Chapter 24
Isabelle
“I can’t believe I flew on a private plane,” I exclaimed as we entered our room at the Ritz Carlton in Miami.
I immediately looked around. I’d stalked the room online and wanted to see if it looked the same.
The decor was classic style, and the bathroom was as luxurious as it had seemed online, all cream-colored marble and golden light fixtures.
I especially liked the enormous tub with the buttons for water massage.
I planned to spoil my sexy star properly in here.
“Isabelle? Can you come here?” Brayden asked from inside the room.
“On my way,” I replied loudly, dashing back to the front door.
A hulk of a man stood next to Brayden. He was at least two heads taller and much wider.
“This is Rick. He’s going to be your security detail here in Miami.”
“Nice to meet you, Rick.”
“I’m going to be around the hotel, miss, but I won’t bother you,” he explained. “I gave Mr. Clarke my number. Just give me a call when you need me.”
“Okay. Thanks.”
“Have a great evening, and welcome to Miami,” he added before leaving.
As soon as we were alone, I curled my finger at Brayden. “I want to pamper you between all those performances so you’re at the top of your game. It starts now. Want to check the tub with me? It’s huge and super sexy, and I have lots of plans for it.”
“Lead the way.” His eyes flashed with lust.
“No, you go first. I need to take a few things from my bag,” I replied.
He looked at me suspiciously but did go to the bathroom.
Both my bags were already placed in a corner, ready to be opened. I took out a small pink bag and headed to the bathroom.
Brayden was leaning against the sink, watching me closely.
“Why are you still dressed? I was hoping you’d be waiting for me buck naked,” I said nonchalantly as I placed the bag in the sink.
“You should have said so,” he teased.
“Oh, really? So my saying I have lots of plans for the tub wasn’t a good enough clue?”
Instead of answering, he moved behind me, palming my ass and biting my shoulder.
I’ll take that .
I shimmied my hips as I took out the candles and bath oils.
“What’s that?”
“I call it the pampering kit. I told you I want to make sure you relax between performances. You said you don’t like using the hotel facilities because you run into people, so I’m bringing the relaxation program to you.”
He said nothing, so I looked up at him in the mirror. His brows were slightly raised, his eyes focused.
“No one’s ever done anything like this for me.”
“What do you mean? Everyone always bends over backward to make sure everything is just so.”
“Yes, but that’s the team. They work for me. Their job is to please me. But you… you like seeing me happy.” He sounded surprised, and my heart hurt a little for him.
I smiled. “Of course I do. Am I succeeding?”
He smiled back. “In spades, Isabelle. In spades.” Tilting his head, he kissed the side of my neck, watching me in the mirror.
“Are sexy times considered an exertion?” I asked, fighting to sound serious. Sasha had insisted the guys shouldn’t exert themselves in the afternoon before a performance.
“I don’t know. Want to check?” He spoke every word against my skin, making me shudder.
“No, no. Don’t want to risk Sasha saying yes,” I teased. “And besides… she didn’t say you couldn’t exert yourself tonight.”
The next morning, Brayden woke up before me.
The whole band headed to the venue for a rehearsal.
Because I woke up too late, I ordered breakfast in the room.
My first client’s online session started at nine o’clock.
I’d scheduled four appointments, planning to be finished just as Brayden returned so we could have lunch together.
I wanted to devote my afternoon to pampering him—again.
I wouldn’t even need Rick until it was time to go to the venue, because I didn’t plan on getting out of the suite before then. Brayden was leaving with the band separately and much earlier, so I planned to cram in three more clients before I headed to the venue.
The morning flew by. I was getting more and more partial to having online sessions.
It was more comfortable to be by myself in a room and not simply sit in my chair for eight to nine hours a day.
Another pleasant surprise was that some clients seemed more comfortable opening up about what was weighing on them from the comfort of their home. I hadn’t expected that.
“Do you think we could switch some of our appointments to online even when you’re back?” Freya asked. She was my last client before lunch.
“If you prefer that, of course.”
“I’ll think about it, but I really like this setup. Plus, I’m saving the travel time.”
“I’m open to permanent online sessions, absolutely,” I assured her.
In my mind, I was already doing a happy dance.
I’d lower my rate, of course. Perhaps I could join Brayden on the entire tour.
I was already making plans at the back of my mind, but I shook myself out of it.
