Chapter 2

THWACK!

“Ow!” Emmie exclaimed and sat up, frowning as she rubbed her slightly sunburned stomach. She looked around, confused, for the offending object that had just slapped her a bit too hard in the middle. A volleyball, it was a volleyball. Her eyes traveled past the offending ball and up the beach, landing on a small group of quiet, ragtag-looking young men. Skinny, sweaty, with wild long hair and nearly tattered shorts that had seen a brighter day than this. She groaned as two of the group approached to retrieve their ball.

Gia groaned at the sudden interruption of a very vivid, very hot dream. “Oh Em, did you have to wake me up now?“ She squinted and rolled up to a sitting position. “What’s the deal?“

Just as those words left her mouth, her eyes widened at the sight of the two very hot men fast closing in on them, one of whom quickly grabbed her attention. She slid her sunglasses down to get a better look . “Well, now I see--oh, fuck me, that is fine...“ she muttered, her gaze taking in the Greek God heading her way, from his scraggly blondish-brown hair and nice muscular chest to those barely-there scruffy jean shorts.

Emmie frowned, a pretty pout pulling at her lips. “Those...beasts just beaned me with their balls!”

Gia burst into a fit of giggles. “They could bean me anytime with their balls.“ Then she stood up to greet the men that dared to send Em into a tizzy.

“Ugh, slut!” She smirked with no malice, only amusement, before fixing her face once again into a frown as she looked up at the men now towering over her.

Gia grinned as she stuck out her tongue, watching Em try to keep frowning. “Rather be a slut and satisfied than a sexually-frustrated prude.“

“I’m not a--” she paused as the darker man spoke.

“I think I might make a bad serve more often.“ Richie winked, then tossed Jon a cheeky grin as his gaze travelled over the petite blonde.

Jon grinned back at his buddy, taking in the stunning beauty of the two women as different as day and night. One was a tight, fun-sized little package of tan and blonde fluff, just how Richie liked ‘em, the other, well, she was something! Hair black as a raven’s wing and skin the color of a creamy mocha latte, with legs that just wouldn’t quit. “We’re sorry, ladies,” Jon apologized. “Didn’t mean to disturb your tanning session.“

Gia glanced at her cousin, who had suddenly lost her voice. Biting back a chuckle, she answered for her. “It’s ok, really, it was time for us to turn over anyway.“ Damn if he wasn’t fucking hot. She wished she could see behind those sunglasses to see his eyes and find out if they were anything like the rest of him. She had hit the jackpot.

“Well then--” he peeked over the edge of his sunglasses to toss her a wink-- “glad we could be of service.” With a slightly cocky smirk, he picked up the volley ball and turned to make his way back to the game. Stealing a glance not once, not twice, but three times back at the dark vixen of the beach before calling out to his friend, “Yo man, come on, we gonna finish this or what?”

Richie was almost dumbstruck over this petite blond beauty. “What? Oh yeah! You girls care to join us?“ he asked. “We could use the help kickin’ our road crew’s ass.“ A deep chuckle escaped his lips to match the twinkle in his eyes.

Emmie, who had been sitting quietly studying the tall, dark man still standing there waiting expectantly, surprised not only her cousin but herself when she piped up, “Sure!” and stood, quickly brushing the sand off her legs. She didn’t even bother to look back at Gia as she followed the stranger up the beach.

Gia stood there for a moment, her mouth agape. “What the fuck? Em?” Then, she took off after her cousin. She had thought for sure Em would have said no--a very polite no, but no .

Richie grinned. He couldn’t tell if she came because of who they were, or what, but he was just glad his charm worked on this lil’ darlin’. “Great, darlin’, you’re on our side. You can stand here.“ He reached out and placed her gently beside him.

Emmie smiled and spoke softly, “Yeah, maybe I should cover the big open spot there, hmm?” She moved herself into a better position for the game and wondered at her eagerness to join the group of...well, what were they anyway? Long-haired punk beach bums? And what was it with the dark-haired guy? He was so...tall and so...tanned, and his arms were as big around as her thigh, and his lips, they were so full, and his eyes, they twinkled like fireworks when his mouth pulled up into a teasing grin, and he was just so...well, tall....

