Troublemaker: Rascals: Book Five

by McCoy, Katie

  Everything he said made me even hotter. Wetter.

  I felt like I was on fire. Nothing had ever been this good before.

  I was close. So fucking close.

  I rolled my hips against his, seeking release, needing release.

  “Dante,” I gasped.

  “Yes,” he growled. I wrapped my bound arms around his neck. He hoisted me higher up against the door and the new angle made everything explode.

  I came like I had never come before, crying out with ecstasy as my body tightened around him. Dante let out a roar and slammed his hips against mine, riding out my orgasm until he found his own.

  And I knew this wasn’t just a casual thing. I couldn’t get enough of this man.

  14

  Hayley

  I gripped the microphone, trying to focus on the task at hand. We had been rehearsing for hours now, and it had been going great, but my energy was starting to flag and my mind kept wandering to the amazing weekend I had spent with Dante. It was honestly a miracle I could still walk after all he had done with me.

  The encounter against the door had just been the first in an extremely illuminating series of sexual activities that we had embarked on together. He had made good on all of the naughty promises he had whispered in my ear while he was fucking me against my front door. I should have been sore, but all I felt was exhilarated.

  I couldn’t get enough of him.

  “Are we almost done?” Freddie asked, strumming on his bass. “I don’t know about you guys, but I’m about practiced out for the day.”

  I was about to nod when Kara, who had been looking at her phone, let out a squeal and leapt to her feet.

  “Oh my God, you guys.” She began bouncing around the rehearsal space.

  We all watched her, identical looks of confused amusement on our faces.

  “Uh, babe?” Dylan asked, putting his hand on her shoulder to keep her still for a moment. “What’s going on?”

  “Austin James!” She thrust the phone in his face. “Austin James is what’s going on.”

  “Austin James?” Freddie frowned. “Who?”

  “He’s only the hottest guy in rock right now,” Maddie told him. “On and off stage.”

  I nodded in agreement. Austin James was pretty hot, and had been one of the music industry’s favorite bad boys until he settled down with his childhood sweetheart and broke the heart of most women in America.

  He was still a great musician, but it didn’t explain why Kara had been shrieking and squealing his name.

  “We have an audition!” Dylan, who had taken Kara’s phone to read the message, told us triumphantly.

  “To open for Austin James!” Kara finished. “It’s this big promo event, they’re having local bands open for him on every show of his new tour.”

  “Oh my God!” Maddie squealed, and she began jumping up and down with Kara. “This is amazing.”

  “Dude, that’s awesome.” Freddie high-fived Dylan and turned to do the same to me, but stopped when he saw my face. “Hayley, you OK?”

  “Um, yeah.” I forced a smile onto my face and offered him a belated high five. “That’s so awesome.” I faked a look at my watch. “Oh, look at that,” I said. “I have to go. See you guys next week?”

  For a moment, I thought my abrupt departure would draw some confused looks, but everyone was still caught up in the excitement of potentially opening for Austin James that no one seemed to notice that I gathered my stuff quickly and got out of there.

  I got in my car and headed to Dante’s gym. I could barely keep my hands still during the car ride, my entire body vibrating with nervous energy. And pure panic.

  Austin James. Holy shit.

  We were auditioning to open for a legitimate rock star.

  I felt sick, so even though it was freezing outside, I rolled down the window, letting the cold air shock me enough to keep me from freaking out, puking, or passing out. Thankfully, I made it to Dante’s gym without doing any of those things, though I came perilously close a few times.

  Racing in, I was relieved to find that Dante was alone, working out by himself in the corner. I needed something sturdy—something real—to hold on to.

  “Hayley?” His body was glistening with sweat as he turned towards me, a look of concern on his face.

  I didn’t blame him, I probably looked slightly crazed from the way I had charged into his gym. Without a word, I went over to him and wrapped my arms around his waist, burying my face into his chest.

  His hands came up around me and stroked my back comfortingly.

  Immediately, I started to feel better. I let myself settle into Dante’s embrace, and soon I had nearly forgotten why I had come there in the first place.

  “Hayley?” Dante asked after a few moments of silence. “What’s going on?”

  I pulled back to look up at him. That concerned look was still firmly fixed to his face.

  “We have an audition,” I told him. “A big one.”

  His body sagged as if he had been holding it tense.

  “Jesus,” he said, stepping back, running a hand over his face. “I thought something had happened.”

  “I’m sorry,” I apologized, realizing exactly how awful it must have been to see me in distress and have no idea why. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

  “I wasn’t scared,” Dante said immediately.

  I couldn’t help smiling at how quickly he had rejected feeling something vulnerable. I patted him on the arm comfortingly.

  “Come here,” he said, pulling me towards the back of the gym where he had a makeshift office. Gathering me into his arms, he sat down on the couch, with me perched on his lap. “Tell me about the audition and why it had you running in here like someone had died.”

  I explained the situation—how we were up for a chance to open for Austin James. Dante’s face was impassive at the rock star’s name.

  “Austin James?” I tried again. “Big star? Was in the tabloids a lot?”

  He gave me a look. “Not exactly my usual reading material,” he reminded me. “So, a pretty boy rocker wants you guys to open for him. That’s great, right?”

