Phoebe
A fortnight passed without incident, no booby-trapped fan mail or threats in graffiti. Once it was reported that Gunther Sheen was the culprit behind both the studio break-in and fire, the media started to back off since they had his unhealthy attachment to the band to focus on. LouderTech reached out to apologise for believing his lies and for trying to accuse of setting up his schemes.
Knowing he couldn’t hurt her anymore brought some relief, but it didn’t make up for the hurt he’d caused by destroying her remaining work. Instead of wallowing in self-pity, though, she focused her energy on building her next collection and decided to reopen her studio as a free space for financially struggling and disabled artists to come together, using the money that Cillian had invested without her knowledge. Struggling with her injured hand had made her feel alone, and she hoped this new space could help others from feeling the same way, as they expressed themselves without worrying about judgement, or paying for materials. Lena helped her get it all organised, and they’d had plenty of time to plan since the band were busy promoting the new album and rehearsing for Cillian’s six-month memorial concert. They all needed time to heal, and they were finally getting it.
Almost there! A text came in from August as rocked back and forth on her heels, trying to keep warm outside Abrams Pub in the cold night air. Spotting August and Nick at the end of the street, she hurried inside through the crowded entrance. They were just about ready; Lena gave her a thumbs up as she finished helping one of the bar staff hang up the last ‘Happy Birthday’ banners behind the bar.
“They’re coming!” squealed to Anita, who was waiting at the bar.
Anita gave the signal and Susan, one of the pub’s owners, flicked off all lights except for the old neon signs. lit the giant sparklers on the cake.
The old couple who owned Abrams had given the band their start by letting them perform on Fridays before they got signed, and they’d been regulars ever since. Staffed by the owners’ friends and family, the pub was the perfect place for Nick’s surprise birthday party without the media finding out. They’d kept the guest list to a bare minimum so there would be no risk of it being leaked.
Nick had refused to let them celebrate given what happened at the house party, but Sheen was gone, and wasn’t going to let her brother let a year pass without celebrating. Losing Cillian had taught them every year was precious. She’d also wanted to do something special for him, since he’d handled her new relationship with Axel surprisingly well.
“Surprise!!” they cheered as Nick walked in.
August smirked, nudging his frozen friend. hugged him, hoping this wasn’t a terrible idea.
“I can’t believe you did all this. I said no party!” Nick whispered. “Isaiah warned us all to be careful.”
“Susan kindly closed the pub for the night, and everyone has been sworn to secrecy. I only invited close friends and family.” glanced over her shoulder to their parents. “They asked about Sheen, but I told them it’s over. They don’t need the details. This is your birthday, you only turn thirty once, and we are going to celebrate.”
“Thank you.” It was great to see him smile; it was rare these days.
Everyone hollered and cheered as he blew out his candles. The music and lights turned on once the sparklers burnt out. Nick’s laughter echoed around the room as he was tackled by friends from his school days. Seeing him so happy made the effort of keeping the secret worth it. The remembrance concert was weighing on him, and she wanted to give him one night without grief and hurt.
“Shots all round!” Nick cheered over the music.
“Coming right up!” Susan said, with a bright, red-lipped smile as she racked up the small glasses.
Nick joined their parents, and it was nice to have her family all in one place. It brought back memories of when all their friends and family would gather in Abrams for the band’s performances.
With the guests distracted, snuck into the back kitchen to cut the cake. Shots on an empty stomach wasn’t a good idea. Axel snuck in through the back door, and she looked up to find him unashamedly running his eyes over every inch of the short red dress that hugged her hips. She’d worn his favourite colour on purpose. Since he’d been busy rehearsing with the band, and she’d been doing physio to help her get back to painting, they hadn’t had much alone time recently. She smirked when he shook his head to stop himself staring.
“Sorry I’m late,” he said, coming up behind her as she cut a slice of cake. “I didn’t think I’d ever get out of the studio. Three days and I’m still trying to put together the setlist for the concert. I thought about adding some of Cillian’s favourite songs, and Nick and August loved the idea, but now I’ve made the job even harder.”
