All Night Long (7 page)

Next to Spook’s ice-blond simplicity, Rock Giant looked like someone’s ultra-hot deranged-inventor uncle. His hair stood out at angles from his head, held there by God knows what. It seemed to defy gravity. Most of the spikes were black, but sections were dyed bright purple. She couldn’t determine his genuine eye colour due to the weird eye shells he was sporting, one of which blanked out the whole of his eye, so that it appeared completely black. It freaked her out a little, simply looking at it. His other iris was coloured a slightly more normal sunset yellow.

And then of course there was Ash, whose presence gave her an electrifying jolt every time he drew close to her. She wondered what he had in mind for the rest of the night.

‘It’s nothing posh,’ Ginny warned as she opened the door to the twin room she was sharing with her friend. They were probably used to penthouse suites with oceans of space, upmarket furnishings and spa tubs, whereas this room was so cut-price they didn’t even supply complimentary shower gel, and the coffee was rationed to two cups of cheapo instant.

Still, it was pristine, courtesy of her neat-freak roomie, who had even insisted on washing their coffee mugs before they left for the gig.

To her surprise, Dani wasn’t present when they walked in, which was disappointing in one sense: her roommate happened to be the biggest Black Halo fan on the planet, and would have had kittens at the sight of half the band turning up in her hotel room. On the other hand, it also allowed Ginny to breathe a sigh of relief. The plans she had for the evening wouldn’t meet with Dani’s approval. When it came to men, Dani was Ginny’s polar opposite. Dani believed in happily ever after and commitment; that one man and one woman was the only option, and that kissing on a first date was probably a step too far. She’d be horrified by Ginny’s sleepover plans, primarily because, as on all the best sleepovers, Ginny wasn’t planning do a whole lot of sleeping. So she prayed Dani had joined the mass pilgrimage to the Whyteleaf Hotel, where the band were supposed to be staying, and wouldn’t turn up for an hour or six.

‘Um, make yourselves at home, guys,’ she said inviting them in. As if they needed the prompt. Spook immediately lolled across one bed, while Ash dived on the second. He stood up again a moment later to crack open one of the beers Rock Giant had carried in from the van.

‘Who’s hungry?’ Spook picked up the phone to dial for room service. Ginny winced as he subsequently ordered half the menu. The price per dish was nearly as much as she’d paid for the room.

‘Don’t sweat it,’ Ash remarked, clearly having caught sight of her expression. He pushed a beer into her hand. ‘We’ll get the tab. Cheers.’ They clinked bottles.

‘Thanks,’ she mumbled, taking a swig.

Someone turned on the TV. The news channel was running the story of the band’s shocking break-up. Apparently, the streets around the Whyteleaf remained completely cut off, and it was being reported that police intervention had been required to get the band out of the stadium, after their limos had been completely encircled by crowds of irate fans. One of the cars had been overturned.

‘We’re in for it, if that’s true,’ Spook muttered. ‘Ulf and the crew are going to be seriously pissed.’

Rock Giant grunted in agreement. ‘I wonder where they’re staying, since the Whyteleaf’s off limit.’

‘Turn it off.’ Ash made a grab for the control, but failed to claim it from Spook. He yanked the plug out of the socket on the wall instead. ‘We know this shit. I don’t need to listen to someone else reporting it. Ulf being pissed isn’t going to make any difference to the state of things tomorrow, because without Xane we’re screwed anyway. There won’t be a band.’

The harsh reality of their situation seemed to penetrate the bubble of unreality that surrounded them. Spook tugged uncomfortably at the neckline of his shirt as though it had suddenly grown too tight. ‘You said he’d come round.’

A look of vexation crossed Ash’s face. ‘God knows if that’s true.’ Exasperation soured his voice. ‘This is Xane we’re talking about. He’s not exactly known for being amenable. If he can avoid dealing with us, he will.’

Interesting. She’d always envisaged Xane as the backbone of the group as well as its spokesperson, but it sounded as if he was an avoider rather than an enabler.

The others seemed to recognise the truth of Ash’s words. One by one their expressions turned grim. Ginny realised she was possibly witnessing the band’s death throes. By morning, Black Halo might genuinely have ceased to exist. They weren’t quite defunct yet, despite Xane’s walk out, because she could see these guys still believed they could patch things up.

‘What will you do if he doesn’t come round?’

‘He will.’ Rock Giant thumped his empty beer bottle down on the table and reached for another.

Spook looked less certain.

