Come Together

by Madelynne Ellis

  That said, he was a little perturbed by her reaction. She looked completely shocked … No, not just shocked, mortified.

  Weird! Surely she had to be used to people hitting on him all the time. The guy couldn’t walk down the street without someone trying to rip the shirt from his back. Then again, maybe she hadn’t got used to it yet. Their relationship, as far as he could tell, was still fairly new.

  ‘Are you OK?’

  ‘Fine.’ She swallowed hard. She sure as hell didn’t look fine. ‘Shouldn’t you be getting back to work?’

  ‘Sure,’ he agreed, recognising the dismissal for what it was. ‘Want me to get anyone for you?’

  ‘No.’

  ‘Then I guess I’ll catch you later.’ He backed up a pace. ‘Bye.’

  ‘Bye,’ she echoed, her voice stripped of any kind of feeling.

  Luthor left the kitchen confused. Women didn’t normally get distressed over him complimenting their boyfriends, which was the only reason he could see for her switch in moods. Normally they laughed, because none of them ever took it seriously.

  Dani seemed to have taken it way too seriously, as if his little throwaway remark had already placed him squarely in Xane’s bed.

  If only that were the case.

  Chapter 14

  ‘A-fucking-gain,’ Xane bellowed. He was sick of hearing Iain Willows massacring the drum solo in the middle of ‘Fatal Error’. He needed to find Dani, hold her and regain some perspective. OK, so Steve had made drumming look easy, and it was wrong to expect perfection from a guy who’d been playing with them a whole twenty-four hours, but the constant minor slip-ups were fucking irritating. Even Ash had started throwing the guy wounded looks. Ash seemed to have had a brain transplant since the funeral. Normally the source of discord, he was making like they were a big happy family.

  Hot and irritable, Xane tugged off his T-shirt and used it to wipe his brow before discarding it on the floor. He stalked the length of the stage, did a one-eighty and came back again, ready to savage the mic, only for Spook to step into his path.

  ‘Why don’t you take a break and let the rest of us work through this. There’s no problem with your vocals, so you may as well rest your voice.’

  He was tempted to be belligerent about it, but Spook squeezed his shoulder.

  ‘Really, go chill a few.’

  ‘All right.’ He stormed into the wings, but not before he’d heard Iain moaning that the set-up was all wrong, and that’s what the problem was, not his playing. There wasn’t anything wrong with that set-up. Steve had arranged things that way for years, and Steve knew his goddamned stuff.

  Xane clenched his fists, knowing he’d be going back to the drum-set having been completely rearranged. Well, at least Iain was tucked away at the back of the stage, and Xane didn’t have to look at him for the whole performance if he didn’t want to.

  A hollow seemed to open up in his chest at the notion of having to do this day after day without Steve. He’d tried to keep him out of his thoughts as they’d rehearsed. Imagined he was on vacation somewhere nice, and this current shambles was only a temporary arrangement, but the truth was that Steve was never coming back and the monkey they had drumming for them was the fucking future.

  ‘Can I get a beer around here?’ he asked one of the roadies.

  ‘Sure, in the kitchen there,’ Liam replied.

  The new guy Ulf had hired emerged from the kitchen as Xane approached. ‘Hey,’ he muttered. He’d not had a chance to sit down and have a chat with him yet. Normally Xane hired the roadies himself, but he’d been prepared to take Ulf’s recommendation on this one, given they were related and Ulf wasn’t one for taking crap. He didn’t see a whole lot of family resemblance, mind, but then Ulf’s dirty great beard did rather dominate his face and he couldn’t make out much of the guy before him as his blond hair covered most of his face. He had a nice body, though – that was plain to see from his arms, even if he was trying to hide the rest under an oversized T-shirt.

  Typically, Xane preferred to hire crew members who were a little less glamorous. The more handsome ones inevitably attracted trouble and the band members were plenty good at doing that themselves.

  ‘Ulf will probably need you, they’re about to redo the drum set-up.’

  ‘What? I just put them together, there’s nothing wrong with them.’ The guy shoved his hair back off his face, revealing a face to match his rather lovely body, with a plump, pouty lower lip, and a darker shadow of stubble around his elegant jaw. He was absolutely trouble waiting to happen. On the other hand, Xane couldn’t agree more with him over the drums.