“Don’t be sorry, you’re here now.” She turned to stuff the small slice of cake in his face. She got most of it in his mouth but smeared the rest when he tried to kiss her.
“You’ve got icing on your face, don’t you dare,” she said, trying to wrestle herself out of his arms, but he held her firmly against his hard body.
“It’s too delicious not to share.” He kissed her, smearing the icing and crumbs on her lips and cheeks.
tried her best to wipe away the icing without smearing her make-up. “How was that?”
“Tasty.” He winked.
“I wasn’t talking about the cake,” she said, not wanting to return to the party looking like he’d ravaged her in the kitchen.
“Neither was I.” His lips brushed her ear, making her shiver.
“I don’t have time for your seductive antics, I have a cake to bring out,” warned as his hands teased the hem of her dress. “Go join the party, you are distracting me.” She turned around to face him as his fingers brushed the inside of her thigh.
“I apologise for distracting you from your very important birthday duties.” He raised his hands in defeat as she pointed the knife at him playfully. She lowered it when she realised how he was dressed.
“You’re wearing a shirt,” she said, surprised he wasn’t in his usual favoured T-shirts with one or more holes.
He shrugged. “I wanted to look my best, have to make a good impression with your parents.”
“You’ve met my parents a dozen times,” she said as he pulled at the end of his sleeves like the cuffs were too tight. Given that it was big on him, he must have borrowed it from August.
“True, but I want them to think I’m worthy of their precious daughter,” he said, kissing her hand like the gentleman he wasn’t.
“They don’t know about us yet, and they like you well enough,” she said, not wanting him to overthink it. She wasn’t sure what her parents would think of anyone she dated; it wasn’t like she’d dated anyone other than Cillian before.
“How’s the cake coming along? We’ve got some hungry guests,” Anita said, joining them in the kitchen.
Axel cleared his throat and stepped away from .
“Almost finished, but you can take out the first couple of slices,” said calmly.
“Axel, could you take the first lot? I’ll grab the second. Need a snack to soak up all the shots Nick is buying everyone,” Anita said, and Axel saluted and left without discussion.
Anita didn’t snack; knew this was just an excuse to talk to her. They hadn’t spoken much since Italy.
“You should end it before you ruin them all,” Anita sighed, once Axel was out the door with the first tray of plates.
tried to remain civil. “I appreciate that you want to protect the band, but it’s not your job to get involved in our personal relationships.”
“Don’t say I didn’t warn you,” Anita scoffed, and followed Axel out with the second tray.
had the overwhelming desire to pick up the rest of the cake and hurled it after her, but it would be a waste to ruin such a delicious chocolate cake. Instead, she let the velvety rich frosting soothe her anger. If her brother and August supported her and Axel, she didn’t care what anyone else thought.
For the rest of the night, kept her distance from Anita’s disconcerting gaze.
“I don’t think she’s listening to us,” Nick said, sipping his drink as they stood around the pool table.
Axel was talking to one of Nick’s school friends, a startlingly beautiful blonde, at the bar as he ordered a round of drinks. jumped when August placed a hand on her shoulder, startling her out of her jealousy.
“She has nothing to worry about,” Nick said to August. “Axel isn’t shy about telling anyone he’s already taken.”
“What were you saying?” quickly focused her attention on the conversation, only to realise they were making fun of her.
“Nothing. I was just asking August if he could get you a knife,” Nick said, smirking at his friend.
“Why would he need a knife?” asked, eating the pineapple from the umbrella on her drink.
“To cut the tension,” August chuckled, and stifled his amusement with a sip of his drink.
ran her hand over her glass, collecting the droplets to flick at him. He grimaced, and she erupted into laughter.
“We were coming to say goodbye to the birthday boy.” and Nick’s mum interrupted them, and hoped her parents hadn’t heard the playful mocking about Axel. She didn’t think tonight was the right time for them to discover she was dating another rockstar.
“We really are so proud of you, darling,” Mum said to Nick, handing him a card.
“Please do your best not to make trouble for the boys while you’re staying with them,” she said, patting on the shoulder. “We spoke to your agent, Lena, about your cancelled shows, and if you need to come home for a little while your brother and his friends are rehearsing for the concert, please don’t hesitate to call.”
