“What about you?” I asked, breathless from questions that felt targeted, like an interrogation. “Where are your parents?”
“I’m not close with my parents.” A mask slammed down over his features, one made of impenetrable steel.
“Not close because they live far away, or because you choose to be distant from them?” I put the question out there and braced, expecting him not to answer.
“Both.” His teeth were clenched so tight, a muscle jumped in his jaw. “I don’t have any contact with my family at all.”
“Oh.” My eyes filled. “That’s sad.” It was hard to imagine choosing not to be with your family if you had them, and they wanted to be with you.
“In my situation, it’s for the best for everyone involved.” His grip tightened on the steering wheel, and I wondered if what he said was true.
“What do you do in your spare time?” I asked to change the subject.
“Work, surf, band practice.”
“Work with your guitar?” I’d already seen the surfboard and realized he had a hobby that matched mine.
“Yes.” He nodded. “I do a lot of studio stuff. It pays pretty well.”
“Studio stuff for Ash?” I asked, wondering why I’d never seen Journey at Outside before.
“Not him, no. But people he knows. That’s how the Skulls got added to the lineup tonight.”
“Ah.” My eyes widened. It really was who you knew. In music, like most things.
“Ah, as in that’s good?” His brows rose. “Or—”
“Good. Ash is picky. Your band is good. Your voice is compelling, and you’re amazing on lead guitar.”
“Thank you.” His voice went the type of low that made me imagine intimate things. “But Black Skulls isn’t my band. It’s Reese’s. I’m not a full-time member, just filling in for their regular guy.”
“Where is their regular guitarist?”
“Dirt-bike accident. Broke his wrist.”
“That sucks.”
“It did for him, but it’s good for me.” Journey flicked on his blinker again, following the sedan. “I needed the extra cash, and I met you.”
Whoa. I glanced at him, but he wasn’t looking at me. He was staring straight ahead, though the road was surprisingly empty. Was he avoided my gaze like I’d been avoiding his earlier?
His hair was secured like mine. Medium length, there was only a thick club of it at his nape, but a couple of wavy spirals had escaped.
Suddenly, I yearned to reach out and touch one. Was his hair as silky and soft as it appeared to be? What about his mustache? His beard? How would those feel against my naked skin? Thinking those thoughts, I started feeling like a hot and melty puddle again.
“Noticed you right away in the audience.”
“Huh?” Lost in thoughts of him and me and tangled sheets, I suddenly had difficulty following the conversation.
“Even in the catering uniform, you were impossible to miss.”
Journey turned to glance at me, and I knew my mouth was hanging open. It wasn’t that I was unaccustomed to guys saying flattering stuff to me. I got hit on all the time at the bar. But I knew it was just words; they didn’t mean anything.
But I could see that the opposite was true with him. Those earth-brown eyes of his with enticing flecks of green drilled his truth into me.
“I thought you didn’t like me,” I said, remembering. “You frowned at first, then you avoided looking at me.”
His lips curved. “To be honest, looking at you made it impossible to concentrate. I didn’t want to fuck up with the guys in the band, or in front of all the industry types hanging around.”
“Music’s important to you?”
“It’s everything to me.” His reply was immediate and unwavering.
“I knew a guy like that once,” I said somberly. “Music was everything to him too.”
“Once?”
Looking out the window, I shrugged. “It was a long time ago.”
“What happened to him?” he asked softly.
I sighed. “He went away, and he never came back.”
“Did that upset you?”
Journey pulled in a breath and held it, and I looked back at him. The green in his eyes sparkled brighter than the traffic signal that switched from red to green as he watched me.
I nodded. “Yeah.”
The truth was . . . I never got over Storm leaving.
Lotus
“So, you like Journey?” Sophia linked her arm with mine as we followed the guys across the sand.
“Yes,” I said, after checking to see that he and the others were out of listening range. “He’s gorgeous and mysterious. Nice.”
“How do you know he’s nice?”
