Rock the Heart (4 page)

Heat burns between my legs, and I squirm in my seat. I hate that he’s having this effect on me. If I lose the upper hand in this situation, I could lose more than my job. I have to keep control here. I shake my head and try to keep images of his naked body and what it might feel like with him deep inside me out of my mind. “No. Been there, done that, not happening again.”

He leans back in his chair with a smug look on his face. “We’ll see.”

I knock once on Diana Swagger’s open door before stepping through. She motions me to have a seat in one of the two brown, leather chairs facing her desk. The New York City skyline makes an impressive backdrop as she sits behind her large mahogany desk talking on her cell. Diana’s red hair is styled in loose waves framing her heart-shaped face. 

Sinking down in the chair across from her and chills shoot down my back as I press against the cool leather. My hands fold in my lap and I cross my ankles together while I wait on Diana to finish her call. There’s no doubt what she wants to talk about. Noel is the only reason someone like Diana Swagger would grace me with so much of her time.

She presses the red button on the phone, tosses it to her desk, and sets her green eyes on me. “Ms. Vance, I heard you met with Mr. Falcon for dinner last night. I suspect that went rather well?”

I stiffen. If there was some information I can give her about the charity without revealing Noel’s problem with dyslexia, talking with her would be a breeze. Instead, I sit here dumbstruck. I’ve met with Noel twice now and haven’t learned jack-crap from him about his vision for his project other than he’s going to force me to spend time with him.

Diana raises her brow and lifts her right hand. She wants me to speak, so I try to keep it vague. “Yes. It went well. Mr. Falcon seems like he has some rather big plans.”

A little too big and outrageous if you ask me. 

“I have to say, Lanie, in all my years of doing this, not once, has a client made such an outlandish request as Noel Falcon. Not only does he insist that I hire you, but he’s now requesting I send you on tour with him.”

I shake my head. I told him she would never go for his little scheme. “I explained to him there was no possibility of that happening.”

Ms. Swagger holds up a finger. “Actually, Ms. Vance, I think this is an excellent opportunity for Center Stage Marketing. Not only will you go on tour with Black Falcon and run the children’s literacy marketing account, but you’re also going to secure an exclusive right to Black Falcon, the band itself.”

Black Falcon’s marketing? That’s major. How the hell am I supposed to pull that off? Sure, I can use Noel’s desire to get in my pants to my advantage, keeping him hooked long enough to get his charity off the ground and get me a nice cushy job, but I can’t string him along forever. Noel’s not going to willingly hand over Black Falcon’s publicity campaign over to me, without something in return, and that something he wants, he isn’t getting from me. I have no intentions of sleeping with a man who is a total womanizer. 

All he wants is to get back into my panties. Sex with him is probably amazing now, but a one-night stand is not worth the risk of my career...or my heart. 

But I want to do this on my own merit. Diana will have no choice but to promote me once I prove I can sell anything to the masses and get Noel’s account under my belt. 

I rub the back of my neck. “With all due respect, Ms. Swagger, I’m not sure he’s willing to give us the entire account.”

Diana leans forward and taps her desk. “That’s where you’re wrong, Lanie. You see, I’m a shrewd business woman. I didn’t get where I am by playing fair. Noel Falcon wants you on tour with him, and only you, at the expense of my company. He made that quite clear. So I agreed to send you, but gave him a condition of my own. At the end of his tour in two weeks, he has to hand over every possible marketing avenue of Black Falcon to us.”

This sounds an awful lot like a trade and it makes me shiver. Is Diana actually telling me, she sold me to Noel for exclusive rights to Black Falcon? This can’t be legal. I should say no. I should tell her to go to hell and walk away from the whole damn situation, but my feet won’t budge. 

I can do this. “Only two weeks, correct?”

Ms. Swagger nods. “Yes, only two. That’ll fly by. All you have to do is keep Mr. Falcon happy and your job here is permanent.”

