Bound to Please (28 page)

She screamed. She cried out, again and again, knowing people could see her, hear her. Mark pulled the chain at her nipples again, and this time he didn’t let up, the pleasure searing through her in a rush. His hand between her legs worked her faster, harder, deeper, and he whispered into her ear, “That’s it, baby; come for me. Come now.”

An enormous shudder tore through her as she climaxed, for everyone to see.

Mark released her quickly. His heart hammered as he carried her trembling body. She clung to him, silent. He’d found a small but private room with a sofa and once seated, he held her, rocked her as if he were calming a child. Finally, she looked up, her eyes such a deep shade of blue they were almost black. She smiled. “That was amazing.”

He gently unscrewed the clamps on her nipples. She gave a light moan as he released her, and he massaged flesh he knew would be sore. She sighed against his chest, and his cock immediately started throbbing.

Fuck, how he wanted her. Touching her like this, seeing her sink into her world of pleasure, made his cock so fucking hard. Made him shift underneath her and take deep breaths to try to control himself.

He kissed her forehead. “You were beautiful out there. Everyone envied me.”

“Really? I made you happy?”

“Of course.”

Sliding out of his lap, she knelt in front of him. “I want to make you even happier.”

He nodded. She was irresistible, unlike any woman he’d ever met. His blood rushed through him as she unbuttoned his jeans and boxers and slid them down his legs, and then she took his cock in her hands, drew him into her wet, warm mouth so deep, he groaned out her name. She sucked him, stroked his balls, and didn’t seem to mind the palm of his hand on her hair; tugging, guiding.

“That’s perfect, Ruby, just like that…” But when he was about to come she stopped and looked up. “I want to feel you inside me, Mark.”

“Then come here, baby.”

She pulled a condom out of a bowl next to the sofa and opened it, slid it onto his cock. Then she straddled him, guiding his dick into her pussy in one smooth, sure motion. She threw her head back as she rocked against him, her eyes dark, her mouth open as her breathing came faster and faster.

He gripped her thighs, her body tense under his hands as she used the muscles in her legs to ride him. This she did with total freedom; pinching her own nipples, working her own clit. It was as if the earlier public display had released her somehow, as if she had no inhibitions left in her at all.

He watched her face as she came. Her eyes closed, her mouth spread in a wide smile. It was so beautiful he followed quickly, jerking her to him so he could pump into her body, letting the little contractions of her inner walls milk every last drop from him.

She collapsed on top of him and he held her like that, until both of their breathing returned to normal.

He had to convince her that they could make this work. Suddenly his career, the band, seemed so much less important than keeping this connection with the girl in his arms.

“Listen, Ruby. We have to talk.”

She said against his chest, “I’m exhausted, I can’t think.”

“But there are things—”

She yawned. “It’s been a tiring night. Can we just go home?” She snuggled deeper against him. “I know we need to talk. After tonight, I can’t ignore my feelings for you any longer…”

She went quiet, and after a minute he realized she’d dozed off. He kissed her forehead and picked her up. They could talk later, in the morning. Really, he just needed to assure her that he could balance his career and a relationship with her. And he needed to reassure her that she was a strong enough person to deal with it.

She was barely conscious as he got her clothes, dressed her, led her to the limo and took her home. And she was still asleep when they arrived, so he dug the keys out of her bag and carried her into the apartment. In her room, he stripped off her clothes and laid her under the covers. She murmured a thank-you but was snoring softly within seconds.

He stifled a laugh. He’d just discovered one of her imperfections.

Pulling off his clothes, he undressed and climbed in beside her, pulled her into his arms. Soon he joined her in a deep, dreamless sleep. But when the bright rays of the sun woke him in the morning, Ruby was gone.

Chapter
Twenty-Four

T
his place looks amazing.”

Ruby looked up from where she’d been arranging a bunch of twigs. She wore one of her typical prim dresses—this time in a soft blue—and her hair was pulled back. The only thing that gave away her sensual side was the sexy shoes on her dainty feet.

Hugging the clipboard to her chest, she beamed at him.

