After another minute of playful pretend fighting, Kellan finally caved and grabbed her microphone. Twisting to the crowd, he muttered, "Hey." His one word caused an ear-splitting shriek to rip around the bar. It made my ears ring. Kellan laughed. Holding a hand up, he told the crowd, "It is so f**king good to be back here at Pete's!"

More shrieking. My sister held her fingers up to her mouth and whistled. It had always made me a little jealous that she could do that; I couldn't whistle with my fingers to save my life. Kellan looked out over the bar, his deep blue eyes sparkling. "You guys mind if the D-Bags take over for a song or two?"

There was no doubt by the crowd's reaction that they didn't mind in the slightest. Kellan looked back at the other members of the girl band. They were all nodding, clapping or whistling, willing to share their spotlight. Kellan smiled, then indicated for his band to join him.

Griffin wasted no time hopping up out of his seat. He nearly toppled my sister to the ground in his excitement, but Denny caught her and helped her into a chair. She grudgingly thanked him while Matt smacked the back of Griffin's head. The table next to us chuckled at the familiar sight of the cousins fighting.

Once all the boys hopped on stage, the girls handed them their instruments. Griffin frowned as Tuesday handed him her bright pink bass guitar. Blessing handed Matt her teal guitar, while Evan tucked himself behind Meadow's drums; the band's logo on the drum had a giant purple flower in the background. The girls shifted to the sides of the stage to give the boys room, while the crowd sniggered over the guys playing such feminine instruments. Rachel got such a bad case of the giggles that she started hiccupping.

Shaking his head, Kellan's amused expression made my heart beat harder. Kellan on stage. Nothing on earth could compare. The crowd agreed with me. Their eruption of noise when Evan started the intro vibrated the windows and created rings of distortion in Anna's glass of water. Running a hand through his hair, Kellan began to sing a popular D-Bags song. Every one of the old fans in the crowd started singing along, while the new fans continued shrieking.

Pulling the microphone from its stand, Kellan began his "strut." It was a seductive back and forth saunter across the front edge of the stage that let every woman watching know that he was aware of them. He locked eyes with every single one of them, giving them half smiles and cocky grins between the words he was singing. At various points along his path, he would stop, put his foot up on a speaker, and lean over to extend his hand to a few fans. They always reached back for him, squealing as their fingertips brushed his.

It used to send tiny bolts of jealousy through me, but seeing his amusement and their joy, all I felt was happiness watching him. He had a beautiful, almost symbiotic relationship with his fans; they fed off his energy, he fed off theirs. As the song neared its cli**x, Kellan stopped in the center of the front of the stage. Face full of playful expectation, he sang the crowd a question, "Is this all you want?" They passionately shouted back their answer.

When the song ended, the D-Bags immediately moved into another one. I wasn't sure if they were using a set song lineup, or if Evan just randomly decided which song to start playing next and the rest of them went along without hesitation. They'd been playing together for so long, maybe it was a little bit of both.

Their next song was fast and catchy, and Jenny and I dragged Rachel onto the floor to dance with us. Anna joined in, bumping and grinding despite her growing curves. I noticed Denny pulling Abby to the side of the crowd; they danced with bright smiles on their faces-no pain, no jealousy, just peace, which is what I'd always wanted for him.

When the song was over, Kellan took a quick bow, thanked the crowds, and then jumped right into the midst of them. He waded through a sea of wandering palms to get to me. Our arms wrapped around each other and eventually the friendly fingers of fans backed off. Kellan gave me a few light kisses as Rain's voice broke over the microphone. "Thank you, boys, but it's the girls' turn to kick ass now!"

Kellan looked back at her, laughing as they started one of their driving beats. Jenny headed back to work while Rachel slinked off to join Matt at the table. Anna meandered to a stool to sit down. Griffin headed over to nibble on her ear for a while. Denny gave me a small wave as he headed toward the doors with Abby. Kellan and I stayed in the thick crowd, dancing to Poetic Bliss's infectious beat. It had been a while since I'd danced with Kellan; the boy had moves. Sliding up behind me, he swayed his h*ps with mine in such a seductive way that I suddenly wanted to stop this public celebration and have a much more private one instead. Breath hot on my neck, he ran his nose up the side of my throat. Closing my eyes, I laid my head on his shoulder and reveled in the feeling of his body against mine. With a soft kiss on my jaw, he said over the music, "Wanna go somewhere with me?"

Boy, did I ever.

His hands slid down my hips, subtly pulling them back into his. I didn't need to feel his body to know what he was in the mood for, but feeling the outline of him through his jeans sparked a fire in mine. Twisting my head to look at him, I gave him a playful half smile and nodded. His corresponding grin was as devilish as the sudden gleam in his eye.

Biting my lip, I tugged him through the crowd of people until we got to the hallway. People tried to stop us as we moved along toward the back room of the bar, where only employees were supposed to go, but I expertly weaved us around them. Sliding around a couple of girls coming out of the bathroom, we slipped into the back room, quickly closing the door behind us.

Kellan pressed me into the door, turning the lock on it as he did. "New lock still works," he whispered, leaning in for my mouth. I chuckled as I drew him into me. It might have been the dancing, or the few beers I had, or seeing him on stage, or just the novelty of showing affection for him in public-something we hadn't been able to do much while on tour for the single-but I desperately wanted him.

While our mouths frantically worked together, my fingers slid down his chest to unfasten the button of his jeans. Groaning, his hands started in on mine. As I unzipped his jeans, I looked over his shoulder, just to make sure we were alone. The room was fairly open, I didn't see anyone hiding anywhere, so I found his lips again and closed my eyes.

