by Julie Archer
“I hope you weren’t dressed like that when you were speaking to him!”
Eva laughed. It was a full, throaty laugh that was genuine, unlike Kelly’s fake little giggles. “As if.”
“Good.”
Richey moved towards her, taking the glass from her hand and placing it on the desk. He took her hand, drawing it to his crotch to show her just how hard he was already. She shivered against him. He slipped a hand between her legs, sliding his fingers underneath the silky material, feeling how wet she was for him. Dropping to his knees in front of her, he slowly drew the thong down her thighs, over her knees, and down towards her ankles. Instinctively, she lifted each of her feet, her eyes never leaving his as he slipped the garment off her and tucked it into the pocket of his jeans. His hands went to her hips, and he pulled her towards him, burying his face in her core. His tongue worked its way around her clit, and he felt her hands on his head, pushing him deeper. He dug his fingers into her buttocks, clutching at them as he lapped her. He glanced up, seeing her eyes were closed, lips parted and her tongue was darting in and out, licking her own lips. God, how he wished that tongue was working on his cock right now. Her legs started to shake. He reached up with one hand, pinching one of her nipples, crushing it between his fingers. He heard her cry out as it tipped her over the edge, her stomach spasming. She fell to her knees, breathing heavily. Richey watched her and pulled off his own clothes. Without giving her any time to recover, knowing she was already in a high state of arousal, he sat naked on the edge of the bed and spread his legs, his cock erect.
“About that treat you promised me...” His voice was husky with lust.
Eva stood up and moved across the room, standing directly in front of him, her breasts at eye level. Richey took one in his mouth and sucked her nipple, teasing it, nipping it with his teeth, feeling her wriggle against him. He slid a finger into her slick core, his thumb caressing the most sensitive part of her, and felt her contract. His cock pulsed and, unable to wait any more, he grabbed her hips, bracing her legs against the bed and drew her towards him. He pulled her down on top of him, slipping easily inside her. He wasn’t going to be able to last long as he thrust up into her. He reached up and threaded his hands into her thick hair, claiming her mouth with his own. He wanted a release, needed to come. He needed to take away the demons that had been gnawing away at him earlier that evening.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Eva and Richey spent the day together in Southside, shopping, eating, drinking, and laughing, just like any other normal couple. They returned to the hotel late that afternoon. There were plans to head out with the band for dinner, as they had a rare night off. Happy to finally be spending some quality time together, they ended up drifting off to sleep, fully clothed, bodies entwined.
Eva woke first, but Richey was still asleep beside her. As she looked over at him, his dark hair hiding his face, she was glad she had decided to surprise him. Despite the very short time they had officially been together, she felt comfortable and safe. The physical attraction was there—the butterflies in her stomach told her that—and they had an emotional connection too. The pair of them had come to Poppy and Nate’s house through circumstance and become so much more than simply housemates or workmates.
Richey’s eyes fluttered open, and for a moment, Eva was embarrassed to have been caught watching him.
“How long have you been staring at me?” He reached over and pulled her towards him for a kiss.
“Only all the time you’ve been asleep,” she teased. Her lips met his, and she shivered as his fingers caressed the back of her neck.
“Freak,” he said. He flipped her onto her back and kissed her deeply. His hands ran over her hips and slid up her dress. She squirmed under his touch and sighed when he drew back.
“Don’t stop...”
He did as he was told until his phone started to ring. It stopped for a moment and then started again.
“What is it about us and phones?” Eva pushed Richey away and sat up. “I guess you should probably answer it.”
Richey waved the phone at her. “It’s Alik. Probably wondering where we are. Have you seen the time?”
Eva slid off the bed. “Then I guess I’ll take a shower and get changed.” Disappointed, she stripped off her clothes and headed for the bathroom.
Richey followed her. “Any room for me?”
They ended up being late but weren’t the last to arrive. The Porter was packed, and it was easy for the band to get lost in the crowd without anyone disturbing them. Eva settled in next to Richey and prepared herself for a night of band talk and boy talk. She didn’t mind being the only woman at the table; it wouldn’t be the first time, and she could always call Poppy if she needed to. So when the door swung open and Nate walked in, his arm around a blonde-haired woman wearing a very short red dress, she couldn’t have been more surprised.
She leaned close to Richey. “Who’s that?”
Richey avoided looking at her. “Um, I’m not sure.”
“Yeah you are. Who is she?”
Richey didn’t have chance to answer as Nate and the woman sat down at the table, opposite him and Eva. Eva glanced at Alik and Dev, neither of whom seemed perturbed by the woman’s appearance. She suspected it wasn’t the first time it had happened. Her eyes bored into the woman.
As if sensing Eva was staring at her, she held out her hand. “Hi, I’m Rach.”
Reluctantly, Eva shook it. “Eva.” She paused. “Are you with Nate?”
Rach nodded and gestured to Richey. “And you’re with Richey. He talks about you all the time.”
Eva couldn’t help but smile. That was good to hear. “Have you and Nate been together long?”
“We met in Leeds a few months ago.”
“Stop gossiping, you two,” said Alik. “What do you want to eat?”
