29. Audrey

CHAPTER 29

Audrey

W atching from the side stage as my friends—my theater family, really—performed was nothing short of magical. There were very few scenes in the show where I wasn’t on stage, so each moment of break I had involved some sort of costume change, modification, or switching out of props. We’d rehearsed each piece so much, from staging to running through it, that it was practically second nature now.

I couldn’t imagine doing anything but this with my life.

Maybe one day, after I was ready to settle down with someone, that might change, but I loved musical theater. My parents hadn’t quite understood at first. I knew Ella was in the same boat with her career. It wouldn’t be easy, but it was so fulfilling. Seeing the audience’s faces light up, the way the crowd reacted to each shift in music, all of it was exhilarating.

But the pride in my parents’ eyes as they watched me dance and sing meant more to me than anyone else’s. This wasn’t my first role, but it was my first leading one, and I was so touched to see them there. Cam was sitting beside our parents, looking surprisingly calm even though I knew my dad could be a little overbearing. Ella was in the back, helping with changes for the ensemble that had multiple roles.

Most people had no idea how much truly went into a production like this, even for college.

And Parker.

God, he was incredible.

I loved him more than I could even describe. Maybe he felt it, too. I hoped he did.

Technically, this was it. Our deadline. Because originally, we’d only agreed to fake date until the end of the musical. Even though we’d only been fake dating to get Duke to leave me alone. Not that it had worked until he’d been suspended. And yet, we kept up the ruse.

Except it felt like everything had changed.

What was happening between us? We hadn’t talked about it. Except for the last week, I’d slept in his arms every night. He’d confessed to me he’d been waiting for me, even when he didn’t know it.

I mean, swoon . How could that not make your heart melt?

All I wanted was to pin him down and have my way with him, but I knew the real reason we hadn’t gone further yet. There was something unspoken between us. Like we both wanted it to mean something.

Would he end it now that the musical was over? We didn’t need to fake date anymore. If I confessed how I was really feeling, would everything be different? I didn’t want anything to change.

Because I loved the way we were.

During intermission, my sister found me in the dressing room, wrapping her arms around me. I’d already started redoing my hair, fixing it for my second act dress.

“You’re so amazing up there, Ro. I’m so damn proud of you.”

“Thank you.” My eyes filled with tears. “But look around us, Ells. This couldn’t have happened without you.”

She gave me a huge smile as we pulled apart. “I know most people can’t imagine doing college with their siblings, but I’m so glad I have you. That we’ve gotten to take classes together and experience everything at CU together.”

I shoved her arm. “Don’t get all sappy with me now. You can’t make me cry before I have to go back on.”

She let out a little giggle. “Did you see Cam is out there with our parents? He insisted on coming even though I’m not actually in the musical.”

“Yeah.” I re-pinned a few of my curls. “Of course he is. You could walk him like a dog, babe.”

My twin chuckled, and I bit my lip, looking at her through the lit up mirror.

“Ella…” I dropped my head onto her shoulder, letting out a deep sigh. “How did you know?”

“Know what?”

“That Cam was the one.” Biting my lip, I looked up at her. “That you loved him.”

“For a while, I didn’t. But it was in every action of his. The way he took care of me. The way he was so patient with me, loving me while he waited for me to catch up. I pushed him away because I was scared, but when I stepped back, I realized that he’d been there for me all along. He understands me in a way I’m not even sure I understand myself. And he loves me even with all of my flaws. Maybe even more so because of them. So I guess I just… knew.” She cocked her head. “Is this about Parker?”

“How’d you guess?” I said, a watery laugh coming from me. But I wasn’t going to cry. I wasn’t. “But we’re not like you and Cam. Parker and I are best friends. And…” I lowered my voice. “It was all fake.”

“Was it?” My twin asked, raising an eyebrow.

I ran my hands over my bare arms, hugging myself. “Yeah. At least… I thought it was. And then it stopped feeling fake, and it felt so… real .”

“And what do you want now?” Ella asked. “Because if you want him, if you love him, you need to tell him, Audrey.”

I nodded. “I?—”

“Hey, Audrey,” a girl in the ensemble came over, holding a vase with pink roses in them. “I think someone left these for you. They were on your station with all of your makeup, but I know you haven’t gotten over there yet.”

I’d been so busy talking to Ella that I hadn’t even noticed.

“Oh.” I ran my fingers over the flowers. “They’re beautiful.”

My sister squeezed my shoulder. “Tell him,” she insisted.

