“Bring him,” Angel said. “We love having Mason around. I know Jessi will help watch him, and he loves the way the girls fuss over him. It appears he’s a ladies man, just like his dad.”
“I ain’t got any parenting skills,” Damien said, “but I know what it’s like not to have a mother. He needs family and you’re it. You and that aunt. The two of you need to stick by that kid now more than ever. He needs that. A mother figure. Like Audra. She’s great with him.”
Audra could be the mother that Mason needed – the mother he deserved. Every day Jimmy realized how much she offered him, and he couldn’t imagine his life without her. The three of them could enjoy the South Pacific together, like a family. It wasn’t a vacation, though, and he and Audra would both be working for a good portion of the time. “Are you sure Jessi wouldn’t mind watching Mason for a bit when we’re in Australia?” He still wasn’t entirely comfortable with the idea. Mason was his kid and his responsibility.
Angel and Tommy stared at each other and smiled – for a long time. An intense loving connection passed between them, and neither one averted their eyes from the other when Angel answered. “I don’t think Jessi would mind at all.”
“Jessi won’t mind what?” Alyssa was descending the stairs with Mason. As soon as he saw Jimmy, he pulled out of Alyssa’s hand and ran across the room.
Jimmy laughed at the exuberant greeting which he’d become accustomed to receiving from his son. “Easy, Mase. Don’t run down the stairs like that. You might fall. What were you doing with Alyssa? Where’s Audra and Jessi?”
“Bringin’ stuff inside.” Mason pointed to Alyssa. “She bought me presents.”
“She did, huh? Did you say thank you?”
Mason nodded really fast.
“She didn’t pierce anything, did she?”
Alyssa tousled Mason’s hair as she walked by. “Just his ears.”
For a moment Jimmy’s heart lurched, until he realized Alyssa was teasing. “Don’t do that to me, man.”
“Don’t call me man.”
Jessi and Audra came bouncing down the stairs. “I bought so many pairs of shoes, I’m going to need an extra suitcase!” Jessi exclaimed.
Audra circled her arms around Jimmy’s waist and placed a small kiss on his lips. “All I bought was a string bikini. I plan on traveling light.”
Obscene images ran through Jimmy’s head. “I want a room with a hot tub.”
“I think that might be feasible. I’ll see if I can put in a good word with the band’s tour manager.”
“I want to run something by you. I want to bring Mason with us.” Jimmy glanced at his son. Jessi, Tommy and Angel were squatting next to him and they were playing with a toy truck that Jessi or Alyssa must have bought him. “I can’t leave him here. I’ll miss him too much. And it’s not fair to burden his aunt with watching him. He’s my responsibility, but I want to ask her to come with us, too.”
“Mary?”
“Yeah. I know Jessi and Alyssa would help us take care of Mason, but I would feel better knowing that she was with us – for Mason.” He didn’t want to rip the kid’s aunt out of his life for a month. He wanted Mason to know that they were both solid fixtures in his son’s life.
Audra ran her hands up his chest and over his shoulders. “I think that’s a wonderful idea. He needs to know you’re not going anywhere without him, and that Mary isn’t going to run out on him either. And I don’t think Mason would be happy being separated from either one of you for any length of time.”
“Australia?” Aunt Mary’s eyes widened. “I can’t go to Australia!”
“Why not? It’s an opportunity of a lifetime.”
“For one, I can’t afford it, and I can’t travel on a tour bus with a band. I’m an old woman.”
Jimmy laughed and gave her his best smile. “No offense, but I don’t want you on the tour bus either, Aunt Mary. And you’re not an old woman. I can fly you and Mason around Australia, or you can have your own tour bus. I’m paying for everything. You’re coming as Mason’s nanny. I need you. We both do.”
Her hands flew to her chest, and she stumbled over her words. “I . . . I don’t know what to say.”
“Say yes. I’m not going without Mason. It’s a long trip. The girls said they would help, but he’s most comfortable with you. Please come. For Mason.”
“I don’t know. It’s a generous offer—”
“Please Aunt Mary?”
