by M. B. Feeney
“Awesome.” He bounded back up the steep stairs, leaving me to finish off my work.
Once all the figures were straight, I locked everything away in the safe and went into the cellar. I had a corner where I kept my own bought and paid for bottles. I grabbed a bottle of Rose and headed up to join everyone. I could hear Casey had dug out one of my ages old dance cds and had stuck it on random in the background.
“Hey, the woman of the hour!” Sam called out as I sat at the table with them all, making me blush. Everyone raised their glasses to me in thanks; I couldn’t help but notice Mary hadn’t joined in. Her drink was left on the table, untouched.
“Please, stop. It was nothing. It’s just going to be weird not having you lot around now you’re all going back to the States.” I poured myself a glass of wine.
“Seriously, you did us a huge favour, not least giving us the chance to reconnect with the fans. It was a lot like the beginning for us.” Abraham spoke up in his soft voice that was at odds with his on-stage persona. “For that we shall be forever grateful. Know you always have us as friends.” I felt tears well up in my eyes at the sentiment. I excused myself to go for a cigarette, needing to be outside for a moment.
“Are you okay?” Will’s voice was full of concern, but didn’t come from behind me, and I didn’t remember seeing him in the pub.
“Yeah, I’m fine. Abraham just made me a little emotional.” I smiled as he pulled his own cigarettes out of his pocket and lit one. “Where did you disappear to?”
“I just went for a walk to clear my head; I’m in need of a drink now though.” Did I detect a hint of nerves in his voice? I doubted it as I flicked my cigarette end into the gutter.
“There’s plenty in here.” I turned to head back inside, I squealed slightly as Will grabbed my arm, spun me to face him, and crushed me to him, claiming my lips with his own. Automatically I wound my arms around his neck, trying to press myself even closer to his hard body. His hands held onto my hips tightly as he began to walk me backwards. I crashed into the wall with a bump which did nothing to break our kiss that was getting more and more intense.
I shivered as his hands moved from my hips, ghosting upwards until they rested on my ribs, just under my breasts. His thumbs flicked up and across my nipples through my thin top. The electric jolt made me jump and bang my head against the wall.
“Are you okay?” He asked again, murmuring against my lips. I nodded as I caught my breath before kissing him again. It was hard, full of twisting tongues and clashing teeth. I lowered my own hands to cup his arse, which was encased in loose fitting jeans. I was just running my fingers along the exposed waistband of his boxers when someone coughing interrupted us.
“You’re gonna give that girl a concussion dude.” My heart skipped a beat at the deep voice I knew almost as well as my own. Will groaned into my mouth before pulling away leaving my lips throbbing.
“Hey Preston, what brings you to these parts?”
I followed Will and Preston into the pub, avoiding the smug looks of ‘I told you so’ that both Casey and Gwen were shooting me; they must have been watching me and Will through the window.
The entire place was in uproar at the unannounced arrival of Preston, and he was swarmed by the band and fans alike. I grabbed my glass of wine, topped it up, and sat on the bench watching everyone hug and shake hands. I noticed Sam was hanging back slightly; it was a bit like that scene in ‘Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire’ when Harry’s celebrates getting the golden egg from the dragon, and Ron walks in. Awkward to the point of being uncomfortable.
That feeling was ramped up by the feeling of Mary’s eyes boring into me from the other side of the lounge. I looked up and caught her eyes, holding contact until she looked away, standing up to greet the newcomer. If Johnny hadn’t said anything, I would have been left wondering what I’d done to piss her off so much, but his words played like a loop in my mind as I watched her plaster a smile on her face.
Casey and Gwen thoroughly ignored Preston making the rounds, and sat watching me. I resolutely disregarded them, pulling my phone out of my bag and looking at twitter. There was nothing but high praise for the band with regards to the show and the new single.
“Stop ignoring us?” Gwen sat next to me. “By the look of your lips, I can guess why you’re not overly impressed at Preston’s sudden appearance.”
