As I get ready for the re-release of my sexy soccer romance Striker, I thought I'd take a little break from working on the promo for that to let you have just a little look at what I'm working on right now. Some of you will probably know it's a rock star romance trilogy, and some of you will be aware that the heat level has been turned up somewhat on these books, which is why I'm not going to post all of Chapter 2 in this teaser. I was going to, but it does start to get really hot after this little taster ends, and I wasn't sure everyone was going to appreciate that. Plus, my dad sometimes stumbles across this blog. Just the thought of him reading the bits I've decided not to post makes me feel quite ill...
Anyway, for those of you who are keen to find out just what, and who, this new (and as yet untitled) set of books is all about, check out Chapter 1 and most of Chapter 2 as a little introduction… And remember, this is all first draft and unedited, so please ignore any typos, etc…
Oh, and also be aware that there is bad language and a little bit (??!!?) of an adult theme contained in this teaser. You have been warned... and it could have been worse... ;-)
Chapter 1
Loud music pounded out from
concealed speakers, the dark, dimly-lit bar vibrating to the thumping beat of heavy
rock music. The heat was verging on overpowering, despite the air-conditioning
turned up as high as it would go, and even though she was wearing next to
nothing, the feel of cool steel beneath her fingers was still more than
welcome.
She closed her
eyes as she leaned back against the thick metal pole, gripping it loosely as
she slid down, her legs slowly opening, her arms still up above her head, that
thumping beat washing over her as she lost herself in the music.
Knowing that all
those eyes were on her was something of
a turn-on, and as she stood up, wrapping her legs around that pole, clinging on
tight as she threw herself up onto it, she felt that familiar rush flood over
her, her skin breaking out in a million goose bumps. The music seemed to be
getting louder, the beat heavier as she twisted down the pole, gripping it with
thighs so hard she knew most of the men in that bar would kill to get between
them. But they never would. She would never go there.
Lowering herself
further down that pole, she finally felt the floor beneath her, placing one
spike-heeled boot down onto the dark surface, throwing back her head as she
lapped up every second of the attention aimed at her. Practically every man in
the room was watching only her, she knew that. She’d worked hard to make sure
that was the way it was. She wanted the power, and she had it – in spades.
Falling to her
knees she knelt up, her eyes quickly scanning the crowded bar – a place she’d
come to know as home now. From the well-groomed men in suits that had probably
told their wives they were talking business at some Japanese restaurant, to the
tattooed biker bad boys that always outnumbered the former; right now they were
all there to watch her. All there to see what she had to offer them, even
though very few would ever get close to her in that way. That wasn’t what she
was there for, although touching wasn’t altogether frowned upon. It just had to
be at her discretion. If she wanted it, she’d let them know, and from that
point it was game on. Whatever game it was she chose to play. This once-shy and
reserved young English girl who’d now made Las Vegas her home wasn’t the same person
who’d turned up in this fantasy town just a few months ago. She was someone
completely different. Someone she needed to be.
With one swift
flick of her hand she removed her black strapless bra, flinging it aside, her hands on those rock-hard
thighs, her back arched slightly so her breasts were pushed right out. She felt
so powerful right now. She had every man in that room right where she wanted
them, and it was the most incredible feeling.
Staring out into
the crowd once more – which wasn’t something she made a habit of, if truth be
told – her eyes locked onto those of a particularly hot, slightly older man in
dark pants and a white shirt, the sleeves of which were rolled up to his elbows,
exposing his tanned, heavily tattooed forearms. He was a kind of contradiction,
in a way – somewhat smartly dressed, yet those tattoos told her there was
probably another side to him, and she always found that exciting.
Predictability wasn’t her thing. She liked the danger and thrill that came with
spontaneity.
She held his
gaze for probably a second or two longer than she should have done,
but his stare was setting every
nerve-ending in her body on red alert, and it wasn’t something she was in a
hurry to let go of. But she had to. She wasn’t doing a private show here. But
as she stood up and turned around, burying her fingers in her mane of long dark
curls, the look she threw over her shoulder as she strutted off the stage was
just for him. And it was only when she was safely back in the dressing room
that she realised his eyes had constantly been on hers – they hadn’t fixed on
her breasts or stared longingly at her thighs in the hope that the heaven that
lay between them would be exposed. He’d looked at her. And that in itself was enough to send a shiver of raw
excitement shooting right through her.
