As if. She could have him. I took a step back, ready to return to the living room.
But Chuck had a surprise in store for both of us. He peeled the woman away from himself and pointed to Buck's cubicle, whispering, "He's in there, and he wants you."
One rock star was clearly as good as another to this woman. And I couldn't completely disagree with that sentiment at this point in my new role as a band-sanctioned groupie. So it didn't surprise me when she scampered up the ladder.
There was a rustling sound followed by the woman's cooing. "Hi, Buck. Let me help you out of those pants."
From inside the cubicle, Buck shouted, "What? Stop that! Get out!" The rustling turned into jostling and the woman reemerged, pushed out by a strong arm.
She managed to grab the edge and lowered herself safely to the floor. Then she turned to Chuck without the slightest indication that it bothered her to have been thrown out of a man's bed. "I don't think he wants me," she giggled.
Chuck patted her naked backside. "Don't you worry about a thing. I want you. Go back to the bedroom, and I'll be there soon." She eagerly bounced through the door and disappeared.
Instead of following her, Chuck turned to me with one last attempt at what he seemed to call romance. "Join us, contest girl. The beast between my legs wants you." God, what a dick. And I didn't mean the beast between his legs.
My answer was still "no." As much as I wanted to pursue a fiery life, I definitely didn't want a fiery crotch. "Maybe another time. Go ahead and have fun."
Chuck gave me a mock salute and headed toward the bedroom. As he passed Buck's cubicle, a fist shot out, hitting his shoulder and knocking him against the bathroom door. Then the curtains flew open, and Buck leapt out, wearing boxer briefs and a black T-shirt. I stood in awe.
Buck had always seemed like a gorgeous man to me, but that was back when I was looking through teenage goggles. Now that we were older, Buck looked even better than he had ten years ago. According to their bios, he was an inch shorter than Chuck, but I could hardly tell the difference. He was certainly much more solidly built and more muscular-I could see his entire body primed and flexed as he held Chuck against the wall. So handsome, so sexy. What a delightful first impression of the man: his pants off, his muscles toned.
Unfortunately, Buck didn't seem delighted at all. He didn't even notice me-he was focused entirely on Chuck. "Could you be any more of an asshole?" He glared with hard, venomous eyes.