Wonderful, page 15
My hand slipped under Kiera’s billowy dress, and my palm slowly slid up her thigh. Kiera hurriedly unfastened my dress shirt, ripping it open when she got to the last button. Then she started exploring my torso, outlining every muscle with the tips of her fingers. Mine tightened around her underwear as I watched her face. There was so much heat in the emerald of her eyes that it made me feel like I’d been dunked in fire. Euphoric, heavenly, lustful fire.
She tugged on my shirt, pulling it off my shoulders. I felt frantic and needy as I helped her remove it, like I was going to lose it if I didn’t have her soon. The fact that I could still feel that way with her was gloriously intoxicating. Kiera pushed against my shoulder, urging me onto my back, away from the forgotten food. I let her adjust me where she wanted me, scooting back so that I was still sideways on the bed but more in the middle of the mattress. Kiera’s lips traveled down my chest, and my eyes fluttered closed as I absorbed the sensation of her soft mouth on my skin. Kiera moved down farther, and I clenched my abs so I could feel her tongue flick between the grooves of the muscles. A pulsing ache crashed through me with every touch, and I honestly didn’t know how much more I could take.
Kiera’s fingers shifted to my jeans. Once she unbuttoned them, I helped her slide them off me. Then my underwear. Then her dress, her underwear. Once we were both bare, I decided to fulfill my earlier fantasy. Seemed like a wasted opportunity if I didn’t. Reaching over, I stuck my finger in the dip. Kiera watched me with confused but lascivious eyes. When I dropped my finger to her chest, drawing a straight line right over her breast, she closed her eyes and let out a groan of understanding and anticipation. I followed the path of the dip with my tongue, luxuriating on her nipple for far longer than necessary. I couldn’t decide what tasted better—her skin or the strawberry flavored dip. Both. Definitely both. The blended flavor was now my new favorite.
My body throbbed with need, every pulse telling me to stop it and drive into her already, but Kiera’s reaction was too exquisite for me to stop now. She let out loud, breathy exhales as she squirmed beneath me. One of her hands ran down my back, her nails slightly digging into my skin. Her other hand ran up my neck to my hair, her fingers threading through the strands before aggressively fisting them. Practicing as much restraint as humanly possible, I continued drawing patterns on her, then slowly licking them off. Kiera murmured my name and begged me to take her. That was almost my undoing…but I hadn’t even gotten to the fruit yet. I was just about to move on to the berries when she suddenly pushed against me, forcing me onto my back again. Breath fast, eyes wild, she straddled me, then instantly pushed herself onto me, sinking me inside her…taking me. God, yes.
A groan escaped me as we connected, and my hands drifted to her hips, holding her to me, pulling her closer, deeper. Kiera let out a breathy moan, and as we started moving together, all coherent thought left me. All that existed was the feel of her soft skin, the sound of her fast breath, her sensual noises, and the incessant, building pressure that I both wanted to maintain and wanted to relieve. The world fell away as we held each other, moved against each other, absorbed each other. The need for more pushed us harder, faster, then Kiera grabbed my hand, squeezing tight as she let out a noise that pushed me right over the edge. I clenched my fingers laced in hers, feeling her wedding ring dig into my skin as everything in my body tightened. We rode out the ecstasy together, holding on to the connection for as long as we could, until finally Kiera’s body went limp against mine, spent and satiated.
I put a hand on her low back, stroking the ridge there as I worked on breathing normally again. Kiera kissed my neck, then let out a girlish giggle. Sliding off me, she rolled toward the food. I looked over at her with a raised eyebrow as she nonchalantly started making a tiny sandwich out of cheese and crackers. “Done with me, so she eats.” She glanced back at me with a smirk on her face. “No snuggles?” I asked, crooked smile on my face.
Kiera grinned and rolled her eyes. Then she pressed her back against my side, snuggling into me while simultaneously eating her cracker-wich. I laughed as I slung my arm around her body, pulling her into me. “I’ll take it,” I murmured. “Beats snuggling with Griffin any day.”
Kiera laughed, then straightened and twisted to look at me. “Wait. When—and why—were you snuggling with Griffin?”
