THE BIGGEST STAGE (A Brothers of Rock - WILLOW SON - novel) (16 page)

Colby shook hands with Portis. The
man stood before him, phone in hand, an expensive suit, and an entourage around
him. He looked at his phone, hit the screen a few times with his thumb, then
tucked it into his suit jacket.

He looked around, nodding.

“
Colby,
everything good here?
”

“
Yeah,
”
Colby said.

Portis pointed at Tessa.
“
She one of mine?
”

“
No,
”
Colby said.
“
She
’
s one of mine.
”

Portis grinned.
“
Got it. Heard you want to
entertain these fine folks, huh?
”

“
Thinking
about playing one of the songs. Why hear it tomorrow when we can play it live?
”

“
Oh,
I
’
ve heard it already,
”
Portis said.
“
I own the studio and everything
inside it.
”

Portis just rubbed Colby the wrong
way. He popped up, leaving Tessa on the couch alone. He went nose to nose with
the guy who held the key to Willow Son
’
s
future.

“
We
didn
’
t say you could hear
it,
”
Colby said.

“
I
listened. I like it. Like the end. The catchy notes. That
’
s going to be a crowd favorite.
”

“
You
’
re a real asshole, Portis.
”

“
It
’
s a tough business,
”
Portis said. He backed up and
tugged at his jacket.
“
You
ready to play me a song?
”

Colby made fists and held himself
in control.
“
I
’
m not playing it for you,
Portis. I
’
m playing it for
everyone in this place. And then I
’
m
leaving for the night. We
’
ll
talk tomorrow.
”

“
I
like you, Colby,
”
Portis
said.
“
You take punches.
You hand out punches. We
’
re
going to work some magic together.
”

“
The
only thing I need from you, Portis, is your studio and money. If it were up to
me, I
’
d have my own label.
”

“
That
’
s the spirit,
”
Portis said. He clapped his
hands together.

He then jumped up on a table and
whistled, getting the attention of everyone in the VIP lounge. (And some people
in the other half of the place.)

Colby turned and crouched in front
of Tessa. He liked the angle. Touching her legs, having her wide, pretty eyes
looking down at him.

“
I
have to go be a rockstar for a second,
”
Colby said.
“
Okay?
”

“
Of
course.
”

“
Don
’
t move.
”

“
Never
would.
”

Colby squeezed Tessa
’
s legs for a second.

What should have been a calm night
to have a few drinks and relax, was now turning into a pivotal night. For the
band. For Colby himself.

He grabbed a guitar and looked back
at Tessa.

He grinned and winked.

She blushed.

Yeah
…
I need to figure out more about
her
…
but only if she
’
ll accept me.

**

Tessa wasn
’
t a complete fool.

The whole fate thing was pretty fun
to get lost in, but reality was far different. The way Colby looked at her,
looked back at her, the entire night had become something else. And it was just
getting started.

Some guy had tried to jump Colby,
threatening to hurt him. Yet Colby did nothing about it. He just took it and
made sure the man was calmly removed without getting hurt. But when Portis
showed up, Colby looked ready to attack. That meant the guy who threatened to
hurt Colby had meaning to him.

But what?

And Colby had wanted to tell Tessa
something.

He kind of has good reason.

That
’
s
what Colby had started to tell her.

The guy had good reason to want to
hurt him? What exactly did that mean?

It made Tessa shiver a little.

The shiver was then swept away as
Willow Son was ready to play a song.

Five acoustic guitars. Five guys.
Five rockstars.

They were all sexy, face it. But
Colby - not just as the lead singer - but as a man. He was gorgeous.

Willow Son was all chilling along a
long couch. Van sat in the middle. Colby on the edge of the front. Brantley sat
on the top of the couch. Then Ryker and Jett on each arm.

The second Colby called out
“
One! Two! Three! Four!
”
the sound was big and loud.
All the guitars worked together. They didn
’
t
need amplifiers for this sound to work.

Everyone stopped what they were
doing to watch the rockstars perform. Tessa casually inched to the edge of her
seat, waiting to hear Colby sing. When he did, belting out the first line of
lyrics, shutting his eyes, his neck straining to overpower the sound of the
guitars
…
she was instantly
turned on.

She never heard someone sing like
him.

