Releasing one hand from the death grip I had on his hair, I reached over to grab the remaining pillow and shove it against my face. I had always been a screamer with Cooper and now wouldn’t be any different. I was almost there, when he curled his fingers against that special spot and hummed. I felt myself rise off the couch as I released a muffled moan into the pillow.
Stars and white light blurred my vision as he continued to work me with his mouth and his fingers. When I didn’t think I could take any more, he pulled away. He gently moved my legs, placing my feet on the floor, and got up. My whole body was a pile of mush. The thought that someone could walk in the front door at any moment and see me laying spread eagle was only a fleeting one.
With a chuckle, Cooper moved the pillow that was now resting on my face since my lax fingers couldn’t hold it. I could feel his eyes on me as he cleaned me up with a warm washcloth and wiped me down with a dry one, but the energy to open mine escaped me. Moments later, I felt my underwear and my leggings being pulled up my legs.
“Sweetheart, you’re going to have to help me a bit here,” Cooper whispered, as he tugged them to my thighs.
“Mmmmm hmmmmm,” I mumbled, lifting my ass just enough for him to slide them all the way up.
I didn’t even get a chance to put it back down before I was being scooped into strong arms and braced against a warm chest. I nuzzled into him and inhaled the scent that was only his. One that relaxed me further, if that was even possible. When he tried to set me down again, I held fast; I was not ready to return to reality. A kiss to my forehead had me sighing and releasing.
I opened my eyes slightly to find that he had laid me down on the couch and was covering me with the throw I had been wrapped in earlier. A bottle of water and my phone sat on the coffee table within reach, and Cooper was heading back down the hall. Closing them again, I figured I would rest until he returned.
“I’m heading out, Ave.” His warm voice filled my ear.
“Dad?” I questioned, opening my eyes and shifting to get up.
“Relax,” he said, putting his hand on me to keep me from moving. “I just checked on him. He’s sleeping soundly.”
“Thank you.”
“No, Ave, thank you for trusting me,” he replied, leaning down to brush a kiss across my lips and adjust the blanket. “Get some rest. Call if you need me again.”
Before I could register what he had said, he was gone. I could still smell him on me and I could taste the mixture of myself and mint on my lips from his kiss. I fell into a deep sleep, the best I’d had since I had returned home. My dreams were filled with a handsome tattooed drummer and all the delicious things I could do to him. He might have run while I was in my orgasm-induced haze, but Cooper Hall and I were far from done. At least for awhile, I wanted to be one of his groupies.
Okay, so we have a bunch of people bringing crock pot stuff, your mother is making up numerous platters, and Jen is organizing some women to set up meals for Avery to take home with her for the entire family,” Lexie rattled off, with a clipboard in her hand, making notes as she talked.
“Perfect,” I told her as I worked on putting together my drums on the stage at my brother’s bar. “Chris is on the horn, getting word out around town, and we may have called in some favors for some extra donations.”
“You guys are the best! I’ll check with Willie about where to put the extra tables, and make sure we are all set on silverware, plates, and napkins,” she said, walking away to track him down in his office.
Chuckling, I finished my setup. I don’t know if my brother knew what he had been getting into when he offered for us to have Dale’s benefit here. Then again, maybe I hadn’t known what I was getting into when I had put Lexie in charge. She was crazy organized, a stickler for details, and loved Avery and her family as much as we did. Despite her drill sergeant attitude, she was a perfect fit.
While the guys and I had been standing in the Cyrs’ living room the prior weekend, waiting for Avery, we had come up with the idea. After helping with Dale, the guys had wanted to do something, and Evan had instantly mentioned doing a benefit. The others had readily agreed and here we were. We had put it all together in under a week, after Willie had offered for us to use his space. All proceeds would go the Cyr family and Dark Roads was going to play most of the evening.
