Strings Attached, page 22
Nikki shifted and wrapped her body tightly around her. “Hey,” she whispered. “What’s wrong?”
At the sound of Nikki’s voice, she burrowed backward into the embrace. Her breathing slowed. Nikki’s warmth soothed her almost immediately; she’d sensed Drew’s discomfort. Nikki enveloped her hand in hers and squeezed.
“Drew? You’re scaring me. Are you okay? You’re not sorry about last night, are you?”
She rotated within Nikki’s arms and hugged her. She hated the insecurity she’d put in Nikki’s eyes. “No. I’m not sorry. A little overwhelmed but not sorry.”
She kissed her bruise. “If it makes you feel any better,” she whispered, “I’m a little overwhelmed, too.”
“You are?”
“More than a little.” Nikki kissed her lightly. “Last night was incredible.” Another kiss. “I can’t believe I’m here with you.” She teased her with her tongue and deepened the kiss. “See how much fun taking risks can be?”
Drew chuckled.
“I wasn’t trying to be funny.”
“I know,” said Drew. “Turns out in addition to your other talents, you’re also a mind-reader.”
“You mean you’re thinking of spending the whole day in bed ravishing my body, too?”
Drew laughed harder. “Close. I was thinking about my aversion to taking risks.”
She could tell Nikki had a wisecrack response on her lips, but Fret pounced on top of them and kept her from saying it.
“All right, cutie pie, I’ll get you your breakfast.” She gave Nikki a peck on the lips. “As for you, breakfast will have to wait.”
“Aww. No fair.”
“Sorry. Kitties reign supreme in this household.” She crawled out of bed, collected her jammies, made a pit stop in the bathroom, and set about preparing her kids’ morning meals.
Nikki joined them a few minutes later. “Any chance I can talk you into taking one more day off?”
She interlocked her fingers behind Nikki’s neck and gave her a proper good morning kiss. “After last night, that is very tempting—which only proves you’re a bad influence on me. Or a good one. I’m still determining which.
She poured juices and handed one to Nikki. “I can’t take any more time off—”
“You can’t or you won’t?”
“Well, I…I suppose it’s a little of both. I guess I could. We just hired Melissa to help out during the holidays. I can see if she’s available to work Saturday, and Geena could take care of the cats, but it’s the weekend before Thanksgiving—”
“Which means it’s probably your last chance to take a little time off before the rush.”
She cracked eggs into a skillet as Nikki started the coffee. This routine was growing on her. “It’s also probably going to be really busy, hopefully. Why do you want me to take it off?”
“I think you need a lesson in spontaneity.” Nikki grabbed mugs from the cupboard and put bread in the toaster.
“What are you up to?”
Nikki grinned. “Oh no, you don’t. If I tell you, it’ll take away the risk factor, and hence spoil your feeling of accomplishment.”
The panic was back. “You’re not going to make me do something crazy like jump out of an airplane, are you?”
Nikki gave her a sly smile. “Now you’re reading my mind.”
“Nikki Razer, if you think for one minute…stop laughing at me! Are you out of your freakin’ mind?”
Nikki took her by the hands. “I’m kidding, I’m kidding! We’ll stay on the ground, I promise. Unless,” she winked, “you’re walking on air like I am right now.”
“Really?” Drew’s heart danced.
Nikki brushed her cheek and smiled so widely that Drew thought the corners of her mouth would reach the back of her head. “You’d better believe it, baby.”
The instant heat flooding Drew’s face told her she was blushing like crazy.
“Can you at least tolerate another long ride in a limo?”
Now she’d really piqued her curiosity. “How long?”
“It’ll be farther than Boston this time, but I’ll have you back on Sunday.”
They filled their plates and sat down to eat.
“And when will we be leaving?”
“We can go tonight after I do the vocal lesson with your prize winner or tomorrow morning. Your choice.”
“How am I supposed to know how long I want to be away if I don’t even know where we’re going or what we’ll be doing?” She tore her toast apart into quarters and dipped a piece in her yolk.
