Temptation

It was New Year's Eve. Skylar and her best friend Hadley were driving down to Birmingham for a Lynam show. The girls had been friends with the band for a little over two years and at the last show they'd attended, bassist Cody Elliott had made them swear to come celebrate New Year's with them. They weren’t about to disappoint.

She had an odd relationship with two of the three members of Lynam. Both Cody and vocalist/guitarist Jacob Bunton treated her in a manner that was flirtatious and teasing and laced with sexual tension. Tonight, she was determined that one of the guys was going to snap and do something, so she dressed in the sexiest thing she could find in her closet.

Maybe both of them will be inspired, she mused, scrutinizing her reflection. That would complicate things. Oh well. I'll cross that bridge if and when I get to it.

Skylar pocketed her ID, money, and cell phone. She pulled on a jacket and headed for the door, grabbing her keys from the table in the front hall as she passed. She climbed into her silver Dodge Neon. With Aesthetic Perfection blasting, she drove to Hadley's apartment.

Hadley answered the door, saying "I'll be ready in five minutes" before hurrying back to her bedroom. Skylar went into the living room, settling on the overstuffed sofa to wait.

Hadley returned ten minutes later. "Sorry. Let's go."

Skylar was straight, but she couldn't help thinking that Hadley looked hot as hell. As they walked out to Skylar's car, Hadley gave her a glance-over. "God, Sky, are you planning on the guys even making it to the stage tonight?"

Skylar feigned innocence. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Hadley shook her head, smiling. "You're terrible."

The trip to Birmingham took them just under two hours. They ate at a restaurant in the downtown area that had excellent food and was cheap before they headed over to the club. A guy at the door checked their IDs and collected the ten dollar cover. Once inside, Skylar and Hadley ducked into the bathroom. Skylar actually paused in front of the mirror as they were leaving the small, stuffy room, which was unusual for her. Hadley arched an eyebrow but didn't comment.

The girls ran into Brian, a friend of the Lynam guys, at the bar. He was getting drinks for himself, his girlfriend, and his girlfriend's sister.

"Uh-oh!" He gave Skylar a playfully stern look. "I think you might be searching for trouble tonight!"

"Why can't I dress this way without everyone thinking it's meant for someone else?" Skylar asked.

Brian and Hadley exchanged a glance. The bartender set Brian's drinks in front of him and Brian hurried to the table where his girlfriend and her sister were seated.

"Don't insult our intelligence, Sky," Hadley said as Skylar fumed indignantly. "You're pushing it tonight. Personally, I don't blame you. I'm so tired of the guys playing this game. It's time for someone to get serious."

"I was kinda hoping it wouldn't be obvious to everyone."

"It's not. It's only obvious to those of us who know what's going on. Brian has witnessed the teasing for two years. He was going to figure it out."

Skylar signaled to the bartender and when he approached, she ordered a Long Island ice tea for herself and a Jack Daniel's and Coke for Hadley.

"Heads up," Hadley muttered after the bartender had bustled away to fix the drinks.

Skylar turned and almost instantly found herself face to chest with Cody. "Y'all made it!" he said happily, hugging her then Hadley.

"Of course," Skylar replied. "We would never break a promise to you."

"How are you?" he inquired.

Skylar shrugged her small shoulders. "I’m doin’ pretty good, how are you?"

"I'm great! I'm ready to play."

The bartender had brought their drinks, placing them at Hadley's elbow. Hadley paid him and handed Skylar her Long Island ice tea.

"Well, you should get on that," Skylar said to Cody, stirring her drink with the straw. "The rule is that the band starts when I arrive."

Cody chuckled. "Oh, really?"

"Yep," Skylar confirmed.

"I'll have to remind Jacob of that one." Cody dedicated a few seconds to very obviously running his gaze down Skylar's body. "Damn," he murmured, slipping an arm around her slender waist and pressing her against him. "What have I told you about wearing stuff like that?"

Behind him, Hadley was pretending to throw up. Skylar forced herself not to giggle.

