FascinatingRhythm (10 page)

A chuckle rippled around the vessel.

That meant a week when he could keep in touch with Sabina
only by phone and video. Even if he left as soon as possible after Red Square,
he’d be gone a week. Shit, what was this? He should be excited. Fucking
thrilled, but the clash meant all he felt was anxiety.

Stupid fucking idiot. He’d made no promises to Sabina, and
she to him, deliberately. They couldn’t, with their lives as unsettled as this.
Who knew when the Murder City Ravens train would derail? And what would Sabina
do after her operation? Recovery took some time and the university hospital
wanted to check on her frequently, so she’d be stuck near Uppsala. He’d rack up
the air miles, sure he would, but the time between the two new concerts was
crucial for Sabina’s recovery. He wanted to be there for her, wanted to make up
for the times when he wasn’t. Wanted to prove that this time she could trust
him.

Hunter gave his attention back to the clouds outside his
window.

“Hey, man,” Riku said after around ten minutes. “What’s
that?”

“What are you talking about?” Irritably he turned away from
the riveting view.

“You were beating something out on your leg.”

He hadn’t realized he was doing it, but thinking of Sabina
had sent him tapping out that rhythm, the way her pussy clenched around
whatever part of him happened to be in her when she came. Shit. But Riku
wouldn’t know that.

“Do it again.” Riku lifted the lid of his laptop and the
computer sprang into life. A close-up of a fleshy flower, probably an orchid,
graced the screen before Riku brought up one of his sophisticated music
programs. He bought them, hacked them and redesigned them so they would do what
he wanted them to.

Hunter, without any computer or software to help him,
obligingly did it again.

“Hot,” Riku mumbled, noting something down. “Like it.
Primal, unthinking. What were you thinking of playing it on?”

He hadn’t thought that far. “Drum kit.” His inner musician
kicked in, screaming for attention. “Maybe a touch on the vibes, right at the
end.” He frowned. “We do have vibes, don’t we? Not electronics, the real
thing.”

Riku glanced at him. “Filthy fucker, I know what that is.”

“Better not.” He glared at his colleague and friend.

Riku held up a hand to ward him off, laughing. “Whatever.
This is a great start. I know where we can take this.” He grabbed his capacious
music bag and found something inside it. A small keyboard, which he turned on
and set a few switches. “Listen.”

He tapped out a few notes. Then he bent them, using the
joystick at the side. “Crude, but you get it. If I take that and I bind it,
then I add the vibes and feed them into the Kaoss pad, I can go somewhere.”

Hunter liked it. Weight landed on the back of his seat as
Zazz hoisted himself up, leaning over them. “What’s that?”

Hunter beat out his rhythm, adding the double at the end,
when she clenched him twice in fast succession, and Riku overlaid his part.
“Don’t have anything for that,” Zazz said. “Or should I just say, ‘hey, I know’
and swing right into a note-perfect version of
Lady Be Good
?” He
sniggered.

“Like the old movies?” Donovan was getting into the act now.
He was sitting behind Jace and Beverley, across the aisle from them.

Jace had his arm around her but he wasn’t asleep. “Get it
down. I can do something with that.” Donovan, being the bass player, worked
closest with Hunter. His lady was reading, but she glanced up and smiled at
Hunter and Riku, then went back to her book. Younger than most of them, Allie
still showed a maturity they sometimes lacked.

“So that’s why they take joint songwriting credit,” someone
murmured at the back of the plane. One of the sound men, maybe.

Jace sniggered. “Yeah, dipshit. Did you think we made it up
as we went along?”

Sabina missed Hunter so much. She hadn’t imagined she would,
what with the rush before the operation and the wonders of modern communication
to keep her busy. They exchanged emails every day. Even Skyped once. He tweeted
and texted to her phone, and she returned every one.

Right before the Copenhagen concert, he’d sent her an email
about playing Tiananmen and Red Squares.