  “He’s not just a pretty boy rocker.” I took a shaky breath. “He’s a great musician. Opening for him would open a ton of doors for us. Could really get Purple Sunday off the ground.”

  “Still not seeing the reason for the freak-out,” Dante prompted.

  “We have to audition for his manager and other people,” I said, trying to get him to understand. “Which means I have to audition. I’m the lead singer, but the only experience I’ve had was auditioning for Purple Sunday the first time and the showcase you came to.”

  “Both of which you killed,” Dante offered. “I can only assume the first time was great, from the fact that they wanted you to be in the band in the first place, and I know from experience that you kicked ass in front of a crowd. You’re going to do great.”

  I stared at him, wondering where this confident, talkative person had come from. This person who had so much faith in me.

  “What?” he asked, noticing my gaping.

  “I just didn’t know you felt that way about me,” I said shyly.

  Even though we had been sleeping together, this confession felt far more intimate than anything we’d done in a bed. Or against a wall.

  Dante didn’t say anything for a moment, but then he captured my lips in a scorching kiss that spread heat throughout my body. When he broke free, I was breathless.

  “Does that help clarify how I feel about you?” he asked, kissing me again before I had a chance to answer.

  I lost myself in his kisses, sinking deeper and deeper into his lap, wrapping my arms around his neck to pull him closer. He leaned forward, pushing my back against the sofa cushions, and was making his way down the side of my throat when I heard a door slam and a familiar voice calling out.

  “Dude, I need to punch something.”

  I shot up off of the couch as Emerson’s voice echoed
in the gym, along with his footsteps.

  “Shit,” I swore, grabbing my bag and my jacket.

  “Hayley—” Dante tried, but I was already rushing towards the back room, which I knew Dante used for storage. I also knew there was a window back there.

  “I’ll see you later,” I hissed as I disappeared into the back room, closing the door just as Emerson entered the gym.

  Praying that my brother hadn’t seen me, I grabbed some boxes to stick under the window, which I pried open and narrowly escaped out of.

  Drastic? Yes. But entirely necessary.

  Several hours later, there was a knock on my apartment door. I wasn’t at all surprised to see Dante standing outside, holding a bag of my favorite take-out.

  “Hey,” I greeted him, smiling.

  “Hey.” He moved past me into the apartment, dropping a kiss on my forehead as he did.

  He put the food down, but instead of turning to me and sweeping me into his arms, he crossed those same arms and regarded me with a serious look.

  Uh-oh.

  “We should talk,” he said, sounding troubled. “About your little disappearing act.”

  “Did Emerson figure it out?” I asked, panicked.

  “Nope,” he said, a little smile playing at the corner of his mouth. “You managed to get out of there without him seeing you.” The smile dropped away. “But you shouldn’t have to. We need to tell him.”

  Oh.

  I felt a little dizzy as I stared at Dante. He wanted to tell my brother about us? I didn’t know how I felt about that. I couldn’t deny the little thrill I got at the thought of going public—especially since that would help clarify exactly what was happening between Dante and me. On the other hand, I couldn’t imagine that conversation with Emerson going well. He would be upset. Angry. There would probably be a fight.

  And I didn’t want to deal with that. Not yet.

  “I’m not ready to tell Emerson,” I said to Dante. “You know how he’s going to react.”

  “I don’t like lying to him,” Dante said, his voice flat. “He’s my friend.”

  “And he’s my older brother,” I reminded him unnecessarily. “My extremely overprotective older brother. I love him, but he has proven to be a real jerk to the men in my life. Come to think of it, all the guys are like that.”

  “They care about you,” Dante countered.

  “I know they do.” I rubbed my temples, feeling frustrated and overwhelmed. “It’s just that they all suck at boundaries. They all treat me like a little kid—like I can’t make decisions for myself.” I looked back at Dante. “I don’t want them butting in. Because you know they will. If we tell them, everyone will have an opinion. Everyone will be watching us like a hawk. I don’t want that, do you?”

  Dante sighed. “I don’t want to pretend nothing is happening,” he said.

  “I want to tell them,” I told him, pleading. “Just not yet.”

  “The longer we wait, the worse the fallout will be,” Dante informed me.

  I nodded, knowing he was right. But I was also cheered by the implication that “we” would be “we” for a while longer. That was all I needed right now. Just me and Dante figuring out where we stood, without the input or influence of my meddling brother and his friends.

  “Just give it a little more time,” I urged. “Besides, sneaking around is kind of fun, isn’t it? Having a sexy little secret that’s just between us.”

  I ran my hand down his chest, knowing that this was a cheap way to win an argument, but not really caring. Because he had been in my apartment for almost ten minutes without kissing me, and I was more than eager to remedy that.

  The look on Dante’s face indicated that he knew I was trying to distract him, but he was going to allow it. He dipped his head down and kissed me—long and slow. I leaned into him, wrapping my arms around his neck, tangling my tongue with his.

  “Let’s feed you,” he said once we had broken apart.

