AUTHOR'S NOTE: This chapter is rated M.
Chapter 18
HOPE IS A DANGEROUS THING
Zed sighed as he watched the water cascade down the back window of the record store. It was a rare stormy day in Los Angeles and there hadn't been a single customer all day. Mason had called in sick and Owen left early, leaving him alone and bored out of his skull. The only thing keeping him from going completely stir crazy were the sporadic sexts from Addison, and he hadn't even gotten one of those in over an hour. He checked his phone again. His last message was still on read. Stupid cheer practice. He shoved his phone back into his pocket and raked his hands through his hair in frustration. Suddenly the bell above the door chimed, alerting him of a customer. He walked to the front of the store to help whoever had decided to brave the weather.
He stopped dead in his tracks. There standing in the doorway was his beautiful girlfriend, dressed in a long gray raincoat, her hair falling in waves across her shoulders, red high heels peeking out from under the hem, smiling seductively at him. She bit her bottom lip and walked further into the store.
He went breathless as she moved towards him, her raincoat parting to give him a glimpse of something silky and red beneath. He could smell her perfume, could hear her soft, quick breathing, could see the heat in her eyes as she gave him a deliberate once over.
"I thought you were at cheer practice." He grinned. His body was aching to reach out and grab her, his desire growing as she walked closer.
"I decided to call it early..." she whispered almost breathlessly.
"Oh yeah?"
"Yeah..."
"And why's that?" He swallowed loudly as she licked her lips.
She gave him the wickedest of smiles as she undid the tie of her coat to allow him a full view of the red negligee she had on underneath. She reached out and ran her fingertip gently from his shoulder down his arm. "Remind me what that last message you sent me said?"
He swallowed loudly again as her hand ran down the side of his face. "I'm sure it was a bit more eloquently worded, but I think it said something along the lines of, "If you were here I'd bend you over the sales counter and fuck you until my name was the only thing you could say..."
"Well..." she husked back, allowing her finger to edge close to his lips. "What are you waiting for?" she whispered as she pressed her lips to his.
Without thinking of their current location, he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her into him, opening his lips and deepening their kiss. The kiss went on and on, growing deeper and hotter with each second.
He moaned in regret suddenly dragging his mouth from hers, and she tightened her arms around his neck whimpering at the loss of contact.
He could see the frustration in her eyes, knowing she was wondering why he'd pulled back. He wondered himself as he watched her try to catch her breath, her chest heaving prettily, displaying her cleavage nicely as the low cut lingerie pulled tight across her breasts. Her eyes were wild with desire, her lips swollen with passion as she panted against him.
The sight was nearly enough to make him lose it right there, and he struggled for some form of control. He was at work, during business hours, anyone could walk in.
"Adds, we can't right now?" he said, seeing a glint of stubbornness appear in her eyes. He really didn't want to stop but he had to at least try.
Without giving him a chance to continue protesting, she took a step away. He let out a small sigh of relief… or maybe it was regret… he couldn't tell. He thought she was backing off. He had never been more wrong.
Without breaking eye contact, she shrugged the raincoat completely off her body, letting it fall in a puddle at her feet. She shivered slightly as the cold air hi over her skin, tightening her nipples, and fluttering the red silk erotically against her body.
"You know you can't resist me..." she whispered sensuously.
He watched her eyes darken as she let her hand wander along the curve of her neck and down to the swell of her breasts.
She smiled in triumph as she saw his eyes widen int realization of her intentions. She cupped her breast lightly in her hand, shivering as her fingertips brushed over her nipple. She let out a soft moan. Her eyes closed in bliss as she cupped her other breast, letting her fingers dance over her already hardened nipple and pulled on her piercing. She looked back into his eyes as she slid one hand down brushing lightly over the thin material covering her mound and pressed lightly against her clit.
He had tried. He really truly had tried to resist her. But before either of them could get off another breath, he had her locked in his arms, his mouth crushing hers as she hungrily returned his kiss. He molded her body to his as he thrust his leg between her thighs, groaning when he felt her wetness.
"Baby," he growled as he felt her hands slide down to cup his backside, pulling his hips even tighter against hers.
"Zed, please," she moaned. She pulled his sweatshirt and t-shirt over his head, dropping them on the ground. Her hands immediately went for the button at his waist as he tried to help her undo them and push them down. She moaned again as she felt him through his boxers. His rock hard desire pressing insistently against her bare thigh.
