Chapter 9
I”d be lying if I said I didn”t feel out of place here, even with Gabe”s hand on my arm. He seemed to know everyone here and everyone knew him.
He gave off the air that he wanted to be anywhere but here, but he smiled politely, shook hands and made small talk. He even took the time to introduce me to every single person he spoke to. He referred to me simply as his date and no one questioned either of us. I kept expecting them to. For someone to call us out and ask why he brought someone like me here.
”I think this is the first time I”ve seen Gabe with a woman who wasn”t organised by our mother,” his brother teased.
Tom Ellison looked like a wilder version of his older brother. He was also dressed in a tuxedo, but his hands were covered in rings and tattoos. His bowtie was bright red with black and white skulls. His dark hair was longer, tied back off his face.
Gabe responded by giving him a glare. ”In case you hadn”t realised, I”m mentally flipping you off.”
Tom grinned. ”Of course you are. You wouldn”t dare to physically flip me off with Mother standing a few metres away.” To me he said, ”Gabe has always been the poster boy for perfect behaviour. He”d never put a toe of his expensive shoes out of line.”
”Someone had to keep our parents distracted while you got up to all the shit,” Gabe said dryly. ”You”re welcome.”
”I didn”t say I didn”t appreciate it,” Tom said. ”If it wasn”t for you, I wouldn”t have gotten away with half of it. The world would have missed out on the glory of the Zen Dung Beetles.”
”However would the world have coped?” Gabe said sarcastically. ”I”m certain we needed such classics as ‘Smashed Again’ and ‘Lost Underground’.”
”Those are two of my favourite songs,” I said.
”You have excellent taste,” Tom said. ”In music anyway. You may have dubious taste in men.” He elbowed Gabe playfully.
Gabe elbowed him back. ”You have that backwards. Lexie has excellent taste in men, but clearly needs further education in regards to music.”
”Both my taste in men and music is perfectly fine, thank you very much,” I said. ”Is it true you”re supporting Wolf Venom on their next world tour?” That seemed a good way to steer the conversation in a different direction.
”It”s very much true,” Tom said, looking both pleased and excited. ”This is going to be huge for us. Bigger for them though, because they get to tour with us.” A dimple showed in his cheek when he grinned.
Gabe rolled his eyes. ”I”m sure it”s the ambition of the biggest rock band in the world to tour with you.”
”Of course it is. They asked for us.” Tom looked smug.
”Have they met you?” Gabe asked. ”Because if they had, they might have thought twice.”
Tom had no hesitation in flipping off his brother with both hands. ”Of course they”ve met me. Me and their lead singer, we”re like this.” He crossed his fingers to indicate they were tight. ”Practically best friends.”
”Are any of them here tonight?” I asked. I glanced around. I”d be just as excited to meet them as I would be to meet Tyler Quick. Maybe more so.
”That”s a good question,” Gabe said. He was the one looking smug now. He clearly knew the answer, and the answer was no.
”They were busy tonight,” Tom admitted. ”Otherwise they would have been here with bells on. Believe me, they”ll be at many more events like this. Next tour, it”ll be us headlining. In the meantime, if you want tickets, I”d be happy to fix you up.” He directed the statement at me, but the smile tugging at the corners of his mouth suggested he was trying to get a rise out of Gabe at the same time.
”We”d love tickets,” I said. ”Wouldn”t we?” I gave Gabe a meaningful look.
”If you want to go, I”d be happy to take you,” Gabe said. ”I might have to borrow a pair of ripped jeans so I can look the part.”
”Only my older brother would ever say a sentence like that,” Tom said. ”You know you can buy designer jeans with rips in them, right?”
”I”m aware of that,” Gabe said. ”I happen to think spending a lot of money on something that”s already broken is ridiculous. Why would I want to buy something that”s already ripped?”
”No one could ever claim you were a fashion icon,” Tom told him.
”I never aspired to be one,” Gabe retorted. ”You know clothing is one of the biggest areas of waste in the world? Buying something only intended to be worn once is a criminal way to treat the planet. Once is exactly the amount of times I”d wear a pair of ripped jeans.”
