by Jade Allen
“Did you get it from your sister?” The woman rolled her eyes at Alex’s question.
“Nope, I just went to an all-ages show. Pompano Beach Skate Park let in five-year-olds, they weren’t going to keep a teenager out.” The woman slung the strap of her bag around to her front, taking a quick breath that strained the fabric of her shirt. She smiled. “I’m Olivia Grant from Record Spin, by the way.”
“At least they sent us a cute interviewer,” Mark said, grinning at Olivia.
“But are you any good?” Jules pulled himself up off of the console, leaning back in his chair.
“I’m not really the best person to ask,” Olivia said. She glanced around the room for a moment until they landed on one of the few unoccupied chairs. “After all, even if I was bad, would you expect me to say so? That’d doom the interview right from the start.” I snorted. Olivia grabbed the chair and pulled it into the middle of the control room.
“I’ll leave you guys to it,” Katie said, ducking back through the door and closing it behind her.
“So,” Alex said, looking at our interviewer speculatively. “How are we going to do this?”
“You guys have been doing interviews since eight o’clock this morning,” Olivia said, glancing at each of us in turn. I fought back the urge to grin at her. Feisty, feisty. Might be fun. For an instant, a flash flitted through my head: she’d be totally in control in bed; not afraid to tell a guy what she wanted. I imagined her underneath me, head thrown back, dark eyes closed, magenta hair tousled and mussed against my pillow, moaning out. She probably gets soaking wet at the drop of the hat, if you kiss her just right. “Don’t tell me you don’t know how an interview goes by now.”
“Well yeah,” Dan said, uncrossing and then crossing his legs once more. “But we want to see how you handle the situation. Your—like—original spin on the concept.” Olivia grinned, and there was the devil of a glint in her dark eyes that made me want to grab her and kiss her just right, right then.
“How about this?” Olivia opened her bag and took out a recorder. She tucked one foot underneath the rolling chair and propelled herself a little further into the middle of the room. I glanced around at my band mates: we were all more than a little intrigued at her movements as she plugged two microphone into the machine, pointing them at the opposite ends of the room. “We’ll chat. You can ask me questions—though I don’t promise to answer—and I’ll ask you questions, and whatever ends up being relevant to my article goes in.”
“What if we want something to not end up in your article?” Olivia looked sideways at Jules; he always hated interviews.
“Then say ‘off the record’ and I will make sure it never gets transcribed.”
“But if it’s recording, then by definition it’s on the record.”
“I’ll give you a copy of my edited recordings before I submit them to the magazine, so that you know it didn’t make the official record. How about that?” I looked at Jules sharply, and I knew Alex was doing the same—but for a different reason.
“That’s fine,” Jules said with a shrug. Olivia pressed a button on the recorder and it let out a beep.
“If you guys would take turns saying your names and your willingness to be recorded, we can get started on this,” she said, pushing back from the machine and looking around the room at each of us.
We each took turns doing as we were asked. “Can we ask you a question first?” Olivia snorted, shaking her head with a smile.
“One or the other of you have asked me about four questions by now,” Olivia pointed out tartly.
“Yeah,” I said, getting into the teasing mood, “but that was before the interview started.” Olivia looked at me and raised an eyebrow a fraction of an inch.
“Okay,” she said. Her tongue darted out over her lips. “Fine. Go ahead.”
“Are you single?” I stifled my laughter at Dan’s question.
“I am,” Olivia said, pink-red color lighting up her cheeks again.
“Come on guys,” Alex said, his voice a bit sharp. “Let’s keep it a little bit professional, right?”
“I just wanted to get my chance in before Nicky charms the pants off of her,” Dan said with a shrug. I saw Olivia’s blush deepen, and there was something so cute about it. She glanced at me and I saw her eyes narrow distrustfully for just a fraction of a second.
“Since I’ve done my research,” Olivia said, turning her attention back onto Dan, “I think I’m pretty safe in regards to keeping my pants on.”
