Liam looked at Val sadly and said, “Daddy say fuck,” he sniffed, glancing up at me with huge watery eyes.
“I did, and I was naughty,” I said looking destroyed for upsetting Liam.
“I sorry,” he said, looking worried and my heart melted because as little as he was he understood right from wrong.
“No, Liam. Daddy’s not mad at you. Daddy’s mad at Daddy for making you feel bad,” Val offered.
“Naughty, Daddy,” Liam scowled.
Valerie immediately lifted the mood by changing the subject to talk about one of Liam’s favorite cartoon characters and he was back to his happy self, leaving me to mull over what exactly Niven’s deal was in relation to her. The guy spent a lot of time with Valerie, sometimes whole days and nights when I had something out of town that Valerie didn’t attend with us, so if he was crushing on my woman I was determined to get to the bottom of it.
*****
Arriving back at the cabin, we were still sticky from the ice cream, and Liam looked as if he’d been painting with chocolate on his clothes and face. Valerie took his clothes off on the porch, and I started the tub. Within minutes all three of us were basking in the warmth of the water. Liam sat across Valerie’s lap and leaned on her chest. Contented and soothed by listening to his mom’s voice as we chatted, he drifted off for a nap in her arms. The image of the two of them sitting there made me feel so proud.
“Better get him out, I don’t want to keep him in here too long,” she said.
I stood, lifting him onto my shoulder, and he didn’t stir, even with the change in temperature from the tub to the fresh air. Val stood and stepped out of the tub, wearing only her thong. She opened the front door for me and scooted almost naked down the hall to grab a towel to dry him. Covering his little body, she patted softly as I walked carrying him to his room and laid him gently on his bed. When we saw he was settled, we crept back out of the room and closed the door. Without hesitation she stripped the thong down her legs.
“What do you want for dinner tonight?” she asked.
“Depends what’s on the menu, we’re not eating here tonight,” I smirked when my dick twitched in my pants as I took in her naked body while she dressed. I was tempted but we were short on time and I already had plans for us.
“What do you mean?”
“I thought we could fly up to Chicago, take Kayden and Amber with us and meet up with Simone and Craig. Kayden gets married in three weeks, and we’ve not really spent a lot of time with him. We could do a nightclub there, have some fun and come back tomorrow. Don’t worry I’ve already arranged with your mom to watch Liam and Niven is coming back first thing tomorrow. I messaged Craig and Kayden, and they’re both up for it.”
Valerie’s mouth twisted and I knew instinctively she didn’t want to leave Liam. I was determined, though, because sometimes I looked at her, and thought about all the responsibility she carried, and wondered if she ever thought about the things she’d missed in her late teens. She’d never gone to college or had fun with large groups of carefree people, or had the chance to do stupid stuff that had been my right of passage at St. Cloud. For her, life seemed to be full of important decisions, serious meetings in the very narrow fields of the music industry or photography, and hanging around waiting for me.
Although we’d enjoyed our time together on tour, we seemed to eat, sleep, and breathe RedA. It worried me that the life I’d chosen, was the one she was stuck with by loving me. It seemed to control and dictate to us how we had to live, and what we could do.
Since we’d had Liam, there had been little time for just going out like a normal couple and having fun, and since she’d gotten pregnant earlier in our relationship, we hadn’t had a lot of spontaneity. In fact, Liam was the result of one of the few spontaneous things we had done.
I’d been thinking about how broadening our horizons as a couple by injecting more fun since Liam turned two, but when she booked an overseas tour, I had to place all plans on the back burner. In an attempt to improvise I disappeared earlier that day—under the ruse of doing some technical stuff—and arranged to take her to Chicago. It had been my plan to take Lee and Niamh with us too. The eight of us would be going to let our hair down. Apart from the odd glass of champagne, I’d never seen Valerie drink anything. I figured it was time she learned to take some shots and let herself go.