Richie bit back a frown of disappointment. He had thought, as quickly as she had said yes, she would have wanted to stand next to him. The puzzled look on her face made him wonder what exactly she was thinking. She really was quite the beauty, her sun-kissed hair pulled into a ponytail, her eyes a striking blue, and that body. She wasn’t voluptuous, but her curves suited her, especially in the black bikini. “Sure, darlin’, seems like you’re right. We do have a big gap there.“

Gia arrived at the volleyball net, shooting her cousin a glance. Who has taken my cousin and what have they done with her? she wondered to herself. Em’s puzzling behavior caused her to completely forget about the Greek god that had just a few moments ago captured her undivided attention. Her hands went to her hips, then she called out to her cousin, “What are you doin’, Em?“

“Uh...” Emmie shrugged. “Playing volleyball?” she answered innocently. “You gonna play or what?”

Gia’s eyes darted around to the group standing there waiting for her answer. “I--sure, where ya want me?“ she asked, then spotted the big area her cousin was covering. “Nevermind, I see.“ She quickly made her way beside Em .

Jon grinned like a wolf as the leggy woman passed by him. He’d known Richie would get them over here. Richie always had more patience to play the charmer than he did. Richie liked a challenge, Jon just liked women, and lots of ‘em. He didn’t have the time to charm them all. He licked his lips as he took in the view of her ass when she dove for the ball. Well, maybe I could spend a little time on this one...with an ass like that...

Gia dove for the ball, her body making full contact with the soft yet very firm sand-covered ground. It had been years since she’d had a good game of volleyball; her aunt didn’t believe girls should play sports. “Might ruin your looks Gia , and you need your looks to get you a good husband someday,” her aunt’s irritating voice filtered through her brain as she sent the ball across the net with almost thundering force.

Jon, Richie, Emmie, and the rest on their side of the net let out a whoop as Gia scored the winning point. Emmie grinned and high-fived her cousin. “Good shot!”

“Damn, it felt good to do that,“ Gia laughed as she returned the high-five, neither girl noticing the attention they were receiving because of the bouncing.

“In your face, boys! Now you got extra duty.“ Richie smirked at the losing side, then turned to the girls. “Thanks, girls, for saving the game for us. My name is Richie, by the way.“ He held out his hand to Em.

“Hey, I’m Emmie.” She reached her hand out to his and watched as hers was swallowed by large, long, slender fingers. “And, uh, no problem.“ She shrugged and smiled. “It was getting boring just laying around with Gia anyway. Kinda glad you hit me now.”

Gia shot Em a look, then gave her the middle-finger salute. “I didn’t hog-tie you and force you to lie on the beach.“

Richie snorted at the two girls’ banter. “Are you two sure you ain’t sisters?“

Emmie laughed. “Nah, not sisters, but still family. You can tell huh?” She grinned at Gia and saluted her back. “You’re number one, Gia!”

“Reminds me of me and my bros here.“ He swung around and pointed to Jon and the others standing nearby.

Gia rolled her eyes. “And what does that make you, Prude?“ A smirk spread across her face as the word she thought Emmie hated floated from her lips.

“You may be number one, Gia, but I’ll always be the princess!” She smiled sweetly.

“You can have that title. No way in hell do I wanna be a princess. I’d rather be--“ Gia stopped short, realizing other ears were listening .

Jon smirked, then raised an eyebrow. “Rather be what?”

“She’d rather be the courtesan.”

Richie spewed his beer as a deep, hearty chuckle escaped his lips. He had thought he’d witnessed everything since hitting the big-time, but this had to take the cake.

Gia’s eyes grew dark, then she spoke with a deceptively sweet smile, “Yeah, better than a sexually-frustrated prude of a princess.“ She snapped, then immediately chastized herself. Why the fuck did I just get angry with Em? She thought to herself as she glanced over at Jon and her eyes softened What is it about this man that has me all twisted in knots . Why did it matter what he thinks of me ?

Emmie didn’t bother to retort. She was amused; Gia was actually getting angry. That didn’t happen very often. Her gaze slid toward the blond guy who was standing a few paces away, leering at Gia as if he wanted to devour her right there. He certainly didn’t seem put off by Emmie’s accusations of sluttiness; he actually seemed to look even more encouraged. Gia should be thanking her.

“Uh, I’m Jon, by the way.” He finally stopped leering long enough to speak, though he wondered why he needed to introduce himself. After all, Bon Jovi was practically a household name and he was the new poster-boy for Sexy Rock Star, even if it did grate on his last nerve.

Gia shook away the anger that had crept up in her unexpectedly and turned to face the blond--Jon--who once again captured her whole attention. And holy hell, that smile caused her knees to go weak. “Hi, my name is Gia. Nice to meet you.” God, how lame is that? She grimaced

“I was thinking: since you girls won the game for us, you gotta drink with us to celebrate.“ Richie smiled.

