“Then find out,” Carrie said.
“Yeah? Where is he?”
“You said he was going to keep playing the same place...”
Jessica looked at Carrie.
That had to be a joke, right?
Some kind of line a rockstar would say to keep a woman near him. Jessica grabbed her cell phone and saw the other voicemails from Mr. Plink. She was due back to work in two days, with or without a story.
She listened to one of the voicemails.
Jessica... what are you doing? Where are you? Alex Slader and Ashes in Vain just surprised the world by playing the same show again... I heard a rumor he bought the place too. I hope you’re there. I want a story on this. Call me.
Jessica dropped her phone and ran to her computer. It took all of two seconds to bring up a fan page for Ashes in Vain. The band didn’t have a website because Alex Slader didn’t need a website. He wasn’t out to sell t-shirts and wristbands with the band’s logo on it. He was out to play music.
And that’s what he was doing... at the same place.
It was too late to go now but Jessica saw that the band planned on playing the next night.
And that show Jessica would attend.
You can’t believe what I saw today. The clock retreating, the hands spinning, trying to find each other, themselves. They wanted to hug, to find their own peace, to meet, to know, to never harm again. They’re soulless, or so we believe, but they face their own time, like a cruel mirror of reflection. The click, the tick, the tock of its heart. Even when it’s dead... it’s still alive. You know that, think about it.
Because it never ends.
And no, it never heals.
What I saw today.
.7.
Slader looked at the door to the same room with the same party still going. Hours became days, but with an endless supply of needs, there was no care about time. With plenty to drink, indulge in, and fantasize about, it was pretty obvious Slader would need help with his shows. That’s why he had Jerry fly in some of his old band members. While some were getting theirs and enjoying the company of multiple women at once, the new guys flown in were clearheaded and ready to play. Jerry tried to warn him about playing the same show over and over, but Slader wasn’t in hearing a thing about it. The crowd last night was just as big... and tonight, it would be the same. Slader commanded it that way.
People needed his money.
People envied his power.
But Slader was forced to wait, something he wasn’t used to. Time was the one thing he couldn’t control. He couldn’t buy it. He couldn’t own it. That’s why he explored it within his lyrics and music so much. Because it marveled him. It shocked him. It pained him.
So he waited.
The scent and aura of rock n’ roll lingered in the room. The demons alive and well, roaming everywhere possible, waiting for their next chance to strike. Slader loved it. He loved every second of it. Because underneath it all, every person in the room was in some kind of pain. Because everyone suffered, all the time. Just like he did. He liked the suffering because it took away from waiting.
The door opened and tapped him against the back. He looked over his shoulder and saw Jerry poking his head in.
“Slader, can we talk?”
“Yes,” Slader said. “It better be worth my time. I’m enjoying this scene.”
There was a gentle haze in the room full of small cries and moans of pleasure. The sounds of indulgences that went beyond anything legal. Slader slipped out of the room and shut the door.
“The band is ready,” Jerry said. “Just so you know.”
“I didn’t doubt it,” Slader said. “And if they weren’t... I’d play alone. The crowd would still be mine, Jerry. They’re always mine.”
“I know that,” Jerry said.
“Is this all you wanted?”
“No. There’s someone here.”
“Someone? I don’t like anyone.”
“This isn’t anyone, Slader, this is someone,” Jerry said and smiled. “Waiting for you.”
“I don’t like surprises, Jerry,” Slader warned.
He felt the anger building in him already. It wouldn’t be hard at all to get rid of Jerry. In fact, Slader pictured himself grabbing Jerry and harming him. Slader was twice his size. Jerry was nothing but a mere loyal person... like a dog that could talk and think like a human.
“Just go,” Jerry said. “Trust me on this, Slader. I wouldn’t steer you wrong.”
“We’re taking the stage soon,” Slader said. “Get the band out there to entertain while I... take care of this.”
Jerry nodded.
Slader turned and left. He hated the feeling of Jerry staring at him while he walked. Jerry knew something he didn’t. Nobody should know something he didn’t. That was instinctive betrayal. Yes. Complete betrayal. Slader made a fist and lifted his right hand.
The word betrayal just made him shake. He swung his fist and hit the wall. The cheap plaster shattered under Slader’s immense strength. Slader look at his hand and blew away the white dust, revealing not a mark on his hand.
Now that was power.
And power could conquer betrayal.
Slader opened the door to his personal dressing room. He saw a woman standing at the piano. She stood so that Slader could see her from the side. With her head down, strands of her perfect hair fell, almost hiding her face. The slender fingers on her left hand touched the keys of the piano but didn’t press them. No sound. No music. She just touched. She was intrigued.
Slader’s heart raced.
He felt himself heat up. It was the kind of feeling that reminded him he truly was alive. She looked at him and stood tall. Nervous. Using her right hand, she tucked that loose hair behind her ear. Her left hand still touched the keys on the piano yet she still didn’t play a note.
“You came,” Slader said. “Do you still need a story?”
“Yes,” Jessica whispered. “But I wanted to see you again.”