She tried to be thrilled for him, and she was, she truly
was, but her heart ached when she finally hit “send” on the email that told him
not to worry, she’d be fine. She’d cope, she said, even managing a joke about
being unconscious most of the time.

“I’ll come,” he texted back, and she could hear his voice,
firmly assuring her. Maybe soon she’d hear his voice for real. Or maybe never
again.

No longer sure she even wanted him there because of what it
meant to his career, Sabina texted back. “Playing those places is as important
to you as my operation is to me. I’ll be fine. I’ll take my laptop and phone
into the hospital and contact you from there. We don’t have to be in the same
room.”

“For some things, we do.”

Then he’d Skyped her. Her operation was set for Tuesday and
this was Saturday. She’d drive up to Uppsala on Monday to have the preliminary
blood tests done, so she decided to take an early night to prepare.

Not that she could sleep. She sat on the bed in her
comfortable but pin-neat room at Emmelie’s composing an email to her family
when the Skype signal flashed. She pulled up the window and answered the call.

The picture of Hunter onstage faded, replaced by the man
himself, sitting in what looked like another hotel room. “Do you have a home?”
she signed.

He grinned. “And hello to you too. Yes, I have homes. One in
London and one in New York. I like New York.”

“I’d like to see it one day. Not your home of course, but
New York.”

“You’ve never been?”

“No, I’ve been to Florida, but nowhere else in America.”

He frowned. “If you come to New York, you’ll come to my
apartment. Murder City Ravens is due to go there at the end of the year, to
finish the tour there. That’s where it all began this time ’round, at Madison
Square Garden. It’s where V decided to join us and where we really started.”

She’d be jealous of the beautiful V, except that she had a
man who had a life and work of his own, so they traveled to see each other.
Sabina hadn’t allowed that possibility to occur. Hunter had never asked, for
one thing. This was the first time he’d mentioned that he wanted to see her a
significant time after the operation. She couldn’t stop a wistful, “You’re in
Europe until the end of the year?”

“Yes. You could come with me to New York.”

Had he forgotten? “I can’t fly. Not for at least a year
after the procedure. They don’t want to risk anything.”

His face fell and the light left his eyes. Maybe she had
come to mean more to him, as he had to her, but she couldn’t count on it.

He looked up and it was as if he was looking directly into
her eyes, no barrier between them. “You need a distraction. Take off your top.”

“What?”

“You heard. Do it.”

Again she wished she could hear his voice, but his command
told her he meant it. This time as he signed, he talked.

A thrill shot through her, sharp as electricity.
Oh yes.
“Do you share your room?”

He paused, stared at her, then a slow smile crept over his
face. “Of course. With Riku. He’s watching, just out of view. You like that, or
do you want me to get rid of him?”

She swallowed. He was only playing—wasn’t he? Riku wasn’t
there. Of course they were a big name now, and he’d had his own room in Malmö.

The uncertainty was driving her crazy. In a completely good
way.

She dragged her top off and cast it aside. Underneath she
wore a sheer lace bra. She shimmied, enjoying the way his expression sharpened
when her breasts moved.

“Take it off.”

She shook a warning finger and then signed, “Too repetitive.
Think of something else.”

He grinned, his blue eyes hot. Then he stripped off his own
top.

She groaned low in her throat, the vibration skittering
through her whole body. He deserved a reward for that. But she signed, “Is he
watching?”

He spoke, keeping his words distinct. “Oh yes. He can’t keep
his eyes away from you.”

Slowly she reached around and unclipped her bra, then let
the straps slip down but kept her arms up, stopping the bra from falling away.
If she pressed her arms together, she could create a modest cleavage, something
she wasn’t fortunate enough to possess normally.

The warmth in his eyes increased. He leaned forward and
signed. “Riku likes it. He says your breasts are beautiful. He wants to touch
them. Show him.”

She let the bra drop and waited. A small smile creased his
lips, creating an almost-dimple at the corners of his mouth. “I think they’re
beautiful too. Can you make your nipples hard for me?”

Time for some payback. “Can you make your cock hard for me?”