“I will,” I promised. After the show.

When we were alone—that was when I’d tell him how I felt. That I wanted more. That I wanted everything.

Including him.

The lift was flawless. And the kiss? Perfect.

The curtain closed after we took our final bows, the entire crowd—a completely packed theater—cheering for us.

Opening night was done.

“We did it!” someone cried, and everyone cheered. Hugs and laughter filled the stage before everyone headed back to the dressing rooms to get out of their costumes, hanging them up so they’d be ready for the next performance.

And there he was. Parker. My boyfriend. The fact that it was supposed to be fake was something I was trying really hard to remind myself of.

He opened his arms like he knew exactly where I wanted to be.

Running, I threw myself into them. He caught me, spinning me around as I looped my arms around his neck.

“You were amazing, baby.”

I blushed. “Thank you. Not so bad yourself, Parker Phillip.”

“Audrey Rose, I believe we survived the first night.”

“Now we just have to do it like four more times,” I joked.

Parker chuckled. “With you, that’ll be easy.” He rubbed his nose against mine. “Best partner I could have asked for.”

“How’d you get so good at this?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.

He smirked, curling his hands around my waist and pulling me closer. “I stopped acting.”

“What?” I gaped. “That doesn’t make any sense. You’re supposed to be acting.”

Parker shrugged. “Don’t need to. Turns out I’m pretty good at this boyfriend thing without even trying.”

I took a step back, fisting my hands in my dress. “But I’m… I’m just your fake girlfriend, right?”

“Rosie.” His voice was tight.

I shook my head, looking at the floor. “It’s my fault. I knew what this was going into it, and I shouldn’t have gotten my?—”

He kissed me to shut me up, and my eyes widened.

“Rosie Girl.” Parker’s fingers brushed my chin, forcing me to look up into his. “Will you stop freaking out and listen to me?”

Worrying my bottom lip into my mouth, I nodded.

There was no one else around, and Parker kept his hold of my chin, those gold-flecked eyes staring into mine.

“When we agreed to do this, to fake date, we set a deadline. Yeah? That we’d do it until the end of the musical so Duke would leave you alone.” I nodded, still not saying anything, because my heart was in my throat. “But he hasn’t been here in over a month, baby, and here we are. Still dating.”

“Yeah.” I bit my lip. “But?—”

“Audrey.” Parker silenced me with the tsk of his tongue. “We’re together.” He dropped his head, burying his nose in my hair and inhaling. Just like he did every night when we shared his bed. “I hate being apart from you, and we’ve spent almost every single night together lately, and I—” His words were a balm to my anxious heart. I’d needed to hear them, and now that I had, well…

“Parker,” I responded. “Shut up and kiss me.”

He scooped me up into his arms, complying with my request. His hands dug into my hips, and I curled mine over his shoulders, standing on my tiptoes despite my heels that added a good two or three inches, and I moaned as his mouth covered mine hungrily, his tongue tracing my lips, sending shivers of desire racing through me.

I let out a small moan as he crushed me against him, and then?—

Someone turned the lights out.

A giggle burst free from me. “We should probably go.”

“Yeah,” he rasped. “Let’s get out of here.”

Thankfully, the dressing room was empty when we got back to it, and Parker carried us both inside, flipping the lock behind us before his mouth slammed back onto mine.

He pressed me up against the door, his lips delving to find mine, kissing me thoroughly. Passionately. Hard. It was a claiming kiss. The straps of my dress fell off my shoulders, and Parker’s knee was between mine.

“Parker,” I moaned against his mouth, rocking against his leg to get some sort of relief.

When he pulled away, I nibbled on his lower lip.

“Fuck,” he groaned, pulling my lips back to his and brushing his tongue over mine, again and again, until I was a panting, writhing mess. “I just can’t hold myself back with you.”

I ran my lips down his neck. “So don’t. You don’t have to hold yourself back. You can have me.”

Parker’s eyes were dark with need, and I wanted him to lose control. To take what he wanted—because what I wanted was him.

Cupping his erection, I practically drank in his sharp exhale of breath. “I want you,” I murmured, stroking him over his pants.

I needed these damn costumes off now.

He groaned. “You have no idea how badly I want you. But I don’t have anything on me. And I definitely don’t want to fuck you for the first time in a dressing room.”

Letting out a whimper, I nodded. He was right, and I knew it. I wanted our first time to be special, after all. But I also wanted to show him how much this meant to me. That he’d done all of this for me.