As always, the boys were the light of her life and was the burden playing with paints. She bit her tongue, not wanting to get into an argument.
“Sorry, Mrs Fletcher, but can’t go home,” Axel said, setting down the round of drinks on the table beside them. “She’s the glue that holds us all together. We even have an art studio all set up for her at the house. Having made so much progress with her physio, it won’t be long before she’s ready for more shows.” He stepped close enough to make flush, and her mum eyed him suspiciously.
“I’m glad to hear your hand is doing better,” Mum said with a forced smile. “We’ll have to come back up to town when you put on your next show.”
Dad gave her a reassuring nod, not wanting to get involved as usual.
“Look after each other,” he said, and gave a tight squeeze.
Mum shot one last troubled glance at her and Axel, before kissing her brother’s cheek and saying their goodbyes.
“Sorry to interrupt, but can we steal the birthday boy?” Meghan, one of the back-up singers from the last tour, fluttered her long lashes at Nick, while her friend made intense eye contact with August.
“It would be a pleasure to be stolen by you,” Nick said, offering his arm to her.
August put his arm around the other woman, who giggled. looked between them and wondered if they were having some silent conversation. August didn’t even need to say anything for women to swoon. figured that he just didn’t want to be a third wheel with her and Axel as he and Nick followed the women away.
“And then there were two,” Axel said, racking the balls for a new game. “Ladies first.”
“Such a gentleman.” pulled the pool cue back to strike, but he leaned over only inches away, stopping her. She glanced at him, wanting to be irritated, but his serious expression was adorable.
“You’ll get more power with your fingers in this position,” Axel said, adjusting her hand position.
She took the shot, and instead of the balls clustering in one spot like before, they shot around the table. She concealed her smile, not wanting to admit he’d helped.
“See, I won’t lead you wrong,” he said, and watched his face light up as he moved around the table.
“Your turn,” she said.
He was winning, but seeing his tensed muscles through his shirt, she didn’t care. Before he took the shot, his eyes lingered on the wrap of her dress where the crossover exposed her cleavage. Messing with him, she leaned forward, and he missed the shot entirely. He clenched his jaw.
“You did that on purpose.” His dark eyes sent a rush of heat through her body.
“Maybe you shouldn’t be so easily distracted.” She straightened, and chalked the cue.
“You were wearing that dress the first night I saw you,” he whispered as she lined up the shot.
“Was I?” She tried to think back, but all she remembered was that they’d met at a show. “Refresh my memory?” Acting innocent, she bent over in front of him.
“A dangerous game you’re playing.” Axel whispered in her ear, brushing her hair from her neck as he pretended to adjust her grip again.
“Winner takes all.” She widened her stance and felt his hand brush her thigh; a gasp escaped her lips. “You were refreshing my memory?”
loved the confidence he brought out in her.
Axel’s fingers gently caressing her thigh made her miss the final shot. She stood, needing to catch her breath as he explained, unfazed:
“Right, you were standing in the front row of our concert. It was the first time I saw you since I’d joined the band. You had bright pink hair and dried paint on your hands, and this soul-captivating smile as you danced and sang along to every song. I couldn’t take my eyes off you, and then I found out who you were, and it killed me that you were off-limits,” he told her, melting her heart.
“When I went backstage, you ignored me. You didn’t even introduce yourself,” she said, taking his hand. She wanted him alone, and his sly smirk told her he knew exactly what she wanted as they headed down a narrow hallway to an office.
Axel closed the door behind them. He rested his back against the closed office door, taking in the sight as she lifted her dress to the tops of her thighs.
“Because if I got too close, I was afraid everyone would see the truth.” His gaze darkened as he followed her to where she sat on the desk and stood between her legs.
“What was that?” slipped her arms around his shoulders and arched her back as he rested his hands on her hips and pulled her against him. He brushed his lips against hers, teasing her mercilessly. Their tongues intertwined, silencing her moans as he deepened the kiss.
