Arianna: Behind the Words

By Savannah Stewart

*This book contains adult situations and explicit content/language*


Arianna Moore is one half of the female rock duo, The Daughters of Darkness. She has walls built up around her heart that are taller than any skyscraper. But when an unexpected gig throws her and Jayde Kimberland a deal of a lifetime, Arianna finds herself intertwined with the rock star bad boy, Bryden Rowe, who leads the platinum selling rock group, From Yesterday. His reputation isn't the best and she doesn't want to be another notch on his belt.


Will she be able to keep those walls firm in place or will Bryden be the one to finally knock them down?


When the past comes knocking on both their doors, emotions run high, and tensions run even higher. Will they be able to break past all the barriers and find comfort in one another or will it only last while on the road?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Savannah Stewart
• Release date: Feb 22, 2014
• ISBN: 9781507095874

Book preview

1

Sexy and He Knows It

Two weeks earlier

"A ll right, ladies, I know you hate The Underground but this gig tonight has potential. This time they are willing to triple your pay to be the main act—that’s six hundred dollars for four hours! You know the raise is big because the past shows were played mainly for tips so please think about it at least." Sadie Lane, our manager, begged Jayde and me via conference call.

I exchanged a look with Jayde and knew instantly that she was on board. The money was making it hard not to be, but I hated that place with a passion. Not because of the bar in itself, or even the type of crowd that hung out there, it was mainly because during our last show there I caught my boyfriend doing all but actually fucking one of the bartenders up against the bar. Needless to say, we didn’t make it half way through our first song before I jumped off stage and punched him in his damn face for making a fool out of me. Jayde didn’t miss a beat though, she continued on with the song until I had made my way back to the stage. I was surprised Max, the owner, didn’t throw us out on the spot; instead he told me that he didn’t blame me and fired the hussy bartender mid-way through her shift. I got my final blow in as I dedicated a rocked-up version of Taylor Swift’s Better than Revenge to her and flipped her the bird at the end of the song. Shortly after, Max gave her the news of her demise. We hadn’t played there since that night, but I suppose one higher paying gig there wouldn’t kill me, plus the tips we usually made were outstanding enough in themselves.

Okay, count me in. I grumbled to Jayde and Sadie.

Jayde mouthed Thank you to me. I hope this isn’t a mistake…

"Thank you, Arianna! If I was there right now I would kiss you!"

Yeah, I don’t recommend it, Sadie… I groaned.

Arianna, you are such a hard ass… Sadie laughed. See you girls in a few hours.

See you then, Sadie! Jayde responded before ending the call.

Thank you, Aria…We really needed to book a show and I know how much you hate that place because of your douche bag of an ex, Jeremy. Tonight, I feel, will be different. Now let’s go find something to wear!

I hope you’re right…Come on, I’ll drive. I grabbed my shoulder bag and keys off the counter and headed for the door.

---

The shopping trip was a success! I had found the leather skinny pants I had been searching for and I planned on pairing them with my new, Steve Madden deep-red studded pumps. I was stoked about wearing them both tonight at the show. Jayde had ended up with a shit-ton of new clothes. This girl had a serious clothing addiction, but I was thankful that it wasn’t an addiction to something more serious.

Jayde Kimberland is a knock out, and has rocker chick written all over her. She stands a couple inches taller than me (although I’m five-two, so most people do), with curves to die for and she’s lean in all the right places. Her jet-black hair with full-bangs brings out the fact that she has two different colored eyes--one’s green and the other’s blue. They freaked me out at first, but the longer I was around her the less I really noticed the difference in them. Jayde and I first met within the Foster system. My twin sister Ashleigh and I were abandoned as babies while Jayde’s parents were killed in a car crash when she was two. Luckily, we ended up in a really great home with the most loving mother figure we could have asked for. We stayed there until we aged out of the system and found ourselves an apartment together shortly after. Now the two of us spend our week nights and weekends rocking the stages of local venues as The Daughters of Darkness.

We had to be at The Underground to set up and run through some new songs with the house band in about three hours, so I had to bust ass getting ready. I hadn’t even finished my hair when Jayde came barreling into my room asking if I was ready to go.

