Kari sensed his movements as he poured more shower gel onto his hands, then with one palm flat against her stomach he slowly pressed one finger of the other hand into the tight ring of her ass. Pressed, pressed, pressed, until he was past the muscle and inside the dark tunnel. A thrill of forbidden pleasure began to spiral through her, unwinding and reaching into every part of her body. She forced herself to relax and accept the intrusion and suddenly tiny spasms raced through her pussy. Oh, god! Oh god, this feels so good. I could come just from this one thing.His breath tickled her ear as he chuckled. "I told you I'd make you feel good. I can make you feel even better."A second finger slipped in next to the first, spreading and stretching her tissues, rubbing against the sensitive spots of this virgin flesh. When he began to move his fingers in and out she shivered all over. The faster he stroked, the more aroused she became, streaks of excitement heating her body."Do you like t
"Okay, where did you find the hunk and why have you been keeping him a secret?"Kari looked up from her desk to find her office manager, Sheila Warrick, leaning in her doorway, a huge grin on her face and her eyes filled with curiosity."What?" She frowned, her mind still on the contract she was reviewing. "I don't understand. What hunk?""The one with the impressive package and the seduce me eyes." She laughed. "I can't believe you haven't said one word about him, Miss I-have-no-one-in-my-life."Kari felt a trickle of perspiration wiggle its way down her spine. "I don't...I'm not...""I usually leave her speechless," that voice like melted chocolate said from behind Sheila. "That's probably why she hasn't said a word."Sheila moved aside and there he was, just as tempting and wicked as the night before. In place of last night's jeans he was wearing black slacks that looked as if they'd been tailored specifically for him and a grey silk shirt, open at the throat. The turquoise r
The door to the suite was barely closed and locked before Riley was unbuttoning her suit jacket, slipping it off her shoulders and working on the zipper of her skirt."I thought we were going to have lunch," she said, heat flaming everywhere his fingers touched her."We are." His voice was husky with passion. "This is the appetizer."His lips were tracing a warm line from her chin along the column of her neck to the upper swell of her breasts. As the filmy fabric of her blouse slid down her arms he followed its path with his lips, first one arm then the other. Every touch felt like the light kiss of a butterfly, barely touching her skin but lighting up every nerve in its path. Her skirt pooled at her feet as he slid it down her hips and his fingertips trailed down to her stomach and the lace band of her thong.He touched her everywhere, with his fingers and his mouth, one following the other, while he stood perfectly still, exploring her with one hand and holding her with the oth
"You like it, don't you, darlin'." It was a statement, not a question. "The spanking. The little nip of pain. The giving over of control." He unbuttoned his shirt. "I like my sex that way, Kari. And think you've just discovered you do, too." The shirt slid down his arms, exposing the hard-muscled chest and the fine pelt of dark curls. "But you know what you might find, Kari? That the person giving up control really has it after all. Because you're giving pleasure as a gift, and that's something that can't be compared."Kari kept watching him, licking her lips at the sight of him. She was so aroused her body begged for release."Here's what I want you to do," he continued in that same whiskey voice. "Take that thong off, spread your legs and play with yourself while I take off the rest of my clothes." His voice was a caress itself. "Come on, Kari. I know you're hotter than hell and want to come. I could feel how that spanking stimulated you. Show me your cunt, honey. I felt how wet it
The remains of lunch sat on the table in the living room of the suite. Now Kari lay on the bed, her wrists bound and fastened to the headboard, legs spread wide. Her pussy throbbed with incredible hunger, astonishing after the last orgasm she'd had. But there it was, grasping at every nerve in her body, arousing every erogenous zone. No man had ever made her feel like this. Ever. Not once in her life. No wonder she so willingly gave control of it to him. Riley knelt between her widespread legs, the remainder of the bottle of wine in his hands. He tipped it downward to dribble the liquid over her nipples, then took long, slow pulls to lap it up. The wine was cool, his mouth hot, and the contracts in sensation made her nipples pulsate. Streaks of sensation raced from the pebbled buds to heat her breasts, aching for his touch.His tongue, like rough velvet, flicked back and forth over one nipple at a time, making sure he captured each spicy drop. Each time he tilted the bottle again, h
Part Two: Man of My HeartJasmine Grey took off her signature white Stetson, ran a hand through the tumble of her auburn curls and gave a sigh of relief. "Done for the night." She grinned at Gary Lockwood, her tour manager. "But it rocked, didn't it?"Gary gave her a smile a mile wide. "It sure did. You were hotter than a pistol. Carson's gonna be real excited at the response you're getting.""It's hard to believe a year ago I was still playing any club in Austin where I could get a gig and sending out demos to anyone and everyone.""Then one night Carson dropped into that club where you were filling in," Gary reminded her, "and the rest, as they say, is history."Carson Wagner was one of the hottest managers in the business. Unlike many others in the business, he chose to make his base of operations in Austin, Texas, rather than Nashville. He told people Austin was rich with talent they hadn't even discovered yet. He'd grown up a big Willie Nelson fan and loved to tell people
