Guitar Freak Read online

  “Wow, you unpack? Even for such a short stay?”

  I had my clothes folded neatly in the wardrobe.

  “Of course. I’d never find anything otherwise.”

  She gave a throaty laugh. “My stuff is all over the place. I never find things.”

  I didn’t doubt that. She seemed the type who’d upend her suitcase onto the floor. We were so opposite that it was scary.

  I reached over and grabbed a t-shirt to give her. She took it but didn’t move away. She stared at the wardrobe as if my organization system amazed her. I didn’t move away either. I didn’t want to break this moment. Her arm brushed against mine, barely a touch. Just the flesh brushing against the hairs on my arm.

  She sucked in her breath, then backed away.

  “Err... I’ll try on the t-shirt,” she said, disappearing back into the bathroom.

  With a bit of space, I tried to get my thoughts together. This was wrong. I could resist her. I’d had every kind of temptation thrown at me over the last few years and had ignored it all. She was just a girl. Nothing more.

  What was going on between us? I should go out and maybe get a glass of water, or at least do something so I wasn’t just standing around gawking when she came out.

  She came out of the bathroom in the t-shirt. Hell, I should’ve found a longer one. That t-shirt just skimmed the tops of her thighs. Hell, those legs.

  She flicked her hair, not breaking eye contact with me.

  “I think this is okay,” she said. “I should sleep.”

  She said that, but she didn’t move.

  I needed to be strong, to kick her out of my room and make her go back to the sofa, but my body froze. I couldn’t form words. My heart was pounding, and each pounding was a scream for me to grab her in my arms and kiss every inch of her body.

  It took all my energy to fight that urge. I had nothing left.

  She smelled like the sweetness of a summer day, full of ripeness and potential. I needed to stay close enough that I didn’t lose the scent of her. I stepped closer, fully intending to ask her to leave my room. When I got near her, though, the words stuck in my throat. I didn’t want her in the other room.

  I put my hands on her shoulders, and she looked up at me, smiling. Those eyes, the way they shone—avoiding temptation with this girl would kill me. Just being near her put all my senses on edge.

  I should back away. I had to. I couldn’t go down a path that made no sense intellectually.

  The tension of expectations flew between us. We were close, and we were moving closer, as though drawn against our will. The need to kiss her overruled all my logic.

  Nothing else existed but those lips of hers. The lips I’d wanted to explore from the first moment I’d laid eyes on her.

  Chapter 16: Polly

  His heart pounded. Mine did too. This was something that wasn’t meant to be, but here we were, the two of us, almost embracing. Part of me wanted to grab hold of him, to spur him on, rather than stay dangling on the edge of this abyss, but another part of me wanted to draw back. Damo wasn’t a man you messed around with. I knew that. Damo wouldn’t be a fun fling, easily forgotten. And when it could put my band’s future in jeopardy, I wasn’t sure I wanted to take the chance.

  But I couldn’t fool myself. Every atom of my body wanted to take that chance. Every cell tingled. My toes curled and my chest tightened. That was without even thinking about the reaction of my lady parts. But it was nothing, just a physical reaction.

  He ran his thumb over my bottom lip.

  “Polly,” he whispered.

  My name seemed to be wrung from him.

  “Yes,” I replied, even though I knew he didn’t need an answer.

  I stood on tiptoes, pressing myself closer to him. The solidness of his body held me steady when my own body failed. My hands moved to his chest. Not wrapping around his neck, but staying within the relative safety of his upper body.

  I knew once I crossed that line, there’d be no coming back. I didn’t know Damo that well, but I knew enough to be scared about the direction we were headed in.

  Run, my common sense screamed. Run now, while you can. But this close to him, I’d become as weak as a kitten. I couldn’t even break eye contact with him. If I did, I’d never get back to this point. This moment would be lost for all eternity. I might be hanging on the edge of an abyss, but I’d become more than willing to take that leap into uncertainty.

  I trembled with fear. What was I afraid of? That he’d kiss me, or that he wouldn’t?

