Rock Me Deeper (Licks of Leather #5) - Jenna Jacob Page 0,84

I squeezed his hand, kissed his cheek, and whispered in his ear, “You got this, love.”

“Yes. I do.” He nodded, then stood and stepped in front of the fireplace. “Thirteen and a half years ago, I was standing on stage in a smoky bar, playing my heart out, when a kick-ass singer named Burk Jennings and a bad-assed drummer named Ross Walker approached me after my song and asked if I wanted to join their band.”

“And the rest, they say, is history.” Burk chuckled.

“Yes and no,” Syd stated clear and strong. “I lied to you both that night, and I’m sorry.” As the smile tumbled off Burk’s face, Ross leaned forward in his chair. The tension in the room shot up so fast and thick it was hard to breathe, but Syd didn’t let it stop him. He simply cleared his throat and kept on talking. “I told you my name was Syd Wilson. It’s actually Syd Wilston. I wasn’t born and raised in Detroit. I was born in Omaha and sent to Diamond City, Arkansas when I was fifteen.”

“Jesus,” Burk murmured.

“Sent?” Ozzy’s brows slashed in confusion. “By whom and why? What the hell does sent mean?”

“I need to back up and fill in some blanks.”

“Yes. Please do.” Burk scowled.

Syd dragged in a deep breath. By the time he finished telling how he’d found his mother that day, there wasn’t a dry eye to be found. Even McCoy, still standing guard by the front door, was wiping his cheeks. When Syd told them about taking down the drug dealer who’d murdered his mom, there was no scorn or disapproval on their faces. Even when he confessed about running out and leaving me to pay the price for his sins, no one condemned him…or me for my stint in kiddie prison.

“You may wonder why I’m standing here spilling my guts now, after all these years.”

Everyone issued a collective nod.

Syd turned and sent me a bittersweet smile. “I found my reason for living again. I can’t let her go, physically or mentally. But once we’re seen together, the press won’t stop digging until they find every speck of dirt from our past. It’s probably going to be brutal. So, I’m going to save you guys from embarrassment and preserve the Licks reputation.”

“Save it how?” Ross asked.

“By quitting. I’ll shake your hands, hug your sweaty backs and walk away if that’s what it takes. But I won’t…no, I can’t walk away from Caris again.”

My heart was in my throat as denial screamed through my system.

No. No. He can’t quit because of me. I couldn’t let him do something so…stupid.

“Syd!” I screeched, finally finding my voice. “Y-you can’t.”

Unfortunately, my opposition of his offer was drowned out by the blistering bellows of his angry bandmates as they leapt to their feet. Physical threats and reservations about Syd’s sanity peppered the air. When Sofia, Mia, Tori, and Harmony joined the fray, my stomach bottomed out. Wearing a pained expression, Syd did his best to stress the importance of his offer, but his words fell on deaf ears.

Finally, Ross shoved a couple of fingers in his mouth and let loose an ear-piercing whistle that rendered everyone silent.

“I have one question for you, Syd Wilston,” the big drummer sneered.

I held my breath, trying to ignore the condescending voice in my head singing, I told you so. I told you being with Syd was going to ruin his career.

I broke out in a cold sweat of fear. The thought of actually walking away from Syd after all we’d shared this time made me want to throw up. Instead, I lifted my chin and sent him a bittersweet smile.

“Did you give up on me when my world went to shit? When I was drowning in nose candy and tearing hotel rooms apart? Did you want me to leave the band when the press was crucifying me and all up in you guys’ shit?”

“Hell no!” Syd spat.

“Then why in the motherfucking hell would you offer to quit…to walk out the goddamn door? You think we’ve all turned into a bunch of pussies? You think we can’t take the press lighting up our balls with their blowtorches anymore?”

“No.” Syd scowled.

Ross was turning the tables on him, and clearly, Syd didn’t like it.

“Then stop presuming we’d rather you walk away than cover your back the way you did mine.” The big drummer’s expression was fierce.

“And mine,” Burk seconded. “None of you were happy when I thought about quitting, but if I’d tried to