Jane's Harmony (Jane's Melody #2) (16 page)

“I hear Van Halen,” Sean said. “How about you?”

“I’ve got Poison. No, wait. Mötley Crüe.”

They pushed their way into a club and got lost in the neon fog and the electric sound. The crowd separated them for several sets until Caleb finally found Sean bent over a toilet and heaving between promises to never drink again. If he lived, he said. Caleb cleaned him up and they left the club, then walked arm in arm back to Canter’s for coffee and eggs.

“It was coming out of both ends,” Sean said, stirring sugar into his third coffee. “I think I’ve got Montezuma’s revenge.”

“Dude, you’re in L.A., not Mexico.”

“I think it was those snails.”

“Might have been the martinis,” Caleb suggested. “Or the shots of tequila, perhaps.”

Sean shrugged and sipped his coffee. “Maybe,” he said.

They sat for a while and listened to two drunken girls in the next booth, working together to craft responses to text messages from boys they’d met this very night who were already trying to bed them.

“How come you don’t drink?” Sean asked, out of the blue.

“I used to drink a little,” Caleb said. “But I started having a bit of a problem putting it down and it scared me sober. My dad and my mom both died from booze. Well, my mom died in a car wreck, but she was drunk.”

“Don’t you find it’s hard to write songs sober, though? I seem to write my best stuff when I’m flying a little high. Not like tonight. But at least my feet off the ground, you know?”

Caleb nodded that maybe it was so. “I’m sure if you embrace the visions, alcohol or LSD or pot and all that shit help just the same. But there’s a high to be had in turning it all down too.”

“Turn it down to get high? What do you mean?”

“I dunno. It’s kind of a trip itself being clear all the time.”

“Like a Scientologist or something?”

Caleb laughed. “I think that’s a different kind of clear. I’m talking about feeling everything because you’re sober.”

Sean nodded and downed the rest of his coffee. When he set his empty mug on the table, he leaned over and looked into it, as if by chance there might be something to be read there on the bottom.

“Well,” he said, still looking into that empty mug, “I might have to try giving it up for a while.”

“I thought you said the trouble was those snails.”

Sean grinned and looked up. “What the hell did you think I was talking about giving up?” he asked. “You didn’t believe I’d quit booze, did you?”

Caleb laughed and called for their check.

There was already a hint of gray in the sky when they left. There were no cars and no cabs, and it was a long walk back to the hotel. Even so, neither of them said much.

When they finally arrived at their room, Sean quickly showered and packed his bags, then called down to see about the shuttle. His flight was several hours earlier than Caleb’s, and he said the sooner he could get to the airport, the sooner he could board the plane and pass out, then wake up back home. He stood at the door with his bag, neither of them knowing how to say good-bye.

“I’ll just follow you down,” Caleb said.

“You don’t gotta do that, guy. Why don’t you rest?”

“It’s fine. I have a few minutes to wait before my morn
ing call from Jane anyway. And besides, I need some toothpaste from the front desk.”

They rode the elevator down, crossed the lobby, and walked outside together. The hotel shuttle was already idling out front. Sean stopped before getting on and turned to Caleb.

“They had a big fancy driver with a sign and everything for me when I arrived. Now that I’m leaving, I gotta ride the short bus.” He sighed and looked past Caleb into the hotel. “You don’t need any toothpaste, do you?”

Caleb smiled and shook his head.

Sean nodded, as if he’d suspected not. “I’m not very good at good-byes.”

“Neither am I,” Caleb replied.

“You know, I’m okay with being sent home. Truth is, I never thought I’d get this far. But you deserve to go on, dude. You’re a hell of an artist and . . . you’re . . . well . . . ah, shit. I’m not any good at this. Fuck it all. Well, it’s been real, it’s been fun, but it hasn’t been real fun.”

He stuck out his hand to shake, but Caleb batted it aside and hugged him.

“I’m glad I got to know you, Sean,” he said, pulling away. “I wouldn’t have wanted to room with anyone else.”

