Chapter 16: Expansions

The following Friday evening Dave was tending bar with Jake, Sharon, and Candy helping and even delivering drinks and shuttling hors d’oeuvres that Chef Bobbie had made to various tables full of Circle members and friends. He had gone inside to get another case of Coronas when he heard a cheer and loud shouts from almost everyone on the patio. Something had happened outside that had inspired a great welcome.

Dave carried the carton out to the bar, and set it down. There was a cluster of people around somebody, all talking at once and trying to lavish the person with praise, kisses, hugs, and affection.

Dave walked over to see more closely. The crush of people ended and Dave found himself face to face suddenly with Ashley Steckler, or Ashley Steerman if she used her new pseudonym. She was crying, “I’m so glad to be back. I love you all.”

Suddenly, Ashley saw Dave and threw herself in his arms. He had just a fraction of a second to brace for the impact of her small body. “DAVE. I MISSED YOU.” The two hugged and kissed. Dave realized he did have a great attraction to small women – this one now a country music star.

“Ashley, welcome home or back or whatever.”

“Oh, this is my home. This is where I belong ... with all of you.” She gestured around to all the others looking on. Erin, her sister, was standing there grinning with little Joshua Allen in her arms – another one of Dave’s children. He was giggling at all the hubbub of activity and noise about his aunt’s arrival.

Dave laughed, “Why didn’t you let us know you were coming? We would have arranged a greater celebration.”

Ash said, “I told Erin, but I wasn’t even sure I could get away until noon today so I told her and mom and dad not to say anything because it was so indefinite. I had a private jet down to SRQ. The pilots didn’t want to land at our little airport, however, so I ended up over at the big one. I taxied out here.”

Dave hugged her again. “What can I get you?”

“A white wine and you plus me making love later. I have been seriously deprived despite having multiple offers every day I’ve been gone.”

“Getting hit on?”

“You can’t imagine. Scarlett warned me, so I kind of knew what to expect. Every band member, agent, facilities manager, roadie, groupie, and fan would love to nail my ass, as the saying goes. I just had to come home and get away from all that for a couple of days. I want to nail YOUR ass.” She laughed and kissed his cheek.

Dave laughed, “And what makes you think that every Circle member – men AND women – don’t want to ‘nail your ass’ right now.”

Ashley laughed, “I’m hoping they do, in this case. I love them all and Cricket told me there were a couple of new faces here as well.”

“I’ll introduce you, but I can’t even remember when you were here last. It’s been so long.”

“Longer if you were me on the road. I do have to say, I’ve made a lot of money. Dad came up to Nashville as you maybe know and helped me figure out how to use some of it for a home in Music City, USA, and how to invest the rest. I am resolved not to fritter it away on high living. Unfortunately, I think I’m going to end up like Scarlett where I’m here for a while and then gone for long time periods.”

“You said your agent hit on you, but other than that how’s that relationship? From the little I know about the music industry, that person is key to your success.”

Ashley laughed, “MY agent is the only one that hasn’t hit on me, but some of the others representing other singers or bands are around at the concerts I’ve done have suggested that we might have fun together. Kyle Hanks is my agent. He used to be a two-bit singer as he says, but decided he could make more money representing people with ‘real’ talent. He’s about fifty, nice as can be, and treats me like a princess. He also has become my protector, my mentor, and a great source of advice about the industry, music, and life in general. I’ve come to trust him. He’s looking out for my best interests for sure.”

“He sounds ideal, but he has no interest in you? You’re beautiful, smart, talented, and a million other positive things; if I were in his shoes, I’d come a courtin’ on your doorstep.”

“He told me that respect is one of the most important aspects of any relationship, and that he respects me. He calls me Honey, but he seems to have pet names like that for just about everybody, and he knows everybody. Just this past week I started to flirt with him a little. To tell the truth, I wouldn’t mind if something happened between us. He just looks over the top of his glasses at me to see whether I’m serious or teasing him. I don’t think either of us knows for sure.”

“What will you tell him about the Circle?”

Ash shrugged. “Some or a lot when the time comes. Eventually, I could see bringing him here, but not any time soon. We’re too busy. He’s taking this weekend off, too. He made a date with an old girlfriend in Chicago, so we left going in opposite directions. We flipped a coin, and I got the jet. He flew commercial. I have to be back in Nashville on Monday morning for an afternoon recording session.”