She smiled to
herself as she grabbed a robe from the back of the dressing room door, the
adrenalin still coursing through her veins. She loved what she did. She loved
messing with men’s heads. She loved playing games. Because she always won.
***
Seth Carter rubbed a hand along the
back of his neck, letting out a long, almost drawn out breath. He wasn’t a
stranger to this private club tucked away amidst the bright lights and huge
hotels of the famous Las Vegas Strip, but sometimes these girls had a habit of
hitting you right in the solar plexus when you least expected it. It was almost
as though they could sense the vulnerability, and take advantage of that
without even realising they were doing it.
‘Are we staying
here all freakin’ night?’
Seth stood up,
slipping his hands into his pockets as he turned around, raising a questioning
eyebrow at the scowling young man in front of him. ‘You telling me you don’t
like it here?’
‘I frigging love
it here, Jesus! It’s like all my fucking Christmases have come at once, but I’m
wrecked, man! That was one kick-ass set we played tonight, and all I’m ready
for now is a few beers over at Clay’s and some mindless sex with any pretty
face that wants it. Then I’m gonna sleep for two days.’
Seth raised that
eyebrow again, a slight smirk on his face. ‘So, you’re banking on there
definitely being a pretty face that
wants you, huh, Cal?’
Cal looked at
Seth as though he’d just said something completely ridiculous, laughing an
almost disbelieving laugh as he drained the last of his beer from the bottle
before tossing it aside. He was a rock star. He could get away with that.
‘I’m gonna round
up the rest of the band. You coming?’
Seth quickly
looked behind him, as if he still expected her to be there on the stage. ‘I’ll
meet you over there.’ He turned back to face Cal. ‘Clay’s,
right?’
Cal nodded before
turning around and making his way back over to the bar.
Seth bowed his
head and ran his hand along the back of his neck again. He really needed to
sleep. The past few weeks had been crazy, and all of a sudden it felt as if
everything was catching up with him. Maybe he was getting too old for this
shit. Hell, who was he kidding? He
was never going to be too old for this shit. This shit was in his blood, always
had been. Cal Connor may be the rock star right now, but Seth knew exactly what
it was like to stand in those biker boots.
Chapter 2
Seth Carter was one of the biggest
names in rock. With a deep, gravel-toned voice, and the kind of dark, brooding
good looks that had won him a fan base to outnumber any of his rivals back in
the day, he’d sold millions of records all over the world, played to sell-out
crowds at gigs and festivals in so many countries he couldn’t even remember, and
had groupies falling at his feet wherever he went. Some of which he’d taken
advantage of, of course he had! He’d been a fucking rock star, for Christ’s
sake! And you didn’t turn that kind of shit down when it was put right there on
a plate for you.
But all of that
had come to an end when, in a stupid spur-of-the-moment action, he’d married
one of those groupies. A beautiful blonde with incredible tits and a smile that
could stop traffic, she’d turned out to be one huge mistake. And people had
told him that at the time but he never had been one to take advice from
anybody. That ill-fated and short-lived marriage had ended after just seven
weeks, when Seth had realised he really didn’t want to leave all that
stereotypical rock star behaviour behind. Because she did. The second that ring had gone on her finger she’d wanted
him to settle down, give her babies; move into a condo in Miami and live the quiet family life. Fuck
that!
He’d given her
enough money to set her up for life, kissed her goodbye, and gone back out on
the road, living life to excess for a few more years with back-to-back sold-out
tours and albums that wouldn’t stop selling. He was a rock god, an idol. He
could command a stage like nobody else, and he loved every second of being out
there.
But once he’d
hit his late thirties he’d grown more than a little tired of the constant
touring. He’d wanted to go out on a high, and with a run of farewell gigs that had
sold out in minutes, he’d said goodbye to being in the limelight, but not to
the industry as a whole. He couldn’t leave that behind, no matter how hard he
tried. He loved the world he’d lived in for so long way too much to tear
himself away from it forever.