He didn
’
t just stay with the song or overpower the guitars.
He owned the song. He controlled the song. It took Tessa right back to the
night in the hotel. The way they had just gone at each other. The way Colby
held her shoulder as he thrust deep into her body.

It made her toes curl, wanting that
again. Wanting Colby more than ever.

The members of Willow Son all sang
during the first chorus. Ryker and Jett played a little guitar riff after the
chorus, while the rest of the guys carried the main part of the song. Another
verse, another riff led into the bridge and then into a double solo where Ryker
and Jett traded parts back and forth, which sounded really good in such a
basic, natural sound.

Then came the final part of the
song.

All five guitars were ringing out
together. Willow Son sang loud. Colby then looked out to everyone, nodding.

“
Sing
it with us!
”
Colby yelled.

Tessa saw Portis from the corner of
her eyes. He had his arms folded, a cocky grin on his face. He knew that Willow
Son was going to make him a ton of money. Rightfully so. Willow Son was
amazing.

Next to Portis stood a guy with a
camera, filming the entire scene.

Slowly, one by one, people started
to sing with the band.

It took less than a minute for
everyone to sing with the band. No words. Just  notes. The broken up harmony of
so many singers - good and bad - made it a really powerful moment. So much that
Tessa felt her chest tightening a little. She couldn
’
t believe she was actually part of the moment. She
didn
’
t deserve to be. This
was for important people. For famous people. For rockstars.

Tessa slowly stood and slipped
behind the couch. The song and the lyrics were powerful, and thinking about
them made her ache inside her heart. Thinking of the family she never had. The
tragedy she had to fight through.

Willow Son was a huge band. Just
because they had lost their label didn
’
t
mean a thing. Tonight proved it. That song proved it.

Tessa enjoyed being there for it,
but it was time to go. To go back to reality for real this time, no matter
what.

The song and chanting kept going.

Tessa got to the velvet rope and
grabbed for it. She held it steady and started to step over it when a hand
clamped on her wrist. She looked and Colby stood there, a surprised look on his
face.

Tessa opened her mouth and Colby
pulled her close. His arms were locked around her. So strong. So tight. So
good. Before Tessa could say a word, Colby had his lips to her ear.

“
What
are you doing?
”
he yelled.

“
Leaving,
”
Tessa said.
“
This is yours, Colby. Not mine.
”

Colby pulled back but he didn
’
t pull away. Instead, he touched
Tessa
’
s face.

Shaking his head, he said,
“
No, pretty eyes. This is our
moment. That song? That was
…
because of you
…”

Tessa couldn
’
t get a guy to buy her flowers, yet Colby - lead
singer of Willow Son - had written a song about her?

She couldn
’
t believe it.

She didn
’
t want to believe it.

But when Colby kissed her right then
…
she felt it.

The kiss lasted a second, but the
night promised to be so much more.

Colby leaned in again, his
delicious lips to her ear.
“
We
’
re getting out of here, pretty
eyes. Right now. I need you.
”

(16)

Colby wasn
’
t going to stay on Portis
’
dime because he didn
’
t
want to owe the guy a damn thing. So he had his own private hotel room. The
band knew about the room and that was it. He had security waiting as a car took
him and Tessa to the back of the hotel. They were able to get in through the
back without any issues. Escorted to a service and delivery elevator, security
gave Colby his keycard and offered to carry his bags up.

He declined.

There was one thing on Colby
’
s mind - the beautiful woman
next to him. He held her hand tight and couldn
’
t
stop smiling when he looked at her.

Once they were in the hotel room,
Colby shook his head at the bottle of wine provided by hotel management for
choosing their hotel. But that worked perfectly. Along with the wine glasses on
the counter, Colby moved quick, taking the cork out of the bottle, pouring two
glasses, and walking to the window to give Tessa her glass.

“
I
usually hate wine,
”
Tessa
said.
“
But you make it cool
and sexy.
”

“
How
’
s that?
”
Colby asked.

