“I wanted to,” he admitted.
She laid her head on his chest. “I know.”
“We need to hurry,” he whispered, secretly wishing they had more time. “Shower with me. I promise, no sex.”
She smiled and looked up. “Who cares if I’m late?”
“I do.” He kissed her forehead. “Your band’s counting on you.” He closed his eyes. “Virginia is only, uh… 12 days away. Maybe I’ll write you another song.” He hugged her tightly. “Or you can write me one.”
She exhaled into his chest. “I probably will. Phrases keep coming to me.” She ran her hands down his back and over his firm ass. “Um… if it becomes a duet, can Mitchell sing it with me, or would that be too weird?”
“How about you have Greg of Ace of Spades do it, or…” He tried to think of someone else, anyone else. “I don’t think he’d wanna do it anyway. Not if he knew it was about me and you.”
“True.” Noelle’s eyes closed as well. “Greg’s voice won’t blend with mine. You think your friend Chris would do it? He’s incredible.”
Dominic grinned. “I’ll get him to do it.” He gave it a bit more thought. “But doing it on tour would be complicated. He can’t go with you guys.”
“He can if we’re all under the same label and only tour together.” His lack of response was unsettling. “Is that a bad idea?”
“No. It’s too perfect. You can’t break your contract.”
She smiled at that one. “We don’t have to. Our current contract has an option for our next album, with the right of refusal for us. None of us liked their offer. We’ve been talking about signing with Demonfire since Jon asked months ago. It’s just the East Coast versus West Coast thing that’s stopping us. Maybe we can compromise on that.”
“Maybe.” He hoped it happened. “Come on.”
He tugged her into the bathroom and stepped into the shower. When she dropped the towel and followed him, he realized how difficult their separation would be. He watched her, trying to memorize every curve, every freckle, every inch of her.
She wet her hair, and then washed it, knowing he was staring. He seemed to be studying her. She, on the other hand, was fighting tears. Her eyes closed while rinsing her hair, and she imagined lying in her bunk alone. It would be so lonely; worse than before. No Mitchell to soothe her anymore. That could never happen again.
“Let me help you with that.” Dominic took the washcloth from Noelle and started on her back. “In Virginia, I’m renting a room down the shore.”
Her face screwed up. “Down the what?”
“Oh, um… the beach.” He had forgotten she wasn’t from Jersey. His free hand balled into a fist. “I wanna walk in the surf with you.” He hoped he didn’t freak out again. Then again, if he did, she’d be there for him.
She turned around. “I’d like that.”
Their eyes met. She stood on tiptoe as he leaned down. Soft kisses quickly turned into heated ones. Dominic cupped her ass cheeks and lifted her up. Then his grip slipped, and they bumped the wall.
“OK, not a good idea.” He set her down and kissed her nose. “Mine has non-slip tiles.” He growled. “Next time you’re at my place, I’m nailing you in the shower.”
Her eyebrows rose. “Really? Thought you were the non-kinky one.”
“You think shower sex is kinky?” He knew she was reserved, but not that much.
She smirked. “Just teasing you. I’ve done it.” She looked down. “But I’m sure there’s a lot you’ve done, and I haven’t.”
“It doesn’t matter.” He lifted her chin so she’d look at him. “I’m starting over with you. You’ll never understand just what you’ve done for me. I can’t even explain it.” He placed a tender kiss on her lips. “I love you, Noelle.”
Her eyes closed, tears pooling. “I love you too.” After taking in a ragged breath, she continued, “You made me whole again.”
“Exactly,” he muttered while wrapping his arms around her again. “Exactly.”
Loud banging on the hotel room door startled them both. “Hurry up, or we’re all coming in,” Emilio shouted, then started laughing.
“Yeah,” Jack added loudly. “Hope you’re naked, baby.”
Dominic sighed. “They don’t have a key, do they?”
“Um… I’m not sure.” She didn’t get the keycards; Emilio had.
A minute later, the shower door opened and Emilio appeared, his eyes covered. “Surprise,” he bellowed.
Noelle screeched and grabbed Dominic, who yelled, “What the fuck’re doing?”
