Rock Heart

by K. Webster

  June shakes her head from beside me. “Neve, you are nuts, girlfriend. The fans will eat this up. She’s great!”

  June is definitely okay in my book.

  “I agree with June, Neve. This is going to be badass,” Chaz snaps at her. His voice seems protective on my behalf, and it makes my heart swell.

  Neve’s mouth drops open in disbelief—disbelief that her man has spoken against her. “Well, what the fuck do I know?” she demands and bursts into tears. She storms from the room, and Chaz jumps up to follow after her.

  “She’s wrong. This is going to be unfuckingbelievable,” Donnie assures me.

  I smile happily, knowing that I’m able to add something to this group. Maybe this tour won’t be so bad after all.

  I wake up later that evening from my nap to the sounds of laughter coming from the living room. After a quick break to the bathroom, I make my way to where the others are. Donnie, Chaz, and Bobby are all shooting the shit together with drinks in their hands. From the looks of it, they’ve been drinking for a little while.

  “Ry-Bear!” Donnie calls out upon seeing me enter the room.

  I wave at him and laugh when he motions for me to sit in his lap. Chaz jumps up from the sofa and stalks over to me. His muscular frame towers over me, and I have to force myself not to inhale him.

  He looks down at me, and in his borderline-drunken state, I can see the heat in his eyes. They are all over me, and I can’t help but love it. I gasp when he dips his head down to my ear. Chills reverberate through my body as he speaks his words.

  “What’s your poison?”

  I try to still my wobbly voice as to not let him know how badly his voice affects me. “I’ll take whatever you want to give me.”

  A deep chuckle escapes his lips, sending shockwaves right to my core. “Is that so? I’ll definitely give it to you, baby,” he whispers into my ear.

  I officially can’t breathe. Thankfully, he pulls away to play bartender. Moments later, he thrusts a glass in my face that smells of Jack and Coke. I take the glass from him, brushing against his fingers in the process. He continues to stand in my personal space in the kitchen. I’m not sure what to do. I want to escape his lovely smell, but at the same time, I don’t want to leave.

  “You’re such a fucking puzzle,” he observes.

  If he only knew.

  “And you’re an ass,” I grumble. As much as everything about him alerts all of my internal bells, he’s still never been really nice to me.

  He brings his hand up to swipe a lock of my hair out of my eyes. “I don’t mean to be,” he whispers. His head dips down again and his hot breath tickles my ear when he says, “I’m sorry I’m such a dick.”

  My heart beats wildly in my chest, and I wait for it to calm down again before I speak.

  “What did I ever do to you?” I ask and then swallow down half my drink.

  His hand reaches up again and strokes my cheek. “I have no fucking idea. All I know is that you are so fucking distracting.”

  I try not to enjoy the way his fingers feel against my skin and chug back the rest of my drink.

  “Ry-Bear, get your ass in here,” Donnie calls out, breaking the spell between Chaz and me.

  I jerk away from Chaz’s touch and head over to him, thankful for a reprieve.

  “Sit your skinny ass down and let’s play a drinking game. Bobby, hand me the tequila,” Donnie orders.

  Bobby laughs and tosses the bottle to him. It’s a good thing the lid’s screwed on tight because Donnie misses it and it rolls down under the table. Donnie quickly retrieves it while I sit down across from him in the booth. He fills a shot glass and pushes it toward me.

  “Okay. We’re going to play some music trivia. If you don’t know the answer or guess wrong, you have to drink a shot. I call this game Donnie Always Wins.”

  I raise an eyebrow at him and let a smug grin cross my face. I’m going to kick his ass at this game.

  “It’s true, Ryan. He always fucking wins,” Bobby chuckles and scoots into the booth beside me.

  “I have a stipulation to this game,” I tell him sweetly. Chaz slides in next to Donnie, and his eyes are instantly on me. On my lips. My heart flutters wildly, but I mentally calm it down before speaking again. “If I win, we change the name of the game to Ryan is a Kickass Bitch.”

  Bobby and Chaz roar with laughter. I can’t help but giggle along with them, especially since Donnie is in no way amused at my blatant challenge.

  Donnie narrows his eyes at me and slaps the table. “It’s on, Ry-Bear. It’s on!”

