Lockhart

by A. E. Murphy

  “I can’t sleep with you,” I say softly, my eyes still closed and my body still limp. “I don’t like sleeping with people.”

  “You can make an exception for me,” he answers, leaving no room to argue. I let him believe that for now.

  “Why haven’t you pulled out yet? You finished already.”

  “I like the feel of you.”

  “Well good, but I don’t like the feel of your desk against my back.”

  I’m up and in his strong arms, naked from the waist down and sticky from things I don’t want to think about right now.

  “Normally I’d protest at being lifted, but I don’t think I can move.”

  He kicks open a door, a light comes on and then I’m seated on an extremely cold surface. It soothes my aching skin and other aching places. I dare to take a peek at my surroundings and wish I hadn’t. The lights in this ridiculously sized shower room are way too bright.

  “You have an en-suite shower room in your office,” I snort. “You have way more money than sense.”

  “So my mother frequently tells me.” He tugs my T-shirt up and over my head, then unsnaps my bra and I feel the money fall onto my lap. Oops. “Little thief.”

  I open my eyes and grin at him. “You didn’t say no, so technically it isn’t stealing.”

  “I’ll give you anything you want if you keep giving me such satisfying sex.”

  “Deal. I want a yacht.” I jump off the side, giggling when he catches me from behind and pulls me into his chest. Lips kiss from my shoulder to my ear and back again. “Don’t. I’ll want it again and it’ll be too painful. Besides, I’m gross.”

  “You could never be gross.” He releases me and I skip into the shower on a wave of newfound energy.

  “I wasn’t kidding about that yacht,” I call over the sound of the falling water.

  “I wasn’t kidding about you giving me such satisfying sex.”

  I wink at him over my shoulder and nod for him to join me. This is Deja-vu but with a different back drop, meaning location. Last night it was my house, spanking, fucking and then showering. This time it’s his office, though I don’t feel uncomfortable at all. This man has a great way of making me forget everything else. That and I’ve never been the type to get embarrassed. I get anxious sometimes, as is normal, but out of fear of failing, not out of fear of making a fool of myself.

  “So,” I ask when he presses his chest to my back, “what is it exactly that you want from me?”

  “Your full submission.”

  “Meaning?” I try to turn but his arms tense around me, keeping me in place.

  “Complete control of your body.”

  I hum in thought and squirt shower gel into his now open hands. “What do I get in return?”

  “Anything you want, barring love or marriage, any of the fluffy stuff.”

  I hum again, this time because his hands are working the aches out of my shoulders. I swear his fingers hold more magic than Sabrina the Teenage Witch’s entire body. “So you want a no strings attached fuck friend?”

  “Essentially.”

  This is where the problem lies. “What if one of us gets attached? I don’t understand how two people can share such intimacies and not become attached.”

  “It’s because of your inexperience in a relationship such as this that you don’t fully understand it. It’s easier to accept when you go into it knowing that it’ll never become anything more.”

  Resting my head back against his shoulder, I pause for a long time, wondering if this is a good idea. “I’m not sure if I can get tangled up with you, Lockhart.”

  “Why?”

  “Because when it all goes south, there are so many people that could be affected.”

  “If it all goes south, which it won’t.” He turns me and tilts my head back so that I can look him in the eye. His own head protects me from getting hit in the face by the shower of warm water. “You won’t even have to see me. I have people to do the things for me that I’ve been choosing to do for you.”

  “Ha!” I laugh, pinching his side. “You did want to see me today.”

  “I want to see your beautiful skin pink with my handprints,” He tells me, flashing his dangerously green eyes at me. “And striped from my belt.”

  “There’s something seriously wrong with you.”

  He moves his head, laughing under his breath when the water hits me directly in the face. “And what of you? You enjoyed it too.”

  “Will you only do it when I piss you off?”

  “If you give me what I’m requesting, I’ll do much more to you than just a firm spanking.”

  Shudder. “I’ll give it some thought.”

  “Good.” He kisses my lips. “Because I shan’t be taking no for an answer.”