“Oh!” Mark beamed, throwing his arms up in a victory pose. “Let me get you some ice, Nicky.” I rolled my eyes.
“That wasn’t a burn,” I said, throwing my spare lighter at Mark.
“Can we get started on the actual interview conversation now?” Olivia glanced at each one of us. I could see how difficult it was for her to push down the embarrassment she was feeling.
“Yeah, let’s get to work on this,” I agreed.
CHAPTER THREE
An hour later we were all still chatting; for a minor miracle, Olivia had even managed to get Jules to open up a bit. “Guys.” We all turned to look at the door; Katie was there, looking a little concerned. “Time’s up.”
“No, it isn’t!” Mark jumped up. “If our interview sessions are over, then we’re free, right? So we can decide how we want to spend the rest of the day.”
“I’m down to keep talking,” Dan said.
“Me too,” I agreed. “We could always head to Lost Weekend, see if they’ve opened up yet.”
“What time is it?” Olivia looked at the watch on her wrist at Jules’s question.
“It’s just after four,” she said. “They should be open. Barely.”
“Then let’s head over there. Katie—is the van still in the back?” We’d somehow managed to hold onto the huge van we’d used for our last tour of the state before Alex had had his little “adventure.”
“It’s still back there,” Katie replied with a shrug. “I can’t promise it still works.”
“So, let’s all pile into the van and make North drive since he’s the default DD anyway,” Mark suggested.
“I can follow you over,” Olivia said, closing the notebook she’d taken out somewhere along the way; I’d barely even noticed, everything had flowed so naturally.
“You could come with in the van,” Dan pointed out. “We’d drop you off here to get your car after.” Olivia half-shrugged.
“I need to get to work on the article at some point tonight,” she said.
“Oh fine.” Jules stood up.
“I need to grab Mary if we’re going out,” Alex said. I rolled my eyes to myself silently. I should have known he’d want to pick up his girlfriend—and Mary was a pretty good time. But there was that little part of me that couldn’t help resenting the fact that Alex almost never felt like going out without his girlfriend.
“So, you go get Mary, and meet us there,” Jules said with a shrug. “Let’s hit the road.”
“I’ll walk you to your car,” I told Olivia as Dan and Mark practically scampered out of the control room, shoving each other to try and get outside to be able to call shotgun first.
“You’re not going to try for shotgun?” Olivia asked me with a quick up-and-down look. I snorted.
“I never get shotgun. I’ve given up on it.” I shrugged. “Besides, there’s lots of room in the back of the van without the gear in it.” Olivia bit her bottom lip, carefully winding up the cords to the microphones and shoving them into her bag. Fuck, do women even know how it looks when they do that? A fast, hot jolt shot through me, and in my head I could see what she’d look like if she was riding me, taking me deep.
“Okay,” Olivia said finally. She combed her fingers through her short, soft-looking hair and looked around. “You can walk me out to my car if you want.”
“Don’t sound so enthusiastic,” I told her, gesturing for her to go through the door first. “I might start thinking you’re into me.” Olivia laughed.
&nbs
p; “Have you ever met a woman who doesn’t immediately want to fall into your big blue eyes and hear you whisper sweet nothings in her ear?” She raised a dark eyebrow. I grinned.
“Not often,” I replied. “But I do enjoy a challenge.” Olivia rolled her eyes and shook her head, though she didn’t try to get away from me or even put any distance between us as we walked through the winding hallways leading out to the parking lot behind the studio.
“I’m not actually a challenge,” Olivia said, looking up at me through her eyelashes. “I’m just not interested in being another number on someone’s scorecard.”
“I’m offended by that,” I said, bringing one hand up to my chest as if my heart had been crushed. “I don’t keep a scorecard; that would require keeping count.” Olivia snorted.
“So, what you’re saying is that you’ve lost count,” she said. “Not exactly a winning endorsement of yourself there, Nick.”
“Hey—I’m just being honest with you,” I said, holding my hands up and widening my eyes. “I would hope you would value my honesty.”
