by Dana Delamar
Of course, I did. The thought of Rod’s mouth around my cock was so sinful, so honest, so much what I wanted that I’d never fully let myself imagine it. But those dreams, those bloody fantasies that had been rolling through my head…
I looked down my body to Rod, who lay alongside my legs, his head held rigid above my groin, poised for action. His gaze was hungry. Ravenous despite the fact he’d just come.
I wanted this.
And maybe I could do it for us both.
I nodded. Rod’s face split into an enormous grin.
The retort I’d intended to speak aloud got stuck in my throat when his flat tongue licked up the underside of my cock like it was an ice lolly on a blistering summer day. He smacked his lips together. “Mmm… I always knew you’d taste like sin.”
Before I could catch my breath, he opened his mouth wide and swallowed me whole.
“Oh fuck,” I whispered hoarsely. There was no air left in my lungs, no rational thought left in my head.
My world was my cock.
And Rod’s mouth.
Rod’s mouth on my cock.
That was all that mattered. He lifted his head, looked up at me, then lowered it again, going lower still, taking more of me each time. His lips were around the root of me, his throat pulsing around my crown.
“Bloody hell!” I shouted as his throat fluttered brilliantly. I’d never had a blow job like this before. It was magical. Priceless. Rod was the king of cocksuckers. “You’re fucking ace at this…”
I’d wanted to call him “mate” like I always did, but somehow it seemed wrong. Rod wasn’t a mate like Mick or Tommy or Jules or Damon.
I closed my eyes. No, he was so much more than that. I wanted him to be more. It just wasn’t possible.
We did have right now though. And if this was to be my only time experiencing the incredible reality of having Rod’s mouth on me, I was going to give it my full attention so I could replay every exquisite detail in my mind for years to come. These moments would have to suffice me for a lifetime.
I began to roll my hips. Rod stilled. I felt his lips smile around my shaft. His tongue licked around my crown, and I almost came.
Sucking in a breath, I grabbed onto Rod’s head, let my fingers dig into his hair, into his scalp. He blinked at me.
“Thank you,” I murmured before I let loose.
I fucked his mouth, driving my cock into it as though if I could get in deep enough, I could remain there, in some kind of limbo where Rod and I would always be together.
I slammed my hips harder. My cock hit the back of his throat, making him gag. His eyes watered, but he didn’t pull back, so I kept going. His hand cradled my balls, gently rolling them between his fingers, in sharp contrast to what I was doing to his mouth.
I slowed down, pulled back a bit. Let him breathe. I filled my own lungs, then he took me in again. This time, I kept the pace slower. Kept the frenzy-bordering-on-panic at bay. He was making me feel too much, more than I could handle. It wasn’t his fault I was weak. He wasn’t the one I needed to punish. I relaxed my grip on his hair, but I didn’t release it. I enjoyed it too much, and if the flare in Rod’s eyes each time I gave an involuntary tug on it was any indication, he enjoyed it too.
All too soon, the pressure in my cock and the tingling in my balls erupted, and so did I. My body convulsed as I shot my cum into Rod’s hot, greedy mouth. He swallowed, his eyes going soft, and his deep moan vibrated through my groin.
When I was calm again, he licked my prick until it lay flaccid along my thigh.
“That was fucking brilliant,” I said, because I had to say something and because it had been fucking brilliant.
“Yeah?” he asked as he levered himself up onto his knees. He seemed unsure of himself, as though he’d shed his confidence like a cloak.
I smiled. I could feel my walls building back up. But still I smiled. “Yeah.”
He dropped down onto the other side of Sky, spooning her. He whispered something in her ear. She smiled and wrapped her arm over his. They looked so beautiful together, but then again, Sky always looked bloody gorgeous.
I rolled over onto my side facing her. A few curls had fallen onto her forehead, and I brushed them aside with my thumb, cradling her jaw in my palm. She leaned into it, smiling sleepily. She’d made this happen for me. Rod was talking to me again, because Sky had made it happen. I owed her so much. I loved her for that, and for so much more.
