Klement led Kat out of the clinic, hiding a smile at her beet-red face. Though he didn’t like seeing her uncomfortable, she was adorable when she blushed.
He patted her shoulder. “Hey, it’s okay. It’s all over with.”
“I feel so violated every time,” she admitted as they got into his Suburban. “My mom calls it the ‘salad scoops.’”
He cringed in sympathy. “It’s no picnic for dudes either.”
The majority of the ride home passed in an awkward silence. Though, from the corner of his eye, Klement watched Kat fidget on the seat and gnaw her lip like she wanted to say something.
Just as he was about to tell her to spit it out, she spoke.
“Klement?”
“Yeah?”
Her fingers twisted on her lap. “Why don’t you want the others to know that we’re…um…involved?”
He sighed. He’d known she was going to go there, especially after last night. And she had a point. “The main reason is that I don’t want them to think I’m having you play Thrashfest because I’m biased.”
“You’re not, are you?”
He shook his head as she peered at him intently. “No. If you weren’t qualified, I would have found someone else.”
“Ah. So, what’s the other reason?”
“It’s complicated.”
How could he tell her that he was afraid she’d ditch him once she learned about the secret he’d been keeping from her? And if she didn’t ditch him, how could he tell her how much it would kill him if he publicly acknowledged that she was his only to have her be wooed away by someone else? Like fucking Cliff. God, what if it was Cliff? He wasn’t about to believe that Cliff had given up yet.
“Complicated,” Kat repeated drily. “Like anything’s simple between us?”
Klement laughed. “You have a point.”
“It’s not just because the secrecy adds more spice to it, is it?” She licked her lips. “I mean, it is kinda hot—though inconvenient.”
“Of course not. That part is almost more hassle than it’s worth.”
She pouted, but he saw a glimmer of real pain in her eyes. “Do you mean you don’t want to…anymore?”
“I said almost,” Klement clarified quickly. He was maybe more impatient-sounding than he intended. “We wouldn’t have gotten tested if I didn’t want to have sex with you anymore.”
“Oh, okay.”
Kat lapsed back into silence for the rest of the drive. Once they got home, she made a sandwich and disappeared into her room. He knew she was hurt by some of his answers, but he didn’t know how to fix that. Rod and Cliff were staying in again tonight, so he couldn’t attempt to talk to her. Not without imperiling their secrecy.
Sighing, he made his own sandwich and retreated to his office to play with the security footage. No luck yet, but he might as well do something useful. Any time now he might find a frame he could actually manipulate into providing useful information. So he worked until it was two A.M. and his eyes were grainy.
He didn’t see Kat until the next morning. Unfortunately, because he slept in so late, he didn’t have time to even eat breakfast with her. Even more depressing was that she took her own car so they didn’t ride together.
Getting through the session was tedious. Kat’s parts came out fine, but Cliff was so upset that his Internet troll had returned that he played his parts over again five times before getting them right.
“I told you to ignore that shit,” Klement scolded.
“I know, but he’s so hostile that it’s creepy.” Cliff’s eyes were wide with unease. “What if it’s the dead-cat guy?”
Klement hadn’t considered that. “Okay, I’ll try to track his IP address and see if I can figure out who it is.” He shook his head, already dreading the arduous process. “But if it turns out to be some thirteen-year-old kid, you’re going to owe me.”
“Thanks, man.”
The owner of the studio handed over copies of the security footage from the last two weeks, which Klement had requested to see if he could spot the same Kia from his own footage. Damn, though, the work kept piling up. At this rate he’d never get the chance to get things figured out with Kat.
Heading back to the house, it was agony not to keep checking the rearview mirror to make sure Kat was behind him.
Once he pulled into the driveway, he cursed as his phone rang. His mood lightened when he realized it was the clinic. The results had gotten back fairly quickly. Of course, his big donation probably helped with that.
He headed into his office for privacy as the nurse delivered the verdict. He was clean, which didn’t surprise him, but it was nice to know. Leaning back in his office chair, he stretched. He should tell Kat the good news and see if she’d gotten her results yet.
He frowned, suddenly feeling selfish for the excitement at the potential to go in bareback. Just because they had a clean bill of health didn’t resolve everything. It was time to come clean about him being her IT Guy as well. Honesty was the first part of any real relationship. Even—or especially—the complicated ones.
Closing his eyes, he formulated a plan. It was absolutely ridiculous, but it had the benefit of a purely open reveal of the truth, and it could potentially stave off a scene. However, just in case things blew up in his face, he wanted at least one more brief time in her arms.
Was that wrong?
