Rock Me Faster (Licks of Leather #4) - Jenna Jacob Page 0,67

to explode.

Screaming for another fix of Ross-induced ecstasy, like a strung-out addict.

“Aren’t they amazing?” Sofia yelled over the driving rhythm of the music and Burk’s raspy voice crying out the lyrics.

“More than amazing,” I screamed with a nod.

“So, what did Ross show you after dinner?”

What it feels like to be a woman fully awake and alive.

I leaned in close to Sofia’s ear and told her about him taking me to the VIP suite, and how stunned I’d been to see all the fans. When she pulled back, there was a knowing twinkle in her eyes, but she didn’t ask anything more. Even if she had, I wouldn’t have confessed what Ross and I had done. Those precious moments with him were now sacred. I wouldn’t share them with anyone.

Focusing on the concert, I begrudgingly floated back to earth, only to be lifted off the ground by my fluttering heart each time Ross flashed me a lurid stare. The hungry expression on his face telling me he was remembering our wonderfully wicked time alone sent flames licking up my body. And just when I was seconds away from combusting into a fireball of lust, he’d send me a cocky smile and lose himself in the music again.

Ross Walker was a bad boy, and I couldn’t wait to get naughty with him again.

When they finished their song about rocking the stars, and the clamor from the crowd started to dim, Burk tugged the mic from its stand.

“We’re not a ballad kind of band, but we’re going to slow it down a bit so I can pay tribute to my lady. She’s the salvation of my sins. The anchor that keeps my soul from blowing away. The light and love of my life. This is… ‘Sofia.’” Burk turned and blew her a kiss.

As Ozzy began playing soft, slow notes on his keyboard, Ross gripped his sticks with the same command and control as before. But when he started tapping out the serene beat, I sat gaping at him, watching in awe. He’d gone from banging his drums with the power of Zeus, to stroking them like a lover’s caress.

Drums are my life.

Yes, and with crystal clarity, I knew why.

Ross only allowed himself to truly feel when he played the drums.

The realization planted seeds that sprouted a garden of questions.

Was this the only way he could vent his emotions?

Or had Ross simply switched one addiction for another in order to avoid them?

It wasn’t hard to imagine he’d sought to escape Sylvia’s ugliness through cocaine. If so, cutting the cancerous woman from his life showed tremendous growth. But something told me that scenario was too convenient…too easy.

Since I had no baseline to compare who Ross had been then to the man he was now, I couldn’t even make an educated guess. Of course, it was way too soon to apply any theories since we’d only been thrust together yesterday. Still, I couldn’t suppress the need to learn everything about the man.

Patience and perseverance are key to achieving any goal. The sage wisdom of my father echoed in my ears. So did the thousands of fans who were screaming their lungs out as Burk crooned out the last note of his song to Sofia.

Tears were streaming down her cheeks as she blew him a watery kiss.

The heartfelt connection the couple shared sent goose bumps peppering my flesh.

I’d always dreamed of finding my own Prince Charming—what little girl didn’t? But the dating pool back home was only a bucket…no, more like a coffee cup.

“Thank you,” Burk cried into his microphone. “It’s great to be back in the Big Apple. We’ve missed you guys.” Another roar exploded from the crowd. “We’ve got another show here tomorrow night then we’ll be taking off, down the… ‘Dirty Road.’”

Once again, the fans went wild. As Burk started singing about a band rolling into a new town every night, about city lights looking all the same, about how lonely life was traveling all the time and how he couldn’t wait to get off the “Dirty Road,” I realized then, that was the title of the song.

The lyrics made me sad.

Until now, I hadn’t considered how lonely and isolated life for the guys must be. Sure, they all had homes—several, from what Sofia and Mia had told me—but they only had time to visit them a few months out of the year. They never had time to put down roots and let them grow.

Still, each of the guys seemed to find joy, honest-to-god