by Heather Long
KC’s very real excitement at seeing Frankie and having Frankie perform on stage with them had been echoed by the other girls. As exhausted as those three were, and washed free of makeup, hair up in braids and ponytails, while dressed in comfortable, if slouchy clothes, they looked like what they were—three teenagers. They’d gone out of their way for Frankie and Bubba because they liked Frankie.
I was pretty sure we were all accessories, and that was fine. I could handle being Frankie’s arm candy. My ego took no beating at that thought.
“Glad to hear it, but those girls are multi-platinum and the videos are likely going to go viral. That will give Frankie and Ian both some serious traction when it comes to negotiation…”
I grinned slowly. “This all sounds very win-win to me.”
“It’s definitely the best negotiating position to be in.”
“I’ll take it.”
KC had a plate full of French fries and was drowning them in ketchup. For someone who hadn’t eaten anything the other day, she hadn’t stopped since they wandered in. Frankie and Jake weren’t out yet, but they would be in another fifteen or so. Frankie had been wound pretty tight.
Bubba had a pair of beers in hand as he made his way out to the balcony. Wittaker hung up, and I accepted the beer from Bubba when he joined me. The chatter from inside sounded like teenage girls too. Coop just relaxed back against the sofa, watching as Rachel joined the others in getting food.
“Apparently, I shouldn’t sign anything at all until the lawyers get to look at it?” It wasn’t a real question, but I nodded.
“So Wittaker said. But Frankie will want to give them any release they need.”
Raising his beer, Bubba nodded before he took a long drink. “I’m inclined to let her. They didn’t have to give us that opportunity.”
“Nope,” I said, agreeing with him. “They didn’t. They were being friends to her and to you. At the same time…”
“Protect our own interests,” Bubba said with a sigh, then shook his head. “We’ll talk about it.”
“Man, you killed it tonight. You guys looked fucking fantastic out there. If I didn’t say it before, then hear it now—you have a real future in the business if that’s where the two of you decide to go.” And I meant it. I’d support them with everything I had too.
His slow grin was all pleasure, if a little embarrassed too. “That means a lot. Seriously.”
“Good. Also, did you have a boner the whole time she was singing?”
“So bad,” Bubba agreed. “It’s the sexiest fucking thing.”
I laughed. This was definitely one of those cases where I was glad that the guys totally got me.
Bubba clinked his bottle to mine, and we leaned there against the railing, drinking as the girls gathered around the living room with their plates of food—burgers, fries, ice cream, one of them with all three, and I wasn’t saying a word about dipping fries in ice cream.
“You ever thankful you’re an only child?” I asked Bubba.
“At the moment?” he laughed. “Yes. I don’t know how Coop and Jake do it with the little sisters.”
Agreed. I mean, I was grateful as fuck that Frankie wasn’t my sister, but watching those girls in there, even as relaxed as they seemed, I worried. I’d kill anyone that let my family wear themselves down like that. I knew for sure Frankie would kick our asses if we let ourselves get that worn down.
We would be wrapping up soon and heading back to the States. But I had to admit, I was going to miss this freedom. June, I promised myself and them. Every June, come hell or high water, we were going to take off for a few weeks and just be us.
Jake
Frankie’s legs shook where they wrapped around my waist, and I tucked my face against her throat. My cock was still hard as a stone, but I’d been determined to wring a couple of orgasms out of her before I came and I still wanted more. I loved the way her fingers dug into my back and how open and hot her kisses were when I claimed her mouth.
As she spasmed around my cock, I had to fight the urge to bite down on the soft skin of her neck, and then she flexed those muscles and rotated her hips.
“Fuck,” I swore.
“I want you to come,” Frankie whispered against my hair, and then I lifted my head. There was redness around her mouth and her throat. The beard did that when I got too excited, though the burn wasn’t as bad as when it was just stubble. She had a fistful of my damp hair, and I moved with her as she arched her back and rotated her hips.
