She turned around. I had no shame in her catching me staring at her ass. It was a nice ass. As my eyes made their way up, they involuntarily halted as they reached her double-d’s. Her knit crop top stretched across them in protest.
My eyes met hers, wide and white with pink swirls. They stood out against the black of her kohl eyeliner. I expected righteous indignation to glare off her from the way I had been ogling her body. Her bright red full lips turned up slightly. I braced myself for the outrage.
“Baden Dogger in the flesh.” Charlie’s voice boomed through the shop. He had stepped out from behind the black curtain. Immediately he pulled me out of the chair and into a bear hug. I was not a small man, but Charlie was massive. We nicknamed him Bear in high school. Everyone thought he would end up as a professional football player, not a tattoo artist. “I thought I was being punked when I got your email, you fucker.” He released me.
“Sup, Chuck,” the woman with the hair every color of the rainbow snickered.
“Like I’d ever tire of hearing that one.” Charlie turned to face the woman. “Chrissy, you didn’t give Johnny a hard time back there? I heard a little swearing,” he chuckled.
“Yeah, big guy, I’d like to see you get your dick pierced without a few curse words,” she retorted. Her voice belied her appearance. I expected a high nasally whine. Instead, it had a seductive smoky quality.
Ahh, so she had a piercing. Not that anything she did was any of my business.
“Follow the after-care instruction I gave you, Crystal,” Johnny reminded her.
“Yeah yeah, no fucking for four weeks,” she replied with an eye roll. “That’s how long it will take to heal unless I do something stupid and it gets infected.” Then she bit her plump bottom lip. “Good thing you took care of that for me beforehand, Johnny.”
Fuck, this girl was bold. She didn’t care who heard her.
“Sissy told me you’re complaining about a botched job you let some amateur do?” Charlie was irritated with her.
“Yeah, let me show you,” she began to lower the waistband of her already too tiny skirt. It resembled a tube top that this woman decided to wear as a skirt. It barely covered her as it was.
“It’s a tatt of a mouse sitting just below my hip.” She continued to pull her skirt down a little further. If she lowered it any more, we were all going to see her new piercing.
Charlie bent down to scrutinize the area. “I’m not seeing anything.” His brows furrowed in confusion.
She lowered her eyes to where Charlie had inspected. “It’s not there? Well, fuck me,” she cursed and straightened her skirt. “I guess my pussy must have eaten it.”
It took Charlie a few seconds to process what had happened before he let out a loud, roaring laugh.
“Did you think I’d let some amateur ink me?” she snarled.
Now I saw the righteous indignation I was looking for earlier. The woman without the mouse tattoo was more upset that Charlie believed she would go to someone else for ink than at me eye-fucking her.
“Okay, I’ve already wasted enough time on this bullshit. Baden, are you ready to do this?” Charlie was already heading for his workstation at the back of the shop. “Chrissy, as always, a pleasure.”
I followed after taking one last look at the busty, leggy spitfire. She was loud and brazen. Precisely the opposite of what I preferred these days. However, she was Maddox’s type. If I remembered after my appointment, I might ask Charlie for her number. For Maddox, of course.
I’d been there, done that. Had the fucking tattoo to prove it.
But not for much longer.
Chapter 2
Three months later.
Crystal
“Just like that, baby. Oh yeah, keep that up.” I was attempting to have a little stress released before my meeting with Theo Bentley. The driver Theo sent to pick me up was cute, so I flirted a little. Okay, I flirted a lot.
He looked like he had some experience in pleasing a woman.
Messy blond hair, long on top, shorter on the sides. Bright blue eyes. Pierced tongue. Wide broad shoulders and muscular biceps. The limo driver could have moonlighted as a bodyguard.
Looks could be deceiving. In this case, they were.
His technique was sloppy. You’d think a guy with a tongue piercing would know what to do with it. Not to mention I had a homing beacon in the form of a ruby clit piercing.
