Under the Lights (A Brothers of Rock - GONE BY AUTUMN - Novel) (19 page)

“
This
is embarrassing,
”
Jules
said.
“
The room is a mess.
Tara and I
…”

“
I
’
m not looking at the room. I
’
m in your bed. All I smell is
you. All I want is you.
”

Tanner cupped her breast over her
shirt and then kept going down. He lifted her shirt and spread his fingers
across her warm stomach. She couldn't take it anymore, so she attacked him.

She kissed him hard and uncontrollably.
Her fingers clawed at his cheek. She forced herself on top of him and then sat
up, reaching down for his jeans. She unbuttoned them and then tugged hard,
wanting them off.

“
Oh,
Jules,
”
Tanner whispered.

Jules didn
’
t say a word. She took Tanner
’
s pants and boxers down. He was
growing hard and all it took was one stroke of Jules
’
small hand to bring him to full erection.

She then leaned forward and started
to take off her own pants. Tanner took advantage of the position and grabbed
her breasts again and kissed her neck. Jules let out a long moan. Tanner heard
the sound of a drawer opening and then closing. When Jules leaned back, she
dropped a condom down to Tanner
’
s
chest.

“
Hurry,
”
she said.

Tanner touched the protection and
felt a surge of jealousy go through his body. T Jules had condoms in her
drawer. Did that imply other men had been in this bed with her? How many?
Tanner never cared about this kind of stuff before. But looking at Jules and seeing
that hungry look in her eyes and her flushed cheeks, he wanted nobody else to
touch her. Ever again. For the rest of her life.

Tanner peeled the wrapper open and
took care of himself. He held Jules by her hips and brought her down to his
body. Her body felt tighter than the protection that clung to him. She was
warm, inviting, and the whimpering cry she let out damn near brought Tanner to
a quick climax.

Jules held onto his broad shoulders
as she pumped her amazing body up and down. They were both still half dressed,
but it didn
’
t matter. This
was a moment that needed to be taken advantage of.

When Jules kissed Tanner, he felt
himself readying. He put a hand to her neck and pulled her down to his body.
His other hand rested against bare skin, just above her ass, feeling as she
continued to move with a seductive perfection.

Jules opened her mouth and moaned.

“
Tell
me, darling,
”
Tanner said.
He kissed her bottom lip, then her top one.
“
Tell
me when you
’
re ready.
”

“
I
’
m ready,
”
Jules whispered.
“
I
’
m so close.
”

“
Good,
”
Tanner said.
“
So am I, darling.
”

Tanner thrust up with force as
Jules
’
tender body came
down at him. Together, they climaxed. For Tanner, it was perhaps the most
intense and passionate bedroom encounter he ever had. His fingers were kneading
into the soft flesh of her ass as his body released again and again.

When they were both done, Tanner
gripped Jules
’
ass with both
hands and held her there. She stopped kissing him and buried her head into his
neck.

“
I
can
’
t believe that
happened,
”
she whispered.

“
Why?
What
’
s wrong with it?
”

“
I
don
’
t know. Nothing.
”

When Jules popped up off him and
moved away, Tanner was left with a lingering need for her.

“
Hope
that was good,
”
Jules said.

“
You
hope? Did you not feel that?
”

“
Good,
”
Jules said.
“
Is that what you wanted for the
morning?
”

“
No.
I want you, Jules. Not just at night or in the morning."

Jules shook her head.
“
I still don
’
t get what you want from me.
”

“
That
’
s easy,
”
Tanner said.
“
You,
darling. I want you. I
’
ll
keep saying it until you believe me.
”

“
You
didn
’
t just come here for
sex?
”

“
No,
”
Tanner said. He touched Jules
’
face.
“
No. I came here to ask you why you left again. I
came here to tell you that I
’
m
taking you out on a date. That we
’
re
going to forget about the music thing and just be us. I can
’
t let it go. I need it. I need
you.
”

“
A
date?
”

“
Yes,
”
Tanner said.
“
And you
’
re going to come back to my place and spend the
night. And you
’
re not going
to leave.
”

Jules grinned.
“
How can you be so sure of that?
”

“
Simple,
”
Tanner said, kissing her.
“
I
’
ll
tie you to my bed to keep you there.
”

Jules sucked in a breath.
“
You
’
re crazy, Tanner.
”

“
Crazy
for you. You broke down walls that I never knew could be broken. I hope you
realize that. And there
’
s
no stopping this now, Jules.
”

*

The door clicked shut and Jules
hugged herself. Her entire body was shaking. It wasn
’
t just about sex anymore. Maybe it was never
actually about the sex. Having a sexy rockstar on top of her, kissing her,
touching her,
licking her
, was amazing and fun. But staring into Tanner
’
s eyes, there was more there.

