by Riley Love
All Access to the Boy Band
Riley Love
Copyright © 2018 by Riley Love
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review. All inquiries should be addressed to [email protected].
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product(s) of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental or meant to lend credibility and authenticity to the story. The use of brand names and locations should not be read as an endorsement of this author’s work.
About This Book
I fantasized about them, but I never dreamed they’d worship me.
For years I’ve written sexy fanfiction about Jupiter in Blue, a pop band that was huge when I was a teenager. Now they’ve invited me to the Caribbean where they’re recording their comeback album. All access. All expenses paid. But there’s a catch: they want my fiction to become our reality.
Contents
About This Book
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Thank You!
About the Author
Snowed in With the Stuntmen
The Billionaire’s Bargain
Bought By the Billionaire
Coming Soon from Riley
Chapter One
My sister Anita wasn’t listening to me. How could she, when her three-year-old daughter dive-bombed my mom’s walker.
“I’ve made a list of everything you need to do. Mom’s schedule, when she eats, what she likes to eat… Anita, have you heard a word I’ve said?”
“There’s a list. How can I go wrong?” Anita was three years older than me, but after being Mom’s full-time caretaker for the last two years, I felt like the parent.
“Mom needs routine.” I shouldn’t be going on this trip. Going away was selfish, irresponsible, and as my niece made a beeline for her grandmother’s medication, I realized it could be considered downright reckless to leave Mom in my sister’s care for the weekend. Especially since she wasn’t paying attention to my instructions. “It will be hard on her that I’m not here.”
Anita sighed. “She’s my mom too, Alina.”
“I know.” But the problem was sometimes Mom didn’t know that. She suffered from dementia. Dealing with it every day didn’t make it easier. Mom and I had grown accustomed to the changes together, but the heartbreak never faded. “Maybe I should stay home.”
This whole trip was crazy. I’d gotten a call out of nowhere from the management company of my favorite band of all time, Jupiter in Blue. The band stumbled on the fanfiction I published online and offered me an all-expenses-paid trip to meet them in the Caribbean while they recorded their comeback album. All I had to do in return was write a story about my experience when I got back. The band hadn’t been in the spotlight in years, and a tiny part of me screamed scam, that anything this close to a dream was too good to be true. But fantasizing about Jupiter in Blue had been my tiny escape from reality for years, so I was willing to investigate. The phone calls and the emails checked out, and I was on my way to spend the weekend with them.
No one in my family knew about my fanfiction. It was my escape from my everyday life. I’d told everyone I’d won the trip by entering a contest on the internet. That level of geekery they could handle.
“No, you need to go. You deserve a break.” My sister softened, but it was short-lived. Her eyes widened as Esther went straight for the glass bowl on the end table, and she scooped her up before disaster struck. I’d spent a ton of time getting Mom ready for my trip, and I forgot all about toddler-proofing the house. “When was the last time you saw Katie?”
“I haven’t spent time with her since she had the baby.” That was the other reason I was excited about the trip. My plus one was my best friend who’d I’d barely seen in over a year. Between Katie having a kid and me taking care of Mom, we always said we’d get together, but every time we made plans, we wound up being too tired or busy to actually do them. “And Christopher just turned one, so we’re overdue for a little girl time.”
Anita held Esther with one hand and my list with the other. Esther, not a big fan of having her freedom restricted, kicked and squirmed, but Anita reined her in. She looked over the list and then gazed sadly at Mom. She was watching one of her game shows. We watched them all day long. She loved them. Sometimes she knew the answers before the contestants. Those were the times things were good.
“I want to watch the Wuzzles,” Esther said.
I bit my lip before I said anything. Maybe I was the one who was clinging to the routine so I could pretend everything was normal.
“Later,” Anita said.
Esther squealed and wriggled free of her mom’s grasp, campaigning hard for her favorite TV show before dissolving into an incoherent puddle on the floor. If my phone didn’t ding alerting me that my ride was almost here, I would’ve told Anita to go home. Forget it. Didn’t matter if four hot-as-fuck musicians were waiting for me on a tropical island. I wasn’t going.
“I’ll be able to call you in St. Croix, right? In case I have any questions?” Anita asked.
“It’s a US Virgin Island. My phone will work like I’m down the street.” I picked up the handle on my suitcase, guiding it away from Esther, who’d forgotten about her TV show long enough to want to help me. My sister had her hands full this weekend.
Anita gave me a hug. “Have all the fun. Do all the wicked things I’m too tired and married to do.”
“Don’t I wish.” I laughed. Thank goodness Katie was going with me. I had no idea how much actual contact I’d have with Jupiter in Blue. Without her there to keep me company, I had a feeling I’d be spending a lot of time on the beach writing dirty fanfiction under the influence of tropical concoctions.
