Romance: Gibson's Legacy ( New Adult Contemporary Erotic Romance) (Last Score Book 1) (20 page)

Snickering, I shook my head at that thought, because Lennox probably thought just talking to a girl was beyond my capability. Until recently, it was.

Normally, meet and greets were second nature, yet the feeling inside me was like the first day of high school. I’d checked myself out in the mirror and was conscious of what I was wearing, and how I was behaving.

Walking toward the meeting room, there was a feeling of despair instead of excitement. It could go either way and at that point, I didn’t dare think about her reacting negatively to me. Lennox slapped my shoulder and the rest of the band walked behind us as we made our way to where everyone was waiting.

With every inch the door opened, I could see more into the room. In my mind the door opened painstakingly slowly, yet all of a sudden there she was. Chloe. Stunningly beautiful to look at, she was sitting on the far side of a huge black leather sofa; same guy sitting next to her, with his arm stretched along the back of her head.

Familiar looking body language with his body turned slightly towards her in an almost intimate way, but not. I wondered who he was to her. It was hard to read how close they were.

A tall dark haired girl, who looked vaguely familiar, perched on the arm of the sofa next to her, and another guy stood facing all of them. Heads turned and all eyes turned in the direction of us as we strode further into the room.

At first I tried not to meet her eyes, but when I found the nerve to look at her, hers were trained on her lap. Wondering what that meant, I moved closer, glad in a way that she wasn’t looking at me, because it gave me the opportunity to peruse her without embarrassing her.

Moving closer, I found that Chloe was even more beautiful than she had been at eighteen. No doubt about it, she had grown into her own skin and had developed from the gorgeous young girl that she had been, into a very beautiful woman.

Slightly more curvaceous, delicate facial features with those luscious lips, and huge almond shaped inky blue eyes, Chloe had no make-up on whatsoever and her natural flawless beauty almost overwhelmed me.

Throughout my seven years on the road, I had come across many beautiful girls, some beyond my expectations, but no one had ever had this effect on me in the way Chloe had. There was no way to explain what it was that got to me. She was amazing to look at but that wasn’t it, it was a feeling that was way different from any other feeling I’d ever known, and after all that time, it had never left me since the last time I saw her.

Charlotte began to speak and with her first words, Chloe looked up and our eyes locked instantly, shocking me. Because the one thing I never expected to see was a sadness that made me so fucking mad, I couldn’t find my voice.

What the hell was going on with her? Had she already realized that the guy on the phone was me after hearing me on stage? What had I done to her?

Introducing us, Charlotte chatted easily and Len, Mick and Simon shook hands with each of them. Len spoke to Chloe and the smile she gave him melted my heart. Those beautiful eyes lit up and suddenly she was the girl that had captivated my thoughts for years.

Just watching her smile made the corners of my mouth curl up as well and her innocent charm captivated me even further. Clearing his throat, I heard Lennox break into my trance. “So, Gib, are you going to stand there and stare or are you going to welcome our guests, dude?”

Instantly showman Gibson took over. “Jeez, Len– can’t a guy stare at a beautiful woman in peace?” As soon as I said it, I was kicking my own ass because that was the last thing I wanted her to take away from this trip. Me, objectifying her and getting pleasure from doing it, even if that was partly true.

Brushing over my comment I began shaking hands enthusiastically until I came to the dude who was with Chloe. “And you are the winner’s boyfriend, Gavin, right?”

Gavin’s eyes flicked to Chloe’s and hers to his. Their transferring glances were awkward and she blushed and looked a little flustered, before looking away. “I wish, he said, looking nervously back at Chloe. “No, not her boyfriend unfortunately, just a friend.”

Relief flooded though me. I hadn’t realized how tense I had become during that little interlude until I felt my muscles relax, but now my heart galloped in my chest, because that meant I’d be able to manufacture some time alone with Chloe.

“Ah, your loss is my gain then, Gavin, because that means that you won’t be jealous when I whisk the winner off for her dinner alone this evening.” Smirking, I turned and raised an eyebrow at Charlotte, who gave me a what-the-fuck look, because that wasn’t in the plans for the weekend at all. Turning back, panic and something else I couldn’t put my finger on was written on Chloe’s face.

