Ashton Hill Naked Sundays

"Fuck!" she breathed a heavy sigh and saw that Chris Ashton had posted it yesterday. It had been shared and commented on far too many times to make asking him to take it down a moot point. Both Tarlee and Ethan looked at the screen over her shoulder. "You can't tell it's me, right? As long as no one mentions my name, it will be fine, right?"

"We better go see this Chris character and have him take it down!" Ethan said with an angry growl as his hands fisted. He felt the need to punch something or someone. Estelle's phone buzzed again.

Jason: 5.39 p.m.: *What do you want me to do?*

Estelle: 5.43 p.m.: *What can we do, it's too late. Just please don't use the name I am known by now. We'll go talk to Chris; he hasn't outed me completely, yet.*

Jason: 5.45 p.m.: *Ethan is still with you? Get him to handle it. Call me please, I need to hear your voice and know you aren't changing your mind about us. I am so sorry this happened, if I could make it go away I would.*

Estelle: 5.46 p.m.: *I know. I'll call later if I can.*

Ethan went into damage control immediately, issuing orders and making calls. Tarlee called Darren, who, in turn, called Chris, and they arrived at Estelle's little house twenty minutes later. Ethan was still on the phone. This was what he did: he was an image and personal relations consultant for one of the biggest international talent agencies that had a base in Australia. His looks had made him big in the modelling world, but he had a keen mind and good business sense. He cultivated contacts in every media industry, and he knew how to use them, which made him invaluable to his company.

Two hours later a post appeared on Midnight Blue's website and Facebook home page claiming that the mysterious girl in the photo had asked for her privacy to be respected, but that Jason Jones was happy to have met with the woman, intends to pursue her, and would not be making any further comments. No mention was made of the name Stella or her current name and whereabouts.

For his part, Chris was contrite, and Darren hovered anxiously over the clearly upset Estelle who sat quietly as chaos reigned around her. Ethan had been on the phone to Jason and the band's management, but she had just sat and let it all happen around her until Ethan finally stilled and came to sit with her and eat some of the pizza Tarlee had ordered for them.

"You think I'm an arsehole, but I didn't think you'd mind. There is no way you can even tell that's you in the photo. It could be anyone, even Tarlee," Chris complained. "I had photos where you could tell it was you very clearly. This one was pretty much anonymous."

"You made yourself look like an arsehole by not respecting her privacy. She didn't consent to that kiss or your photograph, and she could legally sue you for the invasion of privacy!" Ethan said belligerently.

"She was at a public concert. Paparazzi never get sued for their photos!" Chris argued back.

"You were in a private room at a private gathering; you weren't marked as media and had no professional credentials. So, you want to try that again?" Ethan wasn't letting the spoilt rich kid off the hook. Hell, he used to be that spoilt rich kid, or at least a version of him. The kid needed a wake-up call before he crashed and burned by stepping on someone who would do more than just point out the error of his ways. "Just so you know, if you out Estelle; even breathe her name near someone from the media, I will destroy you, and, as you just saw, I have the means to do it."

"I don't have to put up with this shit!" Chris said. "I'm sorry, Estelle, I didn't mean any harm, but I'm out of here," he stood and went to the door.

"Sorry this happened, Estelle," Darren said in a soft voice and followed his friend from the house. "Coming, Tarlee? She looks exhausted."

"Yeah, okay. See you at work tomorrow, Estelle," she smiled and left, closing the door quietly behind her.

"Life is always interesting with you, little sister," Ethan chuckled. "Just when I thought you were becoming boring before your time you throw this curve ball at me."

"And you loved every minute of it. You live for this stuff. Scandal and mischief could be your middle names," Estelle said drolly. "I'm going to bed, I can't even think straight."

"Call Jason, he did the right thing by you tonight. It shows he's trying when he could have just outed you and made you into his girlfriend again, in the media's eyes at least," Ethan said. The truth was that he liked the guy, and Jason obviously had very real feelings for Estelle.

"Et tu, Brute?" she asked.

"Everyone grows up eventually, maybe you should cut the guy some slack and acknowledge that he has changed enough to do the right thing rather than just running with the publicity for his band," Ethan reasoned.

