As the girls were thanking us, the server came back with our bills. “Hey, gang. I’ve got Kevin and Doug on one check, Lora, Trisha, and Nate. Is that right?”
I grabbed Trisha’s bill as well as mine, then thanked the girls again for watching the show. They were pie-eyed as they rushed away.
“You’re always so sweet with them,” Lora said as Trisha slid back in on my other side.
“They took the time to watch the show,” I shrugged. “All musicians owe their livelihoods to people who are into music.”
“Damn straight,” Kevin agreed. “Wild chicks wanting to rip our clothes off has nothing to do with why we play.”
“Yeah, that part is seriously the worst,” Doug said, shaking his head sadly.
***
After lunch, or brunch, or whatever we were allowed to call it, the band went their separate ways to run various errands, while Trisha and I went for a walk.
The breeze off the ocean ruffled her long, dark hair as we made our way toward the docks. Simply walking around while holding her hand made my heart race. She told me more stories about her job, and I shared weird tales of my old Violet Circles days.
As we passed yet another group of tourists all wildly taking photos, I noticed that Trisha was ducking her head and curling against me. "Are you cold? Do you want my jacket?"
She looked up at me, shaking her head. "I'm blocking my face so I don't end up in their photos," she said.
I looked around, but it didn't seem like anyone was looking at us directly. "It's funny, Dave and I were talking about that once," I said. “We will never know how many times we were in the background of other people's happy photos. Don't worry, nobody will notice."
She squeezed my hand, giving it a shake. "But they'll notice you, Nate. You always stick out in every photo. If they see you walking with a girl, they might put two and two together and figure out who I am."
"My sweet little paranoid girl," I said, pulling her up against the railing at the edge of the walkway. Wrapping my arms around her, I kissed the top of her head. Finally she relaxed, tilting her chin up to mine so that I could kiss her properly.
I felt like every time our lips met, the world stopped spinning. I felt clear. Like this was exactly where I was meant to be.
Her hands slid under my jacket and nestled against the bottom of my spine, holding me close. "Why do you smell so good?" she whispered as I bent down to kiss under her ear.
"I was going to say the same about you," I murmured. "All vanilla and sexy, sweet girl."
"I'm not sexy," she giggled.
"If you ever say that again, I'll…"
She quickly reached up to place a finger over my lips. "You'll do nothing, mister."
"Yes, dear," I said softly, claiming her lips again.
I’d never thought about public displays of affection before, except when I politely turned away from others. Now I just didn't care. We clung to each other, completely lost in the moment.
As I held her against me, her hips began to move very slightly, as if she couldn’t control it. Fire flashed through me as I realized tonight might be the night. Just the thought of it made my breath catch. My fingers slid down her back to grab her ass firmly as she gasped into my mouth.
“Do you want to come to my hotel room?” I asked hopefully.
The word, “Yes,” was a soft little moan that instantly turned my cock to stone.
The walk back to the hotel was constantly interrupted by kissing, giggling together, and stopping four times for photos with fans. She seemed content to play phot
ographer whenever she was asked.
As soon as I got her into my room, she kicked off her shoes and threw her jacket over a chair. I did the same, then grabbed her. Dipping her back in a movie star kiss, I wandered kisses down her throat. Standing her up, her soft, pretty eyes looked dreamy.
Unzipping her dress, I slid it off her shoulder, nuzzling her neck while I unhooked her bra. I knew I should be taking my time, taking hours to learn every part of her body, but the heat blazing through my veins was taking over.
Her bra and dress hit the floor, and I gently laid her back on the bed, immediately wrapping my lips around her nipple. With both hands, I explored her tender skin, loving the change in her breathing when I lightly grazed my teeth across the surface.