Monarchy of Roses

Chapter 18

Warning, this chapter has adult content.

Nika was sure that her heartbeat was audible to everyone in the hotel as Josh took her hand and led her upstairs. "Relax, Night Owl", he teased.

"Ah, after the song. One of my favorite Northern Soul stompers, by Bobby Paris. He was American", she babbled.

Josh led her inside his room and turned on the light. He carefully unbuttoned his blazer and draped it over the chair before opening the minibar and taking out two little bottles of vodka, opening both and handing one to her. "Nika, have you ever been with a guy at all? Like on a date or anything else?", he asked.

"No, whenever I thought about wanting to date a guy, Mom's voice pops up. She said boys are a distraction, that I was too smart for boys and that other kids are jealous of me", she said in a flat monotone.

Josh calmly sipped his vodka, but secretly he wanted to throttle her mother. "It's normal for people to date, people weren't meant to be single forever. And dating isn't a distraction, busy as I am with recording with your Dad, playing in Dot Hacker or whatever project, I still have fun. I've dated girls and gone to parties all the while, having fun is not a distraction. In fact, some of my best music I've wrote after I've gone to a party or hung out with friends", he said.

"And what about sex?", she asked, raising an eyebrow.

Josh blushed and fidgeted on the bed. "Sometimes, after sex, I've come up with great ideas. But it's been a while", he said ruefully.

Nika sipped her vodka and became thoughtful. She kicked off her sandals and wiggled her toes as she mulled over his words. He was certainly busy with recording on her father's albums, Dot Hacker and other bands, but he never seemed stressed out by his workload. In fact, he was always full of energy and coming up with new ideas for songs. "So I ought to be distracted, then. How about you try to distract me?", she teased, a wicked gleam in her blue eyes.

Josh felt his mouth go dry and blood rush to both his face and his groin. "Do you mean it, Night Owl? I don't want to take advantage of you", he said.

Nika felt a surge of desire go through her at his kind words, seeing that his brown eyes turned gold with lust. "Yes, it feels right. When I was a kid, I thought you were just Dad's cool musician friend. But I like you know as a man, Josh Adam Klinghoffer", she declared.

Josh grinned like a schoolboy as he scooped her up into his arms and kissed her hard. "I thought you were a cute kid when we first met, but you've blossomed into a beautiful woman. Let me show you", he murmured.

Josh kissed her again and his lips left hers to plant little kisses along her jaw and down her throat. Nika whimpered softly at the gentle kisses and the slight chafe of his scruff against her skin, her heart thumping and a strange sensation forming in the pit of her stomach. Suddenly, Josh rose up from the bed and a little grin formed on his lips. "Do you trust me, Nika?", he asked.

Nika was caught off-guard by his words. "Yes, Josh. I've known you for a long time", she said.

"No, do you trust me as a man?", he demanded.

Nika shivered at the look of lust on his face, the tense line of his jaw and the golden highlights in his brown eyes. She knew in her mind that she should have been scared, but this time she decided differently. "Yes", she answered simply.

Josh let out the breath he'd been holding and kissed her. Before she could return the kiss, Josh got up from the bed and went over to his suitcase. Nika raised an eyebrow when he took out a blue and white Paisley bandanna and walked over to the bed. "Relax, Nika", he murmured.