Suddenly Famous (9 page)

How embarrassing, and right in front of Leah. Some women really have no shame.

Leah watches her leave then turns to look at us. “Well, that was a nice show.”

Syd and Adam choke with laughter. I should have known Leah would take it in style. She’s so fucking unbelievable about everything else, why would a stranger flirting with me bother her?

Sliding an arm under the table, I find her knee and slowly trace my fingers up the inside of her thigh. She tilts her head in my direction, her eyes darkening with desire, then her mouth curls up into an evil smirk.

“Let’s dance, Sydney!” Leah calls out to her friend. They vanish onto the large main dance floor below. Where I can’t go. Where she
knows
I can’t go. Of course she doesn’t want to dance on the VIP floor where I can get to her.

Fuck!
My plan to tease Leah has backfired on me. I’m left with a cock so hard it could pound nails while she’s off to gyrate with a mob of strangers.

Tonight is going to be long and painful, my dick can attest to that already.

“I’m so tired, Leah. Can we go now?” Sydney is crashing hard. She looks utterly spent. After being molested by two assholes on the dance floor, then dropping them with a few well-placed knees, she’s ready to fall asleep.

“Leah, let’s go. Sydney travelled all the way from Western Canada today. She’s got to be sleep walking by now.” Leah glances over at me and sees that I’m serious, then looks at her friend.

“Okay, Syd. Adam? You ready to leave?”

“Sure. I’m pretty knackered myself. Would your car drop me at my place after leaving the Warren?” he asks.

“I don’t see why not. Leah, Syd, let’s get out of here. I’ve had enough fun for one night.” Leah puts her hand in mine and I help her out of the booth. We cross the VIP area to the private entrance where we make our way down the stairs.

The bouncer at the door sees us coming and holds up a hand. “Wait. Is your car out there yet?” he asks.

“It should be,” I tell him.

“What’s it look like, mate. I’ll check for you.” The big man folds his arms across his massive chest, waiting for an answer.

“Ummmm,” I can’t remember. How the fuck do I know what a rental car looks like? “Black?” I say stupidly.

“It’s a grey sedan,” Sydney says. “Four door. Very dark windows.”

The three of us stare at Sydney, who is practically asleep, yet still observant enough to remember the car that drove us a mere fifteen minutes from the hotel to the club.

“I’ll be right back,” the bouncer says.

He shoves open the door and, unfortunately, we can see why he didn’t want us leaving. There’s a huge crowd on the sidewalk in front of the club. It’s obviously not a line of people waiting to get in either. The telltale hysteria burns that theory pretty quickly.

“Fuck. They know I’m here,” I mutter angrily. Stress starts to swamp my senses, taking over every single one. The tang of blood hits my tongue and only then do I realize I’ve bitten the inside of my cheek. A rush of red floods my vision and I stagger back from the fear it instills.

“Ry, hey. Breathe baby. I’m right here.” Leah’s calming touch and soft-spoken words help to ground me back in reality.

The red recedes and my breathing steadies. “Shit, Leah. How are we getting out of here?” I turn to Adam for advice. “Adam, you’ve been in these situations before, what do you think?”

“Mate, I’ve been surrounded by fans, but they’ve never ripped my clothes off or scratched the shite out of my skin.” He rubs his chin thoughtfully, looking at the door as the bouncer comes back inside.

“Your hire car’s out front,” he says. “Close as he can get. I overheard a girl say that Twitter posted your location here.” He looks at me directly, his dark eyes searching mine. I open my mouth to say something, but nothing comes out.

“Do you have any other bouncers that can help us get outside?” Sydney asks, breaking the uncomfortable silence.

The big man swivels his head to face her, then grins. “I reckon I might. Give me a minute.” He moves up the stairs with more grace than a man his size should be able to manage.

“Fucking Twitter,” I grunt, fisting my wild hair in frustration.

“I know exactly how you feel about those types of sites,” Sydney says empathetically.

I nod in agreement, glancing upstairs periodically for the bouncer to come back with our help. Christ, Sydney’s been stabbed, cyber stalked, and run off the road by paparazzi. She seems to be in a hell of a lot better shape than me. I’m falling the fuck apart.

She did disappear for twelve years. Is that what it’s going to take for me to get better?

Loud footsteps stomping down the stairway alert us to the arrival of our own personal cavalry. Four large men come down to the tiny entryway, suddenly making the space feel very very small.

“Ready?” The original bouncer asks us?

“Yes,” I choke out. “What’s your name?”

“Isaac,” he says, grinning. “Now, let’s get you lot home.”

Adam smiles like he’s about to open his Christmas presents, quite obviously entertained by this circus. Sydney looks as terrified as I feel, and Leah, well, I don’t think it’s really sunk in yet how horrific my fans can be.

The big guys surround us as we burst out of the club, right into a wall of screaming females. Flashes from paparazzi that somehow joined the party start popping in our eyes, blinding us and making each step difficult. Isaac and his friends do a superb job of keeping most of the girls back, but a few manage to sneak their greedy hands in, grabbing at my shirt, my pants, and even my trademark hair.

“Ow! Jesus,” I yell when someone jerks a hunk of hair, ripping it out by the roots.

Now they’re taking my fucking hair?

We’re stuffed into the back of the car before I can blink, the door slamming shut behind us.

“You okay Ry? You look sick.” Leah is running her hands over my back and arms, knowing without asking that physical contact with her helps to keep me from going over the edge.

I reach up to finger the back of my scalp where it still stings. “Someone ripped out my hair.”

“What?” Leah shouts. She grabs my head and pulls it over so she can look. “Holy crap, Ry! You’re missing a spot! Those fuckers!”

