Sweet Melody (Rock & Rodeo Romance #1) (16 page)

I
am
Bethany’s personal Barbie Doll. The only task I’ve been allowed to control is washing my own body. After that, she’s called the shots. And she won’t let me look in a mirror until she’s finished.

“Look up and hold your face like this.” She contorts her face with an open mouth and eyes rolled up. She draws eyeliner under my eyes.

“I can do my own makeup, Bee.”

“Not like I’m gonna make you look. Tonight’s a special night, and I want you to feel unlike yourself. You know. Like things are different.” The pad of her ring finger wipes under my eye.

“What’s wrong with the way I look?”

“Did I say something was wrong? No, I don’t think I did. Now close your eyes for me.” She blows on something and brushes over my eyelid. “You always look so badass, so tough. Tonight, I want you and Hunter to see the softer side of you. The one that reminds him you’re all woman.”

I snicker. “Oh, I think he’s well aware I’m woman. He’s pretty familiar with my lady parts.”

“Eww. Please don’t share that with me. It’s bad enough that the couple of times you’ve ended up here that you let everyone in the near vicinity hear what he’s doing to you.
Fuck me harder. Right there. Suck me. Lick me. Spank me. Oh God, Mr. Sexy Country Singer. I’m coming
!”

My cheeks heat. She’s not wrong. Sometimes he drives me so crazy, I lose all sense of my surroundings. And it’s not like he’s particularly quiet himself. I shrug, unable to say anything as she brushes color on my lips.

“At least tonight you guys get to do it in a swanky hotel. He really booked the Parkmoor on the beach?”

I wait for her to finish applying extra goop on my lips. “Yeah. I’m meeting him there. I can’t believe our time’s already up.” Tonight’s our last night together. He leaves from the hotel in the morning.

Bethany asks me to close my eyes. She sprays something all over my face. “Yeah, I know. I can’t believe you didn’t go to his parents’ house for the big farewell dinner last night.”

I blink my eyes open. Bee turns my head back and forth, checking her work. Without a reply, her eyes finally fall on mine. “Too much, too soon?”

I nod. “Yeah. I mean, they’re nice people. But I couldn’t beg off another night. I think Shane’s ready to go on strike if I don’t start working normal hours again. He hasn’t exactly liked working with the sub wannabe bartenders out of the server pool. Did you know that Tamsin even worked a shift?”

Bethany puts her hand on her hip. “Way to change the subject. And yes, it was my idea for Tamsin to work there. Wanted her to see that bartenders don’t have the easier gig than us servers. The fact that it pissed Shane off was a nice side bonus. Now, on your bed I’ve set out everything for you to dress in. Put on everything including the shoes and call me. I’ll help you put on the dress so you don’t ruin my masterpiece.” She cleans up the explosion of makeup and brushes on our bathroom counter.

I walk into my room and check out my chosen wardrobe. “Bee, what the hell is this?” A black and red silk and lace corset, matching G-string panties, and silk stockings with a garter belt lay across my sheets.

“Less talking, more dressing,” she calls out from the bathroom. “Your boyfriend gave me leave to pick out your outfit tonight. So I did.”

“But this is all brand new. And I don’t wear shit like this.” I’m going to look like an expensive call girl when I finish.

“You do tonight. Remember, special.”

“Yeah, real special for him,” I mutter under my breath.

It takes me several minutes to dress, taking careful consideration not to cause runs in the stockings and making sure my girls fit into the corset. By the time I slip on the heels, Bethany peeks in.

“Oh good. Let me help you fasten the garter belt.”

“Why, oh why, did you do this to me, Bee? I’m gonna feel self-conscious. More than usual.”

She switches legs. “No you won’t. Not after you see yourself. In fact, you get a quick preview before I put on your dress.” She directs me over to the long mirror hanging on the outside of the closet door.

Whoever the woman is that regards me up and down can’t be me. Her hair falls in loose curls like the pictures from magazines. The corset doesn’t make me look cheap. It hugs me in all the right places, showing off my curves. And the stockings with the clips down to the stiletto heels. I’m so fucking stunning, that I consider staying in and screwing myself for the night.

“Hands up over your head.”

I watch Bethany lower the dress carefully over my hair and face. I purse my lips to keep lipstick from smearing on the red material. The dress fits snug around my curves as she works on positioning it right.

