Front & Center (Book 2 of the Back-Up Series) (9 page)

“
I don’t know what to say.”

“Babe
, she is ruthless, conniving and calculating. I want you to know I don’t trust her. I know she is jealous of our relationship. I want you to know you will always have my heart. You own me.” She looks at the box as I lift it towards her. “Open it.”

She
opens the lid and lifts the chain until the small heart is eye level, swaying gently back and forth. “I love it.”

“Can I put it on you?”

Nodding, she turns and lifts her hair. I place a kiss on the back of her neck and fasten the necklace. When she faces me, her finger is stroking the delicate heart as it nestles in the hollow of her neck.

“
I know this doesn’t begin to make up for all the crap I’m putting you through. I just wanted to give you something symbolic of how I feel, a reminder.”

“Jack, I’m sorry.”

Shaking my head, she continues, “Yes. I acted horribly. I’m sorry. I could have handled it better than I did.”

“I feel so stupid for not questioning her.
I should know better. I promise to get my head out of my ass, but you can’t shut me out.”

“Jack, sometimes I need time to calm down. I’m not proud of the way I freak out, but it is part of who I am. Once my brain clears, I’m t
hen able to act rationally. I promise I’ll do my best not to, but if I do I need time alone to reel it back in.”

“Ok.
I get it.”

She leans over an
d kisses me deeply. “I love you,” she proclaims, once she pulls away.

“I know.”

Running her fingers through my hair, she leans her forehead against mine. “Are the guys back yet?”

“Nope.”

She looks into my eyes, her gaze is filled with pure heat. “Is the door locked?”

Giving her a half smile, I get up to lock the door. “What do you have in mind
, Miss Marino?”

“I’ll show you.” She reaches for my t-shirt and pulls me towards the bed. While on her knees on the
edge of the bed, she takes the hem of my shirt and slowly pulls it up and off my body. Watching me the entire time, she drags her fingertips across my chest, down my stomach, towards the button of my jeans.

“Have you hit the tequila?”

“Nope,” she retorts, as she unbuttons my jeans. She leans forward to kiss me. My hands snake around her body, pulling her flush to me.

“
I love when you take control,” I admit, in between kisses.

“Hang on…it’s going to be a bumpy ride.”
She steps off the bed and stands.

Her gaze light
s my cock on fire. She smirks seductively as she lowers my zipper. She slowly drags my jeans down my legs until she is kneeling before me. Her expression becomes predatory when she looks at my Calvin’s. She kisses me through my briefs and places her lips on the exact spot I need them to be. My abs flex automatically as I wait for what’s yet to come.

Hooking her fingers into the waistband of my
briefs, she pulls them down, releasing my stiff cock in the process. She gently pushes me, until I am seated at the end of the bed. Bending to remove my pants and briefs that are embarrassingly around my ankles, she then positions herself between my thighs.

As we stare at each other
, the electricity practically becomes visible. Leaning into me, she lifts her lips to kiss mine, my erection now an intrusion between us. Her kisses start out torturously slow, inch-by-inch, down my body. I close my eyes and desperately try to control my excitement, wanting this to last as long as possible.

She looks
up at me one last time before she bends to take me. The warmth of her mouth surrounds me as her tongue works me over and over. Her hands spread on my inner thighs, her hair caressing my abdomen and her mouth on me are our only contact. The inside of her mouth feels like pure heaven. I can feel the build in every cell of my body each time she moves down. I’m losing the battle to hold back. She senses I’m close and increases her efforts until I groan loudly with my release. It goes on and on, and she doesn’t let up until I’m done.

I lay back on the bed
completely spent and panting from the exertion of my orgasm. Leila slows her methods, kissing her way up my body. Positioning herself in the crook of my arm, she waits for me to recover. My girlfriend is always sexy as hell, and our sex life is off the charts, but it’s a complete turn on for me when she initiates.

I wrap
my arms around her and grip her tightly. The only words I can manage to say are, “Holy fuck.”




Back stage after our Pittsburgh show, exhaustion is visible on each and every one of our faces. We are waiting for Dylan to discuss the picture that appeared online of Leila and me kissing backstage in Boston.

Krista from L
.R.V Media’s publicity department found it on the Leila haters’ blog site and they aren’t happy about it. Some of the posts from fans on our own website were also less than thrilled as well. Krista immediately called Dylan. He filled us in right before rehearsals, and he called Jen during our show. It’s a matter of minutes before my phone will start ringing from her call.

It could have been anyone who posted that picture. There is no way
of telling where it originated. Most likely a stagehand sent it to a friend and it spread from there. The fact it took days to materialize only supports this theory even more.

Hunter, Scott and Trey sit quietly.
I had a sit down with them before rehearsal. Hunter spoke first and confessed he is worried how this whole mess will affect our careers. More importantly, he is worried about Leila and me. Scott said this isn’t our fault, and it sucks it has to be this way. Even Trey said we are meant to be. Bottom line is they support us. It means the world to me to know how they truly feel. Their words touched me in a profound way.

Leila
has been noticeably quiet. I attributed it to her freak out this afternoon, in conjunction with the news from Krista. I wasn’t able to talk to her yet. I can’t wait to get her alone to assure her the guys support us and the fans will eventually as well.