Ash turned his back and strode over to the window. He wrenched the curtains across, dragging one of them half off the rail, but mostly succeeding in blocking out the city skyline. ‘Fuck knows. I don’t intend to find out. I’ll lock the silly bugger in a room until he caves if I have to.’

Behind him, Spook and Rock Giant exchanged concerned glances.

‘It won’t come to that,’ said the former. ‘He’ll wake up tomorrow morning and realise what a mistake he’s made. We probably won’t even have to go looking for him. He’ll slope in as if nothing’s happened and we’ll do the final gig as planned. This will all blow over.’

‘Nice dream, Spooky man,’ Rock Giant said.

‘Maybe he’s right.’ Ash faced them. ‘We know he burns hot and cold, and he has to realise this is great publicity. We’d never get this much media coverage normally.’

‘Are you suggesting he did it for the publicity?

Spook shook his head at the line the two of them were exploring. ‘I don’t believe that. You’re not being fair to him. He was really bloody upset. Does anyone know what this is actually about? Ash, you seem to think it’s Elspeth’s fault.’

Ash lifted his shoulders, but even to Ginny it was obvious he knew more than he was letting on.

‘He’s having a tantrum,’ Rock Giant insisted. ‘He probably just needs to get himself laid a few dozen times. Addicts,’ he tutted. ‘They’re all the same. Vile if they can’t get a fix.’

‘Xane’s an addict.’ Boy, the things she was learning. Dani would be pissed over that. She practically worshipped the guy.

‘He doesn’t shoot up, if that’s what you’re thinking,’ Spook said.

‘Oh, I dunno. I’ve seen him shoot straight up,’ mused Ash, failing to suppress an extremely lewd grin.

‘He doesn’t do drugs,’ Spook elaborated. ‘He prefers to fuck himself into oblivion, but he’s not been doing that of late. Not for the last eighteen months or so, in fact, since he did rehab.’

‘They have rehab for that?’ Who’d have thought it, and how did you tell you were having too much sex? How much was more than the average rock star? Was it even about quantity?

Rock Giant stood. ‘Look, joyful as I find it to pick fault with Xane’s life, I’m taking that shower.’ He peeled off his T-shirt, stupefying Ginny and blowing all thoughts of Xane from her head.

Oh, man! She refrained from fanning herself, but only by sitting on her hands. The guy absolutely lived up to his name. His torso was formed of slabs of muscle, each a little piece of artwork on its own, but then he was decorated with an ink dragon entwined around a sword covered with roses.

Her mouth dropped open, prompting Ash to jab her with his elbow. ‘Didn’t your mother tell you it’s wrong to stare?’

‘I’m not staring.’

‘Is there another explanation for why your jaw’s on the floor and your tongue’s lolling out?’

Ginny shut her mouth.

Rock Giant seemed oblivious to the effect he’d had. ‘No one needs to relieve themselves, do they? Good.’ He swaggered towards the bathroom, his T-shirt dangling from his hand.

‘I thought he was joking about needing a shower,’ Ginny remarked.

‘Paul doesn’t know how to joke.’ With a sigh, Ash slumped beside her on the bed, causing the mattress to dip and tip her towards him. Ginny put out her hand, but Ash knocked it away, causing her to crumple against his chest. ‘That’s better.’ His arms encircled her and squashed her against his chest. ‘A guy could get jealous, you know.’

‘I was only looking. And only because he showed it off.’

Ash didn’t seem to care about her defence. His lips explored hers, delivering one mouth-watering kiss after another.

Ginny wormed a hand between them and pushed against his chest. ‘Slow down, hot stuff. We do have an audience, remember.’

‘Where?’

‘Spook.’

‘He doesn’t count.’

Maybe not to Ash, but he did to her.

‘You already said you were fine with him watching.’

‘Hang on.’ She’d agreed to his presence in the dressing room, not granted him a licence to spy on them whenever he felt like it.

‘Fine,’ Ash pushed her away. ‘Pass me another beer, Spook. I’ll chill.’

They sat in silence a few minutes, each of them drowning their thoughts. In the end Ginny caved. Fact was, she didn’t really object to Spook’s presence, just found it a bit odd, since from what Ash had said he was unlikely to join in. However, it wasn’t off-putting enough to risk jeopardising her night of hot sex with Ash. If she let him chill too much, his performance might suffer, which would be a damned shame, since she knew he could have her revved up and ready for action inside thirty seconds.

‘Maybe you could sing,’ she suggested.

‘What?’

‘On stage, if Xane’s not up to it any more.’

‘Yeah, right.’ He cackled, obviously amused. ‘I have a couple of talents, but singing ain’t one of them. In case you hadn’t noticed, they don’t even let me do backing vocals.’

