Feuds and Interludes (Rock ‘n’ Romance Legends #1)

Chapter 25

Twenty-Five

S hane

Suffice it to say, my delivery could have used a little more planning and panache.

Poor Boone. We hadn’t talked about the end result for the music we’d been working on. It had just been so fun for both of us to see what would happen, and I knew he was as excited as I was about it. But his allegiance needed to be with his band, and I got that. I didn’t want to be clingy or anything, it just felt like I’d finally found my musical soul mate, who happened to come with a phenomenal pair of musicians and…now what?

The door closed after the twins and Boone set about cleaning up our trash from the day, which was a very un-Boone-like activity. I’d yet to see him clean something up.

“If I overstepped with Annie and Bran, I’m sorry.”

He whipped around and walked over to where I sat on a stool in front of a music stand.

“Don’t be sorry. I’m sorry. I probably should have planned for this conversation better. Those two are usually down for anything, but I think they’re…worried.”

“Worried?”

He tilted his head and ran a finger over my collarbone before pulling his hand away.

“Like, worried about what me being with you means for us as a band. They’re pretty flexible, but I’ve never, you know, been with someone like I am with you.”

I couldn’t help it, I had to poke him a little. I took his hand and pulled him closer to me until he was standing between my legs.

“How are you with me?”

He bounced his knee a couple of times and tapped my thigh with his fingers.

“I guess I don’t know how I am with you either. It’s been pure fucking bliss these last few weeks, but the real world is about to come calling. I guess I don’t know…”

I slid my hand around to his ass and pulled him flush against me. “What do you wish for us to be, Boone?” I smiled up at him as I ran my hand under his shirt, scoring his back with my nails.

His eyes fluttered closed and he swayed toward me.“Like this. Always. I want to sleep with you every night. I want to make music with you. I want what we have now to be us. I feel like I finally have my life where I want it, with my health getting better, my band sounding killer, and I finally have a partner who understands me and my music like no one ever has.”

He opened his eyes and was smiling, but a tear slipped down his cheek.

“Hey, no, baby. Don’t. I want that too. I feel the same. But I also know Stellar has to take priority. You guys are riding a high and you need to stay on it. I would never want to get in the way of that.”

“But what we’ve created together is incredible, Shane. You push me as a songwriter, as a musician, as a man. I think it’s some of the best music I’ve ever made, and I wish that it could just all come together into one big kumbaya moment!”

I snorted. I know, not the kindest way to react to my boyfriend’s existential crisis. “I draw the line at kumbaya. Taylor Swift revenge ballads are one thing.”

Boone threw his arms around me and buried his face in my neck, and I wasn’t sure how much of the sound coming from him was laughing and how much was crying, but I understood. I really did.

“How ’bout this,” I said, smoothing his hair back and cradling his cheek in my hand so I could stare into those gorgeous eyes of his. “We go back to my room and I get all up inside of you until we’re both wrecked and we put off making any decisions until the morning?” We hadn’t fucked since that first week, though we’d talked about it. We’d definitely fooled around. We were both so tired by the time we dragged ourselves back to my room at the end of each day that we’d fall into bed and hold each other until we fell asleep. Making music had been all that mattered.

“I want that,” he whispered. He lifted his head and stared into my eyes. “Love me, Shane.”

He kissed me with his eyes open and it was so hot, so full of passion.

“I do love you.”

My eyes were open. My heart was open, waiting for his response.

He blinked.

“God, I love you, too.” He shivered as he bent to kiss me once more, only this time, he held my face and kissed me so deep, he fucked my mouth with his tongue until I was gasping. I yanked his stretchy, dark purple, crushed velvet pants down enough to get to his cock and stroked it with both of my hands, running my fingertip over his Prince Albert piercing, smearing his precum all over, and he shuddered, moaning my name.

“I want to watch you come,” I rasped. I spit into my hand, and his eyes flared before taking on that heavy-lidded, lust-filled look I craved from him. The slickness of my hand over his shaft made us both moan and he gripped my shoulders for support. He pumped his hips forward and pressed his forehead against mine. The blissed-out expression on his face was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen.

“You better still fuck me when we get back to the lodge,” he said, his movements getting jerkier.

“I’d love to, babe, now come for me. I want it.”

“It’s yours,” he cried, and then he was coming in my hand, his whole body spasming. He fell against me, barely able to stand up. “Fuck, Shane. Good, so good.”

I held him against me while he caught his breath, and then he handed me a tissue, pulled his pants up and dragged me by the hand out of the studio.