As Kellan started to shove my pants down my hips, I slipped my hands into his jeans. He was so ready for me, hard and straining against my palm. He whimpered a bit as I squeezed him. My breath was fast as I fed off of the fiery passion I felt from him. It was like he was going to explode if he didn't have me. I was sure he was already on the edge, and just the slightest touch would send him right over. Remembering something Kellan had said once, to Denny, of all people, I stopped his hands from removing my clothes. He made a noise that sounded close to a growl as his fingers curled around my jeans. Well, we were celebrating, perhaps I should give him a present, something I didn't typically do for him-but maybe I should, since most guys like it. Or so I'd heard.

Pushing him away, I slid my back down the door. Kellan watched me descend with clear confusion on his face. "Kiera . . . ?"

When I stopped at his waist, he stopped breathing. The look on his face was as clear to me as if he'd begged: Please do what I think you're going to do. His finger slowly reached down to trace my jaw, and I felt more powerful, more desirable, and more beautiful than I ever had before. Not able to pull myself away from his intense eyes, I adjusted his clothes so he was exposed. The anticipation grew as we stared at each other. Kellan started breathing again, faster than before. He didn't say anything, didn't pressure me in any way, just continued to beg me with his eyes. When I noticed he was trembling, maybe fighting back the urge to bring my lips closer to him, I lowered my mouth and took him in. Kellan gasped, then groaned. I heard a thud as his forehead hit the door. I had tasted him before, on several occasions, but usually just a small lick or two when we were both rolling around nak*d. Nothing like this. Nothing that was so blatantly just for him.

As Kellan's erotic breaths picked up the pace, his hand cupped my cheek. He stroked my skin with his thumb while I did my best to relax as I moved over him. Faster than I thought it would take, I felt him tense and knew he was close. It was a now-or-never sort of moment, and I wasn't sure what I wanted, but I knew I wanted to satisfy him, and I knew what I would want if the roles were reversed. Kellan had his own thought on the matter, though. Murmuring my name with a light groan, his hand moved to my shoulder and he tried to push me back. I grabbed his h*ps and pulled him deeper into me. I'd committed to do this, and I would see it through to the end.

My aggressive move pushed Kellan over the edge. Crying out, he grabbed the door handle and squeezed it as he released; I could hear the metal rattling in the lock. It was enough to distract me from the taste . . . which wasn't quite as bad as I'd imagined.

After he slowly came down, I adjusted his boxers and slid my way up the door. His head was still resting against the wood, his eyes closed as he breathed in and out of his mouth. His face, his look, his reaction . . . I don't think I'd ever been so turned on in all my life. Slinging my arms around him, I nestled into his chest.

He shifted to bury his head in my neck. "Holy . . . oh my . . . fuck," he muttered.

His body sagged against mine and I giggled at his complete lack of coherency. I think I satisfied him. Stroking his back, I whispered, "Don't swear."

He chuckled and shook his head. "Sorry." His voice was groggy, like he'd just woken up.

My body was blazing with need, but Kellan was still slumped against the door; he didn't seem to be in any shape to help me with my situation. And I didn't really want him to. I loved the fact that I'd completely overwhelmed him, and I wanted this moment to just be about him. Reaching down, I slowly zipped up my pants, then moved my fingers over to zip up his. Still breathing deeply, Kellan pulled back and glanced down when he felt me fastening his jeans.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

Giving him a soft kiss, a kiss that a part of me really wanted to deepen, I told him, "I'm making you presentable, so we can finish celebrating with our friends."

Kellan seemed even more confused by my answer. "But you didn't . . . don't you want me to satisfy you?"

Just the inquiring angle of his head made me want to tear off his jeans and beg him to take me against the wall. But smiling at him, I shook my head. "You did satisfy me."

Kellan cocked his eyebrow. "I did? Are you sure? Because you're usually more vocal when you're satisfied." He gave me a provocative grin.

Biting my lip and rubbing my legs together, I debated changing my mind. Pushing him back a smidge, I told him, "I may not have . . . finished . . . but you definitely made me happy." I swept a strand of hair away from his eyes. "I want to give you this." Grabbing the doorknob behind him, I muttered, "You can return the favor later." I could hear him chuckling as I stepped into the hallway.

With the tour with Avoiding Redemption starting soon, the D-Bags dropped off of the face of the earth as they hid away with their significant others. I didn't see or hear from my sister for the next five days. When I wasn't visiting with old friends in the area-mainly Denny and Cheyenne-Kellan and I spent most of our dwindling free time tangled up in our sheets. I was very happy for my laptop; I could get some much needed work done while spooning with Kellan. And what greater writing inspiration could there be than that?

Needing a break from the drama of my past, I closed my manuscript file and started surfing the Internet. Kellan lifted his head from the pillow and kissed my shoulder. "You finally done with that?"

"No, I'm just taking a break. And no, you can't read it yet." Smiling, I typed in the name of his song with Sienna-"Regretfully." Maybe I was crazy for wanting to watch it, but the curiosity had been eating away at me ever since Denny had called it "convincing." Sienna wasn't why I wanted to watch it anyway. I wanted to support Kellan. He'd released his very first video, and I still hadn't seen it. That didn't sit right with me.

Kellan sat up, the sheet over his chest sliding to his waist. "Well, good, because I didn't want to read it right now anyway." I gave him a hard look, and he threw on an innocent smile. "I was finding the ceaseless typing relaxing, though." He glanced at the screen and frowned when he noticed what I was about to watch. "You sure you want to see that?"