Every time I thought about that night, I had mixed emotions. I was sad that Dale was even in that position, grateful that me and the boys had been able to help, and elated I had been able to bring her some comfort. I should have felt bad about taking advantage of her when she was vulnerable, but the memory of her taste, and the feel of her body under my hands gave me an instant hard-on. I had gone home that night with the worst case of blue balls I had ever had. Jerking off in a cold shower hadn’t even relieved the ache I had for that woman.
“Cooper!” I heard Lexie yell.
Shifting the bulge in my pants, I made my way toward Willie’s office. When I got to the doorway, I leaned on the jamb and laughed at the mock exasperated look on my brother’s face. He was leaning back in his computer chair with his arms crossed, causing his muscles and tattoos to dance, while giving the impression he was pissed; however, I could see the slight curve of one corner of his lips. Most women would swoon over the way he was sitting, but Lexie was unaffected, other than looking ticked off.
“What’s up?” I asked, trying to hide my smirk.
“Willie is being a pain in the butt,” she stated.
“This woman wants to turn my bar into a spa,” he shot back.
“I was simply suggesting massage chairs as a means for everyone to relax,” she snapped.
“Lexie, let’s draw the line there,” I told her with my most charming smile. “Food, drink, and music will be plenty. Plus, we are hoping for a fairly large crowd, and we will need the space.”
“Fine.” She caved with a huff, getting up and brushing past me. “I’m going to go check on some last-minute details. I’ll see you here early Saturday for soundcheck, and to get everything ready!”
“Hard to believe she used to be timid and quiet,” Willie commented as he straightened in his chair and put his arms on his desk, with his hands clasped. “You ready for this?”
“Ready for what?” I asked, moving to fill Lexie’s vacated seat.
“Playing for a crowd, the alcohol, the questions,” he counted off on his fingers.
“As much as I could use a drink, I’m not worried about the alcohol or playing for this type of crowd,” I told him, rolling my eyes.
“How about people quizzing you? The talk behind your back? The accusations?”
“I know the truth, and so does the band. What other people say doesn’t get to me.”
“Hmm,” he pondered. “Now that makes me wonder. Are you home for good, big brother?”
“That’s still up in the air, and I have obligations back in Nashville,” I said, getting up and heading back out front.
I wasn’t ready to share my plans with anyone just yet. The details still needed to be ironed out. After what had happened over the weekend, I knew what I wanted. It was just a matter of getting all my ducks in a row and making it happen.
“Shit!” Evan exclaimed, a couple days later, as a string on his guitar snapped with a loud ping!
“Break time,” Chris announced, when Evan stomped off the stage.
We had been doing a soundcheck for the last hour, and nothing seemed to be going right. The mics were echoing, we were blowing fuses left and right, Matt couldn’t seem to get his steel guitar in tune, and I had broken my favorite set of drumsticks. Sighing, I stuck the sticks I’d been using in my back pocket and hopped off the stage. I headed over to the bar where my brothers were stocking.
“Dark Roads doesn’t seem to like Willie’s Tavern, huh?” my youngest brother joked, handing me a bottle of water.
“Seems that way,” I said, after I took a long pull from the bottle. “I would be just as happy doing a long acoustic set.”
“Some things never change,” Willie retorted as he unboxed beer and filled the minifridges on the floor.
I had barely registered the front door opening while we were talking, but when my peripheral vision caught sight of a certain curvy brunette, my cock jumped to attention. A picture of her screaming into a pillow, with her legs spread wide open for me flashed in my mind as she and Jen drew near. Avery was outfitted in a hunter green fleece jacket with the Grind emblem, dark skinny jeans, and her black knee-high boots. My eyes followed her every move and the gentle sway of her hips. When I finally reached her face, I found her cheeks with a slight flush, her eyes sparkling, and a knowing secret smile teasing her lips.
“Like I said, some things never change,” my brother muttered, before setting a full box down a little too hard with a cling!
