“Wow.” She thumps into my chest and stares up at me. “That’s deep, Chaser.”
I lean down and whisper in her ear, “I’m going to pin your ankles to your ears when we get to our hotel room and show you the meaning of deep.”
She slicks her tongue over her bottom lip and darts a look at the tour bus. Good to know she wants me as bad as I want her, but I need a bed this time.
“Come on.”
We race across the hotel’s parking lot and into their front lobby.
The hotel’s desk clerk seems less than thrilled to have a bunch of dirty rock stars invading the place. Given some of the guys’ antics that have been reported in the papers on this tour, I can’t blame him.
“Hey.” I lower my voice and lean in. “Any chance you can put us on a different floor from the rest of my ‘em?” I glance at Mallory. “We’d like some quiet.”
He hums and flips through his giant book. “I can put you on the seventh floor. The rest of your party is on five.”
“Perfect. One more thing. Promise me you won’t give our room number out to anyone? No matter who asks. I don’t have any sisters or brothers. And my dad’s all the way in New York.”
“Yes, Mr. Adams.” He sighs as if he’s dealing with an idiot. “It’s against hotel policy to give out the room numbers or names of our guests.”
“Yeah, I get that, but some people are pretty persuasive.”
“I’ll make a note, you’re not to be disturbed.”
“Thank you.”
He hands me two keys. I sign some paper, and we head upstairs.
“What was that all about?” Mallory asks.
“I don’t want Andrew to call the desk clerk and say he’s my long-lost brother or some shit, so he can barge in on us to show off his collection of leather thongs.”
On this tour, I’d learned he owns enough tiny cock hammocks to be considered an actual collection. And on hot nights, that’s all he wears on stage. All this time I’d thought that was a rumor. But, nope one-hundred percent true.
“Oh. Good call.”
Finally alone in our room, I slide all the locks home and turn to face her. She’s closer than I expected and reaches up to brush her fingers against my jaw and cup my face. “I’m so happy we’re finally alone.”
“You have no idea.” I lean down and press my lips to hers, slowly licking her lip.
She moans, angling her head, seeking more. I press forward, gripping her hips and yanking her closer. I thoroughly tease her with soft nuzzling strokes of my tongue.
“More,” she whispers against my mouth.
I shift both hands lower to grab her ass, pulling her closer with a demanding grip.
Except for traffic noises from outside and our heavy breathing, the room is silent.
“Missed you.” I pull back and study her face. “I’m thrilled the show gave you the recurring role, but I can’t stand us being away from each other for so long.”
“I hate it too.”
“We’ll have to figure out a plan. So the next time I’m on tour, you can come see me more often.” Even as I say the words, I don’t know how that’s ever going to work. She can’t dictate the production schedule any more than I can decide the touring schedule.
“We’ll be off for the summer…Marilyn says there’s a movie audition. The director really wants me to read for it, but I’d be in Canada all summer then.”
“Fuck.” I look past her, staring out the window at the gray sky. Summer’s prime touring season. “We’ll work it out. I want you to nail that audition.”
She nods, but I see the hesitation in her eyes. “I mean it, Mallory. We’ll be fine. You’ll fly out to see me when you can, and I’ll fly to see you on our days off.”
“Okay.”
I glance at the clock. “We need to get downstairs and over to the arena. There’s a reporter from Rolling Stone who wants to interview us.”
“Us, you and me? Or us Kickstart?”
“All of the above.”
“Do I have time to change?” she asks.
“Only if I can watch.”
I’m stopped from following her to the bedroom by the phone ringing.
“I asked not to be disturbed,” I answer.
“Sorry, sir. There’s an Andrew—”
“Give me that,” someone mutters in the background. “Chaser! Brother, where are you?” Andrew yells into the phone.
“We’ll be down in a few minutes.”
“What room are you in?”
“Thirteen-oh-one.” Like most hotels, this one doesn’t have a thirteenth floor, so that should keep Andrew busy for a while.
“On my way!” He hangs up, without saying anything else.
I’m still laughing to myself, picturing Andrew running around looking for the thirteenth floor, when Mallory shouts, “Ready!”
I glance up and take in her outfit, slowly absorbing every beautiful detail.
Black suede boots, tiny denim skirt, bracelets laddered up her arms.