She releases my head and I laugh. There’s nothing at all funny about this, but I find Leah’s protective hostility hilarious for some reason. It’s sort of an ‘if you don’t laugh you’ll have a nervous breakdown’ reaction.

Adam tries to stifle it, but he can’t, laughing with me until we’re both doubled over, snorting and coughing in a hideous display. When we finally catch our breath, the girls are staring at us open-mouthed, most likely thinking that we’re both idiots.

Laughing is better than freaking out and going catatonic, so I consider it an improvement.

London just might turn out to be the best, or worst, three months of my life. Either way, it’s going to be a freaky ride.

With a shaking hand, I pick up my phone and dial Dr. Benton’s number in New York. With the six-hour time difference, it’s nine in the morning there, so she should be in the office.

“Dr. Benton’s office.”

“Sandy, this is Ryker Bancroft, is Dr. Benton available to talk?”

“Let me check Mr. Bancroft, please hold.” I listen to dreary elevator music while waiting for the doctor to pick up. For a psychiatrist’s office, you’d think they’d have more upbeat music to listen to. This crap is damn depressing.

“Ryker?”

“Hi, Dr. Benton. Do you have a minute?” I wipe my sweaty forehead with a nearby T-shirt I had tossed over a chair.

Papers start shuffling on the other end of the line. “Yes, I have ten minutes until my next appointment. What can I do for you?”

“I’m still having nightmares. About the, you know, about what happened.” I shudder to think about the flood of red I saw when I woke up from a nap in my trailer this afternoon.

“Alright. Is the girl still in them?”

She’s talking about Brooke, the teen who killed herself. “Yes, usually. I’m also…” I hesitate, feeling stupid discussing this with anyone.

“Also what, Ryker?”

I swipe a hand though my sweaty hair, having woken up soaked, my pulse racing though my veins. “I’m also a little afraid to leave my hotel or my trailer. To be in public.” I relay what happened at LowRent, the club we visited the other night, and the vicious mob of women who were waiting for me outside. Add in the fact that Leah and Sydney think someone is spying on us, it’s made me a nervous wreck.

“Ryker, it’s perfectly natural to be wary of strangers after everything you’ve been through. Keep taking the anxiety medication I gave you on an as needed basis. We should meet up as soon as you get back, okay?”

“Yeah, okay. Thanks, doc.”

“You’re very welcome Ryker. Call me anytime.”

“Right, bye.”

I disconnect the call, quickly stripping off my damp clothes to grab a shower. When I woke up from my nap, I was distracted by the anxiety. Now that I’ve had a moment to calm down, I realize that I’ve only had a few nightmares since arriving in London, and only when I sleep alone. Naps I take during the day when Leah’s off shopping or sightseeing with some of the crew or with Sydney.

I wrap a towel around my waist and check the time. I’m not needed on set for another hour. Leah probably won’t be back for a while either.

I find my phone to send her a quick text before getting in the shower.

Me

I turn on some music, hoping it will help me relax. That dream really freaked me out. Just like it always does. Maybe even more since I haven’t had one in a few weeks. It felt more vivid.

Leah

Smiling, I type a response immediately. Hearing from Leah soothes my uneasiness.

Me

Leah <;) what should I wear? >

My cock jerks awake at the direction this conversation has taken.

Me

The phone beeps right away.

Leah

Shit!
Now I’m hard as steel and wearing only a towel.

I throw the phone down on the bed and stalk out of the tiny bedroom that takes up most of one end of the luxury trailer that I use as a refuge when we’re on location. The bathroom is fairly large for a trailer, but still small.

I crank the water on, waiting impatiently for it to get hot, annoyed that my dick hasn’t budged an inch. It’s still rock hard and ready to go. Shit, I have to do a run through of tomorrow’s scene before finishing for the day.

The towel falls from my hips, landing in a soft pile on the floor. I grab the base of my shaft and squeeze, desperately trying to control my defiant cock. All I manage to do is get even harder.

Fuck!
I step into the shower enclosure and let the hot water rain down on me until my entire body is wet. Placing my palms on the tile, the shower pounds on my back, loosening the various knots and relaxing the muscles. My cock, however, remains unaffected.

All I can think about is Leah showing up in my trailer naked, waiting for me when I get back from the set. She’s splayed out on my bed, with her hair fanned across the sheets, her toned legs spread wide in invitation.

Jesus. I grab the soap and slick up my hand, leaving one on the wall to brace myself. When my fingers wrap around my heated shaft, a moan rips from my throat.

God, this is going to be quick.

My hand twists over the sensitive head, the soap making it easy to slide back down my shaft. I shudder with pleasure. Closing my eyes, I picture Leah’s sweet pink pussy, open and wet and waiting for me to dive in for a taste. I thump my forehead on the wall next to my hand, needing the extra support as my knees grow weak.

I move faster, adding a toe-curling twist to each stroke over my swollen head. Electricity coils up in my spine, the pressure in my balls tightens until it’s almost uncomfortable but fucking amazing at the same time. In my mind, Leah’s hand drops between her legs so I can watch as she lightly flicks her clit. That’s it for me. Between ragged breaths, hot cum shoots onto the wall as a burst of light explodes behind my eyelids.

I continue stroking until my dick is so sensitive it feels raw and my calves begin to cramp from tensing up.

Shit.

Turning around, I lean back against the tile, my chest heaving from the intensity of the orgasm. Damn, that’s what I get for teasing Leah about her clothing, or lack thereof. I quickly clean off and step out of the shower. There’s only fifteen minutes until they need me on set for blocking and a final run through of a fight scene.

The girl isn’t even here and she’s making me late for work. I smile and let out a small laugh, shaking my head in disbelief. Who knew that a one hundred-pound pastry chef and explosive little firecracker could completely change my life in just a few short months?