“
You
’
re famous. A rockstar.
”

“
Just
think of me as Colby then.
”

“
That
’
s hard to do.
”

“
I
wasn
’
t always a rockstar.
”

“
I
know that. Who were you before a rockstar?
”

“
Just
me. I
’
ve been doing this
since I was a kid. My old man never wanted to be a dad. My mother dropped me
off one day to run off with her new boyfriend. My old man wanted to drink and
party. So he tossed me down in the basement
…
literally. That
’
s where I
just hung out. Found his old vinyl
’
s
and cassettes. So I listened to music all the time. Some guy at one of his
parties left a guitar there. The old man gave it to me for Christmas that year.
Like I didn
’
t know where it
came from. That was my first guitar. That was my introduction to rock n
’
roll.
”

“
And
now you
’
re famous,
”
Tessa said.
“
How does your old man feel about
that?
”

“
Well
…
he didn
’
t stick around long,
”
Colby said.
“
The bottle
won. Leave it at that.
”

“
Oh,
I
’
m
…”

Colby shook his head. He tapped his
wineglass to Tessa
’
s.
“
Enough about that part of my
life. The present is much better.
”

Colby moved in for a kiss to Tessa
’
s cheek. She let out a soft
groan and then he kissed down to her neck. Her skin was sweeter than the wine.
And it made him drunker by the second than any booze could ever do.

Don
’
t fall
…
don
’
t
…
fall
…

As Colby gently grazed his teeth
along Tessa
’
s neck, she
shrugged her shoulders and pulled away a little.

“
What
’
s wrong?
”
he asked.

Tessa sipped the wine and then put
it down on a table. She picked at her fingernails.
“
This is
…
with us
…”

Colby nodded. He put his wineglass
down.
“
What is it? You can
’
t hold back on me now.
”

“
You
didn
’
t know I was here?
”

“
No,
”
Colby said.
“
Portis insists we stay out of
trouble.
”

“
So
he brings you to a bar-club-thing and
…”

“
He
owns it. He owns the studio we recorded in. We
’
re
kind of in this chess match to see who budges first. Truth? We
’
re going to sign with him and
that
’
s that. He wants us to
play this big show he
’
s
setting up. That
’
s when we
’
ll announce the signing.
”

“
That
’
s amazing, Colby. Then you
’
ll be back to normal.
”

“
Normal?
”

“
Yeah.
Playing shows. On the road. Groupies
…”

Colby raised an eyebrow.

Was Tessa jealous?

“
What
’
s happening right now?
”
Colby asked.

“
What
do you mean?
”

“
You
’
re
…
worried. Or mad. Or
…”

“
No,
”
Tessa said. She looked away.
“
I
’
m
just
…
you
’
re kind of the best thing in my
life right now. And we
’
re
together right now because of luck.
”

Colby moved toward Tessa. He
touched her arm.
“
What do
you think I
’
m going to do?
Sleep with you and ditch you?
”

“
I
don
’
t know. Why wouldn
’
t you? We
’
re just
…”

“
What
do you want it to be?
”

Tessa looked at him.
Those damn
pretty eyes.

“
We
’
re friends, right?
”
Tessa asked.

“
Yeah.
I like you. I trust you. That
’
s
why we
’
re here.
”

“
You
want to sleep with me.
”

“
You
have no idea
…”

“
You
sleep with all your friends?
”
Tessa asked.

“
My
best friends are the guys in Willow Son. I
’
ve
seen them naked, yes, but I
’
ve
never had any urges
…
with
you
…
you make me want to go
wild.
”

Tessa touched Colby
’
s jaw.
“
You make me want to go wild, too. But I just don
’
t want to be hurt.
”

“
What
can I do then to not hurt you?
”

“
Friends
only. Right?
”

“
If
that
’
s what you want. You
’
ve got it, pretty eyes.
”

“
But
we can
…”
Tessa inched
closer.

“
As
long as it won
’
t hurt you.
”

She moved to her toes and kissed
his chin.
“
It probably
will, but it
’
s worth it.
Right?
”

“
Ah,
fuck, it
’
s so worth it,
”
Colby whispered.

Their lips touched and that was it
for him. The night was officially on fire now. Both hands grasped at Tessa
’
s face. He turned her around,
quickly putting her against the window. They were up high enough that nobody
should have been able to see anything.

But whatever.

It didn
’
t fucking matter.

What mattered was the taste of her
mouth. The way her tongue fought and flirted with his. The way she sighed and
groaned, turning her head, her hands pulling at his shirt, demanding more.

