Play Hard (The Devil's Share Book 5) (6 page)

***

An hour later and we were still sitting on the curb across the street from our hotel. Turned out there really was a fire down in the kitchen. It was out, but they were assessing to make sure it hadn’t cause any structural damage to the hotel. I turned up the bottle of scotch, I was still pouting and it was freaking cold outside. Sitting here, as far away from the crowd of people as possible, was not my idea of a good time. I didn’t want to be recognized, so I kept my head down and quiet. Harlow had talked for a while, carrying the conversation for both of us, but now even she had grown tired and still. The silence gave me time to do nothing but think. And just like I knew they would, my thoughts turned back to Lexi. Turned to the fact that I was going to be surrounded by couples again. I let my head fall back, looking for some peace, but I couldn’t see the stars here like I could at the beach.

“I miss the stars. Don’t you?” Amy, Lexi, and I had climbed onto the roof of their apartment building to watch fireworks a few hours ago. Amy and Patrick had climbed back down as soon as the pyrotechnics had ended. I stayed on the roof, mainly because I didn’t want to hear my sister having sex with her boyfriend. Lexi, because she was dope as hell, had kept me company.

I looked up. “Yeah. You can’t see them here like you can back home.” It was my second summer hanging out with the girls in Austin. But this year I was free. I’d graduated high school in May. I had my whole life in front of me.

“How’s the band doing?” Lexi rested her chin on her knees. She was so freaking beautiful. And she was really nice too. She didn’t treat me like a child, she treated me like a friend. Of course I wanted to be more than just her friend. Lexi was the kind of girl people wrote songs about. She was everything.

“Really good. We have a lot of shows lined up over the next few months. If we get big enough, we’re thinking of scheduling a tour next summer.”

“That’s great, Lukey. Send Ams the schedule and we’ll come watch you play.”

Maybe if Lexi watched me play, she would want to date me. I got lots of ass at school because I was in a band. Just like Lexi had said I would. Chicks are chicks, right? “Yeah, I will.” I just needed her to see me in my element. I needed her to see me as someone she could be with.

“How’s the photography going? Amy said you got picked to have your own exhibit on campus. Congratulations.”

“Thank you.” She shrugged, “They want me to do a whole exhibit on Texas landscapes. It’s not my thing, but I can’t really snuff my nose at the chance, you know?”

I nodded. “That’d be like someone asking me to play drums at a high school football game. You can only bang out Iron Man so many times before wanting to puke.”

“Exactly. Yes. That’s exactly right.”

Some of Lexi’s work was up around the apartment. Landscapes definitely weren’t what she enjoyed. All her pics were raw and exposed. They were pictures of life, of people living. My favorite was in the dining room. It was a huge blown-up photo of a bottle of Jäger right after someone had dropped it. The deep green glass was in a million pieces and the label was torn. I loved it. “Hey, maybe if we go on tour, you can come with me and the band. Take pictures for our website and stuff.”

She smiled. “I’d love that actually.”

A whole three months with Lexi. It would be like a dream come true.

Lo bumped my thigh with hers, knocking me out of my memory. “How are the blue balls, kid?”

I immediately sought out her warmth and rested my head on her shoulder. “Throbbing like a motherfucker.” That memory had left me cold and lonely.

She let out a little sigh. “Doesn’t look like we’re getting to go inside anytime soon, huh?” She sat up a little, looking around the parking lot. Her robe opened slightly and I could see her tits.

I reached over and pulled it back closed. “Are you trying to make it worse? Would you like them to literally explode?”

She stood and held her hand out. “Come on.”

I took the offer and stood with her help. “Where are we going?”

She looked over her shoulder as she dragged me barefoot across the back of the packed parking lot. “We’re going to go take care of your little problem.”

I followed her eyes down to my dick. “It’s not little.”

She shook her head. “Fine. We’re going to go take care of your big, hard problem.”

“That’s better.” I let her lead me behind a building and into a pretty sketchy alley. At this point, I’d fuck her in a damn crack house if she let me. I grabbed her hips and spun her around, pushing her back against the rough brick wall. “You are my favorite person in Nashville.”

She giggled as she palmed my cock. “You’ve said that already.”

