Page 30 of Grip Me Tight
“I am excited,” she says, turning to face me. “For the show.”
“Is that all?” I watch as her chin tilts up and that tiny action makes my cock even harder. No one has ever gotten to me like her. She wanted me five years ago and somehow, I found the strength to walk away. She wanted me five nights ago and I gave into temptation and now, having her within reach, I fear all bets are off.
“What are you playing at, Tanner?” she asks, and I hear a discordant jangle of notes in the back of my mind. I close my eyes, breathing her in, letting the whispers come. Excitement streaks through me. My music is coming back.
“Tanner! Come on!” Laird holds up an arm, beckoning me to head down the hall.
“No games, Silver.” I shove my hands in my pockets to keep from touching her. A bellow causes her to turn, but I know it’s just Slade’s war cry. I see him slide his headset on, tap his back pocket for his lucky sticks and high-five Blaine as they walk out the door. I nudge Sterling. “Let’s go.”
She whirls to me with a start. “I’m staying here.”
“No, you’re not. I want you on the side of the stage, watching me, not checking your phone.”
For a second she looks like she’s going to object, but she just nods as Laird comes over to move us along. We pass through the door and the noise hits us like a bomb. My body vibrates with the pounding coming from the audience, like the waves of energy that hit my back during Slade’s drum solos. The roar from the crowd intensifies, as I walk down the corridor, Ajax and Noah just ahead of me, equipment techs jogging alongside us. I turn my head a fraction, seeing the swing of Sterling’s ponytail as she keeps up with my long strides.
I want to wrap that ponytail around my hand and hold her still for my kiss, capturing her breath as I slide inside her, feeling her body clench around my cock like she did my fingers the other night. I catch her hand, as we take the steps up to the side of the stage, the lights flashing as Slade crashes his drums and Ajax hits the opening bass notes.
“Wait for me.”
Her mouth drops open and I grin, tuck my ear monitors in, and walk out on stage. Other bands do insane openings, like having guys swing in on some sort of trapeze, but that’s not our style. The screaming escalates as Noah and I approach from opposite ends of the stage and I feel like a god, like this is my temple and my disciples are feeding me with their energy. The sound of thunder rumbles through the stadium and the lighting effect is like lightning crashing directly over Noah as he strokes his guitar, swaggering to center stage. I grab the old-school microphone and close my eyes, prepared to open my veins and bleed my words into the writhing mass below.
For every show, I’ve always given the audience everything I have. Every single drop of energy in my body is primed for them, but tonight there’s something more.
Our opening numbers are hard, pulsating songs. They remind me of the craziness of youth, bodies gyrating at a club, the anticipation of finding something or someone new. Heat and arousal and darkness.
I wanna do dirty things with you.
As the lights go down and the soft brush of Slade’s drums behind me take me intoBoundmy hands slide up the mic stand the way I want to caress Sterling’s body, and the screams of the crowd fade away. I drag the stand back and peer into the darkness at the side of the stage. I know she’s there and it fuels me, this fever for her echoes in the words of a song I wrote for her.
A sea of lights waves in front of me, people holding up their phones, blue screens shining like the moon on water. My chest is burning, stomach tight as I hit each note, walking forward again to crouch at the edge of the stage, seeing tears on the faces of the women straining at the metal barriers, security carefully monitoring the frenzy. The song ends and I blow a kiss to the crowd, jogging to the side while pulling my shirt over my head. I’m dripping with sweat from the lights and the effort and the adrenaline coursing through my muscles. A wardrobe tech hands me a towel and a clean shirt, and I look around for Sterling.
There she is, watching me, chunky headphones in place. She looks so young, her ponytail taunting me, reminding me I have no business touching her. Someone hands me a bottle of water and I unscrew it, taking slow sips even though my urge is to chug it. The room temperature water soothes my throat and I dump the rest of it onto my hands, rubbing the back of my neck and chest, loving the way the cool air of the fans hits my wet skin. I meet Sterling’s gaze, see her attention drop to my chest and I slowly trail my hand down my stomach, satisfaction filling me when she drags her lip between her teeth. I pull on the clean shirt, and head back to the stage, for the first time looking forward to the end of a show.
We’re a few songs in and the crowd is rocking, the energy at maximum pitch. It’s a crazier vibe than the show last night, with girls making out on the floor, pushing the security barrier. The stadium team has its hands full, and I talk to the crowd, walking back and forth across the stage, letting their screams carry me. Ajax does his Viking bit, and I grin when I see a bright yellow… yup, thong, hit one of the guards in the chest before sliding to the floor at his feet.
Ajax inches closer to the edge of the stage, Noah right behind him, their guitars wailing, and I check my location as the lights follow me back to where Slade is poised, drumsticks in the air, when there’s a pause in the guitar track. I keep moving, swinging around as I touch my piece, hearing the backtrack. A growl echoes to my left and Jax lifts his guitar off, the speaker picking up the movement in a discordant twang.
“What the fuck?” I shout, heartbeat ratcheting as Jax looks like he’s about to jump off the stage. Lights shine where he’s standing, rage across his face while he yells, the veins in his neck popping out. I see a commotion below, security reaching into to the crowd while other guards try to hold the metal barriers back. A tall man is pulling someone out of the crowd. I call for a medic, figuring someone must have fainted, the screams from the front rising as madness takes over. I’m nearly to Jax when he fucking leaps into the fray, his boot catching one of the metal barriers as he goes down.
Jesus. Fucking. Christ.
It’s like all hell breaks loose. Someone in my ear tells me to stay on the stage and Noah nods to me, a wildness in his eyes as he punches a fist in the air, launching into a crazy riff while Slade keeps up a war drum beat in the background. Panic floods me as I back-walk to where I can see the side of the stage and I notice our security detail has doubled at the wings. I search the dimness, relaxing when I see Sterling and Emil standing together, heads bent over a tablet. I don’t know what the fuck is going on and I don’t like it. I strain to see the clusterfuck below, medics rushing in, while the crowd surges around them.
14
Sterling
Holy Shit. Holy Shit. Holy Shit.What just happened?
I was fixated on Tanner and didn’t even notice anything else was happening until Ajax tossed his guitar and disappeared off the stage. Is it an attack?
Security floods into the wings, lights going up. Why aren’t they pulling the band off stage? Are they in danger?
A hand on my shoulder makes me jump and I turn to see Emil, concern on his face.
“What just happened?”
“No idea. I was on the other side when Jax went crazy and jumped into the crowd,” he says, rubbing his hand over his mouth.