  He fills up all four of the shot glasses and pushes one of them in front of each of us. “These two idiots aren’t that good,” he says quietly, motioning with his eyes to the guys. Chaz punches him in the side. “Shit, dude. I was mostly talking about Bobby. Anyfuckingway, here is how it will go. I’ll ask all the questions. You guys can take turns asking me questions because it’s hard to stump me—hence the name of the game: Donnie Always Wins. And that name isn’t changing any time soon, Ry-Bear.”

  Bobby leans in and nudges my shoulder with his. “Something tells me that, with that grin on your face, Donnie’s about to get his ass handed to him. Love it!” he whispers with a laugh.

  I giggle but sit up straight, ready for his first question.

  “Okay. What famous ‘90s grunge band drummer went on to start another famous band where he became the lead singer? This guy also played drums for Queens of the Stone Age. Go,” Donnie tells me and leans back, crossing his arms.

  I roll my eyes at him. “Dave Grohl. Easy peasy.” My shot remains untouched as he moves on to Bobby.

  “Bobby, what famous band from Georgia in the ‘90s had to replace their lead guitarist after he stole the lead singer’s wife?”

  Bobby rubs his cheeks with both palms. “I fucking know this. You’ve asked me this question before.”

  I know the answer but don’t tell him.

  He finally takes a guess. “REM?”

  Donnie laughs. “Nope. Collective Soul. Drink your shot, man.”

  Bobby shakes his head and tosses his shot back. Everyone looks over at Chaz since it’s his turn now. His eyes zero in on mine. I can tell he’s already drunk because now he doesn’t hold back and boldly checks me out. My skin heats up, but I don’t look away from his gaze. When Donnie asks him his question, he reluctantly pulls away to look at him.

  “Who was the lead singer on the self-titled record ‘Mötley Crüe’ that was not Vince Neil?” he questions.

  I’m stumped on this one, so I’m glad it’s Chaz’s question and not mine.

  “Dude, it was Vince Neil. That’s a trick question,” he says as though he isn’t one hundred percent sure about his answer.

  Donnie shakes his head. “Nope, drink up. John Corabi of The Scream is the correct answer.”

  Chaz takes his shot and sends another glance my way. The way his eyes peruse along my body, stopping on my breasts, makes my pussy throb for him. He has a fiancée though. And even if she is the biggest bitch on the planet, I’m not going to go after a taken man.

  “What do you have for me, Ry-Bear?” Donnie asks, jerking my attention from Chaz.

  “Oh, um, who played guitar on the Poison record Native Tongue and what band is he in now?” I ask.

  Donnie slaps the table rapidly with both hands, beating out the song Stand from that record. Well shit, I’m probably screwed because he really is good at this game.

  “Simple. Richie Kotzen, and he’s now in the band called The Winery Dogs. He was fired from Poison after he showed up at a party with the drummer’s ex-girlfriend.”

  The guys laugh as I stare openmouthed at Donnie.

  “Ryan, I can see you’re good with rock. How good are you with country? What country music star left his wife for Trisha Yearwood?” he asks.

  I gape at him dumbfounded. This is a rock band. I’m the bassist for a famous rock band. I hate country music.

  “Are you kidding me?” I pout.


  Donnie laughs and pushes my shot toward me. I frown at him and take my shot because I have no freaking clue.

  “Even I know that one, Ryan,” Bobby laughs. “Garth Brooks!”

  “Garth who?” I whine.

  “Your turn, Bobby Boy,” Donnie smirks.

  The game continues on for the next hour. During our game, June and Sutton came to visit, stealing Bobby back when they retreated to their room. Neither Neve nor David ever made an appearance. It will definitely take some getting used to having all of these people in such close quarters.

  “Where’s Neve? Does she not like me?” I hiccup out to Chaz. I’m getting pretty tipsy and saying whatever’s on my mind. Not one of my better personality traits.

  “Neve doesn’t like anyone,” Donnie quips, earning yet another punch from Chaz.

  I scoot out of the booth. “I’ll be right back.” It’s getting hot and I’m ready to get comfortable.

