The Complete Tempest World Box Set

by Mankin, Michelle

  “You’re blackmailing him?” My expression revealed my surprise.

  “Basically, yeah.” Warren twirled a strand of my hair around one of his fingers. It was easy to tell that he was quite proud of that particular fact. “It’s taken care of, but Shaina.” From the way he said my name I could sense the impending lecture even before he started. “Alex and I talked about the stuff you were doing before I got up here and we both agree that if you ever…” he let that unfinished statement hang, meaningfully.

  “I won’t. I’ve learned my lesson. Alex was just up here while you were with Bryan giving me the same speech.” I had escaped my tower but forgot to unfold my wings. I should have believed in myself. Instead of soaring on that strength, I’d let the weight of self-doubt bring me plummeting to the earth. “I made some rotten choices. I know that. I still have lots to learn, and I’ll mess up again I’m sure, but at least I’m finally living my own life. And I’ve got you and my best friend looking out for me.”

  “You’ve got me. Always.” War’s voice deepened with emotion. He cleared his throat and took my hands placing them on his chest. Our bodies aligned thighs to chests, he looked deep into my eyes, and once again I felt that connection we shared lock into place.

  “You really aren’t going to tell me what happened?” I breathed.

  He shook his head. His eyes were warm on my face, and I shivered as he gently moved a strand of my hair back over my shoulder.

  “Is there nothing I can do to persuade you to tell me more?” His brow rose as I wetted my lips and leaned into him. My cell suddenly rang. I sighed heavily recognizing the ring tone. “That’s Sunderhouse. I have to take it.”

  “No worries, Sweetness.”

  “You’re not off the hook,” I warned narrowing my eyes on him before stepping back to withdraw my cell from my pocket.

  “Wouldn’t ever wanna be.” He moved behind me, his body a solid warm distracting presence. The cell rang again, and I slid open the call.

  “Hello?”

  “Shaina?”

  “Yes,” I squeaked as War’s lips touched my neck just beneath my ear.

  “Joel just quit the film.”

  “You’re kidding?” I tried to get my mind to focus which was extremely difficult to do with War touching his wet tongue to the sensitive skin beneath my collar.

  “That’s just how I reacted. But he was so adamant I’ve already called another actor in to replace him. In the meantime we can’t afford to get behind schedule. I’ll need you to come in and do a couple of publicity shots for the film, like we discussed earlier. Only you’ll have to do it today.”

  “Sure. I guess.” The timing of Joel’s departure seemed suspicious, but before I could work that out Warren’s tongue started tracing a line from my neck to my shoulder. I bit back a moan. I’d worry about getting him to tell me what happened later. For right now I needed to get this call over with so I could get him to put that talented tongue inside my mouth instead.

  “I’ve got Bernard lined up for the pictures,” Sunderhouse added. “How long will it take you to get into the studio?”

  “You mean you need me right now?” War’s hands slid around my waist and moved upward to cup my breasts. My knees nearly went out as I looked down and watched his ringed thumbs swipe across the sensitive peaks.

  “Will that be a problem? Is something wrong? You sound out of breath. Did I catch you in the middle of a workout or something?”

  “No…I mean, yeah.” My voice was husky. “I’ll come.” War chuckled darkly. “I mean, I’ll be there as soon as I can. Give me an hour.”

  “Ok, but I’m on the clock with Bernard, Shaina. He’s a busy photographer, and he’s doing this for me as a favor. And I’ll need you to run through those vocals again while you’re here, too.”

  “Ok.” I ended the call, tossed the phone on the couch, and swiveled around, twining my arms around War’s neck, sliding my fingers into the silky caramel strands.

  He stared at my mouth for a beat, his eyes a smoldering mahogany, his fingers fisting in the fabric low on my back. Then his lips crushed mine, hot and hard and wet, and a maelstrom of passion erupted inside of me that made me forget everything else.

