Star Struck, page 10
Ethan had chuckled and leaned in to kiss the side of her head. “You have no flaws, not to me. See you soon, baby.”
She’d smiled, kissed his lips quickly, and then left Ethan watching her make her way to the front door. He made sure she was safely inside before he started the car up and drove away, his heart already aching because of their separation. Damn. After several hours of immersing himself in her molten sweetness, his crush hadn’t ebbed. It had only intensified. Ethan knew he was in deep trouble already, but he wasn’t about to run away from something this real. Maybe in the past he’d have chosen to walk the other way to keep out of the way of romance, fidelity, or a continuous relationship. But his Mandy was making him feel ready to try out all three.
“For heaven’s sake, Ethan, are you even here?”
Ethan blinked out of his thoughts and focused his attention on their manager. They were using a big-time studio for the recording of one of their latest singles. He just realized he’d spent far too much time with his head in the clouds thinking about the hours he had spent with Mandy and how he couldn’t wait to get her all to himself again.
“We need to wrap this up before another artist shows up in an hour for her own studio time,” their manager rumbled. “I’m not paying $2,500 an hour so you can daydream the time away.”
Ethan shoved his fingers through his hair and sighed, shouldering his bass guitar
Jaime was nursing a beer from the cooler when he came forward to sling a leather-clad arm around Ethan’s neck. “You’ve got it bad,” Jaime said sagely, resting his forehead on Ethan’s for a moment in a commiserative gesture. He sighed deeply. “It’s that hot little fashion stylist, huh? You’re in over your head, ace.”
He pulled back, but not before ruffling Ethan’s hair with a grin. “Enjoy it. However long it lasts,” Jaime said. They’d known each other since college, where they’d been friends before deciding to drop out and form their band with another pal, the drummer Henson.
“This isn’t some fling with a time slot,” Ethan said gruffly, frowning. “This is it, man.”
“Is it?” Jaime asked with a cocked brow. “You’re infatuated with the sweet girl; that’s obvious. But you’ve been in love like maybe…once in your life. You don’t know how to handle strong emotions. You aren’t ready, Ethan. There’s a whole world out there to explore and you wouldn’t want to do it with your heart tied down. Believe me, I know. I’ve been there. So enjoy it. But no expectations, okay? I don’t want you to get hurt – and then the girl – she doesn’t need that kind of pain either, being loved and dumped by a rock star. You really care? Then spare her that.”
Jaime nodded good-naturedly and thumped Ethan’s back before striding to where Henson sat with the sound engineering guy at the consoles. Ethan expelled an angry breath. He hated it when people thought he wasn’t mature enough emotionally to handle a real relationship. Jaime was the only one Ethan would allow to talk to him like that. But even if Jaime was right, it was too late. Ethan and Mandy had already happened. And he wasn’t about to regret a moment of it. In fact, he was already looking forward to more. The future could take care of itself; for once in his life, Ethan was going to do things step by step. For the first time, he saw a relationship he could work at, the way he worked at his music or painting till he got it right. He would get him and Mandy right no matter the cost, he vowed as he finally focused on the recording set.
Chapter Eight
What have I done? Mandy asked herself the question all day and still couldn’t come up with the right answer. In twenty-four hours, her universe as she knew it had changed.
Lying on the covers of her old bedroom in her parents’ house, she went over the past several hours. Ethan’s phone call and apology, then driving down with him to his secluded mansion. Seeing his beautiful house, his private inner studio. And then suddenly, she was flat on her back with his tongue fluttering over her secret folds. His thumb in her virgin crack. Whoa. Then being taken so hard with her bent over the kitchen island while he filled her again and again with that delightfully thick and long cock of his. He’d hammered her g-spot into submission and she couldn’t seem to stop twitching each time she remembered the many angles he’d taken her.