  “That doesn’t seem very fair.” I pout. “You can’t have complete control before I permit it.”

  “Can’t I?”

  “You’re a fucking riddle. Just when I think I have a chance at negotiation…”

  He smiles, still massaging my body with soapy hands. “We’ll negotiate soon. You’ll get everything you want and more, just as I will from you.”

  “You couldn’t have formed this,” I bend my fingers to mimic air quotes, “‘friendship’ at a worse time.”

  “I won’t interfere with your work. You’re going to make me a lot of money; it would be a foolish choice to get in the way, regardless of how irresistible you are.”

  Nipping at his jaw and resting my arms around his neck, I playfully ask, “If I’m so irresistible, however will you resist?”

  “That is the question I’m asking myself.”

  “Mr Lockhart.” Comes a slightly crackled, feminine voice through a speaker in the top right corner above the room.

  “What is that?” I hiss and the voice continues, “Your three PM appointment has arrived. A Mr Grange.”

  Lockhart curses multiple times under his breath and exits the shower quicker than my eyes can capture.

  “Finish showering. I’ll take Owen elsewhere,” he states. I’m assuming Grange is Owen.

  “You’re leaving me in your office alone?” I give him a look of mischief, to which he responds with a glower. “Whatever shall I do?”

  “Behave.” I rinse my body as he dries his. This is the first time I’ve gotten to see his rear properly. I’ve never seen a nicer rear. How many squats does he do a day for those perfectly shaped buttocks? Is it odd that I want to fondle and kiss them?

  I almost moan petulantly when he pulls his trousers up, covering my new favourite view.

  “I’ll call you,” he tells me as he buttons up his shirt and scoops his tie from the ground.

  “Not between ten and midnight.” I inform him, stepping out of the shower and flicking water from my fingers at him.

  “Why?”

  “Because that’s when my series uploads onto catch up TV.”

  “Why not watch it during the hours in which it is on TV?”

  “Because I don’t like to wait for the next episode to come on and… don’t you have a meeting to attend?”

  He reaches for my wet body, a hand on the nape of my neck, and pulls me in for a searing kiss to rival all the others he has given me. “You’re mine now, Cerise.” Oh. “Understood?” I nod and gasp when he covers my mound with his hand. “This is mine.”

  “Only if this is mine.” I flick at his groin.

  “We’ll negotiate.” He releases me, pecks my lips and leaves before I untangle the web of thoughts in my head. What does that mean? We’ll negotiate? Does that mean he gets to fuck other people and I don’t? Not that I have a queue of guys’ willies at my disposal, but it just seems unfair.

  We’ll talk about it another time. This is a no strings attached thing. It’s not worth getting upset over yet. But if I’m already this upset over the thought of him getting V elsewhere, then how will I fare in a few months when he tires of me? Or even a few weeks?

  This was such a bad idea. My sense of adv
enture has always overwhelmed my sense of self-preservation. No wonder my mum always hated me growing up.

  I laugh a little and walk over to my discarded clothing.

  Only my shirt remains here. I have no trousers. They were removed in his office.

  Crap.

  This isn’t good at all.

  I press my ear to the door but the stupid thing is basically sound proof, hence the need for the speaker in the corner.

  I open it a crack, wearing nothing but my bra, T-shirt and towel. The money is still present on the bathroom counter behind me and I’m not sure if I should be offended that he left it behind or not. He’ll have to lend me his jackets with money in the pockets more often if it means I get to keep it.

  Silence. Sweet silence is all that lingers on the other side of the door.

  Thank you, Jesus.

  I exit, snag my trousers, pull them on and rush out of his empty office and past his receptionist faster than when I entered.

  When word gets out that I’m screwing Lockhart, everybody is going to think that I’ve slept my way to the top. Fuck it. If it works…

  Rep is the boss when it comes to negotiations. I need to take tips from him when speaking to Lockhart. He didn’t call me last night, or the night before, or the night of the day we fucked and I ran out of his office.