Emmie contemplated the offer for a moment. Her plans for her first day in Paradise had consisted of lots of sun, a good book, and a nap, not necessarily in that order. She hadn’t really planned on hanging out with guys, or partying. That was more Gia’s style. So was volleyball but that hadn’t stopped her from joining in, so why stop now? She watched Gia’s shocked reaction when she said, “Well, why not? A glass or two of wine certainly wont hurt, will it?”

“Good.“ Richie smiled, held out his arm, and led her to the table where the alcohol was kept.

“What’s your poison?“ he asked while reaching for another beer for himself.

For the second time in one day, Gia’s cousin shocked the hell out of her. “Well, hell!“ she exclaimed. “What is goin’ on with her? She never does this.“

“Does what? Drink?” Jon chuckled as they walked over to the table. He grabbed two frosty beers out of a cooler, cracking off the tops, then handed one out to her. “You seem like a beer and shot kinda girl to me. I hope this is good.”

Gia took a big sip of the chilled beer. “I like anything that has alcohol in it. This is perfect, thanks.“

Jon nodded in appreciation. “My kinda girl all the way.”

Gia flashed a huge smile. “You are quite a charmer too, as your friend was. Hell, I’ve never seen my cousin so bent over a guy before. She usually blows them off,“ she scoffed.

Jon dropped to the sand, sitting Indian-style, and patted the ground beside him. “Well, Richie’s used to getting blown, and getting off, but not getting blown off.” He grinned, then laughed at his own cheap shot.

Gia plopped down beside him, and a burst of laughter escaped her. “Really, how often do you get blown--off, that is.“

Jon grinned, “Honestly? Blown? Often. Off? Hardly ever!” He took a long, hard pull of his beer and fixed his completely serious stare on the girl beside him.

Gia shot him a incredulous look. “Don’t have an ego, do we?” she replied, while taking a huge sip of her beer.

“Nah, not at all, baby, I’m just...” he paused to think of the right words. “Brutally honest?”

“What else are you brutally honest about? Inquiring minds wants to know.” Gia smirked, her eyes scanning over him like an x-ray machine scanning a broken arm.

“Well, for starters, I’d really like to have you for dinner tonight,” he said matter-of-factly. Then, he stopped laughing when he realized how over-the-top that sounded, and said, “I mean, have you OVER for dinner tonight.”

Gia grinned, a naughty twinkle in her emerald green eyes. “Are you sure you don’t mean the first version?” Em always thought Gia was so over-the-top and slutty, but to be honest, she was mostly talk, mainly to rile up her aunt. Oh, by no means was she a virgin, but she didn’t have as many notches on her bedpost as she claimed.

Jon relaxed, leaning back as he laughed a bit, “Well, yeah. I probably did, huh?”

“I don’t know, you tell me; I just met you.” Gia smirked, then moved over onto her side, propping herself on her elbow.

“Yeah, I know we just met, but from what I’ve seen and heard of you--” he smiled, his eyes twinkling devilishly as he peered over the top of his sunglasses at her-- “I think you and I understand each other pretty damn good.” He winked.

“If the understanding means you, me, and a secluded spot, then yes, I believe we understand each other really well.” Gia grinned naughtily. “What happens in Jamaica stays in Jamiaca is my motto.” She paused for a moment, those baby blues distracting her, then continued. “Seriously, though, my mouth tends to get me into trouble, but yes, I would love to have dinner with you.”

Jon gave a hearty laugh at her round-about way of saying yes. Not only was the woman deliciously sexy, but she was funny, mouthy, and hadn’t one time mentioned who he was, the band, or the fame. She sure was one cool kitty, this Gia. “Well, great. I’m in room 415. That’s my private suite, so come as comfortable as you like.” His eyes once again raked over her body teasingly. “You can come just like that, if you like.”

“So we’re dining in, huh? 415. What time is good for you?” Gia asked, biting her bottom lip in anticipation. Her eyes meshed with his. There was something about this Jon that made her want to get to know him better. She really hoped she didn’t come across too brash for him, and couldn’t figure out why it would matter anyway.

“Aw hell, babe, I dunno. Seven sound good?”

“Seven sounds great. I should go get my cousin and head back; we’ve intruded on enough of your time. Thanks for the beer and great game of volleyball. If you need players again, don’t hesitate. We’re staying in the hotel where we were laying out.” Gia smiled , then stood to brush off the sand.

“Yeah, will do.” He stood as well, and fell silent for a moment before surprising even himself by reaching out, cupping the back of her head gently, and dropping an innocent kiss on her cheek. “See ya later, Gia.” He turned on his heel and walked away.