Never Say Never (11 page)

            “So
you broke up?” I couldn't help asking. “You're not together anymore?”

            “You
could say that.”

            So,
Danny had already dissolved one band due to a break-up....

            “Nobody
wanted to be in that band anymore,” Danny said. “Not after...” He took a
breath. “Neve, Peyton died this time last year. Car crash.”

            So
that was Danny Blue's secret. The secret that made those gorgeous blue eyes
fill with pain and rage and darkness. The source of his tears, of his haunting
music.      

            I
was torn between sadness and relief – grief for Danny's grief, and shameful,
ecstatic relief....that Danny wasn't with anyone else, that Peyton was a thing
of the past. I flushed, ashamed at my own thoughts, trying to make sense of how
I felt.

            “I'm
so sorry, Danny...” I was holding him, hugging him as I would hug Luc or Kyle
when I wanted to comfort him, “Danny, I didn't know.”

            He
reached up and grabbed my hand, hard. For a moment I thought he was pushing me
away. And then I saw the hard, naked look of desire in his eyes.

            “I
can't take this another second, Neve,” he said in a hoarse voice, grabbing me
by the wrists and leading me back inside, into the elevator.

            “Where
are you going?” I looked up at him, confused. “What are we doing?”

            “We've
got to do something about this, Neve. Get it out of our systems. Before it gets
the better of both of us. We have to resolve this – or else we're never going
to be able to concentrate. If we just act on it – get it out of the way – maybe
we won't....Neve, since Peyton died I haven't so much looked at another girl. I
haven't wanted to. But with you – I feel something. This chemistry… I can’t
stand it.” He pressed me against the elevator walls, his lips slamming against
mine. “If these bloody elevators don't hurry up I swear I'm not accountable for
whatever happens next.”

            I
could feel my own body tensed, set aflame by his desire.

            The
elevator opened and Danny rushed me down the corridor, hurriedly unlocking the
suite door.

            “What
comes next?” I asked, my voice trembling.

            He
locked the door behind us, his eyes glittering with longing, with the force of
his need. He wanted me – I wanted him – and in that moment I couldn't think,
couldn't concentrate on anything but how much I wanted him. He pulled me into
the bedroom, pressing his lips on mine, his body against mine so tight that I
could feel just how much he wanted me, just how much I wanted him...his kisses
were hungry, desperate; my hands slid into his hair, gripping at him as I
pulled him closer to me. I had wanted this for so long – wanted to kiss him, to
run my hands up and down his tantalizingly chiseled chest.

           
Forget
the damn rules,
I thought to myself.
Technically, this isn't
dating...we've never been on a date.

           
Then
his top was on the floor – he was lifting my blouse over my head, kissing my
breasts, pushing me back on the bed as I shuddered with pleasure, his mouth
trailing from my navel to the top of my thigh. “You're more beautiful than I
imagined,” he groaned. “But I wonder...how do you taste...”

            The
rational part of my brain told me I should hold back, figure out what was going
on, clarify expectations, or just bloody
run away
before things got
messy.

            I
told the rational part of my brain to shut the hell up.

            “Chemistry,
huh?” was all I could say.

            “I
told you...we had to resolve it, one way or the other.” He murmured against my
neck. “Get it out of the way. For the band, remember?” he teased.

            “Well,
if it's for the band...”

            “Neither
one of us can go another second being tortured like this – I can feel it, you
can feel it. If we're going to play together, we've got to get this desire out
of our systems, this second...”

            “Right
this second.” His skin tasted sweet and salty, tantalizing me as I nibbled his
chest and shoulders, making my way hungrily to his lips.

            Just
as his fingers were fumbling with my jeans zipper, I heard the phone ring.

            “Damn...”
I muttered, silencing it. But it kept on vibrating – the caller calling back
again and again.

            “Oh,
who
is
that?” Danny groaned, frustrated. “Just turn it off.”

            I
looked down in horror as I saw the caller ID. The one name you least want to
see when you're about to have wild sex with the guy you’ve been fantasizing
about every day.