"Hey. What about us?" Cobra asked."You know the score," Gary told him. "She succeeds, you succeed. And that could mean another album and more studio money for you guys." He paused. "And Cobra? Behave yourself.""Man." He laughed. "That's no fun.""It would be less fun to get kicked off of this gig.""Yeah?" The bass player's features were arranged in a sneer. "I'm the best fucking bassist you can buy, man. I'm not going' anywhere." ""Just behave. You ready, Jas?"Jasmine grabbed her little cosmetic bag and did a quick repair job, fluffing her hair and checking her outfit. She slapped her Stetson back on and turned to Gary."Okay?""We think you look gorgeous," Tony Baez, her lead guitar player called out. "Forget about him."There was another knock on the door."That'll be your cue," Gary said. "Let's move it, people."Jasmine tried to still the flock of butterflies swarming in her stomach. It's just another song, she told herself. She was glad she knew a lot of the Sweet
"Fuck." His voice was still slurred but now it was edged with anger. "You bitch. Okay, I wanted to make it nice for you but that's out the window. I'm gonna take what I want and fuck you blind."Jasmine could hardly breathe with his weight on top of her, and fear had nearly paralyzed her vocal chords. His fingers closed around her wrists in a painful grasp and he held her in place while he kneed her legs apart. When he grabbed the top of her sleep pants and yanked, tearing the fabric, she found her voice and screamed and kept on screaming.Suddenly the pressure of his body was gone. Voices surrounded her and she tried to focus on what was happening. There were people in the room, a lot of people, Gary and Hondo and some others she didn't even recognize. She curled onto her side, trying to hide herself. Oh god, oh god, oh god.Her breasts still hurt where Cobra had squeezed it so hard and she felt sick to her stomach. Then Gary was there."Ssh, ssh," he soothed. "It's okay. We've
The Austin Energy Center was about to be filled with more than fifteen thousand shattering, crazy fans. The promoter had begun selling the merchandise for her and Sweet Dixie twenty-four hours before the show because people were screaming for it. He'd sold out and Carson had to have an emergency shipment overnighted to the venue. Between her and the headliner they were swamped with a sudden flood of requests for interviews. Carson was on site working with Caleb to manage the process. They ended up doing them all at the hotel where they were all staying so they could contain and regulate things. Everywhere she went, inside the hotel or outside, Jasmine was stunned by the huge increase in people who recognized herJasmine was ready to either shoot Caleb our kick him in the balls. The man was driving her nuts. It was only because of him, his feelings for her, their connection that she'd had the strength not to be scared out of her wits when Cobra finally got to her. That same sense of
Caleb had never been one for concerts, even as a kid, so the magnitude of that night's event stunned him. People clogged the parking lot trying to score tickets and the venue staff selling merchandise for the two performers ran out before the evening was even over. Backstage the two sets of roadies worked like well-oiled machines, getting their performers on and off stage and keeping the show flowing. Sweet Dixie, who greeted Jasmine like a long lost sister, insisted she do the last number with them again, and fifteen thousand fans screamed their lungs out. The next two shows were just as wild, especially since the band also had Jasmine sing one of their songs with them. Gary Lockwood told him this was unusual. Most acts like Sweet Dixie wanted the spotlight all to themselves. The opening act was just something to give them time to get their shit together for the night. But apparently they had developed an affection for Jasmine on the last tour. "That's like gold in the vault," Gar
Caleb had one word to describe the tour-insanity. Jasmine's new celebrity had crowds swarming wherever they went. It was a damn good thing Carson had reached out to the police departments in each city, gotten a contact and set it up to hire off duty cops as needed. The band was practically wetting itself, they were so over the top about it. And maybe because of that, and because Jasmine was the key, they had appointed themselves her extra protections. Wherever she went, they went, even if they did nothing else but take orders from Caleb.They had hit their third stop before the first sign of trouble showed its head."Sorry to bother you this, early, but the bus is fucked." It was six in the morning, they were due to leave at ten and Gary was on the phone with Caleb. "The driver's losing his shit.""What's the problem?" He was glad his training had taught him to come alert in seconds."It's the engine. Someone put sugar in the gas tank and it gummed up the engine."Shit!"Okay, ok