“That better not be lace.”

Her brow furrows as she smooths out the material. “Only in the part over your left shoulder. Get over it, you look fantastic.”

“Shouldn’t my heels be red, too?” I turn in the mirror, checking myself out.

“Absolutely not. The nude color will make your legs look even longer. And there’s red on the bottom. When your sexy boyfriend spends money on you, he goes all out. I’ll stuff those Louboutins just to get my feet in them. Then I might be close to normal height.” She spanks my ass.

A gorgeous goddess stares back at me from the mirror. Her flawless makeup accentuates her eyes with a smoky look. Her lips don’t hold any of the bright color she normally wears, but the dress makes up for it.

“Hunter’s gonna owe me so much chocolate for this. Now get going. Don’t keep him waiting.”

She hands me a small clutch of hers. Of course, she’s stuffed it with condoms and a few bills of emergency cash. She slips in a couple of pieces of makeup I can use to fix my face. Hunter already has my overnight bag since he didn’t want me carrying it with me tonight to keep up the illusion that we were going on a regular date, not the last one before he leaves.

I walk toward the door, a little unsure on the spiked heels. Grabbing my keys from the bowl on the table beside the door, I stop.

“Shit, how in the hell am I going to drive my car in these?”

Bethany rolls her eyes. “Geez, you manage to ruin every magical moment. Open the door, girlie.”

Outside, a black Suburban waits for me. The driver gets out, walks around the SUV, and opens the back door wide for me.

“Over-the-top bastard.” I laugh. “Don’t wait up for me, dear,” I call out to Bee.

She stops me with her hand, turning me to face her. With care, she grips my chin. “Remember, give him a chance. I’m pretty sure he’s worth it. And not because he paid for all this. I haven’t seen you this happy in years. Hell, since I’ve known you. So go have the night of your life. And when you come home tomorrow, I’ll be right here for you.”

An ache in my stomach grows. She’s always been my soft place to land. I nod and give her a quick hug. She swats my butt and sends me on my way.

I text Hunter to let him know I’m coming.

O
n the ride
to the Parkmoor, a glass of champagne dulls the anticipation of heartache. Checking my reflection once more in the floor to ceiling mirrors by the elevators, excitement sparks in my belly to see Hunter’s reaction. The doors slide open, and two young men in suits step out. Their eyes graze over my body. The one with the blue tie holds the door from closing. I step into the carriage.

“Damn,” red tie exhales as the door closes.

That’s right, boys. You can look, but only one man gets to touch.

My pulse races as I exit onto the right floor. Standing in front of the door to the room, I fidget with my dress, smoothing it unnecessarily and gathering my courage. With one knock, my heart threatens to beat out of my chest.

The door pulls open. Hunter stands in the threshold holding a flute of champagne. He’s wearing a black suit with a black button-down shirt opened at the collar. He looks every part the celebrity country singer on the red carpet making all the girls scream. Once again, my new and expensive panties offer to tear themselves off for me.

“Holy Hell. You look gorgeous.” As much as I’ve been staring at him, his eyes have roamed up and down my body several times.

I take the champagne from him and walk into the room, brushing past him with my hip. The king-sized bed fills up a lot of the space, covered in a large, fluffy comforter and millions of pillows. There’s a small sitting area with a sofa that matches the colors of the comforter. The room’s large, but still a little stifling for what its purpose is for.

A sliding glass door opens onto a small balcony that overlooks the boardwalk and beach. At this floor level, the wind blows warm, fanning my hair around my face. The sun hangs close to the water, its hues of orange and pink streaking the sky. People walk the edge of the waves. Seagulls fly overhead. Everything is perfect for a romantic night. Sadness squeezes my stomach and taints the beauty surrounding me.

I feel him before he walks up behind me. His body presses into my back, and brushes hair away from my neck, giving him access. He plants small kisses up and down my sensitive skin. Shivers run down my spine, chasing away my melancholy moment.

“You look absolutely beautiful tonight.” His free hand splays across my hip.

I sigh and take a small sip of the cold champagne. “This is a great room, Hunter.” If we have to say goodbye, at least he picked an impressive place to do it.