  • • •

  Sunderhouse frowned when I breezed into the studio, cheeks still flushed an hour and a half later. He watched War with narrowed eyes. “What’s going on here?” he asked me. I could tell he was trying to work things out in his mind. I’m sure he suspected Warren’s sudden appearance on the scene had more than a little something to do with Joel’s just as sudden but mysterious departure. “Why is he here?”

  “He’s my voice coach,” I explained hurriedly, straightening my blouse, relieved to see that I’d re-buttoned it properly. “He’s going to help me.”

  “Alright.” He eyed me skeptically probably thinking that it couldn’t hurt considering the dreadful results the last time I sang. “Hurry and get ready then.” He made a rushing motion with his hands. “Everyone’s waiting on you.”

  I dashed down the hall and settled into the makeup chair squirming with impatience as the stylist worked her magic. I wondered what War and Sunderhouse were saying to each other, or if they were even talking at all. As soon as she was finished, I took my outfit off the rack, threw it on, and flew back down the hall. I felt a little exposed going braless underneath the silk, the way Joplin usually did.

  War and Sunderhouse broke apart when I entered, War turning to watch as I walked into the room channeling Joplin’s jaunty strut, bracelets clanking together on my wrist, and crimped hair swirling around my shoulders. I made my way to the front where the photographer had everything set up.

  I could feel War’s heated gaze following me, and my nipples pebbled beneath the strappy top in response. I took my place where Bernard positioned me between two really bright lights, pulling the crochet vest in front of my chest to try to disguise what was going on up there.

  “Mon Cheri.” Bernard tsked disapprovingly under his breath, pulling the vest back out of the way and arranging the beaded necklaces the way he wanted them before he took a step back to study his handiwork. Apparently liking what he saw, he angled his camera on a tripod and moved his eye to the viewfinder.

  The whirring click of shot after shot on his high speed Canon was the only sound in the room for a long time as Bernard worked. His bald head began to sweat under the hot lights.

  “You’re very photogenic, Cheri,” Bernard announced, finally satisfied, handing off his camera to a nearby assistant. “It has been a pleasure working with you.”

  “Thank you,” I murmured in reply.

  “I’ll email you some of the files.” He glanced over at War who had pushed away from the wall and was coming toward us. “I think your boyfriend might get a kick out of them, oui?”

  War nodded, his gaze appreciative as it raked over me.

  “What do you think?” I did a pirouette in front of him. He leaned in close, his chest coming into contact with my breasts which immediately puckered.

  “You’re so sexy I’ve been standing back there the entire time thinking about fucking you up against one of these walls.” His voice was a rough whisper in my ear.

  I glanced around to see if anyone had heard, while white hot tendrils of wicked heat licked my body.

  “C’mon,” He rocked back on his booted heel. “Let’s find…”

  “Shaina.” Sunderhouse suddenly appeared and handed me a bottled water. “We’ve got the recording room all set up. You feel up to running through ‘Piece of my Heart’ one more time?”

  I threw Warren an apologetic look. He accepted it, but I’m pretty sure the remaining heat in his eyes promised me there would be a later.

  I couldn’t wait.

  Sunderhouse led the way down the hall, but at the door instead of going around to the booth with him, War grabbed my hand and threaded his fingers with mine. I breathed a little easier, glad he was staying with me. We entered the room together, War looking like he was i
n his element as he picked up a set of headphones and put them on my head. He kicked the wooden stool I had started to sit on out of the way.

  “It’ll be better if you stand, darlin’.” He untangled my curled tresses and arranged them carefully around my shoulders, making me shiver as he lingered to trace a finger softly down the bare skin of my arm. I’d do it in any position he suggested. His eyes lifted and settled on mine. They were dark and shining with approval. Confidence filling me, I straightened even as he stepped backward, giving me space to work but keeping his eyes on me. He leaned against the glass wall behind him. “Sing it like it’s just you and me, Sweetness. Pretend no one else is even here. Like you did this morning with me at the piano.”

  • • •

  War

  It was torture watching Shaina project all that in your face sexy attitude and then being forced to keep my hands and my X-rated thoughts to myself.

