Chapter 8

Their first three nights in Nevada were overwhelming for Azure. Each day before their performances, she walked around and took in the sites. Mathias had opened a bank account for her when they were still in L.A., so she was able to do some shopping. She was too young to gamble, except at the slot machines in restaurants, grocery stores, and the mall. She won twelve dollars in those three days and lost seventeen before deciding gambling wasn’t her thing.

On their last night in Vegas, Dante suggested they go out to a club after the concert. Azure tried to get out of it, finally saying with some desperation, “I’m not even eighteen yet, Dante. They won’t let me in.”

He shook his head. “We’ll get you in. Now, go get dressed.”

They had suites in the MGM Grand, and Azure took the elevator to her floor. She was in a nice suite with Denise, meaning she had her own bed and bath, and they shared a sitting room. They hadn’t crossed paths much yet, and Azure was grateful for that. Whenever they spoke, Denise didn’t bother to hide her dislike. Mathis had said it wasn’t a personal hatred, but rather was inspired by jealousy and anger at not being chosen as Jada’s replacement.

Azure was back downstairs in ten minutes, dressed in a short leather skirt, silky crop top, and leather high-heeled boots. She had clipped her hair behind her ears and skipped make-up. Mathias and Crowley were the only ones sitting at the bar when Azure joined them.

“You look nice,” said Crowley, sipping a beer. “Might pass for twenty-one.”

Azure licked her lips. “Uh, thanks, but I doubt it.”

“Dante will find a way to get you in,” said Mathias as the others joined them. They took two taxis to a local club called Steppin’ Out. Azure was amazed when they were recognized and escorted right through the crowd of waiting patrons. No one asked for her identification—a student body card until she got a copy of her birth certificate—and a server brought two pitchers of beer. Remembering her experience from the senior party, she ordered a Coke.

She watched everyone dance, wishing she could do their moves. When she had danced with Chase, they’d both been pretty bad, so it hadn’t mattered. Tonight, it did since everyone was fantastic.

After they had been there an hour, Azure still hadn’t danced, and Dante took her hand. “C’mon,” he said, slightly breathless. “Your turn, Azzy.”

Azure’s head snapped up, but she wasn’t seeing Dante. Azzy. The name was familiar. She had a brief memory of her mother and father calling her Azzy. She got lost in the memory, struggling to grasp just a bit more of it, but it was a phantom and soon evaporated to mist.

She was surprised to find herself out on the floor with Dante, as several bodies pressed close to them on all sides. Blushing hotly, she practically yelled to Dante, “I can’t do this. I can’t dance like everyone else.” She started to walk back to the table, but Dante grabbed her hand again. “Dante…”

“You can. Just listen for the beat. Go on, close your eyes.” He held her so her back was against his chest.

She forced herself to concentrate on the heavy techno music and could soon discern the pattern behind it.

“Now, move your hips in time with the music,” said Dante against her ear.

Azure jerked when his warm breath caressed her ear, surprised by the sensation and the feelings it stirred in her.

“Concentrate,” he said as she stood still against him.

Slowly, and with more confidence, Azure moved her hips, soon finding the rhythm of the music. Her other movements seemed to flow naturally, and she was caught up in the music. By the end of the song, she faced Dante, mimicking any new moves he added. When the song ended, she was panting. She pulled away from Dante and turned to the table as a slow song started.

“We’re not done yet.” He pulled her back into his arms. “You have an hour to make up for.”

Closing her eyes, Azure gingerly put her hands on Dante’s shoulders, as he wrapped his arms around her waist. As the song progressed, Dante pulled her closer until her head rested on his chest, and they barely swayed to the music. She couldn’t breathe. He was too close. It was like drowning. Even when she had made out with Chase, she hadn’t felt anything like this.

When the song ended, they broke apart and returned to the table. Mathias, who had previously been talkative and boisterous, was now lost in his beer, answering in monosyllables. Crowley gave Azure a strange look when he took her out on the floor at the next song. He was a good dancer too, if not as polished as Dante.

By the end of the evening, Azure had danced with everyone, including some of the other patrons, except Mathias. Dante got in the last dance, another slow song. Azure didn’t hesitate to place her head on his chest and wrap her arms around his waist. She had a vague idea that the song would never end, and she would stay just like this, with Dante, forever. Was she falling in love with him? Surely not. She barely knew him, and he was way out of her league. Dante wouldn’t be interested in her anyway.