I snapped my head around and looked at Willie, my eyebrows raised. I wasn’t sure what had suddenly crawled under his skin, but I didn’t like what he was insinuating. Avery wasn’t just any woman. She was everything to me and always had been, even though others thought I was the king of sleeping around. No one affected me the way she did.
“Well, hello beautiful ladies,” Rick greeted when they reached us.
“Hi, Ricky Bobby,” Jen returned with a grin and a wink.
The movie reference had everyone laughing, except my brother. Ever since Talladega Nights had come out, people had been calling him Ricky Bobby and it drove him crazy. If it had been anyone other than our childhood friend using it, he would have been over the bar and giving them what-for. She leaned over the bar to give him a kiss on the cheek to ease the blow and he smirked at her.
“Can we talk?” I jumped at the question and the hand on my arm; I hadn’t seen her move to my side.
I nodded and took her hand in mine to lead her down the hall behind the bar. We stopped just outside of Willie’s office and I leaned against the wall, so I didn’t invade her space. I stuck my hands in my pockets since I itched to touch her, giving the impression that I was completely relaxed. If she looked hard enough though, she wouldn’t miss the hard length in my pants.
“I wanted to thank you for the other day,” she said, her voice low as she moved closer to me, putting her hand on my stomach. It burned me through the cotton and I sucked in a breath.
“Of course; we love your dad,” I told her, not moving a muscle in my body.
“No”–she shook her head–“I was talking about what you did for me.”
The pink in her cheeks deepened and my dick twitched. Her tongue darted out to wet her lips and her breathing became labored. I clenched my jaw to try to keep myself under control. One more touch, or another signal from her, and I was going to snap. When her other hand came up and rested on my pec, I lost it.
Grabbing her hands in mine, I spun us and pinned her to the wall with my body, her hands above her head. Her eyes had widened, darkening with lust. I ran my free hand down her hip and around to cup her perfect ass, pulling her tighter against my shaft straining in my jeans. There was no mistaking it now. I wanted her, and she knew it.
“I was hoping we could do it again,” she breathed as I ran my lips lightly across hers and down to her neck.
“Oh,” I answered between nibbles, “that could definitely be arranged.”
“We will have to set some boundaries,” she stammered, as her hips ground against mine. “No strings attached. No commitments. No feelings.”
I froze for a second. She just wanted sex. My sweet little Avery just wanted to use my body to forget all of her problems. No emotions involved. Well, we would have to see about that. I was up for a challenge, especially if it was her.
“Be ready tonight,” I told her before crashing my mouth onto hers.
She gasped as I let go of her hands and grabbed her ass, lifting her to wrap her legs around me. I dove my tongue into her mouth when she opened it, and rubbed hard against her as she locked her ankles at my lower back. I thought I was going to blow my load at the friction her continued pumps were causing. Avery met me stroke for stroke as our mouths mimicked what we wanted to truly be doing. I braced her back against the wall and slid one of my hands up under her jacket, the cami she had on, and directly beneath her bra. When my fingers pinched her nipple and squeezed her generous breast, I had to swallow her moan.
My mouth needed to be on her. The fact that we were in the hall didn’t even register in my brain. I needed her like a fish needs water. I had tried for years to put her out of my head and my heart, but all it had taken was one afternoon and one taste to bring those teenage feelings back full force. I brought my hand out from under her shirt and unzipped her jacket. Tugging on her cami and bra, her breast spilled out in one smooth motion. She protested when I stopped kissing her, yet when my mouth latched on to her nipple and sucked, she stifled a long low moan.
I continued suckling and tonguing the tight bud as I started to pump in a constant rhythm. Her body tensed, and I could feel her fighting for a release. I ceased all movement for only a few seconds. When she started to wiggle to get me going again, I started up again hard and quick. That was all she needed. Pulling away from my feast, I covered her mouth with mine to swallow the scream I knew was coming. The girl had never been a quiet one when it came to orgasms.
