LIMITLESS: A Less Than Zero Rockstar Romance: Book 2: Jace & Alex

by Kaylene Winter

  “Jace—” I knew I couldn’t tour with the band. I had my own plans. Zoey and I were back in each other’s lives and—well—girl code and everything. Unless Jace and I had something real, how could I risk wrecking that?

  I wouldn’t. Not if we were just regular hook-ups.

  “Oh shit, this will be great,” Jace’s was more animated than I’d ever seen him. “The guys think you’re awesome, I’m sure they’d totally be cool with it.”

  “Um. No. I can’t do that.” I booped his nose.

  “Oh.” Jace visibly deflated. “Why?”

  I gestured between us. “Do any of the guys even know about me? About this?”

  “Not exactly.” He averted his eyes.

  “So, you see? It’s not a good idea.” I shook my head sadly. “Besides, after the album, Zoey wouldn’t understand.”

  Jace squinted with determination as he often did when noodling over some LTZ issue. “Maybe you could meet me sometimes?” We can look at my schedule and see when I have more than one day off, you could just fly in.”

  “I don’t know . . .” I wasn’t sure that I liked the direction this was headed. It felt a little groupie-ish.

  “Poppy, we have five more months in Europe. I want to see you as much as possible.” He had a look in his eyes that I’d never seen before. Like I was a special prize. No one had ever looked at me like that and I’d been engaged. “I mean. Well, I’d really like to see where this thing between us goes.”

  “Us as in ‘us?’” I was visibly shocked but in such a good way.

  He looked hurt that I’d not considered it.

  “Is that so weird?”

  “A little? I never thought you felt that way about me. I never thought you would think of us as an ‘us.’” I used air quotes.

  “Well, you’re wrong. I’ve thought about it for years.” Jace’s confession shocked me to my core.

  It’s finally happening.

  “But how do we make this work? You live on the road, so do I.” My mind was a whirlwind, I wanted to do it, but it seemed so impossible. “We both have a lot going on.”

  Jace lay back and punched the pillow lightly. “Yeah. I know it probably won’t be easy. We’d both need to figure it out.”

  “I wouldn’t want there to be anyone else, Jace.” I propped my head on his chest, feeling the hard planes of his abs. “I wouldn’t want to share you.”

  “Well, if it means anything, there’s never been anyone that I’ve cared about since I met you. Maybe ever.” He wrinkled his brow as if he were surprised to hear himself say it. “But, okay. I get it and can say the words. No one else. We’d be exclusive.”

  “And we shouldn’t tell anyone yet.” I poked him in the chest.

  “Why not?”

  “Let’s be stealth. Just until you and I figure out what’s going on here.”

  “Oh-kay. How in the hell will you come with me to the shows then?” He trailed his hand from my shoulder blade down to my breast. He was obsessed with my boobs. Not that I minded.

  “I’ll just have to get a few disguises together to keep you on your toes.” My mind began to whirl with the possibilities.

  “Hmmmm.” Jace hauled me on top of him and guided the bulbous tip of his cock into me. “Just thinking of you in costume makes me want to be inside you.”

  “You’re insatiable.” I canted my hips and squeezed.

  “So are you.” He thrust up. “I can’t help that I love watching you ride me.”

  Too soon it was time for him to leave and time for me to go back to my flat. Armed with a calendar of our chosen destinations, I scheduled some appearances and booked some of my flights. We would see each other for one or two days about every week/week and a half. I couldn’t believe it, after all this time, Jace and I were kind of a couple. I just wished we didn’t have to be a secret couple. But, circumstances necessitated it. At least for now.

  My first stop was in London, where LTZ played two shows at Wembley Stadium. Jace left a key to his suite for me at the Savoy hotel. In return, I greeted him naked in the giant bathtub when he got done with his show. We made love until dawn.

  Replicating our Barcelona experience, I dashed out in the morning and bought us both British flag T-shirts and ball-caps, and we were able to ride around on the hop-on, hop-off bus unnoticed. That night, with my VIP All-Access pass, I watched the second show from the soundboard. Best-laid plans. My Twiggy-inspired wig and shift dress was a tad too conspicuous and I nearly got caught by Zane backstage.

