Sweetest Obsessions - Anthology

by Anthony, Jane

  She had barely put one foot down from the bus when she saw Addy chatting with Charlie, her bus driver.

  “Addy. Addy!” she called out. “What the hell is Jaxon talking about, joining my tour bus?”

  “Come on, Kayla. It’s just going to be for a couple of days. Two, three at the most, and I promise you Jaxon will behave the entire time he is there,” Addy spoke gently, and Kayla was reminded of one more reason why she had been really mad when Jaxon poached her. She knew exactly what to say and how to say it. Like now, she was talking gently because she knew Kayla would also be forced to react gently.

  “Come on, Addy. You know how I feel about Jaxon. So you know there is no way in hell I am letting him ride along in my tour bus. If he wants, he can hang from the side of it. But not inside.”

  As they talked, the door of the bus slid open, and Jaxon walked out, holding her bowl of ice cream in his hand and licking the spoon. Kayla looked at the bowl, then up at him. Then she looked at the bowl and at Addy’s face. “That’s my ice cream,” she said, staring at him as if she wanted to believe he had made a mistake.

  “Yeah, I know.” He leaned against the bus and crossed his leg. The perfect picture of a man without a care or worry. “You left it in the living room, and it was melting, so I thought I’d rescue it for you.”

  “By eating it?” Kayla asked, looking at him with eyes she wished could shoot daggers.

  “Yes. How else could I have rescued it?”

  “I don’t know. Put it in the fridge?” Kayla crossed her hands around her waist, noting the way Jaxon’s eyes dropped to her chest and back up again, though not fast enough to be polite.

  He shrugged and curved his lips in a smile that was more sensual than humor-filled. “Where is the fun in that?” He dipped the spoon in the bowl and then lifted it to his mouth. Teasing her as he licked the ice cream and then wrapped his whole mouth around the spoon.

  Kayla opened her mouth to scream, then gritted her teeth instead as she closed her eyes and counted down from ten. Then she opened her eyes and looked to Addy. “I can’t do this. I swear I can’t. I’m calling Aaron right now. I bet my contract says I get a tour bus of my own.”

  Addy gave Jaxon a warning look and then went forward to place an arm around Kayla. “Don’t mind Jaxon. He’s just being a dick. And by now, I should think you should know better than to let him get to you.”

  “Hey, I don’t think calling me names is covered in the money I pay you every month. And if it is, I always knew I was paying you too much.”

  Addy ignored him and took Kayla’s hand. She led her back into the bus and sat her down in the dining section. “Yes, your contract states that you get a tour bus. I helped draft the contract, remember? But this is not about a contract, just me needing you to help my client out. Granted, he is my douchebag, asshole client.”

  Kayla couldn’t help but smile at that. Jaxon took a seat at the table and scowled at Addy before turning to Kayla.

  “Okay, I accept I can be a little bit of an ass—”

  “A little?” Kayla scoffed, and Jaxon raised an eyebrow at her.

  “All I’m saying is that I am going to behave myself,” he finished, then nodded his head and gave Addy a look that had Kayla growing suspicious.

  “You told him to say that, didn’t you?” she demanded and was not surprised when the publicist just shrugged and nodded her head.

  “Yeah, I did, and I assure you he is going to keep to his word,” Addy added and then turned to Jaxon. “And you better, or else I’m not fixing this one.”

  Jaxon just rolled his eyes and sat low in his chair like a sulking kid, and Kayla burst into laughter. “How do you do that? Make him scared of you like that?” she asked Addy.

  “Oh, I know where he buried the body, so to speak,” she replied, and the two women looked at him with their heads crouched together.

  He glanced at the two of them, and Kayla thought he looked a little bit uncomfortable. “You two people should stop that. It’s creepy.”

  “Why?” Kayla asked, “You scared of something?”

  “As if,” he muttered and got up to go rifle through her fridge.

  “Don’t worry,” Addy said. “He is scared enough.”