“That I wanted to make you mine.” His hands drifted to her inner thighs, the overwhelming pulse at her core. sighed in delight as she felt him harden against her.
Kissing his neck, she moved her hands to the button of his black jeans, but he gripped her wrists and placed them firmly on the desk. His hungry eyes met hers, and she went still. He pulled the tie on her dress, exposing her lacy bra.
’s breath caught as his demanding lips trailed down her neck to the swell of her breasts.
“Don’t stop,” she groaned as he started to pull away.
“You want me to bend you over this desk, but you’ll have to be quiet, because we wouldn’t want anyone to hear us,” he said, and leaned over the desk teasingly.
He pulled her hips sharply against him, and she squealed at the rough sensation of his trousers against her bare skin.
“Be quiet, or I’ll stop.”
The sensation of his touch caused her to shift. She chewed her lip and nodded, then felt his lips on the back of her thighs. She rose on her tiptoes as he moved aside her lacy red underwear to taste her. A rough moan escaped her when she felt the sharp tear of her underwear.
“Not a sound,” he reminded her, and she nodded. She glanced to her side to see him lay the underwear beside her. “It’s a pity I can’t tear this dress to pieces. I think it would look excellent on the floor,” he said, and his fingers caressed her. “Good girl,” he rasped as she bit her lip, trying to stay silent.
She heard his belt clink, and she smiled back at him as she watched him undo his zipper.
“Hold on to the edge of the desk,” he ordered, and her insides clenched excitedly.
“Tell me you want me.” He fisted her hair.
“I want you,” she pleaded, arching her back against him.
“What do you want?” Axel teased the inside of her thighs, the frustration growing deep inside her.
“You. I want you!” panted, and she cried out as he slipped his finger inside her.
She ground against his hand while he circled her. Axel reached up with his other hand, caressing her breasts.
“You’re so ready for me,” he groaned, bringing her to the edge.
Pleasure coiled inside her as she gripped the table.
“On second thought, I want to see those beautiful eyes.” He turned her over, and she squealed happily; he was standing between her legs, facing her.
He kissed her so tenderly it was almost painful. He slid his hand down her body, his fingers grazing her throat, breasts, down past her navel. As his teeth grazed her pebbled nipple, she wrapped her arms around his shoulders. The pressure built up, and she bit down on his shoulder, shaking with need.
“Don’t stop,” she pleaded as she rode the wave.
Reclaiming her mouth, he removed his fingers, and she lay back on the table. Just as the wave started to subside, he sank inside her, and she gasped as she took him inch by inch. His hand gripped her thigh causing the most delicious pain.
“Fuck, I love how you feel.” She dug her nails into his hips.
Ecstasy built between them as her walls clenched around him. He released her thigh and moved her arms above her head, intertwining his fingers with hers. He sank his teeth into her breast, and a whimper escaped her lips.
couldn’t take it as he took possession of her body; she could feel his heart beating across her chest. Axel released her hands and she gripped his hips begging him to move faster. He smiled at her, and nearly exploded looking at his dimples. She bucked her hips, meeting every thrust, enticing him until she exploded around him, calling his name as her walls contracted around him and pushed him over the edge.
“That was…” she stammered.
He rested his forehead against her as she caught her breath. She couldn’t believe what they’d just done, and with the party only down the hall.
“I know,” Axel panted, closing his eyes. She felt him trembling, and loved that he’d lost himself as much as she had.
slid off the desk while he fixed himself up, her legs like jelly as she adjusted her dress. They needed to make themselves presentable before heading back to the party.
She picked up her ruined underwear. “They were expensive,” she chuckled.
“I can afford to replace them. It won’t be the last pair either.”
His lips brushed hers, and—
A sudden bright white flash filled the room. cursed, as Axel’s eyes shot open, the whites exposed.He bolted into the hall to chase whoever had taken the picture. She wanted to call after him, but he reappeared seconds later.
“Whoever they were, they’re gone,” Axel said, his brow furrowed.
hoped this wasn’t the end of peace time, but when they re-joined the party, they found they weren’t missed. Nick was with the back-up singer, while August had found a guitar to entertain himself with.