Emilio was so shocked by the male voice he dropped his hand. “Holy shit! I had no idea you had company.” He blushed, realizing Noelle was naked. “Damn it, I wasn’t planning on looking at you. Sorry.” He turned away, then realized who was in the shower with her. “Dominic?”
“Yeah, eyes off my girlfriend.” Dominic was furious. Did her bandmates have a habit of jumping in the shower with her?
Emilio covered his eyes again. “I didn’t look until you said something. I’m sorry. I was fucking with her. I’d never peek at her.”
“Dominic.” She put a hand on his chest when he tried to leave the stall. “He’s never seen me naked. I swear. Well, until now. They just joke around. I wouldn’t stand for it otherwise.”
Jack poked his head in the room. “Is she naked?” He couldn’t see the shower stall.
“Yes,” Dominic growled. “Get the fuck out.”
“Oh shit,” Jack knew the voice, but couldn’t figure out who it was. “You got a guy in there?” Maybe Mitchell? Nah, he’d recognized his voice. “Were you fucking?” He chuckled. “Don’t stop on our account. I wanna listen in.”
Dominic watched Emilio for a few seconds, and then he noticed Jack was not coming inside to check out Noelle, just standing at the door. They were just messing with her, and he had blown up again, letting Emilio get an eyeful of his woman. He needed to chill out, or he was going to make a mess of things. Jealousy was never his thing before. Why did he get so crazy about her bandmates?
“They’re not fucking,” Emilio informed Jack. “They are pretty naked, though. Dominic is so not my type.” He laughed, needing the tension to be broken. “Sorry for just busting in. I was really just playing around. I won’t do it again.” He walked out and pushed Jack out with him. “He’s her boyfriend now. Shut up.”
Noelle was upset Emilio had seen them, but at least Dominic had covered most of her body with his. “He never looks. I swear.”
“I can tell.” Dominic took slow controlled breaths to calm down. “His mouth dropped when he saw you.” He ran his fingers through her wet hair. “I’m so sorry. I overreacted. When it comes to you… I’m like… I guess I’m a bit possessive.”
She pulled away. “I can see that.” She grabbed the fallen washcloth and rinsed it off. “Please get a grip somehow. I need to work with these guys.”
“I will.” He gritted his teeth. “I can see they respect you but try to treat you like one of the guys. That’s a fine line sometimes. Just don’t let them cross it. OK?”
“They won’t,” she promised. “I won’t let them. I’m with you, only you. I don’t share, and I’m not going to be shared.”
He sighed with relief. “Good.”
When they came out of the bathroom in towels, the room was empty. Without a word, they both dressed. Then Dominic collected his things. He waited by the door for Noelle to do a last check for forgotten items.
“Call me after you talk to Gina.” She stood before him. “I hope she lets you explain.”
He rolled his eyes. “I’m not telling her.”
“I didn’t mean that.” She touched his cheek. “I meant why you didn’t beg for her forgiveness sooner or whatever. Tell her whatever you want, but don’t lie.”
“I won’t.”
A soft knock made them both look at the door. “Noelle, we gotta go,” Mitchell insisted on the other side. “Otherwise, we’ll be late.”
“I’m coming
,” she replied. Then she took Dominic’s hands in hers. “Not goodbye, but I’ll be back.” She smiled, a single tear rolling down her cheek. “I’ll miss you.”
He took her face in his hands and kissed her lips firmly. “So will I.” He kissed her again. “Thank you.”
“For what?”
“Healing my broken heart.” His own eyes filled with tears. “I never thought it would happen.”
Minutes later, Dominic stowed his overnight bag in the Jeep and started walking to Gina’s office building. Since the lot he parked in was by the day, there was no point in paying again for parking. It also wasn’t more than a half mile away. The walk helped him mull over what he wanted to say. He needed to be firm, but not cruel. She hadn’t called him again, but he was sure she’d try to convinced him they were good together.
When he got to the security desk, he took out his ID as usual. The guard knew him, but had to follow procedure. Just as he got his visitor’s badge, a hand touched his arm.
“You’re here to see Gina?”
He looked up. She was familiar, but he couldn’t put a name to the face.