***
Kat breathed a small sigh of relief as she got off the phone with the clinic. She was clean. The skeevy STD-ridden rockstar stereotype did not, apparently, apply to Klement. Granted, she’d been fairly certain that he wasn’t that type, but ever since the time Richard had gotten her drunk and snuck in without a condom, she’d grown paranoid. Waiting for those results had been more agonizing and taken longer.
She still couldn’t believe Klement had given the clinic a fat donation to ensure they worked quickly. Was he so anxious to touch her again? She was anxious to touch him. So was this why he hadn’t approached her last night? Had he wanted to wait for the verdict?
Suddenly nervous but also dying to know, she left her room just as Klement emerged from his office.
“I got the all clear,” she said softly.
He smiled. “Me too.” Glancing over her shoulder down the hall, he reached out and stroked her hair. His eyes glittered with unbanked desire. “Maybe if we can get rid of the guys tonight, we can celebrate.”
Raw need coursed through her. “God, I hope so.”
Alas, the Fates conspired against them. She perked up with excitement when, after dinner, Cliff asked Rod to take him out drinking, but Rod declined.
“Sorry, mate, I have a bastard of a headache.” The drummer rubbed his temples. “Too much beating on my kit. I’m going to take a Motrin and lie down.”
The singer turned to Kat with an entreating smile. “What about you, babe?”
“Um.” She fumbled for an excuse. “I gotta monitor the comments on my announcement that I’ll be playing Thrashfest. The website’s exploding, both with comments congratulating me and others outraged that I’m going to be playing.” Which was exactly why she’d stuck Kinley with moderator duty. She wasn’t anywhere ready to read the fandom’s reactions in depth.
Cliff pouted and nodded reluctantly. “I understand. I hope it’s not too big of a clusterfuck.” He ran a hand through his hair and paced the kitchen. “Damn. And speaking of Internet crazies, Klement’s gonna be too busy tracking down mine to take me to the bar. Maybe I should just go by myself.”
“No,” Klement said firmly, speaking up from the other end of the table. “Not tonight. We also have real-life crazies to worry about. Not to mention the fact that you can’t afford another DUI.”
The singer’s pout deepened. “Fine. Though you realize we haven’t had anything happen in a while. Maybe the son of a bitch gave up.”
“Those kind of loons never give up,” Klement grunted. He shot Cliff a glare. “Hey, that’s my rum.”
“Come on, man, you won’t let me go anywhere and I’m out of whiskey.” The singer rummaged in the fridge for a can of Coke. “Besides, you barely drink. You’re letting it go to waste.”
Klement sighed. “You eat all my food, smoke all my weed, and now you wanna drink all my booze?”
“Oh, speaking of weed—”
Rod perked up. “I do have a headache, you know.”
Klement laughed. “Oh, all right, let’s go upstairs.”
Heavy with disappointment, Kat headed to her room. Always with the weed-smoking. Why couldn’t those other two just take off for a little while so she could be alone with Klement? And why was he allowing them to smoke up all of his stuff?
A twinge of shame struck her at her hostility. They were her bandmates. It was wrong to bear them resentment, especially if they were all interested in the same thing. At least there was always tomorrow. And maybe Klement would be up for watching a movie with her later tonight. After all, she enjoyed his company when they were clothed as well.
Digging out her pajamas and a towel from her clean laundry basket, she showered. When the guys came back downstairs, Klement disappeared back into his office and Roderick went to bed. Cliff went God knew where with his pilfered rum.
Oh. So much for a movie. Fighting disappointment, Kat curled up in bed with her Kindle. It had been ages since she’d just relaxed and read.
Before she knew it, it was after midnight. Yawning, she headed to the bathroom and brushed her teeth.
The hallway was dark and silent, except for faint snores coming from Cliff’s room. Just when she turned to head back to bed, however, a shadow fell over her. Klement. And he wasn’t wearing a shirt.
She froze, captivated by the sight of his muscled form.
He took her hand and held a finger to his lips as he led her into his room. After locking the door, he grasped her pajama top and pulled it up over her head. Immediately he sank to his knees and buried his face between her breasts. Kat looked down at him and was struck breathless by his masculine beauty. How could she have ever thought that Cliff was the better-looking man? Not in a million years.
All rational thought shattered when Klement’s fingers slid down her belly and seized the waistband of her pajama pants. Pulling them down, and her panties as well, he sank to a sitting position, kissing her stomach and hip bones. Then he lowered his head between her legs. When his tongue flicked across her clit, Kat nearly stumbled from the electric pleasure. He licked and kissed and sucked until she was slick, wet, and whimpering.