“Are you going to flee from me? Run like a scared child worried about a creeping shadow on their wall?”
“You’re not a shadow, Slader,” Jessica said. “You’re real.”
Slader smiled. “Yes, I guess I am.”
Jessica used her left hand, taking her fingers off the piano keys, and reached back. She produced a small tape recorder and placed it on top of the piano. She pressed a red button to start recording.
Slader felt his lip snarl.
“I want to talk about Ashes in Vain,” Jessica said. “I want to talk about the music. How you write it. Where it comes from.”
Slader stared at Jessica. Her beauty was intoxicating. He felt like he could smell it. Something beyond the gentle aroma of her hair and the moisture on her skin. She was so nervous... Slader wanted to lap it up with his needy tongue.
Instead of answering with his voice, Slader pointed to his head and then to his heart.
“Are you recording any new music now?” Jessica asked.
Slader smiled and nodded. He stepped towards Jessica. She tried to step back and hit the stool in front of the piano. The legs scratched at the floor and Jessica jumped.
“Such nerves,” Slader whispered.
He reached for Jessica and at the last second, he skipped her. He grabbed the recorder and left it running. He stared at it.
“You want this to capture my voice,” Slader said. “My story. Because you can’t understand it. Nobody can. The pen can’t. The printed word can’t. But my voice can. That’s why the fans come. That’s why they buy. They listen. They live through it.”
Slader pressed the stop button and dropped the recorder.
Jessica looked down at the recorder. Slader smiled at the sight of her face. He then lifted his right foot and with his black boot, he came down and shattered the recorder to pieces. Another hard step ruined the tape. One kick sent pieces scattering.
By the time Jessica looked back up at Slader, she was shaking.
“Yo
u’ll never forget a thing,” Slader said. “You won’t need my recorded words. You won’t need your fast written notes, Jessica. You came back... you’re ready for me...”
Slader moved at her again. She was still so nervous. He gently touched Jessica and positioned her at the piano, facing it. Taking her hands, he placed them to the keys.
“Spread your fingers,” he whispered. “And relax.”
Slader began to press on Jessica’s fingers. A few seconds ago the piano stood as a wooden shell... ebony, ivory, wires... but now it played music. Music created by Jessica through Slader’s touch.
He was suddenly hard.
Rock hard.
He throbbed in his pants, gently touching Jessica with himself.
Jessica let out a shaky breath as Slader continued to use her fingers to play the piano.
Then all at once, he stopped.
He stepped back and said, “Tell me why you’re here. Tell me the words.”
“You wanted me to come back,” Jessica said.
“But you didn’t come back last night. You came tonight. Why?”
“Because...”
The hesitation was like a curse. A vice to the true emotions in the room.
“Say it,” Slader demanded. “Say it now.”
“Because I want to experience a night with you.”
“A night?” Slader asked.
“A night,” Jessica whispered.
“Then you can share your story with the world.”
“Only the show,” Jessica said. “The rest is for me.”
Slader touched Jessica’s soft hair, smelling her as her hair fell from his fingers. “The rest is for me... yes, it is...”
With a single finger, Slader touched between Jessica’s shoulder blades and ran down her back. He kept going past her back to her backside and then around, touching between her legs.
“The rest is for me,” he whispered and laughed.
I can touch her, she’ll let me.
-if she lets me
I can hold her, she’ll want me.
-if she wants me
I can see her, she’ll see me.
-if she sees me
I can love her, she’ll love me.
-if she loves me
.8.
Jessica let out a cry, not caring. She could only focus on the intense pressure between her legs. The six months since someone touched her suddenly felt like a lifetime. And as far as how long had it been since someone actually pleasured her... it had been way too long to keep track.
With just one finger, Slader moved up and back, gliding along the curve of Jessica’s most sexual and sensitive spot. He added pressure and another finger. Jessica could feel it... she could feel his fingers between her legs. Pushing against her jeans, into her panties, into her body itself. Her tender skin was so wet, her soft folds desperate to open and allow Slader into her.
Slader pushed with his left hand, sending Jessica forward a little. She hit the piano keys, sour notes colliding. Slader’s hand between her legs kept moving, faster by the second, demanding her to come. His body was still against hers, pushing harder. As Jessica tried to breathe, it started to become difficult. She was pinned against a piano, Slader touching her, growling in her ear, commanding her body’s sexual needs. This was actually happening. It was finally happening. Jessica releasing herself to Slader. Allowing him to touch her. Allowing him to have her. There was no stopping this now. It was a fantasy come to life for Jessica. Maybe for Slader too…
“Come,” Slader said. “Prove it to me. You want to fuck a rockstar? Is that what you want? They come for me, right now.”
Jessica whimpered and bent her knees as everything began to mount. Her muscles tightened and Slader held his ground. His hand was between her legs, pushing up as hard as he could. It wasn’t just about the pressure anymore. It was about force. It was about command. With each passing second, Jessica succumbed to Slader more and more. Everything now made sense. Everything now had a purpose. His touch would be her desire. The taste of his mouth, his body, still foreign, would become her want. The thrust of his body into her would become her want.
For one night.
