Rock Me Faster (Licks of Leather #4) - Jenna Jacob Page 0,30
masculine scent charged through me, making my nipples shrink into hard, throbbing pebbles.
I wanted to blame being startled for my thundering heartbeat, now pounding in my ears, but I couldn’t lie to myself. Ross’s salacious stare slicing my soul wide open was the reason for the pulsing throb assaulting my system.
Half a tripping heartbeat later, I wanted to climb his rugged body like a spider monkey and wrap my arms around his deliciously broad shoulders.
Peeling away from his penetrating gaze, I was captured and held prisoner by the sight of his full, erotic lips. Oh, how I longed to lift to my toes and press my mouth against his to see if he tasted as good as I imagined.
Get a grip, a little voice in my head demanded.
“Umm, the men’s room is right there.” I pointed at the doorway to my right.
“I’m not here to hit the head.” Ross’s deep, raspy voice vibrated through my chest. A knot of heat unraveled low in my belly, sending tingles skittering up my spine.
“Then why are you here?”
“Waiting for you.”
“Why me?”
“I wanted to apologize in case I hurt your feelings outside.”
“Don’t be silly. They’re your fans. Of course you have to sign…body parts.”
A frown creased his brow. “I meant my comment about you being innocent.”
“Oh.”
“I wasn’t making fun of you, honest. There’s nothing wrong with… Tons of people haven’t experienced a lot of life—”
“Just because I’ve never autographed boobs or butt cheeks doesn’t mean I’m innocent. I have lots of experience with life.”
Skepticism crawled across his face. “If you say so. I just—”
“For your information, I’ve helped goats, pigs, dogs, and cats give birth. I’ve planted gardens, picked the harvest, and helped can them, too. I’ve churned butter, made cheese, and—”
“Okay, okay,” he interrupted, raising his hands in surrender. “I stand corrected. So you live on a farm back in Kentucky?”
“Sort of.”
“I’m anxious to hear more about it, but right now everyone’s waiting for us at the table.” He swept his thick tattooed arm, gesturing for me to lead the way.
“Oh, right.” I nodded.
As we began walking, Ross pressed his wide hand at the small of my back. Shards of lightning splintered through me, leaving shivers of want their wake.
Sucking in a shallow breath, I glanced up at him. “Were you serious or just being polite?”
“About what?”
“Wanting to know more about me.”
“You should have figured out by now that I’m rarely ever polite. And yes, I was being serious.”
“Oh. All right, but you have to tell me about you, too.”
“Drums are my life. There’s nothing else to tell.”
His tone was blasé, but I didn’t miss the guarded flicker in his eyes or the tense tick of his jaw. When I felt him slapping another layer of protection around his fortress, I dropped the topic. One day I’d coax out all his secrets and destroy his darn walls.
When we reached the table, he held out my chair and helped me get settled before claiming the seat beside me.
“Yo, Ross. We’re in a private dining room.” Syd smirked. “You don’t have to play doting boyfriend for us.”
“I was being polite, asshole,” Ross bit out. “You should give it a try sometime.”
“Hey, I’m polite,” the bass player countered. “I ask every woman if she’s ready for me to rock her world before I stick my—”
“How about we start with some appetizers?” Quinn interrupted with a censuring frown.
When I skimmed the menu, I felt as if I was reading Sanskrit. While I assumed white truffle caviar, sushi, and scallops were some sort of seafood, I wasn’t sure. The only food I recognized was chicken, but it was glazed with some kind of tomato, olive, balsamic, feta -sauce that sounded just awful.
“The shrimp scampi and seared scallops sound scrumptious,” Sofia moaned.
While I’d heard of shrimp before, the only kind of scallops I knew about graced the neckline of my shirts. I darted a sidelong glance at Ross, who was engrossed in his menu, and hoped he was still willing to help.
Only one way to find out.
I leaned in close and whispered, “What’s a scallop?”
He cocked his head, studying me for several long seconds. “You don’t grow scallops in your garden?”
“They’re a vegetable?”
“No. They live in a shell in the ocean.” A crooked smile slowly tugged his oh-so-perfect mouth, and a hint of humor danced in his dark eyes. “I’m just messing with you.”
If I wasn’t reeling so hard from Ross dropping his guard enough to actually crack half a smile and tease me, I would have jumped from