  The two women burst into laughter, and Kayla soon found herself leaning into Addy. “I’ve missed you,” she said and sighed when she felt her former publicist’s arms close around her shoulders.

  “I’ve missed you, too.”

  Kayla waited for a beat, then asked something she had wanted to know for a long time. “Why did you leave, Addy? I mean, I know Jaxon must have promised you heaven and earth, but I always felt like I did something to chase you away or something.”

  “Come on, Kayla, you know that is not true.”

  “Why then, Addy? Why did you leave me?”

  Addy seemed to think about it for a while, then she sighed and looked into Kayla’s eyes. “It’s nothing like you think, Kayla. It just became too . . . boring for me. Which you should take as a compliment, because it meant you were so well behaved that I had almost no mess to clean up for you. Working for Jaxon” — she glanced at him — “it brings its own challenges, and I love those challenges.”

  Kayla was quiet for a moment, then she softly said, “I can cause trouble too, you know. Maybe punch a reporter or something.”

  Addy just smiled, and then she hugged Kayla, and Kayla returned the hug. “Just take care of yourself, okay? And let me know if this one here causes you any trouble, and I’ll straighten him out.”

  “No problem,” Kayla replied and looked at Jaxon, who was pretending not to hear them. “Plus, I’ve got Sally, and I think the both of us can keep him under control.”

  Addy stopped at the door to the bus and turned around to look at Kayla. “Yeah, I forgot to tell you that. Sally is not here, told me to tell you she had to rush ahead and take care of some logistics problems. She’ll meet you there.”

  Kayla watched her scamper off after delivering the news, and she could do nothing but stare in shock. No Sally meant she and Jaxon were going to be alone in the bus. Alone in the bus for two days with Jaxon. She looked at him and then at the bus, reminding herself that it was a big bus. A very big bus.

  Then he looked at her and smiled, and Kayla’s cheeks heated as the bus suddenly became small. Way too small to contain the both of them and all the energy he seemed to cause in her.

  6

  Kayla sang along with Elton John, lamenting the blues and time on her hands, nodding her head to the music. And doing her best to ignore the man sitting across from her. Didn’t help that he couldn’t seem to keep still, or figure out exactly what it is he wanted to do. From fiddling with his phone to playing with his guitar, and then he abandoned that activity to rifle through the magazines and catalogs she had scattered on the table. It seemed he didn’t find her gossip columns really interesting because he abandoned those to pick up his phone again. Then after a few seconds, he stood up and began to pace the length of the bus.

  Kayla tried but found it hard to just enjoy her music. She should probably go inside and draw the curtain to her sleeping area. But she did not. Instead, she just lay there and watched him from the corner of her eye. A part of her tried to point out that the only reason why his restlessness bothered her was because of how aware of him she was. His physical presence alone was like a grip she couldn’t escape. Finally, when she couldn’t take it anymore, she sat up and glared at him.

  “Stop doing that.”

  He looked up at her, then around as if there was anyone else in the bus she could have been talking to. “Doing what?” he asked, and then resumed pacing without waiting to hear her answer.

  “That.” Kayla waved her hands in his direction, not knowing exactly how to put into words what it was he was doing that was pissing her off.

  “Exactly what is that, Kayla? Or are you just trying to boss me around again?”

  “I don’t try to boss you around,” she denied his claim swiftly, th
en cursed herself for engaging with him. It was the second day on the road, and they should be arriving at the next stop on the tour very early the next day. She had managed to avoid talking to him throughout the day before except for a few unavoidable conversations. She had been hoping she would be that lucky today, but it would seem not. Kayla put her earphones back in her ears and then sat back down and pressed the play button on her phone. She was not going to be dragged into having a conversation with him, because she knew where that would lead. Her angry and him smug.