He groaned low in his throat as he felt her arch against him, moving so her weeping center was rubbing directly against his hardness. He could feel how hot she was even through the thin material.
"Adds," he managed as he allowed his lips to slide across her neck, kissing and nipping a path over her collarbone and down to the curve of her breasts. "Baby, let's move this to the couch in the back office," he tried, surprised when she pulled back and shook her head.
"No, I want you to take me right here, right now, Zed," she whispered in a throaty voice, pulling herself reluctantly from his arms and walking back towards the sales counter. She smiled as his eyes widened at what she was suggesting. "Just like you said in your text..." she whispered as she lifted herself onto the counter and leaned back until she was spread out across it, her thighs parted shamelessly. "You. Me. Naked. Right where you work. Taking me quick and hard. Making me scream your name..." she purred.
"God you are wild," he whispered in awe. "I'm so in love with you."
"I love you, too..." She ran a hand along the length of her body, "Forever..."
All sense of right and wrong flew out the window. He didn't care that he was at work. Or that anyone passing by on the street could see them through the glass storefront. He had to have her. With a low growl, he was on her, pressing his body against hers, pushing her back against the wood of the counter. He saw her eyes flame with passion and triumph as she wrapped her legs around his waist, thrusting her hips up to his, begging him to take her with broken words and frantic touches.
He buried his head against her breasts, taking one hardened nipple deep into his mouth through the silky material, nipping it with his teeth and then soothing the sting with his tongue. One hand stroked and pulled at her breast, giving it the same attention his mouth was paying to its twin. His other hand slid over her stomach, enjoying the way the soft silk felt against his fingers, but he was in search of another softer place.
He was past the point of patience as he ripped the thin red silk covering her. Her cry of pleasure echoed through the store as his fingers finally slid between her legs and he slipped two fingers deep inside her. She was so wet, so hot, for him. He twisted his fingers inside her, feeling his own desire ache unbearably as she shrieked and clenched her muscles tightly around him.
He was so involved in watching her, it came as a complete shock to suddenly feel her hand grasping him. She stroked him lightly through his boxers as her name fell from his lips. Bringing her other hand into play, she quickly pushed his boxers down his legs, moaning in delight as she held him full, hard and pulsing in her hand.
He groaned when he felt her hands suddenly leave his flesh and was reaching to bring them back when they locked on his hips pulling him down between her thighs.
"Zed… please, I need you inside me, now..." she moaned, pulling his body into perfect alignment with hers.
He threw her a wink and her favorite cocky, crooked smile, before retrieving a condom from his discarded jeans. He rolled it down his length. "Last chance to take this someplace more comfortable, Baby..."
She bit her lip and smiled. "Do your worst..."
He muttered a curse as he buried himself to the hilt in her warm willing body.
ZZZZZZZZZZZ
"That was..." he shook his head and smiled. "...No words, Baby."
She smiled against his chest. "Definitely memorable."
"Definitely… How am I ever going to be able to make it through a shift without getting hard..." he let out a soft laugh.
"I'll just have to come over and help you out again, sometime..."
He leaned down and kissed the top of her head before he sighed. "I need a cigarette."
She rolled her eyes and looked up at him. "Not to beat a dead horse..."
"Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know… I should cut back."
She hopped up from the counter and picked up her purse, tossing him a stick of Juicy Fruit before popping one in her mouth as well."
"Thank you, Baby."
"You're welcome..." she bent over and picked up the tattered shreds of red silk and smiled. "I don't think I'll be able to wear this home."
"Oops… Sorry, not sorry..." He let out a soft laugh and stood up grabbing his sweatshirt from off the ground. "Here, Gorgeous…"
She took it from him and slipped it over her head. "Okay...This thing is insanely comfortable. You know you're never getting this back, right?" she laughed. "… How do I look?"
He smiled and grabbed her by the waist. "Beautiful, like always… I have to say, Baby… I like seeing you in my clothes."
"More so than without the clothes?" she teased.
"Uh, that would be a negative… If I had it my way we'd always be naked," he threw her a wink and pressed a soft kiss to her lips. "But seeing you in my sweatshirt…" he shook his head and smiled. "Let's everyone know you're mine."
"If only it said 'Property of Zed' instead of 'Seattle Prep'," she giggled.
"And now I know what I'm getting you for Christmas."
She rolled her eyes and stole a kiss. "Think I can get away with just this without the jacket?"
