Trey picked up Xavier’s discarded shirt and tossed it at him. “Now who’s making up bullshit stories?”“Believe what you must.”Trey entered the bathroom and locked the door. He wasn’t sure if he’d locked it to keep Xavier out or to keep himself from inviting him in. Trey had to take a shower though or Reagan would know he was keeping things from her. He wanted to be completely honest with her about everything. Well, except for his past attraction to men. She didn’t need to know about that, but everything else… completely honest. He was still trying to convince himself that he was being honest with Reagan when he finished his shower and found, with a strange mix of relief and disappointment, that Xavier had done what he’d asked and left.He wasn’t prepared to find Reagan waiting for him outside the dressing room door. Had she seen Xavier leave? That was bound to bring up all sorts of questions he wasn’t prepared to answer.“Feel better?” she asked in a clipped tone.Shit. She knew abou
“I’m here. Yeah, around seven thirty.”“I’ll see if I can find out who sent it. If you get another one, make sure you don’t delete it.”“It scared me,” she admitted.“What did it say?”“‘You took what’s mine, bitch. Don’t think you’ll get away with it.’”“Probably some jealous ex of your new boyfriend’s. It was most likely an empty threat, but I’ll still check up on it. Are you still scared?”“I feel better now.” Ethan always made her feel safe. She was thinking she overreacted. She’d never been threatened like that before.“If you need your bodyguard a couple weeks early, I can fly out. Where are you now? On your way to Saint Louis, right?”“How did you know?”He was quiet for a long moment. “I sort of mapped out your entire trip based on the tour dates posted on Sinners’ website.”Reagan laughed. “See. You are paranoid and overprotective.”“You can count on it.”“I’ll be okay, Ethan. Thanks for being there when I needed you.”“You can count on that too.”*******Several days later,
She’d almost made it to the door that led to the dressing rooms backstage when Brian burst through the door and she staggered backwards. He steadied her with both hands.“They actually started without me? I can’t f**king believe this,” he said.“You have nothing to worry about, Master Sinclair. Your adoring audience awaits,” she said and jerked out of his grip before racing to Sinners’ empty dressing room.She went straight for her cell phone and dialed Ethan. He was there. He was always there. He listened to her tirade about the entire incident from before the show until the instant she’d called him. And then he listened to the confession of her fears. And then her discourse of self-pity. And finally her indignation at being treated that way for doing someone a favor. After she’d unloaded all of her feelings, Ethan said, “Are you ready to give up and come home then?”“No, I’m not ready to come home. You don’t think one little catastrophe is going to make me give up this dream, do you
He stroked her hair from her face. “What’s wrong, Reagan?” “I’m not sure if I’m ready for this.” His heart sank. “Our relationship?” Her eyes widened and she shifted closer. “No, not that. Is that what you thought was bothering me?” Now she stroked his hair from his face. “I wasn’t sure,” he said. “You haven’t talked to me since you stormed offstage.” “I haven’t?” She hugged him. “I’m sorry. I guess after I unloaded on Ethan, I didn’t have much else to say.” “Ethan? You talked to him about it?” “Yeah. I called him earlier.” “So you go to Ethan with your problems instead of me?” “I’ve known Ethan a lot longer than I’ve known you, Trey. Depending on him is a habit, I guess. I can unload on you for the next forty-five minutes if you really want me to.” He cringed. “How about you give me a summary?” She stared at him for a long moment. “I’m not sure if I can take too many more shoes to the face,” she said. “I know I’ll have to win the fans over, but when I was up there I felt…
Having small boobs made her a liability? She didn’t know if she should be offended or hurt, so she settled on pissed. “I know I’m a nobody, but that doesn’t mean you can talk to me that way.”“Forget I offered.” He opened his folio and she half-expected him to pull out a sign that read “reject” and hang it around her neck. Instead he pulled out a thick piece of off-white paper and handed it to her. “That is your itinerary for the next week. Today is reserved for finding you the right look both onstage and in public. The rest of the week you’ll be rehearsing for the show. Questions?”She scanned the sheet but didn’t really internalize anything it said. She was still upset about becoming a sex object, or whatever it was this guy was trying to convert her into. “Why are you so fixated on my look?”“You’re an entertainer, Reagan. It comes with the territory.”“I’m a musician.”“In the studio, you’re a musician. Onstage, you’re an entertainer. Get used to it. It’s not up for negotiation.”
Reagan’s entire world tilted on its axis. Oh my God, I’ve done it again. I’ve turned the man I love g*y. Trey’s body convulsed and he wrapped his hand around the head of his c**k as if to hide the evidence of his release. His extended, vigorous, and—if the look on his face was any indication—intensely pleasurable orgasm.“Wha-what are you doing?” she sputtered.He squeezed his eyes shut and turned his flushed face into the mattress. “Sorry. I couldn’t stand it any longer.” His voice was muffled by the comforter. “I… we need to talk.”She didn’t want to talk. She wanted to flee. So she did. She backed out of the room and closed the door. She turned and collided with Ethan’s broad chest.“What’s wrong?” he asked.Why did those two words always make her cry? Light-headed and dizzy, she lifted a trembling hand to her lips. “Trey is g*y.”“How do you know that?”“I saw him… saw him in there.” She waved a hand toward the door behind her. “He was… getting off with…”“Anal?”She nodded.“That
“There’s nothing to say, Mark.”“You’re the one who introduced me to this lifestyle.”And Trey definitely regretted that now. He also felt like a hypocrite. He’d pushed Mark into accepting his sexuality, yet he’d hidden his own from Reagan. He should have known that it was the wrong way to handle it. If he’d have been on the other side, offering advice to a friend trying to hide who they were, he’d have told himself that he was being an idiot. That it wouldn’t work. Why had he thought he could make it work? Because he’d wanted her. He still wanted her. And he’d thought she would be enough. That it would work out.“I just need some advice,” Mark said.“On what?”“How to win you back.”Back? Mark had never had him in the first place.Trey rubbed a hand over his face, closed the front door, and crossed the room to sit on the comfortable, overstuffed sofa. He knew he had to be careful with Mark’s feelings. Trey wasn’t sure how to get his point across without being cruel. “Mark…”“Somethin
“Reagan,” he said breathlessly.“Hi, baby. I figured you wouldn’t believe Ethan if I didn’t back up his story. Are you okay with this arrangement?”Trey’s heart thudded in his chest. “I think you’re going to wind up getting hurt. I’ve been thinking. I don’t know. Maybe I could make these needs more tolerable with a dildo or…” He forced himself not to look at the temptation that was Ethan standing next to his front door. He knew a dildo was no substitute for that hot piece of flesh, but if it helped Trey keep Reagan, he could try to get by with less. Much, much, much less.“That won’t be enough and you know it,” Reagan said. “Don’t feel like I’m testing you, Trey. This was my idea.”“But thinking it. Saying it. Living it. All different things.”“If it’s what makes you happy, I want you to have it. No fooling around with other women though. I don’t have any male parts, but I have all the female goods. I’m the only woman on your menu. Got it?”She was willing to do this for him? Did she