It was the day of the Spring Fling, and Mark had stopped by to check the stage. That, and he wanted an excuse to see Ruby. She’d been out the door before he’d dragged his ass out of bed, so this was the first time he’d seen her since last night.

The event was being held in an old theater, a building originally built as a movie theater in the 1930s. There was a small stage, behind which red velvet draped from the floor to the ceiling. Round tables had been set up on the floor, and each table had been decorated with gold twigs and leaves. With the brightly colored linens and china, the place looked like something out of a movie.

She placed her clipboard on the stage and began arranging a vase of iridescent feathers. “So. Are you ready for tonight?” she asked as she played with the feathers.

“Yeah.” He was ready for the show; it was afterward he was having trouble wrapping his head around. “Listen, I have some bad news.”

She glanced over her shoulder. “What is it?”

He ran a hand over his face. This was even harder than he’d thought. “You know the band January Blues?”

She rolled her eyes. “Um, yeah. Even I’ve heard of them. They’re huge.”

“Yeah. They just dropped out of a European tour they’re doing with two other bands, and we’ve been asked to replace them.”

Her smile faltered but only for a second. “That’s wonderful.” She turned back to her arrangement. “When do you leave?”

“Tomorrow.”

She froze but didn’t look up. “Wow. Tomorrow. That’s so… soon.”

He put his hand on her shoulder. “I know.” He squeezed her shoulder and felt how small she was, how fragile. “We can talk on the phone. E-mail. We can make it work.”

Her body went tight under his hand. “Okay, sure.”

He turned her around and met her watery gaze. “You remember how much you trusted me last night?”

She nodded.

“You need to do that now. You need to trust me. I won’t let you down.”

“
Mr. St. Crow?
”

It took him a minute to drag his gaze from hers. A man was jogging toward them. He looked a few years older than Mark. His brown hair was cut neatly, and he wore khaki pants and a blue button-down shirt. When he reached them, he held out his hand. “I’m James Cleaver.”

Mark shook it. “Nice to meet you.”

The man bounced on the balls of his feet. “My employees are ecstatic about tonight! We can’t wait.”

“Thanks for asking us to do the show,” Mark managed.

“When I found out Ruby knew you personally, I just couldn’t resist asking her if you’d play for us.”

Mark glanced at Ruby. “I just can’t say no to her. Her wish is my command.”

“And, I’m looking forward to the cocktail party,” James said. “And so are five of my most important clients.” He turned to Mark. “God, she is really something, isn’t she? I swear, she can pull off magic. I had CEOs begging to get an invite to this preparty!”

“What?” Mark shook his head. “What preparty?”

Smiling, Ruby stepped on the top of his foot with her heel. Hard.

“Mark’s kidding. The band is going to be at your place at six sharp.” She glared at him. “Right?”

Fuck.
He’d totally forgotten he’d obligated the band to a schmooze fest before the show. He nodded. “Yeah, right. Of course we’ll be there.”

She glowered at him for another moment before giving James a huge smile. “Everything seems to be running smoothly, James. It’s going to be a fabulous event.”

James beamed at Ruby, and something in Mark went tight. He didn’t like the way this guy was looking at Ruby, not one bit.

“Of course it’s going smoothly,” James said. “With you running the show, everything goes exactly as planned. Always does, gorgeous.”

A pink flush tinged her cheeks. “Thank you.”

Mark’s gaze darted back and forth between the two: Ruby in her retro outfit; James in his neatly pressed pants and preppy shirt.

Mark’s gut clenched as he realized this Cleaver guy epitomized everything Ruby had wanted her entire life; he could give her what she’d always wanted.

Because the one thing Mark knew without a doubt was that no other man could ever love Ruby the way Mark knew he could, if she would just give him the chance.

Now, she smiled at Mark but her eyes were cold. “You probably need to go pack for your tour. I’ll see you tonight, Mark. At the show.” She turned away to show the Cleaver guy something on her clipboard.

And just like that, Mark was dismissed.

Mark slammed the door behind him, causing Yvette to look up from her bowl of cereal. Jake paused his perusal of the issue of
Rolling Stone
he was reading and said, “’sup.” He was lounging on the sofa, wearing Mickey Mouse pajama bottoms and not much else.