  Then she watched him walk towards her and take a seat on the couch, right beside her. He smiled at her, and she frowned back at him, wondering what kind of game he was playing at. She thought of standing up and leaving the couch to him. Then instantly shut down that idea since it would seem like he had succeeded in chasing her away. So she decided in the end to ignore him. But after a while, not even the soft crooning voice of Michael Bublé could drown out her reaction to his presence. He just kept looking at her, giving her something of a mocking smile until Kayla was forced to remove the earphones in her ears and glare at him.

  “What do you want?”

  He just kept smiling without answering, watching her get even more irritated. Then just as she opened her mouth to say something, he finally replied to her, “Nothing. Just wondering exactly why you hate me so much.”

  Kayla clamped her mouth shut, telling herself there was no way she was going to get into this. In the end, she couldn’t stop herself from giving him a reply.

  “I don’t hate you. I’d need to actually consider you worth at least something to warrant me hating you. So, no, Jaxon, I don’t hate you.” She smiled sweetly in his face, even daring herself to lean forward until her face was inches away from his. “I think you are a pig and an asshole, true. But I don’t hate you.” Line delivered, she sat back down and waited for the teasing reply she knew she was sure to hear. And was surprised to see a solemn look on his face.

  “You are still mad about the Addy deal, aren’t you?”

  “No, I’m not,” she denied swiftly.

  “Yes, you are. And maybe I can’t blame you. She really is the best at what she does. But I figured that after what she told you, you would at least let go of the animosity. Maybe see a way where we can at least try to pretend to like each other.”

  Kayla frowned at him, wondering if he was trying to play a prank on her. Then she shrugged her shoulders. “I don’t have any problems with you. As far as I am concerned, we’re cool.”

  “Really?” He smiled now, an accusatory smile that called her out on her lie. “You barely said anything to me for the whole of yesterday. One whole day in this bus, and you didn’t say more than ten, maybe twenty words. Looks to me like you still have problems with me.”

  “Think what you like, I don’t care. I don’t have any problems with you, and I’m not in the habit of talking when I don’t have anything to say. Besides, I don’t see why you are complaining. Don’t tell me you miss being the center of attention or can’t handle the fact that a woman exists who doesn’t give a crap about you.”

  He studied her for a few seconds, still sort of smiling. But not really smiling. “She came to me, you know, Addy. She came to me and offered her services,” he said, and Kayla stared at him, not believing a word he was saying. “I mean, I knew she was working for you. But she told me what she wanted, and I said yes because I would have been a fool to say no. At that point in my career, I needed her more than you did. And I’ll apologize for betraying you like that, but in the end, Kayla, you have to realize that she came to me.”

  Kayla stared at him, unblinking, her world rocked to the core of its foundation. She had hated him because all along she knew he had tempted Addy away from her, stole her publicist. Now she was hearing differently, and she knew that for all his bad habits, Jaxon never lied. He was capable of doing some very bad things. But lying was not one of them. But even more than that, he was apologizing. Kayla had always wondered what she would do if Jaxon ever apologized to her for what he did. The fantasies themselves harmless, because she knew there was no way he would ever be humble enough to say sorry. In her fantasies, she would laugh at him as he begged for her forgiveness. On his knees, of course. It was her fantasy, and she found she quite liked the image of him on his knees.

  But now that he had really given her an apology of sorts, Kayla was confused as to what to do. She looked up to see him watching her and tilted her lips in a small smile.

  He returned the smile and then added, “I’m not saying you should forgive me or we should be like best chums or something. I’m just asking that we at least try to be civil to each other.”

  She looked at him, still suspecting he was trying to pull a prank on her. “I can do that,” she finally said. “I can try to be civil with you. Besides, no way we can be best chums. I don’t think I’m ready to be exposed to your particular brand of corruption just yet.”

  He threw back his head and laughed, and immediately Kayla was reminded by how close they were. His knee brushed against hers, and she was resting just inches away from the arm he placed around the couch. He looked down at her, and Kayla felt her heart beat thrice at fast, and her throat went dry.

  “You have the worst opinion of me, don’t you?”

  “It’s not an opinion if it is true,” she said, slowly crossing her legs to put some distance between them.

