“Of course not!”
“You’re not making this any easier on me.”
On him? What about her? She was pretty sure the other band members could hear his whispered questions. They’d definitely heard her blurted reply. She gave herself a shake to clear her thoughts and attempted to ignore the man behind her. Slim chance of that happening.
“I’ll also need to interview each of you,” she said to the rest of the band, who were watching the two of them with expressions ranging from amusement to bewilderment to annoyance.
“Tonight?” Steve asked. “Probably not a good idea. I’m a bit out of it after a show.”
“You’re always out of it,” Logan said.
“Sorry, but I need to crash immediately,” Dare said, stifling a yawn with the back of his hand. “It’s been an exhausting day and we have another full day tomorrow.” He ticked off events on one hand. “Radio interview, sound check, meet and greet, concert, after-party.” He ran out of fingers, so he waved his hands as if looking for extra digits. “And I might need to take a piss in there somewhere.”
“You don’t have time to take a piss, Dare,” Logan said.
“Did Sam forget to schedule piss breaks again? Fuck,” Steve grumbled. “Better start saving our beer bottles. Fair warning, Toni. Never drink out of an open bottle around here.”
“Eww.” She crinkled her nose.
Dare offered Toni a half smile. His piercing green eyes threatened to melt her into a puddle on the floor. This guy’s presence . . . Just wow.
“Why don’t we start the interviews Monday? We’ll have a long boring drive that day followed by two nights in a hotel. We should be more ourselves then.”
“That’s fine with me,” Toni said. “I want you to be comfortable. I intend for this book to reflect what wonderful men you are.”
Logan chuckled. “I think you have us mistaken for some other band.”
She shook her head. “No mistake.”
Toni glanced at the bunks on either side of the corridor. There were only four of them. “So I guess I get to sleep on the couch?”
“Butch sleeps on the couch,” Logan said.
“The floor?” She curled her nose. No telling what kinds of things were on that floor. It looked clean, but bacteria were microscopic. She was certain there were innumerable germs embedded in that low-pile carpet.
“You’ll sleep with me,” Logan said. “You have no other choice.”
Toni assessed each member of the band. “Actually, I have three other choices.”
Steve laughed. “Ouch! I think you’ve just been rejected, Lo.”
“Not necessarily,” Toni said. “I just like to keep my options open.” As if even one of these guys would consider her an option. Right, Toni . . . Keep dreaming.
“There’s a sectional sofa in the back lounge,” Max said. “Reagan sleeps on it when she’s not jumping Trey’s bones on Sinners’ bus. You’re welcome to sleep there.”
Logan’s hands covered her ears. “Don’t tell her that,” he said. “I’m making my move here.”
Toni laughed. She was used to being the brunt of jokes. She’d learned long ago that the best way to protect her feelings was to join in on the fun.
“Maybe there’s room on that sectional for two,” she said.
“We’ll make room.”
Logan spun her around and escorted her to the back of the bus. Next to the bathroom was a set of sliding doors she hadn’t noticed earlier. They were black and shiny and if not for the latches and the seam between them, they would have looked like a solid wall. Logan lifted the latches and slid the doors open to reveal a royal-blue semicircular sectional that ran the entire perimeter of the room. Several guitars hung on the wall above it. Toni stepped into the lounge, her gaze locking on a worn Flying V guitar. In her research, she’d read that Dare Mills used an old Flying V to compose the guitar music for Exodus End. She gaped at the instrument, wondering if it was Dare’s legendary guitar. How many amazing and famous songs had been created in this small space on that unassuming instrument?
“Is this where—”
The sound of the doors sliding shut behind her made her heart skip a beat. She turned, thinking Logan had left without even telling her good night, but he was standing just inside the closed doors, looking more like a lion than a wolf with that golden hair, but she was definitely feeling like a feast of lamb.
“This is where,” he said.
She’d wanted to ask if this was where the band composed music while on tour, but the words caught in her throat. Why was he looking at her like she was a seven-course meal that he was about to devour? All those things he’d said—the innuendos, the come-ons—he’d been teasing her, right? Like the few guys in her past. Getting her hopes up and then reminding her that she was merely friend material.
Logan took two steps forward, and she found herself wrapped in his arms. Before she could grasp how wonderful it felt to be held by a strong man, Logan’s mouth claimed hers and she was lost.
This was not her first kiss, but it was the first time a man feasted upon her mouth as if his life depended on it. His fingers delved into her hair to tilt her head just so. His tongue brushed her upper lip, and her bones melted.
In her inexperience, she wasn’t sure how to reciprocate, so she merely accepted his kiss, allowing him to coax her mouth open and slide his tongue against hers. She writhed her hips when an unbearable throb stirred between her thighs. Logan murmured encouragement against her lips when her tormented motions stroked the hard ridge in his jeans.
Did he really want her? It sure felt like it.
Her trembling hand sought the hard evidence of his desire where it rested between their bodies. She half expected him to tell her not to touch him. She definitely didn’t expect him to deftly release the buttons of his fly and fill her hand with thick, hot cock. His most private, bare flesh pressed against her palm. Oh, it was so hot. And smooth. And hard.
A distracting throb between her legs had her tugging awkwardly at his length. Toni’s face flamed. She didn’t even know this man and here she stood with his tongue in her mouth and his cock in her hand. A cock she had no idea what to do with. She’d seen some in pictures and watched a few in action in some second-rate online pornography, but had never actually touched one. Not that she hadn’t wanted to; the opportunity had never presented itself. It was presenting itself in abundance now.