 Where else will this type of opportunity fall into my lap? I’m only twenty-two years old. Most people won’t have their own accounts until they’ve been out of college a few years. If I say no, I’ll throw away my dream.

I square my shoulders. “I’ll do it.”

Diana smiles, and instead of it being friendly, it seems slightly evil. My muscles tense and I lean away from her. I don’t like the way she’s grinning at me, and the instinct to run like hell fills my entire being.  

****

My cell chirps on the coffee table as Aubrey walks into the room. She rolls her eyes and smiles. “Mr. Wonderful, again? You still owe me some juicy details about your dinner date, you know.” 

I roll my eyes at her. “A lady never kisses and tells. Besides you already know nothing happened. It was strictly business.”

Aubrey laughs and plops down on the couch beside me. “You, missy, are no lady. So, dish.”

I shake my head. “Nothing happened the other night. I swear.”

She folds her legs under herself and takes a huge bite of her double-brownie ice cream. “Bull. You expect me to believe Noel Falcon makes a romantic date with you and after a couple of hours together nothing happens? He’s texted you at least fifty times over the past few days, and there was no sex involved? I say bull. No man gets that sprung unless he gets a little somethin’-somethin’ if you know what I mean.”

I shrug. “Getting romantic with Noel is the last thing on my mind.” But getting naked and sweaty is the first. The aggressive nature he’s pursuing me with, pushes every hotness button in my psyche. It’s hard not to think about that when someone who looks that good continually talks about getting into my pants. But there’s no need to go into detail about how much I crave the caress of his fingers on my skin with Aubrey. My sexual fantasies aren’t really anyone’s business. 

She eyes me and licks her spoon. “So he’s PG-13, huh? That’s kind of disappointing. Not much of a ‘Sex-god’ is he? I figured as much as you talked about him he’d have you out of your panties within the hour.”

“Aubrey!” I smack her leg. “I can’t believe you just called him that.”

“What? A ‘Sex-god’?” She says around her spoon. “I got the name from you. That’s how you always referred to him, but I’m thinkin’ of revoking his title after the boring business date story you just told me.”

It’s true, I kept tabs on Noel while he shot up through the ranks of stardom. The internet is a wonderful tool for discreetly checking up on people. There are always pictures of him at parties surrounded by small mobs of women—some even famous starlets who are notorious for having flings with rock stars. Noel’s been referred to as a ‘Sex-god’ by more than one article. 

“Well, there are other single guys in the band…” That gives me an idea.  “Why don’t you meet us at a show or something?”

“Are you serious?” I can hear the excitement in her voice.

“Totally serious. I know how much you wanted to get back stage and meet the guys before, so I figure I kind of owe you.” 

I get my laptop from my bag and pull up Black Falcon’s tour schedule. We pick the next Texas tour date on the schedule, so Aubrey can see her folks plus visit me and the band on the road. 

My phone chirps again, and I snatch it off the table. It makes me jump when it rings in my hand.

I click the green button and say, “Why, if it isn’t my favorite stalker.”

Noel laughs into the phone, and I wish it didn’t make me smile. “That’s right, baby. You’re looking really sexy in that black lingerie while lying on your bed. I’m so glad I have the perfect spot to see into your bedroom window from this tree.”

I glance down at the over-sized t-shirt and socks I’m wearing. “You’d be sadly disappointed if you actually saw what I wear to bed.”

“You know, clothes are overrated as far as I’m concerned. I’m good with you totally doing away with them when you visit me.” I can hear the smile in his voice. 

“Noel...” I say his name like a warning. 

Aubrey looks over at me and rolls her eyes. “I’m going to bed,” she whispers. “We can watch this movie some other time.”

“Goodnight,” I tell her before she closes herself in her bedroom.

“Telling your boyfriend goodnight, are ya?” Noel asks, his voice tight.

My heart pauses and then restarts within a second. I grab the pillow from the couch and hug it tight against my body. “What boyfriend?”