How in the hell do you get ready so fast?! I asked, stunned. Jayde looked like she had just stepped out of a pin-up girl’s calendar spread. Damn…Look at you, hot momma! She was decked out in high-waisted navy-blue shorts that had two rows of gold buttons down the front, a red bandeau top, and Mary Jane-style red stilettos. Her bangs were curled back in a rockabilly curl and wrapped around the left side of her polka-dot bandana.

Thought I would change it up a bit for once, do you think it works? she asked nervously.

Umm…Hell yes it works! I’m going to have to take my pepper spray tonight to keep the dicks off stage and away from you. I teased her.

You are a nut case Aria… Jayde laughed. Hurry up though; I wanna stop by that sub shop across from The Underground before we have to set up. I’m starving!

That sounds good to me! I should be ready in ten.

Checking myself out one last time in the floor-length mirror hanging in the bathroom, I heard Sadie honking the horn from the driveway.

"Come on, grandma! Sadie is also waiting on your ass now!" Jayde called out.

Coming! I yelled back before applying one last swipe of lipstick and jetting down the stairs.

---

We’ve lived in Louisville, Kentucky our entire lives and we love the city’s character, every section of Louisville has its own flavor. But our favorite part of town is a neighborhood called The Highlands. I love the nightlife in the Highlands, because everyone stays true to whom they are, it’s like a big mixing pot, everyone has their own style but they interact no matter your own. Sadie parked in The Underground’s back lot so we wouldn’t have to move later in the night. Jayde offered for the two of us to pick up Sadie something to eat while she went and checked in with Max. I ordered the usual, turkey club, while Jayde ordered some off the wall contraption I would never in my wildest dreams attempt to eat. Sitting down at a table, we dug into our subs and fries.

A few minute later three girls came barreling through the doors of the sub shop ranting and raving about some hot as hell guy they had just met. He apparently was in a band. I couldn’t help but laugh at the way girls like them drooled over musicians. Any guy with a guitar automatically had girls falling over themselves to try and get noticed; it was pretty disgusting, really. Girls like us, in the rock business, either have nasty old men trying to cop a feel or guys assume we are lesbians because we rock out just as hard as they do.

"I wonder who the Rock God is they are going on about…" Jayde laughed.

Hell, it’s probably Dave from that new local band around here. You know how girls are about a guy with his guitar.

True. She replied as we both finished our subs and headed for the door.

Sound check went better than usual. The house band jumped right in on a couple of new tunes we had put together this week, and thankfully they already knew the new cover songs we worked up. Tonight’s show was going to be a breeze…as long as Jeremy didn’t show up. I headed to the back lounge to wait for our turn to take the stage. Jayde loved to mingle so I knew she was out in the bar scoping out the crowd. She never asked me to join her anymore, probably because she knew how antisocial I could be. I was here to make money, not half-ass friends.

Damn girl, you look like a sexy fallen angel. Max’s voice came from behind me.

I’m assuming that’s a compliment. I stated, plopping down on one of the couches in the lounge. Who’s the new band playing? They sound pretty good from back here.

Defiance is their name. They haven’t been together long but they have some kick-ass talent. These boys will probably go far. He smiled at me as he looked my body up and down. Why don’t you come out front and check them out with me?

Yeah, I don’t think so. It would probably end with me starting another hellacious fight in your bar and I’m sure you wouldn’t want that before we take the stage, huh?

I’ll keep you under wraps, Arianna. He winked in response.

Get over yourself, Max.

Not gonna happen, Max. So you might as well leave me be. I grimaced at him.

One day, Arianna, somebody is going to break that badass exterior you have built up. His tone was serious.

We’ll see about that… My voice came out softly as he left the room.

I decided to pull out my notebook from my bag and try to work on the song I had started writing last week. Jayde didn’t know anything about it and I was surprised how I had kept it under wraps so far. I wanted to do this on my own—I needed to write this on my own. I knew she would understand whenever I showed it to her and Sadie, or at least I hoped she did. We had never written songs separately; it had always been both of our works of art. But this song was too close to my crashing point and I needed to pour every ounce of my heartache into it—alone. I wasn’t sure how long it had been since I started writing, when I heard a couple faint knocks on the door to the lounge.

Come in! I called out.