Pulling back, I dug my fingers into her ass and lifted as I thrust upward. “You feel so fucking good, Baby Girl.”
“So do you,” she whispered, and when she tugged my face toward hers, I eagerly sucked her lower lip until her mouth opened. Tongues dueling, I ground upward, balls deep in her pussy, and I wanted more of her. The beaded tips of her nipples teased at my chest, and I wanted to suck on them, I wanted to finger her ass and fuck her ass. I wanted to be everywhere until all she could feel, taste, or experience was me.
That would never be enough. Not when she laughed as we kissed. Not when she fought to drag me deeper. Not when the low cries of her pleasure echoed off the tile around us, even as the water washed down. All these sensations were perfect, and I wanted to savor them.
“Please Jake,” she moaned. “I want to feel you come.”
Fuck, that had my balls dragging up tight, and I pressed her against the wall as I pounded into her. The friction had my eyes rolling back, but I needed her to come. I didn’t care that she already had, I wanted to feel her shudder as I filled her. Working my hand between us, I found her clit, and it only took one brush and Frankie swore.
The clamp of her pussy on my cock dragged my own orgasm out, and I swallowed her screams, even as I answered them with my own moan. It was my turn to fight shaking legs as we clung to each other.
I hadn’t totally meant to fuck her in the shower, but there was just something about a naked, wet Frankie I couldn’t resist. A soft laugh escaped me, and I kissed her throat, then up to her jawline.
“What?” she asked, combing her fingers through my hair.
“I was just thinking that I can’t resist you naked and wet.” I grinned.
“And that’s funny?”
“Pretty much.” I kissed the tip of her nose. “’Cause I can’t resist you dry and naked. Or wet and clothed. Or dry and clothed for that matter.”
Her laughter eddied up to join mine, and she shook her head. “I adore you.”
“Right back atcha.” With care, I eased out of her, and we both let out a long sigh. We’d almost finished showering when helping her wash her breasts turned so interesting. “What do you say we kidnap the boys and drag them around the Tower tomorrow?”
“Oh,” she said with a sigh. “I like that idea, but don’t leave Archie alone with the crown jewels. I do not need him to get any ideas.”
A snort escaped me. “Give that up. You know him—he’s going to drown you in jewels if he thinks you’ll let him.”
Her soft ‘hmm’ made me smile. Over the years, Frankie had always been so resistant to letting us take care of her. Not anymore. Not that I was complaining, because she insisted on looking after us too.
“What about the British Museum?” She tilted her head up to look at me as she finished rinsing off. “They have the Rosetta Stone and the mummies and…”
I pressed a finger to her lips. “Sold, Baby Girl. We have a couple more days here, and we should have time to really dig into more sights.”
“There’s so much history here.” That was my girl. She made a huge splash on a stage, singing her heart out and looking sexy as fuck, and now she wanted to go nerd out at history.
“I love you,” I told her before giving her another long, lingering kiss that might have kept us in the shower longer, but her stomach protested.
One did not simply forget to feed the Frankie. With some reluctance, I shut off the shower, and then we were out and toweling off. I caught her watching me in
the mirror as I ran the towel over my chest.
“Like what you see?”
“Oh yes,” she said. “I love the way your muscles move when you’re drying off. It’s really sexy.”
I flexed my glutes, and Frankie’s grin grew.
“Yeah, I figured those were the muscles you were admiring.” Not that I minded.
“Hey,” she told me, all innocence. “I like your ass. A lot.” Then she slapped my ass right before she scooted out the door and into the bedroom.
I laughed and managed to snap the towel to catch her on one butt cheek. “I like your ass too. And I’ll happily spank it if that’s what you’re angling for.”
“Maybe later,” she teased, but glanced over at me. “I kind of do like being spanked.”
“Oh, I know.” But laughter from the other room carried as did the scent of food. We got dressed, Frankie went with sleep shorts and one of my sweatshirts, and I just dragged on loose drawstring pants and a T-shirt. We all slept naked so much these days, it didn’t faze me, but at the moment, we had company.