Over dinner, Dave asked Ashley, “I know you did a dozen major concerts, but how have you been spending the rest of your time?”

Ashley groaned, “Learning every damn country and folk song ever published or sung. Kyle set a goal for me to learn three new songs a DAY! That’s a lot of work. I do have a knack for memorizing lyrics, but still you have to learn the melody and then have to figure out how to get the song into a key you can sing without croaking, and then how to sing it flawlessly in your own style. When I say three songs, I mean they’re ready to be sung in a concert in front of ten thousand people or on television at the CMAs.

“I have my own band now, too, as of two weeks ago. They’re the same five guys and two women, one of whom is married to my drummer. I also have two backup singers; both are about my age with good voices, so I expect they’ll move along when they can get breaks. I’ve been trying to help THEM and so has Kyle. Anyway, after I learn a song, they learn it too, and then we rehearse until we can deliver the thing as though we sang it all the time. Sometimes, in concerts, we’ve used a ‘cheater’ or a teleprompter to be sure none of us forget the lyrics to something new we’ve just learned.

“After fifteen songs – a week’s worth – Kyle puts us all through our paces on Saturday as though we were giving a concert. We have a dedicated studio that we’re in and he calls out a song, and we’re expected to launch into it and deliver as though we had all those thousands of people screaming for it. He also reaches back to the weeks before as well as all of the songs we’ve got on our albums. Once in a while we flub really badly. We start the following week relearning those songs, and take it from there. We have used some of the songs in actual concerts, but only the ones we have a lot of faith about performing well.

“When I got tapped to do my first album, I think I knew about a two hundred songs that I could do well. Now, that number is closer to a thousand. Moreover, I know them by which popular artist did the song. If someone yells out ‘Sing something by Dolly or Reba’, I can turn to the band and toss out a song name and we’re off playing and singing.”

Nikky asked, “What about songs that aren’t country and western?”

“Oh, we’ve been doing some of those, too. We’re not into rap or punk, but we’ve covered a lot of the old standards. Kyle claims to know about ten thousand songs cold; he asks me to name a song and he’ll sing it, and I have yet to stump him. He has several of what are called Fake Books. Each one has the words and the basic melody and chording to go with the song in it. There are maybe a thousand songs per book. I’m working on Book 3. Anybody using it has to really know their stuff about music theory.

“I’ve learned so much about music in the past five months, it’s like I got a master’s degree in music almost overnight. I’d never taken a music courses, but I could teach one now. I understand chord progressions, rhythms, and everything you can think of about music theory, and then what makes up the sounds of a top song. Moreover, I apply that stuff to everything I do on a daily basis AND I’m still learning.”

Cricket asked, “Is it getting any easier? Last time we saw you, you were working about eighteen hours a day.”

“Yes, fortunately. I would have burned out. Kyle pulled the plug on all that after a few weeks. He made me go to a spa at his expense, get the whole treatment, and then do nothing but sleep and have fun for a couple of days. We were in L.A. at the time. Now, I’m working typically from eight or nine to seven p.m. unless I have an evening gig or concert of some kind.”

“What about your concerts?”

“I’ve been opening for Jason Aldean, as you might remember. Starting in February I have my own concerts where I’m the headliner. Kyle is lining up a couple of other music acts to open for me and compliment what I do. The venues we’ll play won’t be the super big ones, at least for the first tour, but maybe in a year we’ll move up. I’ll have another album or two on the market by then. He’s working with me on song selections for the albums. There’s a whole science to that, too.”

After dinner, many of the group sat around talking with Ashley. Dave took advantage of the situation and posed Nikky with Ashley when they were talking about the different cities that she’d be going to during her spring tour. He knew that picture would look well hanging with some of the others in her ‘office’ including the one with her and Scarlett, and her and Owen Bennett.

Later, Dave snuck away with Cricket and Nikky. Ashley found them a couple of hours later in his big bed. She came in and tickled Cricket until she moved so she could slip her naked body in next to Dave. Nikky had been lying atop him so they could kiss all the time.