The door slightly pushed open as Sadie leaned in, You ready to rock this joint? she asked with a huge smile spread across her face.

As ready as I’ll ever be! I slammed the notebook shut, pushed it into my bag, and walked over to the mirror.

What were ya working on? Sadie asked.

Nothing much, just doodling, I lied.

Okay, Jayde is tuning her guitar down the hall, so come on when you’re ready.

Be there in a sec, I responded as I straightened my black lacey corset and let out a deep breath.

"Tonight’s going to be epic, I just know it!" Sadie buzzed as she walked away from the door, leaving it open.

I pulled the tube of red lipstick out of my bag for another quick application and headed for the stage.

Jayde had just finished up the tuning on her guitar and was moving on to mine. She was way anal about making sure our guitars were in tune. She would rather do it herself than let the guitar tech, who is also the house band lead guitar player, touch either of our guitars. Just another reason I loved calling her my best friend and band mate.

What are we kicking off with tonight? Jayde asked as she turned the tuning peg for my A string and continued on.

Honestly, I hadn’t really thought about it…How about a Heart cover song? I suggested.

All I Wanna Do Is Make Love to You or Barracuda? she asked.

All I Wanna Do…

All right, let’s do this! Jayde handed me my guitar as we watched the lights go out on stage and Max step into the spotlight.

Are you all ready to rock?! Max yelled out to the crowd that roared back cheers in response. I can’t hear you!!! he called out again as the crowd yelled once more even louder. Welcome to the stage Louisville’s own, rock star duo, The Daughters of Darkness!!!!!!!!!

The Underground erupted into cheers as we took our places in front of our mic-stands and Jayde kicked off on the song. The lyrics flowed from my mouth as the lights came up and slowly began to change. There was no feeling in this world, like the feeling you get when you sing your heart out to a crowd that sings the song right back to you. The two of us were rocking out as we went from one song to the next. A good forty minutes into the set Jayde was going to do an acoustic solo of a couple songs, so I found my chance to grab us both a drink from the bar and take a breather. After exiting the stage, I made my way out the door and into the drunken crowd that packed the bar. As much as I hated this place, it felt good to see how many people had come out to see us! I was all smiles. Pushing through the crowd, many people praised how good we were or shot requests my way. I have to admit, we were indeed a pretty badass duo.

Leaning against the cool wood of the bar, Stacey the bartender shot me a smile as she held her finger up letting me know it would be a minute. I nodded in response; I was in no hurry.

You really look beautiful tonight, A… his unmistakable voice was in my ear.

You have got to be fucking kidding me.

Jeremy. I spoke with as much venom as I could muster up as I turned to find his arms boxed around me and his hands on the bar. …and you’re a little too close for comfort, I said as I pushed at his arms.

Oh, come on, A! You know you have missed me; it’s been almost six months. Let’s say you go home with me tonight and I show you how much I have missed you. His lips were so close to mine.

Was this guy for real?!

How about…Hell…Fucking…No. Jeremy! I spat, balling my fist up at my sides. Move! I shoved him once more, but he didn’t budge.

I don’t think so sweetie, we’re going to work this out—right here and right now! he growled.

Is there a problem, sassy girl? a very tall and sexy-as-hell someone leaned against the bar to my left. If I wasn’t drooling, I should have been. Whoever this man was, his grey-blue eyes were boring right into mine and I couldn’t find the words to respond. I slowly nodded my head yes as he grabbed Jeremy’s arm and flung it back at him.

Who the hell are you?! Jeremy spat.

I can be your worst nightmare if you don’t get your ass out of here, that’s who I am, he said sternly as one of the security-guards came up asking if there was a problem. All it took was me saying the name Jeremy and the bouncer threw his ass out. Apparently our big throw down half a year ago still lived on within The Underground. I’m going to guess Max made sure to let them all know Jeremy wasn’t welcome here when we were playing.

Jayde was still singing on stage when I glanced up at her. She shook her head and smiled like she wanted to laugh, which caused me to giggle.

Something funny? his smooth husky voice startled me. The sexy someone was still leaning against the bar beside me and the half smirk strewn across his face was causing my body to respond in ways that it probably shouldn’t.

I have got to get away from this man…

I could have handled that, you know… I ignored his question.