“I want inside you so fuck… Shit. I didn’t bring a condom.” I was a terrible boy scout. Take my badges. I didn’t deserve them. I took a step back before I did something neither of us could take back, like knock her up. She grabbed the back of my head and kissed me. It was rough and deep and hot as hell. This girl was all over the map. She kept stroking my dick, from base to tip. I was so horny a hand job would easily get me off. I let my head fall to the space between her shoulder and her neck. “Fuck, Lo.”

She put her mouth by my ear. “Does it feel good, Luke?”

I couldn’t even speak. I just nodded and sucked on her collarbone, twitching to do more. I only had one night with her. I wanted to leave my mark. I wanted her to remember me tomorrow. Because I knew I’d remember her, always.

She lifted her knee, putting it up on my hip. I grabbed it, helping her keep it in place. “I came on your hand, now I want you to come on mine.”

Who the hell was this chick? I was the luckiest motherfucker on the planet right now. Between the position of her body and her whimpers in my ear… She made me feel like I was actually fucking her. And it was perfect. “God, you smell so good, baby.”

“Don’t stop, Luke.” She was panting in my ear, her warm breath sending chills down my spine. My balls tightened to the point of pain and I shot my load all over her hands. When I could finally breathe normally again, I lifted my head and was greeted with a smile. “That work okay?”

“Are you kidding me right now?” I kissed her lips and used the inside of my robe to clean up her hands. “That was fucking hot.”

Chapter Ten

Harlow

We’d finally been let back into the hotel. I’d had to go to Luke’s room, because that was where my key and my clothes were. And if I was being honest, I wasn’t ready for our one night together to end. We’d taken turns in the shower. We’d seen each other naked, we’d given each other orgasms…but showering together seemed a little too intimate. Now we were both lying in Luke’s bed, on our sides facing each other. He’d given me a big shirt to wear that said, “Drummers do it Harder.”

“Spend the night with me.”

I smiled. “Its three o’clock in the morning. I’ve already spent the night with you.” He looked so vulnerable. “But I’ll stay.” I was so damn exhausted, even if he hadn’t asked I still wasn’t planning on moving. Neither one of us had made an effort to initiate sex. We both seemed pretty content just lying in bed next to each other. Which was odd considering I’d known the man for less than twelve hours. “Tell me why you ran away.”

He sighed. “I was in with love my bandmate’s fiancée.”

It shouldn’t have bothered me to hear him say he loved another girl. I wasn’t anything to him. This was one night. Nothing more. “Lexi?” I’d heard him mention her name a few times.

He nodded and then turned over onto his back. “I’ve known her since I was seventeen. She was my sister’s college roommate.”

“And you’ve had a crush on her from day one.” A tale as old as time. I’d read a dozen romance novels about the younger sibling having the hots for the older sibling’s best friend. Those books were steamy. Luke’s story? Kind of made my stomach turn.

“She was beautiful, still is. I wanted her so bad.” He chuckled. “I was just a horny teenager. But the more time I spent with her… After a while she and I were closer than her and my sister. She’s my best friend.”

“Were the two of you ever together?”

“No.”

He didn’t elaborate, so I didn’t push the subject. “How did she meet your ‘band’ mate?” My use of air quotes made him smile, which was why I did it. I didn’t like sad and stressed-out Luke. I liked funny, cocky, and full-of-life Luke. When we were sitting in the parking lot, waiting to be let back into the hotel, he’d gotten quiet. He’d seemed far away and forlorn. I could only assume that he was thinking about her. The woman who had the power to steal his happiness.

He rolled back over to face me and put his hand on my hip. “Lexi and my sister came to one of ours shows. She met Dash that night. It was obvious he wanted her. He’s our lead singer. He was flirting with her over the mic. Staring at her while she was side stage.”

I reached out and plucked a fallen eyelash off his cheek and held it out so he could make a wish. “Were you jealous?”

“Nah, not really. I knew Dash, I knew if he wanted her he’d have her. He was a player. I wasn’t worried about anything long term with them.”

“So what happened?” If Lexi was truly Luke’s friend, she had to know he had feelings for her. And she hooked up with his bandmate anyway? Not too cool.

“He knocked her up, they fell in love, got engaged, and now they have a baby girl. Halen. She’s my goddaughter.” Luke reached over and grabbed his phone from the nightstand. He turned it around and showed a picture of him holding a pretty baby wearing a pink bandanna headband and a onesie that said, “You think I’m a badass, you should meet my uncles.”