So he’d set up
his own record label, made it his mission to discover new rock stars out there
that may never find that lucky break that was needed to get past all the TV
talent show dross that seemed to have a stranglehold on the music scene these
days.
Now, at the age
of forty-five, he was a respected record company owner and rock band manager.
And even though age had only made him sexier – those dark, brooding looks had
just got edgier – and the women showed no signs of leaving him alone, he’d
never remarried. Why would he? Seth Carter had got burned once, he had no
intention of letting that happen again, not when he was quite happy to continue
playing the field as long as there were women out there who wanted him. And
they wanted him. They made no secret of that. With dark brown hair that was
just long enough to rest on the back of his collar, tinged with just the
tiniest hint of grey around the temples – the only sign that he was heading
towards middle-age – constant stubble on a strong jaw line, a myriad of tattoos
covering both arms, shoulders and chest, and the deepest, darkest eyes that
were responsible for reeling in all those women over all those years, Seth was
too handsome for his own good. And he knew he was still one damn lucky bastard.
***
Cal leaned back against the bar in Clay’s
swigging from a bottle of cold beer as he looked out around him. The music was
loud, the bar was crowded, and he was in his own kind of heaven as his eyes
locked onto those of a pretty redhead over the other side of the room. He threw
her a smile that, basically, told her she could have him, if she wanted him.
And why wouldn’t she? They all wanted
him. To spend a night with Cal Connor was like hitting the jackpot, and there’d
certainly been some winners over the last few weeks as this tour had wound its
way across the US
before finally landing here in Vegas for four nights of wild excess and shows
that had rocked like no others. That’s what this town did to people. It got
inside you and made you crazy. The drugs had nothing to do with it. The alcohol
merely heightened everything. It was Vegas that did it for him. He’d been born
and brought up here before his family had moved to California just after he’d started High
School. But it had never left him. This place. It was where his heart was.
Where he always felt his most comfortable. And even though L.A. was his base now, Vegas would always be
his home.
Cal Connor was
twenty-six-years-old, a toned, tanned and far-too-hot rock band front man. With
messed-up short dark hair that looked like it had never seen a comb in months,
and the brightest of blue eyes, everything about him screamed rock star. Sleeve
tattoos adorned his arms, and there was barely an inch of visible skin left on
his upper half, even his jaw sported the heaviest of stubble. Yeah, he was hot,
and he knew it. He had way too much attitude, of course, and the assumption
that he was the greatest thing ever to have walked the earth surrounded him
constantly, but it hadn’t stopped Seth Carter from seeing his undeniable talent
and signing Cal’s band Twelve Bore Down to his record label. In fact, he’d
shown so much faith in Cal and the band that he’d deemed them important enough
to manage them himself, which, as anyone in the rock world knew, meant that
Seth thought they were going somewhere. And he hadn’t been wrong. Twelve Bore
Down were one of the biggest rock bands in the world right now, bringing real music
back to a whole audience of people who were tired of boy bands and manufactured
pop. They were killing it wherever they went, as this latest tour had proved,
and Cal was
on top of the frigging world. Still on a high after a crazy final gig and two
hours spent in one of Vegas’ most elite private lap dancing bars, where the
women showed you everything but gave you fuck all – unless you put in a specific
request, and even then there was no guarantee. But Cal didn’t like asking for anything. He
didn’t need to. It was all given to him, whatever he wanted. So he’d been quite
happy to do nothing but look at the perfect tits and rock hard thighs as they’d
gyrated just metres away from him. They were there to start the party. And here
was where it really got going.
He took another
swig of beer and slammed the empty bottle down on the counter behind him,
smiling as Little-Miss-Redhead sauntered over to him, staring at him with wide
eyes and a pout on her pretty face that told Cal that mouth was going to work
its own kind of magic on him before this night was done. He fucking loved his
life!
©Michelle Betham 2014
*
So there we go. Just a tiny little, relatively PG-rated teaser. Any more teasers may have to carry a warning beforehand, but, that aside, I would love to know what you think. Am I on the right track with this one?
Anyway, watch this space for more updates as to how this new trilogy is coming along - almost at the halfway point of book #1 now - and for more teasers, of course. I really do think you're gonna like Seth Carter... I know I do...