Didn’t look like it to me, He said as he checked out my body. Who was that anyway, some douche bag you are currently dating?

Excuse me? He is actually my ex—not like it’s any of your damn business anyway, I snapped as I turned back to the bar and flagged down Stacey. She gave me the oddest look ever before coming down to my end.

What’cha want, doll? Stacey’s southern twang carried over the noise around me.

Two shots of tequila, The sexy someone cut me off.

Coming right up! Stacey looked star struck as she answered him.

I’m pretty sure I can order my own drink as well—I don’t need any shitty ass tequila, I’m playing tonight—not getting hammered. Before I could walk away he grabbed my arm, stopping me right in my tracks. The electricity I felt when he touched me almost caused my knees to buckle.

What the hell was that?!

Stacey came back with two shot glasses of tequila and two limes. He let go of my arm to take them from her, placed a twenty on the bar, and gave her a wink. I’m pretty sure it took all she had not to fall over. At least I wasn’t the only one this God of a man affected.

How about you hold this lime in that pretty little mouth of yours for me? his voice was low and husky at my ear. My whole body shivered in response.

How about you kiss my ass. I countered as I threw back my shot and sucked the tart juice from the lime. He followed suit with his shot and placed the glass back on the bar.

Is that an offer? he leaned back on the bar, still grinning at me. But this time his eyes had darkened.

My body was on fire and I needed to put it out fast! At this point, Jayde was mid-way through her last solo, so I knew this moment was almost over—whether I wanted it to be or not.

Duty calls... I grabbed mine and Jayde’s drinks, that Stacey had placed on the bar, without me even ordering them, and almost ran away from Mr. Sexy.

The lights went out on stage as the crowd roared in applause and I walked fast down the side hall to the entrance of the stage. I leaned against wall to steady myself as I let out a deep sigh.

You all right, Arianna? Sadie asked.

Yeah, I’m fine. There’s a helluva crowd out there tonight! I responded, smiling as I headed up the steps and onto the stage. I handed Jayde her drink and she downed the whole thing in one gulp.

Sorry, I wasn’t expecting to be gone that long. I whispered swiftly to her.

You do realize who that guy at the bar was, right? She asked, completely ignoring my apology.

No…

Damn Aria, you are clueless…Come on, the crowd waits.

What is it with that guy? Everybody seems to know him except me…

The Underground always had their main act play three hours before a half hour intermission of dance music. Then the act would take the stage for their final hour, followed by another half hour of dance music before the bar closed. We had thirty minutes to go before the intermission. Soaked in sweat, Jayde and I continued to rock the crowd song after song and the response we received was mind blowing! Ending the set with an original song called, Losing Sight, we thanked the crowd and exited the stage.

"You ladies are killing it!!!" Sadie praised us as we entered the lounge.

I have to say, I am thankful the two of you talked me into playing here again. I haven’t had that much fun on stage in who knows how long. This crowd is insane! the excitement poured from my voice, I was high on adrenaline.

Jayde agreed as Max came through the door with drinks.

I’m sure you all are thirsty. He stated, passing out whiskey and cokes to the three of us. What a crowd, huh?! Max said proudly.

You are a life saver, Max! Thanks for having us back, tonight has been awesome! Jayde said before downing her drink. That girl could throw’em back…me on the other hand, unless I stuck to beer, not so much. I handed Jayde the remainder of my drink and decided to head out into the bar.

You don’t want it? She asked.

Naw, I’ma go get me a beer, I think. I had tequila earlier…You know how I am with liquor. I shot Jayde a knowing look.

Don’t I, though…You want me to come? she asked.

If you want.

Are you sure that a beer is all you’re going after? she teased.

I rolled my eyes and headed for the door.

Hey, I was joking! Wait up! she called after me.

I waited just outside the door for her. When she caught up, the two of us made it into the crazy crowd out in the bar. Since Jayde was a few inches taller than me, she always walked in front when we were together. I followed her as we made our way to the bar. We may not have been superstars on tour, but the people of Louisville treated us like we were. When people realized it was us walking to the bar, they would move out of our way or praise us about how we sounded. It felt good to be accepted the way that we were around here. After finally making it to the bar, Jayde handed me a beer and got herself another round of whiskey and coke.