Chuckling, I kissed her shoulder. “It’s best not to ask.” She pursed her lips at me, and I laughed again. “Don’t worry…we were wearing clothes.”
Kiera shook her head at me, then shivered. It was a little chilly now that there wasn’t any friction keeping us warm. Looking around, I spotted a throw blanket that was slowly sliding off the bed. I grabbed it before it could escape and draped it over our bare bodies. Once we were warm, I pointed at the tray of food. “Pass me a sandwich?”
Kiera gave me an adorable, teasing grin. “Done with me, so he eats.”
I instantly shook my head. “Nope. I am in no way done with you. Screw food, let’s do that again.” My lips immediately attached to her neck, but she pushed me away, laughing. She handed me a sandwich with an amused look of defeat on her face. Don’t bluff with sex, Kiera. I will always call you on that.
We made it through damn near half the food on the tray, and most of the bottle of wine, and fell asleep exactly where we were, lying on top of the covers, sideways on the mattress, wrapped in each other’s arms. It was the perfect end to an odd but amazing long weekend.
The next day, Anna went back to Seattle, Sienna went back to London, and the guys and I went back to work. We still had to finish recording the songs for our album, but we started working on Sienna’s song too. The melody was already written, so it didn’t take us long to learn it. Although both Matt and Evan had several little changes that they wanted to make so that it sounded more like one of ours. Thankfully, the label approved everything they wanted to tweak. I couldn’t imagine Matt and Evan performing a song they didn’t like. I knew they would do it, since they were professionals, but I also knew they’d be miserable doing it, and it might come across that way to people listening. Griffin I wasn’t too worried about; he still moped about not being lead guitar. Sometimes there just wasn’t a good way to satisfy him.
When I wasn’t working on the album with the guys, I showed Kiera some of the places in Los Angeles that were important to the formation of the band. Not Griffin’s beloved strip club, of course, but other interesting locales: where we did our first show, where I’d purchased the Chevelle, where Evan and I had lived…and the coffee shop where I used to work. I was sure she’d get a kick out of that last one.
Kiera looked surprised and amused when I stopped us in front of the shop and showcased the door for her. “And this is Buzzed, where I used to work.” It was a small, locally owned coffeehouse with a handful of locations around the city. It was one of those trendy places that only the locals knew about, making it relatively tourist-free. That was a very important fact to some of the customers, but honestly, it didn’t matter in the slightest to me. I just liked the name.
A smirk was on Kiera’s lips as she peered through the windows. “I just can’t get over the fact that you used to work in a coffee shop.”
I frowned as I looked down at her. “What? I love coffee.”
Kiera laughed as she turned to face me. “Yeah, I know,” she said, her gaze adoring as her cheeks slightly flushed. Biting her lip, she shook her head. “Maybe it’s just the idea of you having a regular job that’s hard to picture.” Her brows bunched as she tried to visualize me behind a counter, pouring drinks…the nonalcoholic kind.
I chuckled at the look on her face. “Well, I did have to eat, and until the band started taking off, the only other thing I could have done for money would have gotten me arrested, so regular job it was.”
She instantly pursed her lips and the adoration in her eyes shifted into annoyance. “Really?” Her voice was thick with irritation and disbelief that I’d gone there. I knew I shouldn’t have, but the opening she’d left me was too large to resist. As was that sarcastic, rhetorical question.
“Yes,” I answered her with a bright grin. “You’ll be happy to know I never once charged for my services. I was very philanthropic with my time.” I ended with a playful wink. Please don’t smack me for saying that. I’m just kidding. Sort of.
Thankfully, Kiera just stared at me for a second, then she slowly shook her head. “Sometimes you’re so sweet. Other times you’re so…Griffin.”
“Ouch,” I said, laughing. She had a point, though, as much as I hated to admit it. “Well, while I will always be a giver, the only person I want to give anything to now, is you.” I gave her a soft smile, then leaned in and said, “That makes me a step up from Griffin, right?”
She tilted her head as she thought about it, and I frowned. Was it seriously something she had to consider? Kiera laughed as she studied the annoyance on my face. “Yes…ninety-nine percent of the time, you are much better than Griffin.”
I smiled. Then frowned. “Wait…one percent of the time he’s better than me? When? Name one time.”
