For One Night Only (Siren Publishing Classic) Read online

  For One Night Only

  For one night only…that’s all Dr Bethany Shaw tells herself she can handle. Still reeling from a past relationship, she trusts no one. The encounter with a mesmerizing rock star threatens to change her life forever. Can she let go of the pain and learn to love again?

  For one night only…that’s all Latino rock singer Ruben Navarro can promise, both on stage and in bed. Bored long ago of the readily available women, his sole passion is his charity, until he meets a reserved but sexy doctor who makes him want to forget his past.

  For one night only…that’s all she ever had, but it would never be enough for the damaged young woman who watches Ruben’s every move from the shadows. The promise of being with him again is all she lives for—and nobody is going to get in her way.

  Sensuality Rating: SCORCHING

  Genre: Contemporary

  Length: 71,000 words

  FOR ONE NIGHT ONLY

  Luxie Ryder

  EROTIC ROMANCE

  Siren Publishing, Inc.

  www.SirenPublishing.com

  A SIREN PUBLISHING BOOK

  IMPRINT: Erotic Romance

  ABOUT THE E-BOOK VERSION: Your non-refundable purchase of this e-book allows you to one LEGAL copy for your own personal use. It is ILLEGAL to send your copy to someone who did not pay for it. Distribution of this e-book, in whole or in part, online, offline, in print or in any way or any other method currently known or yet to be invented, is forbidden without the prior written permission of both the publisher and the copyright owner of this book.

  FOR ONE NIGHT ONLY

  Copyright © 2008 by Luxie Ryder

  E-book ISBN: 1-60601-091-3

  First E-book Publication: August 2008

  Cover design by Jinger Heaston

  All cover art and logo copyright © 2008 by Siren Publishing, Inc.

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED: This literary work may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in part, without express written permission.

  All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.

  PUBLISHER

  Siren Publishing, Inc.

  www.SirenPublishing.com

  DEDICATION

  To my sisters and my friends at the FC who have always supported my writing—you know who you are.

  FOR ONE NIGHT ONLY

  Luxie Ryder

  Copyright © 2008

  Chapter 1

  Bethany instantly recognized the person who got to his feet as she entered the Penthouse Suite. Waiting until the flamboyant man with spiky bleached blond hair who had answered the door introduced her, she extended a hand.

  She had been called out to a few of the big hotels on The Strip in the past couple of years, and had treated many showgirls and performers, but he was her first real celebrity.

  ‘Are you the patient?’ She had to check. He looked too damn good to be ill.

  ‘Yes, it’s me. Thank you for coming Doctor Shaw,’ he said, smiling warmly as he shook her hand.

  ‘So you do actually believe I am a doctor?’ Her words surprised both men, but she couldn’t resist the dig at the short, weirdly dressed guy who had practically frisked her at the door before allowing her to enter.

  Ruben smiled in apology. ‘Please excuse our strange behavior, but surely you realize that we need to be very careful?’

  She didn’t doubt that for one minute. The singer facing her was globally famous, huge even by Vegas standards, although he was no longer as wildly popular as he had been when his first single was released some years ago. Known only by his last name of ‘Navarro’, his musical style was unique, a kind of ‘Rock/Flamenco’ fusion that relied far too heavily on screaming guitars and raucous vocals for her tastes.

  He was a couple of inches taller than her 5’9”. The combination of black collar length wavy hair, dark brown eyes and golden skin was stunning. His features could have been a little too strong, but were softened by long eyelashes and a warm, full mouth. A trace of an accent remained from his youth and gave his deep, slightly husky voice an exotic air.

  A brief, tight smile crossed her face. ‘I understand, of course. People are usually relieved to see me. It’s not often that I get interrogated on the doorstep.’

  ‘Well, we’re happy to see you…right Byron?’ He winked at his friend and turned to give her a wide smile. She fought the urge to return his grin, busying herself by putting her bag down, while she inquired as to the nature of the problem. Retrieving her stethoscope as he spoke, she turned to him.

  ‘Okay, if you could just remove your shirt, Mr. Navarro.’

  ‘Why do I need to take my shirt off?’ Ruben exclaimed. His dark eyebrows knit together in surprise, chasing away the boyish charm he had been leveling at her moments before.

  ‘So I can listen to your breathing,’ she replied in an exasperated tone. ‘There is no need to look so scared. I have seen many bare chests before.’

  Ruben flushed. ‘I’m sorry. We have to be careful…’ His voice trailed off as he shuffled uncomfortably.

  ‘Yes, you told me that already,’ she murmured. ‘Do I look like a groupie, Mr. Navarro?’ she asked, beginning to smile.

  He reddened further. ‘No, I guess not.’

  Byron coughed and excused himself from the room, making a poor job of disguising his amusement.

  Turning his back to her, Ruben removed the black shirt. Bethany raised her head just as he slid the fabric down over his shoulders, exposing a broad expanse of toned muscle. She swallowed hard as she watched his back ripple from the motion, light bouncing along his olive skin. Dropping his shirt onto the bed, he turned to her. Boyish embarrassment gone, it was every inch the man that steadily returned her gaze.

  ‘Where do you want me, Doctor?’