In Palm Springs, I’d told her I loved her, and I’d meant it. I still meant it. And even though she might not believe me, I had to tell her again. Rod and I weren’t a possibility, but Sky and I could be.
I moved closer to her and pressed my lips to hers in a tender kiss. I hoped she could feel everything I was trying to say with it, the thanks, the hope, the adoration. After several long minutes of lazy snogging, I released her lips. “I love you, Sky.”
Her eyes rounded in surprise.
I chuckled. “I know you didn’t believe me when I told you before, but it was true then, and it’s true now.”
She looked at me warily, a hint of tension in her shoulders. “Dev—”
“Shh,” I said, placing a finger on her lips. “I just wanted you to know.” I looked at Rod over her shoulder. His eyes were closed. The bastard was knackered.
I smiled and settled my hand on her hip. “Sleep, sweets.”
When she continued to stare at me wide-eyed, I began to hum. Some words came to me then. Words that had never been more true. Words that were meant for both people sharing the bed with me tonight. I sang them softly.
You own my life,
You are my heart.
Chapter 7
DEV
Stoked from the incredible night with Sky and Rod, I strode into the rehearsal space ready to see King’s Cross make magic. Damon, Tommy, Mick, and Jules were there, noodling around with their instruments.
But Rod wasn’t here. And he hadn’t been in our room either when I’d gone there to shower and change.
He’d left me and Sky in the treetop bungalow, just after dawn, and I’d thought nothing of it. Just Rod being Rod, or maybe it was just him wanting some space, a little break.
Rod had never been known for his punctuality, but he was usually on time when it came to the music, especially when things were going well between us. They were certainly going well now, right?
So why did I feel so on edge?
He’d gone quiet last night after we’d made love to Sky. After I’d touched him. After he’d taken me in his mouth… My heart started pounding again, just thinking of it, and my cock woke up. The whole night, the three of us, the sensation of both our cocks inside Sky at the same time… A shudder ran through me.
Fuck. I wanted to do it again. All of it. I didn’t know how much further I could go with Rod, but maybe what we’d done was enough to make us both happy… And enough to keep me from feeling like I’d betrayed my family.
I picked up my Taylor and started working on a chord progression for a song I had in mind. Damon walked over, studying my fingering.
“Damn, you’re amazing,” he said.
I blushed. “I’m no Hendrix. Or Clapton.”
Damon scoffed. “You’re a lot better than ninety percent of the guitarists out there.”
I kept my eyes on the strings. “Thanks, but I still think you’re being generous.”
Sky walked in, followed by Daniel. But Rod wasn’t with them. I glanced at the clock on the wall. Fuck. He was at least thirty minutes late. I took out my phone, sent him a text. “Where r u?”
I waited, but no response came. My stomach tightened. Something was wrong; I could feel it.
Sky came over to me. I let my eyes travel up her long tanned legs to the hem of her sundress. It was a pale pink with large blue flowers on it, and it suited her so perfectly I wanted to remember this moment forever.
“Where’s Rod?” she asked.
I shrugged. “I’ve texted him, but he’s not responded.”
She pursed her lips. “Where did he go this morning?”
Again I shrugged.
Daniel came over. He didn’t look happy. “Is Rod ill?”
“Don’t think so.”
“Then where is he?” Daniel asked.
“That’s the twenty-five-thousand-dollar question,” Sky said and crossed her arms.
Daniel gave her a meaningful look, one that said he was sick of our shit.
I didn’t blame him. I was sick of it too. I thought we’d fixed things, or at least had started to. And then off Rod went again, for no reason I could discern.
“I’ll find him,” Sky said.
“After you and I talk,” Daniel muttered, and part of me bristled at his tone. This wasn’t Sky’s fault. Rod and I needed to work out our issues ourselves.
Or rather, I needed to work out my issues. And I had a critical decision to make.