She laughed so hard that she couldn’t answer me. Rolling my eyes, I opened the door. One percent of the time, my ass.
Kiera was still laughing as we stepped inside the coffee shop. I frowned at her, and she poked me in the ribs until I smiled. Shaking my head, I wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her into my side.
“Well, there’s a face I will never forget…Kellan Kyle. It’s been an age and a half.”
I looked up at the counter to see the owner of the store, and my old boss, Stella. She was just as I remembered her—long, silver hair pulled into a loose bun, a warm but teasing smile, and a mischievous twinkle to her brown eyes, like she was in on everybody’s inside jokes. “Hey, Stella. It has been a long time. How have you been?”
Smiling wider, she finished wiping off her hands on a rag, then set it down on the counter. “Good, can’t complain. You?” Leaning in, she asked, “You finally take up modeling, like I said? You know you have the face for it.”
Kiera looked like she was agreeing with Stella’s assessment as she scanned me up and down. Rolling my eyes, I shook my head at Stella. “No. Standing there making weird faces at a camera sounds about as appealing as sitting at a desk all day.”
Stella laughed at my argument. “But what about the other models, Kellan? I figured that part of it would be right up your alley.”
Kiera’s smile instantly shifted to pursed lips and bunched eyebrows. Clearing my throat, I indicated her to Stella. “Not anymore. Stella, meet my wife, Kiera. Kiera, my old boss, Stella.”
Stella’s eyes widened as she extended a hand to Kiera. “Wife? Someone got him to settle down? Well done, my dear, you’ve accomplished something I thought was truly impossible.”
Kiera bit her lip as she flicked a glance up at me; her face was an odd mixture of joy and discomfort, but she politely took Stella’s hand. While they briefly shook, I frowned at Stella. Maybe bringing Kiera to all the places I use to frequent when I was…a lot freer with myself…wasn’t the best idea. “Thanks, Stella. Way to make me look good in front of my wife.”
She laughed, then swished a hand at me. “You know I’m joking. Sort of.” She pointed a finger at me while raising an eyebrow at Kiera. “This one was such a hopeless flirt when he worked here. He’d bat an eye at one of the girls and get them to make all his drinks for him.”
Kiera laughed, looking over at me like she could easily picture me doing that. “Did he now?” she murmured.
Crossing my arms, I narrowed my eyes at my old boss. “No, that’s not true. I did my fair share.”
Stella grinned at me. “Of flirting? Yes, yes you did.” While I pursed my lips at her, she turned back to Kiera. “His tips were ridiculous, though, which is why none of the girls complained too much about making his drinks for him.”
My mouth dropped open as disbelief washed through me. “I did my fair share,” I repeated.
Stella raised a pointed eyebrow at me. “You sat on the counter and played your guitar.”
True. I had spent a lot of time here doing just that. Grinning, I lifted a shoulder in a shrug. “People like ambiance. I was setting the mood.” And no one had ever complained about it, not even my coworkers. That was probably because I got even more tips when I was playing, and I shared them with everyone. Maybe I’d been an unrepentant flirt, but I was also a generous flirt. That had to count for something.
Kiera laughed as she wrapped her hands around my elbow. While I smiled down at my wife, Stella let out an exaggerated sigh. “I honestly don’t know why I hired you.” I looked back at her with an arched eyebrow, and she smirked as her eyes skimmed over my face. “Damn it…yes, I do. I don’t suppose you need your old job back?” she asked, her expression hopeful.
I laughed at the eagerness on her face. “No…my other one is going pretty well.”
Kiera bounced on her toes. Pride on her face, she told Stella, “He’s making an album. He just recorded a song with Sienna Sexton.”
“Sienna Sexton? Seriously?” Stella asked, pride on her face too.
I shrugged, feeling a little uncomfortable with the silent praise in their expressions. “Yeah…”
Stella’s eyes misted, making me even more uncomfortable. “Well, that is…really impressive, Kellan. Congratulations.”
My gaze drifted to the floor. “Thank you,” I said, peeking up at her. After a long moment of both Stella and Kiera studying me with admiration on their faces, I pursed my lips and said to Stella, “Can we be done talking about me now, and maybe get some of your should-be-world-famous coffee?”
