Chapter 3
RIFF
It’s been a couple days since I received my Wild Cat’s reply. So many times I’ve stopped myself from answering and telling her to name the time and place so I can fuck her out of my system. I don’t want to seem desperate.
It’s been a long time since I allowed a chick to get under my skin this way. The last time was clear back in high school when I set my sights on the Prom Queen. I didn’t relent in that situation either, not until I had her legs thrown over my shoulders and she screamed about how big my cock was while we were in the back of my Charger.
Sexy women that play hard to get are my downfall.
I lean my head back against the headrest of the captain’s chair while Big Bertha rolls down the road and I fish my phone from my pocket. To hell with trying to resist her allure. It’ll drive me bat shit crazy if I don’t have her soon.
“Who you calling?” Trip, our crazy-ass drummer, flops down in the seat beside mine with a huge bowl of cereal.
I ignore him and open up the social media site on my phone. “Not that it’s any of your fucking business, but I’m not calling anyone.”
Trip readjusts his baseball cap. “Damn, dude, just trying to make some conversation. This place is boring as shit with you and Noel not really talking.”
I raise my pierced eyebrow and shoot him a sideways glance. “That’s not exactly my fault, now is it?”
He takes a huge bite of his cereal and swallows it down before he answers. “Don’t start this shit again. Are you ever going to let this go? You weren’t in love with Sophie. You said that yourself.”
I shake my head and search out Aubrey’s message. “That’s not the fucking point, and you know it. Regardless if I loved her or not, you don’t go behind your friend’s back and fuck his girl. Period. Drunk or not. That’s no excuse.”
Trip nods in agreement. “Yeah, yeah. I get that. And you’re totally right, but you’re going to have to find a way to get past this shit. We’re still a band, and we’re trapped on this tiny fucking bus for far too long to allow this tension to go on. What’s it going to take to fix this?”
I flip my lip ring in and out of my mouth a few times while I reflect on his words. He’s right. Things around here have been tense for the past couple of months. It sucks for everyone because Noel and I have completely zapped away all the fun of being out on the road together. Yeah, it’s partially my fault for bringing a chick on the road with us, but both of them fucking knew better, and I completely blame him.
Her—I couldn’t really give two shits about.
But what Noel did broke our brotherly bond. It’ll be hard to forgive him for that, but Trip’s right. We can’t keep going like this.
“I think I need to learn to let it go, for the sake of the band, and quit being a total fucking dick to him all the time. He’s apologized to me several times—still claims he was too wasted to remember sleeping with her though. It’s hard to let it go. Every time I see him, I think about it.”
“I’ve been friends with you a long time, man. You’ve been through a ton of shit with your family, and I know it’s hard for you to trust people. Hell, if this had been anyone other than Noel, I would’ve helped you beat his ass myself. It was a dick move on his part—he knows that—and now he has to deal with the fucking mess he’s gotten himself into by knocking Sophie up. Be the bigger man, and let it go. It’s what’s best for this band. We’ve worked too damn hard to get here to flush our careers down the toilet over some skanky hoe.” Trip gives me a pointed look and then drinks down the remaining milk in his cereal bowl.
For the guy that’s the goofiest motherfucker in the band, he’s sure making sense out of this fucked up situation.
When he gets up to go to the sink, I open Aubrey’s last message. The thought of exactly what I’ll be willing to give her when she cashes in that ticket makes me smile. It’s nice to think about her and get my mind off all the other shit I’m going through.
Wild Cat,
Why don’t you come use it and find out for yourself? ;)
Riff
I press send and then stuff my phone back into my pocket. She’ll either be intrigued or tell me to go to hell. More than likely it’ll be the latter, but that won’t stop me. It’ll only push me harder to get what I want—a night with her tangled up in some sheets.
AUBREY
My phone chirps with a new message as I help Lanie pack her bags to get ready to go on the road with Black Falcon.
“Do you need to get that?” Lanie asks.
I shake my head. “Nah. It’s probably just Mom. I’ll call her back when we’re done.” I fold one of her shirts and stuff it into her suitcase. “Are you excited?”
She sighs and her green eyes drift across the room. “Yes and no. I’m scared more than anything, but at the same time I am grateful for the opportunity to work on such a large account.”
