Songbird (Songbird, #1) Read online

  Okay, you can do this, I told myself, but what to sing? Kelli and I had been listening to Beyoncé in the car again, so that was the music that was freshest in my mind.

  “‘Love On Top’ please, Mr Music,” I said to Marcus.

  Marcus raised an eyebrow. “Okay. It’s your call.”

  I walked over to the microphone, closed my eyes and took a deep breath to calm my nerves. I could do this; I used to sing all the time and enjoyed it. This was step one in getting my old mojo back again.

  My heart was racing as I looked at the crowd of expectant faces, and I quickly closed my eyes again. Better not to look.

  The music started, I opened my eyes, and began to sing.

  By the chorus I had found my groove and was enjoying myself. By the second key change, the crowd were really cheering and some people were up and dancing. I felt at home up on the stage, and I wondered to myself how I could ever let anyone take this feeling away from me. I wouldn’t allow it to happen again.

  At the end of the song, I went over to Marcus. He was beaming at me. “You were great!” He leaned over and gave me a hug and kiss on the cheek. “Unbelievable!”

  Making my way back to the table, I felt exhilarated after having sung in front of a crowd for the first time in ages.

  “You were fucking awesome. I knew you were a sly one,” Cooper declared as he jumped up and gave me a huge hug.

  Kelli gave me a nudge. “You were okay I guess …” She trailed off, laughing.

  I sat back down. Riley was beaming at me with pride, then leaned in and kissed me tenderly on the cheek, the heat from his lips searing through my body. “You were amazing. You looked like you were born for the stage.”

  We had another drink—was it my fourth or fifth?—and celebrated and toasted each other loudly for whatever excuse we could think of, before I excused myself for a moment and made my way to the bathroom.

  I was just heading back to the table, enjoying the song that a guy wearing a cowboy hat was singing, and wondering to myself why anyone would be wearing a cowboy hat in the middle of Melbourne, when someone grabbed my wrist and yanked me backwards. Before I knew what was happening, I was plonked unceremoniously onto a guy’s lap, his hands groping as they clumsily slid under the hem of my dress and up my thigh, rank beer breath in my face.

  “I’ll give you love on top,” he slurred as he leaned forward and I felt his slimy tongue lick my face.

  Ugh! It was gross, he was gross, and I struggled to push him away, while at the same time trying to keep his hands from reaching any further up my dress. Blind panic was making my feeble attempt futile and my throat closed up so I couldn’t call for help. I couldn’t breathe, I couldn’t think what to do, I just wanted to get away from him, but everything I tried was useless. He was too big and too strong.

  Then as suddenly as it had started, I was lifted off him and gently placed on my feet.

  “Are you okay?” Riley asked, searching my face for an answer.

  I nodded, shell shocked, before he nodded and turned his furious eyes on the drunk.

  “That’s my girlfriend you’re manhandling,” he blazed.

  “Well, I think she needs a real man to show her a good time,” he slurred, standing to his enormous full height.

  Within about five seconds Riley had the drunken guy face-down on the table with his arm twisted up his back.

  He leaned over the man, who was now yelping in pain, and hissed, “Don’t ever touch a lady without permission, especially if she’s my lady. Do you understand?”

  The drunk mumbled something that sounded like agreement and I thought the incident was over, but while Riley had been dealing with one guy, his mates were getting up to join in. Cooper saw one of them making a move on Riley and wrestled him to the ground, and then out of nowhere Marcus was there as well.

  The three guys threw the drunks out to cheers and hollers from the crowd, while I just stood there, glued to the spot, shaking from the shock of what had just happened.

  Marcus came back in first and raced over to me.

  “Are you okay, Tara?” he asked, holding me at arm’s length so he could examine my face, then he pulled me into a hug. “I’m so sorry I didn’t get over here sooner.”

  I was still shaking, and tears stung my eyes. I tried to speak, to reassure Marcus that I was fine, but all that came out was a sob as my breath hitched in my throat.