  If his back was gorgeous, his front was better! Taking in his broad chest, her eyes dropped to his abdomen, following the trail of hair until it disappeared into the waistband of his jeans.

  ‘Doctor Shaw?’

  Snapping back to attention, she realized he had spoken to her. She saw his knowing look and felt like she had been caught with her hand in the cookie jar. A quirky smile played on his lips as he asked again where she wanted him. Berating herself, she told him to sit on the bed. After assuring him she was not a groupie, the mere thought of touching him made her nervous.

  Mischievous brown eyes twinkled at her as she crossed the room to stand over him. Resolving not to look him in the eye again, she asked him to take a deep breath as she placed the stethoscope on his chest. The contact of the cold metal caused him to flinch momentarily, making her jump in response.

  ‘Sorry, I forgot to warm it up.’ She laughed nervously, raising the disc to her mouth to breathe on it. His eyes followed her actions and she saw them spark briefly before she moved out of his line of vision. Placing the warmed disc back onto his skin, she found it was hard to hear much with her own blood pounding in her ears.

  Bethany moved again, asking him to turn to the side so she could listen through his back. She was mortified to see her hands shaking as she touched him again. Her eyes drifted to where his hands were braced on his thighs and she noted his long, thick fingers. Mouth going dry, she remembered what they said about guys with big hands and dropped the stethoscope all together. Ruben craned his head around to look at her.

  Dropping to her knees to retrieve her equipment, she glanced up to find him looking down her blouse. Scrambling quickly to her feet, she straightened her jacket, shielding her body from his eyes, lest he s
pot the hardened nipples she could feel begging for attention.

  ‘All done?’ he asked, the lightness of his tone in direct opposition to the intensity of his gaze. He’d noticed all right.

  ‘Yes, thank God,’ she replied, realizing belatedly that she had spoken out loud. His look of surprise was replaced seconds later by a broad laugh. Flushing furiously, she laughed herself. She really had to get a grip on her nerves.

  ‘Okay, Mr. Navarro, I just need to check your glands and then I think I am done,’ she said, determined to get the situation back under control. Her legs didn’t want to respond, but she forced them forward as she walked over to where he stood and placed her fingers at his throat.

  ‘Please, call me Ruben,’ he replied smoothly, looking down at her through slit eyes as she focused on the column of his neck. Her gaze flashed up to his briefly before she stood back, grateful to put some space between them.

  ‘Well then…Ruben, your chest sounds fine and your glands are not too swollen so I think you are over the worst of it. Are you performing tonight?’ He nodded. ‘In that case, I think I will give you a shot to help with the symptoms. That should get you through.’

  The thought of touching him again unnerved her so she chatted mindlessly as she prepared. ‘My niece did nothing but talk about your concerts for the last month,’ she told him with a nervous laugh.

  ‘Is she coming tonight?’

  ‘No. Unfortunately she couldn’t get a ticket. It’s lucky for me actually as I promised I would take her and I did not relish the thought of a night in an arena full of screaming teenagers.’

  ‘There are all ages at my shows,’ he told her, voice slightly defensive. ‘If you like, I can certainly arrange a couple of tickets.’

  Bethany hesitated for a second. Her first response was to say no, but then she would have to spend the rest of her life making sure she never mentioned to Tyla that she had been in a room with Ruben Navarro and had refused free tickets. ‘Well, my niece was very disappointed,’ she pondered aloud.

  ‘Then that settles it! Come to the stage door tonight and I’ll make sure there are two tickets waiting for you.’ He turned away from her confident she would not refuse.

  Watching him shrug his shirt on, she wondered at the sanity of spending any more time looking at this man. It would be interesting to see that body in action though. Flushing at her train of thought, she thanked him, avoiding his eyes and his outstretched hand and moved quickly towards the door.

  Byron appeared from nowhere to open it for her, as if he had been waiting just out of sight. She barely had time to form the thought that he may have been eavesdropping on them, when he confirmed it by giving her a warm smile and saying he would see her at the concert. She smiled back, forgetting her earlier annoyance at the flamboyant little man.

  Waiting until she knew she was out of earshot of the suite, she got out the cell phone from her bag. Tyla was never going to believe what had just happened.

  Chapter 2

  ‘Now that was interesting,’ Ruben said as Byron came back from seeing the hot looking doctor to the door. The staid suit she wore did her no justice, but couldn’t hide her long, lean body. He smiled again as he recalled how flustered the tall brunette had gotten. He could tell that she’d been surprised at her own reaction to him although she was classy enough to disguise it well. Only the spark in her pretty green eyes had given her away.

  The shrill ring of his cell phone broke through his reverie. Seeing it was Karen, the angel who ran his charity, he greeted her warmly but briefly, knowing that if she rang it had to be something important. He was probably needed in the office. After initially committing to a major part of the workload himself, he’d been forced to take a back seat eventually but had maintained overall control of the charity’s management. The problem was that meant there were certain jobs only he could do and at times like this, he regretted the decision.