My heart sinks a little. What Diana is doing to her is completely wrong, and as I open my mouth to explain everything to her, she gets another text on her cell. The excitement in her eyes is evident as she reads the message. It’s obviously another one from Noel. That guy has been texting her non-stop since she went on a ‘business dinner’ with him, but she refuses to tell me any details about it, which leads me to believe it was more pleasure than business.
No matter if I think telling her about Diana’s plan is the right thing to do, I can’t rob my friend of the happiness I know she’ll have once she admits to herself that she’s still madly in love with Noel.
After we have her pretty well packed, we get comfy and decide to veg out and watch a movie together. I load up a bowl of my favorite double brownie ice cream and head into the living room just in time to hear Lanie’s cell ring with yet another text message.
She definitely has the most attentive Black Falcon band member chasing her. It’s been days since I’ve heard from Riff, not that I honestly believe that we’ll ever be anything other than pen pals, but I do feel a twinge of jealously at all the attention she’s getting from Noel.
I roll my eyes as she grabs her phone off the coffee table. “Mr. Wonderful, again? You still owe me some juicy details about your dinner date, you know.”
She shakes her head. “A lady never kisses and tells. Besides you already know nothing happened. It was strictly business.”
That’s rich. I wish she would quit kidding herself. I plop down on the couch beside her. “You, missy, are no lady. So, dish.”
She shrugs. “Nothing happened the other night. I swear.”
I fold my legs under my butt, take a bite of my ice cream, deciding I need to force her to try to see the bigger picture here. “Bull. You expect me to believe Noel Falcon makes a romantic date with you and after a couple of hours together nothing happens? He’s texted you at least fifty times over the past few days, and there was no sex involved? I say bull. No man gets that sprung unless he gets a little somethin’-somethin’ if you know what I mean.”
She gives me a pointed look. “Getting romantic with Noel is the last thing on my mind.”
Just as I thought: she’s in complete denial. I lick my spoon and push for a little more details. “So he’s PG-13, huh? That’s kind of disappointing. Not much of a ‘Sex-god’ is he? I figured as much as you talked about him he’d have you out of your panties within the hour.”
“Aubrey!” She smacks my bare leg. “I can’t believe you just called him that.”
“What? A ‘Sex-god’?” I say around my spoon. “I got the name from you. That’s how you always referred to him, but I’m thinkin’ of revoking his title after the boring business date story you just told me.”
She’s quiet for a few minutes, and I fidget in my seat. I know that look on her face. It’s the same look she used to get back in college when she was about ready to drop one of her brilliant ideas on me.
She sighs. “Well, there are other single guys in the band…Why don’t you meet us at a show or something?”
“Are you serious?” My thoughts instantly flick to a second chance with Riff. Sleeping with a bad boy of rock and roll has always been one of my bucket list items, and now that I know he’s interested there’s no way he won’t be down for a night of hot sweaty sex. After all, he’s famous for one-night stands.
“Totally serious. I know how much you wanted to get backstage and meet the guys before, so I figure I kind of owe you.”
I fight the urge to toss my ice cream on the floor and throw my arms around her and go into a total girl hugging and screaming fit of excitement. She really is my best friend.
That last thought causes my heart to twist a little and makes me feel like a complete jerk. Would a best friend keep a huge secret? Isaac is asking a lot from me, but I know deep down, he’s right. Telling her now would only cause her to do something crazy, like walk out on Center Stage Marketing. Lanie’s hot-headed, and when she’s pissed she speaks her mind with no filter.
Before I can struggle anymore with the internal debate, her cell phone rings. Noel’s calling her again. She answers with a sickly sweet tone to her voice and I shake my head with a grin on my face. Fight him my ass, that boy will have her in his bed before the week is up. For a while I sit and listen to how happy she is by merely talking to him and my thoughts are confirmed. I can’t screw this up for her. If she knows the truth, she’ll never go to him and possibly find happiness.
I whisper and tell her we can skip the movie and that I’m heading to bed. She waves me off and continues to talk to Noel. Yep, I give it a week tops before she’s humping him.
I set my bowl on my nightstand as my cell buzzes with a new message. I had nearly given up hope of hearing back from Riff, so I’m caught off guard when I see there’s a new message from him on our private message thread.
