5. Mack
Chapter 5
Mack
It’s been three days since Harmony Sinclair fell into my arms. Three days of jacking myself raw in the shower, imagining I’m balls deep in her tight heat. Music has been my only obsession until now, but Harmony surpasses it and then some. She’s beautiful, kind, and talented as fuck. I thought I was gonna come in my boxers like a horny teen when she sang with me the other day. She blended her voice with mine effortlessly, giving the song a whole new dimension. When we were done, had Jess not been there, I would’ve bent Harmony over the piano and fucked her until we were both spent and sweaty. And then I would’ve fucked her some more.
We’ve done a couple of sessions in the recording studio, which went well, one of which Harry turned up for. I didn’t like how he looked at Harmony or found an excuse to touch her at every opportunity. By the time he left, I was ready to knock his porcelain teeth down his throat. I’ve never been bent out of shape over a woman before, but Harmony isn’t just any woman. She doesn’t know it yet, but now she’s in my life, I intend to keep her.
Today, we’re heading into the city for a publicity release announcing that Harmony will be singing with me on the next album. Jess and I have briefed her on what to expect, advising her to let us do most of the talking. The paparazzi can be slippery assholes, so it’s better if she lets us take the lead.
Max picks us up at 8 AM, which gives us enough time to get to the venue by 11 AM. I sit in the front with Max, leaving Jess and Harmony in the back. The two women have become firm friends and haven’t stopped yapping for the last three days.
I steal furtive glances at Harmony as the rural landscape gives way to the city skyscrapers. She looks unsettled today. I’m sure she’s nervous about the publicity event, but it seems to be more than that. She looks pale, and she’s fiddled constantly with the elastic band around her wrist.
When Max drops us off at the door, she grips my hand tightly as we follow Jess inside. We reach the green room, where we grab some water and wait until it’s time to head to the room set up for the press.
We leave Jess in the green room, and Harmony clings to my hand as we take our seats facing a barrage of cameras. The questions come thick and fast. Why am I singing with a virtual unknown? Is it true my manager discovered her on YouTube? Are we romantically involved? How long is Harmony in New York? I answer those questions I can and deflect the ones that are none of their goddamn business. Harmony surprises me with her composure when she answers a few questions about her hometown and family. Her calm replies belie the fine tremble of her body next to me.
An hour later, I call a halt to the questions and guide Harmony from the room. As soon as the door closes behind us, she leans against the wall, releasing a shaky breath. “How did I do?”
I move closer, wrapping a lock of her silken hair around my finger and giving it a light tug. “Handled it like a pro.”
“You did great!” Jessica echoes as she walks toward us down the hall.
“Come on. Let’s get out of here,” I say, frowning at Harmony’s pale face.
I grab her hand and lace her fingers with mine, and she gives me a relieved smile.
And then all hell breaks loose. Word has spread that I’m here, and a crowd of people swarms us as we step outside.
Shit!
We’re jostled and pushed, and Harmony’s hand is ripped from mine as the fans surge forward, screaming and waving phones and bits of paper in front of me for autographs. One girl, who can’t be older than sixteen, yanks her shirt down to reveal the tops of her breasts for my signature.
Jesus Christ , this is insane. Why the hell didn’t I see this coming?
I scan the horde, desperately looking for Harmony, but don’t see her anywhere.
“There!” Jessica shouts over the screams, pointing through a gap in the fans.
Harmony is crouched against a wall, her hands over her ears, her eyes squeezed closed, her lips moving as if she’s singing.
“We have to get her out of here. Now. I’ll lead them away, and you get her in the limo,” I instruct, pointing to where Max is parked across the street.
Jessica nods and fights her way toward Harmony while I draw the crowd in the opposite direction. Fortunately, most of them are focused on me and follow, leaving Jessica free to reach her.
I frantically sign a few autographs, watching Jessica from the corner of my eye as she maneuvers Harmony to the limo. As soon as she’s inside, I make a beeline for them, glad to see Jessica’s taken the front passenger seat, leaving me free to jump in the back with Harmony.
Max eases the limo away from the crowd, leaving them behind as we join the main road. I turn my attention to Harmony. Her eyes are glazed, and I can see she’s gone somewhere else mentally as she breathes in a focused, deliberate way, twanging the elastic band on her wrist.
The screen slides up, separating us from Jessica and Max, and I’m grateful to whichever one of them was thoughtful enough to give us privacy.
Reaching for Harmony, I pull her into my lap, tucking her head beneath my chin. “I’ve got you, baby. Just take deep breaths. You’re safe now.”
I wrap my hand around her cold fingers, bringing them to my mouth and kissing her fingertips while murmuring words of reassurance.
After a few minutes, the tension leaves her body, and she begins to breathe normally again. “I’m so sorry you had to see that,” she whispers, her body trembling against mine.
The panic in her eyes at the airport and her nerves during the publicity event suddenly make sense. “Wanna talk about it?”