"Fine, I'll call, but I'm getting ready for bed first. I am almost too tired to move already," she grumbled.

"Sure, you tell yourself that's why you can't move and that it has nothing to do with the sex marathon you had last night and today," Ethan teased.

"Ethan, take it easy on Chris. I get the feeling he's even more fucked up than we were by our parents," she smiled crookedly and went into her bathroom, hearing Ethan curse softly behind her. Everyone knew the tragedies that had befallen the Ashton family in the last decade or two, and while she hadn't met Chris before Friday night, she could only imagine what growing up for him had been like.

"I'm going out for a little while, get some sleep," he grumbled. "I'll be here in the morning."

Estelle got ready for bed and pulled on her old Crossfire T-shirt, the one souvenir of that part of her life she hadn't parted with. Climbing onto her bed, she picked up her phone and took a breath. She was too tired to string a coherent thought together, but she had said she would call, and he had left it up to her, not calling himself after his initial texts to alert her to the post.

Leaning back against her pillows, she decided to just call and be truthful, she was tired and couldn't think about anything else tonight. She needed sleep desperately. When Jason answered, she felt his soft deep voice caress her as he said her name.

"Estelle, I'm so happy you called," he said, letting out a breath of relief. "I miss you already."

"Hey," she said, unable to help the smile that spread over her face and not even bothering to try and work out why she was smiling or how he could affect her so much just from saying her name.

"You sound beat, you should go to bed," he murmured as if not wanting anyone to hear him.

"I am in bed, I'm so tired. Calling you was the last thing on my to-do list tonight," Estelle explained.

"I'd rather be in that bed with you," he said, and she could feel the smile in his voice. "You're killing me telling me that. My cock is getting hard just thinking about it."

"You didn't get enough already this weekend? I think you might need help, you pervert. You were a machine last night and today. I am so sore and tired I couldn't do it again, even if I wanted to," she admitted.

"Just as well I am not there then, because I don't think I could ever have enough of you," Jason said huskily. He bit back the urge to push her into letting him visit her during the week, or even next weekend.

"Did you need me to call you back for anything particular?" Estelle yawned into the phone.

"I wanted to hear your voice and talk to you," he said casually.

"You did that this afternoon before I left," she sighed.

"That's just the point, you left, again, and I need to know you won't change your mind about seeing me again," he hated that he sounded so needy. "Besides, I like talking to you and hearing you laugh."

"You know, if you talked this much when we were dating I mightn't have left at all," she grumbled, snuggling down into the covers. "Tell me what your plans are for the week, because I somehow doubt you would even have time to come all the way here just to hear me laugh."

"You would be surprised what I would do to hear your laugh each and every day," he chuckled.

"Tell me about your plans anyway," she mumbled, feeling her eyes get heavy with sleep.

"The guys and I have been staying with one of the Crazy Horse execs out near that pub where you saw us play on Friday. We are writing and putting together a new album, and it will probably take another few weeks, so I can carve out some time for you whenever you want it. Plus, I have found out I am staying only about half an hour from your little town." Jason paused and worried that she would panic that he was staying so close to where she lived, but only the heavy breathing of sleep sounded on the other end of the phone.

Jason listened to her sleep for a few minutes, glad that she wasn't out with either of the guys who had been at the concert with her. Finally hanging up, he went to find Simon, the band's new manager and his mentor for the last few years. Simon had saved him from crashing and burning out after Estelle had left him, and he had become an angry arsehole to everyone, including the people who loved him best. Simon had taught him how to channel that anger and excess energy into other things. From there his songwriting career had taken off and left him time to promote the band with the guys.

The notebook he used to scribble notes and ideas was down in the studio, so he headed there first, thinking that he no longer needed the Ballad for Stella. Instead, he needed one to make her stay with him and give him another chance. To trust him again with her heart, to do what... he considered the words in terms of songwriting poetry and prose. He wanted her to... the words wouldn't come, he realised, because he just wanted her. He wanted her in his world, in his home, in his bed. Everywhere he was, he wanted her there. She may not remember the bond they had shared, but he knew he had been at his best when she had believed in him. She had always believed in him far more than he believed in himself.