“I’m serious. You’re single, you’re gorgeous, and you have nothing holding you back.” She leaned in and whispered, “You better get laid.”
It had been way too long. My phone dinged again. “My car’s here.”
After another round of hugs and a quick reminder to Mom that Anita would be spending the weekend with her, I left. I didn’t have time to explain to her who Anita was. I tried to hold my tears until I got into the car.
Once the driver pulled away from the sidewalk, my phone rang. It was probably Anita, begging me to come back. I could hardly bear to look at it.
“Hey, it’s Katie. Are you crying?”
“No, I have something in my eye.” It had been our joke ever since Mom started to decline. She never had to ask me what was wrong. She knew. We hadn’t talked much in the last few months, and we had some catching up to do.
“That’s what I thought.” She sighed and didn’t say anything right away. “I don’t even know how to tell you this. I’m not going to make it this weekend.”
“You did a pretty good job of it.” I expected to feel pain where my heart broke, but I was numb. Deep down, I’d expected this. Those were the same words she uttered every time we made plans. I couldn’t hold the trip reservation over her head—Jupiter in Blue was picking up the tab for the entire weekend. “Why aren’t you co
ming?”
There was an emotion running through me. Anger. I understood that Katie’s family needed her, but I needed my best friend too.
“Because Jake doesn’t want to watch Christopher.”
“He’s his dad, not a babysitter.” There was a little dagger attached to each word.
“You don’t know what it’s like.” Katie’s argument was interrupted by a baby wail. “I’m sorry. I know how much this means to you.”
But it meant nothing to her. A week ago, we were both excited about the prospect of this amazing girls’ weekend. Getting a little face time with our favorite band was a bonus. But now her son’s father wouldn’t babysit. Not the first time he’d let her down. Certainly not the first he’d let me down.
“You’re still going, right?” she asked when I didn’t say anything right away.
I had every reason to tell the driver to turn around and bring me home. Going to the Caribbean alone was insane. Leaving Mom…
No. I had to do this. Everyone was always telling me I needed to take some time for myself, and I always politely refused. Like Katie was doing now. It was fucking hard. But the promise of this trip was the little light at the end of the tunnel that had gotten me through the last few days.
“I’m going.”
She exhaled, like a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. “Good. You need this trip, Alina.”
“You do, too.”
“I know. I’m going to be insanely jealous of you all weekend. You have to tell me everything. I hope they’re even more gorgeous in person. And don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”
I already was. I wasn’t backing out.
Butterflies fluttered in my stomach as the teal water and white island sand came into view. I’d been to Puerto Rico as a kid to visit family, but I’d never had a tropical vacation. Hell, I’d never been away for more than a long weekend. And now I was spending the weekend with Jupiter in freaking Blue. This was the first time I let myself get excited—because it was finally real.
When I landed in St. Croix, a lady with spiky red hair waved a sign that said ALINA AND KATIE surrounded by stars.
“I’m Alina. Katie couldn’t make it.”
“That sucks for Katie because you’re about to have yourself one hell of a weekend.” The lady laughed and tucked the sign under her arm. “I’m Casey Dale, manager of Jupiter in Blue.”
“I know.” Whoops. I probably shouldn’t let my fangirl hang out so soon. “I’m excited to be here.”
“I’m glad you didn’t bail when your friend did.” Casey led me out of the terminal and to a waiting van. “The band has been out of the spotlight for a while, and they’ve been sharing some of the new music online.”
“It sounds phenomenal.” I did it again, but I only regretted it for a second. Casey knew I was a super fan. That was why I was here. Jupiter in Blue’s music had gotten me through some tough times in the last few years. I lived for the few moments a day that I could close my eyes, get lost in the melody, and sing along. I’d let my mind wander, and that was when the stories came to me. It was the only part of the day that belonged to me, that no one could take away.
When Jupiter in Blue first made it big, they got dogged for being a boy band. A producer had brought the guys together, and someone else wrote their music. They only had to perform it. I didn’t care how it came about—I loved it. But I’d read enough interviews to know that stigma bothered them. The guys didn’t want to be known as performers. They wanted to be considered serious musicians. On this new album, they were responsible for everything. And it blew the old stuff out of the water. What I’d heard so far was raw, honest, and sexy.
Casey’s face brightened. “You have no idea what a relief it is to hear that. The guys are nervous about the new songs because they’re putting it all out there like they never have before. They weren’t sure if they wanted to use the Jupiter in Blue name or start fresh.”
“Their fans have evolved too and I think they’ll be excited to hear the new stuff.” A lot of people were going to love the new songs. Even if they rolled their eyes and chuckled when they found out who wrote it. “For me, it would’ve been weird to have the same guys in a different band.”
