Razzle Dazzle Read online

  Table of Contents

  Legal Page

  Title Page

  Book Description

  Dedication

  Trademarks Acknowledgement

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  New Excerpt

  About the Author

  Publisher Page

  A Totally Bound Publication

  Razzle Dazzle

  ISBN # 9781781848395

  ©Copyright Morticia Knight 2013

  Cover Art by Posh Gosh ©Copyright November 2013

  Edited by Sue Meadows

  Totally Bound Publishing

  This is a work of fiction. All characters, places and events are from the author’s imagination and should not be confused with fact. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, events or places is purely coincidental.

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any material form, whether by printing, photocopying, scanning or otherwise without the written permission of the publisher, Totally Bound Publishing.

  Applications should be addressed in the first instance, in writing, to Totally Bound Publishing. Unauthorised or restricted acts in relation to this publication may result in civil proceedings and/or criminal prosecution.

  The author and illustrator have asserted their respective rights under the Copyright Designs and Patents Acts 1988 (as amended) to be identified as the author of this book and illustrator of the artwork.

  Published in 2013 by Totally Bound Publishing, Newland House, The Point, Weaver Road, Lincoln, LN6 3QN

  Warning:

  This book contains sexually explicit content which is only suitable for mature readers. This story has a heat rating of Totally Burning and a Sexometer of 2.

  This story contains 189 pages, additionally there is also a free excerpt at the end of the book containing 10 pages.

  Gin and Jazz

  RAZZLE DAZZLE

  Morticia Knight

  Book two in the Gin and Jazz series

  Jack is on the verge of silent film stardom, but Hollywood glory won’t heal his broken heart. Then the seductive screen idol—Roman Pasquale—sweeps Jack away, and makes him his own. Will Roman’s obsessive love finally bring Jack true happiness?

  Jack is devastated by the loss of Nick, his best friend and lover. His only other friend, new Hollywood star Trixie Fox, comes to his rescue. What he doesn’t know is that she’s also helping Roman Pasquale in his carefully planned seduction of the shy and innocent Jack.

  Suave film screen idol Roman Pasquale has been obsessed by Jack Stone from the moment he spotted him at a Global Studios party. He will stop at nothing until the golden-haired young man belongs to him. An expert at getting what he wants, Roman plans every wicked word, look and move to bring him closer to achieving his prize.

  Jack is on the brink of stardom, and can’t believe that his movie star crush, Roman Pasquale, is taking an interest in him. But he resists the older, more sophisticated man’s attempts at seducing him. After all, he still loves Nick, and just isn’t ready to try again with anyone else. But when Roman turns on the charm, Jack is tempted. Can Roman replace Nick in Jack’s heart? Or is the magical world of the great Roman Pasquale all an illusion?

  Dedication

  “I have sacrificed everything for love”—Roman Pasquale as Santirelli in

  The Dark Gypsy

  Trademarks Acknowledgement

  The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of the following wordmarks mentioned in this work of fiction:

  Pacific Dining Car: Wes Idol III

  Tiffany & Co.: Tiffany and Company

  Hudson: The Hudson Motor Car Company

  Rolls-Royce: Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Limited

  Cadillac: General Motors Company

  Pig’n Whistle: Sunset Entertainment Group

  4711: Mäurer & Wirtz

  Perrier: Nestlé SA

  Louis Vuitton: Louis Vuitton Malletier

  Coca-Cola: The Coca Cola Company

  Parcheesi: The Milton Bradley Company

  Chapter One

  Gone.

  No matter how many times he chewed on that word in his head, it still spat out the same. Almost a week had passed since Jack had arrived back at the motel he and Nick had shared upon their arrival from New York—only to find that he was no longer there. Sure, they’d had an awful fight that evening, but they’d had some really horrible arguments before. There was no reason that this last one should have negated everything they’d been through together. Nick had always been his guide, his protector and finally, his lover. He was his best friend in the entire world, and Jack couldn’t envision his life continuing in any meaningful way without him.

  Unless he comes back. Or I find him somehow—and bring him back.

  The idea that he could make everything okay again had consumed Jack’s thoughts for days. He sat in their Hollywood motel room that lately felt more like a tomb, and conjured ways in which he could find him, and make Nick love him again. Because if Nick had really loved him, then it would have been impossible for him to leave. It was like the orphanage all over again. He’d been dumped there too because no one had loved him enough to keep him. Then, he’d been kicked out for loving the wrong gender—one of the boys there. Maybe it hadn’t been a real and true love—like what he had with Nick—but it had been something good.

  Jack wiped his eyes. The lids were chapped and sore from all the crying he’d done in the past week, and he felt completely used up. He’d barely eaten, and might not have at all if Trixie hadn’t stopped by with a burger and some colas. He hadn’t been interested in her cajoling and prodding to try to cheer him up. Instead, he had begged her to get him some cigarettes—the only thing that sounded appealing. When she’d returned, she’d given him an envelope with a fancy seal. The paper was like parchment, and coloured with the faintest shade of lavender. An elegant handwritten script spelled his name—‘Jack Stone’.