"I think so… It covers more than some of your dresses."
"Are you complaining about my hemlines?"
"Never!" he palmed her ass and smiled. "You know I love it when you show this thing off…"
"Says the boy who takes a swing at anyone he catches ogling," she teased with a smile.
"Can you blame me?" he bit his lip and arched his brow, "you up for another round, my wild girl?"
She let out a girly giggle. "Like you even needed to ask..."
ZZZZZZZZZZ
The feel of her hands running down his chest felt so real. He let out a quiet moan.
"I knew you still wanted me..."
His eyes shot open. "What the…."
"Zed...wake up…"
"Ten more minutes..." he mumbled as he grabbed her and pulled her into bed, snuggling his face into her neck.
She giggled and rolled them over, straddling him. "Nope. It's Monday… and since I had to fire my personal trainer this morning, I need a work-out buddy."
He cracked an eye open to look at her. She was already dressed in a sports bra and shorts with her long blonde hair in braided pig-tails. "What time is it?"
"6… I'm already behind schedule."
"Why'd you fire your trainer?"
She smiled and leaned down to kiss him. "Because I have you as my boyfriend."
"And your boyfriend needs sleep..." he whined, wrapping his arms around her and rolling them over. "You wore me out last night. Wasn't that enough of a work-out?"
"I promise I'll make it up to you..." she whispered seductively, biting his ear.
"And I'm up," he smiled. "Well… at least a part of me is..."
She rolled her eyes and pushed his shoulder playfully. "Come on. I'm starting in five minutes with or without you."
"Fine, fine..." he mumbled as he rolled out of her bed.
Less than ten minutes later he met her in the foyer of her mother's house. "You know… If this is the wake-up call I can expect, I may have to reconsider future sleepovers," he teased as he knelt down to tie his tennis shoes.
She let out a soft laugh. "You wanted to be in a relationship with me."
He rolled his eyes and stood up, leaning down for a kiss. "You're lucky I lo...I adore you."
"I know," she smiled as she opened the front door and popped in her earbuds. "Down to the bottom of the hill and back… It's about two miles round trip… Try to keep up!"
ZZZZZZZZZZZ
Zed panted as he jogged back up to the entranceway. "How… do you do this… every. Damn. Day?"
"I don't..." she shrugged. "Just every other day."
He rolled his eyes at her.
"You know… maybe if you didn't finish off a pack of Marlboro's every week, you'd be able to keep up," she teased before tossing him a water bottle.
"Ha. Ha. Ha…"
"Come on… I still have to hit the gym."
"You're crazy, woman!"
She threw her head back and laughed. "Look, this body didn't happen by accident. Yes, I'm genetically blessed, but it also takes work…" she looked at him through her lashes. "But I guess if you don't want to help me stretch and spot me..." she stuck her bottom lip out ever so slightly.
"Do not break out the pout, Baby," he whispered pulling her into him and kissing her. "You know
it's lethal..."
She smiled against his lips and took his hand in hers, dragging him down the hall to the home gym. As they walked in she flipped on the lights and tossed him her phone. "Can you hook that up to the speakers and press play?" she asked as she stood at one of the ballet bars and placed her leg on the top to stretch.
Zed walked across the room and placed her phone in the dock, pressing play. The second a familiar bass line started his head snapped over to her. "You work out to White Zombie?"
She smiled and nodded as she leaned over across her extended leg.
He stood there dumbfounded.
"What's wrong? Not a fan?"
"Actually, I'm a huge fan…" he said as he walked up behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist and placing a kiss at the base of her neck, "but their music usually makes me want to get my heart pumping in… different ways..." he whispered into her ear.
She turned her head to look at him."Me too… And now you know why I fired my trainer." She bit her lip and pulled him down for a kiss.
ZZZZZZZZZZZZ
Glass crashing and the sounds of yelling filled the bus, waking her. She sat up in her bunk and rubbed her eyes. "...the fuck..."
"You're a fucking asshole, Necrodopolus!"
"And you're a fucking psycho stalker!"
Addison rolled her eyes. In the two weeks since her birthday, Lacey and Zed's fighting had become almost a daily occurrence. "Fucking dream was just getting good..." she mumbled to herself as she climbed out of bed, still clad in her over-sized Seattle Prep sweatshirt.
Bonzo grabbed her leg as she made her way down. "Well that's certainly a view to wake up to..." he teased with a flirty wink.
