Fully Automatic (Bullet) (17 page)

Chapter Nineteen

BRAD PULLED UP to the motel, almost embarrassed.  He didn’t care about anyone else in the van, but he
did
care what Val thought.  He opened her door while Nick opened the side one from the inside and all the passengers made their way out.  Val got out and he closed her door.  He nodded his head toward the building.  “Yeah, I know it’s not the greatest accommodations and, yeah, we’re all sharing just one room, but we’re starving musicians, right?”

“I didn’t say a word.  I’m impressed as hell at the van.”

He smiled and touched her chin with his fist.  “I knew there was a reason I liked you.”  It was a nice thing for her to say.  He knew they were staying in a pit, but it was nice of her to not call him on it.

Everyone else was already in the room by the time Val and Brad joined them.  Nick and Zane were pulling one bottle after another out of the top dresser drawer.  Val looked at Brad, a shocked look on her face.  “Where do you guys get all that?”

Brad wiggled his eyebrows up and down and simply said, “Connections.”

He closed the door and waved Valerie inside.  Everyone sat in a circle, some on the edge of one of the beds, a couple on chairs, Ethan on the floor with his blonde twins.  Brad invited Val to sit on the edge of the bed closest to the door
, and he sat next to her.  He felt bad that Val had to see Ethan at his sleazy worst, but maybe that was the wakeup call she needed.  Brad was a good guy and he cared.  He hoped she would see that.

Ethan pulled a joint out of his pocket and wasted no time lighting it and sucking the smoke down.  Then he handed it to twin number one on his left.  He took three other joints out of his pocket (where the fuck had he scored all the weed?)
and handed them and the lighter to Nick.  Nick took over lighting and passing.  Zane started uncapping the liquor and passing it around too.  Brad was going to wait for the rum and a puff or two.  The other guys could have the shit that tasted like lighter fluid.

A joint made it to Brad first
, and he sucked it down hard.  He’d never been a cigarette smoker, but he liked pot.  He’d forgotten how much he liked it until he took a hit.  It tasted good, smelled good, and going down, it was smooth.  He held the smoke in his lungs and let it out slowly, his eyes closed.  Then he just needed to relax and let it hit him.  He handed it to Val.  He was a little surprised that she took it, because she had a horrified look on her face.  She started to hand it to the girl on her right.  Brad got close to Val and whispered, “Come on, Val.  Just try it.”

He could tell she was considering it, but she shook her head and handed it to the girl next to her.

He nodded.  He wished she’d give it a try.  She looked so tense, so on edge, and he knew the pot would help her let go of it all.  Still, he respected her decision.  Then he could feel it.  “Fuck.  That’s nice.” He closed his eyes, letting the feeling overtake him.  He’d tried harder stuff in the past and had decided none of it was for him, especially after seeing what it did to Ethan.  Weed, though…he loved it and had no problems with it.  He didn’t do it often, either, because he could see how it could easily make him a lazy slacker ass, but once in a while?  It was a rare treat.

Val was totally uncomfortable.  She said,
“I’m gonna get some water.  Do you know where the vending machines are?”

He didn’t know if she was going for the water or just to get away.  He didn’t want her to go. 
“Don’t waste your money.  There are glasses on the counter over there, and I’ll go get some ice since none of these douchebags bothered.”

She was agreeable to it, so he found the ice bucket and stepped out of the room, pulling the bar of the top lock open to keep the door from closing
and locking.  The night was warm, but he could barely feel it.  He felt like everything was clear, but he was so mellow, and he was okay with whatever would or wouldn’t happen tonight.  He just wanted Valerie to have a good time.

He found the ice machine at the end of their building and pressed a button that sent a shower of chunky ice into
the bucket.  Then he found his way back to the room.  There was a little talk about music and the show, but Brad crooked his arms and half lay back on the bed.  Val sat next to him, nursing her cup of ice water.  Brad didn’t feel like talking; he just wanted to enjoy the sensation of floating, and when he had another chance to toke and drink some rum, he took them.

