Play (Stage Dive, #2)(29)

With a small sigh, Lena half turned her head toward him. That was all it took.

Jimmy gave me a strained smile. “Sorry. That was a shitty thing to say.”

“Pumpkin, Lena is what we in the industry call ‘a babysitter’,” said Mal. “If you’re an unmitigated f*cking * who doesn’t know how to behave, you get a gorgeous girl like Lena to follow you around, making sure you’re not a PR disaster for the record company.”

“I said I was sorry.” Jimmy stared out across the room, doing the same crinkly forehead thing his brother did. It kind of reminded me of James Dean.

“Hey.” Ben appeared on my free side, staring down at me from his lofty height. There was more chin tipping. All of the band members wore matching black suits, but Jimmy had lost the vest and added a thin black tie. Ben wore the tie but had ditched the vest and jacket and the sleeves of his white shirt were rolled up his strong arms. Both limbs were liberally inked. Tattoos and suits made for a damn good combination.

The quality of the eye candy tonight was off the scale. Mal still had them all beat, of course.

“Pumpkin, guess what?”

“What?”

Before I knew what was happening I’d been dipped back over his arm. The entire room had turned upside down. Fuck, was the front of my dress gaping? I slapped my hand down over my collarbone, just in case.

“Shit, Mal! Up.”

He immediately righted me. Blood rushed about inside my head and the room spun. Beside us, Ben and Lena laughed. I think Jimmy was busy doing his bored-stare thing. It was hard to see with my head still spinning. I’m pretty sure people were watching. If I heard an upside-down girl shouting obscenities, I’d probably take a look.

“No one saw anything,” Mal said, reading my mind. “You okay?”

I nodded. “Fine.”

His thumbs rubbed circles into my hip bones through the fabric of my dress. He held his face close to mine. “Sorry, pumpkin. I didn’t think.”

“It’s okay.”

He squinted down at me. “Is it really okay or are you just saying it’s okay and you’re going to bust my balls about it later?”

I thought about it for a moment to be sure. “No. But don’t do it again or I’ll hurt you.”

“Got it. No more throwing you around.”

“Thank you.”

“I won’t embarrass you again, Anne. Promise.”

“I’d appreciate that.”

“See,” he said, his smile huge. “Our communication skills as a couple are f*cking excellent. We’re working out great!”

“Yeah, we are,” I said, my heart elated. It was strange, we’d only known each other a few days but I trusted him. I liked him and I was really grateful to spend this time with him. After the disaster with Skye, I needed Malcolm Ericson in my life right now. Hell, after the last seven years I needed him. He brought out the sun.

“Yeah,” he whispered.

And then he kissed me and ruined everything.





CHAPTER NINE


It wasn’t a soft kiss. No passing brush of the lips or token peck of affection would do for Mal. Hell no, of course not. It was an amnesia-inducing drug of a kiss. No memory of another remained. Chemical bliss. I’d obviously never been really and truly kissed before because this … he covered my mouth with his and owned me. His tongue slipped over my teeth and his hands slid into my hair. In response, I grabbed two fistfuls of his vest. It might have started out being in surprise or anger. But it turned into a safety measure fast. My knees went weak.

The man kissed me stupid.

His tongue rubbed at mine, encouraging me to play. It might not have been the smart thing to do, but I couldn’t hold back. I moaned into his mouth and kissed him hard. Every bit as hard as he was kissing me. My thighs tensed and my toes curled. Every hair on my body stood on end. His hold on me tightened, as if he couldn’t let go. I, on the other hand, was basically clawing my way through his three-piece suit. The need to get closer was huge. Nothing else mattered.

All around us applause broke out, which was fair enough. A kiss this awesome deserved a standing ovation. Fireworks wouldn’t be overkill. The string quartet seemed a little odd, however. Surely a crazed drum solo would be more in keeping, something primal to match the demented beat of my heart.

“Guys,” Ben hissed, nudging us with an elbow. “Knock it off. Guys!”

I tore away from Mal, trying desperately to catch my breath. He was panting too, his green eyes dilated. Stunned was probably a good word. Sordid wasn’t too far behind. After all, we were mauling each other’s mouths in public.

I stood there staring at him, shaking. Holy shit. What the hell had just happened?

“That was fun!” He grinned, looking at me like he’d just discovered a new game. One that he really, really liked.

No.

Fuck no.

My heart was trying to burst out of my chest, Aliens style. I couldn’t blame it for wanting to run for cover. This was insane. I had to keep this shit locked down. What if he’d been able to tell what it did to me? He’d call off our arrangement in a heartbeat.

Time for some damage control.

“It was nice.” I gave him a pat on the cheek.

His arrogant grin slipped.

People all around us continued clapping. They were also all facing the other way, though many gave us sideways glances. I turned and went up on tippy toes, to see what was going on. In the open front doorway stood Ev in a simple ivory gown. I saw the whites of her big surprised eyes from across the room. Beside her stood David in a suit similar to what the rest of the guys wore. Slowly, he got down on one knee. I was too far away to hear what he said, the room too noisy. But then Ev was nodding and crying and mouthing the word “yes.”