The album was finished and everyone had given it their blessing. Jasmine was determined that asshole Cobra wasn't gong to ruin this session, the album or the tour. The songs really cooked, the band was at its best even with a new addition, and everyone was so high on the possibilities the air around them practically vibrated.The night they finished Carson took them all out to dinner. Gary Lockwood joined them with two roadies. The sound system and all the equipment except the guitars would be stored in a secure facility with three armed guards. No one was taking any chances."I won't let him kill this," Jasmine said again at the table. "He really turned out to be a snake," Hondo remarked. "Remember when he tried to use that as his nickname?"Tony smacked his forehead. "We should have gotten a clue from that."Carson looked around the table at everyone. "I put out the word on him. For one thing, it will help to have a lot of eyes out there if he does try to show up. For another,
Caleb had been in very sophisticated cockpits when he was in Special Forces. He'd been in a couple of control towers as part of a mission. But the setup at TruSound Studios blew his mind. The sound booth was three times as large and four times as complicated as the one where they'd been rehearsing. Jasmine had told him this was where she'd recorded her other albums and he realized what Carson meant about spending a penny to make a penny. This was the elite of recording studios, no doubt about it.Greg and Hitch, the sound engineers, greeted Jasmine with bear hugs, shook hands with the band and acknowledged the introduction to the new bass player. They didn't seem the least bit phased when Jasmine introduced Caleb as her bodyguard. It seemed a lot of people knew the story of what happened with Cobra."Damn, Jasmine," Greg teased. "I'd have guarded your body for nothing. He winked and said to Caleb, "Just joking, guy. We've been recording Jas since Carson brought her in here to do her
The first thing Jasmine did was strip of her clothing and step into the big tiled shower, washing away what she called rehearsal dust. The water cascaded over her in streams while she stood there letting the water wash away the fatigue and tension of the past two weeks. She was standing there with her eyes closed, face upturned, when she heard the door slide open and the next thing she knew warm arms wrapped around her and she was pulled tight against a hard male body. Hard in a lot of ways.He slid one hand over her shoulder and down to palm a breast, hefting it in his hand, squeezing the nipple between thumb and forefinger. Electricity shot straight to her core and she had to squeeze her thighs together. "Like that?" His deep voice sent little ripples through her. When he kissed her cheek and nibbled on her neck down to her shoulder the sensations set up a pulsing in her sex. With one muscular arm banding her to his body it was impossible to miss the hard thickness of his cock p
Jasmine couldn't ever remember being this excited, even when she'd first signed with Carson and she was high on the takeoff of her career. Afternoons and evenings-sometimes until three in the morning-she worked in the studio with the band nailing down the new material. Nights, no matter how late they got back to the hotel, she and Caleb made incredible love and then she slept in his arms.The morning following that first night she'd been startled and amazed when she woke up in bed with Caleb. On the one hand she wanted to just cuddle up with him and shut out the world. On the other she was still waiting for the other shoe to drop. For Caleb to tell her what a big mistake it was. To even have the nerve to apologize. And then to tell Carson he'd have to find another bodyguard.But whatever drew them together, against all odds also kept them bound together. She knew he was still finding his way out of his voluntary isolation. She was still on tiptoes making sure she didn't do something
Jasmine threaded her hands into Caleb's hair, holding his head in place, her soft little moans like music to his ears. When he had taken his fill he locked his gaze with hers, reading in her eyes the same intense desire and need that gripped every bit of his body."If I try to stand up any longer," he told her in a shaky voice, "I'm afraid I'll fall to the floor. I need to take this someplace more conducive to what I have in mind.""And what is that?" Her lips curved in a sensuous smile.He put his mouth to her ear. "I'm going to lick and taste every inch of this gorgeous body and then I'm going to fuck you until neither of us has breath left." He yanked back the covers on her bed and placed her on the sheets. His hands trembled a bit as he got rid of her sandals and jeans, drawing the denim slowly down her legs so his knuckles could caress the satiny skin. And that left only a tiny scrap of lace that passed for her panties. He thought for sure his heart would stop beating. It too
What the fuck was that all about? Even before what Caleb referred to in his mind as the disaster he'd never had more than a sexual pull toward any woman. But watching Jasmine, listening to her, seeing the joy in her face, he wanted to sweep her into his arms, hold her tight and make all the bad memories go away. He knew he was seeing something special here.She was born to this."She sure was," Carson agreed.Caleb startled, not realizing he'd spoken his thoughts aloud."Sorry, I, uh, -""No problem. Glad to see you appreciate what we've got here. Okay, I'm moving along. Call me if you need anything."Hours later, even with his butt sore from sitting and his stomach protesting the excess consumption of coffee, he was stunned to realize how much time had passed. How his attention had been captured by the electric quality of the music. Of Jasmine's songs. Before he left Carson had flipped the switches so he could hear everything in the booth. Even with all the stops and starts, wit