“Shut up!” I hissed, glancing around, as I looked as shifty as a spotty prepubescent boy trying to buy a top shelf magazine. “Now is not the time.”
“Now is the perfect time, everyone’s distracted.” Casey sat the other side of me and removed my phone from my hand. “Spill.”
“Who’s spilt somethi- oh.” Johnny sat down opposite me and took one look at my face. “I’ll leave you ladies to it.” I snorted at his use of the word ‘ladies’ as I sat in between the two harridans who were chomping at the bit for a snippet of gossip either side of me.
“Please, stay.” I felt twin glares boring into me. “Oh, thanks for helping behind the bar today. You did Casey and me a huge favour. Sorry I can’t pay you though.”
“It was fun. I did bar work years ago. It’s not quite the same as being up on stage, but I made a few tips.” He grinned at us before having his attention pulled away by Abraham calling his name. “Catch you later.”
He walked over to where the rest of the guys and Mary were sat around Preston who seemed to be showing them all something on his phone.
“I need the loo.” I stood up. I knew I wasn’t going to escape them for very long, but I would take what I could get. Before either one of them could follow me, I practically ran to the ladies and locked myself inside before they could say a word.
A few minutes later there was a soft knock at the door.
“Mention Will Harvey, and I throttle you till the dawn of time.” My voice sounded ridiculously loud in the silence of the ladies’ room.
“What if I am him?” Of course it was. I unlocked the door, pulled him in quickly to prevent either of my friends pushing in after him him in, then locked the bathroom door again. As I made my way over to the sinks I glared at him in the mirror.
“What the fuck are you doing in here?” I run my hands under some cool water just for something to do.
“Well, you did yank me in by the collar and lock the door behind me. I think I’m a hostage.”
“Very funny. Why did you follow me to the ladies’?”
“Because we were interrupted earlier, and I’m sure we both have more to offer.” I raised an eyebrow.
“In a bog?”
“A what? Never mind, I was wondering if you wanted to go and grab some food?” That shocked me, it wasn’t what I expected him to say.
“Sure. but I don’t think that rabble will let us escape that easily.”
He winked at me.
“Do you need to get anything from the bar?” I shook my head, “then let’s go out through the other room. They won’t even notice for a while, what with the arrival of Preston.”
He really had it all planned. I stared at him as he stood, holding out his hand. I took hold of it and we left the bathroom together. As I ran to grab my keys from the office, Will peeked into the lounge before we headed to the back door.
We’d been sat in Subway, which just happened to be the first open place that served food we came across, for almost an hour before my phone rang. Gwen’s name flashed up on the screen.
“Where the fuck are you?” I managed to not burst out laughing.
“All the grief you’ve been giving me this week, and when I act on said grief, you bitch at me. I can never win, can I?” Will looked at me strangely.
“Well, you could have told us. Mary is sat here foaming at the mouth over director boy skipping out with you. I will just assume you will be back late; do everything I would do and more.” She hung up on me.
“What was that about?” I shook my head.
“Believe me, you don’t want to know. Gwen is my ‘Jiminy Cricket�
�” He started to snigger.
“Sounds like Hollis.” Another raised eyebrow. “All week he has been poking and prodding at me to... uh, I think his words were ‘get down to business,’ he may have followed on with something about huns - or maybe that was Mulan. Either way, he’s been sitting there poking the shit out of me to make my move.”
“Mulan? Seriously?” I shook my head.
“Don’t judge me. I need downtime too.”
“I just didn’t see you as the Disney Princess type.”
“I only watch it for the kung fu.”
“Sure... Closet Donny Osmond fan are we?”
“How do you know he sings in that film?”
Shit!
“Er... well. I have young cousins.” Nice save.
“Sure.” I made a mental note to hide my Disney DVDs if ever he came back up to the flat. Why was I thinking about him coming to the flat? “And are those cousins about twenty-five and enjoy ruining your life?” He was clearly talking about Gwen and Casey.