It was too early to think about that. Maybe he’d realize after three weeks that he didn’t want us joined at the hip during the whole tour.
I hated that thought, but I couldn’t dismiss the possibility. He’d always said touring was a difficult time for him. I mean, I did have some aces up my sleeve, and I planned to use them… but only if he let me in.
When I heard the door of the suite opening, I dashed to meet him and my eyes widened.
Holy shit! He looked every inch the international star he was.
Wearing rugged, washed-out jeans and a black tank top, he just exuded sex appeal.
There was a thin sheen of sweat coating his skin, and his hair was sticking out in every direction.
“Wait, let me fan myself before you give me a kiss,” I said, making a big deal out of flailing my hands around my face. “You’re so hot that I can feel the heat all the way over here.”
He grinned. “Extra sassy, I see.”
He stalked right up to me, pulling me flat against him.
“And you’re extra sweaty,” I murmured.
“I wanted to come right back to you after the rehearsal.”
“Awww, so these sexy and sweaty vibes are all for me?”
He kissed me the next second, and I wrapped my arms around his neck.
It was sexy as hell, kissing him like this.
His body was still vibrating with energy from being on stage, and I was absorbing every ounce of it.
He pinned me against the wall, kissing me with so much urgency that I hummed against his mouth.
“Mmm…” I pouted when he let go of me. His eyes were bright and happy. I loved how alight he was while playing music, and even afterward.
“I’m going to shower,” he said. “Want to order room service in the meantime? I’m starving.”
“Sure. But only if I get to watch you when you shower.”
He bit my lower lip lightly. “You’re welcome to join me.”
I shook my head, trying not to show how much I wanted to do just that. My whole body was aching for him. My nipples were hard, pressing against my bra cups.
“No exerting yourself this afternoon, remember?”
He looked straight at me, eyes hot and determined. “I’m not tired at all.”
“Yeah, I think you’re still high on adrenaline. You’ll crash soon.”
“But you can take advantage of me in the meantime.”
“Don’t say that twice or I’ll take you up on it. Come on. Hop in the shower.”
I ordered lunch fast, not wanting to miss a minute of his time in the shower. Watching the water douse all those muscles was making it even harder for me to keep my hands to myself. I kept my distance though, leaning against the sink. I could avoid any “accidental” groping this way.
“Come on, you know you want to touch me,” he taunted.
“Oh, I do. But one squeeze of that ass, one lick on that cock, and I’m on a slippery slope.”
His eyes flashed, and his mouth parted as he exhaled sharply. I was definitely being extra sassy, but I didn’t plan to act on it because he needed his strength tonight. If I stayed here though, there was no way I could resist touching this sexy man, so I left the bathroom.
During lunch, he asked about my sessions, and I brought him up to date. The adrenaline seemed to melt away right in front of my eyes. After lunch, he immediately fell asleep. Sasha wasn’t kidding about the guys needing recovery time. I’d honestly never seen him sleep like this.
I, however, was wide awake. I didn’t want to move around the suite because I risked waking him up, so I opened the Kindle app on my phone and read the first three chapters of a thriller right until it was time to wake Brayden up.
I swear he hadn’t moved an inch. He was still sleeping in the same position as when he lay down: on his belly, hugging the pillow under his head.
Hmmm… I wondered how creative I could be with my wake-up techniques.
I peppered small kisses on his left bicep, moving my mouth from his elbow all the way to his shoulder.
He began to stir. I continued exploring him, kissing his shoulder blades, then down his back in a straight line on his spine.
I had the slight suspicion that he was already awake and was taunting me.
I lingered at the small of his back before moving my mouth up, slowly kissing his bicep again, watching the flutter of his eyelids.
He was definitely awake, just keeping his eyes closed!
I pulled my mouth away, to see what he’d do. A few seconds later, he opened his eyes. Before I had a chance to react, he pulled me flush against him. Laughing, I cuddled against his chest.
“I knew you were awake. Why didn’t you tell me?” I asked.
“I was enjoying you.”
“It’s time to get out of bed.”
He tightened his arm around my waist so there was no wiggling away. As if I wanted to.
“Not yet. I set my alarm clock,” he said.
“Damn. So my wake-up technique wasn’t needed at all.”
“It’s always welcome. Best damn way to wake up.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”