She bites her lip uncertainly. “My… my therapist believes my anxiety stems from the trauma of the car wreck that killed my parents. I didn’t tell you before, but I was in the backseat when a drunk driver smashed into us. I escaped unscathed, but my parents weren’t so lucky. I have fuzzy memories of screaming and crunching metal and fire. I don’t remember much, but my subconscious has held onto the trauma and locked it deep inside my brain. Stress can trigger those deep-seated emotions of being trapped and unable to move or breathe. I’m okay with crowds so long as I’m not in the crowd.”
She pauses, shaking her head. “I’m sorry. I’m not sure I’m making sense. I should’ve told you before, but I thought I had it under control. Guess I was wrong. Now you’ve seen the worst of me, and you won’t want a singing partner with an anxiety disorder.”
I tilt her face so she’s looking at me, brushing away her tears with my thumb. “Lots of people struggle with anxiety. It’s nothing to be ashamed of. Some of us still get stage fright.”
Her eyes widen. “You get stage fright?”
I nod. “Every single time. My therapist gave me some meditation exercises to help before I go on stage. As for me not wanting a singing partner with anxiety issues, I don’t give a shit. What you perceive as a problem, I see as an opportunity to help you.” I rub my thumb over her bottom lip. “Because I don’t just want you as a singing partner, Harmony.”
Her breath catches and her eyes search mine. “No? I-What else do you want me for?”
I smirk. “If I told you that, told you all the filthy shit I want to do to you, you’d run in the opposite direction.”
Her tongue flicks out to taste the pad of my thumb. “Try me.”
Holy shit. Lust, and something else, something even more profound, rages through me. I grit my teeth as my dick hardens and lengthens behind my zipper. I’ve known Harmony for three days. Seventy-two hours. And I’m already obsessed with her. “I want to strip you bare and taste every inch of you. I want to feast on your pretty pink nipples. I want to lick and suck on your sweet little nub until you come so hard you see stars. I want to fuck you long and deep until there’s no doubt you’re mine.”
Harmony swallows audibly. “I won’t be another notch on your bedpost, Mack. I’m not built for casual hookups or one-night stands.”
“Who said anything about casual or one night? I did some fucked up shit in my twenties, too much booze, too many drugs, too many women. I have never wanted to spend more than one night with a woman. But I’m not that person anymore. Losing my mom was the wake-up call I needed, and I wanted to be there for Jessica. I’m not fucking around here, Harmony. I knew the second I saw you in the video I was gonna make you mine, put a ring on your finger, and a baby in your belly.”
The image of her swollen with my child knocks the breath from my lungs. I didn’t know I wanted it so badly until the words left my mouth.
Harmony gapes at me. Tension stretches between us as she searches my eyes. And then she’s kissing me, a small moan escaping her throat as she presses her lips to mine, and just like that, everything is right with the world.
I tangle my fingers in her hair, curling them into fists to hold her in place. I take charge of the kiss, taking it from sweet to sexy as I lick inside her mouth and suck on her tongue. She wriggles and writhes on my lap, and her plump ass rubs against my rock-hard cock. Her hands explore my chest and stomach before coming to rest on my shoulders.
I slide my hands down her back and circle inward to cup her breasts, flick my fingers over her nipples through the thin material of her t-shirt. I do it again, and she arches her back, pressing her glorious tits into my hands. Tearing my mouth from hers, I dip my head and bite a hard little nipple, and she drops her head back and groans. I push her t-shirt up and tug on her bra cup so her breast pops free. I pull her nipple into my mouth, suckling hard while she shivers and writhes on my dick.
“You’re so fucking hot,” I growl, desperately fighting to get myself under control.
Her face is stained a pretty shade of pink, her lips are swollen, and her hair is mussed. She’s too sexy to resist. But I have to because I won’t cheapen whatever this is between us with a quickie in the back of a car.
I place a final kiss over her heart before forcing myself to adjust her clothing, covering her up her perfect curves. Wrapping my arms around her, I hold her tight, willing my erection to go down.
“Why did you stop?” she whispers, peering up at me.
“Because much as the idea appeals to me, I’ll be damned if I’m fucking you on the back seat of this limo with my sister two feet away behind a screen. You deserve better. You deserve everything.”
Harmony sighs contentedly and snuggles into me. “This is moving kind of fast, Mack.”
I can hear the worry in her voice. “Not fast enough for me, songbird.”
Harmony looks up at me and smiles, and fuck if I don’t want to see that smile every day for the rest of my life.
I draw in a ragged breath. “I want to be your home, Harmony. I don’t want to be away from you.”
She tilts her head back to look at me. Her eyes are lit with powerful emotions. “Me, neither.” Her brow creases. “But … we barely know each other, and I have to go back to Virginia in less than a week.”
I shake my head. “You’re not going anywhere. You belong here, with me. I’m not letting you go, Harmony, not when I’ve just found you.”
She bites her lip. “I’m scared, Mack. This all seems so surreal.”
I cup her face. “Me too. But we have an undeniable connection, and I’m not giving you up without a fight. You set the pace, Songbird.”
Harmony doesn’t answer for a long time, her brown eyes roaming over my face as if memorizing every feature.
“Okay,” she finally whispers.
Harmony presses her face into my shoulder, and I inhale her intoxicating scent, happy to stay this way as long as she wants.