I gnaw on my lip as I read his words. Just as I thought, he’s totally down for a one-nighter. Bad boys make the best lovers, and Riff is one that I can’t wait to sample. I pull the ticket he gave me from my nightstand drawer and read the crude words.
One Night with a Rock Star
Admit One
I shake my head and laugh. It’s clever, really. Handing out tickets like sex with him is a coveted prize. Suddenly, the silly ‘golden ticket’ song from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory rings through my mind. Bad boy Riff has a sense of humor. This could be fun.
Riff,
Tempting…
Aubrey
P.S. What’s up with the Wild Cat name? Do you call all the women you try to bed that?
I hit send and I hope this time it doesn’t take him two days to respond. Five minutes later, another message dings in.
Kitten (since you seem opposed to Wild Cat),
You’re my only Wild Cat. I knew from the minute you tried to resist me, that deep down there’s a naughty girl inside you dying to bust out and cash in that ticket. You contacting me only proves my theory. So why don’t you save us both a lot of trouble and name your time and place so we can fuck each other out of our systems.
Name the date.
Riff
I nearly choke on my ice cream as I read his words. Just like when he kissed me backstage, he’s not afraid to go all out and say exactly what he has on his mind. I respect him for that.
I reread his message, and while I agree one hundred percent that we need to get this over with, I don’t want to seem like one of his random sluts that can be used. I do want a little respect from him. If I can keep this little messaging game up for a bit, and make him wait, I’ll stick in his mind. I’m fully prepared to give into his wicked ways when I visit Lanie on the road with the band, but I want to be the girl that blows his mind. The woman, when he looks back, who was most amazing in bed.
Dearest Cocky Riff,
You want me? You have to earn it. It’ll be worth it.
Aubrey
Either he’ll take the challenge or I’ll never hear from him again. Before I have a time to toss my phone on my bed, another message comes in.
Name your terms, Kitten…
I nearly squeal with delight. Game on.
RIFF
Damn it. Only a few messages in and I’ve already let her gain the upper hand. This is so not good. I stare at the message I just sent her and bounce my leg while I wait for the floodgate to be unleashed.
Noel comes out of the back room or as I like to call it his throne room. It kind of pisses me off that because he’s the front man everyone willingly handed him the only bedroom on the bus. See where his fucking privacy got him.
Trip turns around from the kitchen sink and acknowledges our band mate.
“What’s up, man?” Noel says to Trip as he plops down on the bench seat attached to the kitchen table.
Noel slides the opened pack of Oreos that I left on the table away from him. At least he knows not to touch those. Too bad he didn’t realize the same rule applied to the chicks I’m banging. Everyone knows not to touch my fucking cookies or I go ape shit. That’s one thing I don’t share with these assholes. They’d eat every single one if I weren’t such a dick about it.
Noel clears his throat. “I need to have a band meeting.”
I roll my eyes. Leave it to Noel to always be the one to call for a band meeting like there’s a problem with the rest of us. Usually the problem is him, or caused by him. Ever since we dubbed him the band’s leader—none of us wanted the responsibility of making tough decisions for the group—he’s taken it to extremes. Calling band meetings is typically a way he gets to bitch at us for some stupid reason or another.
“Tyke! Get your fruity ass in here!” Trip yelled at his twin who’s still back in his bunk.
“What?” Tyke calls back grumpy.
Tyke writes the majority of the band’s songs, and likes to be left alone most of the time with his ‘thoughts’ so he can concentrate. I know he really just fucking sleeps when he’s in there, using song writing as an excuse for us not to bother him. He probably busts out the songs right before we get in the studio. I’m down with all his tricks.
“Noel wants to have a band meeting. Hurry the fuck up!”
I shake my head. I’ve known Trip and Tyke since junior high school. I know everything about them, and they know everything about me. Sometimes that’s a real pain in the ass when all you want to do is forget your fucking past.
Tyke fumbles out of his foxhole and shoves his blonde hair out of his face. “What the fuck did we do now?”
I laugh.
Noel raises his pierced eyebrow and cuts me a look that tells me he’s not amused by our distaste of his leadership. “Look, guys, there’s going to be a guest staying on the bus with us for the next couple of weeks.”
“Who?” Trip asks.
