Seduction by Song

  I moan breathily, loving the feel of being trapped between his hands. “For how long?”

  Again, I kick myself for asking the stupidest questions. Even though it was a good question, it could only ruin the moment—and if the answer was going to be tonight and tonight only, I wanted to savor this moment for as long as possible.

  “How long do you want this to go on for?” he says, stroking his hands lazily over my body.

  Biting back another moan at the shivers wracking my body, I take a wild and hopeful guess. “A—week?”

  His hands still and he’s frowning again when he looks at me. “A week, huh? Then it’s a good thing I’m not leaving this decision up to you.”

  I open my mouth to ask what he means by that, but he takes the opportunity to kiss me again, filling my mouth with his tongue.

  “You, bonita,” he says, “are coming with me. I want to see your eyes on me at every show. I want to claim your fine body as mine after every show. Do you understand me?”

  Even after two incredible orgasms, I feel a tingle of excitement at the words and nod. ”

  “To the end of the world and back,” he swears.

  I’m about to promise him everything—perhaps eternity—when reality strikes. I sigh, heavily, and shake my head. “I’d love that, Romeo, but I’m still in school. I’m only off on summer vacation for another month.”

  He groans as though logic had no place in the kingdom of his arms. “You don’t need school. I’ll take care of you.”

  I laugh, surprised by that notion. The offer is sweet, and I’m sure he could make good on it, but it almost seems charmingly childish at the same time—something a high school lover might promise to his girl at prom.

  “As much as I’d like that, I’m my own woman, Romeo,” I say, bringing a hand up to bop him lightly on the nose with the tip of my index finger. “I won’t be kept by anyone.”

  He growls again, playfully this time as he pins me back against the sheets with a kiss. He smiles into my mouth and relaxes as I wrap my arms around him. “Strong woman. I like that. Give me the month, then. A month is more than enough to make you never want to leave.”

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  We talk and we kiss for what seems like hours, but no one comes to disturb us so it must only be minutes. Romeo only breaks away from me when his phone chimes for the umpteenth time, annoying him to the point of action.

  “I’ll cancel my tour. We’ll stay in this bed all month,” he says.

  I laugh again and wrestle with him for his phone before he can pretend to make good on that promise. “What, and deprive me of the sight of you strutting your stuff up there?”

  He grins and puffs out his chest. “You like that strut?”

  I smile back at him, but before I can tell him exactly how much I like that strut, the door’s slamming open without any warning knock whatsoever.

  “—all those bitches, so let’s get a move on, lover boy!” Dante, Romeo’s lead guitarist, hollers as he barges in, waving a beer in the air.

  I startle and try to pull the blankets up over my body as quickly as I can, but it’s too little too late. Dante rakes his eyes down my body, a nasty smirk on his face. A shiver runs through my body, but not in the pleasant sense when it’s Romeo looking at me and laying his hands on me.

  “Nice,” Dante says with a low, appreciative whistle.

  Romeo snarls. “The fuck you think you’re doing, punk?”

  Dante laughs and holds his hands up. He takes a swig of his beer, tossing the bottle to the side once he’s sucked it dry. “Hey, chill. I know the rules. Hands off your girl. We’re ready to head out is all, punk.”

  I frown and want badly to ask the man to leave, or at least for Romeo to ask him to leave, but all Romeo does is roll his eyes and shrug—as though this is normal for them. I can’t help but tremble a little as I scoot back on the bed, feeling Dante’s gaze still flicking towards me once in a while.

  “Alright, alright. Give me a minute. Fuck off, yeah?”

  Dante flips him off, more playfully than anything, and slams the door behind himself as he leaves with a shout of, “Leave some ass for the rest of us next time, man!”

  I see Romeo rolling his eyes again before he turns back to me.

  “Does he—do that often?” I ask, still feeling a bit timid. Romeo has a way of making me feel comfortable even though we’ve only just met, but Dante—I shudder. Being exposed like this to a complete stranger just felt wrong.