Mandy had never imagined sex could be like that, and for those few hours, she’d surrendered to a side of her she’d never believed existed. She’d been bold, sassy, and sexy. It was like having a different personality drawn out by her equally daring lover. You couldn’t stay meek and repressed around Ethan. Not with the way she loved making him groan; seeing his gorgeous face crease with ceaseless lust. It made her body sing whenever he was hard and ready for her, eager to sheathe his rampaging steel pipe in her smoldering core.
To avoid facing Marcus for now, she’d come here rather than go back to her place, where he could very well be waiting since he had a key. She’d checked his missed calls, messages, and voicemail. I’m back, darling. Missed you too much and business was a drag. Hoping we could spend the weekend together. Where are you and why aren’t you picking up? Are you angry with me over the unexpected trip? I’m sorry.
Mandy closed her eyes with a grimace. She was the one who should be sorry. She’d done what she’d said she’d never do: she’d betrayed Marcus’ trust and had given into Ethan’s demands. But she had no one to blame for her decisions; it had been her choice to make and she wouldn’t think back on the right and wrong of it. She’d simply face Marcus with the truth and see how he took it. But only when she was ready.
Just then, her younger sister, Melanie, who was two years older than Tiffany, burst into her room.
Mandy sat up in surprise. “What is it?” she asked, worried.
“Did you and Marcus have a fight or something?” Melanie asked almost breathlessly.
Mandy frowned. “No…” Her tone and expression were undeniably confused.
“Come on,” Melanie said, dragging Mandy out of the room by the arm. By the time Melanie led her to the foyer, Mandy was gasping, stopping short at the sight before her.
There was a vast amount of flower bouquets littering the floor and the surfaces of tables and counters. Different varieties and colors, they filled the small space of the hallway with heavenly smells and blooming color. Mandy stared at the view in disbelief, almost unconscious of Melanie standing next to her and putting a card in her hand. “This came with them when they were delivered just now,” Melanie said with a wide smile.
Blinking, Mandy cleared her head and stared down at the fancy card, not sure what to expect. She’d been so deep in her daydreams of Ethan that she hadn’t even heard the doorbell ring from her bedroom.
Now she stared at the handwriting that filled the inside of the card, the large, half-legible print of the words done in dark black ink that seemed to leap at her from the page.
Mandy didn’t even have to guess who it could be.
Still thinking about you, babe. Every second, so don’t worry your pretty head about anything. Just think of the great times that are still yet to come. Together. See you at 7 pm.
Mandy smiled to herself, almost foolishly glad to know Ethan was still thinking of her. And that somehow, he’d had the intuition to know she’d be thinking about the night they’d spent together and worrying about it. She’d had all kinds of second thoughts, especially in the bright light of day. She’d spent several hours of the night before and the morning of today in Ethan Tyler’s arms. And he still wanted to see her again. He still wanted more between them. Mandy felt like screaming with joy as it finally dawned on her what had happened. She was Ethan’s girl. Mandy Sloane was dating a rock star. Whoa.
Mandy finally broke out of her reverie to find not just Melanie but her other sister Tiffany and her parents standing there staring at her.
“Well? Are you going to tell us who’s responsible for this blooming bombardment?” her father said with his deep, humorous tone. Her mother was staring wide-eyed at the display, probably wondering if she had enough vases in the house to load up the mass of flowers. Facing her family, she heaved a deep sigh and readied herself to break the news she felt sure she couldn’t keep under wraps for long anyway…
* * *
Mandy hadn’t expected her family to take it so well. They had all liked Marcus, her father especially. And hearing that Mandy now had some kind of ‘thing’ with a famous, rich-as-hell rock star was news they took well in their stride. Her sisters, for one, almost went into fits. Being huge The Strum fans, this was very much a big deal to them. They adored Ethan, and Tiffany was almost wringing Mandy’s arm to get to meet him in person.
“Well, he’ll be picking me up to take me out to dinner tonight…”
“Nonsense,” her mother said firmly. “Ethan Tyler would do well to join us here for dinner instead. It will give us a chance to get to know him better.”