“An old friend of mine that I’ve hired to run my children’s charity campaign.”
I shake my head. “Hell no! You aren’t bringing another chick on this bus.”
Noel’s gaze flicks to me. “It’s already done. She’ll be meeting up with us in Columbus tomorrow.”
“This is fucking horse shit.” The idea of Noel bringing his ex-girlfriend on this bus so he can have at her for two weeks behind Sophie’s back is sickening. He’s a bigger fucking douchebag than I thought. “Don’t you have any morals at all?”
“I haven’t forgotten my responsibilities, if that’s what you’re referring to.”
“That’s exactly what I’m talking about. All you do is use people!” I seethe.
Noel jumps up from the table and his nostrils flare. “You obviously don’t know a goddamn thing about me. I don’t fucking use people.”
The muscles in my jaw work under my skin. “What the fuck do you call Sophie then, huh? You’re telling me you didn’t use her?”
He runs his fingers through his hair. “How many fucking times can I say I don’t remember sleeping with her? If it happened, it was a one-time thing that meant nothing to me. It’s not like I set out to deliberately hurt you! You think I like fucking fighting with you?”
I shrug. “You seem too. That’s all we ever do is fight over this.”
“That’s because you won’t let it go!” Noel shouts.
“All I know is you knocked Sophie up, and you promised to stick by her through this pregnancy. How’s it going to look when you’re banging your ex on the bus for two weeks?”
He shakes his head. “Lane can’t stand me anymore. She’s only doing this because I backed her into a corner at her job. If she doesn’t come on this bus with me now, she’ll get fired.”
“What do you mean she’ll get fired?” Tyke chimes in.
Noel scratches the back of his neck. He only does that shit when he’s nervous. Whatever he’s about to drop on us isn’t good.
“I kind of promised the owner of Center Stage Marketing rights to all Black Falcon ad campaigns for the band in exchange for giving Lane this opportunity.”
“What!?” Tyke exclaimed in the tone of voice he usually reserves when his brother does something idiotic. “Without consulting us, you made that big of a business decision?”
“There was no time. The owner of the company forced my fucking hand. She threatened to fire Lane because she didn’t disclose that we knew each other. Long story short, if Lane doesn’t come on this bus, she’ll hate me forever. I can’t have that. I hope you guys can understand.” He drops his head.
“I understand plenty,” I say while I stand up. “This further proves you only think with your dick.”
“Riff—”
“Shut the fuck up, Noel. Do whatever you want, ‘cause you know you will anyway.” I don’t give him a chance to say anymore before I storm off and climb into my bunk, slamming the curtain closed.
It’s really nothing against Lanie. I’m sure she’s harmless, and can even be a good insight on Kitten, but I hate that Noel gets his way all the fucking time. Why should that guy get it so good?
The last thought causes my fists to clench. I know I told Trip I would work on forgiving Noel, but the more he does shit like this, the more I want to see fate turn around and kick him square in the balls.
“Riff?” Noel says on the other side of the curtain.
Doesn’t he fucking get it? I huff and roll over to face the wall.
“I’m sorry, man. I know I should’ve talked to you guys first, but I was desperate…” he trails off like he’s waiting on a response from me. When I don’t say anything, he knocks on the wall at the top of my bunk. “Night.”
I let out a sigh after I’m sure he’s gone. Thank god. I hate fighting. That’s all my family ever did and now that I’m an adult I want to stay as far away from bullshit as I can.
I close my eyes and will myself to sleep, but before I drift off, my phone vibrates in my pocket. I flip over onto my back and grin when I see Aubrey’s name.
I only have three simple rules:
1. I determine the time and place
2. You have to make me want you
3. No falling in love
Those are my terms. Take ‘em or leave ‘em.
Aubrey
I chuckle to myself. I give her an open door and that’s the best rules she can come up with? Number one is fine by me as long as she doesn’t make me wait too damn long. The second one’s laughable. She already wants me or she wouldn’t be playing this little game in the first place, and third not falling in love? Is she kidding me? That’s the easiest one on the list. I don’t do love. Period. Not even with my own family. I don’t love them and they don’t love me. This chick has another thing coming if she thinks I’m some sad, sappy asshole. I’m not a guy that can be tamed. Ever.