Chapter 13
Banjo
Stepping up to the mic feels right. Natural.
Like this is where I should have been this whole time.
Good to know that performances are basically the same in space as they are on Earth.
The last bit of jitters fade as I check that my guitar is properly tuned one more time—you only make that mistake once—before jumping into the song.
There’s no need for an introduction. Oliver already gave one, and it’s not like anyone here can understand me anyway.
I throw myself into the performance, something that’s easy to do since it’s one of my favorite songs. It’s actually the song that got me onto America’s Voice in the first place, which means I’ve played it so much I’m pretty sure I could perform it in my sleep.
That isn’t the only reason I picked this song though.
I’ve always been better at expressing myself through music, and this song is a perfect way to tell Tavryn exactly what I have to offer him.
He might not be able to understand the lyrics exactly, but I’m hoping he understands the energy I’m trying to channel.
I figure he must, because when I finally look through the glare of the lights to meet his eyes, he’s blushing.
I wink at him, eating it up when he glares at me.
The song is over before I know it, and I’ve managed to earn a way more enthusiastic round of applause than I got when I first came onto the stage.
I grab that momentum and use it as I play two more songs, the first one another cover and the second an original I wrote during the show.
By the time I’ve finished my set, I’m a sweaty, out-of-breath mess, and I’m grinning so hard my face hurts. Otherworlders around the room clap and shout, yelling things that I don’t understand, since I turned my translator off when Oliver said to. Hopefully they’re good.
Tavryn is staring daggers at one otherworlder in particular, which means they're probably coming onto me. Jealousy looks good on Tavryn, though I don’t quite understand it.
He has nothing to be jealous about. The only being in this entire place I’m interested in is him.
I’ll keep proving it to him over and over for however long it takes to make him see that.
In fact, I’m hoping to do a lot of proving as soon as we get home tonight.
I jump off the stage, too adrenaline fueled to take the stairs.
My guitar is in its case and slung over my shoulder without a second thought, and I head over to the table where Tavryn, the Despot, and Oliver are sitting.
Someone else is performing now, a strange, throaty kind of singing that’s nicer than it seems like it should be.
The otherworlder performing looks even stranger than the singing.
They’re a large, bulbous creature that kind of looks like a cross between a pig and the world’s biggest toad.
Normally that’s something I’d be super interested in checking out, but not right now.
Right now, nothing in the world exists except Tavryn.
It’s like the crowd parts until he’s the only thing I see.
It reminds me of a scene in one of those cheesy rom-coms Viola likes to watch.
I always told her that real life isn’t like that.
I wish I could call and tell her I was wrong.
Tavryn stands as I approach, and I’m close enough now to see that his pupils are barely-there slits. Looks like I’m not the only one who’s been horny all day.
Before I can even say hello, he grabs me by the loop on the front of my collar and pulls me in for a heated kiss.
I make a surprised sound, one hand coming up to rest on his forearm as he licks at my lips.
I open for him, groaning as he fully dominates my mouth.
Oh, if I had known this would be his reaction to seeing me perform, I would have done it much, much sooner.
The kiss is nothing short of possessive.
Someone clearly wants everyone in this bar to know I belong to him.
If only he’d touch me. His only point of contact with me is his grip on my collar, and it’s not enough.
I tighten my hand around his forearm, bunching the sleeve of his coat.
With all the layers he’s wearing, I’m basically not touching him at all, and I hate it.
The front of his giant pirate hat bumps against my forehead.
It’s shoved so tightly between his horns that it doesn’t move even with the force of our kiss.
It doesn’t bother me, but it’s unfortunately enough to make Tavryn’s brain catch up with his body.
He yanks himself away from me, ending the kiss as suddenly as it began.
I can’t even find it in me to be offended. Tavryn just claimed me in front of an entire bar full of otherworlders. How can I be upset about that? And even though he’s not kissing me anymore, he still has his finger through the loop of my collar, keeping me close.
“So I’m guessin’ you enjoyed yourself?” I tease, grinning widely at him.
He lets out a cute little snort, letting go of my collar and stepping out of the way so I can slide into the booth next to the Despot.
