No Strings Attached (3 page)

"Well?  Spill it!  I want to know if Luke is the Mandingo he thinks he is."

"Ivy, I'm going to hurt you if she describes details.  I don't want to know."

"Then walk away, Ev.  We have business to discuss here."  I watch the two of them interact and actually feel a ping of jealousy at how close they are.  These two have been through so much together and have always been there for each other.  There's no doubt if trouble were to find one of them that the other would jump in immediately to help.  I've never had a bond like that with another female. 

My closest friends growing up were the Walkers.  Our families lived close and the guys have always felt the need to take care of me.  It’s never gone beyond a brotherly love from any of them, but there have been times that I've had to call one of them to help me out of a situation. 

They've referred to me as a cousin for years, but the reality is... we aren't even related.  Their protective nature probably stems from the first time I met them.  They walked up on a kid from our grade school harassing me one day.  Needless to say, when they were finished with him, I never had any other problems growing up.  It was very well known that if you mess with Lilly, the Walkers will unleash hell
all
over
your ass. 

I bring my attention back to the girls and see them both looking at me like I'm crazy.

"Are you trying to avoid the question?"  Ivy keeps pressing while Eaven starts to walk off.  I decide to have a little fun with the girls and I may as well enjoy the banter while I can.

"Let's just say he probably wasn't exaggerating."

"OH MY GOD.  I can hear you!  Seriously!"  Ev begins to walk faster away from us.  Ivy sends me a little wink while looking proud as hell.  I'm not sure if she's pleased that I gave up a few details or the fact that he's as hung as she expected. 

"Don't worry, we'll keep this from the guys until you have a chance to see if there's something to announce."

"I appreciate it.  We're just having fun and I don't need the added stress from anyone else blowing this out of control."  She leans in for a hug and pulls me in tight.

"I didn't get a chance to tell you thanks for helping with the nursery.  It turned out perfect and I love it.  I know you had a huge part in finishing it up."

"Of course.  I enjoyed helping Taron out." 

"It was so nice to come home from the hospital to the nursery being ready!"

"Speaking of which, where is that cutie?"

"She's with her daddy.  I just finished feeding her and he wanted to show her off to the rest of the crew that hasn't seen her yet."

"This show tonight will be loud for her."

"Oh, don't worry.  Taron has everything covered.  He bought her some ear muffs to buff out some of the sound and also has a room for me to use if I need to feed her or slip away.  He's kind of out of control with his protecting us, but I love him for it."

"Awww.  You can tell he loves her."

"Yes.  I couldn't have picked a better dad for her."  I watch her face falter just a bit and I'm curious why.

"Are you happy, Ivy?"  She looks stunned at my question.  I can see her wheels turning as I wait for her answer.

"Yes, I'm happy.  I love him and he's a great father to Heaven."

"Okay.  I was just making sure."

"I really do love him.  I'm just trying to figure out how our forever will turn out before I jump all the way in."

"Sometimes you have to jump before you can see the clear picture."  My words hit her and she looks over at Taron walking toward us.  I know these two are meant for each other—there’s no doubt to
anyone
that knows them.  I guess I'll wait like the rest of the world to see how it all turns out. 

"Hey, baby."  Taron moves in for a kiss from Ivy, not even caring that I'm standing right here.  I want what they have.  Why should I remain single and never get to have this with someone? 

Chapter Three

Luke

I've seriously fucked up.  It's about time to go on stage and I have to pull my shit together and act normal.  Lilly's boldness just has me surprised and I have to say that I'm genuinely intrigued.  What else will she be up for?  If the closet incident was any indication, I'm sure it will only get better. 

I should stay away, but I don't plan to until we've had a little more fun.  I pull out my guitar and begin tuning it when Talon walks up. 

"I heard you on the big speakers.  Luke, remember we have the girls here.  Try to keep your skanks away from them." 
Damn it.  This is going to be torture.
  At least he's not being a complete ass like Taron was. 

