The Bad Boys of Summer Anthology(276)

He shrugged, wiping his red nose again. “Because although Bentley is abusive, he was the only one who supported my dream. He was the only one who liked that I was following after my drumming career. My mom hated it, and I know she still hates it because whenever I call her, she hardly says a thing to me. I’m the youngest of the band, twenty-two, and when we started getting noticed, I was a senior in high school. It was a decision to go after my dreams or to get my diploma. I chose my dreams and she hated my decision. After she and Bentley split, I didn’t hear from her for a while. Bentley gave up everything at home to join FireNine. I didn’t know how to thank him so I thought it was best to let him tag along.”

“But shouldn’t he be proud of you? He shouldn’t hit you,” I said, getting even more upset about his past.

“I’ll never understand Bentley.” He ran a stitched hand across his face. “He has a different way of showing how proud of me he is. He’s so strict and used to perfection that if I fuck up, he gets mad and hits me. He’s been a part of this band for so long. We were his way of making money. As much as I may not like him, he raised me and I do love him. I wanted him to be taken care of and I didn’t fight back because he’s probably done more for me than my mom has. He was more of a dad to me than my biological one…”

“Oh,” was all I could manage. He was torn. He didn’t want Bentley to lose everything so he stuck through it. But sooner or later Deed could have been brutally injured, worse than now. Bentley seemed like he was going to keep hitting harder and harder the older Deed got. “What makes him so angry?” I asked.

He shrugged, running another hand through his hair. “Don’t know. I think he had a fucked-up childhood. Saw some scars all over his back one time… It freaked me out. They were like scars from whippings. Not sure what happened, but I never wanna find out.”

I nodded. That could be understood. Perhaps Bentley released his past aggressions on Deed. Maybe for once he felt superior to someone else and used it to his advantage. It happens.

“Seriously, though,” Deed said, smiling softly and bringing me out of my crazy Bentley thoughts, “if there’s anything you need from me, you ask me. I owe you big time. I really didn’t know how I was going to get out of that one.”

I smiled back. “Anytime, Deed.”

We talked more about minor stuff like if he was going to be ready to play on Saturday and if he felt any better, and of course he was trying to man up and say he was more than ready, but by his limping, I knew he needed to heal a little more. I finished up cooking as we chatted and after the food was done, we talked over our meal and shared the bottle of wine that was in the cabinet.

I learned a lot about Deed, which surprised me. He was hiding a burden for so long that he actually opened up to me in ways that created a better bridge for our friendship. He and Montana were similar in ways, only Montana was a bit goofier and more mindless than Deed. At least Deed thought about his picks before just dragging them onto the bus and sleeping with them.

I cleaned up after we finished eating and Deed hopped back to the couch to continue his game. During my cleaning, Gage came in with overly eager eyes.

As soon as he saw me, he smiled widely and rushed for me. “What are you doing tonight?” he asked.

I grinned as he pulled me close, reeling me in. “Nothing that I know of. Why? What do you have in mind? Another party?”

“No,” he said, which caught me by surprise. “Something much better. A surprise.”

“Where at?”

“It’s a surprise, Sweet Ellie,” he said, kissing my cheek. “You’ll have to come with me to find out where and what we’re doing it.”

I kissed his cheek back, wrapping my arms around his neck. Finally, I nodded and finished up the cleaning, and Gage told me to go pack some overnight clothes. I found that odd but did so anyway, refusing to miss out on any time with him. I was even more excited when he told me to bring a few art supplies. I wasn’t sure which art supplies to bring so I went along with some paint, my sketchpad, and my drawing pencils.

I stuffed some shorts and tank tops into my small bag, my toiletries, and even a nice outfit consisting of skinny jeans, a sheer black blouse, and the Chuck Taylor’s Gage bought me. I adored him for buying them for me. I’d even teased him and said we could be twins and match one day. I didn’t know when that “one day” would be, but I tried to look over fitting the future into our present.

After I was all packed, I sent Ben a text telling him who I was spending my night with and he sent me a winky face along with another “be truthful and open up” reminder. I tried to not let it get to me as I tossed my bag onto my shoulder, headed for the front door of the bus, stepped out, and met Gage at Stan’s truck.