Eva turned her attention to the menu, giving herself chance to think about what Rach had just said. A few months ago, Poppy and Nate had been a married couple; Poppy at home looking after India and Nate out on tour. Although now it seemed that wasn’t all he had been doing. Suddenly, she felt awful for Poppy. She touched Richey’s hand.
“I don’t feel so good, can we go?”
“Really? We’ve only just arrived. And we haven’t eaten.”
“I need to get out of here.”
Eva grabbed her bag and coat and headed for the door, leaving Richey to make their excuses and come after her. He caught hold of her arm and spun her around to face him.
“What was that all about?”
“How long have you known about Nate and Rach?”
Richey shook his head. “I don’t know, a while I guess. I think she came to the first gig we did at The Vegas. And maybe saw Nate a few times before that?”
“Which means he was shagging her while he was still with Poppy.”
“I guess...”
Eva went into the next bar they passed. She ordered a bottle of wine and a beer and found a small table in the window. Richey had no choice but to follow her. He sat down opposite her and sipped his beer.
“I get it, you feel bad for Poppy,” he said.
Eva pressed the heels of her hands against her forehead. “I do. But there’s something else.”
Richey frowned. “What?”
“Poppy has been beating herself up for moving on from Nate so quickly and it turns out he’s been unfaithful to her anyway. God knows how I’m going to tell her.”
“What do you mean, moved on?”
Eva sighed. Poppy had begged her not to tell anyone about her relationship with Parker, but with the knowledge she now had about Nate, it was hard not to.
“She’s been seeing someone.”
“So? I haven’t seen anyone around the house.”
“It’s Parker.”
“You’re kidding me. I thought he was just coming over to the house for band stuff.”
“They haven’t been together long, at least I don’t think so. They got it on after
the awards thing the other week. He came over for a proper date, and I think things are going really well. Or at least that’s the impression Poppy gives.”
“Poppy and Parker?” Richey shook his head. “Wait until I tell Nate.”
Eva grabbed his wrist. “You can’t say anything!”
“But if you’re going to tell Poppy about Rach...”
Eva stopped. She sighed heavily and rubbed her forehead. It was all about to get really messy.
Chapter Thirty-Six
Poppy and Eva were meeting Olivia Cole for dinner in Sarastro. It was a combined business-meeting-slash-girls-night-out that Olivia had suggested. They had managed to secure a corner table where they wouldn’t be disturbed too much as it was another busy evening at the restaurant. Poppy and Eva arrived first and made heavy inroads into a bottle of Prosecco before Olivia appeared. Poppy hugged her friend tightly; it had been a long time since they’d seen each other.
“I’m sorry this is going to be more of a business meeting than anything else,” she said. Olivia shrugged off her jacket and placed a notebook on the table. “I would have loved to have come to the house and seen India, but the Blood Stone Riot boys are taking up way too much of my time at the moment. There are press releases, interviews, online stuff. I mean, it’s great, but never-ending. Plus I have a bunch of other needy clients.”
Poppy nudged Eva as she sat down. It would be a great opportunity for her to get involved and help Olivia out. Poppy knew that Eva was doing a great job for Caro and Nic, which surely Nic would have mentioned to Olivia. Eva frowned back at her and shook her head. Poppy rolled her eyes. She’d have to introduce the idea some other way.
Olivia caught the waitress’s eye and ordered another bottle. “I think we’ll probably need this. I’d rather be talking about anything else, however it needs to be done so there are less surprises for all of us.”
“What are you talking about? It sounds sinister!” said Poppy.
“It’s only sinister if I don’t know about it now. I need to know if there are any skeletons in your closet. If there’s anyone who’s likely to come out of the woodwork and tell any stories about you, Eva. If there’s anyone that would have something to say about your relationship with Richey, now is the time to tell me.”
Poppy spotted the horrified look that crossed Eva’s face. She guessed that Eva was worried about Jed finding out where she was. She placed her hand on Eva’s. “You should tell Olivia at least some of what happened. If Jed did appear, we could probably stop him before he does anything stupid.”
Eva drained the rest of her drink and immediately refilled her glass. “You’re right.” She took a deep breath and started to talk.
Even the stripped-down version sounded horrible, and Eva became visibly upset as she spoke. Poppy put a comforting hand on her arm.
Olivia noted down a couple of things as Eva spoke. “God, Eva, he sounds like a monster,” she said when Eva had finished. “I’m so sorry. I’m glad you were able to find Poppy.”
“Me too,” said Eva. She wiped a tear from her eye. “She’s been amazing, particularly after everything that’s been going on with her and Nate.”
“Mmm,” agreed Olivia. “We need to talk about that. I’m sure I’ll be fending off questions on that subject. Have you and Nate agreed on what line you’re taking? Are you guys just on a break?”
Poppy looked down at the table, wishing that her glass was full. She realised that she had to be honest with Olivia, but saying it out loud made it all the more real and she didn’t know if she was ready for it. She took a deep breath. “I don’t think we’re on a break,” she said. “Because, well, because I’m seeing Parker.”
There was a pause while what she had just said sank in for Olivia.
“You’re what?” she said. “He never mentioned it.”