It wasn’t long before karaoke started. Axel stayed by her side until Nick made him get up and do an ABBA duet—even August joined them with an impromptu guitar solo. Watching them do a terrible rendition of ‘Super Trouper’ helped her forget her worries. Seeing them on stage together again, happy and almost whole, brought a warmth to her heart that told her everything was going to be okay again. She hoped that wherever Cillian was, he was at peace, and comforted to know his death had brought his friends together instead of tearing them apart.
“Penny for your thoughts?” Lena asked, taking a seat beside her.
“Just enjoying the show. It’s nice to see them on stage again,” said, but she couldn’t stop eyeing the guests and wondering who might have taken the photo. There were some faces in the pub she didn’t recognise, and she worried some might have snuck in. Maybe she was being paranoid, and someone had just taken a photo out in the hall. Just because they’d seen a flash didn’t mean it had anything to do with them.
“I don’t think pop is going to be in their future,” Lena said as they moved on to a Backstreet Boys song recognised but couldn’t remember the name of.
“You have to love them for trying,” said, just happy to see them enjoying themselves.
All their rehearsals were paying off—Nick looked comfortable being front and centre.
Lena nodded, twisting the stem of her wine glass. It wasn’t like her to fidget.
“Is there something wrong? asked, and she stopped twisting.
Lena leaned in a little closer so the people gathered around them wouldn’t hear. “I didn’t know whether to mention this now that Sheen is dead, but a security guard from LouderTech reached out to me. They were fired recently after the incident in the parking garage.”
“What did they want?” asked.
“Apparently the security guard’s boss instructed him to record over any footage that you could use against them or Sheen if there was a court case. He did as he was told but made a copy in case it was worth something. Once he completed the task, management told him they were downsizing and he reached out to me,” Lena explained.
“And you have the footage?” asked, eager to have some closure.
“He wants five grand for it.”
“Is there even anything on it?”
“He said he wouldn’t have reached out if he didn’t have something worth giving.” Lena topped up her wine glass with the open bottle of white on the table.
Five grand for closure didn’t seem like a bad deal.
“I’ll transfer you the money tomorrow,” said, finishing her drink for some liquid courage.
“Are you sure?” Lena asked, but needed to know the truth. Even the guys were still suspicious as to whether Sheen had truly been behind all the chaos, and this footage could silence their unanswered questions.
“Is she sure about what?” Axel asked, appearing in front of them. hadn’t even noticed the song end.
“About whether to get another round?” Lena said, covering quickly with a bright smile.
“You’re right, I’ve probably had enough,” said, putting her hand on top of her glass.
“Then how about you get up off that fine arse and join us for a song?” Axel asked.
She wasn’t going to tell him about the security footage now, not when he was having fun. This was Nick’s night, and all the footage would do was confirm that Sheen had lied about someone leaving an envelope on his desk. It was the last piece of the puzzle. Right now, what scared her most was having to get up in front of a crowd and sing.
“Absolutely not.” shook her head in protest. Nothing could drag her up on stage.
Lena tried to contain her amusement.
“Are you kidding? Have you heard her sing?” Nick chuckled, appearing behind Axel.
Axel shook his head.
“I got the artist skills, and he got the musical talent,” explained. “Unless you want to clear this place out, I’m going to sit out the karaoke.”
Axel sat down beside her. He leaned in close, his hand brushing her thigh beneath the table where no one would see. “So, you can write beautiful lyrics, but can’t sing?”
“The gods are cruel.” She shrugged. “But hearing you sing my lyrics makes up for such cruelty.”
“Lena, would you care to join us?” Nick asked, offering her his hand.
“Are you sure?” Lena squealed, trying to act like she wasn’t a big fan of theirs.
“More the merrier, you can even pick the next song.”
rolled her eyes at her brother trying to enchant her friend.
“Are you okay by yourself?” Lena asked her, and she waved them away.
“Go. I’ll be right here cheering you on!”
“I can keep you company,” Axel teased, and she nudged him away.
“Go, all of you, your audience is waiting!” said with a grin, not wanting the night to end as she watched everyone she cared about gather on the small stage.