Rise by Cassandra Robbins

 

 

 

 

RHYS

One year later

TCL Chinese Theatre, Hollywood, California

The limo stops and we wait for the valet to remove the cones so the driver can drop us off at the entrance. I squeeze her hand. She looks over at me and my heart does its usual burn for her. I’ve given up on trying to curb my hunger for Gia.

My craving for her grows daily, but tonight belongs to her. The torrent of flashing bulbs and studio lighting illuminates the night. But all I see is her stunning face as she sits in a gown that makes her look almost too beautiful to be real.

I’d planned for us take the Cadillac SUV, but when she came down our stairs in that dress, I had Ace get the limo.

It’s couture, apparently. Her designer friend Alberto made it especially for her and for this night.

Shut Your Muff, our documentary, is premiering tonight. I peer out the window. As with anything concerning Hunter Falcon, it’s a huge fucking event. The red carpet runs all the way down Hollywood Boulevard, for fuck’s sake.

I reach into my suit jacket and pull out my black sunglasses.

Gia snaps her compact shut after fixing her lipstick. There was no way I wasn’t going to fuck her in that dress. As soon as the door shut, the dress was over her head and I fucked her from behind. It’s my cock’s job to relieve all her stress, and this is a big night for her.

“Rhys, I swear to God, knock it off.” She looks at me and I adjust my dick. When I think about her freshly waxed pink pussy, it grows hard again.

“Stop.” She laughs, but her eyes narrow while watching me rub my cock.

“They’re going to open the door,” she warns, licking her lips and looking out at the screaming insanity that is our lives.

If fucking Axel and Antoinette weren’t sitting with us tonight, I’d finger fuck her in the dark theater. Just slip my hand up her leg and into her slick, swollen cunt that’s stuffed full of my seed. Rub her clit and watch her come undone while everyone else is enthralled in the film. But alas, Gia insisted they come since Axel is in it, and apparently, it’s his job to support her.

That, and Antoinette was absolutely losing it. She’s a fan. I love it. Drives Axel insane.

“You’re stunning.”

“Rhys.” She starts laughing. “You can wait until we get home.”

“I’m not waiting until we get home, Brat—” Ace’s knock on the window, giving us a warning that he’s opening the door, cuts off my filthy tirade.

The door swings open and he helps my goddess out as I follow. The frenzy is wild tonight, and it’s not only from our fans. The elite of Hollywood are walking the carpet too.

“Granger, Gia, over here,” they scream. The velvet ropes barely hold them back. They reach out to touch us.

“Keep them away from Gia,” I grumble at Ace and my security team. They move us fast toward the red carpet.

“Christ.” I look around at all the adoring fans, wondering where Ammo is. I catch sight of Axel. He’s wearing black sunglasses, too, and I smirk.

Fucking dick.

In the last year that I’ve been with Gia, Axel and I have had no less than three fistfights. I guess he finally got it through his thick skull that I’m not going anywhere when Gia and I bought a house in Malibu.

It’s a small world, at least in Malibu—our neighbors are Reed and Tess Saddington. Reed is David’s best friend, so we’ve kind of gotten close with them.

Gia decided to start BBQ Sundays when we’re in town. Our backyard is filled with the ocean, Disciples, and my band.

I even talked Axel into laying a couple of songs down with me in the studio with the rest of The Stuffed Muffins. Our new album, Fast and Fierce, is coming out next month.

Now all we need to do is slow down enough so that I can knock her up. As if she knows what I’m thinking, she turns to me.

“What?” She smiles and waves at the cameras. I lean down and growl into her ear. She starts laughing.

“I’m sorry, what was that growl supposed to mean?”

“I’ll show you later.”

She waves, then shrieks when Sebastian runs up from behind her. Turning, she throws her arms around him, and I stand back and let her shine. When Alberto brought the dress out tonight, I almost said no. It’s silver, which is good, but the top part of the dress is so tight her tits almost fall out. The rest is made up of layers and layers of chiffon with a slit so high it lets you see one of her long, tan legs when she walks.

“You look ravishing.” His eyes go straight for her breasts.

“Goddammit.” I pull her toward my chest. “Back off, Sebastian.”

Throwing his head back, he laughs and pats my shoulder. He waves to the cameras. “Good luck, Granger.” He winks as he links his fingers with a beautiful redhead and walks toward the entrance.

“Let’s move.” I bite her ear while she laughs and talks about the film with a reporter.

“Gia.” We both turn as Axel and Antoinette walk up. Of course, he’s wearing jeans and a black T-shirt, along with his black cut.