She rolled her eyes. "Scoot over," she whispered, climbing into his bunk, much like she had most mornings lately. Bonzo was quickly becoming one of her favorite people. "How was the late-night face-time with Bree?"
"Judging from the sounds coming out of your bunk last night, probably as frustrating as your late-night movie watching."
"Hey!" she feigned offense.
"What? You don't want me to overhear, then try some headphones the next time you watch a BDSM film... And speaking of films…" he held up a finger to clarify, "not of the adult variety this time… can we not watch a horror movie the next night we're driving?"
Addison smiled. "Aww… what's wrong? Were you scared?" she teased.
"What? No… I just..."
She arched her brow.
"Okay, fine… I was a little scared."
She smiled even wider and hugged him. "Sorry, Bonz… It's October, which makes it spooky season. I don't make the rules, I just follow them… But I promise if it gets too scary next time, I'll stay up and watch Sponge Bob with you after."
"Thanks, Princess."
"You're welcome..." she patted his knee as he wrapped her up in a tight bear hug.
"Now if only cartoons could block out the sounds coming from your bunk..."
She playfully pushed him off and held up his arm. "You're one to talk... you might want to take it easy on your wrist, you need it to play."
He rolled his eyes and let out a laugh. "Same goes for you… pretty sure fingers are important for playing bass."
She smiled and flipped him off just as another glass crashed against the wall. "What are those two fighting about this time?"
"Who the hell knows."
"ALL RIGHT, THAT'S IT!" Bucky screamed as he stormed down the hall. "BAND MEETING, NOW!"
She turned her face to Bonzo. "Here we go again..." she mumbled as she rolled out of his bunk and made her way into the small kitchen at the back of the bus.
ZZZZZZZZZ
The moment she walked through the door, Zed stood up a little straighter with a small smile crossing his face, completely ignoring the ass chewing he was getting from their manager. He couldn't help it. He loved seeing her wearing his old high school sweatshirt, especially since he knew she wasn't wearing anything underneath it.
"NECRODOPOLOUS! ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING TO ME?!" Bucky yelled in his face.
He turned his attention back to Bucky, reluctantly breaking the eye contact he had with her. "Yeah, I'm listening… I'm not apologizing! I didn't come on to her! I was fucking sleeping! IN MY OWN BUNK!" he yelled over Bucky's shoulder towards Lacey. "She's the one that climbed in this morning!"
Addison's head whipped between them all, suddenly trying to figure out just what the hell was going on.
"Oh, this should be good," Tracey whispered from next to her.
"I sooo did not! He made the first move!"
"YOU FUCKING PSYCHO!"
"ENOUGH!" Bucky yelled "This shit has got to stop! I'm not going to play goddamn referee between you two! Last warning! You two keep this shit up, I'm pulling the fucking tour!"
"WHAT?! NO?!"
He held his hands up and shook his head. "I'm done. This shit ends now. Got it?"
They both mumbled their under their breaths, reluctantly agreeing.
"Good… now onto the next matter of business…" he turned and looked at everyone else that had gathered in the small kitchen. "I don't know what the hell is going on with everyone on this goddamn bus..." He shook his head and pinched the bridge of his nose. He turned and glared at Zed, "Between the fistfights after almost every show..." He turned back to everyone else, "You've got no energy," he said to Stacey. "You've been moping around like a lovesick puppy," he directed towards Bonzo. He skipped over Eliza and moved on to Addison and Tracey. "And why the hell haven't you guys written anything new lately?!"
"Don't look at me…" Addison held her hands up. "My job is to just play bass..."
"Maybe if one of our songs hadn't been stolen, we'd be a little more productive, Bucky!"
He threw his head back in frustration. "I swear to god..." He slowly turned around and glared at Lacey. "For the last time… move on or you're gone. Understood?"
"You wouldn't..."
"Try me," he sneered. "I'm sick and tired of the bullshit, Lacey. And I'm pretty sure I said I want EVERYONE writing!"
"It's MY band!" she snapped back.
"And I'm trying to help you! But I can only do so fucking much! At some point, you're going to have to figure out which is more important… the band, or your ego..." He ran a frustrated hand through his hair and sighed. "Acey's are opening tonight...Zombies, you're headlining..." Without another word, he walked out of the room and off the bus.
"Well..." Eliza said quietly. "This has been a fun meeting...I'm going to go..." she shrugged, "get some breakfast?" She made quick eye contact with Addison and shrugged again before taking off toward the exit.