  It had all started years ago with an offer to become a UN Goodwill Ambassador. He had to admit his initial motivation had been a selfish one. It never hurt your image to show the public your ‘caring’ side. He’d guessed also that it could be cathartic and help him to sort out some of the stuff he was still carrying around from his childhood. But, once he’d begun to educate himself on the issues facing children in the Third World, the horror he’d found chased any thoughts of self-gratification out of his head. He would never forget what he’d seen and heard in those first few days—children being trafficked, sold into slavery, prostituted, abused, and orphaned by AIDS. It had changed him and his view of the world forever. He’d known he had to do something.

  So, he’d started his own charity. Initially they had focused on raising funds and awareness about the myriad problems these kids faced. Recently though, they concentrated solely on the problems of the lack of medicines, health care providers and simple AIDS education in the world’s poorest regions. It was a thankless task and, so far, hadn’t affected the statistics much, but he wouldn’t give up on it. For years now, a portion of the profits from his record sales had gone directly towards funding.

  Ruben ended the call as Byron brought him a sandwich. He was in his late forties, and had been his personal manager as well as his best friend for the last fifteen years. Byron looked tired these days, Ruben thought, and had been neglecting his personal life recently. ‘When did you last speak to John?’

  ‘Earlier today. He was in the worst mood so it wasn’t a long call.’ Ruben recognized the blasé tone Byron always used when he was pretending he wasn’t bothered about something. The tour had been hard on both of them. The difference for Ruben was that he didn’t have a personal relationship that was suffering as a result. Byron missed John badly, but he refused to have him join them, claiming that he wouldn’t be able to mother two people at the same time.

  The US leg of the tour was almost over. Ruben didn’t even want to think about Europe, never mind the Middle East. They were definitely going to need some time off before then. The charity wanted a little of his undivided attention and Byron really should go home for a few days.

  Clicking on his laptop, he sighed as he opened his email account to find endless pages of messages waiting for him. Damn, not again. His inbox had been flooded since the last time he had logged on a couple of days earlier. He’d pay whatever it took to find out who had given his private email address out to a fan. Forced to change it a few times in the past, he’d found the process of notifying everyone who needed to contact him via email a total pain. Besides, someone always seemed to get the new one from somewhere. Eventually, he’d decided to keep the one he had, simply deleting any mail from people he didn’t know, without reading it.

  Ruben laughed, remembering some of the sleazier messages he’d stupidly read in the past. He considered himself a worldly man, but had never even heard of half of the things the emails talked about doing to him. Some of them were very innocent and sweet, but others had been pretty nasty, threatening to harm him and any woman whose name had been linked to his—usually falsely—in the press.

  Unable to delete every email cluttering his inbox in case some were important, he resolved to at least scan them all before he left for the venue, pausing only to beg Byron for another cup of coffee.

  The Fan had waited with the others for hours in the stifling heat but there had been no sign of him at all. They had checked all the exits for a glimpse of somebody they knew. His manager Byron would usually be running in and out, giving away Ruben’s location without intending to.

  The girl next to her suggested they join the rapidly forming line of people waiting to enter the arena. As usual, most of the hardcore fans had tickets for the front rows, but it never hurt to get your seat early—it left more time for scouting out the venue, looking for ways to get backstage.

  Following the crowd reluctantly, she remembered with a flash of anger that she had forgotten to send the emails she had spent all night composing. She wrote to him every day and wondered if he ever read them. It would be
a terrible waste of her time and effort if he hadn’t at least seen some.

  Mind you, it wasn’t easy staying in touch with him. After an initial fraught time for her when he kept changing his email address, she had managed to write to him often, sometimes up to ten times a day. More if she was feeling particularly creative. Changing her own address every few days had become a necessity once she had realized her regular account was being blocked.

  Her poetry told him everything she could not. Maybe one day soon, she would get to read him a few poems. Maybe during a long, lazy morning in bed or a romantic dinner?

  Pulling herself up short, she remembered she was in company and couldn’t afford to let her feelings about Ruben surface. Thoughts of the two of them together always elicited an almost painful physical reaction in her—a combination of unbearable sadness and instant arousal, tinged with anger. Many times, when the feelings were too intense, they had sent her blindly out into the night, desperate for release. Men were easy to find and always happy to oblige an attractive woman who just wanted to fuck. The arrogant fools thought they had struck lucky, unaware that she had less respect or use for them than she did her vibrator.

  The woman beside her was irritating. The constant chatter intruded on her thoughts; spoiling the anticipation she could feel building within. The day would soon come when they would all realize how very little they had in common with her. It served her purposes to allow them to think she was as pathetic and hopeless as they. Let them believe that all she lived for was a smile or a kiss. Some of them dared to dream of more, but she knew they would never get near him, not in that way. Many of his fans were middle-aged housewives holding on to their youth through fantasies…fantasies they pursued relentlessly. The irony of it all made her laugh. They didn’t know the real Ruben, wouldn’t want him in fact. The Holy Grail they sought didn’t exist.

  They didn’t know him, as she did, as a real flesh and blood man, not the plastic fantasy the public saw. They wanted a lover who would say all the right things and never hurt them or shatter their illusions. They craved a romantic hero to save them from the soul-destroying monotony of their day-to-day lives. She pitied them. They had no idea how futile their dreams were.