Sin levered himself up on his elbows. “Hey!” he protested with a grin.
Gia stood and stretched. “Me, not you,” she said wryly.
His gaze stroked over her naked body admiringly and his cock stiffened even more. How he was gonna get rid of the hard-on without taking her back to bed was anyone’s guess. He watched as Gia eyed the tented sheet. A lascivious grin curved his mouth.
“You. Me. Shower. Now.” Gia licked her lips seductively and then turned to saunter into the bathroom.
Sin didn’t need to be told twice. He bolted from the bed. They did a quick repeat of the night before, interrupted midway through the sex part of the shower by furious banging on the door and Wade’s loud voice telling them to hurry up. The bodyguard’s words should have sounded annoyed, but Sin heard the amusement in his tone. His fear that the people close to Gia wouldn’t approve of him eased. He’d told her the age difference didn’t matter and he’d meant it. It didn’t matter to him. However, other people could sometimes be buttheads and he didn’t want Gia hurt.
When they came out of the shower, Sin found his suitcase on the bed. He figured he had Wade to thank for that. Gia breezed right past it and headed for the closet where she began to haphazardly pull on what was hanging there. As she rummaged through her toiletries, obviously tuning him out to slather on deodorant, perfume and makeup, Sin opened his suitcase and pulled out clean jeans and a t-shirt.
He dragged the suitcase into the next room to find Wade sitting on a sofa reading a newspaper. Gia’s roadie dashed past him into the bedroom and he heard the two women speaking in low tones but he couldn’t make out their words.
Wade looked up and grinned. “I see you found your stuff. Your assistant Jack was really helpful. He also said to tell you ‘Booyah!’”
Sin rolled his eyes and walked over to the table. Half a dozen covered plates gave off the aroma of pancakes, eggs and bacon.
“Jack’s young and impressionable,” he said with a laugh. “Is this for us?”
Wade nodded. “Dig in. We’re running out of time.”
Sin sat down and took the covers off, then filled a plate with eggs, a mound of bacon, potatoes and fruit. Wade brought him a cup of coffee and sat beside him, his gray eyes watching the bedroom door.
“Heidi is Gia’s assistant as well as her roadie. They’ve known each other for twenty-five years, since junior high,” he murmured in a confidential tone.
“Best friends?” Sin sipped the coffee and glanced at the open bedroom door, noting that Heidi seemed to be speed-packing for Gia.
Wade shrugged his big shoulders. “Strangely enough, no. They act more like sisters. You know, that love-hate sibling-type relationship. But if Heidi likes you, you’re golden, and mister, you’re more golden than all the bullion in Fort Knox.”
Sin’s brows shot up in surprise. “You’re kidding. She shoved me out of the way and hissed at me in the wings last night while she helped Gia change before the encore.”
“Believe me, if she didn’t like you, she never woulda let you stay there while she pulled off Gia’s shirt.” A definite smirk settled on Wade’s face. “Truthfully, we all like you. We think you’ll be good for Gia. We watched you watching her all those weeks of rehearsal in L.A. She needs someone like you.”
Eyeing the bodyguard over a forkful of scrambled eggs, Sin asked, “So you don’t think I’m too young for her?”
Wade burst out laughing. “Oh, hell no! You’re way more mature than Gia. More levelheaded too. She’s been in this industry a long time and she forgets how the real world is sometimes. You seem to have a pretty firm grasp on reality, something that will help her tremendously. Also, her isolation these past three years has made her doubt herself. She doesn’t have half the confidence she used to have. I’ve got a feeling being involved with you is gonna fix that problem.”
The women’s voices grew louder and Sin reached out, grabbing Wade’s sleeve as he started to stand.
“I care about Gia. I would never hurt her. And I’d fucking kill anyone who tried to. I don’t know about her, but I’m in this for the long haul,” he said in a low voice. “I want Gia. Permanently.”
Sin knew the truth of his words. He’d been thinking about it for weeks despite how difficult it had been to get close to her. What surprised him was how easily he voiced his plans to her bodyguard.