”You have some work to do with this guy.” Tom jerked his thumb towards Gabe. ”I appreciate his stance on the environment, but he seems to think enjoying himself for five minutes would have a negative impact on the planet.”
”It might,” Gabe argued. ”People don”t think enough about the things they do and the consequences.” He exhaled out his nose. ”Fortunately, Tom”s label is very environmentally conscious. They”ve endeavoured to reduce their carbon footprint as much as possible with each tour. Which isn”t easy, given the planes and vehicles required to move a rock band and all their equipment around.”
”If Gabe had his way, there wouldn”t be any tours,” Tom said.
Gabe rounded on him. ”I”m not that much of a stick in the mud, asshole. I”m just interested in finding a balance, where possible. Is there anything wrong with that?”
I put a hand on his arm to calm him, although seeing him so passionate was fascinating and more than a bit arousing. ”Of course there isn”t. It”s good to see someone who cares so much about the future of the planet. And the future of your brother and his band.” I raised my eyebrows at Tom.
”He has been very supportive, even when our parents weren”t,” Tom said finally. ”If he hadn”t given me a nudge to follow my dreams, I”d probably be working for our parents too. And going absolutely fucking crazy doing it.”
”You were never meant to work in an office,” Gabe told him. ”Your music makes a lot of people happy. That”s also important. And it makes you happy. That was why I told you to take the leap.”
”When are you going to take your own advice?” Tom asked.
Gabe shrugged. ”I”m doing what I”m meant to be doing.”
”No one is meant to work twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week,” Tom said. ”Nor is anyone meant to do what their mother tells them to for just as many hours.”
Gabe had no answer for that, but he was saved from having to come up with one when one of the label executives called for everyone”s attention to make a speech about Tom”s band and their new album.
”Come with me,” Gabe whispered in my ear.
”What?” I said without looking around at him.
”He”s going to blather on for ages. No one will notice if we slip out now.” He took my arm and pulled me away towards one of the doorways that led out of the room.
I glanced back, but no one was looking at us. All of Irena”s attention was on the executive, and her younger son, not on the fact her older son and I were slipping out.
”Where are we going?” I asked.
”Anywhere but here.” He dropped his hand from my arm to lace his fingers in mine. He led me down a dark corridor to an open door at the other end of the building.
I barely had time to look around us before he was kissing me. At first, nothing more than a brush of lips, but quickly becoming firmer, hungrier.
I kissed him back, my arms around his neck. His lips tasted sweet, his kisses gentle but at the same time demanding. He pressed my back against the wall and slid his hands down my side to my hips.
We kissed until we were breathless, then went on kissing. He let one of his hands wander down to my thigh and up, under the hem of my dress. He rucked up the fabric and slid his hand across the gusset of my panties, over my pussy.
The feather light touch sent shivers all the way through me. In a heartbeat or two, my panties were drenched.
”Gabe…” I clung to him while he rubbed his fingers more firmly over my pussy.
”Lexie.” He pushed my panties aside and slid his fingers over my seam. ”You”re so wet.” He traced circles around and over my clit before pressing a finger inside me. ”Do you like that?”
”Yes,” I said breathlessly. ”I like it so much. Just like that.” He rubbed his thumb over my clit while pushing a second finger inside me.
”Come for me,” he said softly. ”Come for me like a good girl.”
His words shattered me into a thousand pieces of bliss. Each better than the last. I drew my lower lip between my teeth and bit down to keep myself from crying out.
He went on massaging me inside and out until I flopped down into his arms, trying to catch my breath.
”I knew you could sing beautifully,” he said. ”So perfect.” He slid his fingers out of me and pulled my panties back in place before straightening my dress and smoothing it.
”That was…” I had no words for what it was.
”It was,” he agreed. ”We should get back before someone misses us.” He sounded like that was the last thing he wanted, but he was right.
We didn”t need his mother sending a search party to look for us and find us here. If they did, it was pretty obvious what we were doing.
I had no regrets, but I sensed his mother might be annoyed at the timing, if she found out. I”d like to say that didn”t bother me, but I cared about Gabe. That meant trying to keep her onside.
If that was possible.