  My disguise did inspire some Austin Powers moments at the hotel. Jace told me that Ty and Connor, who were in the neighboring suites, had teased him for weeks by calling out, “Yeah, baby!” every time he walked by.

  The band had four days off in Paris after they played to a sold-out crowd at Stade de Paris. We took full advantage because they never had much time off. The reason for the break was so Carter and Zane could take Ty to a wellness resort outside the city.

  A few days prior, Jace showed Ty a picture of Zoey with her law school boyfriend on Instagram. By the next morning, Ty woke up in bed with some woman after blacking out from drinking. Not remembering it was the very last straw. The tortured singer finally wanted to get some help.

  Having now witnessed his antics firsthand in Ireland and London, I was glad Ty was dealing with his issues. I truly wanted him to get back on his feet.

  In even better news, Connor made plans with a mystery woman in Provence. For the first time in forever, Jace had no one to take care of and we were both free from any responsibilities.

  But the best news was the Paris dates happened to coincide with my twenty-third birthday. Jace pulled some strings and arranged for us to have a private tasting dinner at L'Ambroisie, a fancy three-Michelin star restaurant. Before dinner, he took me shopping for a birthday outfit and I chose a peach-nude Chanel dress and gorgeous Dior sandals. He outfitted himself in a dark-brown Dolce & Gabbana suit with some funky wing-tipped dress shoes. We dined on the most decadent food I’d ever tasted, and I felt truly grown-up for the first time in my life.

  Afterward, we walked hand-in-hand through the romantic Paris streets. Jace’s hair was pulled back in a ponytail, emphasizing his gorgeous green eyes and chiseled jaw. When the heavens opened up and we found ourselves in another downpour, he still looked more relaxed than I’d ever seen him.

  Spreading his arms out wide, he shook out his hair and laughed. We were soaked and my new dress was ruined, but nothing mattered in that moment. On a quaint bridge overlooking the Seine, I launched myself at him and our mouths crashed together.

  It was in that moment that I knew, without any shadow of a doubt, that I loved him.

  I loved Jace Deveraux with all my heart.

  When we arrived back to our opulent suite at Hôtel Barrière, we made love all night. In the morning, sitting on our veranda overlooking the Arc de Triomphe, the look in Jace’s eyes told me all I needed to know, he was feeling it too.

  “Poppy,” he whispered and clasped my hand, bringing it to his lips and kissing it.

  My breath caught. “Yes?”

  “You’re so incredibly beautiful, and funny. And sexy.” He gulped almost nervously. “You have to know that I have feelings for you.”

  “I fell for you a long time ago, Jace.” I kissed his palm.

  Jace leaned over and kissed me. “I’m pretty sure that I love you.”

  “I’m pretty sure that I love you too,” I murmured against his lips.

  Suffice it to say, it was a perfect visit.

  But it wasn’t a perfect time.

  Jace’s challenge was that LTZ’s fan base increased dramatically every day. He was basically living two lives with two full-time jobs. His public life consisted of the same crazy schedule of travel to shows, the shows themselves, interviews, fan events, press, and appearances. He and all the guys had full-time bodyguards. They were in high demand, and Jace was rarely alone.

  His private life amounted to herding all of the LTZ cats
to keep the PR momentum going.

  So it became harder to find a stretch where he had more than one day off. My plans to join him in Amsterdam, Stockholm, and Frankfurt were thwarted by his schedule changes.

  We managed super-quick overnights in Prague, Dubrovnik, Vienna, and Athens where I arrived during their evening show and he had to leave by mid-morning. Aside from our physical gratification, which was always epic, these hurried visits left me feeling emotionally empty because he had to leave so quickly after we reconnected.

  Trying to keep a positive attitude, because none of the scheduling was Jace’s fault, I popped over to Milan to meet him after a show. I was excitedly waiting for him in his hotel suite when I his text came in.

  Jace: Just got done, I’m sorry but management is here, they’re making me go to a party.

  Alex: Ok but I’m already at the hotel.

  Jace: I know, I’ll try to hurry.

