Under Her Skin Read online

  He found the DJ that he'd met that morning, and had sex with already, and grabbed her wrist. "Ready for the next go-round?" He asked impatiently.

  "If you think you've got more in you." She challenged.

  "Baby, I've got so much you better bring your friends." He drawled in his cocky manner. The DJ laughed, but turned serious when he said, "I wasn't kidding. Bring your friends. Now."

  She smirked and whispered something to the two women that she was with. All three women followed obediently behind Tobias. He led them back to the bus and straight to the back room. He pulled the couch out into a bed, and shut the door.

  When he turned around, the three women were already laying on the bed making out. "Now that's what I'm talking' about!" He smirked and began stripping.

  The girls were working on their own clothes, and as soon as Tobias joined them on the bed, they made sure he was plenty involved in their love-fest. Not long after, Tobias was drilling one of the girls as he grunted and she begged for more.

  Marlo was pissed. It wasn't bad enough that he had gone and made an ass out of her half an hour ago, but now he was screwing some girl in the back room, just on the other side of the wall from her bed…No wait, make that girls. Those were definitely two different voices from the one calling for more.

  Not only was she pissed, but now she was disgusted. She put her pillow over her ears to try to drown out the sound, but they were getting louder and louder. She didn't know how much more she could take, but she was praying that they would be done soon.

  Finally, after a loud build-up, the panting, moaning, and screaming came to an end. At that same moment, the rest of the guys came back to the bus, thankfully without any women. Marlo didn't know if she could handle hearing anyone else having sex that night. Luckily, most of the guys were pretty good about not having sex on the bus, or if they did, they were fairly quiet about it. It was usually the nights that they got hotel rooms that they swung from the chandeliers, and let it all hang loose.

  She jumped down from her bunk, looking to seek solace in her brother after the night she had. She sat down and put her head on Dusty's shoulder, and gave a long, deep sigh.

  "I thought Pierce was here with you." He said as he put his arm around her shoulders.

  "He was until that idiot drove him away." She said, then explained what happened.

  Dusty fought to hide a smirk. Now he knew what had ruffled Tobias' feathers. Even he wasn't that over-protective of his sister. "I'm sure he meant well, even though he went about it the wrong way." Dusty pointed out.

  "Ugh, stop defending him. Did he mean well with his little orgy in the back room when he knew I was in my bunk?" She questioned.

  "Well obviously you liked it or else you would have left." A deep voice said. Marlo turned to see who had made such a mean comment. She saw Tobias walking out of the back room, wearing nothing but his boxers. "Did you get excited? Did it get you hot listening to us, knowing exactly what was happening in the next room?"

  Marlo felt like she'd been punched. Tears welled in her eyes, but her pride wouldn't let them flow. Swiftly, she stood from the couch and crossed the room to where Tobias was now standing, leaning against the wall, with his arms folded over his chest. The crack was heard throughout the whole bus as Marlo's hand belted his cheek. Feeling a mixture of relief and anger, Marlo turned and left the bus.

  Tobias smiled disbelievingly, shaking his head, and went to the back room to crash. Sammy and AJ exchanged looks, and Dusty ran out after his sister.

  As if she sensed him, Marlo yelled, "Go back to the bus, Dusty." She knew that wouldn't deter him, so she turned to talk to him. "I just need some time to myself. I can't be on that bus with him right now. I'm going to sleep on the other bus tonight." She said before he could even say anything.

  Dusty knew there was no arguing with her, and quite frankly, he thought it was best for everyone if those two spent some time apart. "Ok, but be careful. I'll see you in the morning." He kissed her forehead and they parted ways.

  Marlo walked to the other bus and knocked on the door. Donovan, the band's publicist opened the door and welcomed Marlo in. "What's up Lola?"

  "Do you guys mind if I stay on your bus tonight? The band wouldn't be worth quite as much if I was to kill the singer." Her voice was ragged, trying to keep her tears at bay.