“You all set?” he asked, taking my bag and art supplies from me and knocking on the glass of the trunk to get Stan to unlock it.

“Yep,” I sighed. “All set.”

After tossing in my bag, he stepped in close. “You know what I’ve just realized?” Gage asked, his nose skimming across my cheek.

“What?” I breathed.

“I haven’t gotten a kiss from you all day, Ellie.” His mouth hovered right above my lips. His voice had deepened and turned silky. I shivered, delighted by the nearness of his lips. It was fall, so it was a cool night in New York, but with him this close, my insides were set on fire. Warm tingles were running all over my skin.

“How about you take one from me?” I grinned wickedly.

He raised an eyebrow, his smile expanding. “Look how untamed you’ve become. I hope it isn’t because of me,” he teased, smirking.

I laughed as he chuckled, and soon our lips met. Fire sparked throughout my entire body, trailing down to my toes and causing them to curl. I breathed in his fresh, masculine cologne and sank my fingernails into his shirt, gripping onto him, never wanting to let go. There was urgency between us. It grew as he licked the curve of my upper lip and grinned devilishly behind it. I brought his tongue to my mouth, coaxing it with a few moans and delightful groans. He nibbled at my lower lip, his hand sneaking from my waist to my breast. He swallowed my next moan and I panted as he started kissing my neck. But then a loud horn beeped, snapping us out of our eager, fervent kiss.

“You have time for that later, you two!” Stan yelled out his window. “Get your asses in this truck. I ain’t got all night!”

I giggled, glancing over my shoulder. Smirking, Gage smoothed his crumpled black T-shirt and then grabbed my hand, walking around to the passenger door behind Stan. “Sorry, Stan,” Gage said, laughing as he opened the door and allowed me in first.

Stan only chuckled, cranking the car.

As soon as Gage was in the car, Stan pulled out of the parking lot and we were off to my “surprise” destination.





SINGLE DOVE

The hotel where Gage and I were dropped off was way more than luxurious. Tower after tower, lights over lights. It was beautiful and stood out next to the New York harbor. Of course Gage had to be fancy and go with the penthouse suite. As the elevator opened, I marveled at the scenery before me.

A spacious living room with a leather couch. Candles lit in every corner. A wide window took up one side of the room, and I rushed for it to gaze out. We were right beside the Atlantic Ocean. The water rippled and a few yachts and boats were parked near the shore. I gasped, completely in awe, and then heat smoldered my backside. Warm lips touched my neck and fire ran from my throat to my toes.

“You like it?” he asked, pulling my hair back to kiss the back of my neck. I smiled, realizing he meant his question in more ways than one. He moved in closer and my stomach pressed against the glass. His masculine scent filled my lungs and I breathed him in, lacing my fingers through his.

“This was sweet of you, Gage,” I whispered.

He slowly stopped kissing me, pulling his hand away to grab mine and spin me around. “You think this is all?” he asked, a large smile on his face.

I looked around, frowning. “What’s wrong with it? I love it.”

He chuckled. “You’re adorable, Ellie. This is only the warm-up. We have bigger plans for tonight.” He kissed my cheek before pulling away from me and going for my bag. Making his way toward me, he smiled and handed it to me. “Go get changed. I know how you like to look ‘presentable’”—he made quotation marks with his fingers—“as you put it.”

I smiled, clutching my bag. “I do. And I’m glad you know it.”

Gage tenderly kissed me on the lips before letting me go.

When I’d satisfied myself with how I looked and how I braided my hair to the side, I stepped out. He was waiting for me on the sofa, strumming his guitar. He heard me and looked up, smiling adorably. “You ready?”

“Yeah,” I murmured.

He stood from the sofa, strapped his guitar around him, took my hand, and we were on our way.



Gage and I filled up on Italian food and wine. We laughed a lot and talked just enough. We flirted and held hands. Hugged and kissed. I was having so much fun and trying my hardest to block out my time limit with him. There were moments when I thought about it and it literally hurt my heart.