We stand still, listening to the ambient noises and the crash of waves. The heaviness of his leaving weighs on both of us. He’d thought that if we really made it an event, then maybe some of the misery might be dampened. But I feel as if I’ve dressed up for a funeral for something that’s barely had a chance to exist.

He takes the glass from my hand and puts both of them down on a nearby table. Facing me, he draws me in close. His hand cups my chin. “Hey. We’ve got all night.”

Instead of kissing him, I preserve my lip-gloss and my hurting heart, and place my head on his shoulders. If he kisses me, it’ll unlock the closet I’ve stuffed all my emotions in. And I hate crying. I refuse to cry tonight.

He rocks me back and forth as if we’re dancing, the waves our soundtrack. For a second, my eyes close, and I allow myself to pretend that I’ll get to do this whenever I want, as often as I want.

“Can’t believe I’m saying this, but we’ve got reservations downstairs at Catch in 15 minutes.”

“Can’t we order room service and stay here?” I murmur into his chest.

His chuckle rumbles under my ear through his chest. “If I don’t get you out of this room soon, I’m not going to be able to stop myself from getting you in bed. And I want to enjoy all of you, including when you’re dressed, as long as possible.”

I sigh and back away. Picking up my champagne, I down it fast. “Then I’d better make a last trip to the restroom.”

When I come out, he waits for me, phone in his hand. He types something and puts it in his suit pocket. “Come here.”

Taking his hand, he spins me around to face the room mirror.

“Look how spectacular you are right now.”

His hand travels from the back of my neck down my curves, brushing past the edge of my breast and over my hip. He rubs me all the way down my body to the bottom of my dress.

Eyes wide, he checks with his fingers again. “Holy Hell! Are you wearing…?” Both his hands move to my hem and lift it up to reveal the garter and stockings. He fingers the top of the silk and follows the path of the strap up my thigh. My breath catches from the light contact alone.

He licks his lips. “I’m going to have to send Bethany the highest quality of chocolate for this.”

“Hey, she just picked it out. I’m the one wearing it.” My hand reaches behind me to run my fingers through his hair. “Seriously, you can get a more detailed look if we stay here.” My hips sway to grind my ass against his front, his hard cock my reward.

He growls, and his fingers travel to the steaming core between my legs. I step one of my long legs wider, giving him access. One of his fingers strokes the length of me. I lean back into his chest with a moan.

“Fuck, you’re so wet for me.”

“You could make me your meal.” Desperation stirs my impatience.

He shakes his head, but doesn’t take his eyes off his hands on me reflected in the mirror. “No time. If I eat you, I need time.” He shifts my underwear out of the way and dips a finger inside of me. My knees buckle, but he holds me up.

“Baby, I can’t resist, but you need to be fast. Put your hands on the mirror because I’m going to need both of mine.”

I obey, and he lifts my dress up until it bunches around my waist. With a quick pull, he rips off the black and red silk and lace panties. He shoves two fingers inside me and circles my clit with his other hand. His fingers move in and out with purpose, pressing in as far as possible and hitting my g-spot.

“Fuck. Hunter,” I cry out.

“Open your eyes. I want you to watch how fucking stunning you are when you come.” He bites my earlobe. “Hurry up, Mel.”

He presses on my clit, and my muscles clamp down on his fingers. He works me to the edge of a climax, making it difficult to keep my eyes open. The sexy woman in the mirror calls out her man’s name, telling him she’s going to come. Her cheeks flush pink, and her eyes flash with lust. Her chest heaves with halting breaths.

“That’s it. Come on, Mel. Give it to me. Come now.”

Hunter’s growl and demand do the trick. As my orgasm breaks in waves, my body shakes. The woman in the mirror screams of pure, unadulterated sex. It looks fucking fantastic on her.

He pants in my ear, pressing his erection into me. Once I regain my balance, I turn around and cup him through his pants.

“Your turn?” My hand strokes his hard length.

He takes his fingers and sucks them clean of my juices. Gripping my hand in his, he kisses my palm. “No,” he sighs. “Go take care of yourself. We’re now down to 5 minutes. I’ll simply enjoy the anticipation of knowing you’re mine all night.”

In the bathroom, I reapply my lip-gloss after doing some necessary clean up. When I emerge, Hunter offers me his arm. A look mixed of pride and satisfaction covers his face.

“Hey, cocky man. Remember, you’re the one that did this to yourself.” My arm links through his.