Blessed Tragedy(17)

I wrapped my arms around his neck, allowing myself to really look at him. He looked the same but it felt different to see him now that we were a couple. Just then, the door opened without warning.

“Hey, uh...” Travis looked down at Colton and I tangled together on the chair. “Jon's looking for you two. Guess I don't have to go find you, Colt.” I tried to figure out what Travis was thinking but his facial expressions kept changing.

“'Spose he'll tell Jon before we get there?” Colton asked as I applied a coat of lipstick and fixed my hair.

“Thought we didn't care about things like that?” I asked before pressing my lips against a folded napkin. “Thought Jon was going to be happy about this?”

“I still think he will be. I'd just prefer that we be the ones to tell him.” If I didn't know better, I would have thought Colton was truly concerned about Jon's reaction. Maybe he was but didn't say anything to me, knowing I would have used it as an excuse for us to stay firmly planted in the friend-zone.

The words I heard building in my head surprised me. As much as I wanted to hold them back, I couldn't stop myself. “You do what needs to be done. I'm going to trust you on this.” I'd never given up control like this. Then again, it had been a month filled with surprises, what's one more?

“Okay then.” Colton fell onto the couch while I got dressed. “I say we just say screw it and whoever's around knows. I'd rather not live some double life with you.”

Somehow, I knew that's what he was going to say. “Up to you,” I said calmly. Well, I was calm on the outside. Inside I was going crazy because I was giving up more control than I ever had.

We walked to the VIP Lounge hand in hand, smiling at the double-takes from roadies. Colton dropped my hand long enough to open the door for me and then wrapped his arm around my waist.

Jon looked between us but didn't say anything. When his eyes narrowed, I worried I had been right and Colton was dead wrong. Jon looked pissed. Travis was still avoiding making eye contact with either one of us. Dammit, this was such a bad f*cking idea.

“Take it you two kissed and made up?” Jon asked. His typically expressive face showed nothing. When had these guys learned to hold their cards close? Looking at the way Jon narrowed his eyes or the way Travis scrunched his nose used to tell me everything I needed to know. Now, they were both blank-faced and I didn't like it.

Colton pulled me in front of him and I turned to look at him. Thanks for making me your human shield, *.

“Yeah, we're good.” He squeezed me tight and I couldn't help but smile. I still wasn't comfortable with my new submissive self but it was hard to deny we were both much happier now that we'd given in to what we felt.

“It's about f*cking time,” Travis practically squealed from his barstool.

Jon came over and patted Colton's shoulder. “Just don't piss her off.”

“Don't plan on it,” Colton said placing a kiss on my temple. “She's ugly when she gets mad.”

The guys laughed when my head whipped around to look at him. Damn, have his eyes always been that blue? Maybe it's the eyeliner.

“I'm happy for you. Seriously, I wasn't lying when I said he's been a little bitch with a crush since he met you,” Jon whispered in my ear loud enough that Colton heard it. Jon jumped back when Colt's boot made contact with his shin.

“What do you say we go kick some ass out there tonight?” Jon shouted. Colton never took his arm from my waist as we followed Jon to the wings. It was like he wanted to make sure everyone knew that I was his and he was mine. That would have been great if not for the skanky groupies glaring at me. I had what they wanted and I knew it. Seeing a group of barely dressed, overly made up girls huddled and shooting me looks of death, I waved as I placed my arms over Colton's shoulders and kissed him. Hard.



It's funny how the two of us working out our little issues charged all four of us. It was like we'd been shocked to life. There are plenty of nights when the band would come off stage to people raving how it was the best concert yet. Tonight, there was no denying that was true.

I had more fun on stage than I had in a long time. During the bridges on a few songs, I had looked over at Colton like I did every night and he'd wink at me, not missing a beat. That made me smile, which made me laugh because I figured we looked like a couple of idiots out there.





Chapter Nine



As quickly as most of the end of our tour flew by, the last two days dragged on forever. I've never considered myself to be the type of person who needed sex to be happy. Once my mind processed the idea of satisfying those needs, it wasn't happy to be denied.

I really thought I was going to be forced to hide his lifeless body behind the Coliseum in Jackson. Colton's entire argument for why we should take the plunge was that we'd done everything but have sex. To me, that meant he wanted to do just that. Temporarily forgetting that Colton was anything but a typical man, I thought of nothing but getting him naked as soon as we got back to the bus. Even when I was standing in front of a sold-out crowd, he'd been the only thing I could think of. It was a wonder I didn't forget the lyrics or trip over my own feet.

As soon as we figured we could sneak out of the after party without pissing off anyone, Colton grabbed my hand and we walked as fast as possible towards the exit. Colton held the door open for me but was immediately at my side. That was probably a good thing given the number of women glaring at me. It'd be nice if they could just be happy for us but most of these women were here for one thing; a quick piece of ass from a rock star and given the way Colton held me close to him, it was quickly apparent none of them would be getting a piece of this rocker.

Had it not been for a sliver of my brain that remembered why I was here and that these fans paid good money to see us, I would have grabbed Colton and dragged him to the bus. Okay, I still would have but Colton was far too polite for that. Just like every other night, we sat there signing autographs until the last person left. Unlike every other night, we found ourselves answering questions from inquiring fans who wanted to know if we were, in fact, a couple and if we'd really had a big fight. I swear a few of the girls looked upset when we told them that we hadn't had a fight.

One of these days, I'm gonna stop being nice to these little skanks pawing at my man. That's right, bitches, Colton Bradford is my man. Mine, not yours. Get your nasty little fingers off him.

Between my jealousy of the fans we all dealt with every night and the fact that I was nearly ready to strip naked as we headed to the bus, I felt like a woman possessed. Like Colton had flipped some freaking libido switch earlier.

Safely on the bus and away from camera-wielding pricks, Colton cupped my face in his hands kissed me gently. He pulled the band out of my hair allowing the intense red curls to cascade down my back.

“Do you have any clue how sexy you look up on stage?” He asked breathlessly.

“You can send Tanya a thank you note. She's the one who insists I wear this crap.” I hated having to give her credit for anything but I did take minor amusement in the fact that she was part of the reason I turned him on out there. She'd insisted that the corsets would create a look that drove the guys crazy. In a world where male band members get so much attention from the female fans, she wanted us to have an edge by also awakening the desires of the men. I'd resisted at first because it's not exactly easy to breathe when you're tightened into a corset that's meant to suck in any flaws. When I threatened to put them all in a burn barrel, Tanya promised to find a different style. The tops she found gave the appearance she wanted while allowing me to breathe enough to sing.

“Yeah, probably not,” he said through more kisses as he led me to the back of the bus. “I'm pretty sure she's gonna be pissed about us.”

“So, you thought I was sexy up there tonight?” I asked coyly. I pulled the sweat soaked t-shirt over his head letting it drop to the floor.

“Every night.” When he reached for the laces at the front of my corset, I grabbed his hands and placed them at my back.

“It'll work much better if you just use the zipper.” He groaned as he pulled the zipper down.

“My god, no bra?” There was still a part of me that was getting used to Colton the new boyfriend as opposed to my buddy, and that part laughed at the expression on his face as my top dropped to the ground.

“Why in the hell would I wear a bra with a corset? If I have to wear that shit, it'd better be constructed well enough for support.” I shivered as the cool air in the bus hit my damp skin and again when Colton started running his fingertips along my sides.

“Why in the hell would I need to know anything about that stuff other than how it makes you look? Which, as I said, is incredibly sexy. Distractingly sexy.” Colton placed his hands on my shoulders, holding me at arm's length. The look in his eyes made me feel like he was looking at me for the first time.