I peek over my shoulder to make sure no one had entered the lobby. Even with my back to the door, Theo's office was very exposed. I took the chance that no one would be working today. It wasn’t the norm to book meetings on a Sunday, however, I understood the time constraints Theo had.
I checked my smartphone. Shit, I’d better move this along before Theo showed up. My meeting was in fifteen minutes.
I arrived early and decided to proposition the driver to assist with alleviating my boredom. It wasn’t as if he didn’t have to stick around to take me back to New York once my meeting was over.
“Okay, babe, you have to finish up down there.” I gently tugged on the long strands of his hair to encourage him. He licked me like a Saint Bernard. Long wet laps. God, I needed him to finish this so I could go to the bathroom and get my own orgasm.
I placed my palms on the desk and braced myself. “Oh yeah, baby, that’s good. Oh, yes, yes, yes.” That was about as much enthusiasm I could muster to fake an orgasm. I braced my feet and pushed the chair in which the limo driver sat. It rolled away with ease. He looked up and smiled, pleased with himself. He got up from the chair and attempted to swagger over. It fell flat. He leaned in to kiss me on the lips.
I pulled back and placed my hand over his face. “Uh, uh,” I turned my head, and with my perfectly manicured long red nails, I pointed to my cheek. With a satisfied smirk, he kissed it.
I reached into my bra and drew out a twenty. I patted his cheek and said, “Be a sweetheart and go to that fancy coffee shop we passed on the way in and get me a venti mocha latte. My business should be completed by the time you get back.” I didn’t want to be rude. I was going to have to spend another hour with this guy when he drove me back to the city.
It wasn’t as if I could ask Theo to find me another driver because the one he sent for me couldn't get me off while I was waiting in his office.
Speaking of, I hopped off the desk and began straightening my clothes. I dropped to my knees and began looking under the desk for my thong. Shit, the last thing I needed was Theo finding it before I did.
“Looking for these?” A deep chuckle came from behind. I turned around and raised my eyes to find my thong hanging off the end of a pencil.
I plastered a broad smile on my face as I stood. “Why, yes.” I plucked the thong from the pencil and proceeded to put it on. I kept my eyes on Baden’s as he watched me slowly slip the thong up my legs and secure it in place. “Thank you. Did you enjoy the show?” I asked in my most sickly sweet tone for emphasis.
“Do you think defiling the boss’ desk is a good business decision?” he mocked. The thick timber of his voice tingled down my spine.
“Not something you nor he had not done in the past, Boy Scout.” Get Bent’s sexcapades were legendary in the rock world. I knew who I would be dealing with when I agreed to meet with Bentley Records.
“Oh darling, I got kicked out of Boy Scouts,” he chuckled. “Of course not before I picked up some valuable skills.”
Bet those skills involved knots. I was aware of Baden Dogger’s reputation.
“Glad to see you’re not going to be a hypocrite and try to slut-shame me for appreciating the talents of a man with a tongue piercing.” I stared at him. With my come-fuck-me heels, I was nearly eye level with one Baden Dogger, rock star sex god.
I bet he knew how to use his tongue.
My height often intimidated most men. They didn’t like their women taller than them. Baden had to be at least six foot two. If I wore flats, I would have to look up at him. I learned a long time ago to use my height to my
advantage. I was never going to allow any man the opportunity to look down at me. Especially in this world.
The rock world, in general, was inundated with strong alpha male personalities. Women such as myself and my band fought for every little inch to get ahead in this industry. I wasn’t going to cower to Baden Dogger about what he saw. If half of what was written about him was true, he had done far worse.
“From my vantage point, it didn’t seem like the guy knew what he was doing.” Baden leaned in, and his lips brushed the shell of my ear. “I can spot a fake orgasm from a mile away.” He stepped back and took a seat on the leather sofa in Theo’s office.
I let my body recover from the heat that radiated off him. Maybe it was coming from me. Either way, I was going to have to be careful around him. I knew by reputation I was not his type. He liked his women meek and compliant—the quintessential good girl next door. I’d heard once he corrupted them, he cut them loose and started over.