  Romeo hesitates before he answers, “Dante’s like a brother to me, but lately—.”

  He shakes his head and pins me back down on the bed, kissing me thoroughly instead of finishing that thought.

  “I guess you win this round,” he mumbles against my mouth. “I’m not letting you get away so easily, though. Tampa. Tomorrow. You’ll be there.”

  It isn’t a question. I let the order wash over me, reveling in the feel of being commanded in such a way, before I nod.

  “Yes, sir,” I say, only half-jokingly.

  He kisses me again, deep and full of intent, before he lets go of me. “Get dressed.”

  It takes me a moment to remember how legs and the general concept of vertical works before I’m able to straighten up again. I stretch my arms out, knowing that Romeo’s eyes are on me. He smacks me on the ass, drawing a sharp laugh of surprise out of me, before sitting up, too.

  “Next time,” he says as I pull my shirt on, “I want you waiting here as soon as I get offstage. I want to be inside you before the crowd stops chanting my name.”

  My body responds to the thought of it instantly, knees going weak and eyes glazing over with desire. I shake the image loose from my head, though, and tuck it away as a promise.

  He kisses me goodbye and it takes us a good five minutes to let go of each other. It’s only when we hear shouts from his band mates outside that he steps back with a reluctant sigh.

  “Tomorrow,” he says. “I can only see you at the concert though, we’ve got rehearsals all day.

  I nod. “Tomorrow.”

  The girls are waiting for me on the couches when I get outside. April is draped over Dante and Maddie and Juliet are talking animatedly about something with some of the roadies, but they all squeal and shoot up straight when they see me. I try to get them to shush when they start asking me a jumble of questions, so quickly that I can’t make out any words. They seem to get the point after a moment—that I’d really rather not discuss this in public—and wave to the guys they were hanging out with before huddling around me as we start towards the parking lot.

  “So?” Maddie says as soon as we hit fresh air.

  I shake my head, trying to find the right words.

  “Dante said he caught you in the nude,” April says with a giggle she can’t quite contain. “He said you were fine.”

  I blush furiously and frown, the severity of my expression seeming to shock her into silence—which, yeah, I guess wasn’t very fair since it wasn’t her fault Dante was a creep.

  “We were—well, there was definite nudity,” I admit after a moment, “but that’s all I’m going to say!”

  The girls gasp, clap, and cheer for me like I’d just gotten a new job.

  “Details!” Maddie says, flailing her hands about herself. “Dish!”

  “I don’t kiss and tell,” I say as I take the keys from Juliet, apparently taking on the role of designated driver for the night.

  Maddie rolls her eyes. “Well, that’s fine. We don’t want to know about the kissing. Is his dick—.”

  “Maddie!” I gasp at her, torn between embarrassment and anger and, admittedly, also a bit of amusement.

  She grins and backs up a few steps to walk around to the other side of the car. “Oh, fine, but you know Auntie Maddie’s always got an ear open if you change your mind.”

  I roll my eyes, grinning at the girls. As far as friends go, they were godsends. Any other girl who claimed to be in love with Romeo Ortiz might be furious with jealousy right
now, but Maddie only seemed happy for me. They all did, in fact, as though they could feel how happy I was at the moment.

  “Thanks, girls,” I say as I begin to pull out of the parking lot. “I know it was Maddie’s birthday gift, but I—.”

  “But nothing, babe,” Maddie says. She’s taken the passenger seat in front while April and Juliet piled into the back with our purses, so she’s able to reach over and wrap a one-armed hug around my shoulders. “If one of us is happy, we’re all happy.”

  The conviction and honesty with which she says that puts a huge smile right back on my face. Behind us, the other girls agree wholeheartedly. I think back to the passion in Romeo’s eyes and listen to the warm love that the girls gush at me, and I suddenly feel like the luckiest girl in the world.

  They crank up the music—the Rocks, of course—and I sing along with them as we drive off into the night.