  ‘Mr Willows wants some adjustments.’

  ‘Bollocks. He’s an imbecile,’ the guy muttered, making Xane further warm to him. ‘Why?’ He raised his hands, the fingers curled in frustration. Xane figured he wasn’t really looking for an answer. It was more a groan of frustration, and it was emphasised by the annoyance that flashed in his eyes.

  He had different-coloured eyes. That gave Xane an uncomfortable start. He’d only met two people with complete heterochromia. One so famous he was practically God and the other he’d shared a single glorious night with. Damned if he could remember his name, but the memory of sand and grass beneath him, stars above and a red-hot body entwined with his, rose bright and clear in his mind’s eye.

  Holy shit! This couldn’t be, not here and now. If Dani caught so much as a hint that he’d screwed this guy she’d freak out completely. She was twitchy enough about his past relationship with Steve, and he was no threat to her at all. ‘Luthor?’ he murmured, dredging the guy’s name out of lord knows what recess in his brain. ‘You’re Ulf’s nephew!’

  * * *

  Xane remembered him. That was the only coherent thought in Luthor’s head. He’d hoped, he’d imagined, but at heart he’d known he was probably one of hundreds if not thousands of people Xane Geist had shagged, and the chance of standing out in that crowd was very slim. Luthor was so shocked by Xane’s recollection of him that he couldn’t make his vocal cords work and give an appropriate response. In fact, he pretty much forgot everything.

  Damn, the guy was still fucking hot, so ripped to perfection it hurt to look at him, especially as the only thing he had on right now was a pair of black jeans that hung off his lean hips in a way that drew the gaze, hoping they’d slip a little further. Fuck if he didn’t want to help them on the way.

  Instead of grabbing at the man’s waistband, Luthor focused his attention further up. A single step brought them together, then, with no effort at all, he had his hand in Xane’s hair and his hand cupped around the back of Xane’s neck so as to guide him forward into a kiss.

  Oh, God, yes! Their lips met.

  He might be the one initiating this, but he was also the one whose legs were weak, whose insides had been packed with butterflies. He groaned in pleasure when Xane’s hands fisted around his shirt. He wanted nothing more than for Xane to take charge, bend him over a nearby packing crate or shove him into a swivel chair and fuck him blind.

  Xane tasted of peppermint and sin, and the combination fired Luthor up so high that he thought he might come just from the possibility that this might lead anywhere close to sex.

  Normally he wasn’t nearly so hair-triggered, but fuck … fuck … he’d been dying for this for three long damned years, and Xane Geist was still the hottest piece of devilry to walk the planet.

  ‘No!’

  Xane shoved him hard in the chest to throw him off.

  Luthor fell against a packing crate, upsetting an abandoned coffee mug, which spewed brown dregs over the floor.

  ‘What the fuck! I mean, seriously. What … the … fuck! I’m seeing someone. I’m in a committed relationship. Are you getting this? I mean – shit!’

  Dani. Her name rang in Luthor’s head. He’d been sure the heat was there between him and Xane, in fact he’d felt it licking all over his skin, but now Xane was yelling at him, and all he could do was back up and attempt to put some s
pace between them. He’d gambled and lost. Not only had he made a complete fool of himself, he’d totally screwed up any chance he had of playing with Black Halo. Frankly, he’d be lucky if by the end of the day he still had a job schlepping stuff around for them. Ulf was going to tear strips off him, assuming there was anything left once Xane had finished.

  * * *

  Xane’s mouth hung open. He wasn’t often taken quite so off-guard. Though, Lord knows, he ought to have seen it coming, given that he’d just recognised the guy.

  Shock continued to pulse through his body, prolonging his astonishment. Fuck! That kiss had been something. Time past, it would have led somewhere distinctly fiery. But not now. He’d made a commitment to Dani.

  ‘Why? What made you think?’

