down her throat would loosen her up a little. Open her shell.
“Don’t you need to see what an after-party is like for the book?”
“Yeah,” she said.
Ha, he knew he’d get her to accompany him somehow.
“But not tonight,” she said. “I’m exhausted. I need sleep.”
“So you’d rather stay here on the bus by yourself than go to a party with me?” Was he pouting? He was pouting. What the actual fuck?
“Actually, I’d rather you stay here with me.” She patted the sofa cushion beside her.
“Fuck, woman,” he said with a crooked grin. “And I thought I was the horniest person on this tour.”
“Not for sex,” she murmured, her voice slurred. “For sleep.”
“You just have to stay for a little while.”
“An hour?” she bargained.
An hour? How much partying did she think she could accomplish in an hour? He supposed she wasn’t used to keeping up with him. Yet. He’d let her get off with an hour this time, but he’d keep her out until dawn at the next party. The woman needed to get out and have a little fun. Under his supervision, of course. He didn’t want any other man to discover what fantastic blow jobs she gave.
“Fine,” he said. “But I’ll probably stay out later than that.”
She rolled over and tugged her panties up her thighs, and then continued to lie there half asleep. By the time she was dressed and the two of them left the bus, they’d missed out on at least an hour of fun.
The bar the tour had borrowed for the evening’s festivities was jam-packed from wall to wall. Those who couldn’t get inside were having their own little party in the parking lot. He lifted a hand to people he recognized as they called out greetings to him. Logan scarcely noticed the two members of the security team who escorted them from the bus to the bar entrance. He was so used to them being there in his shadow, that it was natural to be followed. Toni kept glancing back at them, though, as if they were stalkers, not protection. There were plenty of yellow shirts mixed with the crowd inside as well, but they were there to make sure their employers didn’t get hurt, not to get in the way of their good time.
Logan took Toni’s hand and led her through the crush of bodies. He knew almost every person in the place, so he got stopped often on his way to the bar.
“Who is this?” Matt Chesterfield asked, his British roots made apparent by his accent.
“This is Toni. Toni this is—”
“Matt Chesterfield,” Toni said, reaching out to shake Matt’s hand. “Lead singer of Riott Actt.”
Matt raised an eyebrow at Logan. “Girlfriend?”
Logan’s brow crumpled. Why would he think that? Sure, he and Toni were holding hands, but Logan always had a girl or two on his arm and no one had ever mistaken one of them for his girlfriend. “No, just friends. She’s writing a book about Exodus End. I figured she’d want to see what one of these after-parties is like.”
“Nice to meet you,” Toni shouted over the raucous noise of the crowd and the music blaring in the background. “If you’re interested in having an interactive biography written about your band—”
“What’s that?” Matt shouted, leaning closer to her and turning his ear in her direction.
“I said,” she shouted louder, “if you’re interested—”
A nearby explosion of laughter cut off her words.
“Sorry?” Matt asked.
Toni shook her head. “We’ll talk some other time!”
Logan tugged her through the crowd once more, introducing her to anyone of interest. Matt wasn’t the only person who mistook Toni for his girlfriend. Logan was getting really annoyed by the fifth time he had to correct someone. “No! We’re just friends!” he yelled at Twisted Element’s lead guitarist.
“My apologies,” Brent said, holding up both hands in surrender, though a brown beer bottle was hooked in one.
Toni offered Brent a weary smile.
“What do you want to drink?” Logan shouted at her over the ruckus.
She pressed her hands to her temples and shook her head. “Is my hour up yet?”
“You’re not having fun?”
She looked like a wilted flower—still beautiful, but fading fast.
“This isn’t really my thing,” she said, “and I’m tired.”
He rubbed her arm. “You can go back to the bus if you really want to.”
He wanted her to say, I’d rather stay here with you, but she perked up immediately at his suggestion to leave. “Thank you,” she said with a relieved sigh.
He tugged her back through the crowd toward the exit,