3. Chapter 3
Chapter 3
C HAPTER THREE
RAPHAEL
"Hmm," I narrowed my eyes at the empty bed I had woken up to. The sunlight filtered through the curtains, illuminating the room.
Rory had been here last night. I had been with her for the whole night. A part of me could not believe she had let me and perhaps that's why it had felt good to have her, to be with her. She was a temptation I never thought I would have.
"Why are you just standing there?" my housekeeper, Susan muttered as she moved toward the bed, pulling the sheets off and bundling them up.
"She left," I said, scratching the back of my head.
She glanced at me, tightening the bun she had pulled her gray hair into. "Who? The woman you brought last night?" she asked. "I saw her hurrying out of here like a rat on fire at 6 A.M."
I chuckled at the image. "I usually have to lie so the girls I bring home don't think I'm kicking them out," I said. "Rory is refreshing."
Susan raised a brow, her expression disapproving. I grinned and walked away, making my way to the living room as I swiped through my schedule. I didn't have a lot of things to do today, a rare thing in my life, but I did have a couple of meetings and some band practice.
I glanced at the couch and smiled. Rory's jacket was still here, thrown carelessly onto the armrest. I picked it up and examined it. Perhaps I could visit her again with an excuse of bringing back her jacket.
"Master Barlowe," Susan called.
I turned around, a grin on my face. "Yeah?"
"Breakfast will be ready in 20 minutes," she said. "I have laid out your clothes."
"Thank you, Susan," I said.
***
For the past few weeks, Band practice started with Xander, our bassist, standing in front of the group like a leader, even though he wasn't the leader. "Alright, let's start with a rundown of the new songs we've written," he said.
"Wait," Rex raised his drumstick, something he always seemed to hold onto these days. "Should we be talking about this without Mason?"
"I can fill him in," Xander said. "He'll just have to work extra hard to catch up once he's back from his vacation."
I sighed. "He goes on Vacation with Tori like six times a month," I said, strumming the strings of my guitar.
"You sound jealous."
"Tori hasn't written a new book because of him," I pouted, strumming a sad tune.
Mason was the leader of 'No Limit,' the first member who had taken one look at each of us and decided we would make a great rock band. He was like a big brother we couldn't survive without. Meetings and practice sessions were never the same when he wasn't around.
But his wife, Tori was really cool so I couldn't judge him for wanting to be around her instead.
Xander shook his head. "Let's focus please," he said. "First off, 'The Dark.' It's what we're starting our album with."
"Isn't that a bit morbid?" Rex asked.
"I think it's a good start," I said. "It makes them think we're releasing a melancholic album when we actually aren't because I'm coming in next with Dirty."
"We should go over that actually. I was listening to the last practice session and there was a part where Axel came in that didn't sound right," Xander said.
"It's the chorus. It's a bit confusing," Axel said.
We all turned to where he sat behind the keyboard, his gaze on the black and white keys. Axel was our youngest and most reserved member so we were always surprised when he spoke. I had actually forgotten he was in the room. He pushed his curly black hair out of his face and met our gazes. "What?"
"Nothing," Rex said, smiling.
"Alright, let's go over the song again," I said, setting my guitar down and standing in front of the mic.
Xander counted the beats, tapping his foot against the floor. "1, 2, 3, 4," he said.
Rex banged his sticks against the cymbals and Axel hit the keys, creating the perfect background music. I sang the song, keeping the tempo in mind. It was going to sound different once Mason was back and we had the complete set, but for now, it was great actually.
We practiced for an hour, getting the lyrics right and working on the beat.
When we finished, we all sat down and chugged water, trying to cool down. My throat felt scratchy. That was what happened when I didn't drink enough water during practice.
"I can't wait till the album is done," Rex said, wiping the sweat off his forehead. "I need rest."
"Millie will have us on multiple stages after the album is done. You know this is the easy part," Xander said.
"And he's right!" a new voice echoed through the studio.
I turned to see Millie walking in, her heels clicking against the floor. She wore a black pantsuit and had her hair pulled into a neat ponytail - the paragon of elegance. "Good afternoon, boys."
"Hi, Millie," we all greeted.
"How was practice?"
"Pretty good," Xander said. "We're not done yet."
Millie smiled. "That's good because we have to leave for Los Angeles this weekend."
"Oh?" I propped myself up on my elbows, looking at her.
"You'll meet with the producers of this new documentary titled 'Behind the Scenes'," she explained. "They're filming rockstars, artists, and actors, trying to see what their lives are like behind the scenes and they want to see yours. The whole band, that is."
"I don't want to do that," Axel muttered.
"I'll buy you a year's worth of that chocolate you love," Millie said. "With caramel in the center."
"Okay," he said, nodding.
"Great," she said, clasping her hands together. "So we leave on Friday."
"Wait, how do we do it without Mace?" Rex asked.
