Rock Mayhem: 8 Complete Rock Star Romance Novels

by Candy J. Starr

  "Don't order the coffee," Sophie said. "You'll regret it. The food is good, though. I recommend the hearty breakfast."

  I looked through the menu and agreed with her. Food needed to be in my stomach now.

  "That's okay?" she asked. "You're not on some special rock star diet?"

  "Hey, you saw me eat those tacos yesterday."

  Her eyes sparkled. "I sure did. Boy, I don't think I'll be eating tacos again for a while."

  The breakfast came out steaming hot and piled up on the plate.

  "Ah," I said, looking at that deliciousness. "Flowers might smell good and all, but nothing beats freshly fried bacon."

  I stopped talking while I stuffed food into my mouth. All that work had built an appetite. Sophie wasn't much better. I couldn't remember when I'd been with a woman who enjoyed eating as much as she did.

  Sophie was much quieter on the drive back. I think the tiredness had begun to hit her.

  "I can drive if you like," I said. "You must be exhausted."

  "Nah, the van's a bit tricky to handle. Anyway, you did the heavy lifting."

  Instead, I leaned against the door and watched her drive. She had the kind of face you could spend a lot of time studying. She wasn't what you'd call beautiful but there was definitely something charming about her. She was a tough cookie, too. Not many people would've done what she'd done, giving up their dreams to make sure the people around them weren't out of work. That must've been one tough decision.

  I'd never done a thing in my life that wasn't based on pure selfishness. Maybe small things like letting Miles put that shitty song on the last album, even though I hated it, but not major life decisions.

  Over the last couple of days, we'd had so much fun that the bet got pushed to the back of my mind. Now it twisted in my stomach like something bad. As a general concept, the idea of finding a nice girl to sleep with was fine but the practice was a whole other thing.

  Sophie rubbed her nose. "Good thing I don't get hay fever," she said.

  I couldn't get all involved in her life then dump her after a night of sex. Not that a night of hot sex with her wasn't appealing. She had an innocence that made me curious. Would she be all sweet in the sheets or did she have a wild side that would be unleashed?

  I sure would love to find out but was that fair to her?

  She took life seriously and that wasn't something I was used to. I wasn't used to spending time with a woman just having fun either. The women I met had the same objective that I did. Sex. And more sex. We played the same game and we knew the rules. No one got hurt.

  Sophie wasn't like that. I'd learned that much about her in the last few days. She didn't even know the game existed.

  What I'd agreed to do was cruel. I had to stop being a selfish prick and think about other people. Messing with an innocent woman's life to win a bet would be the worst thing I could do.

  I made up my mind. I'd tell Miles the bet was off. That'd be the only way I could live with myself. There was a line and I couldn't be the one to cross it.

  When we got back to the florist, I helped her unload the van.

  "Time to get to the studio," I said and gave her a quick salute before rushing out the door.

  I wanted to linger. I wanted to see her smile one more time and discover what those soft, sweet lips of hers could do but the only way out of this was to break all ties. I wasn't meant for a girl like Sophie so I had to do the only thing I could, and that was to get the hell out of her life.

  For once in my life, I had to be a decent human being.

  Ethan

  AFTER I LEFT THE FLORIST, I headed to the studio. I had a notebook full of lyrics and we'd been discussing adding one more song to the album. There were a couple of weak tracks that I wasn't happy with. I had enough time to replace them with something better, and even if I couldn't write something in time, working on lyrics always soothed me.

  I needed to occupy my mind with something other than those soft lips. That stubborn mouth called to me. What would've happened if I'd kissed her today? Would she have yielded to me? It hadn't taken her long to push me away but maybe she regretted it now.

  Ruff was in the booth when I arrived, while Gregor just hung around. I nodded a greeting.

  "Where's Miles?" I peered around.

  I wanted to get this bet thing sorted out, the sooner, the better. Maybe I could undo everything and it'd be like that damn bet had never existed.