“Don’t look so frightened honey, I don’t bite…not unless that’s your thing of course, and then maybe I could make an exception in your case.”

Gavin’s arm reached out and pulled Chloe close to him. “It’s okay, honey, he’s just messing.”

Seeing him excuse my behavior made me so pissed, I almost blew it and threw a punch, but Lennox and Mick had me covered. “Come on guys, let’s get some drinks and make ourselves comfortable. We have until late Sunday to party before you go back home again.”

Lennox smirked surreptitiously and slapped his hand heavily on Gavin’s back. At the same time Mick moved in and threw his arm over the girl Ruby’s shoulder. Both started to distract them away from where I was standing. Mick began saying, “Tell me Ruby, I’ve seen you somewhere before. Do we know each other?”

What Mick was asking was, did I fuck you and can’t remember? Beginning to smirk, I caught myself and the smirk dropped, because when I thought about it, maybe I had too. She was familiar, but we’d had so many girls back then, and the only one I was sure I hadn’t had a thing with, was right there in the room with me.

Reaching out, my hand slipped around her shoulder and I pulled Chloe into a tight hug. I felt her tense and tremble slightly when I did. I almost let her go, but she suddenly seemed to relax into the embrace after a second.

From the moment she gave into the hug, her body became all soft curves and my head was filled with this amazing womanly scent. Nothing could have stopped me at that point, and I leaned into her, inhaling her skin deeply.

Holding her like that gave me an incredible feeling of warmth. There had been times when I lost sleep over wondering what she would have felt like in my arms. Feeling myself become aroused, I had no choice but to break out of the hug.

Stepping back, I gave her a soft smile and dipped my knees slightly to capture her gaze in mine and took her hand to soothe her. The way her hand molded into mine felt like a fit. I can’t explain it, but I just felt so comfortable holding it, and the touch of her made my dick twitch.

“Hi, honey, congratulations on winning the competition. This is as nerve-racking for me as it is for you I’ve never done this before either.”

Chloe’s face instantly brightened and her eyes lit up in appreciation at my gesture. Staring in amazement at the transformation in her, I squeezed her hand and mirrored her wider smile, “Let’s just try and have a good time together, no pressure okay?”

Smiling nervously, she bit her lip and tried to hold my gaze and for the briefest moment, I was transported back five years to Matt’s office and those same eyes inches from mine. Losing confidence, her eyes lowered in the direction of the floor again, and pink tinge, touched her cheeks.

Reacting without thinking, I placed my forefinger under her chin and raised her head to get eye contact again. “Don’t look at the floor. You have the most incredible eyes, I’d like to see them if that’s okay.”

Not sure what to do with that compliment, she hesitated and worked a swallow before turning her head away from me. She trained her sights on her friends, maybe for reassurance, but they were being kept busy by the guys.

Tori stared over at us and I instantly knew by the look on her face what she was about. Reading her from the first day, I knew she was desperate to get with me and would do anything to fuck up the tenuous connection I was building with Chloe.

Simon was talking to the other dude that was with them and I inclined my head just a fraction in Chloe’s direction and directed my eyes pointedly at her. Without a word between us, he knew what to do. Excusing himself from the guy, he wandered over and began chatting with Chloe. Smiling, I excused myself and briefly left the room to chat to Charlotte.

“Romantic and casual I read, so I’ve asked the jet to be prepared for you and you’re taking her to the Casanova restaurant in Carmel-By-The-Sea. I figured the twenty minute flight each way would be a great way of ensuring there were no interruptions or prying eyes, and the restaurant is so romantic that no one would ever think someone like you would be there. So it should make for a pretty private party.”

Staring back at Charlotte, I should have been pleased with the effort she had gone to, but the comment about the restaurant and me not fitting in, smarted with me. Who the fuck did she think she was, talking to me like that. Employees seem to overstep just when they do something great. What the fuck was it with that?

“You don’t think I can be romantic? You don’t think I have it in me to pursue a girl and make her feel like she’s the only person alive? That my heart can beat only for her? You know fuck all about me, Charlotte. No one does. Hell, I hardly know myself. Why? Because I’ve never really been given the chance at a relationship.”

