Rock Star Ex

by Jewel Quinlan

“Really? How does he look at me?” Eve blurted. “I mean…uh.”

  Kate lifted a brow, her eyes steady.

  Eve gave in. “All right. Fine. We dated five years ago.” She sighed and pressed her lips together. That was the most she’d said about it to anyone since it had happened.

  Her friend’s expression brightened. “You did not! No way! You have to seriously promise me that, in the future, when you guys get married I get the exclusive rights to cover it all.”

  “Whoa! You don’t understand. That’s not going to happen because there is no future. It’s ancient history. In fact, it’s so ancient it’s pre-historic.”

  Kate eyed her for a moment, then shook her head and wagged a finger at her. “I know you. There’s still something there.”

  “No, there’s nothing.”

  Kate stared at her, thinking, and then suddenly gasped. “Oh my god! You guys had sex, didn’t you? That’s why you’re acting this way.”

  “Kate!”

  “I don’t mean now. I mean back then.”

  It was exactly what Eve had been dreading: The rehashing, and the questions, and the part where they were supposed to wonder ‘what if’. She groaned. “I really don’t want to talk about it, Kate.”

  Her friend sucked in a breath. “Ooh. He was your first, wasn’t he?”

  Eve glared at her.

  “Okay, okay. Never mind.” Kate said innocently, backing down. She turned back to her laptop and began pushing buttons. “I’ll get this stuff out right now.” But her eyebrows were raised and her eyes were wide, in a comical expression, as she looked at Eve and then at her laptop.

  “What?”

  Kate raised her fingers off the desk in reply and shrugged her shoulders. “I think there’s still a little something there. That’s all I’m going to say.” Then she smiled enigmatically and went back to work.

  Kate was right. Eve knew it. She slumped in her seat.

  Chapter Four

  They arrived a little after lunchtime: Las Vegas, like a fairyland oasis out in the desert with huge, fantasy hotels. They passed one that looked like a Pyramid and another that seemed made of pure gold as it shimmered in the desert heat. Devon had never been there before and couldn’t help staring out the window as the bus wound its way through the streets, towards the MGM Grand. There were people everywhere and tons of taxis and a million blinking signs trying to lure you to this show or that show. Some looked like mega TV screens, showing clips of dancing showgirls. Devon had no idea how their driver kept from getting distracted.

  It was too bad they wouldn’t have more time to explore the town. They were playing in the Garden Arena tonight and tomorrow night, after which they were headed to Phoenix. He wondered idly if Eve had ever been here.

  Clayton checked them into the hotel after the bus parked and led them to a private elevator that carried them to their suite on the Penthouse level. Kate and Eve would be staying there as well. It wasn’t until the door opened that he really felt the impact of where he’d finally gotten himself in his career.

  The suite was basically a house at the top of the hotel. It was the most luxurious hotel room he’d ever been in in his life. The bottom level had a kitchen, living room, dining room and bathroom. And everything was expensively decked out, with Berber carpeting, tile, marble and granite. Modern furniture and decorations gave the place a model-home look. There were even glass doors leading to a furnished patio, overlooking an incredible scenic view.

  Stairs led to a second level and the bedrooms, five in total. Each band member had his own room and Kate and Eve were sharing one. Devon mused he’d come a long way from the seedy motels he used to crash in. The suite was even bigger than his childhood home.

  The others went up the stairs first and called dibs on the rooms. He went into the one left over and lingered there, staring out at the city below. He’d done it. He’d finally done it. After all the dreaming and wishing and hoping. After struggling through the sweat and blood and disappointment, he was now a member of one of the top rock bands in the world. He was their lead singer, and tonight was the first stop of their tour for a new album made up of songs that he had written. For some reason it was just now sinking in. A welling from inside caused a smile to light his face. He supposed this was how lottery winners felt. He would have yelled with the joy of it, if there hadn’t been others around.

  A rap sounded on his door and he turned, snapping out of his reverie.