"I'll work on that."  Keeping it short and simple is the best way around this.  I try to stay focused on my warm-up when Lilly walks in.  She struts over to her case and I have to watch her ass the whole time—there’s just no way around it.  She isn't making eye contact with me and I have to give her credit for her performance.  If I didn't know what she had just done, I'd never guess. 

Talon's grumble followed by an insane amount of noise from his set distracts me.  I purposely don't look over at him, knowing that was meant for me.  I walk over to her just as she starts to play.  We have a pre-show ritual and I lead us straight into it.  We always work the crowd together.  She is amazing when it comes to this.  Her demeanor on stage is pretty much like I just had the privilege of witnessing in person.  She has no problem putting on a show for the fans.  Her moves catch my eye every show and I love how she can match me while we play.  She's a badass and there really aren’t very many guitarists I would say that about.

Her smile when I reach her tells me she's as ready as I am to be back on stage.  It's been a while since we've been on the road.  The court battles that Ivy and Taron have been fighting have taken every ounce of attention from the whole Walker family.  Lilly and I have done a few shows together at some small venues, but for the most part we focused on the new record.  Tonight we will encore three of our new songs and we're all itching to step out on stage again.

I enjoy hanging with Lilly.  It seems we're constantly together, working or trying to plan something for the band.  She works hard and so do I, even though it may seem that I'm all play.  This gig means a lot to me and I want it to work just as much as the others do.

We begin to move our equipment onto the stage and work with the crew to set up the final prep before the show.  Lilly moves offstage and my desire to follow her is pissing me off.  I resist the urge and choose to watch instead.  She moves to stand with Ivy and Ev.  I look up at Eaven and see her staring me down like I'm in trouble.  I flash a smile and look away, knowing I'm going to be hearing from her soon.

I move backstage to wait for show time.  The sound of the music from the other band begins and I start to watch her.  She looks so carefree with her hands in the air and her hips moving with the music.  I want more than anything to bump right up behind her and feel her every move. 

She glances my way and I let her see me watching her.  This only encourages her to dance even sexier.  She's still standing with the girls, but she's behind them while they watch the show from the side. 

Her hip movements are going to be the death of me.

Lilly

I know he's watching me—I can feel it.  His stare always does something to me.  If he doesn't stop, I'm going to walk back there and attack him while everyone watches. 

If he's going to stare like this, I may as well give him a show.  Adding a little more rotation to my sway, I really start to get into the music.  I feel strong arms come around me and pull me backward into all over hardness.  I'd know these arms anywhere. 

I don't stop dancing; I even grind a little harder back into him intentionally.  My heels make me the perfect height to make this work to my advantage.  We move together, not caring who's watching.  I turn to face him and wrap my arms around his neck.  He moves his hands down my back and over my ass.

He tries to say something in my ear, but the music is too loud for me to hear it.  His lips brush across my ear and I lean my head to the side to prevent the chills from rising again. 

I continue to move against him, but he doesn't really join in.  I feel someone brush up against me.  Ivy moves in, along with Eaven, and they both begin to dance near Luke and me.  I have a feeling they are trying to make this situation seem less than it really is. 

I have to love these girls for trying to keep everything calm even when Luke and I are about to combust.  Unfortunately, I'm going to have to have a talk with the Walkers real soon about Luke.  It's not like we'll be in a relationship or anything, but I want to be able to be comfortable around him.  I'm sure shit will hit the fan when they find out I'm good with just having fun with Luke.

I watch Luke's face while the music continues.  His smirk is ridiculously sexy, making me ready to feel his mouth on me again.  Being this close to him is affecting me more than I'd like to admit.  My movements against his body seem to be amusing him and I love watching his reactions.  His playful expression tells me he's enjoying himself.

The song ends so I stop moving.  He pulls me in close at the hips and I pull my face away from his a little.  I pull my bottom lip between my teeth and his eyes move to my lips.  He watches them closely and it seems so bold to be this close. 