“Valuing your honesty doesn’t mean I’m going to sleep with you,” Olivia told me sweetly. She stopped, and I realized we were next to an old, beat-up Ford Focus. “Here’s my car!” Olivia turned to face me fully and I got the full advantage of her tight tee shirt. My hands practically itched to cup her full, heavy tits; for a fraction of a second, they might have actually twitched at my sides.
“You’re not going to bail just because I hit on you, right?” I crossed my arms over my chest to resist the urge to try and make a move; it wasn’t the right time—that was for damn sure. Olivia laughed out loud, the sound almost glittery, her eyes shining with amusement.
“Trust me, that little bit of flirting was not enough to keep me from hanging out with the rest of you. There is a reason I started working with a music magazine as soon as I could get my degree finished.”
“What’s that?” Olivia shrugged, digging her keys out of her bag.
“I like musicians,” she said. “Always fun, usually interesting, and you generally know where the best parties are.” I chuckled.
“Fair enough. See you at the bar.” I leaned in and Olivia stiffened—just slightly. I resisted the urge to laugh again as I kissed one cheek and then the other before immediately turning to get to the van where everyone else but Alex was waiting for me.
CHAPTER FOUR
“Three ball, corner pocket,” Jules called out from one of the pool tables. I had no idea how long we’d been at Lost Weekend, but it was just starting to pick up for the night. When we’d all gotten there, it was just about dead; of course, it wasn’t even five yet then. Jules and Alex were holding down the pool table, one or the other of them switching places with Mark or Dan at the arcade machines.
“What time is it?” I’d finally managed to corner Olivia at the table; she’d been doing a good job of keeping herself occupied with one person or the other—I’d seen her talking to one of the bartenders, chatting up a few of the regulars. If she knows people here, she’s here all the time. How could I have never seen her before?
Olivia looked at her watch, bringing a PBR up to her mouth with the other hand. She took a sip and then turned her attention back onto me. “Almost midnight.”
“Jesus fuck, we’ve been here seven hours?” Olivia shrugged, and for a second—just an instant—we both just sort of stared at each other in shock. Then at the same time we both giggled like teenaged girls. “Fuck, man.” I shook my head. I grinned at Olivia, a thought jumping into my head. “Well at least you know you can hang with a band when it comes to partying.”
“Oh, I never doubted that,” Olivia said, smirking. “I’m good for another three hours. Maybe four.”
“I thought you had to start writing the article?” Olivia shrugged.
“I texted my editor and told him I got invited to hang out, and wanted to add some color to the article. He’s totally game.”
“Jules and Alex arguing over whether or not the other one broke right is color?”
“It is,” Olivia said, nodding. “And so is Mark’s epic battle to get the top three spots on the game he’s playing.” I laughed, shaking my head. Olivia yawned. “Fuck! Why did you have to ask me what time it was? Now my brain’s catching up to how tired it should be.”
“Hey—I’ve been up since like…seven or some shit like that, and I’m still going strong,” I said, right before yawning. “That was your fault. Everyone knows yawning is contagious.” Olivia rolled her eyes at me and knocked back the last of her PBR.
“If I’m starting to yawn I should probably get home and start at least pretending to work on the article for the magazine,” she said.
“Aw, come on. You’re having a good time. Getting loads of color. Don’t go home so soon or I’ll have to tell everyone you can’t hang.” Olivia gave me a little half-smile with a raised eyebrow.
“We’ve been talking for like an hour, Nick. Haven’t you had enough of me?” she looked around the bar. “There are at least a dozen women in here right this second who are imagining what you look like naked, and you’re sitting here shooting the breeze with me.” It was true; as soon as I’d seen Olivia at a table by herself, I’d made my move, sitting down across from her.
“Maybe I like shooting the breeze with you,” I said with a little shrug. It was actually true. Even during the actual interview, Olivia had been kind of amazing; she’d completely stuck with her plan of making it like a conversation, and she hadn’t asked a single question that we’d been asked by the rest of the reporters. She had wanted to know things like what we liked the best about touring versus the least, what books we were reading, where a particular riff had come from.