  “Hey, man. Didn’t you hear us calling you?” Tommy walked in and stood just inside the doorway.

  “No. You were?”

  “Yeah, we’re all going to take a walk around. The girls want to get some pictures of us in the MGM and also get our stories about Vegas.”

  There wouldn’t be anything for him to tell, but he nodded anyway, as it meant more interaction with Eve. “Okay. Let’s go.” He headed towards the door.

  Tommy stopped him from leaving with a hand on his shoulder. “You all right, man?”

  “Yeah. Why?”

  “Just checking. It’s obvious that there’s something going on with you and Eve.”

  Devon snorted and shrugged but said nothing. There never were any secrets on a tour bus. He’d known they would pick up on it, but he didn’t think it would be this soon. It always surprised him how much people liked to gossip. The last thing he wanted was to expose Eve to wagging tongues.

  “Look, if it’s a problem, we can always find someone else. You just let me know.”

  “It’s fine, man. There’s nothing to tell. Besides, they’re good at what they do. We need them.”

  Tommy looked him in the eye for a second, and nodded. “Okay. If you say so, then I’m good with it. Are you good?”

  “I’m good.”

  Tommy slapped him on the side of the shoulder and Devon followed him downstairs to join the others.

  The afternoon passed more quickly than Devon would have liked. Unfortunately, the circumstances had prohibited any further attempts for him to connect with Eve. They left the suite and were joined by groupies. Some had come along on the crew bus and others were locals who had been lurking, hoping for a glimpse of them before the show. As they walked around the hotel it hadn’t taken very long before they’d gathered an entourage of people. They even had to stop several times to autograph things for the fans.

  Kate and Eve had been busy snapping pictures and videos of the whole thing. Eve said they’d added a link on their Web site for pictures of fans. She’d claimed posting fan pictures would drive more traffic to their page. So he’d posed with fans of all kinds as she snapped away. One groupie had even plopped herself into his lap and wrapped her arms around him possessively when they stopped in one of the lounge bars to get a beer. He’d had trouble smiling into the camera that time. But Eve hadn’t even flinched. She’d just calmly switched her camera on and taken the shot.

  Finally the time had come for them to go to their dressing room at the arena. Eve and Kate stayed behind in the room to finish dressing. The Garden Arena was slightly smaller than the Staples Center, and they could hear the warm-up act playing when they arrived. It was then that the nerves started. The dressing room suddenly seemed too small.

  Devon was about to get up and walk around but was distracted from his thoughts when Eve stepped through the dressing room door, followed by Kate. Eve wore a dark red dress with a plunging neckline and heels that showed off her long legs to perfection. One of the guys gave an appreciative whoop. Inside, Devon couldn’t help but agree. She smiled at them, adding to her sexiness.

  “All right, guys. We want to get some shots of you with your super groupie,” Kate said. She had a camera in her hands and was changing some settings on it.

  “Eve is our super groupie?” Tommy asked.

  Kate nodded. “Yeah, I posted a picture of her from the night we all met and put that caption on just for fun. Clayton thought it would be a good idea to continue it.”

  “That’s awesome,” Drew said. “Nothing better t
han a hot chick to make us look good.”

  The guys all nodded in agreement, but Devon remained still. He wasn’t sure he liked the idea.

  “So what do you want us to do?” Shane asked.

  “Kate promised the fans ‘lap ratings’ in her post, so we’re going to get shots with me sitting on each of your laps,” Eve explained.

  “Excellent,” Shane said with a smile. “I’ll go first. Come on over, sweetheart.” He patted his lap with his hands.

  Devon frowned.

  Eve laughed and walked over to him as Kate moved a lamp closer to the couch where Drew was sitting. Drew pulled Eve onto his lap and she wrapped an arm around his neck good-naturedly.

  Devon’s hands fisted, but he refrained from saying anything.

  They struck several poses as Kate directed them. She wanted to get a few good pictures to choose from.

  “Hold it,” Kate said, the flash on her camera going off.