Jules walked slowly through her
apartment. If something went wrong with Tanner or happened with Gone by Autumn,
this would end up as the biggest failure of her life. She was getting by right
now with what she had. The notes under her bed were nothing but letters of
empty promises and broken hope from a place that was never really a home. That
part of Jules had to stay tucked under her bed. Hidden. Forgotten.

When the door opened a minute
later, Jules spun around, ready for to jump into Tanner's arms. Ready to let
her inner desires take control. It wasn
’
t
Tanner at the door though.

It was Tara.

She had a smile on her face as she
looked around the apartment.
“
Rockstar
still here?
”
Tara
whispered.

“
No.
He just left. You didn
’
t
see him?
”

“
No.
He must be good at sneaking around.
”

“
Yeah,
true.
”

“
What
the hell was that all about?
”

“
Nothing,
”
Jules said.
“
Work stuff.
”

Tara put her coffee cup on the
table. She grinned at Jules and then took off toward the bedroom. Jules tried
to run after Tara and grab her, but it was too late.

In the bedroom, Tara pointed to the
bed and shook her head.
“
Smells
like sex in here.
”

“
Ew.
What does that mean?
”

“
Well,
since you left the wrapper on the floor
…”

Tara pointed and giggled.

Jules saw the evidence on the floor
and was mortified.

“
You
had a quickie with the rockstar,
”
Tara said.
“
He came over
for a little action and you gave it up.
”

“
It
wasn
’
t like that,
”
Jules said.
“
It was
…”

“
What?
”

“
We
’
re going out on a date.
”

“
Wow,
”
Tara said. "This is getting
serious." She nudged Jules with her elbow.

Jules shook her head.
“
I don
’
t know what it is right now, okay? He keeps telling
me things that I want to believe so bad. But I just don
’
t know if I can. I mean, he
’
s famous. He
’
s
going to be on tour in other cities with other women. I can
’
t be the one that holds him back
or ties him down. I can
’
t
be the one that he has to think about before sleeping with someone else.
”

“
Whoa,
are you marrying this guy?
”

“
No.
It
’
s just
…
I don
’
t want to get hurt. I don
’
t want to lose the opportunity with Gone by Autumn.
But I can
’
t get enough of
Tanner.
”

“
Sounds
like a win-win,
”
Tara said.
“
Just enjoy it while you
can.
”

Just enjoy it while you can.

“
I
wish it was that easy,
”
Jules said.

Her phone started to ring and she
dove at her nightstand.

It wasn
’
t Tanner.

It was Sam.

Jules took the call, her mind
reaching for the worst thing possible.

I
’
m going to get fired. He knows I slept with
Tanner and I
’
m
going to get fired.

“
Hello?
”
Jules answered warily.

“
Jules,
how are you?
”

“
Fine.
”

“
Good.
Have some interesting news for you.
”

“
Oh?
”

“
I
received a call. There
’
s a
magazine looking for a story on Gone by Autumn.
”

“
Okay.
”

“
The
reporter
’
s name is Suzie J.
Ever hear of her?
”

“
Yeah,
”
Jules said.
“
She
’
s really popular. She usually interviews female
artists though.
”

“
Exactly,
”
Sam said.
“
She wants to talk to the women
who are backing up Gone by Autumn. It's great exposure for the band and great
exposure for you.
”

“
For
me,
”
Jules said.
“
What about Marilyn and Dani?
”

“
I
’
m offering this to you,
”
Sam said.
“
I trust what you
’
ll say. You know the band. The
songs. The shows. I want you to do this first. If that goes well, then I
’
ll think about the three of you
doing something together.
”

“
Are
you serious?
”

“
Yeah.
If there
’
s three people,
there will be three different conversations, and I don
’
t want things muddled up. So it
’
ll be you and me. Okay?
”

“
Yeah.
Sure. When?
”

“
This
afternoon. I
’
ll have a car
pick you up in two hours.
”

Jules was floored.

She got off the phone with Sam and
looked at Tara.

“
What?
”
Tara asked.

“
I
’
m getting interviewed for a
magazine,
”
Jules said.
“
Because of Gone by Autumn.
”

“
You
’
re famous now!
”

Jules couldn
’
t get it through her head. All of this was
happening because of Gone by Autumn. Because of Tanner. She was certain he had
something to do with it all.

Maybe everything he had said was
true. That he did care. That he did want her.

Again, Jules felt the strings of
her heart being tugged at. They were slowly breaking, and when they finally did
…
she will have completely fallen
for Tanner.