  Even without the bet, it wouldn't be fair to take things further with Sophie. I couldn't promise her anything but a world of hurt. All I could do was walk away, disappear from her life and she'd soon forget she'd ever met me.

  "Said he was going sightseeing since he wasn't needed today. On his own, since he hasn't found himself a local girl like you have."

  Damn, it really didn't take long for news to get around.

  He'd be on his bike so he wouldn't answer my calls. He could be anywhere.

  "Did he say when he'd be back?"

  Gregor shrugged.

  That meant there was nothing for it but waiting.

  I went outside with my notebook. A verandah ran around the back of this old house. The perfect place to sit and work on a song or two. A small creek ran through the yard with bushland on the other side. A couple of paths wound into that bushland, leading who knew where.

  Birds screeched in the trees and the creek sparkled in the sunlight. This place was peaceful if you were into that nature stuff.

  I started writing but the only images in my mind were Sophie. Her lips, her button nose, her fiery eyes.

  Pink Petals.

  I grinned remembering the name of her flower shop. I wrote that down in my notebook. She'd hated me laughing but surely, she'd been aware of the implications of the name.

  I played around with words but images of Sophie threaded through my mind.

  Over the years, I'd told a lot of girls I'd written songs about them but that wasn't exactly true. Actually, they were bald-faced lies.

  I wrote songs about emotions or situations, maybe pulling some details from life when things caught my eye but I'd never once had a girl in mind. I'd always kept things vague enough to apply to anyone. Made life a lot easier that way. But this song wanted to be about Sophie no matter how much I pushed it other directions.

  Bits of music swam through my head. I ran back into the studio and grabbed a guitar. No matter what, this song wanted to make its way into the world. It seemed almost fully formed in my head. I had no idea if it was shit or what, I just had to get it out before I forgot.

  My heart pounded with the potential.

  I tried to capture the song exactly as it sounded in my head. It took a few run throughs. A couple of bits just didn't work the way I wanted them. I scratched my head, trying to force things never worked. The only way was to keep things simple.

  Between strumming that guitar and scribbling notes, I finally got it close enough.

  Pink Petals. I couldn't wait to play it for Sophie.

  Wait. I couldn't. My insides turned to lead when it hit me. I'd planned to stay away from her. I had to stay away from her. Anything else would be unfair.

  I played the song one more time, wondering if I could ever be the kind of man she deserved. Nothing in my life suggested that but then I'd never had a woman I'd wanted to be good for before.

  When I finished playing, soft applause made me spin around. Ruff stood behind me.

  "New song?" he asked.

  "Just something I've been fooling with."

  "It's not your usual style. It's soft, pretty."

  "Like I said, I was fooling around." I gathered up my stuff, preparing to go back to the motel.

  "I don't mean in a bad way. It's just... different."

  I knew what he meant. Miles often said my songwriting was too brutal and tried to tone things down. This song had a frailty, a wispiness. I wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not. It seemed like I'd be incredibly vulnerable playing it on stage.

  "I'
ll run through it for everyone later," I said. "See what Miles wants to do with it."

  Ruff shrugged. "I'd keep it like it is. Simple. Just vocals and acoustic. Why don't you lay it down like that? We can add in the rest of the band if we need to."

  Good idea. I'd get it down while it was fresh. And Ruff didn't blow smoke up my ass. If he hated the song, he'd come straight out and say.

  I headed back inside. "Keep it simple, you say?"

  Ruff nodded.

  I spent the next few hours getting it just right. When I listened back, I had to admit, I didn't hate it. I didn't hate it at all.

  "Are we putting it on the album?" Billy asked. "It's a great song but I'm not sure it fits with the sound."

  I had to agree. But we'd use it somewhere. Even if we didn't, the song was out there now.

  "Is Miles back?" I asked.

  "Haven't seen him," Gregor said. "He might not be back until morning."

  Damn it. I wanted this bet thing settled. It wouldn't mean I was any good for her or that I should be anywhere near her but it'd made me feel a ton better.

  I went back to the hotel with Ruff and Gregor. They were headed out for drinks with some local girls and wanted me to go with them.