  I was about to argue that I wasn’t hungry when my stomach growled. He chuckled. Grabbing the take-out, Dante headed over to my couch like he owned the place. I didn’t mind. Dante taking charge was probably my favorite Dante. Especially when he did it in the bedroom.

  We settled onto the couch together, eating take-out right out of the carton.

  “When’s the audition?” Dante asked, reminding me of the reason I had come to find him earlier.

  “I don’t know,” I realized. “We found out at the end of rehearsal, and I freaked out and ran away before I could hear any of the details.” I quickly texted Kara so I could get the information.

  “You’re going to do fine,” Dante told me with a gentle smile. “You guys are good.”

  “Really?” I asked.

  Dante arched an eyebrow at me, smirking. “Are you fishing for compliments?”

  I laughed. “Maybe,” I teased. “You dish them out so rarely.”

  “I’m not big on words,” he said with a shrug.

  “You are a man of action,” I agreed.

  “I didn’t think you minded my actions,” Dante said with a naughty twinkle in his eye.

  I flushed. “I don’t,” I said, quickly changing the subject. “When are you making an offer on the gym?”

  “Tomorrow,” he said, leaning back and stretching one muscled arm across the back of the couch. “I have a meeting with the owner in the morning to at least transfer the lease to me, if not buy it outright. We’re still negotiating.”

  “I know you’ll get it,” I told him, smiling.

  “How do you know that?” he laughed.

  “Because you’re the kind of man that gets what he wants.”

  He smiled a little at that. “It wasn’t always that way.”

  “No?” I asked, hoping he would keep talking.

  “Pretty sure my foster parents—all six sets of them—would be shocked to see that I made something out of myself.”

  “You were in six foster homes?” I asked, shocked.

  Dante shrugged, looking away. “Could have been worse. Nicky was in almost nine.”

  I remembered Nicky from the poker game. The hard look in his eyes. The obvious bitterness and anger he held towards Dante.

  “Were you two close?” I asked cautiously.

  Dante didn’t say anything for a while. “Yeah,” he finally said. “We were. But we were bad for each other.” He leaned his head back, not looking at me. “We both trained at the gym. But while I liked the structure and the discipline, Nicky didn’t. Wouldn’t listen to Bull, wouldn’t listen to anyone. He got into fights with the other kids and Bull eventually had to throw him out. He blames me, I think.”

  “Why?”

  Dante sighed again. “He still thinks we’re the same, but he’s the only one who gets punished.”

  “Were you the same?” I couldn’t help asking, because I knew that they weren’t now.

  “Maybe.” Dante gave a rueful smile. “I was a really shitty kid, and so was Nicky. But I wanted to change, you know? I wanted something different. And now . . . well, I know Nicky holds that against me.”

  “He shouldn’t.” I frowned. “He should be proud of you, if he really cared.”

  Dante snorted. “Sure.”

  I could tell that he didn’t really want to talk about it much more, so I put my food down and crawled into his arms. He tightened his grip on me, and we just curled up there, together, with the music playing.

  It was nice. Almost perfect. And I wished we could stay like that forever.

  15

  Hayley

  Dante stayed the night. And I discovered that I really liked waking up with him wrapped around me, my own personal furnace. I also liked waking up before him and watching him sleep. He was so peaceful when he slept, the stressed lines between his eyes smoothing out to reveal a younger, more relaxed man. It was hard not to ignore the twinge I felt in my heart when I looked at him.

  I knew we’d have to tell Emerson soon. But I hadn’t been lying when I told D
ante that I thought it was better to keep it between us for a while. Because I wasn’t quite ready to share this with anyone else.

  I wanted to pretend he was all mine.

  Dante had to leave around ten to meet the owner of Bull’s gym space. I made coffee for him, and we sat at my kitchen counter before he had to go.

  “He has to sell it to you,” I said confidently. “Why wouldn’t he?”

  “He could want to hold on to the regular income,” Dante reminded me. “It’s an up-and-coming neighborhood, and the gym is a big space. No doubt, the owner could find someone else to take over the space. Someone who might actually make a profit.”

  The thought of someone taking over the lease and turning the gym into some members-only type of place made me a little sick to my stomach. And I could tell that it worried Dante as well, though he was doing his best to hide his concerns.

  “It will be fine,” I told him, walking him to the door. “Just you wait, we’ll be celebrating tonight.”

  He frowned. “I’ve got poker with the guys tonight.”

  “Oh,” I said, disappointed that I wouldn’t be seeing him.

  “I’ll leave early,” he told me with a grin. “We can still celebrate.”

  “That’s the spirit,” I responded cheerfully, ignoring that he sounded less than certain.

  “See you tonight,” he said, and I gave him the goodbye kiss to end all goodbye kisses, and was satisfied when he looked a little dazed as he headed out.

  I whistled after I shut the door, feeling on top of the world. Between the upcoming audition and nights with Dante, my life was pretty great right now.

  There was a knock at the door, and I raced to it, half hoping that Dante wanted to finish what that kiss had started, even if he might be late for his meeting. But when I pulled the door open, a big smile on my face, it wasn’t Dante that greeted me. It was Emerson.

  “It’s you,” I said, my mind racing. Dante just left. Did he see him in the hall?