Mark stepped around their packed luggage, sitting in the living room of the loft they’d been living in for the past two weeks. He’d hardly seen the place. Most of his time had been spent at the studio or with Ruby. And now they were leaving.

Twenty-four hours from now they’d be in London. Far away from San Francisco, far away from Ruby.

“What’s up, Doc?” Yvette asked and spooned in a mouthful of Lucky Charms. She wore a white tank top and boxers and looked like she had just woken up, even though it was past three.

He dropped into a chair opposite her. “Nothing. I’m just ready to split.”

“Everything okay?” she asked as she chewed.

“I don’t fucking know.”

“It’s that chick, isn’t it?” Jake called from his spot on the couch. He shook his head. “I knew it was a love song.”

“We never did hear it,” Yvette said.

“And you never will.”

“My, my. Someone’s got his Underoos in a wad.”

Mark grunted.

“Seriously,” she said, her voice softer. “What’s up?”

“I went to talk to Ruby today, to tell her that I wanted to try and give things a go.”

Yvette gave a low whistle. “Wow. That’s pretty serious.”

“She was less than enthusiastic, especially when I told her we were leaving tomorrow.”

“Really?” she asked.

“Yeah.”

“Now, why would a healthy, red-blooded, hetero woman go and push away a hot guy like yourself?” She leaned forward. “Maybe she’s gay.”

“She’s not gay. She has a crush on Mr. Cleaver.” Mark cringed.

Yvette jerked back. “The Beaver’s dad?”

“No, the dude who’s putting on this gig tonight, but he may as well be the guy from the show.”

“And so what did you do?” Yvette said between bites.

He shrugged. “What was I supposed to do? I left.”

Yvette threw herself back in her chair. “You’re kidding.”

“Do I look like I’m kidding?”

“No, not really.” She pushed away her empty bowl, sat back and rubbed her belly. “Mmm mmm good. Anyway, what are you going to do now?”

“I think she wants me to leave.”

“That’s mighty pussy of you, dude,” Jake put in and went back to reading.

If looks could kill, Jake would be DOA.

Yvette drilled him with her gaze. “So, can you talk to her again before we leave?”

“Hell yeah, I am. But I’m not sure what to say to convince her, especially with Mr. Fucking Perfect sniffing around.” And calling her
gorgeous
. Mark felt like he’d been sucker-punched.

“Listen,” Yvette said. “You gotta try something. As it is, you’re pretty useless.”

“What are you talking about?” he demanded.

“Have you eaten today? Did you sleep last night?”

“What’s that got to do with anything?” he muttered even as his stomach growled.

“We’re about to embark on our first European tour. I can’t go see Big Ben with a lovesick zombie! Now, we need to do something to woo this girl, at least long enough to get you through our crazy upcoming schedule.”

“I told you, I’m going to talk to her later, when she’s not so busy getting ready for tonight.”

Yvette shook her head sadly. “Men,” she said, rolling her eyes. “I respect any woman with the patience to put up with one of you. Now listen to me. I have a plan.”

Chapter
Twenty-Five

R
uby punched the button to dial Mark’s cell phone number again, and just like the twenty-three other times, he didn’t answer.

“Ruby, we have time for one more drink, and then we need to go.”

Ruby turned away from the floor-to-ceiling window of James Cleaver’s loft. Behind him, a buffet table was elegantly set with an array of colorful appetizers. Holding delicate champagne glasses, people mingled. But what had started as excited conversation at the beginning of the night had turned into hushed, disappointed murmurs.

Mark hadn’t shown up.

As she faced James, her throat was so tight she could barely speak. “I don’t know where they are, James. Something must have happened.”

Gently, he placed a hand on her shoulder. “I’m sure there was some sort of emergency. Don’t worry about it.”

But panic was racing through her, making her brow tingle with sweat. It was past seven; the Riders were over an hour late.

How could Mark do this to her?

A woman Ruby recognized as the recent benefactor of a huge Napa winery walked by. Ruby had been dying to make a good impression with her; the young heiress was known for throwing totally extravagant parties, and Ruby wanted a piece of the action. But after tonight, she seriously doubted that would be happening.