“I can’t believe we did that in here,” he said as I punched in the code to lock and alarm the building.

“I can’t believe we hadn’t done it yet. I’ve caught Leland and Morrison getting it on in there, and I’ve heard Lydia and Unice have gotten a little freaky in there too. The studio has seen a lot of action.”

Boone chuckled. “How do you make light of things when everything feels so heavy?”

I turned him to face me. “Because when I’m with you, I feel like I can handle anything. Like, it’s all going to be okay somehow.”

“Then be with me. Say we can figure this all out, because right now? I don’t want to be out of your sight. I know we’ll have to be…eventually.”

“Yeah, sure. When you guys go on tour.”

“And you don’t.” He blinked up at me. “I want it all. I want Stellar, I want Butler Collins, and I don’t know how to make it all work.”

“We’ll figure it out,” I said, trying to reassure him, although I wasn’t sure who needed it more. Could I sit back while he was in the spotlight and not fester? “I want you to talk to the twins tomorrow and see what they say, without me there. This should be your decision as a band. Don’t make me the chick from This Is Spinal Tap .”

Boone burst out laughing. “Yeah if you come in with their star charts done, they’ll run you out of town.”

“I’ll try to keep that in mind. Now, get that ass up those stairs.” I smacked his right cheek hard enough to make him squeal, and he took off running.

“Come get it,” he called over his shoulder, which got me running after him. We were ridiculous. We were that sappy couple everyone makes fun of. We were in love, and damn it felt good.

We were out of breath when we got to my door. He reached around and unfastened my pants while I was trying to get the key in the lock.

“I want you to fuck me in that window seat,” he said, and his words went straight to my dick.

“You don’t care if we’re seen?”

“Let them be entertained,” he said as I got the door open and he pushed me inside. Within minutes, we were naked, and he knelt beside me on the window seat, in full view for anyone out front of the lodge at midnight. I worked him open with my fingers as I sucked on his neck.

“Those were almost healed,” he said, but his sigh was less annoyed and more desperate.

“I know,” I said, nibbling on the tendons that attached to his collarbones. “Time for new ones.”

“Oh, God, Shane. Give me that dick.”

He straddled me and lowered himself slowly until he was fully seated, his knees on either side of my hips on the window seat cushions.

“Take what you need, babe. You’re so fucking gorgeous like this.” I leaned back, supported his hips with my hands, and then watched as he got himself off, coating my stomach and chest. It was a damn beautiful sight. I slowed him down, sat up and wrapped my arms around him, thrust into him twice, three times, and when I came it was from the depths of my fucking soul.

He did that. He made me reach down inside myself and feel things I’d shut off a long time ago. Whether I wanted to feel them again or not, he brought it out of me.

When I stopped moving, he started to stand up.

“Please, wait.” I looked up into his face and brushed his hair back. “I love you,” I whispered. “I mean it, Boone, and it fucking scares me.”

He smiled at me and ran his thumbs over my cheekbones before kissing me. “You won’t be sorry. I’ll earn it, I swear.”

We showered together and then crawled into bed. We were quiet, though, and I couldn’t help it when my thoughts began to spin out. If life wanted to teach me a lesson about letting go of my need to control, this was definitely the way.

The next morning I woke up feeling raw, like every nerve was exposed. I groaned and rolled over to find Boone gone. I figured he was talking with his band and that didn’t help what was shaping up to be a foul mood.

It doesn’t do any good to second-guess yourself. You laid it all out there, Butler.

I growled and rolled over, pulling Boone’s pillow over my face. The minute I got a whiff of his…what did he call it…some fucking candy mixture that made my goddamned mouth water and my dick hard, I calmed down a little.

I’d have to trust Boone. It was as simple as that. He had my fucking heart in his hands. What else could I do?

At this very minute, I could get up and write about how my feelings were at war, how my fucking insecurities had me doubting myself, doubting him, doubting everything, and how I wanted to rage against the helplessness of it all.

The only paper I could find was in Boone’s notebook. It was pretty banged up and I was sure he’d probably used most of it, but I flipped it open to get to the last few pages…and my curiosity got the best of me.

At the top of a page in the middle were the words “Feuds and Interludes.”

It wasn’t one of the songs we’d worked on together. Did I chance taking a look?

At that moment, I heard footsteps running up the hall. I threw the notebook onto a pile of Boone’s clothes and lay back in the pillows. Yeah, like a coward.

The door flew open and Boone ran in, jumped onto the bed, and then very carefully removed his pillow from my face.

“Are you awake?” he whispered.