As her body started to come down from the ecstasy, I could feel her muscles trembling. I fixed her shirt before helping her unwrap her legs from around me. Holding her against the wall with my hips and legs, I zipped her jacket. Avery had her hands on my waist, aiding in keeping her up, with a dreamy smile on her face. My erection strained against my jeans and I shifted, extremely uncomfortable, and more than a little wet. A cold shower and another jerking off were obviously on the line for when I got home.
“How is it you do that to me so quickly?” she finally asked, pushing on me to step back. “Wait, maybe I don’t want to know.”
“Your body likes my mouth,” I shrugged with a smirk. “What can I say?”
“Ever the confident playboy,” she teased, reaching down to stroke me over my pants.
“We should probably get back out there,” I told her, feeling my eyes cross as I removed her hand and gripped it in my own. I didn’t want her to know that comment bothered me, coming from her.
Making sure that all articles of clothing were straightened out, we made our way back out front. We joined the others around the stage, where they had migrated, and Chris looked more frustrated than I had seen him in a while. I had a feeling it was because of how our soundcheck had been going before we took the break.
“What’s up, man?” I asked, as I released Avery and walked around to sit behind my drums, hoping to hide the bulge.
“This isn’t going to work. The sound in here sucks donkey ass, and the electrical can’t take all our equipment.” He stated, slamming down the mic stand.
“Why don’t we just do an acoustic set,” I recommended. “We’ve done them in places like this a thousand times, and we always sound fucking awesome.”
“I agree with Coop,” Evan voiced, as he continued tuning his guitar. He had finished fixing his strings while we were gone.
“Me too,” Matt spoke up from behind his instrument.
I could see Chris fighting with the decision, so I started a steady beat on one of my drums. Matt and Evan quickly picked up on the song and started strumming along with our hit “Our Song.” Jen, Avery, and my two brothers backed up a bit and sat at the nearest table. Chris, not wanting to be upstaged, started singing the lyrics. It brought me back to our sessions in my parents’ barn; some of the happiest times in my life. When the song finished, all was quiet for almost a full minute. I could see our leader working things over in his head.
“Okay,” he agreed. “Let’s do it.”
I can do this, I thought to myself as I twirled in front of the full-length mirror on my bedroom wall.
The woman
that stared back at me looked calm and collected. Her hair was done in long waves down her back and there was very little makeup on her face. The dress fell just to her knees and was a light floral print. A jean jacket and brown cowboy boots completed the ensemble, along with a few jangly bracelets and simple earrings. She looked ready for whatever the night had in store for her.
“I want to be her,” I muttered, smoothing out invisible wrinkles in the fabric.
“You are her,” Jen giggled from the doorway.
“I sure as heck don’t feel like it,” I told her as I scooted past her.
My stomach continued to flutter as I poked my head in to check on my father. He was sleeping peacefully and was blissfully unaware of the party being thrown tonight in his honor. He would have hated the attention, yet he would have been appreciative just the same. That was exactly how I was feeling about the whole thing.
“Are you sure you’re all set?” I asked Marcia and Jeff Hall as I crossed the living room to grab my purse.
The couple had offered to stay with my dad, should he need anything, while I went down to the benefit. I felt extremely guilty, not only about leaving him, but also about causing them to miss it. They had assured me multiple times they were happy to do it.
“Yes, I went down to the bar before we came, and dropped off my stuff. The boys have done a great job,” she gushed, coming over to hug us goodbye and nudge us toward the door.
The boys. I wondered if they would ever be men to her. They were one of the reasons my stomach was doing somersaults, I thought to myself as we made our way out to my friend’s car. Well, not all of them, just a certain drummer. I don’t know what I’d been thinking when I had propositioned Cooper. Who was I kidding, I knew exactly what I’d been thinking; the wisp of underwear that covered my lady parts was proof I was going ahead with it.
“What are you so nervous about?” Jen questioned, as she drove the short distance to Willie’s. “You’ll know pretty much everyone there.”
The Return (The Comeback Series) Page 7