  Luthor stared at him, mouth still open, his expression a curious mixture of terror and bliss. A smear of moisture shone on his soft, plump lip, almost tempting Xane to kiss him again just for the shock value. As Xane watched, Luthor raised his head and touched the surface of his lips, as though he could relive the sensation of the kiss by exploring them. A similar tingle in his own lips drew his touch, along with the disquieting realisation that he was ludicrously aroused.

  He’d not kissed a man since the last time he and Steve were together. All at once, his body seemed to recall what that was like. Not the same as being with a woman; harder, more physical, and he’d been so very much in love. He remembered Luthor too, and how good it had been between them. Not that being with Dani was any less engaging or pleasurable, just different.

  Hell, if she found out about this she’d be mortified.

  ‘We can’t …’

  The sensible thing to do would be to get rid of the guy, but how? If he simply dismissed him, he’d be opening himself up to accusations of unfair dismissal, and then their past relationship would inevitably come out, and Dani would freak. Fuck it, he’d risk alienating Ulf too, and he didn’t want to do that. The man was a genius.

  ‘This didn’t happen. It can’t happen again,’ he insisted, even though his body was up for more right now. ‘And the time before didn’t happen either.’

  Luthor looked him right in the eyes, held him captive for several seconds, made him heat up from within. ‘I can’t pretend my memory is that bad, not over some of the best sex I ever had –’

  ‘Shh! Please.’ The walls around here had ears, and he really couldn’t have this getting back to Dani. ‘I’m going to walk away now, and you’re going to do the same. We’re not going to speak of this, not ever. We’re going to pretend that we’ve only just met.’

  Luthor gave a slow nod, after which Xane forced his shoulders down from their hunched position.

  ‘I’m really sorry about what happened to Steve,’ Luthor said, which pushed Xane right over the edge. He didn’t want people’s sympathies. He wanted Steve back, and he wanted to forget. At any particular moment he was only just keeping abreast of his emotions. If he smiled and fucked and kept it all inside, then he just about managed to function. He didn’t talk to Dani about how he felt, because she couldn’t deal with it, and there was no one else he was prepared to trust enough to share his soul with. OK, maybe Spook, but the guy didn’t really grasp how Xane’s mind worked, and these days he was determined to keep his emotional life separate from his involvement with the band.

  ‘You must be totally gutted.’

  ‘Don’t,’ he spat out in warning, raising his hand too. If they followed this path it wouldn’t lead anywhere good. ‘I’d rather not talk about it. Just go, leave me, will you? Find Ulf and sort out those drums.’

  Chapter 15

  Xane paused before entering the kitchen, still acutely aware of the twin agonies of loss and arousal screwing with his well-being. It was his own fault. He’d trained himself to react that way for years. The minute his emotions nose-dived he went out and made everything better by having sex. Some people resorted to food and drink, or they got high. His cure-all was to get laid. The bigger the trauma the more he wanted to fuck.

  Fucking seemed like a really magnificent option right now. All he needed to do was find Dani and somewhere they weren’t going to be disturbed, and he’d be able to pull himself together again and regain some perspective. Iain … Steve … they were all issues he could deal with. Iain would eventually learn the song. Luthor was something that had happened in the past, nothing more. The fact that Xane still thought he was attractive was irrelevant. He found lots of people attractive. It didn’t mean he had to act on it. Steve was a more complicated issue, but time would heal that. Or so he’d heard. He wasn’t sure he’d ever entirely come to terms with what had happened.

  Xane pushed open the kitchen door, intent on finding that beer and draining it before finding Dani. To his astonishment, he found her sitting on the countertop in front of him.

  Fuck! She’d been just ten feet away while Luthor had been getting kissy with him. ‘What are you doing in here?’ He prayed she hadn’t overheard anything. One thing he knew without a doubt, she’d freak out completely if she discovered he and Luthor had any sort of past. The only reason she could cope with his having been sexually involved with Steve was that the guy was dead.

  ‘Xane?’

  She looked at him and all thoughts of Luthor and Steve were instantly stripped from his thoughts.

  ‘Jesus! What happened?’

  Her lip was split and puffy. Red-stained tissues lay in a pile on the draining board.

  ‘Who did this?’ All manner of hideous possibilities entered his thoughts. Immediately, he tugged her into his arms. ‘You didn’t hurt your nose? Nothing’s broken?’