Kayden and Amber were excited to be coming with us. They’d never been to our place in Chicago, and when I’d mentioned it initially, Kayden said he was looking forward to finally meeting Niamh. He’d spoken to her many times on the phone, but when he mentioned meeting her, it gave me the idea to bring her along. Right after speaking to him, I’d called her and asked if she knew anyone who could watch Teague for the night, because like Valerie, she needed some fun.
At first, Niamh was reluctant saying that it wasn’t her place to come with us, but I thought that was nonsense because she’d been part of my household for five years, and we’d been through a lot together. She and Teague were like family. The woman was only two years older than I was, yet she’d locked herself away from the world to take care of me in return for a decent place to bring her little boy up, sacrificing her own happiness to make sure her son had his mom around until he was independent. Eventually, she gave in and agreed to join us. Arranging for Teague to be cared for wasn’t hard. He was a good kid and one of his friends was only too happy to help.
By the time we got to the house, Teague had whipped himself up into a frenzy of excitement at the thought of a school night sleepover with his friend. He was changing daily, but still had that same infectious beaming smile whenever he saw me.
“Flynn!” he called out excitedly. Teague stared wide-eyed with a beaming smile on his face before he ran full speed across the hallway and jumped up into my arms.
“Hey buddy, how are you doing?”
“I’m good. I’m going to spend the night at Jacob’s house tonight,” he said, hurriedly, with a smug grin.
“So I hear. You gotta be extra good and go to sleep when Jacob’s mom tells you, bud, okay?”
“Sure, but I got some Twinkies and two miniature sodas in my bag for a midnight feast,” he whispered, and glanced around me to see if his mom was watching.
I laughed and opened my mouth, but his hand quickly covered it, “Shh, that’s a secret,” he said, studying my face seriously.
Jacob’s mom arrived at the front gate, and Valerie opened it for her to come up. Niamh went to the kitchen to grab Teague’s bag, and I opened the door to a pretty, petite, black-haired young woman.
“O.M.G. You’re here!” she said, smoothing her shaking hands down the thighs of her jeans. “Francine, Jacob’s mom. Oh.My.God. You’re Flynn Docherty,” she shrieked and gave another squeal before trying to compose herself. “I can’t believe you’re standing there. Oh. My. God, this is your house,” she said, as she stared in disbelief while gesturing me to shake hands with her.
I turned to see Valerie roll her eyes and chew on the side of her lip, and I smiled, feeling a little embarrassed at the woman’s reaction.
“Is it really you?” she continued holding her hands out in front of her as if to say, “Whoa.”
I patted myself down and smiled, “Yup, it’s me,” I said with a hint of humor.
Without warning, she flung herself up at me and wrapped her arms and legs around me like a baby koala bear. “Oh God, you are so beautiful, I love your music, I love you, I love you, I—”
“Love you,” Valerie’s voice interjected. She looked at me with the woman hanging off my body and rolled her eyes again, “I think you have the wrong guy, God’s much better looking than him, and the way he acts he’s more of a devil than a God. Aren’t you, honey?” Valerie droned in a tired tone playing the part of someone who’d heard it all before.
“Valerie Darsin, your God’s girlfriend, pleased to meet you,” Valerie said, without a hint of sarcasm.
Jacob’s mom dropped from my body like sh
e’d been struck with sudden paralysis and stood staring at Valerie with her mouth open.
“Oh. God,” she said, staring in disbelief this time at Valerie.
“No, I’m not God either,” Val said and turned away as a fit of giggles took over. Niamh walked out of the house having missed the whole awkward interaction that had just occurred, and smiled at Francine.
“Thank you for doing this, Francine. I’m sure Teague’s got enough in his bag for a week,” she chuckled, then stopped and looked at us all standing silently. “Did I miss something?” she asked when she picked up the weird vibe.
The woman’s face flushed with embarrassment, and she shook her head. “Sorry, I guess I had a moment of insanity there. So Teague’s all set?” she said like someone had pressed an invisible reset button.
By this time, Kayden had come to the door to see what was going on and noted straight away that I was biting back my own fit of laughter. “What’s up?” he asked.