Sean smiled and wiped a tear from his cheek with the heel of his hand. “I wouldn’t have wanted to room with anyone else either,” he said, nodding. “I’ll catch you on the TV, dude. And maybe when you’re famous, you’ll come and tour Iowa.” Then he picked up his bag and boarded the shuttle.

The door was closing when he wedged his hand in and opened it again so he could lean out. “Except Jordyn,” he said. “I would have rather roomed with Jordyn.”

Caleb watched Sean’s grin disappear as the door closed. He could see his shadow through the tinted windows as he walked
to the back of the shuttle. He took a seat on the opposite side, maybe so they wouldn’t have to stretch out their good-bye. But Caleb stood and watched the bus drive away anyway. In fact, he stood for several minutes after, just watching where it had gone.

Chapter 13

J
ane stood outside the flight gate exit waiting for him. She was so nervous that she hardly even noticed the odd glances from strangers as they passed her on their way to baggage claim. She knew she shouldn’t be nervous, that she and Caleb had spoken nearly every day since he’d been away, but she was nervous just the same.

A pilot paused to look at her. He smiled and said, “I might be a frog now, but I know if a woman as beautiful as you are were to kiss me, I’d change into a prince.”

Jane glanced down at the homemade glitter sign she had hanging around her neck—

PRINCE CHARMING

—and then she looked back up at the pilot and blushed.

“You’re certainly very charming,” she said, “but my prince is on his way.”

The pilot grinned and carried on with his bag, replying as he passed by, “And he’s a lucky prince at that.”

When she saw him coming, it was from a long way off.

Caleb was taller than she remembered him being, his head above most of the others walking toward her. He had his duffel slung over his shoulder and he was wearing a black T-shirt and torn blue jeans. His hair was a little longer than it had been when he had left, but she could clearly see the highlights they’d put there catching the sun coming in from the high terminal windows. And even though she couldn’t take her eyes off him,
she didn’t miss the looks he got from every girl and woman he passed, and a few others he even got from men.

She knew he had seen her when a smile flashed on his face and he quickened his step. A moment later and his duffel was on the ground at his feet and she was in his arms, being turned around in the air. She buried her fingers in his hair and looked down at his upturned face. His smile seemed wider and whiter than ever against the several days’ worth of stubble around his gorgeous mouth, and his green eyes seemed to sparkle with a new intensity, a deeper happiness.

Perhaps, Jane thought, from having made the live show. Or maybe, she hoped, from having finally come home. She meant to ask, but then he set her feet on the ground again and kissed her.

His lips were softer than she remembered, even though his kiss was firm and filled with need, and his tongue tasted of coffee and of mint. He pulled his lips away, held her head between his hands, and looked into her eyes.

“Do you know how much I love you?”

“How much do you love me?” she asked.

“So much that I can’t wait to marry you.”

“Good,” she said. “Because I was worried maybe now that you’re famous and everything, you might have changed your mind about marrying a lowly old meter maid.”

“Famous? The first episode hasn’t even aired yet.”

Jane smiled. Then she brushed his T-shirt with her hand. “I got glitter all over you.”

Caleb looked down at her welcome sign. He laughed. “I’ll bet you’ve had a few takers while you were standing here with that sign.”

“I was going to write
Singer-Songwriter Superstar
on it but it wouldn’t all fit. Plus, I didn’t have enough glitter. Do you like
it, though? After you told me about their driver with his sign, I didn’t want to let L.A. show me up.”

He smiled and kissed the top of her head. “It’s a great welcome home. It couldn’t possibly be better. Unless maybe you were naked, wearing nothing but the sign.”

“Then I might have had more than a few takers,” she said, laughing.

As they walked to baggage claim together to retrieve his guitar, Caleb handed her a small box.

“What’s this?”

“Just a little present.”

“You didn’t have to do that, babe.”

“Go on. Open it.”

Jane removed the paper and opened the box. Inside was a necklace. A beautiful handcrafted silver pipe whistle on a chain.

“You like it?”

“I love it.”

She draped it over her neck with the sign and looked down at it on her chest.