Wade nodded and offered a little smile. “Good for you. She’s priceless. However, I think we’ll keep this budding relationship under wraps as much as possible right now. Gia doesn’t need the stress of publicity and I don’t want this splashed across the tabloids so that monster, Reinhardt, can find out.”
At the mention of Gia’s stalker, Sin stiffened. Before he could say anything to Wade, Gia came in followed by Heidi who dragged a pair of designer suitcases behind her.
“Food!” Gia exclaimed, grabbing the seat beside Sin and reaching for a plate.
Heidi grunted and lugged the suitcases to the door. She shot Wade a dirty look as he rose from his chair. “Don’t bother. When have I ever needed your help?” she grumbled, stalking out with Gia’s luggage.
Sin eyed Wade with interest as Heidi’s barb seemed to bounce right off the bodyguard. Apparently, Gia and Heidi weren’t the only ones with a love-hate relationship, but what sizzled between Wade and Heidi wasn’t very sibling-like. Sin’s lips twitched with amusement but he controlled the grin that begged to escape. Being around Gia’s people could be a lot of fun.
A hand stroked his jean-clad thigh and Sin nearly jumped out of his skin. Gia squeezed his crotch under the table and he fought to control his libido. Forget about her people, he thought. Being around Gia was turning into more fun than he could ever remember having with a woman.
After they ate, Wade hustled them out to the limo. Unlike the night before, Wade got in the back with them. On the way to Sky Harbor Airport, he outlined for Sin how things worked in Gia’s world. Head down and walk swiftly in case of photographers and reporters. Airport security escort through the terminal to the head of the metal detector line and then on to the airline’s VIP lounge where they would check in. They would board before the rest of the plane and once everyone was in first class and the cabin door shut, no one entered until they were airborne.
Sin marveled at how precisely it all went. The limo pulled up behind a row of other limos. The rest of Firewire, their staff and a host of bodyguards spilled onto the sidewalk. He and Gia slipped on dark glasses and turned up the collars of their leather jackets. The walk through the terminal turned out to be more like a dash. Airport security used wand metal detectors on them and then they were whisked into the lounge. A few businessmen types sat awaiting flights, but they took one look at the phalanx of bodyguards and hastily moved away.
The wait for the flight went by quickly as Gia’s band teased him a little about hauling her out of the arena before she’d even showered off her sweat. While he defended himself, reminding them that Gia had done the hauling, she stood staring out the window at the plane whose white paint shimmered in the Phoenix heat, her arms wrapped around herself. Sin frowned.
“She doesn’t like to fly,” Derek told him in a low voice.
“You’re kidding.” Sin’s brows rose in surprise. “She must have more frequent flyer miles than Richard Branson.”
“Prolly does. But she still don’t like to fly,” Ray-Ray said.
Ray Cortez, known affectionately as Ray-Ray, was Firewire’s bass player and resident crazy guy. Sin knew the big Hispanic man liked to play practical jokes and had a penchant for drinking hard. He could also see the total lack of guile in the man’s expression.
“Maybe she could use a little distraction,” James murmured wickedly and nudged him with one huge shoulder.
Sin had already been thinking along those lines. Gia’s posture had brought out his protective instincts before Derek had even spoken. As he crossed the lounge to her, he briefly marveled at how quickly he’d fallen for her and how easily her friends accepted him.
If he didn’t know better, he’d think they’d set him up with her.
He came up behind Gia and put his arms around her, slipping his hands inside her jacket to squeeze her breasts. She pushed her ass against his crotch and he groaned softly.
“Do you know how hard it’s going to be to keep my hands off you in public?” he whispered in her ear.
Gia chuckled. “Wade gave you the ‘Don’t Feed the Tabloids’ speech, didn’t he?”
Nuzzling the side of her throat he said, “Not exactly, but I’m not crazy about giving them fuel to sell papers.”
“Ahh, but splashy tabloid headlines, true or not, sell lots of CDs.”
He darted his tongue out to taste her skin. “I don’t care to sell my music on the back of unsubstantiated gossip.”
Gia snorted, the sound conveying maximum sarcasm. “You are in the wrong business then, Mister Sin-ful,” she stated. “In this business, selling means everything.”