“Because I told him not to. You should hear it from me because I’m your friend and he’s sort of your boss.”
Olivia reached for the Prosecco. It was already empty so she tried to catch someone’s eye. “How did that happen? I mean, when? You and Nate haven’t been broken up all that long.”
Poppy briefly explained how she and Parker had got together.
“I’m stunned. I mean, I hadn’t realised how bad things had become between you and Nate, but you do seem to have moved on pretty quickly.”
“She’s not the only one,” said Eva.
She said it so quietly that Poppy thought she must have misheard. “They weren’t that bad; I think we drifted apart, really. With Nate being on the road with Alik, I was alone a lot of the time, and I think he realised he preferred his freedom.”
“Does Caro know?”
Poppy nodded. “Yeah, I told her a couple of days ago. I know Nate has spoken to Alik as well.”
Olivia shook her head. “I can’t wait to find out who’s going to be the first to break the ‘band’s manager shacks up with guitarist’s ex-wife’ story.”
Poppy covered her face. “Oh God, this is so embarrassing! I thought that it would just be Eva that needed to tell you stuff because Richey’s the new one in the band. I hadn’t realised I would be under scrutiny as well.”
“Which you wouldn’t be if you hadn’t dropped your knickers so easily,” said Eva.
“How serious are things between the two of you?” asked Olivia.
“Well, he’s babysitting tonight...”
“At least you know where he is.” Eva pushed her chair away from the table and disappeared.
“What was that all about?” asked Olivia. She sipped her drink and looked over in the direction of where Eva had headed to.
“I don’t know!” Poppy sighed. “She’s been funny with me ever since she got back from seeing Richey the other day.”
“Do you think something happened with them?”
Poppy shook her head. “No, I don’t think so. They talk and message all the time. It gets a bit nauseating sometimes. I remember when Nate and I were like that.”
“And you and Parker aren’t?”
“Not in the same way. He’s lovely though, but very different to Nate.”
Poppy spotted Eva was coming back to the table. “Eva, have I done something to upset you?” she asked.
Eva sat back down and picked up her drink, then put it back down without having any. “I saw Nate the other day when I was with Richey.”
“So?” Poppy shrugged. “I would have expected that being as the band are on tour together.” She smiled.
“He wasn’t alone.”
Poppy let the words sink in and realised she hadn’t misunderstood what Eva had mumbled earlier. “I guess it’s to be expected.”
Eva twisted her napkin around in her hands. “Except it wasn’t the first time.” She paused. “Apparently this woman was at the first Blood Stone Riot gig that Richey played. And had been to several dates that Alik and Nate did.”
“What?”
“I think you know what Eva’s saying, Poppy,” said Olivia.
Poppy understood exactly what Eva had told her. Many of the conversations she and Nate had had came flooding back to her, as well as the times he had put off speaking to her when he and Alik had been away, the messages she had left when he hadn’t answered his phone. It was all becoming patently clear. Even if she had moved on with Parker too quickly, it seemed that Nate had moved on much sooner. She felt sick.
Poppy turned to Eva. “I think I’d like to go home now.”
Chapter Thirty-Seven
The rest of the tour passed without any further incident, and it wasn’t long before Blood Stone Riot were on the final date. It was something of a homecoming, being held at The Indigo Lounge, and Richey was looking forward to it. Not only did it mark the end of an extremely successful string of shows, Alik had kept his word about getting them into the studio to work on ‘Such A Lonely Ride’ and the other songs they’d been cultivating. It seemed that spending hours on end in a people carrier was a creative place for him. Since Eva had turned up in South
side, he had also managed to stop thinking about drugs. He was impatient to get back to her.
Parker gathered the band together in the back room after they had finished. They had played a triumphant set, eking it out and doing a few more covers than they had during the other gigs on tour.
“You guys are amazing,” he said. “A couple of months ago, I thought we were on the brink of losing the band, but now I can see that it can only go from strength to strength.”
Richey broke into a smile.
Alik slapped him on the back. “Yeah, you’re all right,” he said.
“There are a couple of things I wanted to discuss though.”
“Sounds ominous,” said Alik, echoing Richey’s exact thoughts.
Parker smiled. “Far from it. I have, what I hope is good news.” He went on to tell them that a firm date had been agreed for the release of the ‘Bleed Like Cyanide’ EP and that higher management would support a full-length album, which they wanted to get out as soon as possible. Following that, there would be another tour in a few months’ time and until then, they would play various sporadic dates at venues they knew well. “In addition, there’s one more date that’s coming up, which I only just found out about this morning.”
Richey looked quizzically at him. As if it wasn’t enough there would be another tour, where the hell was Parker planning to send them now?
“I thought it was about time you gave the Wilde Park Festival another go. One of the other bands on the Numb Records label unexpectedly dropped out, so a late Saturday afternoon slot on the third stage became available.”
Alik’s mouth dropped open. “You’re kidding?”
“Would I joke with you about something like that? Particularly after the fiasco of the last attempt.”
Richey couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Playing one of the very festivals he had grown up with, one that had defined his teenage years and quite possibly his career path as well. He glanced at Alik, who grinned back at him.