“I saw it and thought you might. And if you get in any trouble out there on the job, you can blow it. It’s pretty loud. Plus, all the proceeds go to help bring peace to the Congo.”

“It’s beautiful, Caleb. But you shouldn’t have.”

“It wasn’t that much,” he said. Then he smiled and added, “Besides, I used your credit card.”

Jane opened her eyes wide, pretending to be shocked.

“I’m only kidding. Let’s get my guitar and get home. I’ve got an image of you in my head that I’d like to make a reality.”

“And what image is that?”

“You wearing nothing but that sign.”

“Can I wear the whistle too?”

“Sure. Maybe you can blow it when I hit the right spot.”

He filled Jane in on everything while she drove them home from the airport. He told her all about daydreaming on the stage and agreeing to go through as a duet without even realizing it. But despite her reassurances that he had done the right thing, he must have sensed some of her doubts.

“You sure you don’t mind?” he asked. “Because I don’t have to go back, you know.”

“Don’t be silly,” she said. “You have to go. This is your big chance for big money. And even if you don’t win, they’ll be paying you per episode now. I read the rules. You get to join the TV union and everything.”

“Yeah, but what about Jordyn? Doesn’t it bother you?”

“Should it?” she asked.

“No way.”

“Then it doesn’t.”

She drove in silence for a minute or two. “But it’s not a good sign if you have to ask me.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, would you be asking if it bothered me if it were Sean you were partnered with?”

“Of course not.”

“Then see? Why are you asking about Jordyn? Either you think I’m insecure or you don’t trust yourself around her.”

“That’s not fair, Jane.”

“It isn’t?”

“No. You know damn well it isn’t the same thing as if I were paired up with Sean.”

“Why isn’t it?”

“Because he’s a dude and Jordyn’s an attractive girl.”

“So you
do
think she’s attractive.”

“Oh, come on, Jane.”

“It’s okay. I think she is. I watched her seductive videos on YouTube, and I was almost ready to switch teams.”

“That’s not funny. Let’s just change the subject already.”

“Fine. And just so you know, I trust you, Caleb. I trust you completely. If you wanted to be with someone else, it would kill me inside, but I’d rather you be with them. I won’t have you unless it’s of your own free will. So I’m not bothered about Jordyn. In fact, I’m rather flattered.”

“You are?”

“Yes. I’m pretty sure you could be with her or any other woman, and the fact that you’re here with me makes me very proud. Proud of us. I want you with me because you want to be with me. Not because of some piece of paper or some ring.”

“I want the same thing from you,” he said.

Jane smiled. A mile or two later, she said, “But I’m still counting on a wedding, just so you know.”

“We could turn around this minute and go back to the airport and fly to Las Vegas.”

“Are you kidding me?” she asked. “I’m not getting married in Vegas. And besides, I’m taking you home to practice the honeymoon right now.”

When they arrived, Jane had hardly put the car in park before Caleb was out and around at the driver’s door waiting for her. She stepped out and he kissed her. Then he took her hand and pulled her toward the apartment building.

“What about your bag?” Jane asked. “Your guitar?”

“They can wait,” he said, practically dragging her up the stairs at a run.

The apartment door hadn’t even latched behind them before he had her up against the wall and was unbuttoning her blouse. Jane pushed him away and she saw him frown, thinking he was
being rejected. Then the frown curled into a smile as she handed him the sign and unbuttoned her blouse herself and stripped it off. She took her bra off next. His eyes moved to her chest. She took the sign back and draped it over her neck, along with the whistle.

“Is this what you wanted to see?” she asked.

He nodded that it was.

“Good,” she said. “Now take off your shirt.”

He peeled his T-shirt off over his head and Jane flushed at the sight of his long torso. It looked as though he’d lost a little weight on his trip and she could see every muscle.

“Are you flexing your abs to impress me?” she asked.

“Maybe,” he said, grinning.

“Come over here.”