  "Nah," I said. "I'll have an early night."

  Ruff's eyes nearly fell out of his head but I had no interest in going out. That wasn't so strange. Sure, I'd never done it before but that didn't mean I couldn't do it now.

  "See ya in the morning," Ruff said.

  "Sure you're not making excuses so you can sneak off to see that chick?" Gregor added.

  I didn't answer. I just glared at him. I had no intention of doing that and, if I did, I was sure that Sophie was the type to not welcome a late-night visitor.

  When they left, I went out to the pool. I didn't mean to spy or anything but there was a spot on the diving where you could see through the trees to her house. Not enough to see inside, but to tell if her lights were on or not.

  I guess that made me a bit of a creeper.

  After a while of doing that, I forced myself inside. I couldn't watch her house all night.

  I couldn't sleep. My body burned. I wasn't the type of man to resist temptation. But then I wasn't normally the type of guy to think about anyone else either.

  I could pop over and see her face one more time. Nothing more than that. I'd keep my hands off her. I just needed an excuse. I'd tell her I thought I'd left my sunglasses in her van.

  Yep, that would work. I hadn't taken sunglasses with me but she wouldn't know. As much as I wanted to kiss her and touch her and explore every inch of her body, I'd say that then leave.

  Just one final glance, that's all.

  Sophie

  I THOUGHT THAT ETHAN would've hung around after we got back from the market but he rushed out of the store so fast, I barely had time to thank him. Something definitely changed in his attitude on the drive back. The carefree joking vanished. I went over everything I'd said in case I'd offended him. I couldn't think of a thing. Maybe he was just a moody guy.

  Janice came in and handed me a coffee then, from the minute we opened the doors, business didn't stop. I barely had a moment to think about Ethan or to worry about what his quick exit meant. Of course, he was busy and he'd have only been an obstacle in the store.

  "Why's everyone buying flowers today?" I asked when we finally had a moment to ourselves.

  Janice raised her eyebrow and laughed. "Why do you think?"

  I knew. The gossip and rumors. I'd been seen with a famous rock star so everyone in town had to come into the store to check things out for themselves. But I thought it'd have died down by now.

  "I guess we'd better make the most of it." I leaned over the buckets near the door, rearranging the bunches of flowers to best effect and didn't look up at Janice. "Ride the wave while we have the momentum."

  "You don't think it's going to last?" Janice asked.

  "Of course not. I'm not even sure how long those guys are in town. It doesn't mean anything."

  Damn it, I'd pricked my finger on a rose thorn. I'd thought I'd cut them all off but I must've missed one.

  "A guy doesn't get up at the crack of dawn and schlep buckets through a market for someone without a reason."

  I grabbed a tissue and wrapped it around my finger.

  "Maybe, maybe not."

  I wasn't sure why Ethan had done it and I wasn't going to speculate. I wouldn't have crazy fantasies about that guy and I wouldn't think about how he'd look naked. He lived in one world and I lived in another. That's how life was.

  "Don't grin at me like that," I said. "I'll probably never see him again."

  "He seems pretty keen," she said. "Invite him over for dinner. I bet he doesn't eat a home cooked meal that often."

  I shook my head. "I can't do that. He's a busy man."

  Busy and popular.

  "Have you told me everything?" Janice asked.

  "Yeah, of course. We went to lunch and to the Pioneer Museum yesterday, then to the flower market this morning. Nothing exciting or exotic."

  "Did he kiss you?"

  "No."

  But my body heated. The flower market, that'd meant nothing. Nothing at all. And if my body caught fire when I touched him, it'd just been adrenalin from seeing that forklift whizzing towards him

  I'd reached out to pull him out of the path, same as you would with any human being.

  But he'd been in my arms and for the briefest moment, he'd looked at me, really looked, his gaze on my lips like a caress. My stomach flip-flopped in a weird way and everything else disappeared around us.

  He planned to kiss me. There'd definitely been kissing on his mind. And I couldn't deny that I wanted that kiss. I craved it more than I'd ever craved someone's touch in my life.