  Eve was perched on Shane’s lap, her legs off to one side. She was leaning towards her knees with her back arched and a passionate look on her face, while Drew tapped her derriere with his drumsticks and a devilish smile.

  “That’s perfect, Eve. Come check this out. I think this is the one we’re going to post.”

  They all crowded around to see the image on the camera screen.

  Drew snorted. “Shane, you just gave new meaning to the phrase ‘tap that ass’.” Everyone except Devon laughed.

  “Oh, my gosh … that’s the perfect tag line for this picture, Drew. I’m going to put that on there,” Kate said.

  “So how will we know who gets the best rating?” Tommy asked.

  “We’re going to let the fans vote on the pictures,” Eve told him. “The final score will depend on the total amount of likes, comments and shares you get. We’ll total it up in a week when we get to Dallas.”

  The guys grinned and then suddenly Tommy and Drew were vying to go next, their competitive natures kicking in.

  Tommy won the coin toss. He went out and snagged some strawberries from the buffet table and pretended to feed them to Eve. She leaned back over his arm, head thrown back, long hair cascading down. The position thrust her breasts upward and Tommy ogled them humorously as Kate snapped the picture.

  When it was Drew’s turn, he had one of the roadies bring in his bass and had Eve sit on his lap with the neck of the guitar poking up between both of their legs. He wrapped his arms around her and put his hands over hers as he pretended to teach her how to play.

  Devon knew it was all in good fun but the sight of Eve in his friends’ laps grated on him.

  “Wow, she’s really good at this, isn’t she?” Tommy remarked to Devon.

  “Yeah, she’s a natural,” he said. She shot a look at him. There was friction as their eyes met, but she didn’t say anything.

  He watched in silence as they laughingly made up captions to go with the other two pictures. And then it was his turn.

  “All right, Eve. Now let’s get Devon. All the ladies are dying to know more about him,” Kate said.

  He stepped over and eased himself down into the chair.

  This should be interesting.

  Eve turned to go to him. There was hesitation in her eyes, but it didn’t stop her from walking towards him. She was about to place herself on his lap when the dressing room door opened. The roar of the crowd filled the room as one of the crew poked his head in. “You guys are up.”

  Devon stood, the picture forgotten, and followed the others out the door to take their places. The rest of the band would go on first with the intro and then he was to come out from a separate entrance. A roadie handed him a mic and he went to wait alone in the darkened wings for his cue.

  His earlier apprehension came flooding back full-force as he waited. His skin tingled and his stomach felt hollow. They were playing all new songs tonight. His songs. He’d written every single one of them. It was part of the reason he’d been hired. Would the fans like his material? What if they didn’t? His heartbeat sped up and there was clamminess in his hands. He rolled the mic between them and took a deep breath and then another.

  There were hoots and hollers in the pause between bands, mixed with random shouts from the crowd, as the roadies completed a few last pieces of setup. And then the house lights went up as they took their places and started to play. The tidal wave of noise that emanated from the crowd hit him like a physical force and left him breathless. He bent to one knee, a hand on the floor to steady himself, as he tried to gain control. Shit. Was it stage fright? Is that what it felt like? He’d never had it before.

  “Devon? Are you all right?” Eve was crouched next to him, her hand on his shoulder, eyes filled with concern. In her other hand she held her camera. She must have followed to get some more pictures of him.

  “Eve. I…” he held back a moment, not wanting to appear weak. But he was already kneeling on the damn floor. There was no way to hide it. Besides, she used to be the one person he could open up to. He remembered that they’d once told each other things, embarrassing things that no one else knew. Ignoring the tension between them, he decided to open up to her. “What if they hate it?” he said weakly. His cue was coming soon and the stress of it locked his muscles in place. Why hadn’t he felt this at the Staples Center? He’d been singing Arsenal’s songs then. Not his own.