“Too late. I’m so hard I’d limp if I tried to walk.”

She didn’t know if that was possible, but then she wasn’t a
man, so she’d take his word for it. “How about Riku?” She kept her voice low.
Years of training and practice enabled her to feel the way air passed through
her vocal cords, meaning she could vary her pitch somewhat. Her residual
hearing didn’t help with soft sounds.

“Riku is panting. He wants more. He says if you give him
more, he’ll go crazy for you. He’s playing with his crotch, stroking his
erection. Do you think he’ll get it out for you if you give him what he wants?”

“I don’t know.” Uncertain, she bit her lip. Why that should
reassure her she didn’t know, but it did, as if he were in the room with her,
speaking, his breath hot against her skin.

Lifting her hands, she tweaked her nipples, twirled them
between finger and thumb, trying to do as he asked. Get them hard for him.

She stared at the screen and watched him lick his lips. “Can
you see me talking okay?”

She nodded.

“Riku wants to know what’s going on. See you and tell me
what he wants you to do.”

A suspicion crossed her mind. What if this was real? What if
Riku was really there? Yes, okay, he was hot, but she didn’t want him, and she
didn’t really want to share. But when she thought of doing it with someone
watching, especially someone as crazy sexy as Riku, her pussy throbbed and
moisture seeped between her thighs.

Go with it, let it take you.

Soon she’d tell him to leave her. They’d have to part, she
couldn’t see any other way. But for now, she was the girlfriend of the sexiest
man on the planet, and she’d better make the most of it.

He could be filming her to watch later. Watch what she was
doing for him.

She caressed her breasts, palmed them, watched him.

“Strip,” he said. “Let’s see what else you can offer.”

“You’ve seen it.”

“I have. But Riku hasn’t. I’ve seen it, tasted it and fucked
it. And I’m really thirsty for you now.”

Did he lower his voice? She’d like to think he did.

Taking her time, she undid her jeans and left the bed just
for a moment to take them and the rest of her clothes off. She came back. He
was waiting for her.

He’d stripped too. “Only fair,” he said with a grin. He’d
set the screen back a little on his bed so she could see more of him. His cock
was hard, red and leaking. He took it in one hand and gave it a pump. More
liquid spilled out of the tip.

“I’m hungry too,” she said. “How’s Riku?”

“The same.” He worked it again. “Do me a favor, sweetheart.
Sit with your legs apart. Let us see that gorgeous pussy, wide open and waiting
for us. Then do what I say.”

Swallowing away her doubts, she did as he asked, spread her
legs, splaying them on either side of her laptop and adjusting the screen a
little so he could see her body. But now he couldn’t see her face. She typed.
“Is that what you want?”

He shook his head. “No. Sit a bit further back so we can see
all of you. It’s no good if I can’t see your eyes and your mouth.”

She scooted back, adjusted the screen again. “Is that okay?”

“More than okay. We’re sitting here, cocks in hand, waiting
to see what you’ll do next. Now put your hands on your breasts again. Tease
them.”

She did so, surprised at the intensity of feeling because
stimulating her breasts didn’t usually work for her when she did it.

“Oh that looks so good.” He worked his cock again. She
wanted to be there to do it for him.

“Now imagine it’s Riku behind you, taking your breasts in
his hands. What would you like him to do? Do it, because believe me, Riku will
do anything you want.”

Would she like a ménage? “Would you do this for real?”

He paused, and in that moment she knew what he’d say. “We’ve
done it before. But in answer to your question, no. Not with you. You’re mine.
I don’t mind him looking, but that’s all. I get to touch. Nobody else.”

His eyes showed a wildness she didn’t know how to interpret
at first, then she realized. Fear lurked there. Afraid for what? To say what he
just had, or to acknowledge it? She couldn’t ask him because she was afraid
too. Of what he’d say. He might shut her out the way she’d seen him shut out
other people. Those journalists at the press conference, for example. She
didn’t want that to happen to her.

“So you’d like to show me off?”