The room was silent as the rest of them stood there.
"This is awkward..." Tracey whispered loudly.
"Yup..." Addison nodded. "I'm going to the gym… You guys..." she looked between Zed and Lacey. "… Never a dull moment around here..." she mumbled as she turned around and headed back to her bunk.
As she stood at the edge of the parking lot stretching, she could hear footsteps approaching from behind her. She didn't even have to look. She tried to hide her smile as he got closer.
"So, just how far is the gym from here?"
She turned around to find him wearing a white t-shirt, track pants and tennis shoes. It just wasn't fair for someone to look that hot. She shook her head slightly to clear her mind. "Um, about three miles… since when do you workout?"
"Are you kidding me? This body didn't just happen by accident..." he threw her a wink, making her smile. "But seriously, if I don't get away from this bus I'm liable to strangle Lacey."
"You're the one that dated her."
"We didn't date."
She rolled her eyes. "If you say so." She turned back around and continued to stretch.
"Not that I mind watching you bend over, but… when are we getting this show on the road?"
She stood up straight and looked back at him. "Once I'm good and… warmed up," she breathed out, popping the P at the end. "Shouldn't you be doing the same?"
He smiled and shook his head. "You should know I'm always ready," he said as he started to jog.
"Hey!" she snapped, jogging to catch up with him.
"What's wrong, Adds? Worried you won't be able to keep up?" he challenged, knowing it would rile her up.
"You're kidding, right?" she rolled her eyes and passed him. "The last time I checked, it was you that had trouble keeping up with me."
"How do you know I wasn't just trying to look at your ass?" he teased as he picked up the pace and smacked her butt as he passed. He turned around and winked before opening up into a full run.
She couldn't help the smile that broke across her face as she sped up.
By the time they reached the 24-hour gym chain they all used, she still hadn't fully caught up to him.
He shook his head in silent laughter as he leaned against the building waiting for her. "Maybe if you cut back on the cigarettes..."
She flipped him off. "I'm worried that if I quit smoking at this point I'd end up replacing nicotine with murder," she shook her head and smiled. "Since when do you run?"
"Military, remember? A couple of miles is nothing," he said as he opened the door for her.
She smirked as she walked past him and up to the receptionist counter. "Hi, does this location offer private sessions?"
Zed started to have a coughing fit. "Private trainer?"
Addison turned around and smiled. "Yeah… I've been a little... tense lately… nothing a good work out with some... one on one attention... won't fix..." she winked and turned back around to the woman at the front desk.
"As a matter of fact, we do offer private sessions. Are you interested in cardio, strength training, or a combination?"
"Definitely a combination..."
Zed gently pushed Addison aside and stepped up to the counter, "That won't be necessary..." he turned to look at Addison. "I'll help you out. I'm pretty sure I remember how you like it."
"You sure you're up for it? I like to be worked...hard..." she bit her lip and looked up to him through her lashes.
He swallowed loudly. "Yeah… I'm definitely up for it. Question is… are you?"
She gave him a questioning look before smiling ever so slightly and following him into the weight room.
"Sooo…," he said as busied himself adjusting the weights on the barbell for her. "What's got you so tense?"
"Gee, Zed… I wonder..." she smiled innocently up at him as she laid down on the bench. "Maybe it's because the last few times I've tried to get laid, someone has started throwing punches..."
"...Totally unrelated..."
"Whatever you say..." she said with a heavy eye roll, lifting the heavy bar up and pressing. "So… if it's 'totally unrelated' as you claim...why have you been so moody lately."
"Moody?"
"Yeah… the fistfights… the Lacey fights…" she placed the bar back into place and sat up. "The lack of groupies being banged on the bus..."
"Next question..." he laughed.
She rolled her eyes and smiled, walking over to the exercise ball and sitting on it. "Fine...What started the fight this morning?"
"You really want to know?" he asked as he knelt in front of her and held her feet in place.
She leaned back. "I wouldn't have asked if I didn't," she said as she came back up.
He was silent for a moment as he watched her complete a few crunches. "You remember that time you showed up at the record store in the rain?"
She stilled. "Yes… but what does that have to do with Lacey?" She let out a gasp and sat up as a thought crossed her mind. "Did she show up in your bunk wearing lingerie and a raincoat?!"
"Oh God no!" he laughed.
"Okay, then what?"