  Then I'd come to my senses and remembered we were in the middle of the flower market with everyone's gaze on us. It wasn't the time or place for kissing. So I'd pushed him away.

  Even now I regretted it.

  "Are you sure?" Janice said, interrupting my thoughts. "Because you get a silly grin every time I mention his name."

  "Do not."

  "Ethan," she said.

  I tried to control the muscles in my face. They twitched but I wouldn't grin. I couldn't. I had nothing to grin about.

  But, despite all my efforts, the corners of my mouth moved of their own will.

  I leaned back over the bucket to hide my face.

  When I got home that night, I flopped on the sofa. The paperwork could wait. I needed to relax.

  I turned on the TV then looked at my phone. I couldn't really invite him over for dinner. That seemed way too forward. Even if I said dinner, he'd read it as sex. And sex with Ethan would be a huge mistake. A huge enjoyable mistake maybe, but still a mistake.

  I turned the volume up on the TV as though the loudness would drive the lustful thoughts from my head. So loud, I almost didn't hear the knock on the door.

  My heart skipped. Stupid heart. It wouldn't be Ethan. He had no reason to knock on my door. None at all. With every footstep down the hallway, I tried to kill the hope rising inside me.

  When I opened the door he stood there, leaning on the door frame.

  His gaze locked with mine but he didn't say a word. I had to look away as heat flooded my body. A simple look like that shouldn't make my belly do flip flops or parts of me ache with desire.

  I turned to walk away expecting him to follow me inside but he grabbed my wrist, pushing me against the wall.

  "I shouldn't be doing this," he said. "Stop me, Sophie."

  But when his hand found my waist, I couldn't pull away. And when his lips found mine, I couldn't speak. Any part of me that thought we shouldn't be doing this had long stopped functioning.

  I knew only one thing. I wanted him. No matter how stupid and wrong this would be, no matter how much I'd end up hurt, I wanted this.

  Without even thinking, my hands tangled in his hair. The way he kissed was too soft and gentle to s
atisfy me. I pressed against him, wanting him closer. As his kiss deepened, I moaned.

  "Fuck, Sophie," he whispered in my ear.

  Fuck, indeed. That was all I could think about. His hand cupped my head as he possessed my lips. My body caught fire and the ground shook beneath my feet. There would be no turning back now.

  Sophie

  THAT KISS UNLEASHED something inside me. For so long, my heart had been tied up in bounds. I'd stopped myself from ever feeling, from ever wanting. My toes curled, my skin burned, the intensity made me tremble.

  I didn't have to be the good girl, always putting everyone else's needs first. I could take something for myself. I could have a dream.

  Then he broke away.

  "I shouldn't do this, Sophie." His voice shook. "I can't do this."

  After kissing me like, a kiss that reverberated through my body, reached my soul and rocked my world off its foundations, he left. Just walked away.

  I stared at the door as he shut behind it behind him. My legs trembled and I almost wept from frustration. The ache deep inside, the craving for him, the need for him to possess me overwhelmed me.

  I stomped down the hallway, only pausing to throw a cup at the wall. Not even the shattering gave me any satisfaction.

  That bastard.

  That total bastard.

  I'd been right about him from the start. He was a rotten, self-obsessed rock star. I should've used that baseball on him instead of the stereo. I screamed, the frustration inside me pressing so heavily.

  I didn't need him. I had my vibrator. That would satisfy any physical need. But I knew this was more than just physical. I wanted more than just an orgasm. I wanted Ethan. I wanted him in a way I'd never even realized it was possible to want.

  Instead, I got the dustpan and swept up the broken shards of the mug on the floor. Cutting my foot open would only make this day worse.

  After I dumped the pieces in the trash can, I put my fingers to my lips. Had that really happened? I hadn't dreamed it. Traces of him lingered. The taste of him on my mouth remained.

  My heart fluttered a beat of disappointment. Had he been testing me? Wanting to see if I'd respond to his touch? Had that all been an ego thing?