I lean my guitar case against the booth before slipping in, making sure to keep a respectful distance from the Despot, just in case.
I don’t need to feel that giant hand around my neck ever again.
Tavryn sits beside me, close enough that our legs press together.
He whispers in my ear, speaking in a soft, raspy language that’s definitely not English.
Oh. That’s what his real, actual voice sounds like.
It’s much different than the translated version the chip makes me hear.
His real voice is higher than I expected, a nice, crisp tenor.
Honestly, that explains so much, including why he manages to give me a raging hard-on so unbelievably fast.
Apparently, I’ve been zoning out long enough for Tavryn to realize what’s happening. He lets out an upset sigh—I don’t need a translator to understand what that means—and taps the spot behind my ear to turn my translator back on.
“Did you understand anything I just said?” he asks with a huff. It’s kind of jarring to hear him “speaking” English now, but I guess I have to get over it. I want to be able to understand him when he’s bossing me around.
“Nope,” I tell him with a big grin, hoping my charm can overcome his frustration with me. It wasn’t my fault, after all. Oliver told everyone to turn their translators off. I hadn’t even known they turned off until he showed me how to do it. “You mind goin’ over it again?”
Tavryn crosses his arms and looks out at the stage, pretending like he’s not going to answer. I wait. He’s like a spooked animal. Sometimes, it takes a little patience to get them to come up to you. When they do, it’s always worth it.
After a few moments, he sighs again, somehow managing to make this one even more dramatic. “The moment is over. I’m no longer in the mood.”
That perks me right up. Tavryn said something hot to me? Now I definitely have to know what he was saying. “It ain’t over for me, I promise. I didn’t think about my translator being off ‘cause I was too busy thinkin’ about how good lookin’ you are.”
Tavryn gives me some serious side eye, like he doesn’t believe what I’m saying.
“I’m serious! I was thinkin’ about how no one has ever made me get it up as fast as you. I’m chubbin’ up just thinkin’ about it!” I try to adjust myself but fail. There’s nowhere for my boner to go in these tight pants. “Now tell me what you were sayin’.”
“I was saying,” Tavryn begins, moving so close I can feel his breath against my ear. Yup, definitely should have gone with the looser pants. I have so many regrets. “That Stells told me what that song is about.”
I’d thought all the blood in my body was running south, but apparently there’s enough to still make my cheeks burn.
I hadn’t known Stells was listening. I shouldn’t be surprised.
She seems to listen in on everything. “O-oh?” I ask, licking my suddenly very dry lips.
I swear I can still taste Tavryn on them. “And what’d she say?”
“That you were up there, in front of everyone, singing about how much you want to suck my cock.” The tip of Tavryn’s tongue darts out to trace the shell of my ear, and I can’t help the low groan that comes out of me.
“Is that true, Banjo? You want to suck me off so badly you have to sing about it in front of everyone?”
That may not be exactly what the song is about, but it’s close enough. And true. I do want to suck Tavryn off something fierce.
“Yeah, that’s right,” I admit, the words leaving me in a rush of breath. “That is what it says. That I’ll give you whatever you want, long as you’re willin’ to take it.”
This time, it’s the tip of Tavryn’s nose that brushes against my ear. “Well, darling, I think I’m ready to take whatever you have to give.”
After an admission like that, I expect Tavryn to whisk me back to our rooms. He doesn’t.
Instead, he pulls away from me, settling back against the booth like he hadn’t just been working me up into a frenzy.
I stare at him with wide, begging eyes, hoping I can change his mind.
He has to be just as worked up as me, so what are we still doing here?
I open my mouth to ask, but he cuts me off.
“We’re not going anywhere. You said you wanted to hear different kinds of otherworlder music, so here we are.” Even though I can only see his profile, I can tell he’s smirking. He’s so proud of himself for this.
I slouch back against the booth. I did say that, and now I’m regretting it.
If I had known I could be swallowing Tavryn’s cock instead, I would have never mentioned it.
I’ve waited all day, so I suppose it won’t kill me to wait a little longer.
I turn my translator back off, shift a little to try to get comfortable, and settle in to watch the performance.