“He’s thoughtful. He helped me while I was working. He’s a gentleman. Opened the door for me and made sure I was belted in before he drove. And we talked some on the way over.” I shrugged. “He plays the guitar like Bryan Jackson from Tempest, and you’ve seen him, hung out with him tonight. What’s not to like?”
“The guitar part ranking so high with you doesn’t surprise me. You didn’t even notice Saber until he strapped on his Les Paul.”
My heart twisting at the mention of my ex, I winced.
Noticing, Sophia sighed. “Sorry.”
“It’s okay,” I whispered. It wasn’t totally. But I was going to get there.
“It’s the mystery part with Journey and you thinking that’s an attribute that worries me.”
“Why?” I gave her a puzzled look.
“The Black Skulls are an LA-based band. LA’s not far from OB, but Journey isn’t a permanent member of the band.”
“He told me.”
Her eyes widened. “Surprised he mentioned that.”
“Why?”
We stopped a couple of yards away from the others. Reese was digging a pit for a fire, and Tristan was laying out beach blankets around it. The bassist stood nearby, talking on his cell.
Journey knelt before the large ice chest he’d dragged across the sand. His biceps flexed as he opened the lid. His tight ass was perfection in his jeans, and errant curls swept his tatted neck.
I swooned. Inwardly, of course.
“Rocker guys don’t usually like to point out that it’s unlikely you’ll ever see them again.” Sophia squeezed my arm.
“I hadn’t really given it a lot of thought.” Being dazzled by Journey had taken up most of my brain capacity.
“You really going to go there?” Sophia’s gaze drifted to him, and mine did too.
Journey seemed to be done with his task at the ice chest. When he stood up, he turned, holding two beers, and his gaze met mine. I could feel his heat, his interest. Or was I just projecting my own?
“I think I might.”
“Wow, I’m surprised,” she said, a waver of trepidation in her voice.
I hadn’t taken my eyes from Journey. The guy looked like a pirate on the beach with all his tats and his cutoff tee fluttering in the wind like a black flag, but without the skull and crossbones.
“You gonna go there with Reese?” I asked, turning her question on her.
“I might.”
I studied her for a second. “You don’t usually.” For all our adventures, we were mostly talk and not a lot of action.
“It’s an unusual night for both of us,” she said with a thoughtful crease in her brow, and I nodded.
Tonight felt unusual. Significant. Important.
Feeling the pull of Journey, I wanted to go to him, but I lingered another moment to tell her, “If you go anywhere alone with Reese, keep your cell-locating function and your ringer on.”
“I will.” She gave me a long look. “You do the same.”
I nodded. “Absolutely.”
Sophia skirted the campfire that was now lit to join Reese on the other side. The bassist passed me on his way to the parking lot. I never got his name, but it didn’t matter. He wasn’t staying.
“Corona okay?” Jour
ney asked when I reached him.
“Yes, that’s fine. Thanks,” I said, and he studied me closely as he offered me a can.
“But it’s not your preference?”
“No.” I shook my head. “My favorite is Pizza Port pale ale on draft.”
“Not available in LA.”
“I know. This is nice. Thoughtful.” I took a seat on the blanket and glanced up at him. “What’s to eat?”
I didn’t mean my question to be sexual, but the way Journey’s gaze darkened on me made me wish I had.
Let loose. Forget Saber.
Sex with Journey was a consideration. Why not sexual innuendoes beforehand?
“Just sandwiches.” Journey lowered himself onto the blanket beside me and stretched out his long denim-clad legs. “Though I’m guessing from your comment that ale and pizza from Pizza Port is a favorite of yours.”
“Yeah, you’re right. I’m a simple girl with simple tastes.”
Tristan moved toward us, and Journey’s head snapped up. He shook it at the drummer.
“Fucking hell, man,” Tristan said, kicking up sand. Had he really been thinking about sitting with us? “You’re always taking the best girls. Good thing you’re out of the group after tonight.”