Toying with the straps of my dress, I let them fall down my shoulders, leaving them bare for him.

“You’re the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen,” Parker said, coming to stand in front of me and pressing his lips against my skin.

Turning around, I swept my hair over one shoulder, exposing my back to him. “Will you… unzip me?”

I could hear him swallow roughly, and then his fingers brushed over my spine, finding the hook and eye and undoing it before dragging the zipper slowly down my skin. It was torture in the best way, igniting all of my senses.

My dress fell from my hips, leaving me in just my nude leotard that I wore underneath my costume. I shimmed the rest of it off, picking it up and draping it over the chair next to me.

“My parents are probably wondering where we are,” I whispered, catching Parker’s eyes as he undid his brocade vest, sliding it off, and then undoing the black jacket he wore underneath.

He groaned as he took in my body. “Fuck. I know.” His hands came up, cupping my breasts through the leo. “But all I want right now is to taste you.”

My eyes fluttered shut as he pushed the fabric down, exposing the cups of my bra, and then he pushed that off too, freeing my tits to the air. With the first swipe of his tongue over my nipples, they were hard, and I let out a small moan.

“We need to change,” I said, hardly more than a whimper as he sucked one of the hardened peaks into his mouth. “Parker—oh my God .”

“It’s a crime that I haven’t gotten my mouth on these before.” With his free hand, he flicked my other nipple with his thumb before pinching and pulling at it in the most delicious way.

“I know.” I shut my eyes, enjoying the feeling of his tongue and teeth as he nipped, sucked, and soothed my breasts.

Why had we never done this before? It was like there had been some invisible line we hadn’t crossed. If we weren’t naked with each other, the orgasms hadn’t meant anything. But now, this meant so much more.

“Just let me make you come, and then we can go see your parents,” he begged.

How could I say no to that when I was already soaked? Nodding, Parker picked me up in his arms, carrying me over to the little couch in the middle of the dressing room that I’d never been more grateful for.

He kneeled in front of me, unstrapping my heels and sliding my feet out of them before dropping them to the floor—each hitting the ground in a thunk—before he stood back up, his eyes tracing every inch of my body as he peeled the leotard off the rest of the way, not even letting me help him pull it down my thighs.

“I need you,” I begged, unhooking my bra from behind and letting it join my base layer on the floor. “Please.”

Pushing me down to a seated position, he pulled my legs apart, not even bothering to take off my tights. No, instead, he ripped the fabric over my crotch, pushing my panties aside so he could plunge two fingers inside of me.

“ Yes,” I cried out.

“Fuck,” he panted against my lips. “You’re so wet. You needed this, huh, baby? Need your boyfriend to fuck you with his fingers?”

Whimpering, I nodded, letting the sensations take over as he put his mouth back on my tit, sucking and lavishing them with attention as he worked his fingers inside of me. Each stroke brought me higher and higher, and I was so close to coming apart in his arms.

“Good girl,” he praised. “Taking my fingers so well. But you need more, don’t you? Don’t worry, I won’t make you beg for it.” He added a third finger, and I was so blissfully full.

Parker rubbed his thumb over my clit, bringing his mouth up to mine as I screamed his name. Like he knew I wouldn’t be able to hold back.

I was languid in his arms, practically floating on air after that orgasm, and then he dropped fully to his knees, burying his head between my legs as he drank up my release, licking me clean. And fuck, I was already so close to another orgasm. If he kept this up, it wouldn’t take much more.

“Can you come for me again?” He rasped, pulling away from me for a moment so I could see my wetness shining from his lips. “I’ve been such a good boy, haven’t I, Rosie Girl?” He dragged his tongue over my entrance, flattening it against my clit before swirling it in a circle. “I want you to soak my face.”

And then he delved back inside me, using his tongue and mouth to bring me back to the edge, palming his cock through his costume pants. I was sure he was painfully hard, but I already knew from experience that he prioritized my orgasm over his own, like it gave him pleasure to see me satisfied. And fuck, if that wasn’t the hottest thing of all.

I was limp, boneless, and well sated when he finally pulled away, giving me one last lick before readjusting my panties over me. My tights had a giant hole in the crotch now, but at least no one would notice that during dinner.

Still, my cheeks were pink as we re-dressed, pulling our street clothes on.

Parker licked his lips. “So sweet.” He caught my eye and winked. “Don’t worry, baby. There’s more where that came from later.”

I couldn’t wait .