Stella laughed, then nodded. “Of course.” She lifted a gray eyebrow at me. “Would you like to make them?”
Grinning at her, I shook my head. “No.”
She laughed again. “Can’t say I’m surprised by that.”
When our coffees were ready, Kiera and I sat down at a quiet booth to drink them. Stella joined us for a bit, eager to tell stories about me. Kiera was on the edge of her seat, listening to tales of a younger me, even the tales of a flirtatious younger me, although she frowned at me a lot during those stories. Playful frowns, but still.
As we were leaving, Kiera looped her arm through mine. She looked up at me with an amused smile. “I can’t believe you charmed your coworkers into making your drinks for you. You are a hopeless flirt.”
I frowned at how Stella had portrayed me. “She’s exaggerating…I did my fair share. Ask Evan. He used to come in all the time. We’d work on our songs between customers.”
Kiera cocked an eyebrow at me in a look that spoke volumes. I chewed on my lip as I considered the fact that maybe I had taken advantage of the situation. A little bit. “Okay…maybe I took a few liberties. But I was much more helpful than she made me sound.” I smiled as I stared straight ahead. “You know me, I always aim to please.”
Kiera sighed, then laughed and squeezed me tighter. “Yes, I am well aware of that, Mr. Kyle.”
Grinning down at her, I kissed her head. “Good…Mrs. Kyle.” Then I unlinked our arms so I could wrap mine around her waist and squeeze her tight. Mrs. Kyle. I didn’t think I’d ever get used to the thrill it gave me to call her that. Hopefully, I’d get to call her that for the rest of my life.
When we got back to the house, Kiera had a giddy smile on her face as she darted upstairs to grab her new laptop so she could write for a little bit. Jenny had told me once that writing was what Kiera was meant to do, and I believed her. I hadn’t read anything of hers yet, but the look on her face when she was writing, the content sigh she let out when she was done…it was the way I felt after a good show. Or even a bad one. It was a calling being fulfilled, and that was a beautiful thing to see.
I moved toward the stairs to join Kiera, but a voice calling my name stopped me. When I turned, I expected to see one of the various houseguests, but it was Lana coming my way. I smiled at her as she stepped up to me.
“Good, I didn’t miss you,” she said, a friendly glow of warmth brightening her expression.
“Are you leaving?” I asked.
She nodded. “I’m heading out to check on a couple of bands that are making a buzz. I doubt I’ll find another you so soon, but I’m always hopeful.” Her smile grew. “Making dreams come true is the best part of my job.” Her expression softened as she paused. “Telling hopeful artists no is the worst part.”
I nodded in understanding. I had to imagine that would be difficult. Unless the artist in question was an a-hole like Paul. Then it would be cathartic. “Well, good luck. And thank you again for everything.”
She gave me a warm smile. “It was an honor to be the one to find you.” Cocking a dark eyebrow at me, she said, “Before I go, Sienna asked me to give you her number, just in case the two of you ever need to talk about your collaboration.”
Surprise washed through me. “Oh, um…sure.” Since I didn’t feel like programming the phone, a feat I’d reluctantly mastered on the bus, I handed my cell to Lana. “Here. Go ahead and put it in.”
She smirked at me, then messed around on the phone for about two seconds before handing it back. “Good luck on the album, Kellan. I know it’s going to be amazing.” She patted my arm in friendship, then made to step around me. Stopping, she looked up at me. There was reluctance on her face, and it worried me to see it. “I probably shouldn’t say this, but you should be careful of…” She let that thought trail off, then shook her head and said, “Just be careful. This business can be tough on beginners. Success is all some people care about, and they’ll do anything to get it. Anything. Just keep your eyes open, okay?”
There was sympathy and concern in the depths of her brown eyes as she studied me; she looked like she wanted to say more, and she also looked like she’d said too much. I had no idea how to respond, no clue what to feel except…worried. I nodded at her while I tried to decipher what she was really saying. I wanted to ask her to explain what she meant, wanted to know if she had something—or someone—specific in mind, but from the antsy look on her face, I had a feeling she wouldn’t, couldn’t, clarify.