  Then Riley was beside me and I was somehow transferred from Marcus’s arms to his. He didn’t say anything he just held me, his arms wrapped all the way around me, and I relaxed into his embrace, finally feeling safe. The adrenalin left me and the tears started to flow. Riley stroked my hair and we stood there for what seemed like an eternity until I managed to compose myself again.

  “You called me your girlfriend,” I said as I lifted my head from his shoulder to look into his concerned eyes.

  “You heard that, did you?” His eyes softened as he gave me a half grin. “It just came out in the heat of the moment, I’m sorry …”

  “Don’t apologise. I liked the sound of it.” And I leaned back in for another hug.

  We started the walk back to my apartment soon after. Kelli and Cooper were walking in front of us with their arms around each other, and every few steps Cooper would kiss her head or squeeze her closer to him. I was watching them and how they responded to each other when Riley laced his fingers with mine. I looked up into his sapphire-blue eyes as we walked, then rested my head on his shoulder, my free hand holding his arm while my thumb stroked his bicep.

  “Thank you for coming to my rescue. I was really scared; that guy was strong,” I said, remembering the incident and how panicked I had felt. “You handled him really well, though.”

  “It’s part of the training, and I wasn’t going to let him put his hands any further up your dress.” He squeezed my hand and smiled down at me, but I could see his jaw tense with the memory of what had so recently happened.

  We arrived at my apartment building and I looked over at Kelli. What should I do? I didn’t want to invite him up, nor did I want to have our first kiss with Cooper watching on. We would never hear the end of it.

  “Okay, well I need to get home, I’ve got work tomorrow,” Kelli said, smiling at me. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Tars. Let’s go, babe.” Kelli dragged Cooper off before he had time to interject.

  “See ya, Fox,” he called over his shoulder, as they headed to Kelli’s car. “Come on, mate, if you want a lift, let’s go.”

  Riley stepped toward me so we were nearly touching. He gently caressed my cheek with the back of his fingers, sending chills down my spine, then ran his hand along my jawline before placing it under my chin and angling my head up so our faces were only inches apart. My heart raced as his other hand skimmed over my hip and settled on my lower back, pulling me closer. He leaned in, lips slightly parted.

  The car horn sounded and the headlights were flicked on, partially blinding us.

  “All right, fuck!” he yelled over his shoulder, clearly exasperated.

  He removed his hand from my back and held it up to block the light from our eyes, the warmth still radiating through me after the contact was broken.

  I wondered if Cooper was behind this ruse or if it was Kelli’s idea. I wanted to kill both of them at that very moment.

  “I’ve been thinking about what you said earlier, about not being here for long, and not wanting to play games,” I said, my voice hoarse, the butterflies in my stomach still dancing after our nearly kiss.

  He nodded, his eyes blazing as he placed both hands lightly on my hips.

  “I don’t like to play games either.”

  Summoning up my courage, I slid my hands up his chiselled arms and around his neck, then leaned in and kissed him ever-so-softly on the lips. It was a gentle kiss with lips only slightly parted, held just long enough to send delicious warmth through my body. I slowly pulled back and opened my eyes. Riley was taking a second or two longer to open his, his soft lips still p
arted. He tenderly placed both hands on my cheeks then pressed his lips to mine again, his tongue just lightly tracing the gap between them and making my heart race.

  Stepping back, I gazed into his eyes, my mouth still tingling from his kiss. I slid my hands from around his neck, down to his chest, where I could feel his heart racing.

  “Good night, Riley,” I whispered.

  “Good night, Tara,” he said huskily, kissing me softly on the forehead.

  I turned and reluctantly went inside, my feet never touching the ground.

  THE DAY was already warming up, as had been forecast. The Bureau of Meteorology was predicting the hottest October in one hundred years, and it looked as though they could be right.

  I’d dressed in what had become my favourite boot camp gear: red hipster running shorts, and a black crop top. They were comfortable, and in this weather less was definitely more when you were guaranteed to be working up a sweat.