‘Oh, well. It was just a suggestion.’ She put her beer aside. ‘Fancy demonstrating one of your other talents?’

‘I don’t know if I’m chilled enough yet,’ he protested.

Ginny couldn’t help it – she laughed. God, she liked him when he pouted. It made him smoulder and her insides grow moist. ‘Maybe I could massage you. That might help.’

‘Doubt it,’ he said, but the dirty look in his eyes told he was definitely interested.

Ginny planted one hand on his thigh, but then slipped off the bed and made a grab for his foot. She tugged off his boot and the black pirate sock beneath. ‘Reckon I’ll start here.’

‘Don’t,’ he squealed, already trying to squirm out of her grip. ‘Not unless you want me to piss myself with laughter.’

She contemplated his big toe, going so far as to open her mouth as though she intended to suck it.

‘Come here instead.’ Ash pulled her up onto the bed, so that she was crouched over his prone form. Their mouths were a hair’s breadth apart when a bellow from the bathroom wrecked the moment.

‘What sort of lousy-arsed place doesn’t provide free shower gel?’

Ash banged his head against the pillow.

‘I’ve got some,’ said Ginny. ‘Should I go help him out?’

‘I thought you were helping me out.’

‘We could both go.’

Ash rolled his eyes. ‘I’ve no desire to soap up Paul’s giant dick. Go on, be quick and stop him cursing.’ He extracted his hands from her clothing and gave her a playful shove in the direction of the bathroom.

‘Is it giant?’

Spook made a choking sound and spluttered beer down his front. ‘You don’t think he’s called Rock Giant because he plays rock music, do you?’

She shook her head. ‘That is such bollocks.’ She refused to believe the insinuation that his nickname had been acquired for some other reason. ‘I’m sure he’s normally proportioned.’

‘Nothing about him is normal.’

‘Go check him out if you don’t believe us.’

‘I will. I am.’ She skipped backwards toward the bathroom door. She knocked and waited for a response.

‘Just go in,’ Spook and Ash chorused.

‘Yeah, he doesn’t bite.’

‘Nah, you need Xane for that.’

‘Or me.’ Ash gnashed his teeth. ‘If only I’d put my fangs in tonight.’

‘Vampire wannabe,’ Spook remarked, cracking open another of the dwindling beers.

‘Look who’s talking, White Walker.’

Ginny left them to their banter and opened the bathroom door. It immediately snagged against a pool of black cotton and leather, turning her entrance into a fight. Rock Giant already stood inside the tub. He stuck his head around the edge of the shower curtain. His hair was smoothed back away from his face, and seemed entirely black. He’d taken out the contact lenses too, so that he peeped at her with two beautiful hazel eyes. His skin and eyelashes were frosted with water droplets. ‘Just kick ’em out of the way,’ he said in regard to his clothing.

‘I think I’ve some shower gel in my washbag.’ Ginny rifled through the contents, eventually coming up with a miniature bottle acquired from another hotel chain. ‘Apple scent, I’m afraid.’

‘Thanks. Apple I can live with. At least it’s not lavender or strawberry, or –’ he thought for a moment ‘– patchouli. I hate patchouli. It reminds me of mud and tepees, and all the hippies of my parent’s generation that used to crash out at their place. He grasped the offered bottle. ‘Mind you, it was an improvement on how most of them smelled without it. The only bathing any of them did was in the odd water trough.’ He ducked behind the curtain and started soaping up. ‘I don’t suppose you’ve any shampoo?’

‘Here.’ She stuck her hand behind the curtain, having anticipated the request. ‘Need me to help you work up a lather too?’

He gave a surprisingly shy cough. ‘Did Ash send you in here? I’m not going to fall for that.’

‘Fall for what?’

‘His dirty tricks. I’m not desperate for nuddy shots of me appearing on the Internet, so I’ll pass on the offer if it’s all the same.’

‘Sorry,’ she said, not following his logic. ‘How? What?’

‘Give it a minute and I guarantee he’ll be in here with Spook and his camera two paces behind.’

‘Oh,’ she remarked, making the connection. An uneasy feeling clenched her innards. Spook had already captured her image. ‘Is that what he does with them? Ash only said he put them into scrapbooks.’

Rock Giant reached out around the curtain and gave her a pat on the head that left her wet. ‘Don’t worry, you’re all right. Ladies do indeed go in Spook’s albums, and nobody outside of the band ever sees those, but the net is where he’d post any shots he got of my arse.’