“Hey, spontaneous, remember? Don’t you trust me?”
“I might regret saying this, but for some ridiculous reason I can’t explain, I do.”
“Then tonight it is.”
***
“Can’t you at least give me a hint?” Even if she didn’t know what they were going to do, Drew at least wanted to know where they were doing it.
“You’ll see when we get there.”
Nikki grinned that deadly grin that always turned her insides to goo. Drew wanted to simultaneously strangle her and kiss her all over. Nikki’s secretiveness was maddening, but it was such a turn-on, she didn’t know how she was going to tamp down her excitement and sit still, no matter how comfortable the limo’s leather seats were.
She’d gone insane all afternoon waiting for Nikki and speculating on what she had planned. Now, after an hour on I-95 South, Nikki still hadn’t revealed anything. Nikki was animated about their upcoming adventure but seemed preoccupied otherwise. She was quiet right now, her face serious with what looked like worry.
“Everything okay?”
“Huh? Oh, yeah. Everything’s fine.” Nikki slid to the other end and turned sideways, facing her with one leg bent on the seat. “I’m a little nervous about all this. It’s…I want everything to be perfect.”
Drew patted her knee. “When are you going to realize that you don’t have to be perfect?”
Nikki shrugged, and Drew’s heart softened again with Nikki’s rare display of vulnerability.
“It’s a big step, though, isn’t it? Traveling together?”
“You travel with the group all the time.”
“That’s different. They’re my friends. I mean, you’re my friend, too, but—”
“Nikki, relax. Even though I have no idea where you’re taking me or what we’re going to do, I know we’ll have fun no matter what.” She lifted Nikki’s chin and locked eyes with her. “I get the feeling you need this little vacation as much as I do.”
Nikki gave her a quick kiss. “I think maybe I do. Don’t take this the wrong way, but it feels strange to travel without the band.”
Drew swiveled to face her. “You really do care about your friends, don’t you?”
Nikki held her gaze, her mouth a firm straight line. “I’d protect any one of them with my life. I’m closer to them than my own family. Maybe that’s because I’m an only child, but even so, I can’t imagine my life without my family.”
Drew had no siblings, either, yet she felt closer to her dad than anyone else. “I guess what I have with my dad is special. He’s everything to me.”
Nikki smiled. “He’s a great guy. And he adores you.” Her smile faded. “I never had that kind of bond with my parents.”
She leaned over and took Nikki’s hand. “You felt neglected because of it, didn’t you?”
Nikki looked at their joined hands. “I wasn’t neglected if you’re talking about pushing me to succeed or spoiling me with material things. But…” Nikki looked up at her. “It felt more like they were my career managers, not my mom and dad. They cared more about me representing their public image and reputation by making something of myself according to how it fit into their lives, not mine. Don’t get me wrong; I’m grateful for the musical training I had and for never having to worry about money or anything like that. But I resented them for not caring about what I wanted or anything else I was interested in. They saw my talent and decided for me that I was going to be a professional musician.”
“No matter how old we get or how they treat us, we never stop wanting our parents’ love and approval, do we?” Drew swiped a tear off Nikki’s cheek and gave her a smile. “The musician part worked out okay, though.”
“I know. It’s getting better. At least they’ve come around with accepting me as a lesbian.” She chuckled under her breath. “But they still wish I had become an opera singer instead.”
“There’s still time to do that, too. If you wanted to.”
“No, thanks. I’m a rocker, through and through. I don’t think that’d go over well with my fans, either.”
“They’d flock to every show just to drool over you, even if they hated opera.”
Nikki kissed her. “You’re the only one I want drooling over me.”
Her insides went gooey again. “Sorry, but I don’t think your fans are going to stop drooling over you anytime soon.”
Nikki cocked her head and smiled. “Well, as long as it sells records and concert tickets, I guess I can live with that.” She held out her arms. “Come ’ere, drooler.”
She shuffled across the smooth leather seat. Nikki tugged her against her side and dropped an arm across her shoulders. “This is nice.”