Caleb stepped toward her, and she took his head in her hands and kissed him. There was something about his taste that made her think of sex and only sex. She gripped his thick hair with one hand, pushed the sign aside with the other, and pulled his mouth down to her breast. She let out a soft moan when he took her nipple gently between his teeth. His hands feverishly worked on her zipper, but she pushed him away again.

“I want you on the bed,” she said. “Now. Do as I say.”

“Wow,” he replied, looking shocked. “A girl gets a badge and some pepper spray, and suddenly she’s a dominatrix.”

“You can refer to me as Mistress,” she said. “Now, get on the bed before I get my whip.”

He paused at the bedroom door just long enough to say, “Hey, I thought you broke the bed and needed me to fix it.”

“I fixed it myself,” she replied, pushing him into the room. “If you think I need a man for everything, you’re wrong. I’ll show you what I need a man for, though. I’ll show you right now. Get on the bed and lie on your back and close your eyes.”

Caleb looked cautiously excited as he crawled onto the bed, stretched out, and turned to look at her. She waited for him to close his eyes, and then she took the sign off. When she caught him looking at her again, she brought the whistle to her mouth and blew on it.

“Busted, buddy. Now, I said close your eyes or else.”

He smiled and closed his eyes.

Jane opened the drawer and took out the handcuffs she had purchased. He must have heard them rattle, because his eyes cracked open a slit and then opened wide.

“You didn’t,” he said.

“You address me as Mistress or you don’t address me at all,” she said, crawling on top of him. “Now, close your eyes and give me your wrists.”

He laughed and offered up his wrists.

She clasped the cuffs around one, then fed the chain through the metal headboard and clasped them around the other. Her breasts were hanging in his face as she secured the cuffs, and when he lifted his head and licked her nipple, she felt her spine tingle. She pushed his head back down onto the pillow and kissed him. He instinctively moved to wrap his arms around her, but the cuffs caught with a clatter on the bed frame and he was trapped.

Jane giggled and kissed her way down to his neck. He tasted like the outside and like soap, and she was so turned on she could hardly keep up her little game. But she did. She moved her mouth down to his chest and tickled his nipples with her tongue, lying there and watching them go hard. He had just the right amount of soft hair that grew in just the right places, and it turned her on like crazy to feel it against her cheek. She traced his abs with the tip of her tongue, moving down to his belly button, his waistline. He was bulging against his jeans, and she
cupped him with her hands and put her mouth to the denim and blew warm air through the fabric. She heard him moan, and then she heard the cuffs clatter on the bed frame.

“This is fucking torture,” he said.

“Good. It’s supposed to be.”

She undid his belt slowly, first yanking it tight, then gently releasing it. Next, she undid his button. Then she pulled the zipper down. Caleb wasn’t wearing any underwear, and as the zipper parted he rose from his pants and stood erect and throbbing in front of her face. She felt her insides tighten with anticipation, felt herself get wet.

Not yet, she told herself. Not yet. Make him wait.

Jane stripped off his shoes and pulled his jeans completely free, tossing them onto the floor. Then she stood back for a second to look at him, stretched out and handcuffed to the bed frame, completely naked. He was looking at her from between his upraised and cuffed forearms, and she thought she’d never before seen such a look of chained desire.

She bent and put her mouth to his calf and kissed her way up his long leg. When her tongue hit his inner thigh, she felt the muscle tighten and twitch. A tiny moan slipped from his lips. She had her hands now on either side of his waist, her thumbs resting in the
V
that ran down to become the crease leading to his erection, and she looked up at him as she teased him with her tongue. Just around the base. She saw the vein there thicken and she saw him harden even more, pulsing with spasms of need that seemed now to be beyond her control not to satisfy. She rose up and took just a taste. Salty and sweet and just like him.

“Oh, fuck,” he said. “I need to be inside you right now.”

She grinned up at him, flicking her tongue in and out against the object of his torture. “Maybe if you beg,” she said.

“Please. Please. Please.”

“Please, Mistress,” she said, correcting him.

“Yes, Mistress. Please, Mistress. I need to be inside you right now. Take these cuffs off and let me make love to you.”

He rattled the cuffs, but she shook her head.