  "That's fine, but you'll have to sleep on one of the couches. We gave the spare bunk to the magazine write traveling with us." He told her, and gave her a hug, knowing that the spats between her and Tobias bothered her more than she let on. He had an uncanny way of reading her that not many others could.

  "She can share my bed with me if she wants." Pierce offered, making his presence known. Marlo had been so distraught that she hadn't even seen him sitting at the dining table. "I promise I won't try anything. I'll be the perfect gentleman."

  Marlo looked at his eyes and had a strong feeling that she'd be able to trust him. "Thanks."

  He led her back to his bunk and they climbed in together. It was a tight fit, but she liked being held in his arms. As soon as they laid down, Marlo was wide awake. The sleepiness she'd been feeling disappeared into thin air.

  "Are you tired?" She asked.

  "Why, you want to mess around?" He asked playfully. Marlo smacked his shoulder. "I was kidding! I know, you're a girl, so you want to talk. Ok, let's get to know each other."

  Marlo smiled and started to rapid fire questions off to him. They talked with ease and learned a lot about each other as the night progressed. When the early morning light began to break through the sky, the two fell asleep in each other's arms.

  *****

  Over the next few weeks, Marlo avoided Tobias as much as possible, and filled her days by Pierce's side. They had grown quite close, spending all their free time together. They each learned to deal with the comments that Tobias threw at them regarding their relationship, and in the end, the comments brought them closer together, rather than breaking them apart. Pierce had been very understanding about Marlo not being ready for sex yet, and never tried to take her virginity from her.

  One night, after an intense concert, everyone was hanging out in the dressing room. There were more people in there than usual, and it was quite packed. Pierce had gone to get Marlo a drink, and when he came back, he saw her being dragged out by a tall guy in a black leather jacket. He followed them into the deserted back hallway to see where they were going

  Marlo was dragging behind the man, shaking her arm, trying to get out of his grasp. "Hey, what are you doing?" Pierce yelled out.

  The man stopped and turned to look back to the person yelling at him. "Boy, you best stay where you are unless you want to get hurt." He flashed the blade of a knife at Pierce, just to back up his threat.

  Pierce's eyes got big. He stopped where he was, and watched what was happening as if he were watching a movie.

  The man slammed Marlo against the wall and smashed his lips to hers in a bruising kiss. Her arms were flailing, trying to hit the man to get him off her. He began rubbing his crotch against her, and she could feel his arousal. She could feel the bile rise in her throat as he groped her breast.

  "You're going to like this. I'm more man than any of these guys." He said in between kisses, rubbing harder and harder against her. His free hand had found its way under Marlo's shirt, and she felt his erection increase.

  Marlo was crying and continuously begging him to stop . Pierce just stood there and watched what was happening.

  As if by miracle, Tobias opened the dressing room door and pulled a woman into the hallway with him, kissing her the whole time.

  "Help!" Marlo yelled when she saw Tobias out of the corner of her eye.

  The man smacked Marlo across her face and told her to shut up. He used his knife to cut her shirt and bra off her body, gaining more access to fondle her breasts. He hadn't seen Tobias come into the hallway since he was too busy molesting Marlo.

  Tobias pushed the woman off him and looked down the dark ha
llway. "Go get Dusty." He whispered to the woman he had been making out with. She turned and ran back into the dressing room.

  "What the fuck do you think you're doing?" Tobias yelled, running towards the man assaulting Marlo.

  "She's mine mother fucker, get away." The man growled.

  Tobias jumped at the man and tackled him to the ground. When they hit the floor, his knife went flying down the hallway. Tobias was punching the stunned guy as they wrestled around on the ground. Marlo sunk to the floor, trying to cover her now bare chest, and bawling.

  "You dirty mother fucker! I should kill you for touching her!" Tobias was yelling. He threw punch after punch in the man's face, blood splattering everywhere. He was relentless in his beating, almost to the point of insanity. Each punch felt like it wasn't enough, so he felt the need to add another.

  Sammy ran into the hall and pulled Tobias off the man. "Dude, that's enough. You're going to kill him."