"Cody, don't you know that girls never like the bassist?" came the loud, familiar voice of drummer David Lynam. He appeared out of the crowd, grinning at the girls and quickly drawing Skylar out of Cody's arms and into his. "Shit, Sky, I've never fully appreciated your...assets.”

Skylar shoved him away. "You're such a perv, Dave."

"I'm not a perv!" he protested. "You've made them impossible to miss. How am I supposed to ignore them?"

Cody wandered off to talk to a couple of other girls while David shifted his focus to Hadley. Sipping her Long Island ice tea, Skylar scanned the room. Her stomach gave a pleasurable flutter at the sight of Jacob. He was on the far side of the room. The fact that he was 6'5" with jet-black hair in a style straight from the 1980's made him impossible to miss. He was talking to Brian, his blue eyes bright with amusement.

Every time Skylar saw him, she was struck anew by how beautiful he was. There was some quality about him that she couldn't quite put her finger on that hit every single one of her attraction requirements. He wasn't conventionally good-looking, but his confident behavior on the stage, coupled with his nice personality, drove his appeal through the roof. The better she'd gotten to know him, the more attractive he'd become, physically and otherwise.

Suddenly, as if he sensed her gaze, he looked straight at her. Their eyes met. Jacob smiled and waved. Skylar's cheeks warmed. She smiled back.

"SKYLAR!" David yelled, causing her to jump.

"What?" she snapped, her face growing even hotter at the idea that David was aware of Jacob's hypnotizing effect on her.

"I wanted to let you know that y'all have a place to stay if you want to drink tonight," he said. He seemed oblivious to what he'd just interrupted.

"Oh," Skylar was mildly surprised at this offer. "Thanks."

"No problem." David's eyes flicked to something past Skylar and he grinned. "There's the man of the hour! Bluegrass!"

Long arms encircled Skylar from behind. "Hi, darlin'," Jacob said, his breath warm on her neck.
Hadley caught Skylar's eye and smirked.

"Hi," Skylar echoed.

"How are you?"

"Eh, can't complain."

"You're at a Lynam show!" David cut in. "We'd have to kick your ass if you started complaining! Jacob, you've got to see what our sweet little Skylar is wearing."

Jacob released his hold on Skylar and moved to stand beside David. Together, they looked her over. She blushed.

"She's all grown up," David joked.

Jacob said nothing. After he'd spoken to Hadley, he and David crossed to the stage and vanished behind their makeshift curtain.

"You may have actually done it," Hadley remarked.

"Done what?" Skylar queried.

"You may have finally driven Jacob to the edge."

**********

Lynam's set was spectacular, as always. But it was much more eventful than usual.

Hadley and Skylar were at the very front, positioned between Cody and Jacob. Several times throughout the set, Jacob planted himself at the edge of the stage, his guitar so near to Skylar's face that his knuckles brushed her face as he played. Not one to be left out and ignored, Cody would amble up next to Jacob, leaning into him with enough force to gradually ease him aside.

Jacob didn't react when Cody did this. Hadley, on the other hand, was glaring daggers at Cody. David was watching with more than a hint of amusement. Skylar almost regretted her outfit.

During Lynam's version of "Pour Some Sugar on Me," Hadley encouraged Skylar to dance with her. She could tell Skylar was a bit disappointed in the behavior of both Cody and Jacob, and she was determined to cheer her up. Skylar dismissed her worries, relaxing and letting the music guide her. She knew that every guy who could see her and Hadley loved every second of it, including the three on stage. At one point, David fixed his attention on the girls and stroked his drumstick suggestively. Cody smirked as he watched. Jacob seemed to ignore Skylar and Hadley.

And then it was midnight and the guys had stopped playing music and led the audience in the countdown. Gold balloons and silver confetti fell from the ceiling at the exuberant cry of "HAPPY NEW YEAR!"

Jacob was perched on an equipment box, in conversation with someone. Skylar looked at David. He smiled at her and she impulsively blew him a kiss. His smile widening, he mimed catching it. Skylar laughed. That was David: totally adorkable.

"Happy New Year, baby," Cody said, bending over to hug Skylar.