Journey jumped to his feet and snagged Tristan’s T-shirt by the collar. “You wanna repeat that shit, or you wanna take it back and walk away in one piece?”
“Taken back.” Tristan shrugged out of Journey’s hold and yanked down the hem of his shirt. “Chill, man.” He looked at Reese. “Dude, I’m taking off with the car.”
“You planning to put all the gear up?” Reese asked.
“Yeah,” Tristan muttered, frowning. “Whoever has the car stores the shit. I know the drill.”
“See ya, then. Practice. Same time tomorrow.”
“Yeah.”
Tristan shuffled away, and Journey came back to me.
My fingers tingled, but I wasn’t thinking about what his hair would feel like. I was thinking about jotting down that phrase. It seemed like a perfect opening line for a poem.
“Sorry about that,” Journey mumbled, lowering himself beside me again.
“Nothing to apologize about.”
“I lost my temper. Zero to sixty when something or, in this case, someone pisses me off. Most times, it’s necessary not to back down with a guy like him. But with you . . .” He scrubbed a hand over his face.
I scoffed. “Tristan’s an asshole.”
“You got that, huh?” he asked, his dark brows raised.
“Yeah. What’s not to get?”
“Chicks think he’s the shit.”
I pointed to myself. “Not this chick.”
“Yeah, I can see that you’re different. Simple tastes, maybe, but not at all simple. Unless simple means fascinating.”
Leaning close, his gaze intense, Journey captured a lock of my hair. He considered it, rubbing it between his fingers as he let out a low approving humming sound before he tucked it behind my ear.
A warm shiver swept through me as the rough pad of his finger skimmed the sensitive shell of my ear. When he lifted his gaze, the flames of the campfire were reflected in it. He was so close, I could see the intriguing pixels of green within the warm brown of his eyes.
“Where did you come from, Lotus?” he said softly. “You being here, it’s like you emerged from the ashes of some forgotten dream.”
“I just drove up from Ocean Beach with Ash.”
“Ocean Beach is farther from where we are now than you think.”
“Not so far,” I whispered. “Just a couple of hours with no traffic.”
I stared at him, my eyes on his as he framed my face in his hands. I placed mine on his strong shoulders. Half of my palm was on the soft cotton of his shirt. The other half was on his warm skin.
Touching him didn’t feel new or frightening. It felt necessary and exactly right.
I held my breath as the fire crackled on the other side of us. A cool breeze swirled around us, and the ocean roared.
“Maybe not as far as I thought,” he said softly.
Coming closer, he tilted his head one way, and I tilted mine the other. As his lips hovered close, mine buzzed with anticipation. His eyes closed, and mine did too as his mouth touched mine. A firm press of lips became a soft blending as I yielded to him and his kiss.
The connection between us was all sparks, consuming heat, and utter bliss. My skin crackled, a fire as hot as the flames of our campfire blazing beneath the surface. Then his wet tongue pierced the seam between my lips. My mouth molded to his as he rubbed his tongue against mine, providing the perfect friction.
My fuse ignited, I moaned into his mouth and climbed onto his lap, straddling him. He cradled my skull in one of his large hands, twisting my ponytail around the other, tugging gently to get the angle he wanted to deepen the kiss.
As our passion rose, we shared breaths. Desire. Heat.
Darkness like a velvet curtain drew around us, closing out the rest of the world.
It was just Journey and me.
The embers of who I’d been before this moment, before his kiss, fell like fiery drops of rebirth on my fevered skin.
Lotus
After the kiss, a seismic shift occurred that made everything seem more intense. The fire was brighter. The ocean was louder. Or maybe it was only that the tumult of indecision inside me subsided.
It was right. This was right, my being here with Journey. Before with Saber was over. Step by step, or maybe in one big leap because of Journey, my doubts were gone. I was ready to move on.
I ate the sandwich that Journey unwrapped and handed to me. After seeing to me, he offered food to Sophia and Reese, but they were too busy making out to respond.