As the song ended, Azure raised her head, looking toward the table. They were on the other side of the dance floor, having moved away from the spot where they began. She looked up at Dante to comment and was surprised when his lips settled gently on hers.

His goatee was silky and just a bit rough, and, for a moment, Azure wanted to giggle. Then the sensations hit her. She had been kissed before, but this was different. It wasn’t an overly sexual kiss, and he didn’t use his tongue, but Azure could sense an undercurrent of strong emotions flowing between them. Dante raised his head, taking her hand and leading her back to the table. They left soon afterward, before anyone could dance another dance.

In bed that night, Azure relived the kiss and the emotions associated with it. She felt tingly and ached for something. She wished Dante had taken the kiss further but didn’t know what that would have included. She had been drunk when making out with Chase and couldn’t remember much of the evening.

Azure possessed a rudimentary understanding of sex from books and a sex education class she had taken as a sophomore but had never done it before. Would she enjoy it? She had heard that it hurt the first time. Even Brandy had said it was just “nice” with Jasen. What did that mean?

With a sigh, Azure got out of the bed and went onto the balcony. She stared down at the lights of Vegas with heavy thoughts on her mind. Did she even want to have sex with Dante? She wanted it to be with someone special, someone she loved and who loved her. If she fell in love with Dante, would he ever love her back?

***

The first month of touring was the hardest for Azure. She had to get used to living out of a suitcase, sleeping in a different bed every night or two, and waking up in a different city almost every day. Long stretches of open road filled their days, and the only things to do were watch television, play video games, read a book, or use the gym equipment. There was also conversation, and she filled many hours talking with Mathias, and sometimes Dante.

He seemed less interested in talking than kissing her. Whenever they were alone, he would often steal a quick kiss, but rarely anything more. He acted like a gentleman. Sometimes, Azure appreciated it. Other times, it drove her nuts with wanting him.

She didn’t know if she loved him, but she didn’t care anymore. She wanted Dante and spent hours a day fantasizing about him, watching him, or just staring at him. Azure told herself that love, or lack of it, didn’t matter. They were both adults—well, she was almost an adult—and if they desired each other, there wasn’t anything wrong with that. She ignored her voice of reason that told her she wouldn’t be happy with that kind of relationship for long.

***

They weren’t scheduled to have a concert in Miami the night of Azure’s birthday, but she hadn’t thought any of the group would remember the occasion. She was in the tub when Mathias called her on the phone and asked her to come up to his suite.

“I have a present for you, Azure. It’s just a little something, but happy birthday.”

Azure hurried to dress, leaving off make-up and throwing on a pair of jeans paired with a button-down sleeveless shirt.

She knocked on Mathias’s door ten minutes later. When she stepped inside, she barely had time to notice it was dark before the lights came on and people yelled, “Surprise!” She giggled and gasped with delight when she saw Janessa, Brandy, and Chase.

She hugged them, and they spent several minutes catching up. They eventually forced her to circulate a bit and open her presents. Azure ripped through the bright papers eagerly. Until becoming friends with Brandy and Janessa, she couldn’t remember getting a birthday present. She knew her parents must have celebrated her birthday, but her grandmother had never mentioned their yearly passage, let alone given her a present or party.

There were lots of great gifts, and a few that weren’t so great. Denise gave her a set of Designer Imposter’s perfume, and Azure wrinkled her nose surreptitiously. “Thanks,” she said without much enthusiasm and moved on. The last present was a small box resembling a jeweler’s case, and her breath caught as she wondered who had given her jewelry. The tag said Ava, Dante, and Mat. Her hands trembled as she ripped off the midnight-blue satiny paper. She opened the box and stared at the present before finally removing it.

It was a key ring with a logo for Jaguar and two keys on it. It also had a remote for keyless entry. “What’s this?” she asked in a squeaky voice.

“Keys for a car.” Dante’s lips crinkled with amusement. “It’s in L.A. right now, but you can drive it as soon our tour is over. It’s the same shade of blue as your eyes.”

Overwhelmed, Azure opened and closed her mouth. “I can’t drive.”

“We’ll teach you. That way we might get to drive the Jag too,” said Mat.

Azure giggled at Mathias’s offer, hugged them both and kissed their cheeks. “Thanks so much.” She tightened her hold on the keys. After room service brought up the cake, Azure and Chase took a piece and went into an unused bedroom to talk. “It’s been a great birthday.” She kicked off her shoes and curled up on the bed. “I’m glad you could all come.”

“Mat flew us here.” He grinned. “He organized the whole thing.”