“She’s not in.” The woman hesitated, and then whispered, “She’s at home crying over you.”
His eyes widened. That’s not what he hoped for. “She is?”
“Yep. She’s been a wreck since you broke up with her. Why are you here, anyway?”
Dominic shrugged. “I wanted to apologize.”
“She needs it.” Then she went on her way.
He handed the badge back to the guard, who gave him his license. With guilt weighing heavily on him, he half-jogged, half-ran to his SUV. Once inside, he punched the steering wheel with both hands, angrily.
“Why can’t she just hate me?”
The drive to her place was even longer because of the near afternoon traffic. By the time he made it back to their town, he had calmed down. He parked in her driveway and slowly walked to the front door. When Gina answered, tears running down her face, he almost hugged her. Then he got an image of Noelle.
“Hi,” he said meekly. She just stared at him, blankly. “Can I come in, so we can talk?”
Nodding, Gina stood back and let him in. She sniffled and wiped her tears away. They sat on the couch, her clutching a tissue in both hands.
“Where’s Anna… I mean Bethany?” He closed his eyes, angry about the slip.
She looked at her feet. “In her room. She didn’t want me to be alone today.”
He frowned. “About that night…”
“I’m sorry about your daughter,” Gina blurted out.
His mouth dropped. “What’re talking about?”
“I Googled you. You don’t have kids. Makes sense now.”
Damn Internet! “You never Googled me before?”
“No,” she admitted. “Had no reason to. But that room… When did you lose her?”
“I didn’t come to talk about her.” He was getting a bit frustrated.
“OK.” Gina looked up. “Then what did you want to talk about?”
Bethany suddenly said, “I’m sorry I opened that door. It was mean. I didn’t mean to make you mad.” She had heard voices and wanted to make sure her mother was all right.
Dominic turned to her. “You hurt me, and you didn’t make me mad.”
“I did.”
Gina spoke up, “Honey, his little girl died.”
“Oh, I’m sorry.” Bethany felt even more guilt.
He nodded. “I’m sorry, too. I shouldn’t have gone off on you.” He sighed. “You didn’t know why I was yelling. I didn’t mean to hurt you guys.”
Bethany smiled. “We’ll be fine. Right, Mom?”
With a forced smile, Gina replied, “Sure.”
When Bethany had gone back to her room, Gina twisted the tissue in her hands. “We were so happy. How about if I don’t come to your place anymore? We can figure this out.”
“You were happy,” he explained.
She looked up at him. “You were too. I could feel it.”
“I wasn’t at the end. I had to fake it, so I didn’t hurt you.”
She persisted, “We laughed, and you smiled. I know you were happy. Why are you doing this to us? Things were getting better. You let me sleep over.”
“You pushed me into it!” His voice was getting louder. How could she think he was happy? “I said no a million times. I didn’t wanna wake up to you.”
Taken aback, she stopped for a few seconds, then said, “Fine, then we won’t sleep in the same bed.”
He couldn’t take it anymore. “I met someone else.” He had not intended to admit it, but it shut her up. “I’m sorry, but I did. I didn’t mean to throw it in your face. I was trying not to.” He exhaled loudly. “I’m sorry I led you on so long and couldn’t love you back. It just didn’t work. I’m sorry.”
Tears falling quickly, she looked at him. “You asshole.”
Anger was better than crying at least. “I guess I was an asshole.” He stood up. “I just didn’t wanna be alone.”
“Get the fuck outta my house!” Gina screamed, sure he had been seeing the new woman behind her back somehow.
He left, unsure if the visit helped or hurt Gina. At least he had tried.
Chapter Twenty Nine
Early the next morning, Dominic’s phone woke him. He felt around the nightstand for it, knocking over his alarm clock and a picture he had taken out of Annabeth’s room of her. By the time he found his phone, it had gone quiet. He squinted at the screen, trying to see who called. It was Jon.
The night before he got very little sleep. He kept dreaming of Mitchell sneaking into Noelle’s bunk, pretending to be him and fucking her brains out. She had called him several times to say she missed him. Her texts all day long had been a comfort, but he couldn’t shake the jealousy.