"You won't be doing anything without me," a gruff voice came from behind us.
We all turned to see Mason walking in, a grin on his face. He was wearing a black shirt and ripped jeans, his tattoos on full display. The guys and I all blinked at him for a moment, before we chorused, "Mace!"
I was the first to tackle him, throwing my arms around his neck and laughing.
"What are you doing here?" Xander asked, smiling.
"Got back this morning," he said, forcefully unwrapping my hands from his neck. "Tori kicked me out of the hotel and said to go spend time with you guys."
"I missed her," I sighed.
He narrowed his eyes at me. "I'm not sure how I feel about that," he said and I grinned.
I know he missed me.
"Let's go celebrate!" Rex said.
"Not so fast," Millie interjected. "We have a photo shoot tomorrow morning so no heavy drinking. I want you all sober and ready by 8 A.M."
"Yes, mom," we all said in unison
Later that night, the five of us headed to Ember's, Rory's club. Xander said he really enjoyed the cocktail he had last night and he wanted another one. I was more interested in seeing it’s pretty owner again.
Ember's was bit more crowded than it was the last time but that didn't stop the atmosphere from changing when we walked in. People whispered amongst themselves, girls walked past and winked suggestively at us.
Rex was my fellow party animal. He headed over to the bar, grinning playfully at the bartender for the night, a pretty redhead in a little black dress. "Hello sweetheart, we'd like five cocktails," he said, his southern drawl coming through.
The woman blushed as she grabbed a bottle of tequila. "Coming right up," she said.
As she put on a show of making the drinks, I looked around for Rory. Neon lights illuminated the place, loud music blared from the speakers and a lot of people were gyrating on the dance-floor. I didn't see her anywhere.
"Here you go," the bartender said, placing the cocktails in front of us.
"Thanks," I said, picking one up and taking a sip.
Just then, the backdoor opened and out walked Rory. My eyes roved over her body appreciatively, noting the way her hair flowed freely around her shoulders. She wore a tight black skirt and a white shirt. The top two buttons were undone, giving a nice view of her cleavage.
I had a rule when it came to sex. Once was always enough to satisfy me, and then I could move on. But the memory of the way she felt, the sounds she made when I was buried deep inside her were stuck in my head.
Maybe one more time wouldn’t hurt.
"Gabby," she said to the bartender. "Do we still have any of the wine we got from that winery in France?"
"It's in the basement," the girl answered.
Rory turned to look at us and her eyes widened. Her body stiffened and I could practically see the images from our night together slide through her mind. Her cheeks flushed and her breath quickened.
I grinned, winking. "Hey Rory," I said.
She blinked, shaking her head as if she was trying to get rid of the image. Then she crossed her arms, narrowing her eyes at me. "Raphael," she muttered.
She walked around the bar until she was in front of me. Her wavy black hair framed her face in a way that made her look younger than she was. Her dark blue eyes were fixed on mine, studying me intently.
"What are you doing here?"
I raised a brow. "We're celebrating," I said. "Mason, our leader is back in town."
She glanced at the guys who were talking amongst themselves.
"What?" I asked. "Did you think I came here looking for you?"
She narrowed her eyes at me. "Don't flatter yourself, Barlowe. I'm not into you."
"Oh?" I cocked my head to the side. "You seemed pretty into me last night when I-"
Rory rose her hand and covered my mouth with her palm, her cheeks flaming red. She shot a glance at the bartender who was blushing at something Rex was saying.
"You're an asshole," she hissed.
I licked her palm and she yelped, pulling her hand away.
"You're disgusting."
"You enjoyed it," I whispered.
She huffed. "Look, no one can know about last night, okay?"
I took another sip of my cocktail, studying her. She seemed uncomfortable, shifting from one foot to the other. Her lips were pursed, and her fingers were tapping against her arm.
"Why are you so worried?" I asked. "Because of my brother?"
She blinked at me. "Rylan can't know either," she said.
I licked my teeth. "Why? Because you're still in love with him?"
Rory's lips parted and she looked away.
"That's the only reason you slept with me, isn't it? To get back at him?" I asked.
She glared at me.
My brother and I didn't have the best relationship. The first time I saw Rory, he had brought her over for dinner. It was the first day she was meeting our parents. I didn't think much of her. My brother's life was none of my business. Still, I knew he was an asshole so I always wondered what kind of person would date him willingly.
I still had no idea what she saw in him.
"You should get over him," I said to Rory. "I'm not one to say this but you deserve better."
"And who's better?" she asked. "You?"
I snickered. "No Rory, not even me."
She stared at me.
"I'll keep my mouth shut," I said. "I'll be out of New York for a while anyway so you can rest easy."
I tapped her cheek and with that, I turned around to face my band mates, choosing to let go of the desire to have Rory in my bed again.
Once would just have to be enough.