“You like getting laid,” Olivia said, giving me the most direct look I’ve ever gotten from a woman. “And I can just about promise you that no amount of shooting the breeze with me is going to get you laid tonight.”
“I don’t have to get laid every night,” I protested. “I’ve got a hand if I get an itch.”
“Cute,” Olivia said sarcastically. She licked her lips, glancing around the room again. “Alex is doing a good job staying sober.” I shrugged.
“For now, he is,” I said. “I probably shouldn’t say this but we’re all kind of...no one is going to like, sabotage his recovery or anything, and we don’t want him to go back to being the mess he was, but you know how it is.” Olivia nodded.
“I can see it,” she agreed. “Mary’s a good influence then?” Some look must have crossed over my face without me realizing it; in an instant Olivia got a look on her face like a wolf that caught a scent. “She’s not a good influence?”
“No—no, she’s totally a good influence,” I said, remembering at the last second that Olivia was, after all, a journalist. “It’s one of those things; one of your friends starts seeing a girl seriously and it changes the dynamic. I don’t resent him for it—or her—but it’s an adjustment.”
“Things change when something like that happens,” Olivia agreed with a nod. She looked at the time again. “I’m going to close my tab and head back. My editor will kill me if I don’t at least have something in his inbox tomorrow—well, technically today.”
“Can I tag along?” Olivia gave me a disbelieving look. “Seriously! I’m not going to try and put the moves on you or something. I just want to hang out and talk. You can work.”
“You want to sit in my living room and talk while I’m putting together notes for the article? It’s going to be really boring.”
“With you? I doubt it.” Olivia laughed, shaking her head and rolling her eyes.
“Stop it, Nick. I am not going to get all mushy from you flattering me.”
“You’re blushing though,” I pointed out. “You like it, even if you don’t want to like it.”
“It’s the alcohol,” Olivia insisted.
“Come on. Let me tag along. I promise I’ll be a perfect gentleman.” I put my hand over my heart and raised my othe
r hand with my first two fingers up in a Boy Scout salute.
“I really doubt you were ever a scout, or that you have much honor,” Olivia said, a smile twitching at the corners of her lips. “But fine. If nothing else I can give you a ride home later.” She stood and I watched her walk over to the bar. Fuck. God, she has no idea how hot she is. Olivia leaned over a bit on the bar, waiting for someone to bring her the bill for her drinks, and of course that gave me a picture-perfect view of her ass pushed back, full and rounded, filling out her jeans like the person who’d made her clothes had had Olivia in mind at the time. I could walk up behind her right now, pull her jeans down and just fuck her like that. Grab her hips and just plow. Jesus fuck. I wouldn’t even care if the whole damn room watched. I knocked back the last of my beer and took a deep breath to try and push down the burn I could feel building up inside of me. I had to keep cool. Just getting Olivia to agree to let me come over—even if she wasn’t going to have sex with me—was a big deal, I could tell that much. If I pushed her too hard, I was going to fuck it up; and if I gave into that tingle of electric heat flowing through my veins, I was definitely going to push her too hard.
I got up from the table and walked over to Dan, who was watching the game between Jules and Alex, taking a break from one of the arcade machines. “Hey.”
“You talk her into going back to your place?” I shook my head.
“I’m going back to hers,” I said. I grinned; I wasn’t about to tell Danny that I knew I wasn’t going to get laid. I took my wallet out and handed him a couple of bills out of it to cover my part of the tab. God only knew when the rest of the guys would roll out of the bar; they might actually manage to hang in until it closed at four.
“Text me if you need a fast getaway,” Dan said, taking the money and shoving it in his pocket. I nodded and looked around. I spotted Olivia walking away from the bar slowly; I could almost read her mind as she looked around. She’s thinking she could take this chance and ditch me. She sees I’m not at the table waiting for her; she could just slip out and go home and not even have to worry about me—except that then she’d be the asshole that went back on her word.