I took command of my sexuality and stopped being a good girl a long time ago. I had nothing to worry about where Baden Dogger was concerned. I made myself comfortable on the couch beside him.
I extended my hand. “Crystal Divine,” I introduced myself. He needed no introduction. I had seen him months ago when I was at Skulls & Roses Tattoo. He was coming in as I was leaving. Our encounter was brief. I never thought to introduce myself at the time.
His large warm hand engulfed mine. “The lady with the mouse tattoo.” The expressionless look on his face had me wondering if he was offended by my antics.
“You remembered that?” I cautiously asked.
“Kind of hard to forget. It’s not every day that someone's mouse gets eaten by her pussy.” There was no hint of humor, nor implications of judgment.
Theo took that moment to enter his office.
“Baden, I see you’ve met Crystal Divine. Lead singer of Divine Chrysalis. Crystal, meet Baden Dogger, your band’s mentor for the foreseeable future.” I sat stunned at his declaration. I thought I was summoned here to pick up a contract for the band.
We had been commuting from New York to Tranquility, laying tracks at Bentley Records with the promise of being signed on with the new and upcoming label.
“You made the trip in person,” Theo continued. “If you were not willing to relocate, you wouldn’t have bothered coming in today.”
He was right. If the band had not decided that moving to bum fuck nowhere was worth a contract with Bentley Records, I wouldn’t have made the trip.
Theo opened his briefcase and produced a standard contract and handed it over. I briefly flipped through the pages. He knew I was going to take this with me and get it looked at by a professional.
I’d heard horror stories about hidden clauses and shitty deals from record labels by other bands I knew. Not to mention the number of artists who had gone public with their legal issues. I did not want to end up like any of them.
I placed the contract in my lap and took a deep breath. I had an issue that needed addressing. I didn’t need Theo thinking the girls and I had tried to pull one over on him. I cleared my throat.
“We, I mean us, the girls and I,” I stammered like an amateur. Fuck it. “We fired our drummer and replaced him.” I stopped to take a long calming breath. “Before you freak out, let me explain.” I waited for a signal from Theo to continue. He gave me a nod.
“I’m sure you’re aware Ruby Red blew her vocal cords. She’s looking at a long recovery if she’s lucky. Her manager tried to recruit me to replace her as lead singer. At some point during the negotiations, I poached Jade for Divine Chrysalis.” I watched his eyes brighten at my disclosure. Bringing in an established drummer to an up and coming indie band was rare. However, I managed to pull it off.
It didn’t hurt that Ruby’s diva attitude made her a pain in her band’s ass. Jade, as well as the others, were ready to quit long before Ruby let her vocal cords go unattended.
We didn’t get into the fine print of her contract, however, no Ruby, no band. No band, no contract. That made Jade, Sapphire and Emerald free agents.
I told Jade if I could find a replacement for our drummer, I had a deal on the table with Bentley Records. Instead of me joining them, she joined us. She admitted to letting several items slide when she signed on with Ruby Red. However, with her experience in the business, she negotiated to have the non-compete clause removed.
It made me happy that I didn’t have to leave Amber and Ashley behind. I knew we couldn’t hold Theo off much longer, and it was taking us longer than I had thought to find a drummer that meshed with our sound.
“First of all, kudos on recruiting Jade.” He appeared amused by my revelation.
I knew that piece of news would soften the blow of losing our original drummer.
“Second, you should have told me there was an issue. I could have helped you.” He looked disappointed that I had not trusted him enough to come clean instead of thinking he would renege on any deals we’d made.
“What about Emerald and Sapphire?” Theo’s question threw me. I had a rhythm guitarist, and I played the lead as well as singing. We didn’t need any more members.
“What about them?” I shrugged.
“Who writes your songs, Crystal?” I did not particularly appreciate where this was going.
“We farm them out. I’ve written a few.” I knew our lack of songwriting skills was the band's biggest weakness. That was why people made a living out of being songwriters.
