* * *

Her phone rang somewhere between Oregon and Washington. Kate sat up and missed the ceiling of the bunk by about an inch. The bus was rolling smoothly along, the sun setting outside the window.

“Hello?”

“Sweetie!” Percy drawled on the other end of the line.

Kate crawled out of the bunk, grinning. “Hey, sorry I haven’t called.” She had to brace herself against the vibration of the bus.

Percy brushed her apology aside. “Don’t worry about it. I know I would have kept my mind on my clients, if I were there. And my eyes and hands if they’d let me.”

She blushed beet red. “I bet you would.”

Percy laughed. “I’m terribly jealous. That Korean drummer looks positively decadent. Steve drooled over the pictures of you two.”

“Huh?”

Percy scoffed. “You’re all over the tabloids, my dear, and all over him, I might add. Being carried off in style.” His voice became a purr. “Caveman style.”

“What?” Horror cut through the fog sleep deprivation had left her in. “What pictures?”

Percy laughed at her.

“Percy.”

“Just google Toxsin, sweetie.”

She sat down at the desk and turned on the computer.

“I hear you tapping away, so I’ll go. You’ve got a package waiting for you in Seattle. Steve helped me pick out some luscious skins for those man animals.”

“Yeah…thanks.”

She ended the call as the mobile hotspot engaged on the computer. She clicked on one of the links, and a picture of her slung over Taz’s shoulder filled the screen.

“Oh, shit.”

Cussing didn’t change the full-color image of her, butt up, on the guy’s shoulder. But there wasn’t any mention of the fight. She trolled through the other links, but came up dry when it came to the fight Syon had had with Conan.

Shit.

And double shit.

She was in over her head. Cid had done his job alright. Bought off the right people and left the juicy bits out to fan the flames of Toxsin’s reputation. She felt nauseated but not because of the motion of the bus. It was the sheer size of the road manager’s reach. His cronies suddenly seemed a lot more threatening than they’d been before. Not a single one of them was a fool; that was for sure.

She’d better watch her back, because her reputation wouldn’t survive if they turned on her.

* * *

“This is frustrating,” Kate groused.

Syon kept her head where he wanted it with one large hand threaded into her hair.

“Yeah. Glad we fucked first.”

Perched on his bike, with the Space Needle behind them and the light from a half-moon, he was kissing her senseless. Long, deep, hungry kisses that were melting her insides.

“Smooching is fun…until I realize how much I want to get inside you.”

He angled his head and kissed her throat. A wet, full-contact kiss that ended with a soft bite. She shivered, her toes curling as her clit throbbed. Cars buzzed past them on the road, and a soft giggle came from another couple who were a dozen yards away in the roadside pull out.

“But you wore the skirt,” Syon cooed appreciatively as he slid his hand along her thigh.

“Kinda stupid on a bike.”

He raised his head. “I’ll keep you off the pavement.”

The picture of her over Taz’s shoulder came to mind and she froze. Syon’s hand stilled against her.

“What’s on your mind?” he asked.

She shook her head, not wanting to kill the moment. She tried to kiss him, but he held her back.

“Spill it, Kate. Something’s bugging you.”

She shrugged and rolled her neck, but he didn’t release her. “Cid managed to keep all the pictures of your fight with Conan out of the media; couldn’t he have stopped that shot of me on Taz too?”

The road manager could have. She knew it. The real issue was why he hadn’t and what Syon thought about it.

“Cid is an asshole,” Syon said, pulling back a few inches.

It felt like ten feet.

“But a useful one. He knows how to pack the seats.”

“You know how to pack the seats,” she said. “I get the whole argument, but honestly, it’s starting to piss me off a little bit to hear your music sold short. Those fans don’t scream because of some pictures in the tabloids. It’s something your music touches inside them. Sets loose, really.”

His expression became very sensual. “I like setting loose your inner desires.”

She pointed a finger at him. “That’s a two-way street.”

His expression tightened, becoming guarded again.

“Not even.” She reached out and stabbed him in the chest with her finger. “Don’t think for one second I am going to surf this insanity current alone. Your ass is coming along.”

Syon’s lips twitched. But his expression stayed hard. “Being around me means you’re going to end up in the tabloids.”

“I’m not griping about that.”

“Yes, you are.” He started to pull his gloves on. “You’re used to having control. You won’t have it completely with me.”

“No shit.”

She hadn’t meant to let that slip out. Something flashed in his eyes that set off a tingle of warning in her.

“I don’t like part of it either,” he said, “but not enough to live in a cage. I pay Cid and a couple of good lawyers a lot to deal with the worst of it.”

“Cid must be good, or you would have been in jail over that fight. Even with Conan vouching for you. The cops could have slapped you both with disturbing the peace violations.”

“I’m not sorry. He was asking for it.” Syon offered her a looked that said “bring it.”

She ended up laughing at him. “That’s part of Conan’s charm.”

“Mine too.”

He was dead serious. She eyed him for a long moment. “Maybe.”

Something flickered in his eyes. It set her on edge, because she got the feeling he was planning something. He leaned in, flattening his hands on the seat of the bike on either side of her hips. Her heart reacted instantly, beating faster.

“I want to take you somewhere I can fuck you.”

Her lips went dry.

His eyes narrowed. “Do you want me to do that, Kate?”

She rolled her lips in, a surge of lust igniting her insides. “How do you do that?”

One of his eyebrows rose. “Turn you on?”

She nodded, fixated on him, on his mouth, and the fact that she desperately wanted to kiss him again.

“It’s only fair, since you make me crazy.” He pressed forward, connecting with her mouth. He teased her lower lip with two slow licks before pulling away.

“You’ve only known me a week.”

He pressed another kiss against her mouth, this one harder, more demanding.

“And you took your clothes off first.”

She stiffened, but he kissed her again and kept kissing her until she stopped trying to wiggle away.

“It keeps me sane”—he was kissing his way across her cheek and onto her throat—“knowing I’m not alone. I’d be on my knees if you refused me.”

She scoffed at him. “You wouldn’t have to go far for solace.”

He lifted his head and locked gazes with her. “Don’t sell me short. I’m more than the tabloid persona. I want to be liked for more than Toxsin.”

“I know. Sorry, that was hitting below the belt.”

His eyes were lit with need. “I like that game too, but we need the right venue for it.”

He offered her a hand and pulled her off the bike when she took it. He swung his leg over the Harley and waited for her to mount behind him. He was more complex than she’d ever expected, more real. Guilt chewed on her because she’d judged him before getting to know him.

But she was glad to have been proven wrong.

When they were riding, he was in control completely. Maybe it was one of those things she shouldn’t dwell on too much, but at the same time, she got the feeling that he enjoyed being in command of her. They wove through the streets, making their way to the hotel near the center of town.

The horde of fans was there, wearing Toxsin T-shirts and plenty of leather. A few hopefuls were playing guitar on the sidewalk, trying their best to be noticed. Not to be outdone, the paparazzi were there too, their cameras ready.