“Nice of you to offer,” I said from behind my hand, munching on a turkey avocado on whole wheat with a little spicy mayo. “This is fantastic. Thank you.”
“You already thanked me.” Journey reclaimed his seat beside me, tipped back his beer, and then rubbed the back of his neck. He seemed almost embarrassed by my praise. “It’s not a big deal, but I’m glad you like it.”
“It’s a big deal to me.” I was unaccustomed to anyone else looking out for me. Taking another huge bite, I chewed and then swallowed while formulating words to explain. “You went and got the food with me in mind, right?”
“You, the guys, Sophia. Yeah.”
“That’s thoughtful. It took time. It involved you spending your money, and you expended physical effort to bring it here to the beach. I saw you moving the ice chest across the sand.”
“Not much, L—Lotus.”
I set down the sandwich and reached for his hand, squeezing it while holding his gaze. “Something that’s not much to you means a lot to me. Time’s precious. Money’s short. Any effort on my behalf is important. It’s caring, and caring should never be dismissed. So, thank you for caring for me. Truly.”
“God, I missed— I mean, it’s been a long time since I talked to someone like you.”
Considering his words, I tilted my head and picked up my sandwich again. I wasn’t going to let a bite of it go to waste, nor a single drop of my beer. Everything about this night, I planned to consume, and while consuming, to savor.
I liked Journey, and he liked me.
I didn’t need to make it any more complicated than that.
“So, what kind of people do you usually talk to?” I asked a broad question on my quest to learn more about him. It wasn’t only his good looks, the mystery surrounding him, or his skill on the guitar that intrigued me.
“Studio execs, band managers, other musicians,” he said, his gaze drifting over me. Was he having difficulty focusing around me the way I was around him? “No one like you.”
His eyes darkened. He seemed to appreciate my denim shorts overalls and the hot pink tube top I’d paired with them. I certainly liked his muscle shirt and jeans. Or maybe it was more the way he filled those items out. His broad shoulders stretched the
cotton, and his biceps strained the frayed arm holes of his tee.
My gaze met his after a drifting of my own. Were my eyes darker? He’d been watching me check him out. My cheeks warmed as his lips curved.
“Don’t you have any friends that you talk to about non-work stuff?” I narrowed my field of questioning.
“Some.” He glanced across the fire. Reese and Sophia had disappeared beneath a blanket.
“Reese?” I asked.
“Yeah, he’s cool.” He took another sip of his beer, and I watched his Adam’s apple move as he swallowed while he peered at me through his thick lashes.
“But you’re leaving the group.”
“It was a temporary gig. I knew that going in. I prefer temporary. I don’t form lasting attachments. It’s time for me to move on.”
“Where are you going next?”
“I’m not sure yet.” He gave me a long look. “I got thrown a huge curveball tonight, so it depends.”
“Depends on what?” I tilted my head.
His lips flattened. “Can we not talk about plans and serious stuff?”
“What do you want to talk about instead?” I asked, trying to keep the hurt out of my tone that he’d shut me down.
“I don’t know.” His gaze moved to the ocean, and he took another swig of his beer. Then he set the empty aluminum can on the sand and smashed it with his booted foot. “I don’t usually do a lot of talking with chicks.”
“Right.”
Temporary. No attachments. No sharing. In a roundabout way, he was letting me know what this was.
Finished with my sandwich, I crumpled the plastic wrapping it into a ball and tossed it into the ice chest. In a more straightforward fashion, I decided to let him know about me.
“I don’t usually kiss a guy I just met.”
His gaze snapped to me.
“I get what you’re trying to tell me,” I said. “But I thought I’d just go ahead and let you know straight up about me.”
“Something that hasn’t changed,” he said softly.
“I don’t understand.” My brows pinched together.
“I don’t know how you can be so sure you know my thoughts when I’m not certain of them myself.”
My Night with a Rockstar Page 24