Owen selected a strawberry from a bowl of fresh fruit and crawled up her body until their noses were inches apart.
“Taste,” he said, and he rubbed the strawberry over her lower lip. Her mouth watered, but she was pretty sure it was from being so close to him, not the anticipation of food.
Caitlyn bit into the fruit and got lost in his eyes. Such blue, blue eyes. The dark rims around the irises made them look even more striking. She chewed slowly, her pulse thrumming in her throat. She swallowed, still unable to pull her gaze from his.
“Taste,” he said, and leaned forward to kiss her.
His mouth tasted minty. Caitlyn’s practical sense abandoned her once again as he deepened the kiss and reminded her why she’d not only had sex with him, but spent the entire night pressed against his hard, warm body. He drew away slightly, and her eyelids fluttered open. Transfixed, she gazed into his eyes.
“Do you have a preference?” he asked.
“Huh?”
“In taste?”
“Oh.” Her face grew warm again. “It seems I’ve lost my senses again.”
“Good.” He fed her another bite of strawberry.
“And since you asked,” she said around the piece of fruit in her mouth, “I much prefer your taste.”
He reached for the food cart again and flicked something just under her nose. “Even more than bacon?”
She laughed and bit into the piece of crisp bacon. “Is there anything that tastes better than bacon?” she said with her mouth full. Her self-consciousness waned a bit with each passing moment. He had an uncanny ability to drive her to distraction in one breath and soothe her in the next.
He took a bite of bacon and winked at her. “I’m sure there’s something in this bed that’s more appetizing, but bacon hits the spot at the moment.”
He fed her samples of everything he’d ordered from the menu—which appeared to be every item they offered—and he tasted each as well.
“So you have a brother,” she said, deciding he might be more open to prying questions on a full stomach. “Do you have other siblings?”
He shook his head. “Nope, just the one brother. I have dozens of cousins though. What about you? Do you have siblings?”
A familiar knot formed in her throat. The problem with asking him prying questions was that he was likely to reciprocate. “I had a sister. She died in an accident.”
“Oh,” he said flatly. “Sorry. Were you close?”
“Not really,” she admitted. “I’m not sure if that makes it easier or more difficult. I wish I’d spent more time with her.”
“Regrets can eat you alive.”
“Regret. Like your band,” she said. “Why the name Sole Regret?”
“Kelly named the band. There’s always one thing in your life you wish you could undo more than any other. Your sole regret. You know, Kelly is actually a very deep person.”
“You admire him.”
“If you start bringing up that little slip involving his name last night, I’m going to toss you out in the hallway. Naked.”
Little slip? But if he didn’t want to confront his issues with Kellen, she wasn’t going to push him into it. She wasn’t particularly keen on being ousted from Owen’s place of admiration by his friend.
“You wouldn’t dare,” she said.
“You sure about that?”
The ornery twinkle in his eye kicked her heart rate up a notch because she was sure he would dare. Before she could respond, he leapt from the bed and lifted her off the mattress.
“Wait! What are you doing?” she asked as he started to carry her toward the door.
“I never back down from a dare. I probably should have mentioned that before you baited me.”
“Owen, don’t you dare.” She realized she’d used the word again and wrapped her arms around his head. “Owen! Please.”
“Please, what?”
“Please don’t toss me into the hallway naked.”
“What happened to your sense of adventure, Caitlyn?”
“That’s not adventure, that’s horror.”
“Not from my end,” he said. He lowered her to her feet near the door, and she backed up against the cool surface in case he got the bright idea to open it and try to push her through.
His gaze shifted over her body, and she flushed, fighting the urge to cover herself. He really did seem to like what he saw.
“Now that I think about it,” he said, “I wouldn’t want anyone else to see you naked; I’d like to keep this gorgeous view all to myself. I could look at you all day.”
“Likewise.”
A loud song blared from the far side of the room. Owen’s face lit up with a wide smile. “My brother!”
He dashed across the room and reached for his phone. His ring tone was some loud song. Probably a Sole Regret one.
“Chad!” Owen greeted his caller with the biggest grin Caitlyn had ever witnessed. “What’s up, bro?”
Caitlyn shuffled into the bathroom. She could use a potty break and a shower. And she would hate to intrude upon something as sacred as a conversation with his brother. She was, after all, just Owen’s current one-night stand.
Chapter Nine
Owen’s favorite older brother—his only one—smiled a greeting on the phone’s screen. Chad looked a little dirty and a lot weary. Owen would never get used to him with a buzz cut. When he pictured Chad in his head, he was still the seventeen-year-old in his letterman jacket. The same blue eyes, but lots more thick, curly hair.
“Let me guess,” Chad said. “You’re bored, stuck in a cushy hotel room until tonight when you have to put up with thousands of girls—who all think you’re hot for some unfathomable reason—screaming your name at the top of their lungs.”
“Wrong,” Owen said.
“Don’t have a show tonight?”
“We perform in Houston tonight.”
“Hotel not cushy enough?”
“No, it’s one of the cushiest.”
“Then why am I wrong? I know how predictable you are.”
“I’m not bored.”
“Is Kellen there with you?” Chad tilted his head as if he could see more of the room surrounding Owen.
“Nope. I brought a woman home last night. Well, not home exactly. Back to my room. She’s in the shower now.” He could hear the water running.