  Tobias stopped struggling to get out of Sammy's grasp and calmed down a little once he saw that the man was unconscious. "He deserves to die!" Tobias said and spit on the man. He turned to where Marlo sat crumpled on the floor. He got down on his knees in front of her and took her face in his hands. "It's ok, he won't touch you again."

  Marlo looked into his eyes, and it was as if she was really seeing for the first time since the man had grabbed her. A sudden clarity flashed in her eyes and she threw her arms around his neck.

  Tobias held onto Marlo, whispering comforting words in her ear and rocking her back and forth. Realizing that he was feeling her bare back in his hands, Tobias backed up. He pulled his shirt over his head, then put it on over Marlo's head. She finished putting the shirt on, and Tobias lifted her to her feet.

  Dusty came running down the hall and pulled his sister into his arms. He gave a silent plea of thanks to Tobias as he ushered Marlo back to the bus. The security guards all ran in and cuffed the assailant while waiting for the police to show up.

  Tobias walked up to Pierce and shot him a fiery gaze. "Why didn't you help her?" He yelled.

  "He had a knife and threatened to use it on me." Pierce stammered.

  "So your safety is more important than hers?" He yelled unbelievably. "She was almost raped! Did you see her when she left here? She could barely walk on her own. But I guess all that matters is that you didn't get hurt. Right?" He added. It took everything he had in him not to hit Pierce too. Instead, he went back to the bus to check on Marlo, and be there for her in case she needed him.

  *****

  Marlo stood in the shower long after the water had run cold. She didn't think she'd ever be able to get his smell off her body, and she wasn't sure if she would ever feel clean again. She finally gave up and got out of the shower. She dressed in her pajamas and left the bathroom.

  Dusty had a mug of hot chocolate waiting for her, the top overflowing with marshmallows. Marlo gave him a weak smile, and curled up next to him. They sat in silence as she drank the warm, rich fluid. Dusty had no idea what to say to her, so he didn't say anything at all.

  Marlo took her empty mug and put it in the sink. She gave her brother a hug and walked back to the sleeping quarters. She started to climb into her bunk, but stopped, and instead peaked her head into Tobias' bunk.

  He looked at her and moved the back wall of his bunk, making room for Marlo to lay next to him. She crawled in and cuddled up next to his body. He wrapped his arms around her and held her tight, neither one saying a word. Together, they fell asleep.

  Chapter 4

  Pierce knocked on the door of the band's tour bus. He knew that he had some major apologizing to do, and wondered if there was any way that he could ever make up for the night before. He was dreading the visit, and wanted to get it over with as quick as possible. For all he knew, she wouldn't even want to talk to him.

  He entered the bus slowly after the command to go in had been shouted. The first person he locked eyes with when he got on the bus was Dusty. He saw how Lola's brother tensed and got a look of pure hatred in his eyes upon seeing Pierce.

  "Hey." He said solemnly. "I, uh, want to apologize for last night. I froze, there's no other way to explain it."

  "No, there is another way to explain it. You're a selfish pussy, plain and simple." Dusty told him, a sharp edge in his voice. "You're lucky Tobias found her when he did, otherwise things could have been much worse."

  "I know. I was awake all night thinking about how lucky we both were that Tobias came when he did." He sighed and rubbed his forehead. "Listen, I know you're upset with me now, but I hope that we can move past this and not let it interfere with my relationship with Lola, or with my article."

  "If she even wants a relationship with you anymore." Sammy entered his two cents.

  "If my sister can forgive you, then we'll be civil. But if what you did scarred her in any way, you'll be off our tour so fast your head will spin. Not to mention you won't have a job anymore after we get through talking with your boss." Dusty threatened.

  "Understandable, I guess. Where is she? Can I see her?" He motioned to the back.

  "Yeah, she's still in bed, head on back." Dusty told him. After Pierce had walked back to the bunks, Dusty smiled at Sammy and AJ. All three knew that she had slept in Tobias' bed last night, and Pierce was going to flip.

  Marlo cuddled even closer to the warm body at her back. There was something comforting about being in the spot that she was in, something reassuring. A small smile spread across her face, enjoying the feeling of the moment.