“Am I too late? Did you girls wear him out?” Ashley teased.

Dave responded first, “No. For you, I can always rise to the occasion.” He pulled Ashley in for a loving kiss. As they separated, Ashley also leaned in and gave the same kind of kiss to Nikky. Nikky looked very surprised but pleased.

Ashley told Nikky, “You’re a sexy little thing. You make me feel tall around you – at least by a few inches. Do you mind if I make love to your mentor?”

Nikky teased, “So long as I get to watch and maybe help out here and there.”

“You and Cricket can participate. I’d love to eat your pussy as Dave eats mine and then fucks me. I was just with Jake, so I may be a little full of ‘you know what’ down there.”

Nikky grinned, “Dave taught me to love the taste and texture of ‘you know what’ so I don’t mind in the least. I love to eat ‘you know what’. So does Cricket. She and I can make love next to you guys and even swap the ‘you know what’ around between us. We’re both full of Dave’s ‘you know what’.” She giggled at the veiled reference.

“Is it true you were a virgin until a week ago?” Ash asked.

Nikky nodded, “I’m a convert now. I was a little sore after the first night, but I’m with the full agenda now and want everything he can offer.”

“Have you been with some of the other men?”

“Only with Phil on Wednesday night after I stayed for dinner. We’d had a simple date last Sunday, but only made out a little. He’s very nice. Wednesday was our second date. We ended up back in his apartment and made love. I like him a lot. Of course, I’m totally in love with Dave.

“The night Dave took my cherry, I also made love with Dale. He’s really nice, too. Except for those situations, I’m still pretty ... virginal.”

Ashley chuckled, “EVERYBODY is in love with Dave. Has he given you an A-spot orgasm yet?”

“No, what’s that?”

Dave spoke, “She’s very tight yet. I didn’t want to hurt her with my big hands.”

Ashley smiled, “I’m small and I know how to give one of those. In case you don’t remember, you taught me shortly after we both met and you gave me several of those mind-blowing orgasms.”

“I do remember. Maybe you can show Nikky what she’s been missing.” He turned his upper body and Nikky slid off of his chest onto the bed next to Ashley.

Ashley kissed Nikky again. “Go with the flow. I’m going to do some things to you that’ll eventually blow your mind. You can always say ‘No’, but I think if you see this through that you’ll have a very positive lifetime experience.”

Cricket reinforced to Nikky the need to let things progress all the way to the end. She also told of how wonderful the end result was. Cricket moved in to hold Nikky and slaver over her breasts as Ashley worked on her below the waist. Dave noted her devilish grin.

Nikky had started to jerk and writhe as Ashley’s small fingers teased around the opening to her vagina and then up and across her clit. She’d grown used to Dave probing around in her with a couple of fingers, so when Ashley did it, she was comfortable even with a new partner. She was even comfortable when she felt a third and then a fourth finger added. She never knew about Ash tucking her thumb into her palm, but her eyes popped open as Ash pushed her whole hand inside the tiny girl.

“Oh, dear!” Nikky said. “Are you sure?”

“Does it feel all right?” Ash asked. She’d just started to rub her knuckles across Nikky’s G-spot as she licked at her clit. The smaller woman arched into the fisting and came suddenly with a rush of pleasure and the ejection of some girl cum around Ash’s hand. Ash licked up the effluent with vigor. “You taste good, but I’m not even half done. There’s better stuff just ahead; hang on.”

When Ashley’s fingertips found the holy grail of textures deep inside Nikky that resulted in peaks of pleasure, Nikky’s eyes again opened wide in awe and worry as she looked at Ash and then Dave and Cricket. Cricket was now lying atop Dave with his cock hard and inside her body. They weren’t moving around too much, focusing more on watching Ash and Nikky in their sapphic play.

Ten minutes later, after a thousand kisses from her three bedmates, Nikky’s body arched high off the mattress into Ashley’s fist and mouth, and then after several loud ‘Oh, God’ exclamations from the teen, she collapsed onto the bed – unconscious.”

Ashley extracted her hand and Cricket joined her in lapped up the feminine residue on it. She turned to Dave. “You should hold her, so she imprints on you. Of course, she’s done that already.”