  After fishing out a pair of cotton shorts, a tank top, and my toiletry bag from my suitcase, I head to the bathroom. Minutes later, I’m finally changed and my face is scrubbed clean. I twist my long, blond hair into a messy bun and exit the bathroom.

  I’m momentarily confused when I see pink toenails poking out from David’s bed. Neve is on the bottom bunk, but either she’s in the wrong one or I’m fucking drunker than I thought. I climb up to what I think is my bed and see my things. She’s definitely in the wrong bed.

  When someone slaps my ass, I nearly stumble to the floor. Strong arms catch me.

  “Ry-Bear, you can’t wear tiny shorts like that and then poke your butt out and not expect to get it slapped. It’s going to get slapped,” Donnie laughs as he slides onto his bunk.

  “Game over already?” I ask and pull his curtain away.

  He already has his eyes closed. “I’m tired. Go play with Chaz. I’m sure he’d like that. Plus, now you can be the winner,” he tells me sleepily.

  I roll my eyes and close the curtain. When I walk back to where Chaz is, I see him standing in the kitchen with his arms crossed, a far-off look in his eyes. Seeing his tall, muscular frame decorated with tattoos sends heat burning through my body again.

  “Looks like our game is over,” I tell him with my hands on my hips and make my way closer to him.

  He jerks his head to me, and the familiar angry look becomes affixed to his face. My heart thuds loudly in my chest. We were having such a fun night tonight, and suddenly, he’s pissed off at me for no reason. His eyes roam my body, but his brows remain furrowed.

  “Wow, okay. So you’re back to being an asshole. I don’t know what I’ve done, but I’m not sorry. I am sorry that you can’t just be nice. See you tomorrow. Maybe you can try to not be so awful because this will be a long fucking tour otherwise,” I snap.

  I turn on my heels and start to make a hasty escape from the tension-filled kitchen when heavy footsteps come up behind me and a big arm hooks me around my stomach. My senses are flooded by him. He smells so delicious that I feel the urge to turn around and sniff him. My flesh tingles where his skin touches mine on the small sliver between the top of my shorts and the bottom of my tank top. I don’t fight to get away from him. He temporarily has me stuck in his web and I’m helpless to get away.

  “God, Ryan. What are you doing to me?” he growls into my ear from behind me. His voice is so deep, so low, so fucking sexy. It’s no wonder he’s the singer of such a successful band. With a voice like that, just the sound of it caresses your flesh.

  “Me?” I ask him innocently. I’m doing nothing to him. He’s the one putting his spell on me. I’ve been under that spell since the moment I met him.

  I feel his cock harden between us and my pussy instantly responds. From what I can tell, he’s big. God, how I’ve missed being touched by a man. The last one—the last one broke me.

  “Yes, you,” he whispers softly.

  A shudder courses through my body. I’m not sure if it’s what he’s saying or the way he tickles me with his warm, breathy words.

  When I don’t respond verbally, he speaks up again. “Ryan, I’m not supposed to be looking at you, touching you like this. But dammit, woman, you’re all I can think about.”

  We’re both frozen. Him with his arm around my waist. Me, not wanting to leave his presence. Finally, I gain some sanity and twist in his arms to face him. His hungry eyes devour my appearance. I place both palms on his rock-hard chest and take a deep breath.

  “Chaz, I don’t go after men who are taken. And even though you smell good and feel good pressed against me, it isn’t going to happen. For one, you’ve been nothing but a jerk to me. I don’t understand it, nor will I put up with it. Second, you have a fiancée in the other room. I don’t get your relationship at all because honestly you both seem miserable as can be, but you’re still together. So please, let’s just try to be friends. I want to be a part of this band, and that means I need your approval as well.”

  He watches my lips the entire time I speak. Finally, he lifts his eyes to mine. With one of his fingers, he swipes a stray strand of hair from my eyes. My eyes flutter closed. Even though I am not going to go after this man, I still can’t deny the electricity that pulses through my body when he’s near.

  His hot breath is against my lips, but he doesn’t touch me. “Ryan, I’m sorry. You’re right. Let’s start over. I promise I can do better.”

  He surprises me by kissing my forehead and pulls me in for a tight hug. It feels warm and safe in his arms. We can do this. We can be just friends.

  “Thank you,” I whisper and pull away from him.