A loud moan of a woman in the throws of passion sounds in the background. Is he actually watching porn while he’s talking to me? There’s a rustling noise on Noel’s end of the line and then the sound of a door closing. 

“Noel?” I ask, afraid I’ve lost him. 

“Sorry,” he says, “I had to close the door. This tour bus gets crazy after a show. I can barely hear you.”

I shake the images of topless groupies out of my head. “Yeah. Sorry. What were you saying?”

He tsks playfully. “I was asking you about your boyfriend. It’s cool if you don’t want to tell me about him.”

I laugh. He’s being ridiculous and reminds me a little of his old self. “You know I don’t have a boyfriend.”

“Good thing. I’d hate to have to hop a plane at this time of night just to kick his ass for messing around with my girl.”

I smile and chew on my bottom lip. His forwardness is kind of cute. I’ll give him that. “I’m not your girl, Noel.”

“Not yet, but soon,” he says. His confidence is disgusting. “You know I haven’t even thought about sleeping with another girl since the other night.”

I grin and poke fun at his comment. “Me either.”

He chuckles. “I’m so glad you haven’t thought about being with any other girls. Chicks would be stiff competition for me. Although, I won’t say I wouldn’t like to watch that.”

I shake my head. Same old Noel—always a jokester. This little innocent flirting game he wants to play seems fairly harmless and if it keeps me in his good graces, then I’ll play along. “You know what I meant. Besides, you’re the only stiff competition I like.”

He groans into the phone. “That’s it. Where’s my private jet? The word stiff coming out of your mouth is enough to send me over the edge here.”

We are both quiet for a couple seconds. Jokes aside, I know he’s trying to be serious. He’s trying to test me. The line between our new business relationship and our old love life isn’t clearly defined. It’s not entirely his fault, either. I find myself looking forward to his calls and texts. Shouldn’t I be dreading them?

He sighs into the phone. “Have you packed?”

I glance at my bedroom and think about the half full suitcase on my bed. “Nearly finished.”

“Lane,” he says, hesitation in his voice. “I know you’re having second thoughts about this, but I told you, you won’t be my direct employee. You work for a real marketing firm—a huge one. This looks great on your resume. Let me help you put that hard earned marketing degree to use. Everyone who gets these kinds of jobs knows someone to get their foot in the door.”

Deep down, I know Noel is right. Center Stage Marketing is one of the largest firms in New York. His offer, to be in charge of promoting his children’s literacy charity is amazing. The only problem is the tour. I’m stuck with him everyday. But, honestly can’t think of a way around it. He made it clear if I want this job, this is the stipulation. “I’ll be ready.”

“Yeah?” I don’t even need to see his face to know he’s smiling. “That didn’t take as much convincing as I thought it would.”

“Well, you know, I would still be an intern if it weren’t for you. I would like to be able to pay my own rent for a change. Begging my mom to cover it while I intern majorly sucks. But, if it weren’t for her, Aubrey would’ve kicked me out of this place two years ago.”

“Having money is nice,” he agrees. “I remember all too well what being a starving artist is like.”

“Please, your parents would never let you starve.”

He’s quiet. I expect at any moment he’ll crack some joke like he always does, but it doesn’t happen. Did I step on a touchy subject? “Noel?”

He sighs into the phone. “Yeah, I’m here.”

He’s frowning. I can tell by the tone in his voice. I panic.  “I’m sorry if I—”

“Don’t worry about it, Lane. I guess I should have told you that Dad and I really don’t talk any more. For some reason, I figured you already knew that, seeing as how our families are still neighbors and all.”

I hadn’t had the nerve to face his parents since our break-up. They still live beside my Mom on Cedar Creek Lake in Texas. The only time I’ve had any contact with them is at my father’s funeral three years ago, but I wasn’t up for much talking having just lost my father to cancer. There’s so much that has changed in our lives.