  I’d never felt so unsure with a man before. Normally, I’d attack, head-on. Never pausing, never hesitating. But this was different. So different. My emotions pulled me in a hundred different directions.

  Slowly, he moved his lips to mine. The trembling in my body increased, although I tried to control it. I wasn’t the type to tremble and wilt. His lips touched mine gently, but it set a fire burning inside my body. I moved my hands around his neck. His hands ran down my back. Our bodies pressed together.

  His kiss became more insistent, and I answered with my own desire. All common sense fell away, leaving me with this burning need for him. I crossed the threshold, and I fell. All my insides twirled, rushing, pumping. I’d live inside this kiss forever.

  Eventually, he broke away.

  “We shouldn’t have done that,” he said.

  My heart plummeted to my feet. He was right, but so wrong at the same time. I wanted to scream, but I pressed my lips together, holding that scream inside me. I had to pretend I didn’t care. If he was going to reject me after kissing me like that, I could at least keep my pride.

  “You’re right,” I finally said. “I’ll go.”

  I wasn’t sure where. Anywhere but here seemed like a good idea. Of course we shouldn’t kiss.

  I wasn’t even that attracted to him. It’d been a momentary lapse, that was all. The late night and all the pressure of the tour building up. I’d grab my stuff and go. Walk around for a few hours until I could get into my room. I’d been a fool. And I knew once I left this room, I’d need to find somewhere I could cry in peace.

  As I moved to leave, he grabbed my arm.

  “Polly,” he whispered again, the need in his voice disarming.

  I turned back to him, ready to tell him to stop messing with me. I didn’t need this shit.

  Before I could talk, he swept me into his arms and held me tight. I gulped. He must be able to hear my pounding need. I couldn’t stop now. Even if he said stupid things like “we shouldn’t”, there was no turning back. When he looked at me like that, all the sensible words meant nothing. His words meant nothing. All that mattered was the promise in his eyes.

  This time, his kiss took my breath away. No gentleness, just a wave of lust crashing into me. I couldn’t resist that wave. I relaxed and let it carry me away.

  I broke away and searched his face. His eyes were burning with desire. The same desire filled my entire body.

  He lifted me and carried me to the bed. I wanted to tell him to go slow, but I couldn’t. Going slow? Screw that shit. I wanted him, and I wanted him now.

  He lowered himself beside me.

  “Are you okay with this?” he asked, entangling his hands in my hair.

  I nodded. Of course I was okay. The anticipation, the trepidation built up inside me. I couldn’t stop this now even if I wanted to.

  He kissed me again.

  The line had been well and truly crossed.

  Chapter 17: Damo

  This hadn’t been what I’d intended at all. So much of me screamed that I should stay well away from this woman. There was nothing but trouble in her, but my need for her overrode all of that. I’d been so tightly wound up for so long that I’d forgotten just how wonderful life could feel. If I wanted to, I could write songs like I’d never written before. But who wants to write songs when they have a beautiful woman lying on their bed?

  I kissed her again. Kissing—that was one of those things I’d almost forgotten.
The magic of falling into someone’s embrace and losing yourself. When we’d gotten entangled in the hallway the other night, I’d wanted to lose myself in her, but I’d fought it. As much as I’d responded to her physically, I couldn’t take advantage of that. I’d needed to use every bit of control I had in me to fight against her. She’d been drunk, and it was a stupid situation. Now, I didn’t need to fight. That smile, those alluring eyes, were holding nothing back. Knowing she wanted this as much as I did made the world a much sweeter place.

  I kissed her neck. She wriggled but held me tighter, her fingers digging into my arms, and her urging fired me up. I stroked my fingers over the soft skin of her arms, trailing them down over that dress that just got in my way now. I pulled at the hem, raising it up to expose her belly.

  My fingers played with her soft belly skin, making her giggle and squirm. That giggle was all sex.

  “That tickles,” she said breathlessly.

  “I can stop.”

  “Hell, no.”