“This is Jacob’s mom who is taking Teague for tonight, and I think it’s safe to say by the way she was stuck to Flynn, she’s a fan of his…music,” Val drawled to her brother. Niamh’s mouth dropped open as her head snapped in the direction of her friend. She was about to say something, but Teague interrupted when he came struggling through the door with his overnight bag, his school backpack and a sleeping bag. “Bye mom, see you after school tomorrow.”
We stood in silence while the woman loaded Teague and his things into her car and waited for the car to drive through the gates. Niamh turned to me with a worried look on her face, “Sorry Flynn, she’s normally a level headed person. I have no idea what she was thinking. What did she say?” Valerie jumped on me, clung to my body, and mimicked what Francine had done earlier.
Niamh was mortified but couldn’t help but laugh at Valerie’s portrayal of how her friend had behaved.
“You are a wicked woman, Valerie Darsin,” I said, laughing hard as I slid my hands under her ass.
“That may be, but I never tried to pass for God before,” she smirked.
“Right, that’s it. You might be my boss, but not tonight lady. For your bad behavior, I’m going to get you drunk and dance you off your feet,” I promised.
“Bring it, I bet I’ll still be standing when you’re long past done,” she retorted.
*****
Chapter 6
Stargazing
Flynn
Lee had hired a small bus to take us to and from the nightclub. Spritzer was a newer club, and one I’d never been to before. It was situated near the river and had this awesome glass front looking out over the water.
The building was chrome and mirrored glass on the outside, and the fancy appearance was reflected right down to the crowd lining up outside. The ladies looked elegant while the guys were all wearing suit pants and nice shirts.
We looked the scruffiest of everyone there, but then again, they knew what they were getting when Lee hired a VIP room. According to him, they were falling over themselves to accommodate us. Valerie looked stunning in a lime-green dress made of stretchy material that clung to every one of her curves. She paired the dress with sexy black stockings that had seams running up the back and six-inch heels making me wish I could change our plans. After seeing her in her outfit, I would’ve rather had her legs wrapped around my waist and my dick balls deep inside her. She looked incredible most of the time, but that night she was dressed to kill, and I had been dying watching her wear it.
Our minibus drove up to the main door of the club, and Lee jumped out before the vehicle had stopped. He waved to the security at the door. I watched the doorman hold his hand up to his ear and speak into his wrist before two other huge guys came outside and flanked the crowd. Lee nodded in our direction and Rita got out followed by Kayden, Amber, Niamh, and Simone.
Once they were clear, Craig got out and stood on the sidewalk, followed by myself and lastly Valerie. The crowd outside the venue went nuts when they saw Craig and were even louder when they realized I was with him.
Seconds later we’d been rushed in through the main doors and led down a hallway to a small space housing two elevators. The security guy who was leading us opened it with a key and gestured us inside. Once we were inside, he wished us a good evening and pushed the button which sent us skyward.
The elevator was small and cramped with all of us inside, but it was a short ride and when the doors opened the loud music pumped noisily from the direction of the club. Lee and Rita stepped out to the left and the right and gave me the thumbs up sign. I walked out of the elevator with Valerie, and our feet immediately vibrated beneath us from the pumping music. We headed toward a tall, leggy blonde wearing a barely-there tank top and shorts.
“Flynn, lovely to have you with us,” she gushed at me ignoring everyone else, “If you’d follow me. My name is Dionne, and I’ll be taking care of you this evening. Anything you need just call me and I’ll be right there.”
“I bet she will,” Valerie said, in a voice laced with sarcasm.
I nudged Valerie, and she smirked, “Anything you need just call me…”
I smiled down at her, “Jealousy suits you. It doesn’t most people, but with that angry streak in your eye and that pissed-off face thing you do it’s hot as hell,” I said, making her giggle.
Reaching the end of the corridor the music had been getting louder and when Dionne opened the huge doors it blared to the point where it would have been pointless trying to speak. Dionne led us to a small room that opened onto a glass-floored balcony where we could see people dancing below us. “Don’t worry it’s one-way glass; no one will see up your skirt or anything,” she reassured with a flirtatious giggle.