“Not to me.”
She turned in his arms and kissed him so swiftly he doubted anyone noticed. “You’re not gonna last long in these shark-infested waters then, Sin. But I got your back. I’ll be your sugar mama and you can write odes to me daily,” she teased.
Before Sin could reply, Wade began ushering everyone onto the plane. When James Fox moved to take the seat next to Gia, she shook her head at him.
“Nuh-uh, Fox. I wanna sit with my old man.”
As Sin maneuvered around James’ bulk, the guitarist joked, “Old? You’re robbing the cradle, Gia. You sure you don’t need some training pants for him?”
Gia grabbed Sin by the hand and pulled him down next to her. “You think you’re a funny guy, Fox. You better watch out or I’ll tell Rachel what an ass you’re being.”
James took the seat behind Gia, the one that should have been Sin’s. “Rachel knows she married an asshole. She reminds me all the time how lucky I am that she decided to put up with me.”
Wade brought Gia a drink that looked and smelled like a double scotch. She knocked it back like a trooper then held out the glass to the bodyguard.
“One more,” she said, her voice shaking slightly.
Alarmed, Sin realized that her fear was no small thing. Flying terrified Gia Santora. Wade brought her another drink and she finished it in a couple of swallows. Around them the band laughed and joked, telling stories about girlfriends, spouses and partners. No one but Sin and Wade seemed to be paying any attention to Gia.
As the rest of the plane loaded, Wade conferred with the flight attendants. Then the flight crew came out to greet the band. Sin and Gia stood up and shook their hands, making small talk and signing a couple of autographs. By the time they sat down, Gia looked green around the gills. Sin put his arm around her to find her shaking with fright.
“Why didn’t you tell me you don’t like to fly?” he murmured, rubbing his hand briskly along her arm.
She shrugged and he could tell her thoughts were already being taken over by terror. He buckled them both into their seats. Then he took out his iPod, which Jack had preloaded with a rough recording of his previous night’s set. He popped the earbuds into Gia’s ears and turned it on. Her eyes opened wide as she recognized his voice.
The roar of the jet engines and the throbbing of the plane began. Gia’s face went white. Sin turned up the volume on the iPod, put an arm around her and took her mouth in a deep kiss. Helping Gia over her fear of flying would be hard on his control, but he figured she was totally worth it. He hoped she didn’t drink any more, because by the time they landed he’d want to rush her straight to the hotel so he could get inside her, something that wouldn’t happen if she passed out drunk.
She moaned against his mouth and began to relax. The plane backed away from the terminal but Gia didn’t seem to notice. She slipped her hands between his thighs and she pressed as close to him as their seatbelts would allow. Heat rose in his body and his cock stiffened painfully in the confines of his jeans. Sin let her tongue into his mouth, thinking it was going to be a long-ass flight.
Chapter Four
Gia loved the sound of Sin’s voice in her ears singing a rocking ballad as she touched him. The shaking of the plane faded into the distance as she fucked his mouth with her tongue. Takeoff became a blur of heated touches and escalating passion. The cabin pressure had nothing on the pressure between her thighs as she deepened the kiss, giving him more of her mouth and taking more of his tongue. Her world narrowed to the circle of Sin’s arms.
One night. All it had taken for her to fall for Sinclair Carstens was a single night. Of course, it had been the most spectacular night of her life, and keeping things cool and fun had been difficult. She wanted to be possessive. She wanted to be fierce. She wanted to own Sin Carstens—body, heart and soul—the way he now owned her. If she didn’t have the proof of her own aching heart and wet pussy, she would still scoff at the notion of love at first fuck. Certainly, she’d teased James about that phenomenon when he’d met his wife. He’d probably return the favor now.
Sin cupped her breasts, thumbing her nipples into stiff points. The iPod, smooshed between them, clicked off. Gia’s ears hummed as the music stopped, allowing her to hear the loud guffaw that came from behind them.
“I’d tell you to get a room, but then the john would be occupied until we land.”