She opened her mouth to say something and then stopped. “Why do you always do that? Call me Aunt Mary? I’m not your aunt.”
He never thought about calling her anything else. She was Aunt Mary. “I don’t know. I guess because you’re Mason’s aunt. He loves you a lot. That makes you family.”
She smiled warmly. “You are a real charmer, Jimmy. I guess I’d be a fool to refuse. I’ll accompany you to Australia. Luckily, both Mason and I have our passports from a little trip we took to Mexico last year. But, to be clear, I’m doing this for Mason, not because I want your hospitality.”
Chapter Twenty-Nine
It was Immortal Angel’s first visit to Australia, and the country gave them a rock star welcome. Jimmy sent Mason ahead with Aunt Mary on an earlier flight to keep them safe from the probing eyes of the paparazzi and the unrestrained crowd. He didn’t want his son, or Aunt Mary, harassed by the media. They were already safely at the hotel.
The crowd at the Kingsford Smith Airport in Sydney was frenzied chaos. The band, along with the girls, moved through the airport circled by security. Screaming fans rushed at them from all angles and tried to touch or grab any part of their bodies they could reach. Fans waved CDs and asked for signatures. They competed with the paparazzi to take photos and pushed everyone into an uncomfortably tight circle. Jimmy pulled Audra closer to him and shielded her from the ambush of the crowd. She wasn’t prepared for the onslaught of people – no one was.
Security guided them safely into a waiting limo. Tommy jumped over Jimmy’s legs to sit next to Jessi. “Holy shit! That was fucking insane!” He pulled his long blond hair to the front and twisted it into a ponytail. “Someone grabbed a fistful of my hair!”
Damien yanked on it. “Yeah. It was me.”
Jimmy laughed. “Everyone wants a piece of Tommy Blade’s hair!” He slipped his hand around Audra’s thigh. “I hope you didn’t get pushed around too much back there.”
Audra was disturbed by the velocity of the crowd and kept glancing through the smoke-tinted windows of the limousine. “That was dangerous. How is the driver going to pull away from the curb? People are surrounding the car. Someone could get hurt.”
Girls attacked the sides of the car and the paparazzi shouted questions through the locked doors.
“Don’t you dare open the window,” Tommy warned Jimmy.
“No way, man. This is crazy!”
Immortal Angel’s security team needed to intervene and assist the airport staff so the limo could safely exit the terminal. Once at the hotel, the crowd was manageable and kept securely behind a barricade. It afforded the band an opportunity to interact with the fans they had traveled over ten thousand miles to see.
A near riot almost erupted when Tommy leaned into the crowd for a group photo, and security promptly pulled him to safety. Angel was the center of attention amongst a group of blond male fans, and Damien quietly signed autographs.
Girls were screaming to get Jimmy’s attention. He was still stuck between his loyalty and respect for Audra, and the need to appease his fans. They rushed toward the railing and called his name. A girl flashed her tits. “Sign my boobs!” she shouted. Jimmy stood motionless. In the past, he’d probably end up with a healthy brush of her nipple and a short make-out session, so he knew to stay away. His eyes went to a nearby security guard who stepped in and advised the girl to pull her shirt back down and cover herself.
He took someone’s marker and signed the girl’s arm instead. Several other girls next to her grabbed at Jimmy’s T-shirt and lassoe
d him around the neck. Again, security came to the rescue, and he wondered how they had managed to travel without a full-time security team sooner.
The band stayed outside the hotel and signed autographs until Marissa found them and urged them inside. They had their first interview in an hour at a local radio station. Jimmy took Audra’s hand and paused to look back at the crowd. There were a number of female fans who weren’t shouting or waving their arms or taking photos. Jimmy’s eyes settled on the girls who were quiet. They were glaring at Audra. He shifted his eyes to his lady. She was all class. There wasn’t any indication of annoyance or hostility on her smiling face. She stood tall and proudly at his side. It didn’t seem to bother her that some of the female fans had a dislike for her, but it irked the hell out of Jimmy. These were his fans, women who claimed to love him, yet they were disrespecting the woman he loved. She didn’t deserve their aggression, and his heart went out to her. He needed to figure out a way to rectify their attitude toward her, but he didn’t know if it was possible to erase the claim some of the fans thought they had on him.