Of course her mother would want to know him better, Mandy thought, an inner sigh of resignation filling her heart. Mrs. Sloane was very thorough when it came to her daughters’ relationships. For now, Mandy was the only one allowed to have a boyfriend, so Georgia had more than enough time to spend monitoring Mandy’s love life. Mandy had to say she was relieved. They all seemed to be taking it rather well about Marcus.
Her father, however, pulled her into his study and asked her with a shrewd look, “Do you know what you’re doing?”
“No,” Mandy said honestly, heaving a sigh.
Her father, handsome and dark-haired with peppered sideburns, grinned. “Best answer you could give. I know next to nothing about rock stars so if you’re going to start dating one, I figure it’s best getting into it with a blank script. Take it easy; don’t build your hopes up. It’ll be so easy to get hurt, my dear.” Her father patted her cheek gently. “Not that I’d imagine any sane man would ever dream of walking away from my beautiful, smart Mandy. If he does, he’ll need his head examined – not to mention a few stitches by the time I’m through with him.”
Her father’s eyes were smiling though his lips looked grim. Mandy couldn’t help but laugh as she thought of her father roughing Ethan up. But she felt touched by her father’s concern. “It’ll be fine, I promise.”
And yet Mandy couldn’t help asking herself, will I?
She had no time to dwell on it. There was dinner to plan with her very capable mother and then getting ready to see Ethan again. She had been aflutter when she’d called him to ask if it would be okay to have dinner with her family that evening.
“I’d love to,” he’d said deeply. “I’d be honored to dine with your family, Mandy.”
Her heart had been singing ever since. In record time, they’d prepared a worthy dinner for their famous guest. Then the girls – including her mother – all disappeared into their rooms to prepare for the special occasion.
Ethan arrived and the whole atmosphere in her family home seemed to come alive. Her parents had recently redecorated the house in a Moroccan-styled theme, which Mandy had always loved. She wondered what Ethan would think about the bright colors: the rugs, the lanterns, and the grand arches.
“I love this place,” Ethan said once he arrived, looking around with enjoyment on his face. Mandy’s hidden fears were allayed at once.
Her parents loved him. Her sisters were another matter. They managed not to freak out at having Ethan Tyler as a guest and were on their best behavior in front of their parents. Mandy spent the whole evening just staring at him.
His long hair was tied back and he was dressed in a black buttoned-up shirt with white stitching. The long sleeves fitted his broad shoulders and arms, and he completed the look with a pair of tailored black slacks and black boots. He looked good enough to eat, which was probably why Mandy kept wishing it was him she had on her plate and not her medium steak and dill sauce.
He looked so different tonight. He’d toned down the eye makeup and the black nail polish. And there was no tattoo in sight. Mandy thought it was really sweet of him to try and impress her parents. However, his everyday self did nothing to detract from the fact that his stimulating personality, his superstar grin, and his own-the-world stance shone right through no matter what.
Ethan mentioned his upcoming London tour and how he was looking forward to having Mandy with him. He also talked about the last concert the band was having before the trip to London, and then about his step-sisters Hayley and Samantha, who weren’t rock music fans but supported him whenever he needed family to back him up.
Mandy had read up about his many charity interests and she brought that up over dinner. It wasn’t that she was trying to ‘sell’ him to her family. She really thought it was cool that he personally took some time to give back to society through his aid projects and donations, which he never publicized but were aired by the media anyway. The Strum also gave a lot of charity concerts and had headlined a recent show in aid of injured Afghanistan veterans. Mandy found that pretty amazing and obviously, her family did too, especially Georgia, who had chaired a lot of benefits.
It wasn’t a disaster. Far from it. The few hours flew by and the delicious food was a hit with their guest. Ethan gallantly assured Georgia that he was glad he’d chosen to join them tonight instead of going out for dinner with Mandy as planned, and that the food was positively the best he’d had in a long time. “I miss home-cooked meals,” he said with an appreciative grin. “More than ever now that I’ve had some of your delicious cooking, Mrs. Sloane. I hope you’ll invite me again soon.”