  Though he did text me asking me what I was wearing, to which I responded ‘the sperm of a thousand men’. Apparently this wasn’t the kind of reply he was looking for because I received the eye-roll emoji followed by the hand emoji. I definitely know what that means.

  I wasn’t in the mood for sex texts. I was writing music with Kai and Dane, though the sperm of a thousand men would make a pretty decent song name.

  Rep clicks his fingers in front of my face. “Are you with us?”

  “Huh?” I blink and stop chewing on the end of my pen. “Sorry. I was miles away.”

  Kai shoots me a glare and I instantly feel bad. I need to take this more seriously.

  “Sorry,” I mouth at Kai and look to Dane and Enri, who are in the middle of discussing lights for the Manchester show in just over a week. I ask, “How long of a start-up will we get?”

  “At the Manc show, just enough for three tracks,” Enri replies. “I think you should open with my favourite, Beat That Bass.”

  “Yeah,” I agree. “The soft beginning would get the crowd quiet and then when the drums and tempo pick up, it’ll get them riled. We should have done that last time.”

  “I’m cool with that. When will we be going for all of the rehearsals and sound checks anyway? We’re at a disadvantage.” Kai plays with his fingers and bounces on his seat. He’s anxious. It doesn’t surprise me.

  “That’s why we’re leaving on Sunday. It’ll get you guys used to the bus, used to being on the road and settled before the show on Friday and Saturday.” Rep answers and Enri adds, “Once you’ve gotten the layout of Manchester, the rest of the venues we visit will just fall into place.”

  “We’ve got people doing the hard work, don’t worry. You guys just focus on playing and staying healthy.” Rep finishes and tugs on the waistband of his trousers. “And lay off the grub unless you want to look like me.”

  “It’s too easy to succumb to the temptation of free food,” I grumble.

  Enri chuckles his agreement. “I’ve got a surprise for you all on Monday too. We’ll be making a stop in Nottingham. Pack light.”

  “Pack light? We’ll be on the road for a while.”

  “But you’ll get free shit wherever you go.”

  “I’m not protesting that,” Dane laughs, rubbing his hands together. “Can we leave today instead?”

  I shove him playfully. “What’s in Nottingham?”

  “You’ll see.”

  “No hint?”

  “Make sure your Twitter accounts are up and ready to receive a shit-tonne of followers.” He winks at me.

  Now I’m definitely intrigued. “More than the few thousand we got the other day after the gig?”

  He nods. “I sure hope so.”

  “You’re the best.” I tell him. “Thank you for supporting us like you have.”

  “Yeah.” Kai nods.

  “It’s no problem. You can make it up to me one day when people forget my name and are screaming yours instead.”

  “Such a fickle world we live in,” I respond dryly. “But you’re too hot for that to ever happen.”

  “Such a flirt.” He playfully wags his eyebrows at me. “Now, back to business.”

  *

  “Do you think maybe you can tone down the fuck me eyes?” Kai snarls at me when we enter the studio.

  I knew something was wrong with him on the way here from the canteen but I didn’t think it would be that. “Chill. Enri gets it.”

  “Gets what exactly?”

  “Leave her alone, Kai,” Dane puts in and Kai shoots him a murderous look. His brown eyes glow with anger. “Even I could tell she was fucking around. You know what she’s like.”

  “I just don’t want anything jeopardising our career, especially not sex.”

  I cross my heart with my finger. “Understood.” If only he knew. “I’ll keep my dick in my pants where Enri is concerned.”

  “Can you not take anything seriously?”

  “I’m just trying to lighten your shitty mood, Kai.” My eyes roll of their own accord. “Can you not take a joke?”

  “Guys,” Dane snaps. “Sort your shit out. Soon we’re going to be stuck around each other in a space that we can’t escape from. Don’t make this any more uncomfortable than it already will be.”

  “He’s right,” I say, shrugging, and then I turn to Kai with open arms. “Sorry. Snugsies?” I see Kai’s lips twitch and know that I’m winning. “Come oooon.” I take a step towards him, fluttering my lashes. “You know you want to.”