“I know for a fact that Emerald and Sapphire write and compose most of Ruby Red’s songs.” His eyes were gleaming. I could see the wheels turning inside his head. “Emerald plays the keyboard. If we unstrap you and make Sapphire lead guitar, that would free you up to strut your stuff on the stage.” His eyes sparkled with anticipation.
I didn’t want to agree with him, but he was right. I played lead guitar out of necessity. It restricted what I could do on stage as a singer.
“You’re proposing a six-member all-female rock band?” Baden piped in. I forgot he was there, but he had a point. That was a shit ton of estrogen on one stage. Not to mention the wardrobe changes, makeup and all-out bitchy jealousy that often came with having that many egos in one place.
“I think we,” Theo pointed to all three of us, “can pull this off.” Fuck if his enthusiasm wasn’t contagious.
“Let me talk to the girls,” I conceded. “If—and that’s a very big if—you can get us a meeting to discuss if we think this could work, I’m in.” The girls of Ruby Red already had a good following. However, we had our fans and a distinct sound. That was something I was not willing to compromise.
If I was honest with myself, the only reason I met with Ruby Red’s manager was that we did have a similar sound. Divine Chrysalis was a tad on the wilder side. Kind of like their lead singer.
“How soon do you think you can relocate?”
Shit, that was something else I'd forgotten to ask. Tranquility wasn’t like New York. I’d seen a couple of high rises coming into town, but I had no idea how long it would take to find a place for the four of us. I guess now it would be the six of us.
“What’s the renting situation in a small town like this?” I wasn’t worried about the cost. I would sublet my New York apartment. There was no way I was going to let it go completely. Getting real estate in New York was harder than panning for gold in the Yukon.
“Bentley has some property secured for incoming talent,” Theo smirked. He reached inside his desk and produced a brochure. It looked like something a realtor would hand you when you were looking for a place, which in this case was fitting. “Take this,” he handed me the leaflets, “talk to the girls, decide what kind of accommodations you will need. Remember, this isn’t temporary. I want you relocated and ready to go on tour this fall with ReInVented.”
My mouth fell open. “This fall? You want us to take on new members and be ready by this fall to go on tour? A full tour?” Yes, I hoped that Theo would have enough confidence i
n us to send us on tour. But he was talking about a significant tour with their top-shelf talent.
“Where’s that confident, cocky rock star I met in New York last Christmas? The one who told me she would and could do anything a male counterpart could do?” Theo challenged me.
Yes, where was that Crystal?
Chapter 3
Baden
It was entertaining to watch Crystal sit there with her mouth open like a guppy. Today her hair was no longer multi-colored. It was white as snow—void of all color, similar to her eyes.
“Where’s that confident, cocky rock star I met in New York last Christmas? The one who told me she would and could do anything a male counterpart could do?” Damn, that was harsh of Theo. But it lit a fire under her.
“Oh, I can do it.” She held Theo’s severe gaze. “As I said, set up the meeting. The girls and I will be there. As long as Jade is okay working with Emerald and Sapphire, Amber and Ashley will follow my lead. They trust my decisions to do what’s best for the band.”
I knew there was dissension in Ruby Red. I didn’t want to inherit that tension. It was a good thing Theo was having me mentor the band. As an impartial party, I could deter any friction that might occur once Divine Chrysalis absorbed the remaining members of Ruby Red.
“Can I ask what happened to your previous drummer?” I was wondering when Theo was going to get around to asking. If he didn’t, I would have.
“We had one rule, no drugs. I found our drummer balls deep fucking his ex while snorting coke off her tits.” She certainly didn’t sugar coat it.
“Sounds fucking familiar,” I muttered under my breath before realizing Crystal was sitting close enough to pick up what I’d said. This was how Shelby had found Damon that fateful night many years ago.
“Keiths in rehab,” she volunteered. “Two fucking years of sobriety, and then that bitch shows up and he falls. I wish she would stay away.” I saw a sadness in her eyes. “It’s hard when family ties us together.” I knew we considered each member of our band family. Was she talking literally or figuratively?
Rock Gods: Baden Page 2