“That would be them.”
“They’re not really your cousins, are they?”
“Thankfully, no. I’m not related to them.” He threw his head back laughing.
“They are very protective of you, aren’t they?”
“We all are, but it is also their life mission to hook me up with someone.”
“Isn’t that what friends are for?”
“I guess so.” I looked at him to find that he was smiling softly at me. It was a smile that I remembered from the band’s UK tour and I’d managed to snag a photo with him at the merch stand in between the support act and the main event. “Why are you looking at me like that?”
“I just enjoy hearing you talking about your friends. It’s very obvious that the three of you are close, and would do anything for each other.”
“Yeah, including wearing one of us down to get us our own way.” I couldn’t help but laugh. “But it sounds like you’ve been experiencing the same pressure.”
“Yeah, but you know what they say... Some pressure is … yeah. I got nothing.” He chuckled, “Sometimes it’s worth it. I mean... we’re here, aren’t we?”
“In Subway?” I teased. “Way to show a girl a good time.”
“It’s the only Goddamn place that was open!” I started to laugh. “Besides, I don’t think the staff would appreciate me showing you how good a time we could have.”
“I dunno, they look pretty bored.” I managed to shock him into momentary silence. He took a large sip of his coke before standing up, holding his hand out to me.
“That sounded like a challenge, and I thrive on challenges.”
At his words, I took hold of his hand and let him lead me back towards the pub.
I felt like I had regressed back to my teenage years, trying to unlock doors without anyone hearing me. It didn’t work then, and it didn’t work now.
“Look what the cat dragged in.” Gwen and Casey stood in the tiny foyer of the pub, between the two rooms, like bookends with their arms crossed.
“Don’t you two have homes to go to?” I grumbled as I locked the door behind me and Will.
“Yes, we do. But the entertainment here is much more appealing.” I wanted to pull off my socks and shove them in Gwen’s mouth. “Anyway, we were just going when you two decided to sneak in like teenagers after curfew.”
“Have the guys gone?” Will asked them, not even trying to hide the hope in his voice.
“Yeah. Sam and Preston left to go and have a few drinks, and talk, while everyone else went back to your hotel.” Casey looked at me. “By the way, Johnny confiscated Mary’s phone from her cause she was getting herself wound up.”
Wonderful.
“Thanks for the heads up.” Will took hold of my hand. “We’ll see you tomorrow no doubt.” And with that he led me up to my own flat. I’m sure I heard Casey mutter something about not knowing he could be so assertive, but I ignored it and followed him, admiring the way his arse moved under his jeans.
As soon as we were behind closed doors, I found myself pressed up against a wall yet again with Will’s lips on my own and his hands resuming their exploration of my body. My own hands found the hem of his shirt, and his abs underneath.
I remembered back before the band came to the UK, and were on their US leg of the tour, there were a few pictures of Will circulating. There was one in particular in which he was flashing his abs during a dance off with Sam and Preston – who couldn’t dance for shit. I remember seeing that and thinking all kinds of thoughts about him, but as I was a huge Preston fan, I never really allowed them to develop beyond shocked admiration. Then, I met him in London, and managed to talk to him one on one for quite a while. He kind of turned my head a little that year because he’d been so sweet and charming.
My thoughts were brought back to the present moment in time by the feeling of Will running his tongue from my collar bone to my earlobe, which he then took between his teeth making me shudder in a really good way. I had never thought of him in a sexual way, but the guy was rapidly changing my opinion of him. The pressure of his teeth on my earlobe intensified slightly as he ran his hands up my back to my bra strap, which he undid with no problems.
“Someone’s had plenty of practice.” I gasped as he moved slightly to allow himself to pull down the straps of my top down to my waist along with my bra, and palm my breasts, running his thumb over my hard nipples causing me to moan.