“I’m disappointed, I went without underwear hoping to shock this evening,” Valerie drawled sarcastically.
Kayden pushed Valerie’s shoulder, “You better not have,” he scowled. I chuckled and wound his temper tighter when I winked at Valerie. A thunderous dark look fell over his face that cracked us both up with laughter.
Although the huge seated area we were led to was away from the prying eyes of the public downstairs we were open enough to mingle with the few other celebrities that were also there. Some I’d heard of or knew from TV series or movies I’d seen, but I couldn’t see anyone I’d ever met in person. It was often the case that people wandered up to me and spoke as if they’d known me for years and I had no clue who they were.
I usually gave introducing myself a wide berth because I figured if someone were out for the evening, then like me, they’d want to be treated like normal people. It was almost impossible for me, but when I politely ignored people I thought I was giving them much needed space from their lives in the limelight.
*****
Blue leather half-moon seating surrounded white laminate tables and mirrored tiled flooring under the seating area gave the place a very contemporary feel. Sitting down I pulled Valerie onto my lap and waved Dionne, the waitress over. I noticed they had a rare tequila on the menu, “Mezcal— two bottles, nine shot glasses, two bottles of Cristal champagne, and two pitchers of draft beer, we need something to eat as well.”
“Sure we serve canapes for VIP’s. I’ll be right back, let me send the cocktail waitress over with your beverage order.”
Valerie’s jade green eyes twinkled as the light caught them following Dionne as she made her way back to the bar. I knew the moment something had caught her attention—her eyes widened as her head spun around taking in all the different people and surroundings. “Isn’t that…oh…what’s his name?” she clicked her fingers and asked Simone.
Simone looked over to see who she was talking about, “Oh, yeah, the guy who left his wife for that older woman from that popular TV show? Umm, I can’t remember the name of the show,” Simone offered.
“Yeah, him! He looks older in real life,” Amber said, as they had a conversation that went over my head in some secret girl code thing.
“Are you three
even speaking English? Who the hell are you talking about?” I asked, trying to subdue my laughter.
“Him over there with the red shirt and the greasy hair,” Valerie offered, by way of description.
“Ah, John Redderick?”
“That’s his name,” Valerie said, looking at me as if I’d solved a Rubik’s Cube puzzle and kissed me excitedly for knowing his name.
“So he left who?”
“The woman from that lunchtime chat show, the one where five women take turns talking about nothing much. One of the hostesses is that woman that used to be an actress…oh, you know the one, she wears wigs all the time.”
“No, babe you’ve lost me now, I’ve never seen a show like that on television. No wonder he left her,” I smirked.
“Oh, Valerie, look who’s here,” Simone interrupting us as she squealed jumping up and down on the spot and held her hands to her chest.
Valerie turned following Simone’s gaze and her jaw dropped. I could see by the look in her eyes that she liked what she saw as she sat on my knee staring ahead. I glanced over her shoulder to see who she was looking at.
Billy ‘Boy’ Wilson, the lead singer for another rock band called Boxchain was standing near the bar. He was one of the most notorious womanizers even by rock band standards. Had I known he was likely to show up I may well have stayed in Iowa. The guy was a pain in the ass. We’d briefly shared a few gigs as crowd-warmers for bigger bands when I was part of Major ScAlz before our own album had taken off. The guy was known for dipping his dick wherever and whenever the opportunity arose.
Just as I was refreshing my memory about his unsavory ways, Valerie slid off my lap and leaned forward to help the waitress who had just arrived with our drink orders. Flicking her hair behind her ears, Valerie lifted the rare bottle of Mezcal and grimaced. “There’s an animal in this bottle, Flynn,” she said in disgust.
“It’s tequila it’s supposed to be there,” I laughed.
“I’m not drinking that. I’ll get botulism or something.”
Ready For Flynn,Part 3: A Rockstar Romance: Ready For Flynn Series Page 6