“You spent the night with a woman? What happened to your lame rule about not sleeping with the women you sleep with?”
“Taste,” he said, and he rubbed the strawberry over her lower lip. Her mouth watered, but she was pretty sure it was from being so close to him, not the anticipation of food.
Caitlyn bit into the fruit and got lost in his eyes. Such blue, blue eyes. The dark rims around the irises made them look even more striking. She chewed slowly, her pulse thrumming in her throat. She swallowed, still unable to pull her gaze from his.
“Taste,” he said, and leaned forward to kiss her.
His mouth tasted minty. Caitlyn’s practical sense abandoned her once again as he deepened the kiss and reminded her why she’d not only had sex with him, but spent the entire night pressed against his hard, warm body. He drew away slightly, and her eyelids fluttered open. Transfixed, she gazed into his eyes.
“Do you have a preference?” he asked.
“Huh?”
“In taste?”
“Oh.” Her face grew warm again. “It seems I’ve lost my senses again.”
“Good.” He fed her another bite of strawberry.
“And since you asked,” she said around the piece of fruit in her mouth, “I much prefer your taste.”
He reached for the food cart again and flicked something just under her nose. “Even more than bacon?”
She laughed and bit into the piece of crisp bacon. “Is there anything that tastes better than bacon?” she said with her mouth full. Her self-consciousness waned a bit with each passing moment. He had an uncanny ability to drive her to distraction in one breath and soothe her in the next.
He took a bite of bacon and winked at her. “I’m sure there’s something in this bed that’s more appetizing, but bacon hits the spot at the moment.”
He fed her samples of everything he’d ordered from the menu—which appeared to be every item they offered—and he tasted each as well.
“So you have a brother,” she said, deciding he might be more open to prying questions on a full stomach. “Do you have other siblings?”
He shook his head. “Nope, just the one brother. I have dozens of cousins though. What about you? Do you have siblings?”
A familiar knot formed in her throat. The problem with asking him prying questions was that he was likely to reciprocate. “I had a sister. She died in an accident.”
“Oh,” he said flatly. “Sorry. Were you close?”
“Not really,” she admitted. “I’m not sure if that makes it easier or more difficult. I wish I’d spent more time with her.”
“Regrets can eat you alive.”
“Regret. Like your band,” she said. “Why the name Sole Regret?”
“Kelly named the band. There’s always one thing in your life you wish you could undo more than any other. Your sole regret. You know, Kelly is actually a very deep person.”
“You admire him.”
“If you start bringing up that little slip involving his name last night, I’m going to toss you out in the hallway. Naked.”
Little slip? But if he didn’t want to confront his issues with Kellen, she wasn’t going to push him into it. She wasn’t particularly keen on being ousted from Owen’s place of admiration by his friend.
“You wouldn’t dare,” she said.
“You sure about that?”
The ornery twinkle in his eye kicked her heart rate up a notch because she was sure he would dare. Before she could respond, he leapt from the bed and lifted her off the mattress.
“Wait! What are you doing?” she asked as he started to carry her toward the door.
“I never back down from a dare. I probably should have mentioned that before you baited me.”
“Owen, don’t you dare.” She realized she’d used the word again and wrapped her arms around his head. “Owen! Please.”
“Please, what?”
“Please don’t toss me into the hallway naked.”
“What happened to your sense of adventure, Caitlyn?”
“That’s not adventure, that’s horror.”
“Not from my end,” he said. He lowered her to her feet near the door, and she backed up against the cool surface in case he got the bright idea to open it and try to push her through.
His gaze shifted over her body, and she flushed, fighting the urge to cover herself. He really did seem to like what he saw.
“Now that I think about it,” he said, “I wouldn’t want anyone else to see you naked; I’d like to keep this gorgeous view all to myself. I could look at you all day.”
“Likewise.”
A loud song blared from the far side of the room. Owen’s face lit up with a wide smile. “My brother!”
He dashed across the room and reached for his phone. His ring tone was some loud song. Probably a Sole Regret one.
“Chad!” Owen greeted his caller with the biggest grin Caitlyn had ever witnessed. “What’s up, bro?”
Caitlyn shuffled into the bathroom. She could use a potty break and a shower. And she would hate to intrude upon something as sacred as a conversation with his brother. She was, after all, just Owen’s current one-night stand.
Chapter Nine
Owen’s favorite older brother—his only one—smiled a greeting on the phone’s screen. Chad looked a little dirty and a lot weary. Owen would never get used to him with a buzz cut. When he pictured Chad in his head, he was still the seventeen-year-old in his letterman jacket. The same blue eyes, but lots more thick, curly hair.
“Let me guess,” Chad said. “You’re bored, stuck in a cushy hotel room until tonight when you have to put up with thousands of girls—who all think you’re hot for some unfathomable reason—screaming your name at the top of their lungs.”
“Wrong,” Owen said.
“Don’t have a show tonight?”
“We perform in Houston tonight.”
“Hotel not cushy enough?”
“No, it’s one of the cushiest.”
“Then why am I wrong? I know how predictable you are.”
“I’m not bored.”
“Is Kellen there with you?” Chad tilted his head as if he could see more of the room surrounding Owen.
“Nope. I brought a woman home last night. Well, not home exactly. Back to my room. She’s in the shower now.” He could hear the water running.
“You spent the night with a woman? What happened to your lame rule about not sleeping with the women you sleep with?”