The first two days in Sydney were spent shooting promos and appearing at local radio stations and television talk shows. The third day in paradise was a long awaited day off to experience the beauty of Australia. The band had been on the beach since early morning. They occupied a private section of the hotel, which ensured protection from the paparazzi.
With the midday sun at his back, Jimmy stared into the crystal clear blue water at the shoreline. It was the most serene sight he could envision, and it bathed him in a moment of clarity. His life had a predetermined path and everything led up to this moment. Mason crashed into his life and turned his world upside down. The last thing he ever expected was to settle down with one woman or have a kid – now he couldn’t imagine life without either one of them.
The tide rolled in and covered his ankles in a thick layer of white foam. He dug his toes into the soft sand and watched Mason at his feet, building a sand castle.
Mason tugged on the hem of Jimmy’s shorts. “Naptime.” He rubbed one eye with his little fist. “Tired.”
Jimmy smiled down at his son. It was the first time he’d seen the kid worn out. “Okay, bud, let’s get you back to the room.” He took Mason’s hand, but Aunt Mary was there before Jimmy could make it more than a few steps from the water’s edge.
“I got him,” she said, taking Mason’s free hand. “You stay and have fun with your friends.”
“Are you sure? I don’t mind.”
Aunt Mary waved at him as she prodded through the sand. “I need a nap myself. I’ll take him to my room for the rest of the night so you can have some privacy.”
A huge smile spread across Jimmy’s face. Aunt Mary was all right. “Thank you, Aunt Mary!”
Jimmy loved having Mason around, but he was looking forward to a night alone with Audra. He glanced around the beach in search of his friends. Alyssa was under a cabana with dark sunglasses, afraid the hint of sunlight on her pale skin might cause her to spontaneously combust. Tommy, Jessi and Angel were in the water, cavorting and splashing like teenage lovers.
Jimmy turned to his left and Damien was approaching him. His colorful mohawk seemed brighter in the Australian sun, and his tattooed body was an eyeful, with only a pair of shorts to cover his flesh.
“You missed a spot,” Jimmy said, pointing to a patch of open skin on Damien’s leg.
Damien studied his unadorned thigh with intensity. “I got plans for this. I just have to wait until I get back home and my buddy Spyder has some free time. It’s been awhile since I got tattooed. It’s about time I get some new ink.” He nodded at Jimmy with his chin. “What about you? Ready for some more?”
Jimmy didn’t need to think about it for long. “Yeah. I want Mason’s name . . . and Audra’s.”
A small smile peeked out from the corner of Damien’s mouth, and he shook his head slightly. “Look at you with a girl and a kid. I never would have thought that you’d be the first one of us to have a family.” He nudged Jimmy in the shoulder with his knuckle. “I’m proud of you, dude. You could’ve walked away from the whole thing. You owned up to it. Took responsibility. You sure showed Bossman.”
Mr. Abelman’s acceptance came as a complete shock to Jimmy. When Audra had told him about her father’s change of heart, relief washed over Jimmy like a monsoon. Her father’s opposition to their relationship was an obstacle that had stood in their way like an immovable object. The tension it caused between Audra and her father would have always posed a threat to their future.
Jimmy turned to find Audra reclining in a lounge chair with a golden tan brewing. The skimpy bikini showed off her slender body and sent Jimmy’s hormones into a fury. He clapped his hand on Damien’s shoulder with a daring smile. “Gotta run, man. While the kid’s away, Daddy’s gotta play.”
He trekked through the uneven sand, burning his wet feet on the sun-soaked beach. He fell into the lounge chair with Audra and almost toppled it over.
She jumped and let out a startled laugh. “What are you doing?”
“Sorry, sugar. The sand is on fire.”
“I think you just wanted an excuse to grab my boob.”
He glided his hand up her creamy waist, slick from suntan lotion, and stopped just below her breast. “Do you think anyone’s watching?”
She smiled at him. “I think everyone’s watching, but I don’t care.” She placed her hands on either side of his face and kissed him.