I laughed. “She’s precious.”

He nodded. “She is.”

“They’ll be here tomorrow?” He nodded again. “That’s why you don’t want to be alone.” Thinking about seeing Lexi again had sent Luke into a panic attack earlier today. He and I being at the same hotel must have been a dream come true for him. I was here to keep his mind, and his hands, occupied. I was just a placeholder. Just a distraction from his real life. Some girl he’d met on a plane, fooled around with in a parking lot. I was nothing. And due to my bucket of “daddy issues,” that hurt.

“Tell me about your dad.”

“You really want to know? I mean, I’m just here to keep you busy, right? You don’t have to pretend to care, Luke.” I wasn’t angry. Not at all. I knew this was a bad idea, and yet I’d done it anyway. It was my fault, this pain in my chest. The feeling of not good enough radiating off me. I’d brought it on myself.

“Pixie.” He put his hand on my cheek. “You are one of the coolest chicks I’ve ever met. Hands down. And I’m not pretending, for whatever reason, I do care. If I didn’t want to know, I wouldn’t ask.”

I didn’t want Luke to know he’d cut me. I didn’t want to seem weak. He shared; the least I could do was return the morose favor. Misery loves company. And gin. “My dad is a shallow, pretentious asshole. He never had time for me or my mom, but plenty for all the women he was screwing behind her back. He worked nonstop. He tried to buy my forgiveness and my love but never really bothered trying to win back my mom.” I turned onto my stomach, putting my hands under the pillow. “We have nothing in common. And now he’s married to a girl who’s like thirty. It’s gross. He’s old enough to be her grandpa.”

He narrowed his eyes. “How old is your dad?”

“Like fifty-five, I think.”

“Math really isn’t your strong suit, is it?”

I smiled. “No. But I have other strengths.”

“You ramble when you’re nervous, you fidget when you’re anxious, and you lie to flight attendants. You give hand jobs like a champ and you taste like candy. You’re the most beautiful fairy I’ve ever seen. I just met you, but I’m pretty sure I’ll miss you when you’re gone.”

I swallowed the lump in my throat. I didn’t need Luke to say nice things to me. I didn’t need him to make me care for him. I needed to walk away in the morning and never look back. “Well, that was the oddest, sweetest compliment I’ve ever gotten.” I didn’t say it out loud, but I knew I’d miss him too. I liked Luke. He made me feel quiet and calm. And that wasn’t always an easy feat.

“Be my fake girlfriend.”

I sighed. “You don’t need to hire a make-believe girlfriend, Luke. Just—”

“You’re right, but how about just staying with me for a while. We can keep hanging out and if they assume we’re together then we don’t correct them. Just two new friends, having some fun.” I opened my mouth to say no, for the hundredth time, but he kept talking. “Please, Lo. Just say you’ll think about it, okay? Would spending the next few days hanging out with me be that bad? We have fun together. And you know the sex would be mind-blowing. You don’t want my money. I get that. But I’ll owe you one. Just think about it. Please.”

I sighed. “Fine. I’ll
think
about it.” I’d think about it for the ten minutes it took me to get dressed in the morning and then I’d tell him no. He was nervous as hell, what was so wrong in waiting until the sun came up to let him down? At least he’d get a few hours of good rest. “Now stop talking. I’m going to sleep.” I hiked my leg up and closed my eyes.

“Really? Because it looks like you are about to dry hump the bed.”

I opened one eye. “This is how I sleep.”

His smile was sexy. “You sleep like a porn star.”

I frowned. “I do not.”

He rolled over on his back and held his arm out to the side. “Come here, Pixie. If you’re going to lie like that, do it on top of me. Put it to some good use.” He motioned me toward him with his chin.

I scooted over and put my head just under his collarbone and right leg up on top of his thighs, keeping my left leg straight. He rested his left arm on my bare calf, and his free hand played with my hair until I fell asleep.

***

I woke to sunlight in my face and a lot of noise in my ears. I was now lying on top of Luke. Basically treating his Greek god-like body as a nap mat. “Pix, I think your phone is ringing.” He rolled us over, shoving his morning wood into my hip and grabbing my cell from the table on my side.