Encore Worthy: a Mountains & Men prequel novella (13 page)

I fucking love nights like this. When we murder it, like we just did, I feel it in my gut.
This is just the beginning. Mountains & Men are fucking going places. It’s only a matter of time.

“Let’s get this shit out of here,” grumbles Keith, loading his arms with gear. “There’s a girl out there whose ass is mine and my dick is thirsty.”

“Fuck. Nobody gives a shit about your dick, Keith,” mutters JJ.

“Got that right,” pipes in Knox with a laugh. “Maybe you should give me her name, no sense in her wasting her time with the likes of you.”

“Shut the fuck up. Even if I knew her name, I wouldn’t tell you. You’ll have to find your own skank.”

“Wow, Keith—really classy. You don’t even know her name?” Rosy scoffs as all six of us climb down the stairs and head toward the back entrance with our first load.

“Hey, babe, you look hot,” says Maddox, tapping my sister’s ass with his guitar case.

“Thanks, Maddox,” she hums, forgetting all about Keith.

I roll my eyes and ignore him. I know he does that shit to get a rise out of me; but I also know that Andrea’s around here somewhere and they’re still together this week—not to mention Maddox is almost as much of a brother to Rosy as I am.
Almost.

“Hey, what are you doing back here?” I ask her as she follows us. I glance at her outfit, noting that she’s in a pair of tight jeans, a barely there tank top, and heels. Suddenly, I’m glad she’s with us and not out there with the mob of assholes I’m sure have been staring at her all night.

“The roomie brought some friends and they wanted to meet M&Ms
totally hot
lead singer.” She laughs when Derrick grunts. “Be nice. I told them I could do better than just Sage. So will you come?”

“I’ve got to find Millie, Rose. I—”

“Dweeb—help me out, here.
Five minutes!
We don’t all have a hot chick out there waiting for us.”

“Yeah, please, big bro? Help me score some cool points. What good is it being related to you if I can’t show you off like a shiny new toy every once and a while?”

I laugh, shaking my head at the both of them before I reluctantly agree. “Fine.
Five minutes.
”

UP THERE ON THAT
stage, he’s sexier than I remember. Knowing what he can do to my body, remembering every dip and curve of the physique that hides beneath his clothes, imagining what it feels like when he rolls his hips against mine while I watch him up there seducing the crowd—needless to say, I’m hot and wet and aching to see him as soon as his set is over.

I don’t take my eyes off the stage as I watch them empty it of their equipment. When I catch sight of
Hercules
making his way back across the platform to gather another load, I still can’t believe that he’s part of the band. Though, why I didn’t recognize him before doesn’t take much guess work. I’m sure it’ll come as a surprise to him when he finds out that I wasn’t here for him, but for Sage.

After they’re finished with their tear down, I can’t help but smile when I spot Sage making his way from the back and into the crowd. Perched on the periphery of the dance floor, I can’t decide whether or not I should go to him or stay put and allow him to find me. Before I can make up my mind, I watch as a girl sidles up beside him and takes his hand. The petite brunette smiles up at him and he lets her drag him toward a bunch of girls who seem to gush with excitement at the sight of him. He laughs and flirts with them, posing for selfies, and my stomach drops.

As if I’ve been drenched with a bucket of cold water, I stand in horrified shock. It only takes me a second to realize that I’m not shocked by
his
behavior, but by
mine!
I can’t believe I came tonight with the expectation that he still wanted me—wanted us.

Fuck. There’s no us! What was I thinking?

I’m completely irritated with myself knowing that
this
was why I knew pursuing anything with him was a bad idea; and yet, I’m here. For every woman that says no to him, there are a dozen more waiting in the wings to say yes. I’m obviously not the only one who looks at him and melts with lust. He’s sex on a stick with a fucking voice that would make any girl drop her panties on demand.

Of course, I would know. I’ve done it. More than once.

I feel like an idiot. He went two days without speaking to me and I was stupid enough to think that it didn’t erase everything he said about wanting me. I let myself get caught up in him and I let my guard slip just a fraction of an inch, and now I’m paying for it.

I’m sure of two things when it comes to sex: with a little effort, I can coax a cock into my pussy; and when it’s all said and done, eventually, he’ll leave. They always do. I don’t know why I thought that Sage would be different. I don’t know how I could have let two nights of incredible sex bring me to this place where I now feel rejected. Honestly, I have no one to blame but myself.

“Surprised?”

For the second time tonight, I jump at the sound of his voice. Thanks to Sage’s introductions during the show, I now remember that his name is Keith. I shake my head in a failed attempt to shake off my disappointment from a moment ago and peer up at the tall, blonde figure in front of me. “I’m sorry, what?”

“The show—did I surprise you?”

“Yeah,” I mutter honestly.

“You can tell me what you thought over that drink,” he says, throwing his arm around my shoulders.

“Um, you know, I don’t think so,” I say, sliding out from underneath him. “I was just leaving.”