(18)

Tanner stood with his hand locked
tight to Jules
’
hand.
Before opening the door, he looked at Jules and gave a nod.

“
You
ready?
”

“
Yeah.
I
’
m excited, Tanner.
”

“
Good.
It
’
s going to be a night
you
’
ll never forget.
”

Tanner opened the door and felt Jules
take her hand away from his.

The guys were sitting around,
jamming on acoustic guitars. There was a collection of beer bottles and some
whiskey, which told Tanner they were going to have a long night. Maya and a
group of her friends were there as well.

It was the same old scene and one
that Gone by Autumn d enjoyed. It was when they wrote some of their best music.

All of a sudden, the band everyone
turned and started to applaud.

Tanner thought they were applauding
he and Jules together.

"There she is,
”
Ryan said.
“
Our famous backup singer.
”

Asher put his fingers into his
mouth and whistled.

“
Stop,
”
Jules said, blushing.
“
It was nothing.
”

“
No,
”
Gabe said.
“
That
’
s huge. They wanted you, Jules. And the interview
is going to help all of us.
”

Tanner put a hand to Jules
’
back and leaned in.
“
Enjoy it. You
’
re beautiful and famous.
”

The band congratulated Jules,
hugging her, telling her she was going to be too big for the band soon. They
were on a short break before their next show in a few days. The interview was
almost a week ago, but Sam must have gotten word that it would definitely be
printed.

The last three shows were great.
They debuted
Tragedy
, and Jules got to stand at the front of the stage
and sing with Ryan. Jules wished it had been Tanner up there with her.

“
We
just wanted to stop by for a second,
”
Tanner said.
“
We
’
re heading out.
”

“
Ah,
a real date,
”
Asher said.

“
Shut
up,
”
Tanner said.
“
We
’
re
hanging. Grabbing a bite. Better than sitting around and getting drunk.
”

“
Bite
your tongue,
”
Blake said.
“
This is what we do best.
”

“
Celebrate
whatever you want,
”
Ryan
said.
“
Just don
’
t be stupid.
”
He grinned at Jules and winked.
He then set his eyes on Tanner.
“
Hey,
bro, can we talk for a second?
”

“
Sure,
”
Tanner said.

He kissed Jules' head and followed
Ryan. From the corner of his eye he watched Jules start mingling with everyone.
She was freaking beautiful. Tanner didn
’
t
want her to slip away.

“
What
’
s going on?
”
Tanner asked.

“
What
you have there with Jules. Is that all good?
”

“
All
good. Why?
”

“
Just
don
’
t need anymore bad
stuff around the band, you know? Things are a little quiet now and I like it.
”

“
Good.
”

“
Listen,
Sam said you were worried about contracts and shit.
”

“
Fucking
Sam,
”
Tanner growled.
“
It
’
s
nothing, man. I was a little taken back by how the band was being portrayed as
a solo artist with a house band. That
’
s
all. My own dumb jealousy.
”

“
Are
you sure that
’
s all?
”

“
Yeah.
Why?
”

“
I
don
’
t want any problems,
”
Ryan said.

“
The
only problem we have right now is that you
’
re
holding me up from taking Jules out.
”

“
A
backup singer? That
’
s what
did it for you?"

Tanner clenched his fist. He wasn't
sure if it was meant as an insult or not.
“
Can
’
t help with the heart wants. At
least she won
’
t write about
my dirt, like your woman.
”

“
Ouch,
”
Ryan said.
“
But she will sing about it.
Heartbroken lyrics make a lot of money.
”

“
Very
true. I better keep her happy then.
”

“
Go
to it.
”

Tanner walked away. He hated that
this thing with Richie was still hanging over his head. He needed to just take
a minute and call Sam and tell him what Richie had been doing. Sam and the
lawyers could take care of it. Still, a piece of Tanner just didn
’
t want to do it.

“
Okay,
are we ready to go?
”
Tanner
asked.

“
Dude,
”
Blake said.
“
Just one part of the new song.
Listen to it.
”

“
I
’
ve heard it before,
”
Tanner said.

“
Here,
check this out,
”
Asher
said.

He grabbed his guitar and started
playing. Tanner watched and had the song locked in his mind within a minute.

“
What
’
s it missing?
”
Ryan asked.

Tanner walked to his acoustic
guitar and picked it up. He stood across from Asher and waited to come in. On a
whim, he started playing a little riff that had been resting in the back of his
mind. The riff worked magically with the main part of the song. Gabe started to
play into the song and then Ryan came in with lyrics.

Ten minutes later, Tanner finally
put his guitar down.