  Boot camp was held around Albert Park Lake, which was a great place to exercise. It was a beautiful lake with a five kilometre walking/running track around it. There were bench seats under trees to sit back and just relax while you watched people going through their paces, rowing on the lake. Around one side was a restaurant and bar for those who couldn’t make it the entire five kilometres without a drink. During March, the roads around the lake were blocked off for the Formula One Grand Prix, and parking was an absolute nightmare, but in October at six am it was tranquil.

  As I made my way over to the designated meeting place, I was happy to see a few more people there already warming up. Business was beginning to pick up for Mal. I scanned the group, looking for Kelli, but she wasn’t there yet, so I began stretching while I waited. I hoped she was going to make it, although as Cooper was here visiting, she may have been delayed with a workout of a different nature.

  As I was checking my watch for the third time, I heard a couple of new girls giggling to each other. “I told you this was a good idea. Check out that guy.”

  I couldn’t recall anyone drool worthy in previous sessions. Must be another new person.

  I turned in the direction they were looking in time to see Kelli, with Cooper and Riley, jogging across the grass towards Mal, who was smiling sweetly at Kelli. Kelli said something to Mal as she approached, and his face dropped a little as she indicated to the guys and they shook hands, but his demeanour quickly returned, although it was now just a polite businesslike smile.

  Kelli apologised to me for being a bit late, slapping the back of her hand into Cooper’s stomach, and very clearly laying the blame there.

  “You weren’t complaining earlier,” he said cheekily, wrapping his arms around her waist and nuzzling her neck. She giggled and kissed his head.

  Riley came over and gave me a lingering kiss on the lips.

  “Good morning,” he said, smiling sweetly.

  “Good morning to you, too,” I replied, my lips delighting in the warmth of his kiss. “So did the iPod come in handy?” I asked as I cocked my head towards the two lovebirds.

  He laughed. “Yes, definitely. You were right about thin walls. Even with the iPod I now know way too much about my best mate.”

  “Hey I can’t help it if I drive my girl wild.”

  We started the one-hour training with a warm-up jog to the first exercise station, which was push-ups. Kelli and I managed a tough twenty before we flopped belly down on the grass, laughing at our lack of ability, but the guys were already egging each other on. Cooper was showing off, doing one handed push ups, so Riley raised the stakes by adding a clap between each one of his.

  The next station was lunges, which Kelli and I didn’t mind; we knew they were beneficial, so we pushed ourselves to do as many as we could in the allotted time.

  We sprinted to the next station and dropped to the ground for crunches. Riley was positioned beside me, head to toe, so we were facing each other.

  “Is this what boot camp is like in the army?” I asked, curious as to what the real deal would be like.

  Riley chuckled. “No, nothing like it. We’ve usually got someone shouting in our faces, telling us to do better, do more.”

  That sounded a bit too familiar. “I don’t think I could handle someone shouting in my face. I think I would burst into tears.” I lay back on the grass. “In fact, I know I would burst into tears.”

  Riley sat up and rested his elbow on my knee. “If anyone shouted in your face they’d have me to deal with.” He said it light-heartedly enough, but I could tell from his face that the little glimpse into my past had concerned him.

  The next exercise station was my least favourite of all: the chin-up bars. My upper-body strength was rubbish, to put it mildly.

  At this stage, Riley and Cooper removed their singlets and tucked them in the back of their shorts. As with every exercise it became a competition between them, as they tried to outdo each other.

  Kelli cheered Cooper on encouragingly, while I stood back a little, just enjoying the show.

  Where Cooper’s body was bulky muscle, Riley was long and lean; every muscle clearly defined like a sculptor had carved the perfect male physique out of stone. His shoulders, arms and back muscles worked in perfect unison as they repeatedly lifted his body to the desired height of head just above the bar, over and over.

  I walked around to the front and watched in awe. His chest was perfectly smooth and toned, and his abs were ridiculous. They gave new meaning to the term washboard stomach, but what stopped me in my tracks was the delicious V that traced over his hips before disappearing into his shorts.