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  I drop April and Juliet off at their respective apartments, but take Maddie up on her offer of a good ol’ sleepover when she reminds me that she’s got the rest of the week off from work. We make plans to stay up watching old episodes of Friends and talking in my pajamas, just like we did in high school, but we both fall asleep within minutes of getting back to my place.

  Dreams of Romeo flood my mind while I sleep. I toss and turn as he lays his hands on me, touching me in all the right places. He whispers sweet nothing in my ear, so quietly that I don’t hear the words, but the emotion and the lust behind them come through loud and clear. I moan as he presses me facedown into the sheets, hands pushing at my shoulders as he thrust into me, deep and hard.

  I gasp and keen and beg for more in a way I never have before in my life. He smacks his hips against mine and he slaps my ass with the back of his hand as he pulls on my hair.

  In my dream, I come—screaming.

  Maddie’s singing in the kitchen when I wake up with a groan. I feel that wet throbbing between my legs, but it’s too early to do anything about it. I procrastinate getting up for as long as I can before rolling out of bed and pulling on a clean shirt.

  “Hey, princess,” Maddie says when she hears me coming out of my room. “Hungry?”

  My stomach growls. “Ravenous. What’s cooking?”

  She plates some eggs and bacon and slides the plate over to me. “Eat up. That’s celebratory bacon right there.”

  I laugh, my voice still a little hoarse from sleep, as I pick up a piece to crunch on it. We all made a pact to avoid bacon—that delicious strip of totally fattening meat, mm—except on special occasions. Even though it wasn’t my birthday, I’d say today was pretty special.

  “So,” Maddie says, sitting down opposite me with a plate for herself, “now that we’re alone.”

  I laugh around a mouthful as she waggles her eyebrows suggestively. “No! I said no kissing and telling and I meant it.”

  She pouts, but it quickly morphs into an impish grin. “Okay, okay. Just one question. Did Dante really—you know. See anything?”

  A little piece of bacon goes down the wrong pipe and I cough for a good minute before shooting Maddie a (mostly) playful glare.

  “He didn’t see any action if that’s what you’re asking, but—.” I stop before finishing that thought, the idea of him seeing me naked still creeping me out in the major league levels of creepiness. “He’s just kind of weird, you know?”

  Maddie laughs. “Erin, I spent the whole night listening to his weirdness. Of course I know. He didn’t—do anything, did he?”

  He stared, I wanted to say. His eyes are terrifying, I wanted to say. I don’t say either of these things, though, because they sound silly even when I think them in my head. Instead, I just shrug and say, “He said something pretty weird. In context, I mean.”

  “Oh?” Maddie asks, perking up noticeably.

  “It’s just—Romeo told me he didn’t do, um, what we did with just any girl,” I start.

  Maddie croons and makes these baby sounds until I wave a hand to get her to shush.

  “And it’s not that I don’t believe him—I totally do—but Dante said he should—.” I pause, trying to find a less crude way of saying it.

  “Leave some ass for the rest of us next time?” Maddie suggests.

  I blink at her. That was exactly what he’d said.

  She must read surprise on my face because she pats my arm and smiles. “His voice carries. We all heard. I wouldn’t worry about it, though. He’s probably not talking about groupies or anything. He was probably making a joke about Romeo’s wife.”

  I drop the fork in my hand, metal clattering harshly onto the plate in front of me. My eyes go so wide that I know I must look ridiculous, but I can’t bring myself to care one bit in light of this bombshell Maddie just dropped on me. “His wife?”

  She blinks, like she has no idea why I’m surprised. It takes a few seconds before she gasps, clapping her hands over her mouth. “Oh my gosh, no! Not an actual wife. That was just an inside joke—I’m sorry.”

  I stare as she shakes her head, dropping her hands again to reveal a grin.

  “I forgot that you don’t follow Romeo’s life as much as I do,” she says, sounding genuinely apologetic, “and that you wouldn’t know about this joke. It is just a joke, Erin, please stop looking so terrified. There’s just these rumors on the net that he’s secretly married or something, but those are obviously false. I mean, how could a guy as famous as Romeo Ortiz be married and keep it a secret, right?”