  ‘Xane, I’m fine. I fell on the tarmac outside is all.’

  He noticed the scrapes on her palms which seemed to back up the explanation, and he breathed slightly easier. Although Steve hadn’t seemed all that injured. ‘Maybe we should have someone check you over.’

  ‘There’s no need. Luthor got me an ice-pack.’ She held up a wet tea-towel as evidence.

  ‘He was with you.’ Of course, he’d just come out of this room. ‘Why didn’t he fetch me?’

  ‘Because I’m fine, and I didn’t want to disturb you working with the band. Seriously, Xane, it’s nothing. It probably looks worse than it actually is.’

  He turned her head slightly with the press of his thumb so he could better see the damage to her lip.

  ‘Do I look awful?’

  She could never look awful, but he hated that she was hurt. He very gently kissed the other side of her mouth. ‘You haven’t hurt anywhere else, have you?’

  ‘Don’t think so,’ she said, snuggling against the crook of his shoulder. Xane pushed his hands into her hair and drew her closer still, hating that she was hurt and he hadn’t been there to help. He kissed her again, this time brushing his lips against her forehead, then her eyelids, her cheeks and her chin. He was still a mess of emotions.

  Dani groaned a little when his attention strayed a little too close to her cut. Xane lifted her hands and kissed better the scrapes on her palms.

  ‘Are you finished with the practice?’

  ‘Yeah.’ At least he was. He made an on-the-spot decision not to go back, not just because of Iain Willows winding him up.

  He needed to stay away from Luthor too.

  ‘I guess that means you have some free time.’

  ‘That’s right. What do you say we make it alone time, and I kiss you all better?’

  ‘I think you’ve already kissed more bits than I hurt in.’

  He’d hardly noticed that his attention had strayed from her hands to her wrists. He placed her hands on his body and moved in to tease the pulse point in her neck. The groan she gave in response made him smile.

  Yeah, the way to drive the demons out was to get lost in her again. When he reached for the top button of her blouse, her gaze immediately shot to the door, which lacked any lock or bolt. Xane shoved the wastebin against it. It wouldn’t stop anyone entering, but it would make it more difficult. Not
that he cared who saw him with his lady. The obstacle was purely for her benefit.

  ‘Here?’ she blurted incredulously. She could be hopelessly traditional. Xane on the other hand didn’t see a reason not to have sex anywhere he damn well chose and where he wasn’t likely to be arrested. ‘Xane, don’t.’ She stayed his hand. The look in her eyes told him she meant it.

  ‘You don’t want me?’ he said, moving back against the wall opposite her. It left them maybe a foot and a half apart. He didn’t really think that, but he didn’t want to waste time trying to find somewhere with a lockable door.

  ‘I never said that.’

  Off came his shirt.

  ‘Xane, we can’t. Someone will come in. It’s a kitchen. The beer is in here.’

  ‘Maybe you’re not attracted to me.’ He put one finger to his parted lips, knowing there was no goddamned way in hell that was true, not with the way her gaze was raking over his torso. He was in damn good condition at the moment, his corded muscles worked into tightness. Pumping iron wasn’t particularly his thing, but it made a passable alternative to lots of sex when he needed to work off steam. His new tattoo had settled too, so that it was no longer red, and he’d also replaced his missing nipple ring this morning, so that the two silver hoops gleamed with promise under the fluorescent light.

  He lowered his hand, dragging his index finger down from his mouth, over his chin to his pecs to toy with the rings. Hey, he liked how they felt, it’s why they were there, and he knew she liked to play with them too. She especially liked to suck them into her sweet little mouth.

  Dani’s tongue swept across her torn lower lip as she watched him. ‘I am attracted to you. But we shouldn’t do this here.’

  ‘Shouldn’t … What is this “shouldn’t”?’ he teased. ‘I don’t think I know what that means. Is it a sort of challenge?’

  ‘Xane,’ she said in warning.

  He latched onto the warble of doubt in her voice. The bit that told him she was excited by what he was doing, and would absolutely be brave too if he just coaxed a little more. Dani liked to make her protests to prove that she was still a good girl, not a complete sexual delinquent like him.