  I give him one last look before practically running back to my bunk. As soon as my head hits the pillow, I’m fast asleep, never hearing him come to bed below me.

  I wake to someone stroking my cock through my boxers. I have a hangover from hell due to all the shots from last night. People are awake and moving about the bus this morning, in no way caring that my head is pounding. I hear Donnie, David, and Bobby laughing from the living room area. The smell of bacon causes my stomach to grumble. June always takes such good care of us.

  “Baby, I promised I would get back to you,” Neve purrs from beside me. She’s crawled under the blanket with me in my small bunk, and I can see that she’s naked.

  As she strokes me, I wonder where Ryan is. Last night was torture. She was so fucking adorable when we played the trivia game with Donnie. It was evident that she actually thought she would win that game. Donnie threw her a curve ball, sending all country trivia her way. When she emerged from the bathroom in a sexy tank top and barely there shorts, it was in that moment that I knew I was going to have her one day. But she splashed me with a cold dose of reality, reminding me that I’m engaged to the woman with her hands around my dick at the moment.

  “I want your thick cock in my pussy,” Neve says a little loudly.

  “No, Neve.”

  She ignores me and pulls down my boxers. My cock springs out with a life of its own.

  “Your dick says yes.”

  “Neve,” I warn.

  When her warm mouth sucks on my cock, I close my eyes and thread my hands through her hair. Maybe I’m just being a dickhead. This is my future wife. Why the fuck have I been looking at Ryan? It’s not too late to fix stuff with Neve. We’re not completely broken.

  I hear the squeak of bedsprings from above me and I freeze. For some reason, I don’t want Ryan to hear us. Because even though I want to fix Neve and me, I still can’t help but feel protective over Ryan. Now that I’m thinking about Ryan, her cute little ass in those shorts she was wearing last night, I can’t come with Neve’s lips on me.

  “Ry-Bear, come eat, woman!” Donnie yells from the kitchen.

  My eyes fly to the open part of the curtain where Ryan is climbing down. I see smooth, bare legs. My cock once again jumps to life. As she slides off the bed, her tank rides up, giving me a view of her smooth, tan stomach, and the curve of the bottom of one of her breasts hangs out until she reaches the floor
, out of my line of vision.

  I close my eyes again, the image of her stomach seared into my brain. Before I can warn Neve, I shoot my load into her mouth. Fuck, she’s going to be pissed. She likes when I warn her so she can pull away and jerk me off the rest of the way. For some reason, she hates the taste of my come. As soon as she chokes and gags, I know I’m in trouble.

  “Fuck you, Chaz,” she gripes, wiping her chin. Her eyes are lit up angrily, and I can tell today will be a fun one.

  She grabs her nightgown and yanks it over her head, making haste out of my bunk. I groan and dress awkwardly in the small space. When I climb down and walk into the kitchen, Donnie’s just waiting to give me hell.

  “You assholes forget we’re living in a shoebox. Nobody wants to hear you and Neve going at it,” he gripes and throws a piece of bacon at me.

  Bobby is sitting on the sofa, grinning at Sutton in his lap while June works effortlessly in the kitchen. David is drinking coffee while looking at his laptop, sitting across from Ryan in the booth. I flip Donnie off and slide into the booth beside Ryan.

  She ignores me as she eats her breakfast and scrolls through her phone. It buzzes and she reads something that suddenly causes her eyes to fill with tears. For some reason, I’m filled with rage when I see the text.

  Mom: He told me again today that he loves and misses you. Is he still the only man that owns your heart? Or are there any new ones you’ve met? ;)

  What the fuck does that mean? She won’t go after ‘taken’ guys, but clearly that was a big lie. The thought of her with any man pisses me the fuck off.

  “Wow. You’re such a hypocrite,” I mumble.

  She jerks her head up and glares at me, quickly blinking away her tears.

  “And you’re still an asshole,” she bites out before tucking her phone between her bare thighs, away from my prying eyes.

  But of course my eyes follow and my dick hardens at seeing her sexy legs. I want something else there instead of her phone—like my tongue, my hands, my dick.

  “More coffee, David?” Neve chirps sweetly as she enters the room, pulling my attention from Ryan’s sexy little thighs.