And Rachel.
“Hey…” I said as she ran her fingers through her damp hair. “Don’t fuss over Rachel too much. You moved her to tears tonight when you were singing, though she tried to hide it.”
“Awww…”
“Yeah,” I said. “You move me to tears often, but my masculinity can handle it.”
Her delighted smile warmed me up. The sound of my cell ringing distracted me, and I glanced around for it. Took me a minute to locate it in my discarded jeans. My mother’s name flashed up on the screen, and I nodded to Frankie.
“Go eat, I’ll check in with Mom and the girls and be right out, okay?”
“Okay,” she murmured, then blew me a kiss before opening the door.
“Hey, Mom,” I greeted as I answered the phone. “I know, I should have called you guys but we’ve—”
“Jake,” Mom interrupted. “There’s been an accident.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
Cats in the Cradle
Frankie
“You don’t—”
I glared at Jake, and he closed his mouth.
“Thanks, Baby Girl,” he murmured before pulling me tighter against him. We were waiting for the express train to take us to Paris from London. Then from there, we would take a second train to Germany and then to the base his father was stationed at. From the moment Jake walked out of the bedroom with that wounded look in his eyes, we’d become a whirlwind of activity.
Archie had booked our train tickets while Jake left a message for Klara. It had been late there, but all Alicia had known was there had been a training accident and Jake’s dad was in surgery. Klara returned Jake’s call, but his dad was still in surgery. They didn’t know how serious it was yet.
No way could he not go, especially since we were in London, just hours away. Nor could I let him go alone. KC and the girls had offered some suggestions on the trains. We could do a flight, but with his father in surgery, trains would get us there in plenty of time and might prove a distraction.
The express from London to Paris was something we’d always wanted to do too. Still, not the way we wanted to do it.
Ian pulled Jake away for a moment to talk to him, and Archie pressed a card into my hand. I glanced down at the black card, then up at him.
“Don’t argue,” he ordered. “This time, I want you both to have everything you need when you need it. I’ll send the plane for you in Germany when you’re ready to come back.” He frowned. “But let him take all the time he needs. We’ll take care of New York and getting the place set up.”
“You already got one.” It wasn’t a question, and I tucked his black credit card away in my wallet before stowing the wallet back in the inner pocket of the jacket I wore.
“Yeah,” he admitted with a faint grimace. “It was a surprise, babe…” I pressed my fingers to his mouth before he could try to offer up any kind of apology.
“I love you,” I whispered before rising on my tiptoes and replacing my fingers with my lips. His soft sigh as he wrapped me up pulled out one of my own. “I love that you plan fifty steps ahead, and I’ll only scold you a little for not letting me help with the house hunting.”
“You helped,” he murmured before pressing a kiss to my forehead and tightening his hold around me. I sank into the hug, letting him hold me up and leaning on him. “You helped with telling me what you wanted in a place. You helped with opening your home to us in the first place, along with your heart. You helped because you give me purpose and reason to be better.”
Tears flooded my eyes, and I rubbed my face carefully against his coat. Rachel had done something with my makeup this morning to hide the shadows from lack of sleep. I’d managed to get Jake to sleep for a couple of hours while everyone else hustled. We’d split our luggage up and packed me and Jake into one bag along with our laptops and Kindles.
Ian and Jake exchanged one of those quick man hugs. But Jake didn’t escape Coop so easily. I watched them as I leaned into Archie. We’d said our goodbyes to KC and the girls back at the hotel. Rachel was going to hang out with them for the day, then head out to explore London. I was pretty sure Archie had extended Rachel’s stay for as long as she wanted.
They were going to fly to New York after we got to Germany. They didn’t want to be in the air until we were safe and sound. I got it, and I wanted them to get some rest before they dove into handling the move and settling in.
“You got him, babe?” Archie asked, and I nodded.