She kissed him on the cheek, "Happy New Year, Cody."

He lifted her onto the stage, keeping his arms around her, and claimed her lips in a kiss. David catcalled.

Stunned, Skylar's mind went blank. She couldn't have made herself react even if she'd wanted to. Thoughts gradually trickled into her head and her first one was this: Cody snapped first. Her second one was that if Jacob was going to pretend she didn’t exist, why shouldn't she take advantage of this?

Skylar cupped Cody's chin in her hand just as he was about to draw back, keeping his mouth on hers. She deepened the kiss and with her acceptance, he added a slip of tongue.

Skylar broke the kiss upon being hit with a gently tossed drumstick. David pointed to Jacob, who was scowling at Skylar and Cody with his arms crossed over his chest.

"Oops!" Skylar giggled and jumped down from the stage.

"What the fuck!?" Hadley yelled over the intro of "Sweet Child O' Mine."

“You were wrong. Jacob doesn't want me."

"Uh, you didn't see his face when he saw you kissing Cody."

"Oh well. He has had ample opportunity to make a move and he chose not to. Cody did. The end."

Hadley pursed her lips disapprovingly, but she didn't argue. Skylar was a big girl. She could do whatever she wanted. Up to, and including, making a huge fucking mistake. Beside her, Skylar was dancing to the music, but Hadley didn’t feel like dancing anymore. She watched with hooded eyes as the entire night seemed to shift. Jacob was no longer vying for Skylar’s attention on the stage, and it seemed like Cody was the only one who was interacting with her. The worst part was, it seemed like Skylar was okay with it. Frowning, Hadley looked at the three in front of her thinking they were all very dense.

She didn’t seem interested in anything for a while, until she started imbibing more and more alcohol, then she realized she didn’t care, she would back her friend no matter what, and she began dancing with a drunken Skylar. She didn’t miss the looks she was now getting from the drummer and she couldn’t help the smile that crept around her lips.

Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end, and it happened all too quickly for Skylar. She’d gone to the bathroom and had come out to see people leaving. Confused, she made her way back to the stage. She was waiting for Jacob to come and talk to her, but the only ones around were Peanut and David loading things into boxes to take to the van. Hadley was sitting on the stage, every once in a while talking to David. She made her way to the stage to sit beside Hadley.

“Where’s Cody?” she asked, curiously.

All Hadley needed to do was point to a door to their left where Skylar saw the backs of him and another female leaving. She couldn’t help but feel disappointment as she watched the two kiss before they disappeared outside.

“Where’s Jacob?”

“We haven’t seen him since right after the show. He disappeared as soon as the last song was done. Looks like things didn’t go according to plan, huh?”

“I guess not,” Skylar said, looking down at the cup in her hand. It was almost completely full of liquor and as drunk as she felt now, she wasn’t sure if she wanted to finish it or not.

With another look around the venue and the realization that neither of the guys she’d gunned for tonight were there, she chugged the brown liquid in her cup, wincing once she was finished. She was completely drunk, now.

“C’mon,” Hadley said. “David, Gooch, and Peanut want us to go to Waffle House with them.”

Hadley stood up and walked towards the door. Skylar stood up and wobbled a bit, but tried to control herself. She grabbed her keys from her pocket and headed to the door.

“I’m gonna ride with David, okay?” Hadley said and made her way to the van.

“Okay,” Skylar slurred and made her way to her car.

She pressed the unlock button on the remote and opened her door. Just as she put the key in the ignition, the passenger door opened and a body slid in. She barely had time to gasp before a pair of lips were on hers in a heated kiss. A hand came up to grip the back of her neck and fingers twisted into her hair, making sure she didn’t move. With her hair in his grip, he yanked her head back and attacked her neck. The keys in her hand rattled and she pulled her hand away from the ignition.

“Drive,” a voice growled in her ear.

She drew in a shaky breath and started the engine. She didn’t have to look beside her to know who was there; his voice told her exactly who it was. As soon as she put the car out of the parking lot, she felt his hands on her thigh, pushing inward.

