptop. He connected with Mike and his friend’s smiling face filled the screen.
“I’m ready,” Nate said.
“Great. I’ll buzz Clay in and we’re good to go.” Mike did whatever he had to do on the computer to start the group conversation, then Clay’s face was on the screen.
“Hi, boys. Nice to see you. Thank you so much for taking the time for this interview,” Clay said a little too enthusiastically. Nate hated journos who tried to suck up his arse.
After a bit of small talk, he fired off the questions. The same questions Nate had heard thousands of times. What’s your inspiration for the new album? What’s your favorite city? Are you looking forward to the next leg of the tour? These he answered on autopilot. They didn’t need much thought.
Then the sleazier questions started. The ones they think will make them sound cool for asking. What country has the hottest women? What band member sleeps around the most? Do you leave a woman in each city?
Nate was about to tell Clay to get fucked and it wasn’t any of his business when the journalist’s eyes lit up and he beamed. “Who’s the lovely lady?”
Nate whipped his head around and found Jade standing at the entrance of the kitchen wearing his t-shirt. And from the light shining from the living room, her silhouette showed she wore nothing underneath. Not even her Puss in Boots undies.
“Oh God, I’m so sorry to interrupt,” she gasped. A hand flew to her chest as she spun on her heels and disappeared.
“Got yourself a hot one there. I love a fiery redhead. They’re wild in and out of the sack. Is she a natural?” Clay gave a sleazy smirk.
Anger percolated in Nate’s gut. Not because Jade had walked into the kitchen, but because of Clay’s derogatory remarks. He made it sound like some cheap woman was occupying Nate’s bed.
Just as Nate was about to tell Clay to stick the rest of the interview up his arse, Mike jumped in, thanking him for the interview and ending the call before Clay asked more questions or made any more salacious comments.
“Fuck!” Nate spat. “What are my chances of that getting cut from the interview?”
Mike shook his head. “I’m afraid low. Let me call our lawyer and see if she can do anything about stopping it. Who’s the woman? Is she a hook-up while you’re in town?”
Now he wanted to put his hands around Mike’s throat. But isn’t that what she was? What they agreed to? Having Mike say it that way degraded his time with her, and Jade was anything but cheap.
“She’s a friend.” That’s all he needed to say.
“Okay. Well, hopefully your friend isn’t splashed all over the internet tomorrow.”
Nate fucking hoped so too. He hung up and went in search of Jade.
Chapter 16
When Nate, still dressed as his rock star persona, stormed into the bedroom Jade was putting on her shoes, trying to ignore her jittery stomach.
“I didn’t mean to interrupt,” she said.
He pulled off his wig, tossed it on a chair in the corner of the room, and ran his fingers through his flattened hair. “It’s okay. You couldn’t have known.”
So why the cold stare when she walked in on him? “I should go.” Thick tension curled around Nate. She wasn’t staying where she wasn’t wanted.
“Before you do, I need to tell you something.”
Okay, wow. He wasn’t even going to try to sway her to stay? But to show he hadn’t upset her, she lightened the mood and said, “You’re Batman?” Maybe he had multiple disguises she didn’t know about.
He lifted an eyebrow. “I’m not Batman.”
“That’s a shame, I would’ve liked a ride i
n the Batmobile.” Joking was better than facing his rejection.
The corners of his mouth twitched. “Sorry to disappoint.” Then his mood darkened again. “You walked in on an interview with a music magazine. Those journos are like sharks, swimming around waiting to take a bite of anything juicy they can find. When he saw you, he knew he’d hit the jackpot. You were fresh bait, and he smelled blood.”
Jade’s stomach sank. By the somber tone in Nate’s voice, this wouldn’t end well. “What’s Jaws going to do?”
“Most likely he’ll put you in the article he’s writing.”
“Did you mention I can play the tambourine? Since it’s a music mag he may want to know my musical abilities.” When he didn’t crack a smile, she knew it was serious.
“Nathan Harvey has never been photographed with a woman so intimately before. Never been involved in any kind of sordid scandal. This could blow up.”
“How big?” Her legs shook, and she sat on the edge of the bed.
“We’ll try to stop it. He only got a quick glimpse of you, so no one will know who you are.”
Blowing out a sigh of relief, she smiled. “That doesn’t sound so bad. I’m sure everything will be fine.”
* * * *
Everything was not fine.
At six o’clock in the morning she was woken up by the constant buzzing of messages hitting her mobile. But before she could look at any of them, Nate was calling.
When she answered, his voice boomed from the phone. “Jade, I’m so sorry it got out.”
She pushed her tangled hair out of her face and sat up. “The article? That was quick.”
“No, the photo. Clay, the fucking scum, sold it to the trashy tabloid SRC Magazine, and they’ve splashed it all over the internet.”
Her brain still foggy with sleep, his words didn’t make much sense. Last night they’d been talking about an article, not a photo. “What photo?”
He sighed. “When you were standing behind me, Clay took a screenshot, then he cropped out his and Mike’s faces so it left only you and me.”
Jade bolted upright, all fogginess evaporating. “I was only wearing your shirt!” Oh God.
Trouble in Disguise Page 11