“I got him. I’ll take care of him. You guys take care of yourselves?” I pulled back to look up at him, and Archie smiled before kissing me again.
“I hate like hell that you’ll be that far away, but I can handle it. You call if you need anything, you understand? Absolutely anything.”
“Even if I just need to hear your voice,” I promised. One more kiss, and he let me go and turned to Jake. Ian was waiting right there, and he wrapped me up in a ferocious hug.
“Angel, you need anything…”
I smiled against his chest. “Right back atcha. You got Coop and Archie?”
“Yeah, I got them.” No hesitation. “Jake’s going to be defensive and hyper protective. He won’t want to break down in front of you, and he’s going to be arguing with himself.”
“Because of how distant he and his dad have been.” I got that.
“Yeah,” Ian said slowly. “Coop will have more advice, but I only have this.” He leaned back and lifted my chin. “Be you. That’s who he needs. Just be yourself. Be every inch the stubborn brat I know you can be and the fierce woman you are.”
I smiled. “I’ll take care of him, and I’ll jump him if he won’t let me in.”
A soft chuckle escaped him. “If all else fails…”
“Make him jealous.”
Head back, Ian laughed, then shook his head at me. “Only you would play with fire as a method to handle one of us.”
“You gotta go with what works…but I’ll take care of him. I promise.”
Cupping my face, Ian studied me, then gave me a sweet kiss. “Take care of you too. That’s an order, Angel.”
I smiled against his lips, then bit his lower one gently. “You too, Sir Ian. You take such good care of me, I need you to take equally good care of you.”
“Done.”
He backed off, and then Coop half picked me up into a hug, and he pressed his forehead to mine. “He’s a stubborn ass, both him and his dad. They’re both fighters too. All you gotta do is make sure you keep his head above the water and don’t let him blame himself.”
I smiled. “I can do that.”
“I know you can. I’m gonna miss the hell out of you, but we’re gonna step up our phone sex game.”
A shiver chased up my spine. “Is now really the time to…”
He snorted. “Me and my hand spent years thinking about you, and the last few months, we’ve had you all to ourselves. Hell yes, now is the time to think
about it, and trust me, Jake will appreciate the friendly competition.”
“Let me guess,” I teased. “You won’t mind some pictographic assistance for our calls?”
“Video-chat works,” he told me, eyes darkening. “Particularly when he needs a distraction, or you do.”
I bit my lower lip because it seemed a really inappropriate time to be turned on. “I’m really growing fond of this possessive side of you.”
“Good.” Then his mouth claimed mine, and there was nothing sweet in his searing kiss. It was demanding, hot, and filled with decadent promise that had me panting when he let me go. “Don’t forget about us.”
“As if,” Jake grunted, but he wrapped an arm around my middle and pulled me back against him. “I got our girl. We’ll keep you guys in the loop.”
“If you need us,” Archie said as Coop and Ian both nodded.
“Thanks, guys.”
We stood on the platform for one long moment, then Ian nodded to the train. “Y’all should go find your seats and get comfortable. Make some new memories.”
“Is there a train club or something?” Coop asked, and rough laughter escaped Jake—the first real chuckle he’d made since getting the frantic call from his mom.
“Guess we’ll find out, right, Baby Girl?” Jake’s question washed over me, and I tilted my head back to smile at him.
“Maybe. You might have to earn it.” Humor flashed through his pale blue eyes, along with heat, and he gave me a squeeze. All too soon, we were stepping aboard, and the guys stayed out there on the platform as we moved through the car to our seats. Jake had our backpacks, and he stored them before ushering me into the window seat and sliding into the seat next to me.
His humor dried up as he locked his hand around mine and lifted it to his lips for a kiss. The softness of his beard brushed my knuckles a split second before his mouth did. I squeezed his hand and then tucked my head against his shoulder. This wasn’t the adventure we planned, and I was worried about him and his dad. I’d just met Hank, and it made me heartsick to think of something happening to him.