“You’ll always be welcome, Ethan,” Georgia said with a pretty blush on her cheeks. Mandy’s eyes widened; her mother never blushed. And her father wasn’t immune to the rocker’s charms, either. They discussed financial issues in the country and Ethan was quite informed about that as well, which meant that Kirk had a willing ear to sound off on his ideas about policy. He was still chatting with Ethan as the table was cleared.
“He’s a way better a catch than Marcus,” Tiffany crowed once the three girls escaped to the kitchen. “Tell me you aren’t going back to the stuffy banker.”
“That’s unfair,” Mandy said mildly. “I thought you liked Marcus.”
“He’s cool, but let’s face it, Ethan is, to put it simply, too freaking tasty. From any angle. Not sure how you did it, sis, but you’ve risen a few – no, make that several, rungs up the ‘cool big sister’ scale.”
“Gee, thanks,” murmured Mandy, unable to hold back a smile. “So all I had to do to gain some points around here was date a rock star.”
“Not just a rock star. You’re dating the Ethan Tyler,” Melanie said with deep awe. “The Strum is more than a band whose audience consists of students who like listening to loud music while they get wasted. They’re really good and Ethan is mega talented. Definitely more than a pretty face and totally cool as a person. Still can’t believe he’s seated at our dining table.”
“Well, I’d better go save him from dad’s shop talk or they’ll be at it all night,” Mandy said ruefully, leaving the kitchen to find Ethan in the living room nursing an after-dinner drink and talking easily with her parents.
“Mandy hasn’t been to London before, though we’ve taken her and the girls on holiday to France and Spain,” Georgia said. “I’m glad you’ll be there to watch out for her.”
Mandy rolled her eyes inwardly, hearing Ethan’s ready reply that Mandy would love it in London and that he’d definitely not let her out of his sight. He sneaked a glance her way at that point and Mandy’s stomach flipped. All evening she’d been secretly on edge; watching him and fantasizing about how hot and thrilling he would look like once all those clothes were off, with his sexy tattoos in full view. She could just imagine what it would entail to have his full attention on her during their London trip. On the surface, she’d have a lot of work to do when it came to handling his wardrobe and changes for the live shows, but when all that was over and they were alone, she was thrilled deep inside just thinking about what was in store for them.
It was very late before she was able to see him off. His sleek car was parked outside their front door. Once again he’d come alone and she questioned the safety of that. He assured her he was very careful about keeping a low profile when he wasn’t with his handlers and bodyguards. “Besides, sometimes I need to feel like I’m living a normal life, just like everybody else. Having two or three bodyguards in tow each time I go out isn’t going to give me that. I really want your family to like me,” he said seriously, cupping her face.
Mandy’s eyes were downcast. “Why? Does it really matter? I mean we haven’t exactly defined to ourselves what it is we have now. Are we an item? A real couple? Or are we just two people having a good time?”
Ethan’s eyes narrowed. “You’re my woman. The only one I want to keep around. I haven’t been in a relationship of any kind in a long time, Mandy. All I had were one-night stands or booty calls. What I feel for you is real. That’s all that matters to me right now.”
Mandy nodded. She didn’t need promises and was glad he wasn’t making any undying declarations. She wasn’t a kid. She just wanted to make sure she wasn’t being played; that she wouldn’t have to worry about competing with his crowd of female admirers.
“Thank you for the flowers. They were lovely – all of the bouquets,” Mandy said with a wry smile.
“Glad you liked them,” said Ethan, grinning. “I had no clue which ones you liked so I bought one of everything they had in the shop.” He bent to pluck at her readily parted lips. “I wish I could whisk you away with me somewhere – but the band will be rehearsing for our last concert before we leave for London. You’ll be at the show, of course. It’s tomorrow night and I want you to be there.”
Mandy hesitated. She’d never been to a rock concert before. It would be a good idea to go as it would prepare her for the upcoming gig. She still needed to make some last-minute preparations to the outfits Ethan was going to use for the three-hour a night performances.