“Maybe. I’m proud of you, you know that?” He smiled, worked
his cock almost lazily, then cradled his balls. She watched, trying to memorize
it for when she saw him again and had his cock in her hand.

“You like?”

“Oh yes. Now take one hand from your breast, let us see it.
And put your fingers down there. Spread the lips of your delectable pussy. We
can already see your clit. It’s hard and red.”

She spread her hand, let it traverse the distance between
her breasts and her hips slowly, remembering what he’d said about her skin, how
silky it was, how he loved to touch it. His tongue flicked out and touched his
lower lip, as if searching for her taste. He’d done that after he’d gone down
on her, tasting her on himself, he’d said.

Spreading her pussy lips, she exposed her clit. She wanted
to touch. “Would Riku touch me there?”

“No. I’d do that. He’s still caressing a breast. But he
wants to touch and he asks my permission. Yes, I say.”

She shuddered and her mouth fell open just a little as her
muscles relaxed into the fantasy. “He’s touching me now.”

“He is. Watch me.” Her eyes were sliding closed, but at his
words she forced her lids wide open once more. “I can see your arousal in your
eyes. Your pussy’s wet, isn’t it? Soaking.”

Nodding, she slid a finger along her pussy, gathering the
juice, then smoothed it over her clit. “You look gorgeous. I want you.”

“You have me. What do you want me to do?”

“I want you to fuck me. Slide your cock deep.” As she spoke,
she pushed her finger deep inside, using her third finger to touch her clit.
Not very effectively, but it kept her arousal going.

“Riku is watching. Watching me fuck you. No mercy now. He’s
holding your breasts. I’m lying on the bed, you’re on top of me now and he’s
behind us, touching you. Put your other hand down there now. It’s him. Can you
feel him?” When she did as he said, it did feel like someone else. Two hands
helped.

“Me in you, Riku touching your clit, working it increasingly
hard.” He was working his cock along with her strokes, pumping it hard. She’d
never owned a sex toy, too shy to go into a store and ask for one. For someone
who lived in Sweden, that was one pathetic excuse. Not that she’d ever tell
him. This was the most daring she’d ever been in her whole life.

Her fingers were slippery with her juices. She could feel
the heat of the big Japanese-American behind her, fingering her, grunting his
approval into her ears. Because in this fantasy, she could hear.

Her fantasy, so she could have it however she wanted it.

“Go, sweetheart, work me, let Riku work you. Feel it. He’s
past talking now, can’t think straight, he tells me. You’re so fucking sexy he
can’t focus. You’re soft and wet and so, so hot. After we’re done, he wants to
eat you out so he can taste both of us. Because you ought to know, I’m not
wearing a condom. We’re doing this bareback. He’ll suck and lick until he’s taken
every part of us into himself, then you’ll be ready to take him. I’ll watch,
but then my cock will harden again and I’ll want you. Have you ever had a man
take you from behind?”

Her first instinct was to say “Yes, you have,” but he didn’t
mean that. “Do you want to do that?”

“I don’t know. I want every part of you though. I want to
play, experiment, see what we both enjoy. Sometimes I’ll do exactly what you
want and sometimes I’ll take you so selfishly, I’ll have to make you come after
I’ve finished.”

“Oh God.” She moaned, caught her breath, afraid she’d been
too loud.

“Let me hear you, sweetheart. Keep going. Keep working,
thrusting and pinching. I’m watching, finding out what you like.”

Heat spiked inside her with a suddenness that made her lose
her breath. She lost herself, lost everything except the climax rocketing
through her, pushing out all thoughts, all sensations except this. Her working
Hunter, Riku waiting his turn, caressing her into another climax. She came
violently, would have fallen forward over her laptop except that she
instinctively put out her hand and saved herself.

And all the time she’d kept her eyes open. Watched him, his
big fist clenching around his cock, working with strong, even strokes until he
too came. His pearly essence spurted and he cried her name.

He recovered faster than she had. He’d closed his eyes when
he came, and although she hadn’t, her sight had been blinded by the intensity
of her orgasm.