I wanna dance! she called out as the song changed to a rap song I didn’t know.

Let’s go! I yelled back over the noise, grabbed her hand, and pulled her towards the overflowing dance floor.

We were both swaying to the music as we made our way into the middle of the dancing crowd. The bass boomed through my body as I kept moving to the beat. My hair was no longer fixed due to the heat of being on stage, so I took the hair tie from my wrist and pulled the long dark red heap into a messy bun on top of my head. The song changed to one that I actually knew as Jayde and I continued to dance. I was swaying my hips with my hands in the air above my head when I felt someone come up behind me. The alcohol I had consumed had me feeling pretty good or I would have snapped on whoever it was. Not bothering to check out my new dance partner, I continued to move my hips into him with the rhythm of the song. His strong hands soon found their way onto my hips as he splayed his fingers out across the front of me. As soon as one of his fingers brushed the bare skin below my corset, I knew exactly who it was. The electric tingle took over instantly and he was the only person who had caused my body to hum like that—it was the sexy someone from earlier.

Jayde was dancing with some guy when her eyes locked on mine and the biggest smile I had ever seen started spreading out across her face. I crooked my neck to the side so that I could see his face. As soon as I saw his smoldering grey-blue eyes, my body was engulfed in flames. I continued to grind my body back against his when he let out a low groan. The sound of it drove me wild. If he keeps touching me like this…I’m gonna have to go change my panties. He began moving one of his hands up underneath my corset and I knew I was about to become putty in his hands—I couldn’t let that happen. I pushed his arm down and took off through the crowd until I found myself turning down the hall towards the lounge. I smashed through the bathroom door, turned the sink on and splashed my face with cold water. I braced myself against the sink and let my head hang loosely.

I heard the door push open but didn’t bother seeing who it was, most likely it would be Jayde. She didn’t say anything at first, so I didn’t bother moving. When I heard the door lock, I looked up slowly. My breath caught when I saw him standing there with his back against the door and the look of hunger in his eyes. We stood there staring at one another for a few moments, and then he started to move towards me. His short chocolate brown hair was spiked up about an inch all over his head and the paleness of his skin made his eyes look the color of a stormy sky. In the light of the bathroom I noticed a thick tribal tattoo coming out of the right sleeve of his shirt, wrapping around his arm and stopping about mid-forearm. His V-neck shirt hugged his body deliciously; I could only imagine what that body looked like underneath it. He was mouthwateringly sexy and you could tell that he knew it.

"I’m a starved man, sassy girl…I want—no I need a taste of you. Just a taste…" the husky growl of his voice had me speechless.

I slowly shook my head yes before his mouth was on mine, devouring me. My back slammed against the side of the bathroom stall but I didn’t complain. The hunger in his assault on my lips was earth shattering. His hand found the zipper on the front of my corset and slowly began to zip it down. Did I want this…with this man? Hell I didn’t even know his name… I couldn’t find an argument within myself why I should stop him. I was the girl who never slept with random guys, but this guy—shattered that wall with his first touch, and I. Wanted. Him. He stopped the zipper in the middle of my chest and gave me a slight grin, when I didn’t respond he slowly began unzipping it even further. My heart was slamming so hard in my chest that I was sure he could hear it. He leaned back and kept his eyes on mine as he finished unzipping my top. The corset fell to the ground, leaving me bare to him.

You have your nipples pierced….Fuck that’s sexy! he growled, slightly pulling at each stud with his fingers. The sensation caused me to scream out in pleasure. His mouth replaced his fingers and was now alternating licks and bites between my breasts. My body was trembling uncontrollably as he wrapped my legs around his body, leaning my back against the bathroom stall wall. His eyes were glued to mine as his hand alternated kneading my breasts; his other hand was firmly gripping my thigh. I peeled his shirt over his head and grabbed the back of his neck to pull his mouth back down to mine. My body was soaring high with pleasure when a loud knocking rang out from the door.

Aria, are you okay in there?! It’s almost time to take the stage again…I saw you run off, are you okay?! Jayde’s muffled voice came from the other side, Don’t make me get Max and the key!

I groaned as I pulled from our kiss, I’ve gotta go… I spoke breathlessly. As soon as he placed my legs back on the ground I snatch my corset from