He scratched the back of his head and glanced away. "I may have been dreaming about it when she climbed in my bunk. I guess she thought my um… arousal was related to her..." he met her eyes. "Which I can guarantee you, it was not. It was completely because of red silk, and gray raincoats, and sweatshirts, and..." he offered her a small smile. "… And I need to stop talking."
She smiled up at him. "You had a dream about me?"
He shrugged. "I'd be lying if I said it was the first time..."
It was silent between them for a moment before she whispered, "I may have had a dream about you last night too..."
"Is that so?"
She nodded her head and bit her bottom lip.
"That lip, I swear…" he mumbled under his breath as his hand slowly started to move up her leg. "And what was your dream about?"
"Remember that first Monday morning after we started dating?"
He let out a soft laugh and nodded as he sat up on his knees, guiding her back and helping her stretch. "Seems strangely appropriate given our current location," he teased.
His smooth voice washed over her, making her eyes flutter. "Zed..." she whispered breathlessly.
"You didn't even wait for me!" Tracey called out as he burst through the doors, making them both sit up in a panic.
"I was reading Slim Aarons and I got to thinking that I thought
Maybe I'd get less stressed if I was tested less like
All of these debutantes
Smiling for miles in pink dresses and high heels on white yachts
But I'm not, baby, I'm not
No, I'm not, that, I'm not
I've been tearing around in my fucking nightgown
24/7 Sylvia Plath
Writing in blood on the walls
'Cause the ink in my pen don't work in my notepad
Don't ask if I'm happy, you know that I'm not
But at best I can say I'm not sad
'Cause hope is a dangerous thing for a woman like me to have
Hope is a dangerous thing for a woman like me to have..."
Her fingers moved across the cool ivory of the in house piano creating a haunting melody. Her mind was all over the place.
"There's a new revolution, a loud evolution that I saw
Born of confusion and quiet collusion of which mostly I've known
A modern-day woman with a weak constitution, 'cause I've got
Monsters still under my bed that I could never fight off..."
She sighed ran her hands through her hair.
"I've been tearing around in my fucking nightgown
Like a goddamn near sociopath
Writing in blood on your walls
'Cause the ink in my pen don't look good in my pad
They write that I'm happy, they know that I'm not
But at best, you can see I'm not sad
But hope is a dangerous thing for a woman like me to have
Hope is a dangerous thing for a woman with my past…
Hope is a dangerous thing for a woman like me to have
But I have it
Yeah, I have it..."
"That's really beautiful," Zed said from the doorway, finally making his presence known.
Addison jumped and quickly closed the piano. "Fuck, you scared me," she said holding a hand over her now racing heart.
"Sorry, Baby."
She let out a deep breath and tried to hide her smile. "Please don't call me that."
"I'm sorry. Old habits die hard." he pushed off from the door frame and slowly walked over to the piano, sitting beside her on the bench. "So...which undeserving pop princess is that one for?"
Addison rolled her eyes. "I still can't believe I told you about that… fucking tequila."
"Avoiding the question much?"
She sighed and threw her head back. "If you must know, this one's for me."
"You mean Lacey is actually going to let you write a song? Color me surprised."
"Ha! Not a chance...when I said, me, I meant for my own personal enjoyment."
"Can you answer something for me? Truthfully? No Bullshit?"
"Will you leave if I do?" she teased.
"I make no promises."
Addison silently laughed. "Then neither do I."
"Fair enough...Why aren't you working on your solo career or writing and singing lead for a better band than the Acey's? You're too talented to just be playing bass and hiding in the shadows. You had a fucking record deal, Adds. What happened?"
"Yeah… Not going there," she snapped
Zed held his hands up in surrender.
"Lucky for me Lacey is quite happy taking lead...crappy songwriting and all."
"Well maybe if she wasn't such a narcissistic bitch, she'd actually do whatever it takes to get ahead in this industry."
"You're the one that dated her."
Zed rolled his eyes and dramatically dropped his head onto the piano. "For the last time...We. Did. Not. Date." he said as he looked up at her.
"Fine. Slept with...Better?"
"No… drunkenly fucked and couldn't escape would be more accurate. That girl is a stage 5 clinger."
"Can you answer something for me? Truthfully? No Bullshit?"
He sat up and shook his head. "Always."
"What really happened with the song the Acey's say you stole?"
"I didn't steal that fucking song. I swear. She stole it from me," he practically growled before sighing again. "My only guess is that she copied it out of my notebook while I was passed out."