She squeals and hugs Antoinette who’s wearing a skintight pink dress, but at least her tits aren’t falling out.

“The fuck?” Axel stares at Gia. “Why would you let her wear that?” He looks at me like I’ve lost my mind.

“I’m trying to be supportive,” I say.

“Stop, you pussy-whipped asshole,” he retorts, shaking his head and guiding Antoinette toward the entrance.

“Axel,” Gia yells. I bite the side of my cheek. She truly does look like she’s gonna spill out of that dress.

“One picture, please?”

He rolls his eyes. We all pose, and the cameras go crazy. Rafe thankfully rescues me, saying the rest of the band is already inside. His eyes take in Gia, and he raises a brow at me but wisely stays quiet.

My hand goes to her lower back as I move us toward the venue, smiling and waving at the crowd. The Chinese Theatre is a historical landmark. Outside are the famous handprints of the stars, forever captured on the sidewalk. Inside, the deep red velvet curtain with gold palm trees covers the massive screen. So many legends have walked through those doors.

I spin her toward me like I’m going to kiss her. Instead, I whisper, “Your tits are mine and they’re falling out.”

She smiles and kisses me, whispering back, “That’s impossible. I’m taped inside this dress.”

“The hell?”

“Granger,” Hunter yells and waves as I guide her in, allowing the usher to show us our seats.

The excitement in the room makes me look for my brothers. Nuke sits a couple of rows down with his newest girlfriend, a yoga instructor. He’s looked good lately. Apparently, she helped him detox off the smack, so of course, he thought it was wise to move in with her. That’ll last until we go on the road.

Ammo sits close to Axel. With his bottle of Jäger in one hand, and his other arm snaked around a large-breasted blonde, he laughs with Cash who brought his kid.

“You ready?” Gia leans her head on my shoulder. Hunter is, once again, being Hunter, rambling on about how this was a true labor of love. I tune him out and take her hand. Her big diamond engagement ring sparkles beneath the chandelier lights.

The audience claps. Our loud music spills out of the surround sound system. The screen stays black as I hear my voice say “Fuck off” along with Axel’s loud voice as he screams, “We are the Dicks.” Cash laughs.

The screen blinks white, then shifts to footage from a video camera. The person holding it walks toward Axel’s garage. It’s followed by fast cuts of all of us playing, laughing, sleeping, and hanging out with various girls who always seemed to surround us in Axel’s garage.

Then it zeros in on me as I sit smoking in the corner writing something.

My hand squeezes Gia’s. She turns and smiles and my heart aches. I turn back and watch her light up the screen. She’s maybe nine with that damn camera of hers, taking pictures, clearly bugging me. She twirls in a red dress, her long legs and bare feet covered in dirt. Stopping, she places her hands on her hips, saying something that makes the girl filming laugh.

Then she turns and runs up to the camera saying, “I’m Gia Fontaine and I’m their number one fan.” The crowd in the theater claps as I look at her.

“Where did you get that video?”

“I have my ways.” She winks.

Axel stands in the middle of the garage drinking and playing. Cash walks over to him as they both look up at the camera and flip it off.

I can’t look away. I had no idea this would affect me, but it’s wild seeing the past. We all have come so far, yet here we all sit.

I feel a hand on my shoulder and look back at Axel. He leans forward as if he’s going to say something but doesn’t.

Turning back to the screen, I hear myself say my name while Nuke twirls his drumsticks.

I breathe in and exhale as music fills my head.

“I love you,” Gia whispers.

Love. That doesn’t even start to describe this feeling that eats me up inside when I think of her.

Hunger, craving, rapture. My heart pounds, and I almost rub it, if only to feel it beat.

My muse.

Everything that I love is in this room. My brothers, my fans, and her.

I take a breath and watch us all screaming and performing at our early gigs. My face looks haunted and dark. I was the boy who was destined to never love, the man who was cursed to be alone.

I’m called a Rock God. But I’m not a god. I’m a man who has flaws, but I was given my shot and I took it. I thought that was my music—the fame and money.

I was wrong.

My shot, my greatest opportunity was her, my chance to have something that will last forever. Fame didn’t make me happy. In fact, it almost destroyed me.

I glance back at Axel, whose draped his arm around his ballerina’s shoulders. He raises a brow at me. I used to be confused as to why he didn’t want this life, how could he possibly walk away.

Now I know.

I turn to Gia. She reaches to touch my lips and I smile at her. All my ghosts are gone.

I take a breath.

One. Two. Three.

I’m home, finally at peace.