The next song comes on and I notice Talon moving toward us.  I pull my arms away from Luke before Talon gets too close to us.  Standing close to him for the remainder of the songs before we take the stage is a challenge.  My mind is filled with what I want to do with him.  You wouldn't think we'd just gone at it not that long ago.  I've been attracted to him for almost a year now.  Having a sample of what he's like has just made this worse. 

We start to take the stage and he leans in to my ear before I begin to play "Let me see you shake that ass.  Tease me with it and remind me what I will be hitting tonight."

"You seem pretty sure of yourself."

"You know it's happening." 
Hell yes it's happening
.  I wouldn't miss it for anything right now.  He has me hot and bothered, knowing what I have to look forward to.

Talon starts playing the beat on the drums in the spotlight, drawing all the screams in the crowd.  Luke and I meet in the center of the dark stage, back to back, and begin our thunderous intro before Taron moves out into the light.  Looking out into the crowd, I see the faces of the fans that are so happy to see us again.  This is what it's all about.  These people genuinely missed us.  It feels great to be a part of this group of talented guys.

We begin the show with an encore presentation of one of our new songs and it goes over insanely well.  This is the song Talon changed up late in the recording, adding the flare it needed.  With Taron's voice and our thunder, there is no way this song isn’t going to be a huge hit.

We get through the show without any complications.  The crowd seems to love all of our new songs.  Luke and I were a great combo out there.  I love when everything goes down without a flaw.  It puts everyone in a great mood and we can have a ton of fun afterward.

We move out to greet some of the fans and Holden is on me tight with security.  That is something that will
never
be taken lightly.  The team that the guys have put together is a great group of guys.  Holden runs the show without a doubt.  Aiden has become his sidekick in the business and it's great to know we're protected.  The guys are doing it very inexpensively for us on this tour until we can get on our feet even more.  I know the Walker parents have helped with protection.  They want the new women in their family to be completely safe.  Not to mention lil' Heaven is here now, too. 

I move to pull in some pictures and programs to autograph and in the process get surrounded by fans.  The guys move in quick to keep them at a distance.  Glancing over at Luke, I notice him watching me.  His sexy smirk has me smiling back in no time.  I can't wait to suck on those lips again. 

Hoping no one notices our chemistry for a little while, I try to focus solely on the fans.  It's hard when I crave his touch like I do.  I'm going to pass this off as not getting my fill of the man I've had my eye on for so long.  His eagerness to hook up again has surprised me and I hope it isn't going to ruin me.

We finish with the last of the fans and I move backstage to get my stuff.  He moves with me, his eagerness matching mine.  I pull my case up so I can pack the only thing I need to walk out of here.  As I'm placing my guitar in the case, he moves in behind me.  His breath on my back spikes a line of chills up my back.  I know it's just a matter of time before one of the guys sees him doing this to me.  Making a mental note to tell them about us in the morning, I close my case with a snap. 

"You ready for this?"  His hand moves across my side and pulls my hip toward him until we are flush up against each other. 
Hell yes, I'm ready.

"If you think you can handle more."  I'm not sure who is more turned on here.  We are both about to explode and you can feel the heat between us.  I move to the side and reach for his case, handing it to him as I turn and walk off.  He's following—I can feel him.

We get on the empty bus, knowing the others will be coming soon.  We could go on without everyone, but that would definitely put up a red flag about us.  If we want to stay on the down low a little longer, we need to try to keep it together until we get to the hotel.  I set my stuff down and make myself at home in my usual spot.  He flops down next to me, making sure to sit as close as possible to me. 

He turns to kiss me and I welcome him.  This man knows what to do with his tongue.  I can feel his facial hair when I brush my hands over his face, pulling him in tighter.  Honestly, I never took him for the type to enjoy kissing this much.  His fingers begin to roam across my skin, but never reach the areas I ache for him to touch.  The feeling across my skin as it becomes alive for the umpteenth time tonight is incredible.  He's going to make it impossible for me to forget him. 
Why does he have to be so damn good at this?