  Oh, those lucky shorts.

  I looked a little closer. Down the left side of his ribs was a tattoo. It was writing in a script that I couldn’t read clearly from where I was standing, but I was trying to decipher it nonetheless.

  I must have been staring for a while as they continued to count off sixty-three, sixty-four, sixty-five … and then Kelli came over.

  “Enjoying the view?” she joked as she nudged me.

  I sighed. “How can one person be so physically blessed? It’s just not fair.”

  Kelli laughed. “You’ve got it bad, girl.” Then, pointing to the two new girls who had taken up prime position leaning against a tree, added, “And so have they, by the looks of it.”

  I looked over. The two girls were giggling and whispering to each other, obviously enjoying the view too.

  When the guys reached one hundred they dropped down and headed over to Kelli and me.

  “Your turn,” Riley said, wiping the sweat from his glistening body with his singlet.

  “No thanks. My record here is six, and that was on a good day.”

  “Come on, I’ll help you,” he encouraged, and led me over to the bar.

  He placed his hands on my hips and lifted me as if I weighed nothing at all. He waited until I had a good grip on the bar overhead, then slid his hands down to just below the hem of my shorts.

  “Ready?” he asked.

  I nodded, a little distracted by his hands on the top of my thighs, but I tried to focus as best I could.

  I started to strain almost immediately until Riley started lifting me—once, twice, then again and again, my body repeatedly moving from chest to hip in front of his face until I had completed twenty effortless chin-ups.

  “They were the most enjoyable chin-ups I’ve ever done, although I don’t think I was doing any of the work.” I chuckled and confessed as he gently slid me down his body until my feet touched the ground.

  He smiled his alluring half-smile. “I enjoyed them too; I’d be happy to go another couple of rounds with you.”

  His eyes were shining as they held me fixed in position, his hands still on my thighs, mine now resting on his bare chest. I could feel his heart rate accelerate slightly—strange, considering he was standing perfectly still. I stood frozen for a moment too, not wanting to break the connection.

  “Do you think I could see you tonight?” he asked huskily, his eyes searching my
face.

  Still mesmerised by his closeness, all I could manage was a nod. My voice had abandoned me.

  Biting my lip, I tried to hide the grin that was starting to form at the thought of spending more time with him. His eyes darkened and lowered to my mouth and my lips instinctively parted. He exhaled raggedly; I think I had stopped breathing all together. He swept a stray strand of hair from my cheek and then bent down, ever so lightly brushing his lips against mine.

  I could feel his heartbeat increase even more, and I ran my hands across his broad shoulders and laced my fingers at the back of his neck as our kiss deepened, his tongue finding the gap between my lips and searching my willing mouth.

  “Ahem …”

  The connection between us was broken as we remembered we were not alone. I looked up to see Mal, who, with an amused look on his face, was getting ready to clear his throat again.

  “Leave no man … or woman behind, right?” he said to Riley.

  Riley nodded.

  “Come on then, move out.”

  We were heading back to the meeting point with only two hundred and fifty metres left to go, before having completed the full five kilometre circuit of the lake. Riley and I had been running together most of the way. I knew he had been taking it easy to stay with me, and I appreciated the gesture.

  “Come on, I’ll race you. Loser pays for dinner,” I called, taking off at a sprint.

  Riley was like a freaking Olympian he was so fast, but I had longer legs so could take longer strides. I pushed as hard as I could to at least try to stay level with him, and I’m sure in the end he backed off to let me win.

  I threw myself down on the grass under a shady tree and laid stretched out, hands over my head, trying to calm my breathing.

  “Hot, sweaty and breathless really suits you,” Riley said with a cheeky grin as he lay down next to me, mimicking my position.

  “Well I have you to thank for that. You were riding me pretty hard toward the end.” I blushed, suddenly realising what I had just blurted out, but Riley just chuckled.

  “Next time you can ride me, as hard as you like.”

  My cheeks flamed even hotter and I shook my head to clear the tantalising image. I could always replay it later.