Her skin was warm from the sun and her lips were covered in moist balm. She smelled of the sweet aroma of coconut and almonds. His mouth moved to her neck, and he felt the air leave her lungs in a gusty breath. His erection pressed against her leg, and she leaned into it with a moan.
“We have the night alone,” he whispered against her bare shoulder. “Mason is staying with Aunt Mary. I have something special planned for us.”
Chapter Thirty
Audra surveyed the remnants of dinner as the waiter cleared the table: salad of mud crab, grilled scallops, roasted quail breast and shimeji mushrooms. She ate too much, but she couldn’t resist the excellent cuisine and ordered everything the waiter suggested. The service was impeccable, and the food was divine.
“Did you enjoy the bone marrow and marron tail?” She was surprised Jimmy was adventurous with the menu. He was usually stuck on steak and potatoes. But she was more surprised at his choice of a dress shirt. She had never seen him wear anything with buttons before.
“It was probably the best meal I ever had.” He winked at her. “But don’t tell Angel or his dad I said that.”
“Your secret is safe with me.”
A platter of petit fours arrived, courtesy of their attentive waiter. Jimmy skewered one of the little cakes with his fork and offered it to her. Her lips pulled the tiny chocolate cake into her mouth with a sensual taste. There was a rich layer of chocolate icing, coated in dried coconut, over deliciously moist sponge cake. “That’s decadent,” she said before she licked her lips. “Dinner was incredible. This place is magnificent. I’m so happy we get to experience it together.” She didn’t want the night to end and was drawn to the ocean. “Do you want to walk on the beach?”
Jimmy took her hand and kissed her fingertips. “You’re wearing one of your expensive designer dresses, and you want to walk on the beach?”
“It’ll be romantic.”
“I want to go back to our room.”
She smiled and her eyes glazed over. “I love you, Jimmy.”
He stood from the table and offered her his hand. “I love you, too.”
Her eyes remained fixated on his while she took his hand and circled her arm around his waist. “Today was a beautiful day – lounging on the beach together, playing with Mason in the sand, and now this superb dinner.”
“It’s not over yet. We still got about eight hours before the sun comes up.”
She laughed as they walked from the table. “I didn’t know we were staying up all night.�
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He held the elevator door so she could enter first. “You never know what could happen tonight.”
Two bellmen passed them on the way to their room. “Everything is taken care of, Mr. Wilder,” one of them said.
“Thanks, man.” Jimmy put his index finger across his lips and slipped money into each bellman’s breast pocket.
They were one hundred dollar bills, and it roused Audra’s curiosity. “What was that about? Why did you give them so much money?”
Jimmy just smiled at her, and they entered the room, still under the veil of secrecy.
“You’re being very evasive.” She wrapped her arms around his waist and pressed her lips to his. “What do I have to do in order to coax information out of you?”
“Take your clothes off.”
“That’s it?” She slipped the thin straps off her shoulders, and her dress fell to the floor in a puddle of silk at her feet.
His lips touched the mound of her breast and sent a wave of heat down her body. He ran his fingers through her hair and rested his hand on her cheek. “You’re incredible, Audra – everything I’ve ever wanted.” He led her into the bedroom. “Let me show you my surprise.”
She stuffed her hand down the front of his jeans. “Is it down here?”
“That’s no surprise. That’s a given.” He flashed his charismatic smile. It was the same smile that won Audra’s heart, and it still made her weak with desire.
He pushed on the handles to the double doors that led to the master bedroom in the suite, and they flung open with ease. The scent of jasmine immediately rushed through her senses. Lit candles flickered on almost every available surface. The crisp white linens on top of the bed were covered in deep red rose petals, and in the corner, steam rose from the bubbling hot tub.
Her mouth gaped open with surprise. Her former playboy punk rocker had a romantic soul. Warmth spread through her heart and radiated across her chest. Emotion settled in her throat. Just when she thought today couldn’t get any better, Jimmy surprised her with a sensual end to their evening. “I can’t believe you did this,” she managed to whisper, even though she felt like her throat was closed off. “It’s wonderful.”
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