  I lowered my head and trailed kisses along that skin, and she sucked in her breath. I kissed down to her belly button, then lower and lower. The lower I went, the more her breath hitched. That sound was music to my ears. Sexy and husky and sweet.

  She tried to pull me back to her mouth, but I wasn’t finished, not by a long shot. I kissed along the edge of her panties as her fingers twisted in my hair. Then I moved down between her legs.

  If I’d thought about sex with Polly, which I had way too much since I’d met her, I’d have expected her to be more aggressive, almost fighting for control. I hadn’t expected her to be so willing to take the pleasure I wanted to give her.

  As I looked up at her, she smiled, lazy and self-satisfied. When she smiled like that, it just made me harder. My cock ached to be inside her now. Right now. But I’d be damned if I’d rush this. I’d waited this long to find a woman I wanted to be with, and I could wait a little longer.

  I moved my fingers along the dampness of her panties, tracing the edge of her lips. That hitched breathing had turned to definite sighs now, and she bucked under my touch. Each buck of her hips sent a shot right to my cock. Could she be any more perfect?

  When I put my mouth to her, she let out a squeal. That noise was the best gift she could give me. I wanted to make sure that this was the best night of her life, that it’d wipe away the memory of anyone she’d had before me.

  She hooked her fingers in the waistband of her panties and pushed them down. I loved that impatience, but I held her hands, easing them away.

  “No,” she said.

  She desperately wanted those panties off. She tried to push them down again, but I wrestled her hands away.

  “Come on, Damo. Don’t toy with me,” she said.

  But toying with her was exactly my plan. I wanted to see her desperate and begging. I wanted to watch those liquid eyes fill with need.

  “Do you really want this?” I asked, running my fingers under her elastic. Just the tips of my fingers, just enough to promise.

  “Hell, yeah. Yes. Yes. Please.”

  I laughed at the pleading in her voice.

  She pushed herself up onto her elbows and glared at me.

  “If you don’t make me come in the next few minutes, I will seriously kill you. I’m not joking.”

  I laughed as she flopped back down, but I couldn’t deny her request. I inched those panties down over her thighs, spreading her wide open in front of me.

  The gorgeousness of her like that took my breath away. The moans that came from her became guttural and wild when I touched her, and that was before I even put my mouth to her thigh and sucked lightly on the silky-soft flesh. Her body rose up to meet me as though she couldn’t get close enough to me.

  When I finally put my mouth to her luscious pussy, she almost exploded. The moans became screams, her body became covered in a sheen of sweat, and her fingers twisted in the bedsheets.

  Her clit had swollen like an overripe berry. When I took to it with my tongue, she writhed so hard, I needed to grasp her thighs to keep her in place. Her screamed ripped through the air. Thank god, the other guys were out for the night. There’d be no disguising that sound. But I loved it. I wanted to hear her scream like that for the rest of my life.

  I pressed my mouth tighter to her even as she reached the peak of her orgasm. Even with the waves of pleasure ripping through her body. She tried to push me away, but I wanted to push her beyond the edge. Her nails ripped into my shoulders. She screamed words that made no sense, her body stiff and tense.

  That drove me crazy. I couldn’t wait any longer. I needed to be inside her. I wanted to ride those waves, feeling her pussy throb with the strength of her orgasm, grabbing my cock tight. I took off my pants and reached for a condom in the dresser drawer, even though losing contact with her body for that short time was torture.

  When I entered her, I knew I’d found perfection. Her pussy squeezed my cock tight, and it took all my strength to not blow straight away. She ran her nails down my back, urging me on. As much as I wanted to take this slowly, teasing her even more, a primal instinct took over and I thrust hard inside her.

  God, nothing in this world felt as good as her pussy. She gripped me tighter while her nails dug into me. I watched the joy wash over her face, making her more beautiful than any woman I’d ever met. I lost myself in her, the two of us merging into one being, hell-bent on pleasure.

  When she bit down on my neck, I couldn’t hold back any longer. With a final thrust, I reached the zenith of my pleasure.

  That had been amazing.