  He hadn’t opened it.

  He didn’t care who it was from, even it was some fantastic news regarding his burgeoning career in moving pictures. If it wasn’t from Nick, then he wasn’t interested. His Nick had been a regular guy. He would never use fancy stationery with pretty colours. He was hard-working, loyal, protective and loving—in his own special way. Nick had made sure Jack had all that he needed, whether it was food, shelter, work and, in the past few months, unbelievably intense sex. He had belonged to Nick. His man had sacrificed everything to provide for Jack. Nick had tried to shield Jack from the seamier aspects of surviving in Hollywood. But once Jack had discovered that Nick had sold himself to get them work and a paycheque, everything had seemed to fall apart.

  But it was really much earlier than that. The minute we got here. It was already on its way to being over.

  Desperate to keep another bout of weeping at bay, Jack forced himself to his feet. He badly needed a shower. He also marvelled at the strength of the August heat, and wondered if it would ever end.

  I need to pull myself together. I’ll never find Nick if I don’t.

  The first few days after Nick had left, life hadn’t seemed real. Jack had patiently waited for Nick to reappear. He must’ve gone off to a gin joint. Maybe he had checked into another motel, and would come back after he’d cooled down. He had just been mad, so he had grabbed his things and left. Then, after he’d thought about it, he’d real
ise just how much he loved Jack, and return.

  Didn’t he know how much I love him too? I told him over and over, even when he didn’t tell me.

  That last thought was like an even deeper wound in his already damaged heart. Maybe that really was the reason. Nick had never told him he loved him—because he didn’t. It was that simple. But it still didn’t make any sense. How could Nick have sacrificed so very much, and taken care of Jack all those years, fucked him with such ferocity, brought him to California, left his fiancé behind…

  Oh God. Please no.

  The subject of Penelope hadn’t been brought up for the last couple of months. She had always been Jack’s greatest fear, but once they’d begun their new lives in California, she had just never been mentioned again. Was it like his musician friend back in New York had warned him about—that guys played around with other guys for a while—and when it was out of their system, they got a gal and settled down? If Nick had headed back to Philly, Jack would never be able to find him.

  He doubled over, the pain building up in his chest again, threatening to break him in half. He threw himself on the motel bed and curled up into a ball. Fresh sobs racked his body and he buried his face in the pillow to muffle them. The aroma of Nick that he had clung to was no longer there. Jack had simply cried it away.

  He must have dozed off, because when he opened his eyes again, shadows were beginning to form, and the sunlight no longer streamed through the window. He leaned up on one elbow and tried to will the cobwebs in his brain to go away. His eyes were crusted over from the last spell of crying he’d done. An insistent tapping at the door made him turn over. Had it been stronger, and less feminine, hope would have built in his heart.

  What now?

  “Who is it?” he croaked out.

  “Come on, Jack, it’s me, Trixie. I’m tired of ya lockin’ yourself in there. Open up! You’re breakin’ my heart, sugar.”

  Trixie’s nasal voice sounded desperate, scared. He’d never heard her like that before. She was always filled with so much confidence and life.

  “Okay, hold on.”

  Keeping up with grooming and washing hadn’t been high on his list that week, so he went into the bathroom of the small room to at least rinse his mouth, and wipe his face with a cold cloth. He took a sniff of one armpit and wrinkled his nose. He didn’t even have a clean shirt he could quickly change into—he and Nick had always done all of the everyday chores together. But now there was no Nick…

  “I’m gonna get the coppers up here if yas don’t open up!”

  “All right, all right!”

  He reached the door and yanked it open. His only remaining real friend—new movie star Trixie Fox—stood in the hall in a stunning red satin sheath that went just past her knees. Long fringe attached at the bottom tried to make up for the rest of the dress that should have covered her black shimmering stockings. A red velvet cloche hat featuring a large white silk flower adorned her short auburn hair. She also looked very worried.

  “Oh, Jack!”

  She ran up to him and threw her arms around his neck. She cried against his chest. Jack hesitantly reached up to embrace her, but this was unusual for them. Despite being very close friends—and even working together doing sex-for-hire jobs—their physical contact had primarily been like brother and sister. Not to mention that Trixie wasn’t given to fits of emotion. She was a practical girl, and everything she ever did was a means to an end. She didn’t have time for regret. This was a new side to her.

  She pulled back from him, still holding his upper arms, and looked into his eyes.

  “Oh, Jack, you’ve had me just comin’ apart. I’ve been so worried about ya.”

  They were almost equal height—Jack was maybe an inch or two bigger. Nick had been the taller one at about six feet. The much too familiar heaviness pressed down on his chest whenever the slightest thought of Nick arose. Trixie squeezed him where her hands still held fast.