            “It's
my dad.”

Chapter
12

           
O
h, shit.
My face was bright scarlet, a
combination of pulsing desire and absolute humiliation. Just as I was about to
get busy with Danny Blue – making all of my erotic dreams come true at once – I
was interrupted by the single worst possible intrusion: my dad on the caller
ID. I was pretty sure he'd seen the pictures of me playing at the gig – and
with it, figured out that I was a rocker just like dear old dad, bound to end
up on that same track which my father was utterly convinced could only lead
inexorably to lots of sex, lots of drugs, and plenty of diseases. The second
two I minded – at this second, I couldn't imagine that the first would bother
me too much. Still, I had to get home right away, to deal with this crisis
before my father personally had me and the rest of the Never Knights banned
from every reputable club in the country. And knowing my father, that wouldn't
be difficult. Even if he wasn't a rock star – he knew enough to threaten the
club for having allowed four under-twenty-ones unlimited access to their
“champagne suites” and bottle service – and to threaten to make enough of a
fuss to get their license revoked. I grimaced. I could only imagine what a mess
this conversation with my dad was going to turn out to be.

            Danny
had evidently picked up on my distress. He came over to me, wrapping his arms
around my stomach as he pulled me to his naked chest, his waist tight against
me, his hard-on deliriously, tantalizingly pressed against my back. He nibbled
lightly on my earlobes, his fingers lightly stroking my nipples where they
escaped from the delicate lace of my bra. I closed my eyes in sheer pleasure as
his fingers relentlessly flicked back and forth, making it hard for me to
concentrate. For a second my body relaxed, instinctively forgetting all my
tension and all my worry as I gave myself over to the warm pleasure of his
touch. “What's the matter, darling?” he asked, his hot breath ever so slightly
tickling my ear, his tongue flecking against my earlobe.

            “I've
got to...Danny...” I pleaded half-heartedly, but he wasn't having any of it. No
sooner had I put on an item of clothing – a sock, a shoe, my jeans – than he
took it off, taking advantage of an unprotected area to teasingly slip the
clothing from my body. I tried to concentrate, but I couldn't bring myself to
push him away, let alone to leave. I'd never felt like this before. This overwhelming
sense of desire that clouded my brain and made me want to vanish into his arms,
give myself over to the wealth of physical sensation. I couldn't breathe; I
couldn't think. In a matter of days my life had gone from my number-one
project, the thing I worked hard to control, to spiraling into utter chaos.
Ever since Danny Blue had come into my life, I couldn't do anything but give
myself over to the passion I felt for him.

            “He's
going to be so pissed at me...” I murmured. “I've got to go...”

            “Really...”
Danny flicked my navel with his tongue. “You have to go
right now
?” His
smile was so filled with longing, so filled with ideas of exactly what he'd
like to do to me, that I couldn't help but lean back onto the pillow, allowing
him to take off my bra, my jeans, everything but my underwear, which he kissed
lightly – maddeningly – before looking back up at me.

            “Whatever...”
I sighed. “I can't control what he thinks, what the public thinks, what that
stupid stalker John Flint thinks, what anyone thinks...they're going to say
whatever they want to say.”

            “Exactly,”
said Danny, still kissing me. “You can't control what other people think about
you Neve. You can only control yourself.”

           
If
only I could control myself.

           
“You
can't handle everything on your own, Neve. So why don't you let go, okay?” He
smiled, his eyes glittering with desire. “Let go.” He slid his hand into my
underwear, stroking the lace, his hands just close enough to make me release a
slight gasp. “Why don't you relax and let me...handle things for a while, okay”

            “But
my dad...” I half-protested.