“That was one of the reasons we chose you for this project,” Casey said. “We wanted to find someone who would understand what the band was doing from an artistic standpoint. And the guys read your work. They’re the ones who chose you.”
Heat rose in my cheeks. Some of my stories were straight up porn. They got a ton of hits on fanfiction sites. Readers wrote to me with requests of what they’d like to see me write next, but the stories were my fantasy. Every single one of them revolved around the band treating the main character, Lina, like a goddess. She may have been loosely based on me.
Okay. She was totally me. The badass version of me who wasn’t afraid to ask for what she wanted and expected four gorgeous musicians to cater to her every whim.
“My stories don’t have much to do with the music.” I’d never been one to write nonfiction or reviews.
“They chose you because you understand the band in a way not many people do.” Casey crooked a brow at me. “It’s too bad your friend couldn’t come.”
I chuckled, but it ended on an up note. Smooth. “There’s never a friend in my stories.”
“Very true.” Casey had read them too. I’d die of embarrassment before I met my favorite band. This was the first time I was owning up to writing the stories in person. No pressure or anything. “The guys invited you down here because they want you to write an account of your weekend and post it on your regular sites. They think it’s a unique angle for promotion.”
“Do they want me to write one of my stories based on the weekend?” I wasn’t totally sure how my pent-up sexual frustration would help them sell music.
“They want you to write everything that happens. Don’t sugar coat anything. The good, the bad, and the ugly,” Casey said as we pulled down a long dirt driveway that took us away from the town. Mangroves were thick on either side and at the end of the road, a cluster of cabins waited for us. “You’re the only one who can tell this story.”
Chapter Two
“It’s LinaLu!”
I didn’t know what was more shocking—standing in the same room as the men I’d fantasized about for the last fifteen years or that they called me by my fanfic screen name.
Like the whole thing was real.
“And she’s beautiful.” Todd, the singer, circled me, drinking me in with his gaze. He wore his blond hair long in the front, so at some angles it would cover his face, but it never hid what he was feeling. It was almost shaved in the back. It was hot as hell back in the day and even more so now that he was standing so close I could reach out and touch him.
I hoped he couldn’t see me shaking, and that he’d chalk up the beads of perspiration to the fact that I was still dressed for Cleveland and not the Caribbean.
“Don’t cry, LinaLu.” Blake, the guitarist, took my hand in his, brought it to his lips, and pressed a kiss against it. Those silver eyes. Some people thought he wore contacts, but now I knew the color was real. His shaggy dark hair fell against his tan skin, like he was born for island life.
“Sorry,” I whispered, my voice rough. Being this close to them wasn’t the only reason I was fighting emotion right now. I’d been so deep in the trenches with my mom and her illness that stepping away from that life felt alien. Sinfully indulgent. If I could run out of here, I would. But I was on an island, in another universe, so far away from my comfort zone, and there was nowhere to go.
“It’s because she’s never been up close and personal with you ugly bastards.” Zach had tamed his signature swoopy hair over the years, but he hadn’t traded in his hoodie, not even in the hot Caribbean sun. He came over and wrapped me in a hug, snapping the tension that had formed when the other two approached.
In that moment, I forgot to be sad. And in that moment, I realized how long I’d been sad. Too
long.
His lips were against my ear as he rocked me back and forth. “I’m sorry to say they never get better looking.”
I laughed. “I think I can live with it.”
“Oh no, you can’t claim her before I’ve even had a chance with her.” There was no mistaking Hunter was the drummer when he stole me away from Zach. His T-shirt strained against his rock-hard muscles, and damn if he didn’t give me the best hug I’d ever had. He smelled amazing, like he’d blossomed in the sun. He rubbed his hand over my back like he knew I could cry again at any moment. He was beautiful, with his high cheekbones and dark skin. “We’re really glad you came, LinaLu.”
“Her name is Alina.” Casey rolled her eyes, but she couldn’t suppress her grin. “You’d think they hadn’t seen a woman since they got to the island.”
“Not one like this,” Blake said. He was trying to make me feel good, or get me to relax, I was sure of it. But his words tangled dangerously with my emotions. If I let my guard down, it would be easy to believe them.
I wasn’t hideous, but I hadn’t paid a lot of attention to myself lately. My long, dark hair was usually up in a ponytail—having time for makeup was a pipe dream most days. I was getting a little soft because Mom really loved macaroni and cheese and who was I to deny her that pleasure. In a perfect world, I would have prepped and primped for this trip. Crash diet, spray tan, and all the waxing. But things like that hadn’t been important to me in a long time. So here I was. Doing my best. And from the look on the faces of Jupiter in Blue, my best wasn’t so bad.
“Let me show you to your bungalow.” Casey reached for my arm and gently pried me away from Hunter, who’d still had his big hand on my back.