  “My God, Jack. You’re a skeleton! You ain’t got no meat on ya. Have ya eaten anythin’ since I came by a few days ago? Shit. Ya stink too.”

  Jack shook his head and tried to pull back from her. She finally let go. Without asking to come in, she just stepped into the room anyway. He sighed and sat down on the edge of the bed. He indicated to the only chair that was available and she gingerly took a seat. He could see that she looked around the rather messy area with distaste. It wasn’t really that bad in his opinion, just the piles of dirty clothes on the floor where he’d dropped them. Maybe some cigarette butts, as Nick had smashed their only ashtray. Of course, the discarded wrappers from his smokes, and the leftover packaging from the burger she’d brought him a few days before.

  I guess it is pretty bad.

  Trixie cleared her throat.

  “Listen, sweetie, I can’t leave ya here like this no more. Why don’t ya come and stay with me a while? Ya know, until yas feel better?”

  Jack slowly raised his head to consider her. Even that much movement was a huge effort.

  “But what if Nick comes back? He won’t know where to find me. I can’t leave, just in case.”

  Trixie frowned.

  “I know let’s what. How about we leave a note, and tell him you’re at my place? He knows where that is. Come on, honey, you’re breakin’ my heart.”

  A new emotion filled Jack. He felt bad for Trixie. He was sorry for getting her so upset. What kind of a friend was he? She was being so nice, and here he was only caring about himself.

  “Yeah, that would be okay I guess.”

  “Atta boy, now we’re talkin’. But do me a favour and go clean yourself up. I don’t know how much longer I can stand that stink. Once you’re done, I got some fantastic news.”

  Jack gave a half-hearted chuckle. One thing about Trixie—she never held back. And Jack had never been around her before when he wasn’t at least clean and groomed. They’d met at a speakeasy, and had only gone to the swankiest parties and gin joints ever since. Even when the three of them had gone to a sex job, it had been at the home of a swell.

  Jack turned on the water spigot to the shower after shutting the bathroom door. He discarded his filthy sweat-stained clothing, but there wasn’t anything he could possibly wear after he’d cleaned up that wouldn’t just add to his aroma all over again. He stepped under the water spray and willed himself not to think about the happier times when he and Nick would wash and play with each other in the small tiled stall. When they would make love, or Nick would hold him down for the rough sex that Jack loved so well.

  Sex.

  How much of their relationship had been eroded because they’d sold their bodies for money? Jack had originally wanted to blame Trixie for causing their problems by getting them the jobs where Jack and Nick would fuck each other in front of rich men, but she had done it from a place of trying to help. And she’d done that only after Jack had discovered that Nick had been selling himself to help them to survive in Hollywood. At least when they’d done the jobs Trixie got for them, Nick and Jack had only touched each other. No more strangers. No more bosses demanding sex to guarantee their employment as set builders.

  God, this feels good.

  The water brought him back to reality. It was like he was becoming human again, his mind a little clearer, his stomach rumbling. He actually thought he might be able to eat something. Focusing on getting ready and heading out with Trixie was helping him to move forward. He would go stay with her for a few days, and see what happened. He’d eventually have to think about some type of work. Especially if he was going to be on his own now.

  His gut tightened. He tried to ignore the feelings of sadness that thought invoked, and instead considered his options.

  He could certainly go back to doing handyman work—staying far away from the studios—or he could continue in the direction he’d been so bent on before everything had fallen apart. The night Nick had left, Jack had been on his way to tell him he was through with the whole movie star thing, and only wanted
to be with Nick from then on. But he’d never had that chance. He still had enough money from his one bigger acting job to pay another week’s rent on the motel, and have some spending money too. If he could even get one of those small jobs like the first one that paid him fifty dollars, he could go on quite well like that for a while. It wasn’t as if he was trying to get a nice place anymore. That had been what he’d wanted to do with Nick. And Jack didn’t even really care about fancy clothes and the other stuff that had seemed so important a mere week ago. He just needed enough to get by, and maybe buy some duds for studio events—like the party at screen god Roman Pasquale’s mansion the night that everything had fallen apart.

  That’s right.

  He turned off the water, stepped out of the shower then grabbed a towel. He examined himself in the mirror and saw just how scrawny he’d become. He ruffled the towel over his shaggy gold hair, and dried himself as he ran through the events in his mind from Roman’s party. It had been so unsettling at the time, but all of those thoughts had been banished once he’d arrived back at the motel and realised that Nick had taken all of his things and left.

  He’d happened to see Roman smoking in the backyard of his mansion, apparently hiding from the chaos of his own party. Roman had caught him watching and Jack had run back into the house to try to blend in with everyone else. But the weirdest thing had occurred. First, it had seemed as though he’d been being watched. Once he’d turned to check, he’d seen Roman looking in at him from a balcony window. When Jack had hastened to make his getaway, he could have sworn he saw Roman staring at him once more at the end of his driveway. It had all been very surreal, and after this past week of agony, Jack couldn’t even be sure anymore if it had all really happened.