            “Are
you really thinking about your
dad
at a time like this?” he gave a low
laugh before stopping, withdrawing his hand and instead wrapping his fingers
around mine. “Look, Neve – if you really want me to stop, I'm happy to. Well,
not happy, but...I want to do what feels good. For you. For both of us. But if
you just need to relax, to de-stress...I'm here to help you do that.” He smiled
a slow sexy, smile.  “I’ll take pleasure in making you forget about everything,
Neve. Trust me, I’m very good at lovemaking. Whatever you have to deal with
tomorrow, you can deal with tomorrow. Let your dad have some time to cool off,
to think things over. And you – I want to bring you pleasure more than you
know.  I’ve been dreaming about this, about how you would look when you finally
lose control. I promise – you'll have a clearer mind in the morning. We both
will...”

            I
looked at him, frozen by his expression. My eyes stared into his. And then,
before I knew what I was doing, I nodded...

            “Good,”
he whispered, kissing my lips, his tongue slightly touching the corner of my
lips, pressing the length of his body against mine. I could feel the full
throbbing force of his desire, feel that unfamiliar but thrilling hardness against
my thigh as he wrapped his ankles around mine. I couldn't believe it. It still
felt strange – like a dream. He wanted me. Danny Blue, the sexiest, most
sophisticated, most worldly guy I'd ever met, wanted me. He wanted me as badly
as I wanted him.

            “How
about I take care of you tonight, Neve? You had a rough night, didn't you? I
get that. So why don't we focus on you first...and worry about the other stuff
later...” He laughed softly. “I always said music was one of the things I loved
doing most in the world. And that's still true. But there's something else that
comes
awfully
close...” He grinned as his fingers caressed the inside of
my thighs, making me shudder, tracing a slow and inexorable path upwards that
made me moan slightly, my lips meeting the edge of his left palm, which still
rested against my cheek. “I know you're a control freak, Neve. I can recognize
the type. But that's exactly the type I love to watch lose control. The kind
who would enjoy it most. I can tell. You'll enjoy this.”

           
I
already am.

           
But
something held me back. Whatever happened tonight – it would be the first time
for me. I wasn't a stranger to the facts of life – growing up with Keith
Knight, half of whose lyrics contained explicit references to several sex acts,
taught me all I needed to know. I'd certainly been no stranger to my own
fantasies – more than a few of them in recent days about Danny Blue. But there
was a difference between theory and practice, as my guitar teacher always used
to say – and a difference that what was about to happen was set to make
frighteningly clear.

            “Wait,
Danny...” I said. “Hold up. There's something you should know...”

            “Yeah?”
He smiled at me.

            “This
is – well, don't freak out, okay?”

            “Okay...”
He raised an eyebrow. “What, are you going to tell me you've got some
incriminating tattoo.”

            “I'm
a...”
Spit it out, girl.
I wasn't ashamed, after all. Or was I? “This is
my first time, okay?”

            Danny's
mouth fell open. “No!”

            “Sorry?”

            “Sorry?”
He laughed. “No – I'm sorry – I mean, it's nothing to apologize for. I just
figured – you know, given how much sex the rest of your band members seem to be
having, surrounded by adoring groupies...”

            I
shook my head. “I've just – I mean, I'm not really interested in too many
people. The guys in the band are like brothers to me – and I don't have time to
meet too many others.” I racked my brains, trying to think what Patti Smith or
Siouxsie Sioux would say in a situation like this. “I'm still – you know, if
you're still up for it...” I sat up. “I waited because I wanted to wait for
someone I'd enjoy it with. And I think – if you're cool – I'd enjoy it a lot
with you.”

            Danny
grinned. “I certainly hope so.”

            “So,
you don't have to worry – you don't have to hold back.”

            He
leaned in and kissed me again. “It just means I'll have to work extra hard,” he
said. “To make this special. For both of us. Not that you weren't already extra
special to me, love. I'll go slowly, okay? And be as gentle as you want...”

            “You
don't have to be gentle,” I said quickly. I'd imagined this moment plenty of
times in my fantasies, never dreaming it would be real. But if I was going to
lose my virginity to Danny Blue, I knew exactly how I wanted it to be. And the
words “slow” and “gentle” didn't factor into the equation.