It wasn’t long that his bandmates started getting handsy with their
“dates.”  It was nothing unusual, but Brad was waking up to the fact that he’d invited Val and she was looking more and more uneasy as the evening progressed.  She was looking over at Ethan again—big mistake.  His blonde twins were facing each other on either side of him, and they started kissing each other.  Oh, God, no.  No matter what kind of epiphany Brad had wanted Val to experience, he didn’t want her heart to be broken.  So he touched her arm and said, “Why don’t we go sit in the van and talk?”

She said nothing but nodded, and Brad stood and grabbed her hand. 
Fuck.
  There—it hit him, full on.  Jesus…he was feeling fuckin’ fine.  He hoped Val didn’t see the two girls touching each other’s breasts as they made their way out of the room.  Zane was running toward second base, his hand under his girl’s t-shirt, moving upward.

When they
got outside and he closed the door, he could see the relief in Val’s facial features, even in the semi-dark near the doorway.  He led the way to the van.  There was a big streetlight in the motel parking lot, but it wasn’t much help when Brad had to guide his key into the lock.  He felt like his eyes were squinted closed, and he didn’t care.  He tried several times and couldn’t get the fucking key in the lock.  He started laughing, thinking about how he’d suck if he scored tonight.  If he couldn’t get the key in a lock, how the hell would he be able to guide his wasted dick inside this beautiful young lady?  And the more he thought about it, the more he laughed.  Oh, God…that felt good.  He felt for the slit in the lock and managed to maneuver the key inside.

He finally got the door open and helped Val up.  He got inside too, but after a few seconds realized it wasn’t going to work.  He hadn’t felt the heat earlier, but it was like a jungle in the van.  They wouldn’t want to sit in there if it was uncomfortable.  “We need to open the windows.”  He got out and moved to the driver’s side and turned the van on so he could roll all the windows down.  Val
got comfortable in the passenger seat.  No way.  He didn’t plan to stay up front in those bucket seats.  He wanted to get as close to her as she’d let him, and he was feeling a little more in control now.  He looked over at her and said, “Let’s sit back there where there’s more leg room.”

She nodded and that was his cue to get his ass over to the passenger side and help her
back out.  She opened her door, but he put his hands on her waist and helped her slide out of the seat back to the ground.  Fuck…that skirt was killer.  He took a deep breath.

He pointed to the very back seat, because it had a little more wiggle room than the middle one.  He wanted to make it as comfortable as possible for her.  He sat next to her
, and his thoughts went back to the key again, and he lost it.  He couldn’t stop laughing that time, and he hoped Val couldn’t figure out what his intentions were.  He had to decide to just enjoy her company, no matter what ultimately happened.  She started laughing with him, and that only made him laugh harder.

At last, he was able to get himself together, before tears started streaming down his cheeks.  He looked over at her.  It was mostly dark in the van, but he could see her enough.  Goddamn, she was beautiful, and she seemed to grow more beautiful every time he saw her.  He wanted her, wanted her badly, and he didn’t know that he’d ever
wanted any other woman as much as he did her.  He didn’t want to rush her, didn’t want to pressure her, but he wanted her to know that she was special.  She was worth more than he could ever afford, but he damn well knew Ethan didn’t deserve her.  She didn’t seem to know or appreciate that, though.  And he felt bad now for putting her in such an awkward situation with his friend.  He should’ve known Ethan would be an ass.  He shouldn’t have subjected Val to that, and deep in the back of his mind, he wondered if he’d done that on purpose to show Val that Ethan wasn’t the guy for her.  He knew he felt bad that she’d seen it, but had he done it deliberately?

He felt guilty about it, whether he’d done it intentionally or not.  He looked in her eyes and stroked her cheek with the back of his fingers.  “Sorry about earlier.  I guess we put you in an uncomfortable position.  I didn’t know you didn’t smoke pot.”

“I was accused of being prude in high school more than once.”

Why was she acting like her behavior had been bad?  It was he who should feel bad about what had transpired.  And still…she had no idea.  He moved his hand to her thigh.  He couldn’t resist that bare leg anymore. 
“Oh, I don’t think you’re prude, Val.  You just haven’t met your drug of choice, and you definitely haven’t met the right guy.”