“It’s been terrific. My grandmother didn’t believe in celebrating birthdays.” She nearly squirmed at the lie. Brigette always gave Ruth a little something extra in her paycheck near her birthday, and Ruth had taken Azure shopping every year until she was fourteen so she could buy something for Brigette. When she hit fourteen, the unfairness of it had struck her, and she had refused to buy anything for her grandmother again.

“Your grandmother is a hag,” Chase said. “I saw her last week, and she looked terrible. She actually looked her age for a change. Maybe she’s regretting her decision.”

Azure turned her head to look at the window, struggling for a neutral voice. “I don’t really care to discuss this. The decision was made, and it’s too late to go back now.”

Chase quickly turned the discussion to her life as it was now. She found herself telling him about Dante.

He grimaced briefly before forcing a bland look. “Be careful. He might be too much for your first love, Azure.”

“I didn’t say I was in love with him.” She couldn’t meet Chase’s eyes. “I like him, and I’m attracted to him, but I really don’t think I know him well enough to love him.” They left the bedroom shortly after that, both feeling a strain that hadn’t been there before their conversation about Dante.

He was watching them when they emerged, and he glared at Chase before giving Azure a cold look. Then he deliberately turned his back on her, and she frowned, wondering why he was angry.

The party broke up shortly afterward, and Azure offered to share her suite with Brandy and Janessa before discovering they were booked into a suite with Chase on the floor below hers. After hugging them once more, Azure returned to her room, sleepy but still high on adrenaline. She was touched they had remembered her birthday and giggled once more at Denise’s gift.

Azure was dressed for bed in a long cotton nightshirt when someone knocked on the outer door of the suite. Figuring it was Brandy or Janessa looking for girl talk, she hurried to open the door, not bothering with a robe. She tugged at the hem of her nightshirt when she saw her visitor. “Dante.” Her voice emerged as a husky whisper.

He pushed past her, slamming the door. “Is Denise in her room?” he asked, and Azure shook her head. He advanced on her. “What kind of game are you playing?”

“What? What are you talking about?”

“I thought you were into me too, but then you went into the bedroom with your boyfriend. Are you sleeping with him?” He ran a hand through his already-disheveled hair.

She clapped a hand across her mouth. “You’re into me?”

“Azure.” He practically growled her name. “What’s your relationship with Chase?”

“We’re just friends.” She forced down a giggle. She didn’t think Dante would appreciate her levity at the moment. “He wanted something else for a while, but we’re never going to be more than friends.”

Dante sagged a bit, losing the last of his anger. When he pulled Azure into his arms, she didn’t protest. She returned his kisses with the same degree of passion, and this time he didn’t hold back. He waged war on her defenses, but they had already crumbled in the face of her own desire for him.

They ended up on the bed in Azure’s room without exchanging a word. When she laid naked beside him, Azure was embarrassed and dropped her gaze. She was vulnerable, and he seemed to know that, taking the time to gently explore her body.

“Beautiful,” he whispered, before kissing her closed eyelids. Her exercise regime on the bus during driving had definitely started to show, and he trailed a hand across her flat stomach, tracing the definition of her abs.

Azure relaxed at his breathy compliment and found the nerve to do a little touching of her own. Her body sang under his skillful hands as he built her arousal to a fever-pitch. When he slid on the condom, she tensed up again, anticipating the pain, though she was impatient for his possession. He coaxed her muscles into relaxing and entered her slowly. It hurt a little, but not like she had expected. Soon the pain wasn’t even a memory, and she lost herself in the sensations.

When it was over, she cuddled against him and fell asleep. Once more during the night he reached for her, but when she woke in the morning he was gone. She was disappointed and sore in places she had never been before. She blushed upon seeing the red splotch on the sheets and quickly stripped the bed, stuffing them in the corner. She wasn’t guilty, exactly, but she didn’t want to look at the proof of her lost virginity, knowing the man who’d taken it hadn’t even stayed the whole night with her.

After a hot bath, she went down to the suite her friends shared, and they spent the day exploring Miami. Sensing Dante didn’t want their relationship to be common knowledge, Azure never told Janessa, Brandy, or Chase about the previous night.

The next morning, at the airport, Chase hugged her and gave her a wise look. “Be careful. Don’t get pregnant, and don’t get your heart broken.”

She bit back her resentment at the admonishment and wondered how he knew. She didn’t have time to ask as they boarded the plane. When she returned to her suite, Dante waited for her and once more, they made love. Azure didn’t allow herself to think about what, if anything, their future held.