Colby slid his right hand to the
back of Tessa
’
s hair. He
tugged at her hair clip, undoing her pulled back hair. It fell with a fruity
softness that tortured Colby
’
s
nose. He couldn
’
t take
anymore.

His hands gripped the bottom of her
shirt and lifted up. Off it went, flying across the living room. With one hand,
Colby unsnapped Tessa
’
s
bra. His fingers gently pulled at the black undergarment, taking it down her
arms, letting it collapse to the floor. His eyes stuck to her ample breasts,
their heavy creamy look, rose pink nipples erect.

Bringing both hands up, Colby
cupped her breasts, his thumbs grazing over her nipples. When he did, Tessa
groaned and thrust her chest forward at him.

Colby came forward, his mouth and
tongue too eager to taste her. His lips moved over her nipple, suckling softly
to her breast, loving the way her body rocked and pressed at him. When his
teeth touched her sensitive nipple, Tessa jumped and clawed at his hair.

“
Oh,
Colby,
”
she groaned.

He sucked hard and pulled back, his
mouth popping off her breast. He kissed up her chest and neck with a passion,
his hands wrapping around her and pulling her tight. When he lifted her, Tessa
cried out.

She was already tugging at the back
of his shirt.

But Colby was on the move.

He took her to the massive bedroom
and wasted no time in putting her on the bed and going for the button her
jeans. Tessa gripped the sheets on the bed, biting her lip.

“
Colby
…
you
’
re still dressed
…”

“
No,
”
he whispered.
“
This is for you. This is about
you.
”
Colby had Tessa
’
s jeans open. He moved down on
top of her and gently kissed her lips.
“
I
’
m going to taste all of you.
”

Tessa groaned and Colby slid down
her beautiful body. He kissed her chest, between her breasts, and down her
belly. She was breathing heavily already, pulling hard to the sheets on the
hotel bed.

Colby gripped the top of her jeans
and panties. Tessa dug her heels to the side of the bed and lifted, letting him
slide everything down. As Colby saw Tessa
’
s
more sultry view, he gritted his teeth. She was smooth, moist, looking
delicious. The scent of her need carried between her legs to Colby. He hurried
to strip everything off and then he placed his hands to the top of her legs.

Once her legs were fully open,
Colby came forward, his tongue darting for a few seconds, savoring a succulent
sample of Tessa. She cried out and thrust at him, pulling at the bed even
harder.

“
Easy,
pretty eyes,
”
Colby
whispered.
“
I
’
ll take care of you.
”

He moved forward again. His tongue
darted down and back up, curling at Tessa
’
s
sensitive nub, making her jump. His tongue flickered again, his lips closing
around her soft folds, suckling at her.

Colby groaned as he pulled away. He
licked his lips, memorizing her taste. His hands slipped further up her inner
thighs.

He wasn
’
t done yet.

He kissed at her smooth mound and
hurried back down, his tongue begging for more warm taste. Teasing her for a
little bit, Colby slid his left hand around to her ass. Cupping her, Colby felt
her thrust and rock her hips to the movement of his tongue. He savored her and
then placed his right hand just below her belly button. Allowing his tongue to
be more aggressive, Colby sought out Tessa
’
s
clit again and didn
’
t stop
until she climaxed.

Tessa
’
s
back arched so beautifully, her cries bouncing off the walls of the bedroom.
She pulled at the sheets hard, twisting her hands into hard fists. And Colby
stayed right with her. Working with her as she pulsed, offering a sweetness
that he would never forget.

Friends
…
not a fucking chance
…

“
Colby
…”
Tessa purred.
“
Oh, I can
’
t
…”

**

“…
stop
…”

Tessa had lost complete control.
Her mind. Her body. Her everything. She never felt someone like Colby before.
Down there, with such gentle care yet aggressive, sensual perfection. How could
he be so soothing one second and then quickly bringing her to climax the next?

The orgasm was racing through her
body, still fresh. It was a tingling heated sensation from her hair down to her
toes. She kept thrusting at Colby but his big, strong hand rested against her
belly, holding her down.

All Tessa could do was stay with it
all. With her body, her needs, and with the feel of Colby
’
s amazing tongue still working
its magic.

When he finally eased up, he didn
’
t just disappear. No, no. He was
a true rockstar, even in bed, performing for an audience of one.