She raised her eyebrows
, and a half smile turned her lips up.  She didn’t touch his hand.  Goddamn. 
Down, boy.  Down.
  There was a flirtatious twinkle in her eye.  “Meaning you’re the wrong guy?”

He smiled, feeling ravenous. 
His only response was truth.  Was he the right guy for Val?  Probably not, but she hadn’t even given him a chance.  “Yeah, I’m sure I’m the wrong guy, but I can feel like the right one if you let me try.”  There was something in her eyes then…and that’s when he knew he had a chance.  It might barely be a snowball’s chance in hell, but he was going to seize the opportunity.  He gently squeezed her thigh and said, “Did I tell you already how much I like this skirt?”

She took a deep breath
, and he could see it—desire.  Yeah, she felt the same way he did.  He could feel his body listening to his emotions, and his blood took a nosedive. 
No.
  It wasn’t time yet.  But it was there—the chance, the spark, the go ahead.  Her smile was slight when she replied, “Your eyes did.”

Time to move.  As much as he liked touching her leg, it was time to go forward.  He placed his hand on the back of her neck and brought her lips to his.  And that kiss—fucking magic.  Not like their kisses before.  This one felt deeper, like it meant more.  He explored her mouth with his tongue, wanting to know how far forward he could go.  She responded too.  Her tongue danced with his, and her hand moved to his chest.  He could have kissed her for hours, but he felt the need to move forward.  He moved his lips to her neck, and he heard her inhale a sharp breath, signaling him that he was on the right track.

“Come on up here.”  He placed his hands under her arms to help her straddle him on his lap, and she wasn’t prim and proper about it.  She didn’t leave a gap between them, instead pressing up against him, and then he couldn’t hold himself back anymore.  His cock responded to her nearness, swelling against his jeans.  And he was happy to let it.

She thrust her fingers into his hair
, and he started kissing her again.  Her lips, her mouth tasted so sweet, but he wanted to taste her all over.  He wanted to bring her to ecstasy, erase Ethan out of her brain for good.  He wanted to touch her over her entire body, press up against her, be inside her.  It hadn’t been so long ago that they’d been in an embrace, and she’d told him she was a virgin.  He wondered if she still was, and he thought she might be.  If so, he’d probably have to wait to bury himself inside her, but he could do that.  If he was hers, he could wait a very long time.

She was breathing harder
, and he could feel how hot it was in the van, but he didn’t know if it was the air or the friction between them.  She shifted against him, and he nearly groaned at the sensation.  Holy fuck.  He hadn’t been this aroused in a long time.  And then he thought he was gonna fuckin’ lose it when she moved her hands from his hair and trailed them down his chest to the bottom of his shirt.  For a second, he got excited, thinking maybe she was going to undo his zipper.  God, he was tingling and on fire from head to toe, and it didn’t matter where she touched right now.  It all felt fucking incredible.

She started pulling up his shirt.  A damn good sign.  They hadn’t gone this far before.  She was serious.  God, he loved this girl.

Whoa. 
Loved her?

Yeah, he thought so.  In this moment, definitely, but he was starting to think it was more than just a heat
-of-the-moment thing.  He could hear a song forming in his head, a hard, driving beat with a sweet melody.  That was Valerie to him, and he let it sing to him as he leaned forward to help her get his shirt off.

He hadn’t thought it was possible, but his cock got even harder.  He shoved his fingers in her hair and brought her mouth to his again.  He couldn’t get enough of her.  He slowly pulled his fingers down the length of her hair and then down her back until he reached the bottom of her shirt.  Her fingers had been dancing on his chest, and he thought maybe she would let him take her shirt off too.  It was worth a shot.  If nothing else, she’d appreciate the opportunity to cool down a little.  It was the true test, though.  If she didn’t let him take her shirt off, they wouldn’t go any further tonight.  He
had to know, even if they spent hours taking their time the rest of the night.