Before her knees gave out, he scooped her up and placed her on the bed. Kat watched, transfixed as he pulled down his pants. His cock stood hard and enormous, with a beauty all of its own. She couldn’t wait to feel it inside her again.
Climbing onto the bed, he cupped her face and kissed her senseless before easing her down on her stomach. Straddling her hips, he kissed and caressed her everywhere until yet again she was begging.
At last he gave her what she wanted and worked his cock inside her with torturous slowness. She gasped at every hot inch. His fingers brushed aside her hair and stroked her cheek, that tenderness countering his hard, deep thrusts. Kat turned her head slightly to kiss his knuckles. His index finger stroked her lips. Her tongue darted out and licked the tip.
Klement growled against her neck, and slowly he guided his finger into her mouth. Something about it felt decadent and naughty. Kat sucked the digit like she had sucked his cock earlier, arching her hips to echo the rhythm of him moving inside her.
His breath hissed through his teeth, making her feel wicked. Oh he liked that, did he? Her tongue laved his finger as she sucked on him harder. She felt his cock spasm inside her, and his thrusts became more savage.
Wow. The penetration felt deeper and more intense at this angle. Almost unbearable. Even still, Kat shifted beneath Klement and spread her legs wider, taking him deeper.
The sensation was overpowering, making her throb in that deep, hidden place. It would almost hurt if it didn’t feel so good. She moaned around his finger. She couldn’t possibly take more, but her body told her otherwise, begging for him to go deeper, harder.
Klement’s cock pulsed against her G-spot, his finger thrusting into her mouth, making her take him deeper that way as well. Dark pleasure tingeing her vision, Kat obliged, sucking harder, tightening her pussy around him. She could feel every inch of him scalding her from the inside, claiming her, owning her.
Pain and pleasure mingled within her, coursing through her body. Her climax roared through her, and she spasmed around Klement with such intensity that she bucked against him. Her pleasure crested higher, until she thought she’d die if she took any more. And as much as she tried to hold back, loud cries erupted from her.
Klement was merciless. He withdrew his finger but his hand wrapped around her jaw, silencing her. His other hand gripped hers tightly, pinning it to the mattress. And since she knew he was only trying to keep her quiet so they weren’t discovered, the feeling of him holding her down, overpowering her, made her come harder.
Just as the waves of pleasure began to subside, Klement bit her neck and a low groan escaped his throat. She felt his cock pulse inside her, and a second orgasm burst over her, washed through her, making her tremble and her vision shatter into a billion particles of light.
Klement’s delicious weight settled upon her back, their bodies heaving together as they caught their breath. He uncovered her mouth and brushed her hair to the side to trail light kisses on her cheek and down her neck, making her tremble anew. Then, slowly, he rose from the bed and grabbed a towel from the laundry basket to clean up.
Rolling onto her back, Kat watched with rapt fascination as he wiped his still-hard cock. She blushed when he met her gaze. That blush deepened when he came back to the bed and gently wiped down her damp center and the insides of her thighs.
Tossing the towel on the floor with his other dirty clothes, he gave her a concerned look. “Did I hurt you?”
“No, not at all.” She caressed his bare chest, awed that he cared so much about how she felt.
He still looked worried. “It was just that…well, you were getting kinda loud and I didn’t want to wake up the guys.”
“Actually, it was kinda hot.” She shivered with the memory of their lovemaking. Never before had she felt so completely taken. “I never knew I was this kinky.”
“Me neither.” He cupped her cheek and lowered his head to kiss her lightly. “Still, you’re so small. If I’m ever hurting you…”
She smirked. “I’ll bite.”
He chuckled low before getting back into the bed and gathering her into his arms. Kat rested her head against his chest, listening to his heart, which was still pounding from their sensual exertions.
“I wish we could stay like this forever,” she murmured.
“Mmmm.” He kissed the top of her head.
But, no. Things couldn’t last forever. “I suppose you’ll want me to go back to my room.”
He held her tighter. “Not just yet. This feels nice.”
It felt more than nice to Kat; it felt like heaven. The other guys she’d been with had been the types to roll over and start snoring after sex. And until tonight, she’d expected Klement to be no different. Granted, the last two times hadn’t left them much opportunity to bask in the post-coital glow, but who would have guessed he was a cuddler?
I could definitely fall in love with this man.
The thought caused a ripple of alarm to reverberate through Kat, but at her slight shiver Klement cuddled her closer, rubbing her back in soothing motions.
They dozed together for a blissful eternity before Kat reluctantly disentangled herself from his embrace and rolled out of the bed. Klem mumbled in a pleading tone, reaching for her as she donned her pajamas. But though it hurt to leave him now, having him inevitably send her away later and on his own terms would be even more painful.