  Sighing, he steps into my little circle of friendship and envelopes me in a hug. I wrap my arms around his neck and sway us side to side.

  “You’re a bitch sometimes, Kai.”

  “I learned from the best.” He pulls free and we all startle when a throat is cleared behind us.

  I spin on the spot, almost knocking Kai over.

  “Afternoon, Mr Lockhart. To what do we owe the pleasure?” Kai is the first to speak.

  I just look at my shoe as his intense green eyes bore into me. Oh, he is not happy at all. The thought of how he reacts when he isn’t happy makes me smile secretly, though it also annoys me slightly because I don’t like the idea of being made to feel guilty over hugging a friend. A good friend. A friend so close to me he’s more like family.

  “I hear you’re leaving on Sunday.” He states. “I wanted to be sure that you’ll be ready in time. What would normally take a couple of months, we’ve had to squeeze into a couple of weeks.” He can say that again. “Cerise, have you been working with Lydia?” I nod in response. “Good.” He looks to Dane and Kai. “You two will be fine tuning the instrumentals today. I have to borrow your band mate.”

  “Why?” Dane asks on my behalf.

  “I’m sure Cerise will fill in the blanks upon her return.” He nods for me to follow.

  They both look to me for answers but I’m as dumbfounded as they are because I don’t think that he’s leading me away for sex. If he were, I’m sure he’d be a bit more secretive about it.

  “She won’t be long,” he assures them as I tap my keyboard with my foot and tell them, “Look after my baby for me.”

  I follow Lockhart from the room. He remains a few paces ahead, ignoring my presence. There’s an air of authority to him today, more potent than usual. I can’t tell if this is the real him or if he’s just acting superior to keep up appearances.

  We pass the studio rooms, four in total, all of them sound proof with little lights above the doors. If it’s red, you aren’t to enter unless authorised. If it’s green, same rule.

  “Where are we going?” I ask quietly when we pass the elevators and he holds open the door
to a stairwell.

  “Up a few levels,” he responds, sliding his hand over my rear as I pass. He releases me the second I step away. Clearly he doesn’t want to get caught. “After you.”

  I ascend the stairs, mindful of the way my tight cut jeans cling to every curve of my lower body and legs. I want to adjust them but that would be giving away the idea that I want him to be admiring my arse right now. There’s no need to give him the satisfaction of thinking he consumes my thoughts.

  It isn’t until we’re on the third floor, one I’ve never accessed before, that he snaps, “You didn’t call.”

  “You said you would,” I snap back, my tone hushed as we pass a group of people talking by a water fountain. If that isn’t a cliché image, I don’t know what is. “Where are we?”

  “Third floor,” he answers, his hand on my elbow as he leads me further along the hall and around a corner.

  “Really?” I mutter sarcastically. “I didn’t realise I couldn’t count suddenly.”

  My back hits the wall, knocking the air from my lungs, forced there by a firm hand around the underside of my jaw and body against my chest.

  “Your attitude is equal parts frustrating and sexy.” He bites out and then literally bites my lower lip. “Right now, it’s more frustrating than it is sexy. I demand you stop… or else.”

  “Or else what?” I snake a hand down between us and cup his groin. He closes his eyes and his lips thin to a white line. “You’ll fuck me into submission?” I squeeze hard and bask in the glory of his clear arousal. “I thought punishments were supposed to punish.”

  He pulls away as if burned when somebody rounds the corner. I know it’s for the best that nobody knows of us joining at the hips, but it stings to see him react so aggressively.

  “Come on,” he orders and nods for me to walk ahead.

  We finally stop two doors down and he reaches around me to unlock it using the watch on his wrist. Let me be the first to declare that that is fucking amazing and I want one!

  “Do I get one of those funky looking gadgets that magically opens doors?” I ask as the intense light from the sun makes me turn away. Spending so much time in windowless rooms makes your eyes a little sensitive. “Since we’re fucking and all, and you have yet to get me the yacht I asked for.”