Chapter 30
When we arrived back at the coffee shop, I heard a mic check being performed. Apparently, the sound system problem was fixed. It had taken us a little more than an hour to get there and back and the place was already starting to fill up.
“I gotta get back behind the counter, but it was really nice talking to you,” Anne said.
“You, too!” I said. I watched as she got back to the regi
ster, helping the guy with the orders that were coming in.
James was apparently satisfied with the way the sound system was working now. I saw him sitting on a stool, quietly plucking at the strings of his guitar and making some fine tuning adjustments. After a few moments, he looked up and saw me. He smiled, then put his guitar down and walked over toward me.
The way he advanced on me reminded me of when he had in his office, in his house, and then again in my dorm room. He wanted me, and nothing was going to stop him. A few feet from me, and just as I began to close my eyes, he spoke up. “Allie, I need your help to get something out of the back store room.”
It wasn't a request. It was a demand. I nodded, and he walked around the counter of the coffee shop to the back area. I walked with him into a closet that smelled deeply like some rich coffee.
As soon as I was inside, he closed the door behind him. Immediately, he had his hands around my neck, pulling me in for a deep kiss. I felt myself surrender to him, my knees already going weak as he kissed me. He ran his hands up my sides, pulling my jacket up as he did so. As soon as his hands felt skin, he looked down. I knew what he was curious about. I unzipped my jacket slowly, revealing that there was nothing but a halter top on underneath. I felt his nails dig into my sides as he leaned his face down to my ear.
“You have no idea how unfair it is that I can't take advantage of this,” he said.
I slapped his chest playfully. “Unfair? Unfair is making me wait for you like this.”
He put his finger to his lips. “No lock on the door. We can't do this here.”
I slapped his chest again. “Then why'd you bring me in here!?” I had a wry smile on my face so he knew I wasn't really mad.
He smiled back. “Because it was unfair of you to keep teasing me.” Before I could respond, he leaned back in and gave me another smoldering kiss. He leaned back and pulled away, then turned toward a high shelf. He handed me two bottles of Irish whiskey. “Carry these up to Anne and tell her to hide them for now.”
I nodded, then turned around to open the door. He spoke up one last time. “Oh, and Allie?”
I turned and looked at him.
“If you keep teasing me for the rest of the night, then I'll have to punish you later.”
I began to get wet just thinking about what kind of “punishment” he could have waiting for me.
I walked out of the closet just as another familiar face was walking into the shop. James' secretary from his office, Lauren, was walking in from the cold. As soon as she saw me, she averted her eyes, quickly hurrying toward the register. I knew why, of course. She was the only other person who knew that James and I had fucked. Fortunately for me, she was under a non-disclosure agreement, forced under the power of law not to reveal anything she heard or saw.
Like Audrey, another person forced to keep secrets for James, I thought.
I walked up to Anne, still behind the counter, and showed her the bottles. She seemed to know to put them away discretely without me saying anything, then gave me a wink. Lauren was in line and looked up, and I gave a little wave. She gave an awkward little wave back. Just then, James came out of the same store room that she had just seen me come out of, carrying two more bottles of whiskey. Lauren quickly put her hand back down and looked at the floor.
Poor girl, I thought. She thinks she's witnessing something super fucked up, and she can't say a thing. I didn't even know if she knew that we weren't really brother and sister.
I walked back around. The coffee shop was filling up fast, so I knew I had to claim a seat quickly. James had been tuning his guitar on the left side of the stage and was already plugged into an amp, so I knew that he'd be over there. Luckily, there was one on the far left in the third row, and I snatched it up. The concert wasn't set to start for another 30 minutes or so, so I pulled out my phone and began to look over myFace.
Suddenly, I received an email from Tessa.
Did you talk to him yet?
I knew she was just looking out for me, but I also knew that I could look out for myself. Well, most of the time anyway. Still, I'd be fine for now. I emailed her back.
Not yet. His concert is going to start in a few minutes, then there's a party back at his place.
Tessa replied back almost immediately.
Hold onto your drink all night.
Now that was an eye-roll inducing statement. Did she think that James had roofied Audrey now? That was pretty unfair. I emailed her back as quickly as I could.