“Mmm.” Nikki kissed the top of her head. “Since we’re swapping parent stories, tell me more about your mother.”
Drew tensed for a moment, but Nikki had opened up about her folks, so it was only fair that she do the same. “Well, you know she’s an actress. She’s like your father, obsessed with her career. My dad virtually raised me on his own. My mother was hardly ever around, and when she was, it was always all about her. I don’t think I was planned, so I always felt like she saw me as a nuisance who interfered with her plans.”
Nikki played with Drew’s hair as she talked. It was a simple gesture that made her feel cared for and special. It lulled her into a safe and content sleepiness.
“I can see why you have a hard time with people in show business.” Nikki kissed her on the forehead. “It’s not exactly conducive to raising kids or having a ‘normal’ life. But I believe that if you have kids, they should be your number one priority.”
Now they were in some serious territory. Did Nikki want kids? Do I? The thought hadn’t crossed her mind before, since she’d never been involved with a woman long enough for the subject to come up. “Why don’t you take a nap?” Nikki jarred her out of her thoughts. “It’s a long ride, and we have a big day ahead of us tomorrow. I want you well rested, considering we didn’t get much sleep last night.” She added a mischievous smile to her last sentence.
“How long a ride?”
“Go to sleep, and it’ll go by faster. I’m going to snooze, too.”
So much for getting any more information out of her. She snuggled into Nikki’s warm body and closed her eyes. Maybe she was right. The time would pass easier if she slept through the ride.
She awoke when she sensed they’d stopped moving. They were in a city and parked in front of a fancy hotel. She blinked until she could focus on the name.
“Welcome to New York City, sweet thang.”
“Oh my God. New York? The Park Hyatt?”
Nikki shifted away and pointed out the window on her side. “Yes. And even better, look what’s across the street.”
Carnegie Hall. “Nikki! What have you done? Is Passion Play playing at Carnegie Hall?”
Nikki chuckled as the driver unloaded the trunk and met the bellhop at the curb. “No, we’re not that big yet. However, I would be most honored if you would accompany me to a concert there tomorrow night.”
“I, uh…what?” She shook her head. This was not possible.
“So? You interested?”
Drew’s door opened, and the driver offered his hand to help her out. The smog mixed with the crisp November air and assaulted her nostrils. It was awful and wonderful. “You’re taking me to a symphony? At Carnegie Hall?”
Nikki joined her by the side of the car. “Mozart’s Twentieth Piano Concerto, actually. Is that okay with you?”
“Is it okay? This is unbelievable. I can’t believe you did this! How did you do this?”
Nikki looped her arm in hers, and they headed into the hotel. “It’s called the internet. You should try it sometime.”
They walked into a humongous, elegant hotel lobby, the kind she’d only seen in the movies. She wasn’t surprised when the concierge greeted Nikki by name before they’d even checked in. She was in such a daze that she hardly remembered the elevator ride to the umpteenth floor. The bellhop was waiting patiently.
Nikki opened the door, and Drew’s jaw dropped. “You could fit my apartment in this room!”
“It’s a suite.”
Nikki tipped the man after he unloaded their bags.
“Nikki, this is too much. I can’t afford—”
“Oh no, you don’t. This is my treat, and you’re not going to stop me from spoiling you this weekend.”
“But I don’t even have anything to wear tomorrow night!”
Nikki slipped her arms around her waist and smiled. “You will. I’m taking us shopping.”
“I can’t let you do that.”
Nikki shrugged. “Okay, fine. I plan on buying myself a new outfit, but if you’d rather wear something you brought, suit yourself.”
For crying out loud. Nikki knew she couldn’t wear jeans or khakis to Carnegie Hall. They probably wouldn’t even let her in. “Why didn’t you tell me I’d have to dress up? I could have gone to the mall this afternoon. At least there I know I can afford something halfway decent.”
“Didn’t I just say this weekend is my treat?”
“You know how I feel about paying my own way.”