Did I stay and fight for the band I loved, or did I walk away?
The two of them left, and I tried to focus on the song again. But all I heard in my head was coward, coward, coward.
It wasn’t just the band I had to decide to fight for.
One thing at a time, right? If Rod and I couldn’t work things out, I at least had to leave him a working band.
Taylor in hand, I walked over to the others. “Rod’s not feeling well, so we’re on our own today.”
“You can sing then,” Damon said.
I huffed. “Not on your life.”
“Why not? You could be the front man,” Damon said. “You’ve got the voice and the looks for it.”
“It can’t be anyone but Rod.”
“Why not?”
I looked over at Tommy, Jules, and Mick. “Explain to Damon why Rod is the face of the band.”
Tommy spoke up. “Because he sings the best.”
“Yes. But that’s not all it is.”
“What else, then?” Mick asked.
For fuck’s sake. Were they blind? “The way he looks. The way he moves. He’s hot. Fuckable.”
Tommy snorted. “He is?”
Heat raced up my neck. “Surely you all know this.” I wracked my brain for a comparison. “What about Chris Hemsworth? I think we can all agree that he’s fuckable.”
Damon waggled his eyebrows. “Well, for Chris, maybe I’d bend over.”
“See?” I said, looking at Tommy. He looked blank. Jules and Mick were more of the same. “Seriously? You don’t see it?” Three heads shook in unison.
I looked to Damon, and he gave me a thorough up and down. “You know, you look pretty fuckable to me.”
The heat spread from my neck over my face. “No one wants to see a band with an Indian front man. Besides, my parents would lose their shit if I had any more visibility.”
Damon’s brow wrinkled. “Are you kidding me? They aren’t proud of you?”
Mick enlightened him. “He was supposed to be Dr. Prakesh.”
Damon whistled. “No shit.”
“I dropped out of med school.”
“Still… you had to bust your ass to get in.”
True, but that was irrelevant. “It doesn’t matter that I tried to do what they wanted. The point is, I failed to do it in the end.”
“Failed? Don’t they know how hard it is for a band to make it to the top of the charts? Don’t they get how famous you are?”
I smiled, but it was bitter. “Oh, they’re well aware. They still think I’m an embarrassment.”
Damon stared at me open-mouthed, then finally snapped his jaw shut. “Well, if you won’t take the mic, I guess I will.”
I nodded. “Thank you.”
He started to say something, then clammed up, which I didn’t think he was capable of. But apparently even Damon had his limits.
“What?” I asked.
He glanced at me, then away. “I have some songs I’ve written. If you want to hear them.”
For a second, anger flared in me, then I tamped it down. I wanted to say that Rod and I wrote the songs, that we didn’t need his help.
But if I left, Rod was going to need a new writing partner.
A weight settled in my stomach, like I’d swallowed a stone.
If I left…
Fuck. I didn’t want to.
But if I had to—
I cleared my throat, pasted on a smile. “Let’s hear them, mate.”
A grin broke out on Damon’s face. “Okay. This one is called ‘Bleeding.’” He launched into a midtempo song that was soon speeding along, his voice rough as he sang about the person who’d shredded his heart.
Was that how Rod would feel if I left?
But if we couldn’t repair things, what other choice did I have?
Damon was good at what he did. He was even a decent singer. I was sure Rod could file the rough edges off the lyrics and with some tweaks, we could make the song work for the album.
We.
The word slapped me in the face.
Rod and I had been a team forever. The month before we’d come to Tahiti had felt barren to me without Rod in it.
Was I really considering a lifetime of that? A lifetime of not talking to my best mate? Of not seeing him every day?
Of never sharing the stage again, never writing a song together again, never sharing that high when we knew we’d written a hit?
Fuck.
If he couldn’t accept what I had to offer, that was it for us.
The only bright spot in all this was Sky. I could see myself with her forever, see our little golden-skinned kids racing around…
The stone in my gut grew heavier. Mum and Dad would have a fit if I didn’t marry a nice Indian girl of their choosing.
