The Redemption(21)

I push past him and head for the dressing room, the anger hitting its stride by the time I open the door. “Rochelle?” I hear Dex calling my name, but I walk past Johnny and Kaz, and grab my bag from the floor.

When I turn around, I run right into Dex’s chest, his arms around me again and I’m suddenly all too aware of the other guys watching us.

Johnny stands. “What happened?”

Feeling my face heat from them being privy to the intimacy between me and Dex, I free myself. Just a glance at Johnny, then to Kaz, and I see the expressions on their face, the disapproval on Johnny’s, confusion on Kaz.

“What the f*ck, Dex?” Johnny asks—protective brother voice in place as he straightens his shoulders back.

I try to ease things between them before I leave. “It’s okay, Johnny. He didn’t do anything. It’s me. I just need to go. I’ll see you back in LA.”

“Rochelle? Wait up,” he says, catching up to me in the corridor.

“Dude, really. I’m okay. I just don’t want to be here right now.” I see Dex out of the corner of my eye, Lara just beyond him coming inside with Kaz. “I’ll be fine. I’ll see you at home.”

Johnny nods, knowing when to back off. “Be safe.”

“I will.” I walk in the opposite direction, leaving them all behind. With a quick glance back over my shoulder, the scene fades to black as I focus ahead of me.





As I pack my clothes, a light knock on the hotel door makes me pause and sigh. I’m guessing it’s Lara or Dex. I’m hoping it’s not Johnny. He sees right through me and I don’t have the energy to lie to him.

When I open the door, Dex is there. I smile automatically while leaning against the wall. “What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be out partying after the show?”

“I didn’t want to go.” An urgent kiss lands on my lips, the sweet pressure trapped between desperation and passion. I find the line often blurs when I kiss him as well. “I don’t want you to go either.” Sliding my hands down his arms to his wrists, he lifts them to caress my neck. “Sometimes we’re *s. It was Kaz’s turn tonight. I’m sorry.”

“I know he didn’t mean it, but when he said it… I don’t know anymore,” I say, shrugging. “I don’t want him forgotten.”

“He won’t be. He’s a legend, Rochelle.” His lips replace his hands on my neck. “But let’s leave all that for now. Right here together, we can be us—no baggage, no past, no witnesses. Just us, here together.”

I kiss him, needing him close. When our lips part, I look into his eyes just as he opens his. I whisper, “No past. Just us with no judgments or expectations.”

He kisses me again, then says, “Back in LA, we have to be responsible and do what’s right. Once there, we can go back to square one, not for me, but for Neil and CJ. We’ll start over, the way we should have two years ago.”

“You’re okay with that?”

“No,” he replies, making me laugh. “But I’ll do whatever it takes to spend more time with you. Anyway, your boys seem pretty cool. I mean Neil is named after one of the best drummers in the world, after all. The kid can’t be that bad.”

I giggle, the lighthearted moment easing the heavy from before. Dropping my forehead to his chest, I ask, “What about tonight?”

“Tonight, you’re mine.”





Is this too much too fast? Am I the only one who’s concerned about what the future holds? “Are you worried?”

“Shit yeah, I worry. I worry that this may be the last time I get to kiss you or feel your breath on my skin. I worry that I’ll never get to hear your heart racing because you’re near me. So yeah, I worry. But tonight, let’s not talk about tomorrow or what happens after. Let’s just live in the here—”

“Live in the now.” I pull him inside by his shirt and let the door slam closed, deciding to do just that. I kiss him again and again while walking backward into the room, leaving yesterday to the past and tomorrow to be dealt with another day.

We tumble onto the bed, our bodies entwined, his lips pressed to the skin of my collarbone. With one knee between his legs and his knee between mine, we move together in a flurry of overdue movements. I tug at his collar, trailing kisses across his shoulder. His strong hands flex and grip as he holds me at the waist and slides them up, his thumb rubbing gentle circles against the side of my breasts.

He moves on top of me, his erection against my stomach, his lips finding and caressing mine. Breathless, I drop my head back. “I want you. I want you so much, Dex. So much.”

His hands stop flexing, his lips stop kissing, his body stills while his breathing remains jagged over my cheek. I’m about to say something just as he pauses and looks away. His fingers tap lightly across my ribs and he leans down to whisper, “You deserve more than this.”

“No.” I release my breath and hold him by the jaw, making him look at me. “I’m good. This is good. The here and now, remember. Tonight is all that matters.”

“Rochelle, you deserve dates and flowers, romantic dinners, and for me to show you that I’m good enough to spend time with your family.”

“You’re good enough, Dex. It wasn’t about you not being good enough for me or my ki—” He kisses me, ending my plea. As soon as our lips part, I continue, “Kids. So please don’t think otherwise.”