  Alex: xo

  Jace: xo

  Usually, he raced back to me as soon as humanly possible so we could have the whole night together. This time he didn’t. I must have fallen asleep because when I heard the door click open, daylight was already peeping through the blackout curtains. Jace tiptoed into the room and through the slits in my eyes I saw him undressing before crawling into bed with me.

  “Are you awake.” Jace cuddled me close, his erection poking into the back of my thigh.

  “Now I am.” I wiggled my ass back against his cock.

  “I don’t have long. The bus leaves in three hours.” Jace kissed my neck, lifted my thigh over his, nudged his dick in between my legs, and then entered me from behind. “God, you feel good.”

  A lump formed in my throat when he gripped my hips and pumped into me. No foreplay. No sweet nothings. We weren’t even looking at each other. This sex felt rushed and utilitarian. This was not what I signed up for.

  The love bubble that I’d been living in was bursting.

  When Jace reached around to pluck my nipple and then rub my clit, my body wasn’t reacting. I just wasn’t feeling it. I deserved to be more than a quick lay to him.

  “Poppy, are you okay?” Jace stilled inside me, I could feel his breath at the back of my neck.

  “I’m fine,” I whispered into the pillow, even though I wasn’t fine at all.

  Jace pulled out and reached across my body to turn on the lamp. My eyes winced at the light and I put my hand up to shield the glare.

  He tenderly stroked my cheek. “Something’s wrong.”

  Tears pooled in my eyes. “I don’t want to be a vessel, Jace.”

  “What do you mean?” He looked genuinely confused.

  “It’s not cool for me to wait for hours in a hotel room when you’re at some stupid, goddamn party. Sex like this makes me feel like it’s just a release for you.” I sniffed through my emotions. “I mean, I could be anyone right now.”

  Jace looked horrified. “No. Fuck no. Alex, you mean everything to me. I love you. You’re what I look forward to, you’re what keeps me going.”

  “If you really love me so much, where were you all night?” My voice was small which made me mad at myself.

  “I told you, I had to go to this stupid sponsor party, you’ve been at them with me before.” Jace cupped my face with his hands and kissed me. “There’s no one else. I wouldn’t do that to you. I just couldn’t fucking leave.”

  Kissing me senseless wasn’t good enough, and I had to draw a line. “There’s this thing called texting. And manners. And consideration.”

  We stared at each other. For too long. I was about ready to get up and get the hell out of there when all pretense of his defensiveness evaporated. “I’m sorry. You’re right. I was wrong.”

  It was a start and he seemed genuinely sorry. “It’s just, I mean, I have a life too and I rearrange a lot so I can meet you. I do it because I love you. I want to be here with you. Just show me a little respect for my time too, rock star.”

  “I won’t let it happen again, Poppy.” Jace touched his lips to mine and this time I was able to enjoy it. After all, the splendor of my naked drummer wasn’t something I planned to miss.

  Our tongues danced and my tears dried, and once again being here with Jace was everything I wanted. He kissed down my neck and stroked my breasts, tracing my nipples with his thumbs and laving them tenderly one after the other. Moving down, he trailed his tongue across the muscles of my stomach and nibbled at my belly ring. Nuzzling my inner thighs, Jace pushed my legs open and lapped at my pussy and pressed his fingers inside. Sucking my clit in between his lips, he pulsed and licked and fucked me with his tongue until I came hard.

  Kissing his way back up my body, my sexy drummer slid inside me more gently this time and we sipped from each other’s mouths languidly. Jace’s elbows bridged my head and his hands spanned my head, allowing his hips to roll his cock into me over and over again. I ran my hands up and down his back, clasping him close to me as I shuddered through another orgasm.

  Piercing me with his gorgeous emerald eyes, his soft hair fell in a curtain around our faces when Jace cried out and released a flood inside me.

  He withdrew and cuddled me so that I lay against his chest basking in our afterglow. I felt better at that moment, but I was a realist. A night like tonight could easily happen again given the current state of affairs. It was partly my fault. Jace had been more than willing to make our relationship public. It was my insistence at keeping it secret that cost us precious time together and forced us to sneak around.