But how could I marry anyone but Sky?
They’d just have to accept it. Sky would be my price for giving up the band, giving up my music.
Giving up Rod.
Damon brought the song to a close and gave me an expectant look. “What do you think?”
I’d barely heard the last third of it. “We can work with it.” I tried to put more enthusiasm into my voice. “Nice work.”
I gave him a smile I absolutely did not feel and glanced at the clock.
Rod was never this late for a session he intended to make. And my phone hadn’t vibrated with an incoming text.
Something was definitely wrong.
How many times were we going to fly apart before we finally split for good?
SKY
Like a naughty schoolgirl following the principal to his office, I slinked behind Daniel to the suite where he’d set up his temporary residence. On the top floor of the building housing the rest of the TI staff, the King’s Cross roadies, and Nigel, Daniel’s suite was larger and swankier than the bungalows where the band and I were staying. Hell, with two rooms, a large dining room/living room combo, and a small kitchen, it was bigger than my apartment back in Berkeley.
Daniel led me to the second room, which had been turned into an office for him. He sat in the leather chair and folded his hands on the chrome and glass desk. His eyes burned into me as I took a seat across from him.
I crossed my legs and adjusted the skirt of my sundress while I waited for him to get to the point, although I already knew what was on his mind. Rod. The gorgeous rock star was on my mind too.
Daniel leaned back in the chair, its leather creaking loudly in the quiet room. “What’s going on, Sky? Why wasn’t Rod at rehearsal this morning?”
“I don’t know,” I said in all honesty. After last night, I’d expected him to be on cloud nine, but when Dev and I had woken up this morning, he was already gone. He’d arranged for a car to bring us back to the Hideaway Resort, but I hadn’t been able to find him. I didn’t even know if he had come back himself.
Daniel’s jaw jumped visibly. “You told me yesterday that things were fixed, or at least getting there.”
“And I thought that was the case, right up until he didn’t show for rehearsal. We had a long… um… talk last night.” My face heate
d. “Rod and Dev seemed to be getting along.” I raised my hands, then dropped them into my lap. “I don’t know what went wrong.”
“A talk, huh?”
I closed my eyes. This was why I preferred to work alone. I didn’t like answering to anyone. I rubbed my temple. This was only temporary though. A necessary evil. If all went well, Daniel would become my partner, as would Javier and Arianna. Opening my eyes, I glared at him. It was time I showed Daniel that I was no pushover. He wouldn’t make me feel guilty about what I’d done, at least not without shouldering some of the responsibility as well. “You know it wasn’t.”
“I don’t know any such thing.” He returned my glare. “As CEO of Total Indulgence Tours, I can’t know any such thing.” He pushed his chair back with his foot, turning it a bit to the left, then to the right. He rubbed his jaw and looked up at the ceiling. “I shouldn’t have agreed to this.”
“Then why did you?” I snapped.
“You told me you had a personal relationship with Rod and Dev. That you could fix this. Rod asked for you specifically, after all.”
Fighting the blush that threatened to engulf my entire body, I continued. “I don’t know what happened. They were fine last night. All I know is that I want this partnership, and I’m going to make it happen.”
Daniel abandoned his laid-back pose and leaned his elbows on the desk, his fingers pressed to his mouth. “Are you sleeping with Rod or Dev?”
I looked down at my lap and picked at an imaginary piece of lint on my dress. “Both,” I whispered.
“Fuck, Sky.” Daniel exploded out of his chair and paced the narrow width in front of the window. He raked a hand through his hair. “Maybe Rod didn’t show up today because he’s pissed, jealous that you slept with Dev.”
“It’s—it’s not like that,” I stammered.
“What then? Is he mad because you’re playing them against each other?”
I looked at a spot over his shoulder. “No.”
Daniel stopped in his pacing and looked at me. His bewildered expression almost made me smile. Almost. “They know you’re sleeping with both of them… and they’re okay with it?”