  I pulled her into my arms and held her, knowing I would never want to let her go.

  Chapter 18: Polly

  A noise in the hallway woke me up. The guys were back, and I needed to get my room key before they crashed. Not that I wasn’t happy snuggled up in Damo’s arms, but I wanted access to my stuff. Clean undies would be a good thing, and fresh makeup.

  I threw my dress back on and rushed out.

  “Oi, Fartstard,” I yelled out. “I need you.”

  “Yeah, you do,” he replied, giving me a sleazy wink.

  “Eww, no way. I need you come down to reception with me.”

  He stepped forward while the other guys lolled around the foyer near the elevator. Half of them needed to lean on the walls to keep upright. I was sure they could all go back to their rooms without getting involved in this, but none of them moved.

  Then I noticed Miles. He glared at me with a hatred so intense, it burned. And not just that. Glances were being exchanged among all the guys.

  Shit. I’d rushed out of Damo’s room half-dressed. These guys might be drunk and they might be addled, but they weren’t totally comatose. I might as well have been carrying a neon sign saying, “Damo and I are screwing.” I’d really hoped I’d be able to sneak down that hallway without them noticing which room I’d come from, but no such luck. They knew. They all knew.

  “Jesus,” Elijah said. “Damo stayed behind and scored better than any of us.”

  I shot him the daggers, but it’d take more than that to shut him up. Elijah had a monster mouth.

  I wasn’t going to explain the situation. Any explanation I could give would be met with mockery. There was no maliciousness in them, though. In none of them but Miles.

  I put my hand on my hip. I’d ignore all the unspoken questions and just be glad that the questions remained unspoken.

  “I lost my key. The bastard on the desk wouldn’t give me a replacement, so I had to crash in Damo’s room. I need the person who booked the room. That’d be you, Fartstard.”

  “You know I’d be more likely to do you a favor if you used my real name,” he said.

  I harrumphed. “Like anyone on the tour even knows your real name. You got a problem, talk to Elijah. He started this. Anyway, it’s not a favor, it’s your job.”

  I walked over and pressed the elevator button. Fartstard lingered while the other guys went to their rooms.

  �
��What happened?” I asked him when we got into the elevator.

  I bashed the ground floor button. Hopefully, that annoying bastard on the desk downstairs had finished his shift and I’d get someone reasonable to help.

  “Huh?”

  “A bunch of the biggest international rock stars in town, and the lot of you come home alone? That doesn’t seem right to me.”

  “Me neither. I was hoping for some castoffs, at least.”

  I leaned against the back wall. There were way too many mirrors in this elevator, and I wasn’t looking my best.

  “You’ll never get a woman thinking like that,” I told him. “It’s degrading and offensive.”

  He shrugged. “Hey, I’m an average guy with a flabby belly on tour with some of the hottest guys in the world. Chicks, they just want hot rock stars. They’re so shallow. I’m a nice guy, but they don’t care about personality.”

  Jesus, spare me from self-proclaimed nice guys. As his stench wafted toward me, I put my hand up, covering my face.

  “Dude, you are so not a nice guy. You’re a sleazy bottom-feeder. Face it. Own it. Find a chick who wants that. I’m not sure where, but there must be someone out there whose type is sleazy bottom-feeder.”

  His eyes lit up. “You think so?”

  I rolled my eyes.

  The elevator arrived on the ground floor. I felt sorry for anyone getting in after us. Fartstard hadn’t gotten his nickname just for the lolz.

  There was a different clerk on the desk, and it took about five seconds to get the key thing sorted out. I didn’t even need Fartstard with me. That other clerk had been a jerk. Jerk Clerk, that’s what I’d call him.

  “Do you know where you lost your key?” the new clerk asked.

  “Maybe when I stopped at the kebab stand,” I said.

  “Which one? We might be able to track it down.”

  “Dude, it was a kebab stand. One of a zillion in this city. I have no idea.”

  He didn’t even look up. “I’ll deactivate it and get you a new one. Be a bit more careful with this one.”