  “So, what is the truth then?” he asked her, leaning in and eating up the space she had just created.

  “That you are a playboy.” She arched an eyebrow at him. “Can’t say I blame you, all those women throwing themselves at you. How can you say no?”

  “So you buy into all that media nonsense?” he asked, still smiling. “Would think that you of all people would know better than to believe a word those people say.”

  “What people? I don’t need anyone to tell me something I have seen with my own eyes over and over again.”

  “Well, it’s not like you are a blushing bride either. Besides, I get the feeling you blow way hotter than you pretend to do.”

  She laughed out loud at that, hitting him playfully in the arm. “What does that even mean?”

  “I don’t know,” he replied cryptically before continuing. “So how has touring with me been so far?”

  “Great actually,” she replied honestly. “Your fans are some of the best crowds I’ve ever performed in front of, ever.”

  “Well, some of them are your fans too.”

  “I know. Still nice to hear the crowds screaming your name out there.”

  Kayla went quiet at that, then she replied more quietly, “Yes, I guess it is.” Then she brightened up. “Not that you are doing rather badly yourself, judging by the number of people I see hanging around your tour bus after every show. And by people, I mean ladies.” She waggled her eyebrow playfully.

  “Oh, that,” he mumbled, smiling brightly and averting his eyes.

  “Hey, he is blushing. That’s kind of shocking.”

  “Very funny,” he said. Then he sat up and looked at her. “You really think I do it, don’t you?”

  “Do what?”

  “Sleep with my fans?”

  Kayla was about to respond with something funny, then she stopped as she noticed the look on his face. “I don’t know, Jaxon. Yes, maybe. I mean, I don’t think it is that big a deal or anything, you know.” She tried to dismiss the topic, suddenly uncomfortable with it. “I mean, I’m not like saying you should do it, not saying you shouldn’t either,” she quickly added, then clamped her mouth shut.

  “Guess you do then, but don’t worry. Just teasing you,” he said, his eyes filled with humor once again, and Kayla subconsciously breathed a sigh of relief. She could deal with funny Jaxon. Serious Jaxon was just a bit above her, though.

  “Very funny,” she drawled, throwing his words back in his face. “So, tell me the funniest thing that has ever happened to you involving one of your groupies.”

  “Groupies?” He lo
oked at her with one eyebrow raised and a largely exaggerated look of insult on his face.

  Kayla laughed, making a face of her own. “Okay, one of your lady fans, if you prefer.”

  “Well, I do prefer.” He leaned back deeply on the couch, and Kayla found herself leaning in so she could hear him talk, her eyes distractedly taking in the thick curl of his eyelashes, the lips that seemed to offer so much that she wanted but would never let herself have.

  “Let me see.” Jaxon tapped the side of his head, eyes cast to the ceiling in thought. Then he grinned at her. “Well, there was this one time. I had just finished a show, did the whole razzmatazz of shaking hands and signing things. I was tired as hell, just wanted to get to my bus and drop dead on my bed. Maybe get a bite of pizza to eat before. Then I walk into the bus and there is this redhead in my kitchen. I mean, gorgeous redheaded woman. But she was in my kitchen, in my tour bus that is supposed to be guarded at all times.”

  “Damn, knew it was going to be a crazy woman story,” Kayla smirked, so engrossed in him and his story that she leaned in even closer to him.

  “Well, I’m standing in my door, looking at this woman with an apron tied around her waist and thinking about what the hell I was going to do. But even more, I was tired and hungry and definitely not relishing the fact that I had to call for security to come in and boot her out, right?”

  “Right,” Kayla repeated, nodding her head.

  “Then she turned around and that was when I smelled it. Bacon. I mean real, homemade bacon, and not that crap I always get when I’m on the road. I’m looking at her confused, wondering what the hell was happening. That’s when she turned around and told me she had been expecting me. ‘Grab a seat,’ she says. And when I did, she served me what I would have to admit was and still is the best meal I ever ate on the tour bus.”