Nikki grabbed her hand and led her across the room. She pulled open the drapes, revealing a full view of the cityscape and of Carnegie Hall. She turned to Drew. “This view doesn’t hold a candle to the excitement on your face.” She kissed her. “You’re beautiful, Drew. And the truth is, I’m crazy about you, and I want to spoil you rotten this weekend.”
“I don’t know what to say. I feel guilty.”
“Don’t. Please don’t. It doesn’t matter to me how much money you have. The point is, I can afford to do this. I want to do this. Not because I want to show off, but because you deserve this, and I want to make you happy. So, please, let me.”
The hopeful expression on Nikki’s face was doing a number on her stubbornness. She had to admit she was ecstatic. When would she ever get a chance like this again? Two nights in a luxury hotel? Shopping in downtown Manhattan? Mozart at Carnegie Hall? With Nikki?
It was perfect.
She took Nikki’s hands. “Okay, I’ll let you, but on one condition.”
“Anything.”
“You have to let me pay for at least one thing while we’re here.”
Nikki’s shoulders relaxed. “You have yourself a deal.” She kissed Drew lightly on the lips. “Now, I suggest we begin this adventure by taking advantage of the garden tub with a long, hot bubble bath, and then we get a good night’s sleep on that king-sized bed. What do you say?”
“I say I like the way you think.”
“It seems I’ve heard that before.”
“It’s worth repeating.”
Nikki gathered her in her arms and placed several kisses on her neck and along her jawline. “Know what else is worth repeating?”
She struggled for breath. “Last night’s bedtime activities?”
Nikki drew back and smiled. “Now I like the way you think.”
Chapter Thirty-Three
Drew had never had sex in a bubble bath before, but she quickly added it to her list of favorite things—especially with the way Nikki had sent her over the edge twice. The second time, they came together. They dried each other off with towels that were thicker than her winter parka. Then they took turns putting body lotion on each other and fell naked onto a bed that was so comfortable, Drew thought she’d died and gone to heaven.
By then, they were too tired to make love again. It was just as well, considering they wanted to get up early to fit in as much fun as they could before the 7:30 curtain call. Despite her excitement, Drew slept soundly. How could she not in a bed this soft and curled up next to Nikki’s just-as-soft skin?
She awoke with the remnants of a dream in which she was playing her cello on the stage of the Weill Recital Hall. Even through the blinding spotlight, she saw everyone she knew in the audience: her parents—surprisingly seated together—Geena, Melissa, Nikki, and the other members of Passion Play. Even her cats were lounging on the seats.
She opened her eyes. Nikki was still asleep next to her, looking gorgeous and content. Despite her early reservations, she loved the way things were going. She was exciting and sweet and generous and fun. She loved the easiness of their conversations. She loved how in tune Nikki was with her needs. She loved their shared appreciation for all styles of music.
Maybe she really was ready to take a shot at a relationship. “I’m crazy about you.” Nikki’s words prompted a huge, shit-eating grin. I’m in New York City with one of the sexiest, most beautiful, most sought-after rock stars on today’s music scene. Me. Lowly music store manager Drew McNally. She carefully slipped out of bed and went to the bathroom. She helped herself to one of the plush robes, tugged a knot in the belt, and swung open the bathroom door.
Nikki rolled over onto her side and propped up on her elbow. “Well, good morning, beautiful,” she said with a sexy smile.
Drew caught a glimpse of Nikki’s naked form beneath the sheet.
“I know that look.” She got out of bed and walked over in all her naked glory. “Too bad we don’t have time to act on it at the moment.” She gave Drew a knee-buckling kiss and closed the bathroom door behind her.
Nikki reemerged a moment later. “Would you like breakfast out, or shall I order room service? If I order now, we’ll have time to shower and dress before it arrives.”
Drew quickly ran calculations in her head. She’d offered to pay for one thing. Could she afford breakfast here?
“Well, while you’re making up your mind, I’ll jump in first. If you want to eat here in the room, go ahead and order. We have two hours before our first stop, so don’t take too long to decide.”
