Page 7 of Something Beyond Fame

“Thank you. You’re a star.” I grinned.

“I know, I know, you owe me.” She disconnected as she started to yell at someone else.

I drew women in because I could be vulnerable. I was happy to expose myself on stage, to show that sexy didn’t just mean sex. But on a cruise ship, sometimes sexy could be more obvious. Not tonight.

I felt like Claudia needed to see a side of me that showed more than tight leather. I took a slow walk to my position, settled in place, my heart beating—no, thundering in my chest as I took a deep breath.

My bare feet rested on the pedals as the theater lit up in a soft warm glow. The grand Steinway piano dominated the stage, proud of its commanding presence. Me, I was merely draped on a worn stool, the soft red leather peeling from years of use. A white silk robe fell across my shoulders, loosely tied at the dip of my waist. I reached forward, my fingers offering the lightest of touches against the smooth keys.

"When I feel like this..." The words fell softly from my lips. My fingertips idly meandered across the gleaming ivory keys, giving only the briefest of pressure for each gentle note. I was casual tonight, my makeup minimal and my hair in messy short damp curls. I was making myself vulnerable, although my confidence grew with each word softly sung.

I extended my leg, my bare foot catching the left pedal to soften the tone of the chords, my robe slipping higher up my thigh.

I had chosen to be naked under the ivory silk robe. I enjoyed the thrill of it and giving the audience something different, and it worked so well for this song.

I reached forward, taking the microphone in my hand and rising as the drums began. I slowly made my way to the front of the stage, my bare feet dancing over the worn wooden boards. The cable tangled through my fingers as I sung each soft note, my hips slowly swaying with the beat. I felt eyes on my body, and the heat rose in my cheeks as I blushed, a shy, sexy smile spreading across my face as I bit my bottom lip, my eyes cast down as I fumbled with the mic stand. I dared not look for her, but I felt as if her eyes were on me.

As it fell into place, I looked straight up, and the light caught my eyes. Both my hands rested on the mic stand, and my fingers slowly rose up, drawing it to me. My body moved with a sway to the music, the microphone faintly brushing against my lips.

As the song faded out, the lights dimmed.

The audience was so silent you could hear a pin drop, and then came the cheers. I knew it was a good performance, probably one of my best, and only then did my gaze drop, my eyes lingering on the front row, searching. Looking. And then I found her.

Claudia.

Right there, where I’d hoped she would be.

My dressing room door opened, and I knew it was her before I even turned around—just the sweet scent that suddenly entered the room, the hesitation in the way she tapped, the slowness of how she opened the door.

“Thank you, for the tickets and the invitation.” She held the envelope in her right hand and a nearly empty glass of white wine in the other.

“Would you like a refill?” I asked softly as I stood. She finished the last sip of her wine but then shook her head.

“I’d better not,” she answered with a soft smile.

She seemed more comfortable in herself tonight, in her clothes. She was wearing fitted dress pants and a cute fitted top. It was simple but in expensive fabrics. Nothing special. You wouldn’t pick it off the rack, but it fitted her well. It suited her height, her frame. It drew me to the curve of her small breasts. It made her look effortlessly feminine, and I liked it. Her long thick hair was drawn up into a neat, high bun, and her makeup was minimal.

I had changed, but had only slipped into something more comfortable, a silk tank and shorts.

“So this is where the magic happens?” she asked with a smile as her fingers reached for the clothes rack, thumbing through the leather jackets, sparkly gowns, and tight pants.

I laughed and moved closer. “I like to think the magic happens on stage, but I guess it starts here, becoming Raven Ramsey.”

Claudia looked at me, her eyes as bright as silvery diamonds. “And who is Raven Ramsey before she gets here?”

There was an intensity and heat to her gaze and to that moment between us, and I chose to not hold back.

I didn’t think. My hands rose to my shoulders and gave a soft sweep across my skin, letting the straps fall. The satin fabric dropped effortlessly. My breasts fell free with a soft bounce, my nipples already hard, not from the cold, but from desire for her. One hand reached out for her ass, the other rose to tangle in her hair. And then I drew her to me, my lips parting to take a long, deep kiss.

Her lips met mine, opening slightly as she slid her tongue between my lips to dance with mine. I grabbed the hem of her top and took it off. Her sunkissed body stood in front of me. Her erect nipples met mine, pressing against them. She took my bottom lip in my mouth and softly sucked on it.

"I need you,” she murmured into my mouth.

She hooked one finger into the waistband of my shorts and then slowly pushed them to the floor as I moaned softly at the taste of her tongue.

I felt that need, too. A hunger for her. My fingers released her hair tie and grabbed handfuls of her hair, pulling her lips from mine, gasping as she dragged my lip with hers before she released. I stepped out of my shorts and stood in front of her naked. I wanted to give myself to her. I went back to kissing her, from her lovely lips, down over her throat, and over her small breasts before taking a firm brown nipple in my mouth and sucking. God, I could stay happily there forever, but it wasn’t where I wanted to be, so I continued down, kissing her belly and her naval. I released her pants and black lace underwear and as she easily shrugged them from her hips and gracefully stepped out of them. I settled on my knees in front of her.

“I need you, too. I’ve needed you desperately since the moment I first saw you.”

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