Our show was lacking.
I could barely concentrate on the lyrics of our songs. I didn’t engage with the guys in my usual ball-busting way. I also decided not to sing my ballad, as not to fuel the gossip mill. So all in all, it sucked.

Our current dour moods
are a culmination of all the above, and here we sit and wait. Leila sits alone in a chair across the room. I know she’s trying to keep it together for me, but she isn’t very convincing.

Needless to say, I’m falling short in giving my band or my girlfriend words of encouragement
at the moment. I just can’t think of one thing to say to any of them. Deciding on honesty, I start with an apology. “Guys, I’m really sorry you all have to go through this.”

“It’s
not your fault.” Hunter says half-heartedly.

Un
expectedly, Leila quietly responds to Hunter. “It’s my fault. I’m sure you regret adding me to the band.”

“Lei…”

“No, Jack. All this crap is because of me. It’s because I fell in love with you. If you and I hadn’t gotten together, you wouldn’t be saddled with this shit. I knew this would happen.”

Her words
stun me. Where the hell is this coming from? I clench my jaw and respond tightly. “We’ll talk about it later.”

The
anxiety in the room becomes suffocating as Leila and I glare at each other.

Dylan finally appears. He takes a quick look around the room, first noticing the
looks on our faces. “What’s wrong?”

Sighing
, I’m the first to speak. “I wasn’t happy with our show.” I don’t want to drag Dylan into this.

“Oh,
they loved you. Don’t sweat it.”

“It wasn’t our best performance. I take responsibility for that.
We all had that picture on our minds.”

“You’re upset about
it being leaked?”

“
Uh, yeah.”

“Don’t worry about that. Krista is on it, and in the next few hours
she will be watching the Internet. She’s prepared to release our statement at any moment.”

He makes it all sound so simple. We all know the next few hours will definitely set the tone on how the f
ans will respond to Leila and me being together. “I’m sure Jen doesn’t feel the same way.”

As if on cue, my phone finally buzzes with Jen’s number.
“Jen.”

“Ok
, so the shit is hitting the fan.” Just as I’m about to tell her off, she adds, “But we are prepared and we will deal with it. We are going to spin this in to the greatest love story ever told.”

“What?”

“I’ve spoken to Krista. Why not put our own leaks out there?”

“Our own leaks?”

“Yes. Pictures of you two, fan sightings and gushing comments, all planted by us.”

The rest of my band, Leila and Dylan all gape at me, wondering what I am hearing over the phone.

“It sounds like a good plan.”

“It is, t
rust me. Malcolm actually gave me the idea. Why not control the gossip? It’s going to happen anyway. Let’s steer it in the direction we want it to go.”

“Jen, I’m
surprised and impressed, thank you. I honestly was prepared to fight with you over this.”

“I’m full of surprises
, Jack. When are you going to get it through your thick skull that I want you to succeed? I’m not the enemy.”

“
I know you do.”

“I have more good new
s. We’re adding shows to Vegas, Miami, and now ending in New York with two nights.”

“
Really?”

“
Yes. You’ve sold out every show so far. People want to see you. We’re going to give them what they want. The show we are adding with be in
The Garden
.”

“
The Garden
?”

“Yes.”

“
The Garden
?”

She chuckles and repeats, “Yes.”

“Holy shit. That’s awesome.”

“
Yes it is. One more thing. Your album is steadily climbing the charts. Krista arranged all major radio stations to play a Devil’s Lair block on the same day next week, your top three songs. You will be doing an interview on
The Diane and Dean Morning Show
on WXLP in Chicago on the same day the blocks will be played. After the interview, you’ll play a song live over the radio.”

“Holy shit.”

“We will keep releasing tidbits about you and Leila, then you will be on every major airway, coast to coast. The buzz this will create will be priceless.”

“Thanks
, Jen…and tell Krista thank you. I’ll give her a call tomorrow.”

“
Will do…I’ll talk to you later. I have a lot of work to do. Tell Dylan to call me once you arrive in Cleveland. Dylan is handling the security part for you. He’ll fill you in.”

“Yes, boss.” Smiling like a fool, I forget the other five in the room are still gaping at me.

“Well, that was Jen.”

Hunter stands and says,
“We know…and?”

“
She and Krista came up with a plan. They will be leaking our own photos, planting our own comments and blog entries, steering the gossip towards revealing the positives of our relationship.”

“That’s it?” Dylan asks.
“It seems so simple.”

“I guess it is. But if done right, it can work.”

“Well good for Jen, being a team player and all.” Scott says.

“Yea
h, it’s kinda strange,” I admit while shaking my head, I look over at Leila. She sits, staring at the floor while lost in her own world.

“What about
The Garden
?” Hunter asks impatiently.

“Oh. S
he said our album has been steadily climbing the charts. The label is adding shows to Vegas, Miami and we are now ending with two nights in New York, last one in
The Garden
.”

“The fucking Garden?”

I nod and laugh at Hunter’s bulging eyeballs.

“Holy Fuck!”

“Wait, there’s more. All major radio stations are going to play a Devil’s Lair block on the same day next week. We will be interviewed that day on the
Diane and Dean Morning Show
in Chicago.”

The guys go ballistic, hooting and hollering about the news I just shared. As they carry on,
I move to squat before Leila and take her hands in mine.

“You ok?”

“Yes.” She stares into my eyes looking completely defeated.

“You’re lying.” I pull her up to a standing position. “Let’s take a walk.”