  Tobias groaned quietly. Marlo had just rubbed against him as they were spooning, and he was having quite a reaction to her. He wrapped his arms around her tighter, hoping to hold her in place to keep her from moving anymore. He needed a chance to calm down before she woke up and freaked out about something poking her.

  As soon as his arms tightened, he heard a peaceful sigh come from Marlo. He had been so worried about her the night before. Even after she was safe with him in his bed, he worried that she would relive the moment time after time in her sleep. He thought for sure she would be wracked with nightmares, but she seemed to have slept rather peacefully.

  As Tobias was drifting back to sleep, the partition to his bunk opened up. "What the hell are you doing?" Pierce yelled when he saw his girlfriend sleeping with another man.

  Marlo shot up, her heart was racing. Just a minute ago, everything was quiet and calm, and now she felt like her heart was going to explode in her chest. Having just woken up, and in such a startling way, Lola was confused about what was happening. She looked at the man who had yelled and recognized Pierce. Slowly she looked behind her and saw Tobias. Uh-oh!

  Tobias narrowed his eyes when he saw Pierce. "What gives you the right to open my bunk?" He didn't yell, because Marlo had heard enough of that this morning, but he was stern and Pierce knew he meant business.

  "My girlfriend is in here, and I want to know why." Pierce whined.

  "Because he had the balls to take care of me. And because he was here to comfort me. Where were you when I needed you?" Marlo suddenly turned from confused to angry as the memories flooded back to her.

  Tobias put his hand on Marlo's shoulder, and gave it a little push so that she laid back down. "I think you need to leave. Now. Before I get really mad and kick the living shit out of you." He told Pierce icily. He wrapped his arms back around Marlo and ran his hand over her hair in a comforting gesture.

  Marlo closed her eyes again, feeling the peaceful feeling return. "I'll talk to you later Pierce. I need some time." Her voice held no emotion at all.

  Pierce was about to say something else, but when Tobias' eyes shot him a warning look, he turned and left. Tobias closed the partition again and held Marlo while she slept.

  The three guys sitting in the front room of the bus all laughed as Pierce left. He was sure heated that Marlo was with Tobias at the moment, and he wasn't given a chance to explain. They thought he got what he deserved. Actually, he got less than he deserved, but it was so
mething.

  Later that day, Marlo opened her eyes to see Tobias staring at her. "Hi." She whispered.

  "Hi. How're you feeling?" He asked softly.

  "Like I was almost raped last night while my boyfriend watched and did nothing to help me." She softly touched her face at the spot where the man had hit her. She winced as even the slightest touch sent her into a whole world of hurt. Her arms ached from where he had his grasp on her, and she was sure if she looked, there would be bruises in the shape of fingers. "But thank you for letting me sleep here last night. I don't think I would have made it through the night without you here."

  "I know, you've just been dreaming of ways to get into my bed." Tobias teased. Marlo tried to smile, but the cut on her lip split and she groaned in pain. "Sorry. I won't joke anymore."

  "I should probably get up and face the day." Marlo said, a little hesitant.

  Tobias understood, for the most part. "Hey, if you need me, just let me know."

  "I will. Thanks." She rolled out of the bunk and went to her drawers to grab some clothes.

  Tobias followed her out of the bunk. He stretched his arms over his head, trying to work out the kinks from being in his cramped bunk. He scratched his stomach and walked to the front room where the other guys were.

  Marlo looked up at him, and for the first time, she realized that he was wearing nothing but a thin pair of boxers. Her cheeks flushed remember how close they had been just a few minutes ago. Then, something hit her. "Hey Tobias?" She asked, her voice shaking. He turned, standing at the threshold between the front room and the hallway to the bunks. She picked her clothes up and walked over to him. "Thanks. For everything. You're my hero." She told him, her eyes sparkling. Then she did something that no one would ever have expected. She raised up on her tip toes and kissed his cheek.

  Before Tobias could say anything, Marlo had disappeared into the bathroom. Instead, he looked to his band mates for answers.