  She was less than three feet away, shimmying and shaking, shifting her weight back on her heels, those beautiful tits of her bouncing as she sang.

  Incredible.

  She was incredible. I’d seen footage of Joplin. Who hadn’t? And Shaina had the woman’s mannerisms down perfectly. It was uncanny.

  She closed her eyes and belted out the bluesy lyrics, patiently redoing each part that they asked her to and choosing for herself which suggestions to incorporate and which to discard to make it even better. There might be singers who could outdo her voice, but no one could top her style.

  I’d never forget being there with her, being a part of the magic that she created. Her gaze repeatedly came back to mine. I loved how she so obviously preened after receiving my praise or approval. It was the same way I felt when given hers.

  Shaina was the one. The ray of light breaking through my storm clouds. The sugar that sweetened my bitter cup. A crazy dream that replaced the nightmare of my life before her. Someone who loved me despite my faults, maybe even because of them.

  I was never going to let her get away from me ever again. I finally understood about this love gig. I would do anything to protect her. Anything to keep her mine. Anything to hold onto that feeling of completion I’d felt the first time I had held her in my arms.

  But I wouldn’t hold on too tightly this time. That was one of the mistakes I’d made with Lace. Love wasn’t really about possession. It was more about bridging the gap between two separate souls. And it wasn’t about controlling her. It was about trusting her and giving her enough room to fly.

  And watching Shaina fly was a captivating sight to behold.

  CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR

  Shaina

  “Why are we here again exactly?” I asked, lifting my head from his shoulder as we exited the elevator and walked down the narrow hall at the Sutton Place hotel. I stuck close to him, not wanting to dislodge the arm that was draped so possessively around me. I needed that as much for strength at the moment as for courage. I was truly exhausted. It’d been that kind of day top to bottom.

  I’d only just put back on my own clothes at the studio when War had informed me that we were coming here…to Lace and Bryan’s apartment.

  “We’re celebrating getting rid of Joel and because,” he glanced down at me watching for my reaction. “Lace likes you. She told Bryan she wants a chance to get to know you better.”

  “She couldn’t possibly know me well enough to have formed a favorable opinion,” I grumbled, doubts and nerves cramping my stomach. The truth I suspected was more along the lines of her wanting to get me under the microscope.

  Since the groundwork was being laid to bridge the gap between the three former friends my best guess was that she wanted to see if I was good enough to fit in with them and the rest of their Southside clique. I bet she had concerns, especially in light of my recent questionable behavior. But then again, I was feeling defensive, tired, and more than a little bitchy. So what the heck did I know?

  “Won’t this be hard on you?” I asked when I noticed that his brow was creased. “Being around the two of them as a couple?”

  “No, not anymore.” His tone made me believe him. “And I have you to thank for that. I’d never been given this opportunity to get back together with my friends if it hadn’t been for you.”

  “How do you figure that?”

  “I never would have taken the first step off my one man island if it hadn’t been for you.”

  “You rescued me as much as I did you.”

  He seemed to consider that for a moment. “Yeah, well as to whether or not my influence on you has been positive, that’s debatable.”

  “But…”

  “There are no buts. I definitely got the better deal in this partnership. Though I think it’s proof that whoever’s in charge of this crazy universe has a sense of humor since the beginning of an unlikely couple like us happened on a bridge where we were both thinking about ending it all.” He knocked on the door and pulled me into him, his hands trekking a pleasurable course and his mouth heavily exploring mine when it opened.

  “I’ll just leave this ajar.” I could hear the smile in Lace’s voice. “Give you guys another moment to finish up. Keep it PG, War. Bry and I will have to come live with you and Shaina if we get kicked out of the building.” The sound of her chuckling tapered off as she moved away.

  I tried to break free from War’s embrace, but he wasn’t having any part of that. His arms locked tighter and he kept kissing me until I went boneless. With his passioned expertise of course that didn’t take very long.

  “Any other questions?” He grinned at me after he ended the kiss.