Simon had shown him another way, and it had brought him back from the brink. But the way she could look at him made him believe he could conquer mountains and swim oceans. He wanted her back so badly it took willpower to keep his distance, even tonight after saying goodbye to her only this afternoon.

*****

Chapter 6.

Life had gone back to normal for Estelle. Even Tarlee seemed to have given up her constant badgering for more information about whether she had talked with Jason or not the night after the concert. Jason had sent her a text each day, but seemed to be respecting the boundaries she had placed on him, and when nothing happened after the photo and statement from the band's management were released on the weekend, she finally relaxed.

Estelle kept herself busy staying late at work to set up her room and the last-minute assessment work she needed to complete before the end of the term. It was when she was home alone at the end of the day that she let herself think about everything Jason had said to her during their time together in the hotel suite. Ethan had stayed in Ashton Hill an extra two days and constantly challenged her thinking. Once he had left, and she was alone with her thoughts, she had trouble sorting out fact from fiction. Each time she tried to sort out her feelings for Jason she ended up with more questions than answers.

She'd gone out for drinks with her work friends on Friday night, just to have the company, and stayed later than she should have. She needed to show Tarlee that nothing had changed just because she knew the members of a band that were starting to make it big. Darren had been there and been overly solicitous. He'd been acting strangely since the weekend before, at least where she was concerned. It shouldn't have been a surprise that he offered her a lift home and suggested a drive to the dam, but it was. It was as if he was jealous and wanted to stake a claim to her by renewing the intimacy they once had.

Estelle had claimed fatigue after a long week at school and laughed off the invitation, not wanting to acknowledge what that drive to the dam used to entail and what it meant for him to invite her out there. He had always flirted with her on some level, but this invitation to renew their intimate relationship threw her off balance. Especially given the complicated mess she had with Jason at the moment. She'd declined all other invitations for the weekend, claiming that she just wanted to relax and catch up on some shows on Netflix.

The truth was that she needed to sort out her feelings for Jason. She'd asked him for two weeks to think, but she was no closer to having worked out what she wanted from him, if anything, or whether she believed his version of events the day she left him. She did know they still had chemistry. The sex was amazing, and he had never once made her feel like that desperate, needy, attention-seeking girl she knew she had been when they were together last weekend. He'd been a forceful but considerate lover, making sure she got off as much, if not more than him, each time they melded into each other.

She finished all her school work Saturday afternoon in an effort to avoid her tumbling thoughts. After two glasses of wine and a deep soak in the tub to distract herself, she finally gave in and called Jason. He'd been respectful of her boundaries and hadn't called her, only texting her and asking her to call him when she had the time, or if she wanted to talk. She had thought that on a Saturday night he would be at a gig with his band and she would be able to listen to his answering service message to hear his voice and leave an innocuous message of her own.

"Estelle?" Jason asked, answering his phone almost immediately.

"Yeah, hi. I wasn't expecting you to answer. I was going to leave a message," Estelle said breathlessly, as Jason's voice wrapped around her name and sent it through the phone to make her shiver.

"Why did you call if you didn't expect me to answer?" he asked, sounding amused.

"I have some questions, and I thought it would be easier to leave voice mail rather than text them to you," she said lamely, not wanting to admit that she had wanted to hear his voice, if only via his answering service message.

"Why didn't you think I would answer the phone if you called?" he sounded perplexed. "I'd much rather talk to you about any questions you have rather than hear them on my voicemail, although hearing your voice anytime is a good thing. It's been hard not to call you this week, but at least you answered my texts."

"I thought you'd be at a gig with the band, it is Saturday night after all," she pointed out as if this was a no-brainer.

"I told you last Sunday night that we are taking a break to write and record a new album. You must have started snoring even earlier in the conversation than I thought," he chuckled.

"I don't snore!" Estelle gasped.

"You're right, you don't. It's more like heavy breathing, and I had to hang up before I lost all self-control because of the reaction that sound got from my body. I was halfway to my car before I even knew what I was doing," he laughed.