  She looked shocked for a moment, but then her eyes filled with warmth. She smiled at him. A real smile. Not the fake ones she’d been giving him earlier. “They’re not going to hate it. You’re a star. You were born to be on that stage.” Her gentle voice was deep with sincerity. She glanced forward at the stage, and back at him. “From what I can hear, they like it already.”

  He searched her face for any traces of falsehood and found none, of course. One thing about Eve, she could never really hide her true feelings, although she tried. She believed in him, he realized, and the knowledge struck a chord deep inside.

  He took another deep breath and the constriction in his chest released. Courage flooded back through his veins. Finally, a relieved laugh escaped him, and together they stood. Her hand remained on his arm, steadying him. Looking at her, he realized there was something different. The ice was gone from her eyes and he could see her again. His Eve. She was looking up at him with that soft sea green gaze of hers. He couldn’t resist.

  He bent his head and pressed his lips to hers in a firm kiss, wrapping his arms around her waist to bring her close. She didn’t fight it. He felt the familiar spark flare between them as he molded her lips to his.

  And then his cue came and he only had time to give her a meaningful look before gently letting her go and heading for the stage. The fear and the worry were gone, replaced by the heady feel of her: That intoxicating arousal he always felt when she was near. He glanced back at her one last time. Her eyes were still soft, and it made him hopeful as never before. They still had that connection. Then he emerged onto the stage from behind the curtains with the mic to his lips, fist raised in the air, ready to rock.

  Chapter Five

  Both shows in Las Vegas were a complete and utter success, Eve mused. She snuggled into the creamy leather sofa in the back lounge of the tour bus, trying to focus on the blog she was writing. Their time there had come and gone in an unexpected whirlwind of activity. Both concerts had gone really late, because they’d had to do two encores to appease the fans.

  Eve and Devon hadn’t been alone again since he’d kissed her backstage. Raising a hand to her lips, she recalled the heat of it. The way he’d pulled her up against him had caused the release of a molten glow inside her. She’d never expected it to be even better than she’d remembered, but it was.

  Although she hadn’t been trying to keep her distance from him, she was kind of glad for the time to process what had happened. There had been no time for him to try to get her alone anyway––he’d been constantly surrounded with people. After the show, there was the standard backstage partying to do. And then after that a group
of people had come to their suite for more. The celebrating had gone on until sunrise. By the time they had all gotten some sleep in, it was time to get up and do it all over again the second night. They’d slept in at the hotel until late morning and then groggily boarded the bus for the five-hour drive to Phoenix.

  It had only been forty-eight hours since they’d started the tour and a small part of her was beginning to understand what he had been talking about earlier. Luckily, it was small enough to ignore.

  But what couldn’t be ignored was the feel of his eyes following her everywhere, sending delicious messages of anticipation.

  Devon seemed fine after his initial attack of stage fright. She hadn’t seen any other signs of it since. Quite the opposite, in fact, he seemed amped now. Which was natural after the success of the shows. He was so alive, so vibrant: A magnet that drew others to him. He was the Devon she’d always known he would become. It has always been there. In a way, she was glad to be here to see it.

  She gazed overhead at the TV but couldn’t concentrate on what was playing. It had been a big shock to see him that vulnerable. She’d been getting a really cool shot of him standing there, behind the scenes in the dark, with the glow of the fans out in front of him, when he’d suddenly gone down on one knee. It had scared the crud out of her.

  What if they hate it, he’d said. It was so unlike him…

  Sitting up straighter, she pulled her gaze back to the computer and closed the blog she was writing. There was no way it was going to get done right now. Instead, she clicked open the band’s Twitter account. It would be much easier to hammer out a few simple tweets. She sat for a moment trying to think of something witty, but nothing came to her. The fight going on between her mind and her body was too distracting. Her mind shouted caution but the silky tendrils of desire stirred up by his kiss would not be tamped down.

  There was no way she was going to allow herself to be hurt by him again. Absolutely not, she told herself. But she couldn’t stop recalling, over and over again, the delicious taste of him. The firmness of his lips… She huffed at herself in frustration.