  I shook my head obediently and he took my hand and led me into the apartment where we found Lace and Bryan waiting in a small but elegant living room. Bryan looked handsome as ever in worn jeans and a tee similar to what War was wearing though without all the sexy accessories.

  He acknowledged us with a chin dip.

  Lace had a Tempest tee knotted at her waist. She moved forward and pulled me away from War. “I’m glad you could come. Let’s leave these two in here while we get them a couple of beers. I wanna hear all about you and War. Bryan never gets the important details. I’m sure it’s quite a story.”

  My stomach let go of the tension. She was obviously trying to include, not exclude me, as was Bryan by helping with Joel today.

  I looked back over my shoulder at War as she led me away. He lifted his chin, a grin tipping up his lips. I’d caught him staring at my ass and he knew it. My heart turned a happy summersault.

  I loved my badass rocker man.

  When we reached the kitchen Lace gave me an expectant look. So I told her an abbreviated version about the bridge, lines of worry around her eyes I hadn’t noticed before easing as I shared. When I finished she told me a condensed version of her own story.

  With a wistful smile, she explained how she’d been in love with Bryan since she was five. While she talked she moved around the kitchen opening up a box of microwave popcorn, removing the crinkly plastic wrapper, and tossing it in the unit. The sound of popping and the smell of butter soon filled the galley kitchen’s tiny space.

  “Bryan was a little slow to pick up on it, but by then…” She trailed off as deep masculine laughter drifted to us from the living room. When she looked back in my direction, her eyes had a telltale glassy sheen. She turned, removed the bag, opened a cabinet, and pulled down a glass bowl for the popped kernels. “I’ve never seen Warren the way he is with you…so tender,” she admitted the last bit quietly.

  Though my heart did a pleased skip hearing that, I was ready to get back to my boyfriend’s side. I grabbed the beers for Warren and myself and moved toward the living room.

  “Shaina,” she called, and I stopped. “He and I were never right for each other. I realize that now looking back. We were both too much alike to ever really mesh. But you seem to balance each other out. I’m happy for both of you.” She turned her head to the side, but I saw what she was trying to hide and recognized the effort it cost he
r to say those words. It seemed as if she might have kept her regrets about Warren bottled up for quite some time.

  I crossed the space between us and covered her hands with my own. I could see how I might someday come to like this woman. A lot. She released her death grip on the popcorn bowl. “I hope we can all be friends.”

  “Me too.” She straightened her shoulders. “You already have a big admirer in Dizzy.” Her tone turned teasing as we returned to the living room.

  “What’s that?” War asked, eyes alert as he draped an arm across my shoulder.

  I handed him his beer. “Nothing…”

  “I wouldn’t say it’s nothing,” Lace cut in. “He watched your show for days after the party and even tried to contact your agency to get your number.”

  “Hey, bitches.” Dizzy strode in as if on cue.

  Lace’s face flushed, caught in the act of ratting out her brother, a fact he didn’t miss.

  “It wasn’t like that at all.” His gaze swung apologetically to me. “I was just curious and I needed to return your jacket.”

  “Whatever.” Lace laughed. “But you’ve moved on apparently.” She affected an exaggerated whisper. “Spending all your free time at the Diamond Mine these days, huh, brother?”

  “Let it go, Lace.” Dark brows lowered ominously over amber eyes that were suddenly no longer teasing.

  “Hola, Pendejos!” The Tempest drummer announced. I’d been so absorbed in the Dizzy Lace dynamic that I’d missed his entrance. The inky haired bassist followed in his wake, balancing a couple of large pizza boxes over one of his broad shoulders.

  “Hope you don’t mind,” Lace piped in. “I went ahead and asked the rest of the crew to join the party.”

  King gave me a head to toe scan that wasn’t all that subtle.

  War noticed. He pulled me closer. “Darlin’, this is Juaquin Acenado.” He gave King a pointed look. “I already told her all about you, dude.”

  “And she’s still decided to settle for you?” King lifted a dark brow.