Blake killed the recording and gave
a thumbs up.

“
That
’
s another hit,
”
Blake said.

“
It
needs work,
”
Tanner said.
“
But we
’
ll get there.
”

“
I
can
’
t believe you pulled
that riff out of your ass,
”
Asher said.
“
You
’
re amazing, man.
”

“
Just
good at my job,
”
Tanner
said. He looked at Jules.
“
I
’
m out of here though. I have a
night planned out.
”

“
I
don
’
t mind,
”
Jules said.

“
Have
a drink then,
”
Asher said.

“
No,
”
Tanner said.
“
Not here. Not with you guys.
Enjoy your night.
”

Tanner took Jules by the hand and
held it tight. They left the loft to the band catcalling and whistling at them.
When he shut the door, he stopped and put a hand to Jules
’
face. He kissed her.

“
I
needed that,
”
he whispered.

“
Me
too.
”

“
Sorry
about that in there. Didn
’
t
know it was going to be like that.
”

“
I
don
’
t care,
”
Jules said.
“
I
’
m
happy to be with you.
”

“
I
hope you mean that,
”
Tanner
said.
“
I
’
m not playing around with this.
I
’
m proud of you, Jules.
Getting the attention you have right now. This is a big deal for you.
”

“
It
’
s because of the band,
”
Jules said.

“
I
know. But people are seeing how special you are. And the best part
…
I get a front row seat each
night to watch it happen.
”

“
You
kill me when you say things like that,
”
Jules said.

“
Come
on,
”
Tanner said.
“
No more Gone by Autumn talk.
This is us tonight. The date I
’
ve
been dreaming of for a long time.
”

Tanner put his arm around Jules and
walked outside to the waiting car. The driver already knew where to go.

In the backseat of the car, Tanner
looked at Jules. He finally had her completely alone. Nothing to worry about.
Nothing to think about.

“
How
was the interview?
”
Tanner
asked.

Jules
’
eyes lit up.
“
It was
unbelievable. Like a dream.
”

“
That
’
s good. What were you asked?
”

“
Just
some things about the band. About myself. Sam was there and steered questions
that he didn
’
t like. There
weren
’
t many.
”

“
Good,
”
Tanner said.
“
I
’
m
happy for you, Jules. I hope you realize how good you are.
”

“
Can
I ask you a question?
”

“
Ask
away.
”

“
What
’
s the tour like? I mean, how
many dates? What
’
s the
future for
…
well, me?
”

“
I
won
’
t lie to you, Jules. I
have no idea what
’
s
planned. We have to finish the next set of songs and get more releases. I want
to go big on the road. Not sure what the rest of the guys and the record
company and Sam will want. But as long as I
’
m
on stage, I
’
m happy.
”

“
I
’
ll be left behind then,
”
Jules said. She lowered her
head.
“
That
’
s what makes this seem like a
fantasy.
”

“
No,
it
’
s not a fantasy,
”
Tanner said.
“
If we went out and didn
’
t bring you and Dani and
Marilyn, do you think I
’
d
forget about you?
”

Jules wouldn
’
t look at him.

Tanner touched her chin and forced
her to look at him.
“
Answer
me.
”

“
I
’
m not sure,
”
Jules said.
“
That
’
s why I'm afraid of what we
’
re doing right now.
”

“
I
’
d never leave you behind,
”
Tanner said.
“
The music, the business, the way
it mixes together really blows sometimes. I
’
ll
be honest. But what we have right now, you and me, that
’
s real. The road isn
’
t
going to tear that apart.
”
Tanner made Jules turn her hand around. He interlocked her fingers with his and
held tight.
“
Just trust me.
Trust the moment.
”

“
I
do,
”
Jules said.
“
And I don't like doing that.
Risks scare me.
”

“
That
’
s a good thing. Makes it all
worth it.
”
Tanner looked
out the window.
“
We
’
re here.
”

The car stopped and the driver
opened the door. Tanner helped Jules out and smiled when she looked at the
building.

“
The
Jack? Why are we here?
”

“
Come
on, I have a surprise for you.
”

Jules followed with hesitation.
They went through the backdoor, a security guard walking them through the
backstage and office area. There was music playing out front and at one point,
Jules pulled and made Tanner stop.

“
Why
are we here?
”
she asked.
“
Are you going to make me sing?
”

“
You
’
re not going on stage tonight,
”
Tanner said.
“
This is a private show. You. Me.
”
He lowered his lips to hers and
kissed once.
“
Trust me.
”

Tanner led Jules to a set of steps.
They were narrow and wound around and around. From there was a metal door that
Tanner opened and revealed to Jules his surprise for the night.