  Even with that explanation, which—I guess makes sense, I can’t get myself to relax. My hand shakes a little when I pick up the fork again, and I have to take several deep breaths before I can force a smile. “Oh.”

  Maddie cringes. “I’m sorry. I totally ruined the mood, huh?”

  “A little bit,” I tell her. I nudge her under the table, though, and smile a bit easier. “It’s okay. Just a joke, right?”

  She nods, very quickly. “Uh-huh. Like, 95% certain it’s a joke.”

  It’s my turn to cringe now. I really didn’t need to hear that it wasn’t 100% not a joke, but I try not to overthink it. Romeo would have told me if he were married. It wasn’t some little thing like hey, I drive a motorcycle or I have to admit, I don’t floss every night that could be left until the third date. It wasn’t something Romeo would have lied to me about.

  Even though I can’t convince myself of this—can’t convince myself with 100% certainty, that is—I try not to worry too much about a few rumors that probably aren’t true. “So who’s he rumored to be married to, then?”

  “Oh, loads of people,” she says, laughing. “The most popular candidate is Louise Valdez, his band manager’s daughter. Like that would ever happen, am I right?”

  I force myself to laugh, too, even though I feel my chest getting a bit tight with jealousy at just the thought of it.

  “A bunch of other actresses, too, and—oh my God, get this. One magazine was saying he could be married to a guy, which, um, hello. Obviously not gay.”

  The thought of that is so outlandish that I manage to relax a little and laugh a bit more naturally. If the rumors were so wild, then they had to be false. They had to be.

  A quick flash of the memory of Romeo’s mouth on mine, whispering promises of mine and together, flares in my mind. I knew I could trust him.

  I did trust him. I sigh and finally relax. Of course it was a joke. I was so silly for doubting Romeo so easily. I smile at Maddie and laugh along with her. It did seem just like the kind of stupid joke Dante would make after catching Romeo in bed with me—the guy was rude, but probably also a bit lonely. I almost felt bad for him and could understand why he would act out like that.

  Maddie helps me with the dishes even though I insist I do them since he cooked. She heads out after another hour or so of vegging out on the couch with me, wanting to head to the mall to return a pair of shoes that didn’t fit just right. Just before she goes, I remember that I completely forgot to tell her and the others about Ta
mpa tonight.

  “Oh my God!” she shrills when I bring it up. “Yes, yes, yes! Of course we’ll go to tonight’s show. Two concerts in two days? This is the best week of my life.”

  She hugs my tightly and tells me not to worry about telling the girls—she wants to break the news to them. I smile and just tell her not to be late. We could all carpool there together later that night.

  “Gas is on me,” she promises. “It’s the least I could do.”

  I try to protest and suggest we split it, but she’s having none of it. After blowing me her traditional send-off kiss, she disappears with a cheery, “Ciao!”

  Left to my own devices, I pull my laptop up and try to do some work on my research paper. I can’t focus for even a minute, though, the memory of Romeo still burning hot in my mind. I find myself gravitating towards the net, clicking through my search history to find the “research” I had done on Romeo to understand what the fuss was all about.

  I sigh, heavy and happy, as I scroll through some images. I didn’t understand why he was so popular with the girls before I met him—he was attractive, of course, but the blurry photos didn’t do him justice. Now that I knew how his muscles rippled under my hands and how his eyes twinkled with lust when he was hard, I knew exactly why he was so popular.

  How did I get to be the lucky girl to have him all to myself?

  Before I go back to my official schoolwork (which I promise myself I would do in just a minute here), I click over to the news tab of Google to see if there were any pictures from last night’s concert popping up around the web. Maybe there would even be one or two of me. I blush at the thought of being caught on camera with Romeo, but it isn’t a blush of shame—the thought of having been seen kissing him so passionately was thoroughly exciting to me.

  Maybe I could even find one clear enough to use as my laptop screensaver.