  Jace’s voice jarred me out of my thoughts. “What’s going on in that head of yours?”

  “This is such a mess.” I stroked his chest and traced his tattoos on his arms. “A mess that I’ve created.”

  “I’m sorry this is hard for you.”

  I yawned, struggling to keep my eyes open. “Maybe we should just tell everyone . . .”

  “Yeah—” Jace’s voice was barely audible. His breathing slowed, and I knew he was sound asleep.

  When I woke up at noon, Jace was long gone, but like always when he left before I got up, a sweet note was waiting for me. This time, when I checked my phone, he had also sent me a video. When I clicked play, his gorgeous yet scruffy face filled my screen.

  “Poppy, I’m on my way to Madrid. I miss you already. I’ll FaceTime you when we land. Oh, and I love you!”

  Of course, my heart swooned. While I loved the message, the practical protect-your-heart side of me had already kicked in. With only three weeks left on their European leg, I had to start facing facts. After shooting a television special in Seattle, LTZ would be leaving on another long stint throughout South America.

  Love or not, our time together was coming to an end.

  It was time to prepare myself for heartbreak.

  Back in Ireland, after I cleared out my flat in Belfast, I returned to Ibiza to spend some time at a rescue I’d volunteered at when I first started.

  I met up with Jace for awesome overnights in Lisbon and Cardiff with plans for a longer visit in Italy. Despite how much fun we had, I still felt myself mentally pulling away. By the time I boarded my plane to Rome, where LTZ would play their closing European festival, in my mind, the hourglass had run out.

  I pushed the thoughts out of my head, though. We had a full week before Jace flew back to Seattle, and he’d arranged for a private villa in Lake Como, just the two of us. I was equally looking forward to it and dreading it. My mind was everywhere.

  Using my All-Access pass, I went through the band entrance to the show. No disguises, I just laid low. Everything about the performance was incredible. Clearly, Ty was feeling better. He looked and sounded like his head was back in the game. The Italian crowd went bananas. Watching them, it was hard to reconcile this band with the version of LTZ I’d seen so many years ago at the Mission. I found myself dancing and singing along to the entire set. They had come so far.

  Jace didn’t get done until well after two in the morning, mainly because of the over-the-top closi
ng party. It was second nature to work the room, but I’d come to the realization that this lifestyle was something I’d outgrown. I was ready to move on to something more meaningful.

  When we were drinking the last beer of the night, I eavesdropped on a conversation between Sienna and Andrew, the band’s new publicists who were talking about the band’s schedule for the next year or so. I learned that after the television show and the Latin America shows LTZ were recording an album in Los Angeles. There were a couple of award show appearances and a New Year’s’ Eve headlining gig in New York. After New York, they were traveling to Asia and Australia for another four-month tour. By the time they got back, after a few weeks off, the new album would be released, and the entire cycle would begin again.

  In other words, Jace’s schedule was already booked up for approximately two to three years.

  As much as I wanted to be with him, I just wasn’t the type of girl who would give up everything I was doing to be at his beck and call.

  It didn’t surprise me when Jace dozed off in the private plane he’d chartered for the short trip from Rome to Lake Como. When we landed, a town car was waiting to drive us to the villa. It was still dark when we pulled up the private drive. Lights illuminated the path to the ornate front door. Although it was nearly dawn, a small staff in full uniforms scurried out and ushered us inside.

  Exhausted, we staggered like zombies into the big master suite. The room smelled amazing, of flowers and citrus. The giant four-poster bed with a fluffy comforter was turned down, and the black-out curtains were drawn. Tumbling into bed, we wrapped around each other and promptly fell asleep, not waking up until nearly 3 p.m. the next day.

  I woke first and lay still against Jace’s chest, listening to his heartbeat while he slept for God knows how long. I was thinking about how hard it must have been for Zoey to leave Ty all those years ago. In those quiet moments, I finally understood my BFF’s sacrifice. And heartbreak.

  Things were just not going to work out for Jace and me. It was time for me to move on. I didn’t know how I was going to tell him.

  I did know it wouldn’t be a note on the nightstand.