“We really shouldn’t do this.”
He threaded his fingers through my hair. “You’re wrong.” He nipped at my lower lip. “We should definitely do this.”
I shook my head, but that only made his whiskers brush against my cheek. “I work for you. This isn’t right. It’s a conflict of interest.”
He bit my lower lip. Not so hard that it hurt, but hard enough for me to feel it all the way to my toes. “You don’t work for me. You work for Felix. No conflict.”
His hand lowered to my arm and his thumb brushed across the swell of my breast. When it grazed over my nipple, I moaned. There was no denying my attraction to him. I was a hot-blooded female alone in a bus with a bad boy musician. That fell somewhere at the top of most women’s bucket lists, but my list was prioritized differently. I pulled away.
“I really need this job.” If this went bad, there was more than my next orgasm at stake here. I wiggled out of his lap and stood. “I’m sorry, but can you get the bus driver to stop? I want to ride on the other bus. It will be for the best.”
Abel let out a huff of breath. He stood and walked to the partition that separated the driver from the rest. “Let’s stop at the next pull in,” he told him.
He faced me. “This isn’t over. Just over today.” He tugged me to his chest and held me. I couldn’t remember a time when I felt so vulnerable and yet so safe.
Chapter Six
Abel
Bud, one of the drivers for my bus, pulled into the rest stop. The second bus pulled beside us. The guys in the band never missed a chance to get out and stretch their legs. They were used to long hauls with few stops so when we pulled into a dusty rest area just west of Las Vegas they were surprised.
I stepped in front of Gia as she made her way to the door.
“I’m letting you off now so you have time to think about what’s happening between us. Make no mistake, there’s something here and you’ll be in my arms and my bed before this tour is over. You want this as much as I do. Don’t try to deny it.” I leaned down and brushed my lips across hers. “The only way we’re not happening is if you quit, and something tells me you’re not a quitter, Gia.”
The door to the bus swung open to reveal my band-mates walking around with what-the-fuck looks on their faces.
I moved out of Gia’s way and flagged over Toby.
He stepped aside for Gia to pass. “What’s up man?”
“She’s a bit overwhelmed right now and wants to ride on the band bus. Keep an eye on her. No one fucks with her or they answer to me.”
Toby looked at me like I’d lost my mind. If women were on the bus, everyone fucked with them or fucked them. “She wants to ride with a bunch of assholes?”
I let a smile break on my face. “She thinks it will be for the best.”
“You want us to behave or simply keep our hands to ourselves?”
“No one touches her, but other than that, do what you normally do.” Basically that meant Gia would be in a den of debauchery. My drummer Jess was a nudist. Toby, liked to jam while the bus was in motion. He’d been in a bad accident a few years ago. The music kept his mind off the road. Scott, my lead guitarist, generally fucked his way from one stop to the next. God help Gia if there was a carload of chicks following behind us because Scott liked his sex loud and long lasting. We called him Piston for a reason.
I reached into my pocket and pulled out my wallet. Inside were several hundreds. I pulled one out and slapped it into Toby’s palm.
“I’ll buy the beer if you guys can get her to want to come back on my bus.”
Toby looked down at the bill in his hand. “What the fuck did you do to her?”
I shrugged. “I kissed her.”
Toby stuck out his arms like wings and took flight in a circle around me until he growled and sounded like a plane going down. “Crash and burn man.” He laughed. “You lost your touch? Never saw the chicks flee from you.” He looked over his shoulder to where Gia took the first step up onto the bus. She glanced back at him. Their eyes held each other’s for a moment until she disappeared into what was no doubt a jungle.
Before I’d made it big, I traveled on a single bus with my band. The place smelled like stale beer, cigarettes, and sex. There was never a moment of silence. The only time the place was clean was the second everyone entered, and then it was a hovel until the end of the tour.
No doubt Gia would be back on my bus by the end of the night.
The damn woman was killing me. She checked in every few hours by email and text, but she stayed on the bus. We arrived in Dallas the next day to kick off the tour. I knew she was exhausted. Dark circles lined her eyes.
“How’s the trip going?” I raised a brow in question. “Getting much sleep?”