Rock Me Slower (Licks of Leather #3) - Jenna Jacob Page 0,58

a hell of a lot more than her knee driving them to the back of my throat.

Before I could make it to the door, Quinn stepped into the studio.

“Actually, we need to call it a day. Lucia is planning to have dinner ready at six thirty.” Quinn glanced at his watch. “That’s only another fifteen minutes. You all head up to the lodge. I’m going to hang and check in on Mia and the guys again…see how things went this afternoon.”

“From the looks of it, I’d say things couldn’t be better,” I quipped acridly.

“Somebody’s jealous,” Syd sang like a four-year-old.

“Fuck off,” I snarled.

Quinn arched a brow and peered Mia’s way. He then turned and scowled. “You need to do you, Oz, and let her do her.”

“He can’t, boss. He’s way too busy doing her over and over and over.” Syd cackled.

Like a rubber band stretched to its limit, something inside me snapped. I lunged at Syd, gripped him by the throat, and lifted him off the ground.

“What the fuck?” Ross growled as he gripped my wrist in a beefy paw and pried my hand off Syd.

“Oh, hell no,” Burk bellowed.

“Christ, Oz. Have you lost your goddamn mind?” Darren barked.

Syd stumbled back, eyes wide in terror and face growing paler by the second. The man looked as if I’d stuck a gun in his face. Guilt thundered in my veins, washing away my jealous fury.

Ross dragged me back while the other guys clustered around Syd.

“Chill the fuck out. Now,” the burly drummer growled in my ear.

Why the fuck did I just do that?

Though visibly shaken, Syd waved the others away as Quinn turned his deeply concerned gaze on me.

“I’m sorry, man,” I called to Syd. “I-I didn’t mean to…lose my shit like that.”

The studio door flew open and Mia sprinted into the room. Eyes wild, she darted a frightened glance between Syd and me, as Duke and Mick rushed in behind her.

“What the hell is going on in here?” she demanded.

“Your boyfriend has lost his fucking mind,” Darren spat, shooting daggers my way.

“Oz?” Mia whispered. “What…what’s wrong?”

I opened my mouth but couldn’t push the words past my lips.

“Nothing,” Syd spoke up, still shaking and deathly pale. “I opened my mouth one too many times. It’s all good.”

But it wasn’t, and everyone in the room knew it, especially me.

“I need some air,” I murmured, shoving past Ross and scrubbing a hand through my hair. I slowly approached Syd and shook my head. “I’m sorry, brother. Truly fucking sorry.”

The bass player nodded and tried to smile but failed. Shame and embarrassment crawled beneath my skin as I turned and strode from the room.

“Oz, wait,” Mia called.

“No,” I barked without even looking back. “Stay away. Just stay the fuck away from me.”

Once outside, I sprinted to the back of the lodge, stopping when I reached the horse paddock. Gut churning, I gripped the raw wood fence and bit back the lump of remorse and confusion clogging my throat.

In the thirteen and a half years we’d been Licks of Leather, the five of us had plenty of disagreements, angry words, and a couple of fistfights. Rather some of the others had. Until today, I’d never gotten physical with any of my bandmates.

I wasn’t worried about getting fired, or even us breaking up. We’d weathered harder times than this. Back when Ross was strung out on cocaine, he’d damn near sent Burk and Darren to the ER. They’d tried to talk Ross down and convince him to get some help. But it only turned into a brutal smackdown.

Unfortunately, those memories did little to lessen my guilt.

None of us ever got bent out of shape when Syd flapped his mouth… Until today.

I couldn’t erase the look of abject terror lining his face when I grabbed his throat. Though I hadn’t meant to, I knew without question that I’d unlocked some deep-seated door and unleashed a crushing shit storm of bad shit to invade his psyche.

Clenching my jaw, I squeezed my eyes shut to stave off my tears of remorse.

I couldn’t take back what I’d done to him…couldn’t shove those terrifying ghosts back in his closet and lock the door. And it made me feel like a flaming douchebag.

The snap of a twig sent me whirling around to see Syd strolling my way. He stopped at the fence beside me and flashed me a sad smile.

“I’m sorry, Oz. I shouldn’t have—”

“No,” I blurted. The tears had returned, stinging the backs of my eyes like red-hot embers. “I had