"Zed..."
"Have you heard the song?"
"No. You know Bucky won't let either band touch it."
"But have you heard it?"
"No."
Zed opened the piano. "It was a work in progress, so it's a bit shitty. But please bear with me…"
She nodded her head and scooched further over on the piano bench so he could sit in the middle. He looked over to her and took a deep breath as his finger started to move across the keys.
"I want a girl with lips like morphine,
knock me out every time they touch me.
I wanna feel a kiss just crush me,
And break me down
Knock me out
Knock me out
Cause I've waited for all my life,
To be here with you tonight.
He threw her a wink and watched as recognition crossed her face and she let out a small gasp.
"I want a girl with lips like morphine,
Blow a kiss that leaves me gasping.
And I wanna feel that lightning strike me,
And burn me down.
Knock me out
Knock me out
Cause I've waited for all my life,
To be here with you tonight.
Just put me on my back,
Knock me out again."
His hands stilled on the keys as he looked over to her.
Addison had tears forming in her eyes. "Z...she didn't write that song."
He shook his head. "No, she didn't. I mean, she switched 'girl' to 'boy' but yeah… Not unless by some weird set of circumstances she was at the exact same house party in Beverly Hills, having the exact same experience with the hottest girl ever."
Addison let out a small laugh as she wiped her eyes. "I can't believe you wrote a song about that."
"Well, it wouldn't exactly be obvious to anyone else," he teased, nudging her with his elbow. "And getting a fuck hot girlfriend out of the whole ordeal...totally worth taking a punch from her ex-boyfriend."
Addison rolled her eyes. "You know we didn't start dating for like a month and a half after that. If I recall, someone already had a girlfriend."
Zed cracked a small smile. "And you know that you owned me from the moment your lips touched mine..."
"Whatever you say, Jacobs."
"Don't call me that."
"Sorry, old habits die hard," she smirked. "So… When did you write it?"
"No bullshit?"
Addison nodded her head.
"It's what I was working on earlier that night before Lacey showed up… It's why I wasn't out with everyone else."
Her jaw dropped open in disbelief. "You wrote about our first kiss that recently?"
Zed ran a nervous hand through his hair. "Addie...have you listened to our set?"
"No bullshit?"
It was Zed's turn to nod his head.
"No. I tried that first night, but...seeing you on stage with a guitar...it brought back too many memories."
He brushed a stray piece of her snow-white hair from her face, running his thumb across her cheek. "Maybe you should give it a listen. All our songs are about one of two things. Being in the military, or...well I'll let you decide what the other is."
"WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?" Lacey's shrill voice pierced through the room. They both jumped apart and turned to see Lacey standing in the doorway holding a leather-bound notebook with Tracey and Stacey standing behind her.
"Why do you have my notebook?" Addison asked standing up from the bench as the three of them walked further into the room.
"Oh, so this IS your notebook..." Lacey flipped it open and shoved it in Addison's face. "Why the hell is Zed's handwriting in here then?"
"Why do you even know what his handwriting looks like?"
Lacey popped her hip to the side and rolled her eyes. "Don't even try to change the subject!"
Zed walked up behind Addison and took the notebook from Lacey.
"Oh, I suppose you're going to accuse us of stealing another song. So sad…. Everyone knows you stole it from me," she sneered.
"For the last time, you psycho bitch, I did not steal that fucking song," he growled low and menacingly.
Addison quickly stood up and positioned herself in between them, holding her hands out. "Remember what Bucky said. If you two start fighting again..."
"Ad..." he caught himself and let out a frustrated sigh through his clenched teeth. "Princess, move."
"Yeah, Casey, I'd love to see him toss his career away. He's good at throwing away good things he doesn't deserve."
"That might be truer than you know, but I promise...you were never on that list." He looked over the pages in question, smiling at the memory. "And my handwriting is in her notebook because she was too drunk to write it herself and her bandmates left her alone with a group of complete strangers. I was the one who made sure she got home safe." He pushed past Addison and glared at Lacey as he walked out of the room, tossing the notebook behind him.
"God is he hot," Lacey said under her breath as she watched him leave.
Addison was furious. "What the hell is wrong with you? Everyone is busting their asses to make this tour work and you're going to fucking ruin it for everyone if you keep this shit up!"