James and Derek laughed uproariously at James’ joke. Breaking the kiss, Gia unsnapped her seat belt and twisted in her seat, glaring at her bandmates.
“Fucktards,” she growled.
Derek pointed to James. “He said it. Not me. Don’t get yer bloomers in a bunch,” he said with a grin, his British accent heavier than usual with his mirth.
“Damned fag.” Gia’s words held no heat and she stuck her tongue out at the tattooed drummer.
“You just wish you could suck cock as good as me.” Derek winked broadly at her.
Sin twisted in his seat and opened his mouth to speak but Gia slapped her palm over it. He blinked in surprise and James and Derek burst out laughing.
“No need to defend your woman to us, mate,” Derek told him. “We’re sure she blows ya better’n a brass trumpet. Or is that strumpet?”
“Oh, for God’s sake.” Gia whipped around in her seat, pulling Sin down. “Just ignore them. They’ll go away in a few minutes.”
Sin kissed her neck. “I don’t care what they do. We have important stuff to discuss anyway, right?”
Gia’s stomach sank. She’d never had a relationship discussion with a man before. Especially a man she’d only just met and fucked. But she’d told Sin the truth. She wanted more than one night with him.
“It will keep until we’re at the hotel,” she offered, conscious of Derek and James mere inches behind them.
Something dangerous flashed in Sin’s blue eyes. “Will it?” he asked in a tone several degrees colder than she’d heard from him before.
Instantly, James got up and dragged Derek to the other side of the cabin. Sin’s eyes darkened as they left. He grasped her chin in his fingers. His touch sent a shiver through her.
“You. Me. Relationship. I’m willing. The question is, are you gonna wuss out on me?” he whispered, his mouth hovering above hers.
Heart thundering with a loud, erratic beat, Gia swallowed hard. She might have decided that Sin was worth pursuing a relationship with but she wasn’t sure how to articulate that to him. Panic, never far from the surface where men were concerned, rose within her and tried to conjure up reasons why she couldn’t embark on a relationship with Sin. Fighting with herself internally, she opened her mouth to say something, even though she had no idea what to say, but Sin shook his head sharply and she subsided, thinking. She could come up with any number of reasons why it wouldn’t be a good idea to get involved with him, but each reason seemed to stem from fear so she wisely kept her mouth shut. Instead, she tried to find the words to tell him what she really wanted from him.
“I can hear you thinking, but obviously, the reasons you’re coming
up with why we can’t do this are secondary to the wetness in your panties.”
Sin’s wry tone snapped her head up. Their gazes met and held. Gia drew a deep breath and tried to say the right thing.
“This isn’t just about sex, Sin.”
“I agree one hundred percent.”
He dipped his head, his mouth nearing her cheek. She resisted the urge to sink her fingers into his sun-streaked hair.
“Tell me you want this, Gia,” he whispered, his breath warming her cheek.
She shuddered and clutched at him with frantic fingers. He pushed the armrest up and drew her close, pushing his body against hers. The truth burst out of her.
“I want you, Sin. For as long as I can have you. Whether that’s an hour or a day or a year,” she murmured, burrowing her hands beneath his shirt to touch his warm skin. “You make me feel things I’ve never felt before and I don’t want to lose it or you.”
Sin smiled at her and his handsome face lit up. Her breath caught in her throat. The man intoxicated her worse than illegal moonshine in a dry state.
“Well, then, I think our discussion is done ’cause I want the same thing and feel the same way.” He dropped a quick kiss on her mouth. “Now how are we gonna spend the rest of this flight? We can’t fuck and I think we’re both about done discussing this any further for now. What do you usually do while you’re flying?”
Gia chuckled, albeit a little shakily as she remembered that they were airborne. “Pass out.”
“Fuck that. I need you sober when we land ’cause I plan on putting my dick in you the instant we’re alone at the hotel.” Sin grinned and dug into his coat pocket, pulling out a splitter and another pair of earbuds. “Jack and I usually listen to the previous night’s show and do a little critique session so I can improve the next night. He shoved this in my jacket pocket so we might as well use ’em.”
RockMyWorld Page 4