With a sigh, he called Jon back. “What’s up?”
“Busy today?” Jon asked.
Dominic rolled off the bed and groaned. Damn. I sound like an old man. “Got nothing planned.” He opened the connecting bathroom door. “You need something?” He relieved himself as he waited for the answer.
“Sorta.” Jon looked up at Dean sitting on his couch. “It seems Dean has time to spare today. Maybe we can get some recording done.”
Dean yawned and stretched. He hadn’t been to bed yet. His mind still slightly wired, but his body was tired. The last thing he wanted his bandmates to know was that he had been drinking and experimenting all night. He had gone to Jon’s place to ask for something. Then he realized it was better if he pretended to be ready to finish out the album they were working on.
“Tell him to get his ass dressed,” Dean shouted.
Surprised by the alert sound to Dean’s voice, Dominic scowled. “Does he look high?”
“No.” Jon checked Dean over again. “He’s just kinda antsy. I’ll pick you up in 20 minutes. OK?”
Dominic nodded. “Sure. Did you call Tommy?”
“Well…” Jon frowned. “I was kinda hoping you’d do that. He doesn’t get as pissed off at you.”
“True.” Dominic turned on the shower. “Let me go so I can call. Later.” He ended the call and cringed as he hit Tommy’s name.
Tommy answered almost right away. “Someone dead?” His tone laced with sarcasm and anger. “It’s my day off. Somebody better be.”
After exhaling loudly, Dominic replied, “No, dick. Dean’s at Jon’s willing to record today.” He undressed as he moved around the room. “Get your ass up, and meet us at the studio. Maybe we can push him and finish up today.”
“Fuck!” Tommy scrubbed his face. “Why doesn’t that dickhead make up his mind? He bitches when we ask him to come in early. Then he gets me the fuck outta bed? Fuck!” He groaned and punched the bed. “When you leaving?”
Dominic checked his face in the mirror. His beard stubble didn’t look too bad. “Twenty minutes. I was sleeping too. Something’s up with Dean. It’s not like him to be responsible and shit.” He thought about way
s to prove he was back on drugs. “If he wears a jacket, you distract him and I’ll check his pockets. He hasn’t had any nosebleeds lately, has he?” That was an issue before his last stint at rehab.
“Nah, not that I know of.” Tommy had a feeling Dean was hiding something as well. “Those guys in his band are kinda sketchy. Maybe we can get one of them to admit he’s on something.” He smiled. “He’s got a gig tonight with Triple Threat in Newark. I was going anyway. Love to watch Crystal play.”
Laughing, Dominic countered, “You love to watch Crystal do anything.”
“Yeah, and my dick loves to make her scream.”
Dominic blushed. “Yeah, I’ve seen.” Then he gasped. He hadn’t meant ever to mention that. “I mean, heard.”
“No, you said seen,” Tommy reminded him. “When in the hell did you see me fucking her?” He headed to the master bathroom, waiting for an answer. “Dude, come on. You don’t slip up like that. When?”
Dominic sighed. “Your party.”
“Damn, really?”
“Yeah, it was an accident.” Dominic tried to shake the memory. “I opened your door.” He leaned on the sink. “I don’t wanna talk about it. Get up and get dressed.”
Tommy laughed. “Sure. Bet you have a hard-on. Mmm, was a good night.”
“Yeah, yeah. Meet us there.”
Just after pulling his boots on, Dominic heard the loud sound of a horn. He quickly tied the laces, then grabbed his keys and wallet. Another honk and he shouted to the air, “Keep your pants on.” He huffed and opened the front door. Then he realized he forgot his phone and ran back to his room. Stuffing it in his back pocket, he rushed out the door.
“You look happy,” Dean commented as Dominic hoped into the back seat of Jon’s Cadillac STS. “Did ya just get laid?” He chuckled into his hand. “Yeah, right. Mister Conservative.”
Dominic blushed, but had to brag to knock Dean down a notch. “Not this morning, but had this sweet-ass chick yesterday morning.”
“Damn, really?” Dean’s mouth dropped.
Jon laughed out loud. “I bet he’s fuckin’ with you. Dom don’t bring random chicks home like you do.”
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