It was something Jessica had tried to promise herself. Just one night. One night with Alex Slader, the hottest rockstar in the world. One night with him... anywhere he wanted her, anything he wanted to give her. And anything he wanted in return. The thought made Jessica desperate everywhere, her mouth and lips were eager and hungry. She wanted to taste Slader’s skin, muscles, and sex. Her fingertips shivered with excitement, wanting to explore all of him.
“Come for me,” Slader said as he placed his lips to Jessica’s earlobe. He kissed and then he nibbled, almost romantic. Then his teeth clamped and pulled. So dominating.
Jessica let out a cry and her body began to shake.
“Yes,” Slader said. “I’m commanding you to come. Right now.”
Slader added more pressure, more force between Jessica’s legs. She felt her panties moving against her burning center, welcoming the orgasm. The moment she began to come, Slader took his hand away. As though he were some kind of perfectionist, as though he had mastered Jessica’s body without ever meeting her or touching her before.
Slader placed his hands on her hips and held her as she came. He rocked her left to right, slowly, allowing the orgasm to keep going. Jessica’s panties had become too wet; they were thin and stuck between her gentle folds. They also pulled, rubbing at her clitoris. Everything Slader did was perfect. Perfect and dripping with a sexual intensity that Jessica never knew could exist.
The aching and throbbing continued. What she really wanted - needed - was for Slader to be inside her. To thrust at her, to keep the pleasure going.
But he wasn’t.
And he wouldn’t.
“Don’t move when I let you go,” Slader said.
Jessica nodded. There was no option to talk, not yet.
Slader’s touch left and when it returned, Jessica felt something touch her wrist. She looked and it wasn’t Slader’s strong hand.
It was handcuffs.
Jessica wasn’t sure whether to cry for pleasure or help.
Handcuffs?
Jessica had never been in handcuffs in her life. She’d never been in trouble that warranted handcuffs.
She looked back and saw the burning look in Slader’s eyes. There was something deeper happening. It was the same kind of look he gave her the other night, right before she left. It was the look that scared her but kept her mind spinning ever since.
“Slader...”
“You’re going to understand everything,” Slader said. “But first, I can’t lose you. I’ve waited so long for you to come...”
The handcuffs clicked around Jessica’s wrist and then he cuffed the other side to the leg of the piano. Jessica watched in awe, knowing she wouldn’t be able to move the piano. She wouldn’t be able to lift it. She wouldn’t be able to get out of the position in which she found herself. Then again, would she leave?
She turned around, her left hand handcuffed to the piano. Slader stood a few feet away, smiling.
No, Jessica told herself.
No, she wouldn’t leave. She’d wait, even without the cuffs.
Because she wanted her night with Slader. She wanted to experience Ashes in Vain and Alex Slader.
“Now you’ll get the experience you’ve wanted,” Slader said. “I’m not a normal man, Jessica. I’m not a normal rockstar. I am... everything. And if you obey me, you’ll experience everything.”
Slader stepped forward and kissed Jessica’s forehead.
Slader left the room, shutting the door and locking it. Jessica’s nerves were aroused, and she started to shake. She tried to sit down, but that was a terrible idea. Sitting in the wet mess Slader created only made Jessica moan, wanting him back. Wanting more of him, from him.
As her breathing started to calm, she listened to the sounds of the crowd. Music had been playing and the crowd had been en
joying it, but they wanted Alex Slader. That’s what they came for. What they paid for.
And when Alex Slader took the stage, Jessica knew.
The explosion of cheers shook the building.
Then she heard Slader’s voice.
“Welcome... welcome... we’re here to share an experience tonight. We’re locked together, aren’t we?”
Jessica swallowed.
Was Slader talking to the crowd or to her?
“We’re here to experience something... now, let me take control of you... for one night.”
The crowd cheered and the band began to play.
For one night.
That’s all Jessica wanted right then.
She could do it.
Just one night with Alex Slader.
She’d have her story to write. She’d have her ultimate fantasy to hold in her heart forever.
Just one night.
I’ve never. I have. I’ve won. I’ve lost. I have.
.9.
Carrie licked her teeth and checked. There was no lipstick on her teeth.
Perfect.
She checked her dress, a tight red dress with diamond accents that would make her sparkle from the second she’d walk into the restaurant and take on another job John wanted her to do. As per the contract, of course.
Once the job was completed, she’d be paid and John would take her to his place and have sex with her. Intense, wild sex, where they’d go move for move. Those were the nights when Carrie couldn’t get enough of John. Other times she didn’t care so much about sex with John. He took care of himself either, leaving Carrie on her own or to use one of the few times in the contract she could command their sex.
But she had used one the night before.
Carrie checked her phone, made sure she had the address and directions, then left the apartment. When the door clicked shut, she thought about Jessica. There had been a look in Jessica’s eyes when she left the apartment. A look that almost made Carrie jealous. It was a look of complete submission, as though Jessica was going to leave, run into the arms of Alex Slader, and never come back.
One Night Stand with the Rockstar (With the Rockstar #1) (rockstar romance series) Page 4