“No way,” he insists, gripping his arm around my waist as he ushers me to the bar. “One drink, beautiful. One drink with me and I bet
home
is the last place you’ll want to be.”

“Keith, I appreciate the gesture, but—”

“Come on,” I whines, spinning around to face me. “You can’t leave, not now that I can appreciate your attention. One drink.”

I sigh, unable to deny that a drink does sound appealing, regardless of the company. “Fine.
One
drink.”

FIVE MINUTES WITH
my sister and her new friends turns into
ten
and I’m beyond relieved when Rosy links her arm through mine and helps me escape. After I thank her for getting me out of there, she tells me that the only
thank you
she’ll accept is an introduction to the girl who has me completely on edge at the moment. I concede to her demand, anxious for any excuse to find Millie.

The crowd that I was thrilled about a half an hour ago is the bane of my existence now. After fifteen minutes, we still haven’t found her. I have no idea how in the hell I’m supposed to spot her in the sea of people that fills this place. I try calling her phone, but she doesn’t answer—not that I’m surprised.
It’s loud as fuck in here.

“I could help if I knew what she looked like!” Rosy yells up at me over the noise.

“I told you—light brown hair, dark green eyes, legs for days.”

“
Right,
” she mutters dubiously. “That’s
so
helpful.”

“Shit, Rosy, I don’t know what she’s wearing—it’s the best I can do.”

“Okay—calm down, Sage. We’ll find her,” she says, squeezing my arm. “Let’s try the bar again?”

“Yeah, okay.”

As I search for Millicent’s face, I begin to question if she’s even here. She said she’d come, but what if she changed her mind? It’s entirely possible that I pissed her off with my two days of silence and she decided I wasn’t worth the effort. Our set ended forty minutes ago—if she was looking for me like I’m looking for her, wouldn’t we have found each other by now?

“Whoa—Sage!”

“What?” I ask, looking down at Rosy who is now tugging on my arm.

“I’m sorry. I know you’re looking for Millie, but that girl with Keith? At the end of the bar? She looks totally fucked up. Given that I think Keith is a bit of a dick—can we just go check on her really quick?”

She points to what she’s looking at and, for a second, I can’t move. Millie is at the very end of the bar, sitting on a stool next to Keith. She’s propped up against the wall, her head tilted lazily to the side. She’s not even looking at him as he leans toward her, his hand skimming up the side of her thigh and under her short dress.

My blood starts to boil at the sight of
his
hands on
my
woman and all I want to do is shove my elbow into the fucker’s face. I shrug Rosy off, leaving her behind as I let my long legs carry me to the end of the bar. As soon as I’ve reached them, I grab Keith’s wrist and yank his hand away from her.

“What the hell?” he grumbles, scowling at me.

“What
the fuck
is going on here?” I growl.

“Sage?” Millie’s voice is small and I whirl around to face her.

“Doll face, I’ve been looking all over for you!”

“You have?” she asks, sounding surprised. She lifts her eyes to look at me and then groans before she closes them. “I’m
so
dizzy.”

Before I even know what’s happening, I’ve got two fistfuls of Keith’s shirt in my hands, my face inches away from his. “
What. Did. You. Do?
” I grind out, my rage causing me to see red.

“Get the fuck off me! I didn’t do anything,” he bites back, shoving at my hands.

My grip tightens as I shake him. “The fuck you didn’t! What is wrong with her?”

“So she can’t hold her liquor. That’s not my fault, asshole. Let me go!”

“You fucking piece of shit—you’re
lying!
”

“Sage!
Sage—calm down!
What is going on?” I hear Rosy only after she touches my elbow. When I whip my head around to look at her, she gasps and takes a step away from me.

“Call Knox. Get him over here,” I demand. I don’t wait to see if she does as I ask, my attention back on Keith in a second. “I’m going to ask you
one more time.
What the fuck did you do to her?”

“Ask anyone,” he dares me. “I just bought her a drink.”

He sees my fist before it connects with his face, but he’s too slow to dodge it. The blow leaves him stunned, giving me the opportunity to hit him again. And again. And again. I hear Rosemary behind me, screaming for me to stop, but I don’t. I can’t. It isn’t until Knox’s arms pull me away that I lift my hands in surrender.

“Let’s go, Sage. We’re done for the night,” he mutters in my ear.

I shrug him off, leaning over Keith as he lays staring at me from the floor. “I don’t ever want to see your sorry ass again, you hear me? We’re
done!
”

I don’t realize that I’m out of breath until I turn around in search of Millie. Rosy, who’s got to be at least a half a foot shorter than Millicent, is helping to hold her up. She looks just about unconscious and it makes me sick. Without a word, I take her arm and wrap it around my neck before I scoop her up and cradle her against my chest.

“Oh, my god,” Rosy murmurs, understanding relaxing her face. “This is Millie?” I nod once, unable to find my words. “Get out of here, Sage.”

“Yeah, you need to go, man. I’m sure they called the cops. We’ll take care of this. Just go.”

I offer them both another nod and then head for the door.