“I didn’t know, Noel. I’m sorry if I upset you. You want to talk about it?”

The line is silent for a long time, but I can hear slow and steady breaths on the other end. I don’t understand it. What could be so bad that Noel wouldn’t speak to his father? Doesn’t he know that family can be stripped away at any moment? I know his father. He’s stern. The kind of man who always gets his way and people don’t cross. Those two always butted heads when we were kids, especially, when it came to Noel’s grades. His father couldn’t grasp why school was such a struggle for his dyslexic son. 

Noel’s mother, on the other hand, is a lovely woman, and she’s always considerate of Noel’s learning disability. I can’t even count the number of different tutors she hired to help him.  

Noel is a mixture of both of them, I guess. His sweetness comes from his mom, while his need for complete control comes from his father. But, since I’ve reconnected with him, seems like his father’s genes are winning out. He’s pushy, just like him. 

The relationship with his father was always strained when we were young. The constant need for perfection and success wore on Noel a lot. He always tried to please his father, but something in the last four years has changed, and I’m dying to find out what.

“Noel, I mean it, we’ve been friends a long time. You can tell me.”

He lets loose a loud, shaky sigh. “It’s nothing. Forget I even brought it up.”

I press the pillow tighter against my chest and for some reason I wish it’s Noel. The need to wrap my arms around him and tell him things will work out grips my heart. I know better than to believe that this isn’t a big deal. Not being able to see his family, when they meant so much to him, must be crushing.

He should talk about this with someone. If he won’t tell me willingly, I’m going to have to force it out of him. 

“Bullshit,” I say.

“Excuse me?” He questions with a sharp tone.

“You heard me, Noel. Bull…shit. This isn’t
nothing
. Tell me. I’m your oldest friend, and I want to know what happened that’s so terrible you don’t see your parents anymore.”

 Another heavy breath on the line—he’s wavering. Noel knows how relentless I can be.  “He gave me an ultimatum. Go to college or get cut off.”

My eyes widened. “He threw you out? Your mom let that happen?”

Noel sighs. “She tried to stop him, but Dad was hell bent on teaching me a lesson. The only thing he let me leave with was my car. Good thing that old Chevelle has a huge back seat. It was my home for quite a while.”

“I’m so sorry, Noel. Why didn’t you call me? I would’ve let you come and stay with me at the dorm.” The thought of me dumping him coupled with what happened with his father causes an ache in my soul. He didn’t deserve to be tossed aside like he didn’t matter. 

“I was too proud. I wanted to prove to you and my dad that I could succeed with my music. That it wasn’t just some hobby for me.”

“You certainly did that. You should be so proud of your success and tell us both to kiss your ass.”

“I could never do that. That’s just not the kind of person I am.” He is so right. I could never picture him telling me or his father that, but I wouldn’t blame him if he did. I deserved it. We both did. “It’s a lonely life if you don’t have good people around you. People are so fake when fame hits. The only real family I’ve got now is my band. These guys are my brothers. They know what all this is like.”

“When’s the last time you spoke with your folks?”

“I haven’t talked with my dad since the night he threw me out four years ago.”

“That’s awful.” My heart breaks for him. “And your mother…”

“Nah, Mom’s cool. She sneaks around and calls and emails me when she can. If it weren’t for her sneaking me money that first year I was on my own, I probably would have starved to death. Believe me, those cheap, shitty, little noodles are the best meals ever when you’re starving and poor.”

“I always wondered how rock stars stayed so skinny with all the beer they drink. The starvation diet should be marketed,” I say, trying to lighten his mood.

He laughs. “You should totally head that up.” The tension seems to melt away a little from his voice, with my joke. I want to ask him a million things. There are so many questions that still linger in my mind about the possibility of fixing their relationship. Some day I hope he’ll feel comfortable enough to share everything with me again, just like he used to. But for now, I’ll take whatever intimacies about his life he’s willing to give me without pushing the issue too much.