“You’ve been tempting me all fucking night,” he growled.

His hands pressed against her, and she groaned, her eyes fluttering.

“Eyes on the road, Sky,” he grinned.

She blinked rapidly as she felt him unbutton her pants and she sucked in her breath. She was torn from stopping this, to wanting it more than anything in the world. She felt his colder hand slip underneath the waist line of her jeans as he told her where to turn. She was beyond wet and ready for him by the time his fingers got to the core of her. She slid forward a bit to give him more access and she gasped as his fingers found her clit.

“Turn right at the next street, darlin',” his deep, country voice purred in her ear.

She wasn’t sure how she was able to concentrate on anything but the fact that he was stroking a fire inside her with just two fingers. Her foot was slowly pressing down harder on the gas, and he had to tell her twice to slow down so she could turn into the driveway. Once they were parked, she leaned back in her seat just as his fingers entered her completely. A guttural moan escaped her lips and he pulled his fingers back just as she was about to find her release.

“What the fuck?”

“Come on,” he said, only, and got out of the car.

Confused and disoriented, she quickly pulled her keys from the ignition and followed him up to the front door. He opened it for her and allowed her to precede him before he closed the door. Turning, he was able to see her staring at him, lust the prominent emotion in her eyes and he stalked towards her.

He captured her face in a fiery kiss and felt her press her body against his. His hands wrapped around her body and cupped her ass, lifting her up. She wrapped her legs around his waist and he turned to go up the stairs. All the while, he felt her hands on his belt buckle and he smiled into the kiss.

“No,” she said, making him stop.

“No, what, Sky?”

“Stop fucking moving.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, I want you to fuck me right now. I can’t wait anymore,” she breathed and pulled his zipper down.

Immediately, he set her down on the steps and she lifted herself up to pull off her shorts. Once she was done, she immediately pulled his pants down. He leaned over her and pressed his lips to her as she reached between them to jerk him a bit. He groaned into the kiss and she knew it was working.

Finally, she lifted her hips off the steps and placed him at her entrance. She pushed forward a bit, letting him know where he was, and he took the hint. In fact, he didn’t waste any time ramming into her, roughly. She didn’t care, however, as she just threw her head back and groaned. She clung to his arms and tried to lift her legs up as he pumped into her. He was merciless in his thrusts and then leaned down to attach his lips to her neck.

A scream escaped her as his lips worked on her neck, he moved in and out of her, and then his hand found her clit in between them. Sweat was covering their bodies as they moved together, enjoying each other’s body. At one point, Skylar’s hands found their way to his back and her nails raked under his shirt, sending a shiver through him. When they started digging in, he became ruthless and carnal in his motions. She knew he wasn’t going to last much longer.

His fingers applied more pressure to her clit and his teeth grazed against the spot where her neck and shoulders meet, and she cried out, her hands leaving his back. She tried to grip something, anything, but she could only find carpet and that wasn’t much. She felt her pelvis gripping him, almost as if she was having spasm and he groaned from the tightness. She was tight before, but this was almost unbearable. Almost.

He placed his hand on the side of her head for leverage, and she ran one of her hands up his chest. The feeling of her nails on his skin sent him over the edge and he groaned out loud, thrust upwards into her one last time.

She glanced over as he slowed down and realized his hand was gripping hers. Finally, he pulled out of her and leaned down close to her.

He mumbled something, but his head was resting on her chest and he was muffled.

“What?” she asked.

“Why did you kiss Cody?”

“You saw that, did you?”

“Yeah, I did,” Jacob said, looking down at her.

“I did it because I wanted you to see it,” she said, stroking his jaw. His bluer-than-blue eyes pierced into hers. “I wanted to see if you would snap.”

“Well? Are you satisfied now?” Jacob asked, sounding a bit angry.

“More than satisfied, but not completely,” she said, bringing his face down for another kiss.

“You fucking tease,” he growled into her lips.

He felt her move against him and knew she wanted to go again. Hell, he did, too, and he picked her up again, dropping clothes as they made it the rest of the way up the stairs.