"I'm really sorry I fell asleep while you were talking, but a sex maniac kept me awake the night before and made me do a marathon with him," she accused, her voice light as she teased him.

"And I'd do it again tonight if you'd let me," Jason said in a husky voice.

"It's too far, I'd be asleep long before you got here," she shook her head but smiled, knowing he couldn't see her.

"You'd fall asleep in half an hour or less?" he asked. "It's only early."

"I can tell you it takes a lot longer than that to get from the city to my town," she sighed. "I might have let you come if you really were less than half an hour away."

"You don't remember me telling you that either?" he asked. "We are staying with Simon, one of the execs from Crazy Horse Records. He lives on a property near the pub we played at last weekend, that's why we chose it as the venue. So, what can I do to convince you to say yes now that you've opened that door? If you have questions I could answer them a lot better if I were there with you," he said reasonably.

Estelle remained silent, thinking about the ramifications of having Jason here in her home, in her town. What Tarlee would do if she saw the strange car near her house. She knew logically that it was possibly one of the worst ideas ever, but her body craved the sweet endorphins she knew he could give her.

"I have the keys in my hand, and I am walking out to the car now. Keep talking to me while I drive to you," Jason said, taking advantage of her silence before she could talk herself out of seeing him tonight. He wanted to see her and hold her so badly he wasn't beyond taking advantage of any opening she gave him. "Tell me the address," he asked as he started the car.

"This isn't a good idea," she said softly but without conviction.

"It's the best idea I have heard all week. If I make it to the pub I saw you at last week, can you direct me from there?" he asked.

"Take the highway north from the pub, there will be signs to the dam. You will see the signs to Ashton Hill once you get close to the dam," she explained, still unsure that this was a good idea. "Jason, even just seeing a car parked outside my house means people will talk. I have a good reputation here. I..."

"Then I'll pick you up and we can go for a drive, or I'll park a block away, whatever you want. I just need to see you again. Please, Estelle, this waiting is killing me!" Jason said with a hint of desperation in his voice. It had been hard to leave her alone all week after the amazing twenty-four hours they had spent in that hotel room.

"This is such a bad idea, but I want to see you too," she admitted, not only to him but to herself. His deep sigh of relief seemed to run through her and heat her libido even more.

"No scenario where I get to see you is a bad idea," Jason chuckled to ease her nerves, feeling more relaxed now that he knew she wanted to see him too.

She stayed silent after that, considering what she was doing. She didn't live in the town centre, so only locals would see if there was a car at her house. Or she could get him to park in the carpark near the entrance to the walking trail to Juliette Falls. Her little cottage wasn't far from there, though people might question a car left there overnight. If they went for a drive, where would they drive? The dam where she had gone skinny dipping with Darren? God, what if he was there with Tarlee! No, she had to think. He was on his way and would be here soon.

"Stella?" he asked into the silence. "You still with me?"

"Yes," she whispered tentatively.

"Talk to me, tell me about your week," he said softly. "I want to know everything about you and your life."

"I've been working all week," she said. "Some of us have a real job that we have to show up at every day."

"I have a real job that I work at every day. I've been writing a lot this week, but then I was inspired by last weekend," he said in a husky voice. "I could take some time away from the band when you're on vacation from your real job, spend some real time with you and have a real conversation about how we can make this work for both of us."

"Won't the guys be pissed off if you just disappear with me for a few days?" she asked. "I don't want to be the Yoko of your band."

"They don't know that I saw you last weekend or where I was going tonight," he said. "It's not unusual for me to take some time out by myself these days. I've changed, Estelle, I'm not that same guy you knew, just like you aren't the Stella I knew, but a better version. Still the sexiest woman I have ever known, but stronger and more confident."

"You didn't tell them?" she asked, shocked by the admission.

"It's none of their business, and you wanted time, and I promised to give you that time. Ethan and our manager, Simon, dealt with the photo incident, I didn't have to say anything to them about it, and I want this to work. I want us to work, badly. For that to happen I need everyone else to butt out, and they wouldn't if they knew I'd seen you again after you stormed out last Friday," he said. "They would want to hang out and see you again too, and you hanging out with the guys instead of alone with me is not one of my priorities right now."