My voice sounded harsh and aggressive. I gave her a solid, don’t fuck- with- me stare for a moment longer than I’d intended; and on reflection it was probably intimidating, before I exhaled heavily.

“No one has ever come close to knowing me. All they’ve wanted is to fuck a guy in a band. What does that tell you? Is it me, or is this the first time I’ve found someone I want to give a fuck about? Just do your fucking job, arrange stuff for me, but don’t fucking judge, you hear me?”

Charlotte grasped her right upper arm with her left hand, and looked nervous. Surprised and shocked because she’s used to dealing with cranky and pissed Gibson, but not the genuine anger I’d directed at her. Her defensive pose told me my words had hit home. What did she think I was going to do? Punch her?

Stepping back, I turned on the ball of my foot to walk away, and turned my head over my shoulder to look back at her. “Everyone knows me, as Gibson the man-whore, not one person in my life has ever got me, so why the fuck shouldn’t I have done what I wanted to?”

Turning, I headed back to Chloe and Simon. When she came into view, the way she was leaning against the wall talking to Simon was a turn on in itself. Standing with her legs crossed at the ankles, elbow perched on the wall, and her head resting in her hand. She seemed so much more relaxed than when she was looking at me.

When Chloe saw me wandering back, she pushed off of the wall and straightened up in a formal stance. It was me she was uneasy with. I felt sure she had no idea it was me on the phone by then but her conversation on the phone about what kind of person I was still rang in my ears, and I wondered if or when she was going to mention her past connection to me. There was a nervous aura about her that I was struggling with. It was a vibe I never got with the girl I was around all those years ago.

Simon made eye contact with me and said, “Okay Gibson, I’m gonna get a beer with the rest of the guys. I’ll see you later. Lovely getting to know you a little, Chloe, I’m looking forward to spending the day in your company tomorrow.” Patting her arm, Simon nodded at me and headed back to the others to give us a bit of privacy to continue our conversation.

“Alright, are you ready to get this party started honey?” Smiling at her, I expected her to smile back, but again I was met with a strange, almost angry look. Chloe crossed her arms and gave me a solid stare.

“Thank you for your hospitality for me and my friends, but I didn’t enter a competition hoping to meet you. That was purely by default after buying a new phone with automatic competition entry.”

Grinning at her, but trying to hide the fact that I had manipulated this whole situation, I replied, “Well, I guess you’re not really a fan then, but we’ll just have a good time anyway. What do you say?”

Chloe pursed her lips and I could see she was uneasy and then she sighed heavily and met my gaze. “Gibson, I know you don’t remember me, but we’ve kind of met before. I just want to say a couple of things to you.”

Taking a towel off the chair by a small table. She sat down, crossed her legs and clasped her hands in front of her. “Firstly, I am indeed a fan of M3rCy. I have every album you have all made, but to be honest, I know what you are doing, trying to lure me away from the others. You may be used to women dropping their panties for you whenever you wanted them to. Please understand I am not a star struck teenager and that won’t be happening with me.”

Raising my eyebrow, I felt pissed that the legacy of my horny ways was following me at that moment. “Hmm, this is the second time today someone has decided what my intentions are and got it wrong. I really want you to enjoy yourself Chloe, so I’ll clear the air. I, Gibson Barclay, am not going to fuck you, so you can relax. All I want to do is take you to dinner is– that a problem for you?”

CHAPTER 20 – EXCITED

Chloe

I suppressed the nerves in my stomach, where a knot had formed and felt nauseous. Blood rushed and swirled l in my ears while my heartbeat became so wild that I thought my heart was going to detach itself, and rise up out of my chest and into my throat.

Sixteen was the last time I had felt that nervous energy; the day I walked into my new high school when we had to move across country. Being at the gig was way different though. I was at a concert, watching a guy I had seen when he was nothing. No… if I was being honest, I never thought Gibson could ever have been described as nothing to anyone. He had too much of an aura about him. The guy had everything. Problem was, he’d also
had
everyone… almost.