"What do you care. You're riding my coattails anyway. You're only an Acey because I said so. I got rid of our last bass player, and I swear if you ever speak to me like that again, I will get rid of you too. I don't care if you're screwing our manager or not!"
"Excuse me? Ew..."
"Oh, and another thing...Don't think I haven't noticed all the longing glances towards Zed. Friends my ass. May I remind you that you signed an agreement when you joined this band..."
Addison closed her eyes and bit the inside of her cheek. Lacey was lying to everyone about the song. She was lying about Zed coming onto her. Who knew what else she was lying about. All it would take was one quick flash of his name on her lip to shut her up. Everything in her screamed to tell her everything and take her down a notch.
"Knock knock..." They all turned around to see Bucky standing in the doorway.
She let out a sigh and un-clenched her fists. Bucky… She couldn't mess this up for him. He'd been there for her through everything. He needed her to make this work.
"WHAT?" Lacey snapped
He looked over to Addison, silently questioning if everything was alright.
She nodded ever so slightly.
"Soundcheck in thirty..." with a forced smile he turned and walked back out.
"Hoooooly shit...Casey! These are damn good! You've been holding out on us girly! Look at all these, Stacey!" Tracey said as he flipped through the discarded journal and handed it over to her.
Addison let out a sigh. "I've been writing every single day since we started like we're supposed to be doing. Someone made it very clear that my ideas were not needed."
"Seriously, Lace? We've been in a slump since we got on the road! Bucky's been riding our asses about new songs and you didn't jump on this? What is wrong with you woman?"
"Don't bitch at me, Trace. If I thought for a second one of those songs could hold up to what our fans have come to expect from us..."
"Lacey...these are better than what we have…" Stacey said looking up from the notebook. "Band vote...all in favor of working on some of Casey's songs raise your hand..." Stacey, and Tracey both raised their hands. "All opposed?" Lacey raised hers. "Sorry Lace...majority wins."
"Like hell it does! This is my fucking band!"
"No, Lacey… it's OUR band..." Tracey countered as he and Stacey went to stand with Addison.
Lacey glared at them all. "This isn't over..." she growled as she spun around and stormed out the door.
"Well..." Tracey smiled as he looked at Addison and Stacey. "Where should we start?"
"What?" Addison questioned.
"The songs you wrote… When can we start working on them?"
She took a step back. "Are you sure? You heard Lacey..."
He shook his head. "Like she's going to quit. She said so herself… it's her band. She'll get over it…."
They all turned back towards the door when they heard someone clear their throat.
"Sorry to interrupt..." Zed said as he walked over to the piano. "I forgot something." He picked up his cigarettes from the bench. "See you guys after soundcheck." He locked eyes with Addison and gave her her favorite smile before walking back out the door.
Without tearing her eyes away from the doorway, she held out her hand, "Tracey… notebook…" her face broke out in a smile. "I've got the perfect song to start with..."
Twenty minutes later the three of them were on stage working through the new song.
"Sounds damn good..." Bucky said from the front of the stage. "Are you guys playing it tonight?"
They all looked at each other before Tracey shrugged. "Lacey..."
"Isn't singing on this one, so I repeat… Are you guys playing it tonight?"
"Do you think we should?" Stacey asked from behind her kit.
Bucky nodded, "I do..." He looked over at Addison, "Good to finally hear one of your songs."
Her jaw dropped open. "How did you..."
He arched a brow and gave her a smirk, making her roll her eyes.
"I'm going to go find Lacey. Soundcheck in five..." he said as he turned and walked towards the exit.
Addison looked over to Tracey and Stacey. "I'll be right back..." she took off her bass and jumped off the stage, jogging towards the exit. "Bucky!" she called after him once she was outside.
He looked back as she made her way over to him. "What's up?"
She looked around to make sure they were alone before pulling him into a hug.
He stiffened as he checked around them before relaxing and hugging her back. "What's this for?"
"Can't a girl hug her brother?"
He let out a soft laugh and kissed the top of her head. "Of course she can… as long as she tells her brother what's really going on."
She stood on her tiptoes. "Keep a close eye on Lacey," she whispered, before placing a kiss on his cheek and walking back inside.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: I know, I haven't updated in WEEKS. I promise I will try to update more regularly. Let me know what you think of this chapter, the story on the whole, the weather… whatevs! I love hearing from you guys!
SONGS USED IN THIS CHAPTER
Hope Is A Dangerous Thing- Lana Del Ray
Lips Like Morphine- Kill Hannah