“It’s been a while, but I think it’s coming back to me very quickly.” He murmured before claiming my mouth with his own again. I was still pressed up against my front door by the full length of Will’s body. Another moan escaped me as he began to roll my nipples between his thumbs and fingers. My own fingers had come to a rest on his hips, but the jolts that were surging through my body got them moving again. I swept them through the soft hair on his abdomen down to the button fly on his jeans. I pulled my head away to look him in the eye, almost asking permission to go further. His response was to clasp the back of my head and kiss me; hard.
Slowly, I popped the buttons on his jeans and slid them, and his boxers, over his arse and impressive erection. Just as I decided I was going to sink to my knees, he surprised me by pulling down my own trousers and underwear. Letting go of me momentarily, he bent down and pulled a condom out of his pocket; he made quick work of rolling it on, before grabbing me by the hips and lifting me off the ground. I wrapped my legs around his waist, and he filled me with one thrust.
I loved the fact that there was no getting used to his size or anything. This was fucking, pure and simple. Within minutes he was pounding into me hard and fast causing the door to boom, echoing out into the stairs behind it. His fingers dug into my hips as he increased his pace further, hitting my g-spot repeatedly. I found myself screaming, not caring about the Cosmic Tush fans staying in my flat, as I felt my orgasm build suddenly from nowhere.
“Jesus fucking Christ!” I yelled as I felt my orgasm explode through my entire body. Just as I was riding out my climax, there was that subtle shift in Will’s rhythm which told me he was close to orgasm too.
“Fuck... you’re … amazing...” Words morphed into grunts as his body began to tense; with a feral moan he came, seemingly hard and fast.
My back was sore as he set my feet back on the ground as we fought to catch our breath. I pulled my clothes on messily, before walking into the bathroom.
“Sorry.” Will’s voice made me turn from the bath that I was starting to run.
“What for?”
“Being so rough back there.” I walked over to him and cupped his face.
“Do I look like the kind of person who would have rough sex up against her front door if I didn’t want it?” He shook his head. “Stop worrying then. I’m not as fragile as I look.”
I placed a gentle kiss on his lips before turning my back on him. I pulled the rest of my clothes off and stepped into the scalding hot bath. Will was gaping at me, looking a little like a goldfish. “Gon
na join me?”
The following morning, I woke up to bright sunshine streaming through the window, and no duvet covering me. Frowning, I glanced down at my naked body. There was a muscular arm draped loosely over my stomach. Will was fast asleep, his blonde curls framing his peaceful face. I glanced at the clock to see that it was nearly six in the morning. Time for work, unfortunately. I peeled myself away from Will’s warm body and walked into the bathroom. I ached in that ‘well and truly fucked’ way that felt deliciously sore; stretching my body to relieve the kinks as I turned on the shower was heaven. It didn’t take me long to wash and get dressed.
Before going down to the pub, I left a note for Will on my pillow. Cliché, I know, but I wanted to let him know that as much as I would have loved to stay in bed all day, some of us had to actually to work ungodly hours.
Luckily, everyone else who was staying was still in bed so i didn’t have to do a walk of shame in my own home. I knew they’d all end up in the pub at some point, and I knew they had to have heard me and Will the previous evening. For the first time in my life, I could bring myself to care.
The pub was clean thanks to Casey and Gwen. All I needed to do was make sure the fridges were fully stocked, before sitting in the office for the next four hours catching up on orders and other crappy paperwork.
After an hour, the phone rang.
“The Bridge Inn, Zoe speaking.”
“Oh, I didn’t expect you to be in work this early.” Gwen’s voice was loud.
“Why wouldn’t I be? Have you forgotten I have a business to run?”
“I just thought you’d still be all tucked up in your post coital bliss with Will. Or did you bang him, then kick him out?” I rolled my eyes.
“Like I’d do that.” I could hear footsteps above me. “I’m not you.”
“Ooh, bitchy, but completely right. I love my bed too much to share it for too long.” It was what she had been renowned for at university, despite being picky who she took to her bed.