CHAPTER 3

JARED

I winced slightly as Dom’s drumstick came down on his cymbal hard. The sound loudly echoed through our recording space before he threw the stick across the room. “Can you stop being so fucking lazy, Jared?”

Laughing, I threw my hands out and gestured around me. “How am I being fucking lazy? I’m here, aren’t I?”

“You might be here physically, but you’re lagging on your rhythm, and you fucking know it.” Dom practically growled as he glowered at me.

We’d been in the studio practicing all morning, but thanks to Dom’s perpetual stick up his ass about musical perfection and purity, we hadn’t recorded a single fucking thing. Matt set his guitar gently down in its stand and turned to Dom. “Relax, man. There was nothing wrong with that take.”

Dom’s eyebrows hiked up, and he crossed his arms over his chest. “There wasn’t anything right about it, either. We’re just not ready yet, and if Jared doesn’t shake off his hangover, or whatever it is that’s causing his lag, we are not going to be ready today.”

“Come on, Dom.” Nick laughed, rolling his eyes. “Get off his ass. Everything’s good.”

My baby brother’s eyes flashed with annoyance as he took Dom’s side. No surprise there. “Dom’s right. Jared’s lagging. He’s definitely not giving it his best, and we need to get the song nailed perfectly before we can record it.”

Fuck, he was annoying sometimes. Very few people got to me, but he was one of them, and I was a bit fucking irritated that Caleb was now joining Dom in calling me out with this shit.

Sensing the tension building in the room, Nick stepped into the center of the space. “Maybe we just need to take a break.”

“Yeah,” I muttered. “Let’s do that. I’m hungry.”

Grabbing my brother’s arm, I dragged him aside. “What the fuck was that for?”

Caleb’s dark eyes cut to the soundproof ceiling before they met mine. “Your head hasn’t been in the game this last week or so. That’s what it was for. I don’t know what’s going on with you, but get it together. Now isn’t the time to get lazy.”

I shot him a disbelieving look as laughter rumbled up from my belly. “I think you and Dom just need to get laid. You’re both wound way too fucking tight.”

Not wanting to listen to any more of his lame complaining, I turned on my heel, and I marched away from him, my fists clenching and unclenching at my sides. “I’m out of here. I’m going to go grab lunch. Someone better get Caleb and Dom laid before I get back. This is a steaming pile of bullshit.”

Four sets of eyes followed me as I ripped open the recording studio door and let it slam shut behind me. I hated when those guys got so uptight. We were in a rock band, for Christ’s sake. It wasn’t like we were working on solving the world’s problems with famine or poverty. The songs sounded fine to me, and I didn’t get what the fuck they were crawling all over my ass about.

If we were still where we were just over two years ago, I would have understood the attitude. Back then, we were all a little anal about every small detail, but these days, the only anal that I cared about was that of the sexual variety.

We’d worked our butts off for years, went hungry, played the smallest, shittiest venues, and put up with everything that the pursuit of a real career in music threw at us. We’d more than paid our dues, and we could easily afford to slow down just a little bit.

Captain Purity and Perfection didn’t have to agree with me, but it would’ve been nice if my own goddamn brother had my back. I was at a stage where I wanted to reap the benefits of our hard work, and have some fun in the process. Why was that too much to ask?

They had to chill the fuck out, both of them. A frustrated sigh parted my lips as I walked down the long hallway on the second floor of the studio.

On the walls were pictures of all the greats who had recorded there, and it still humbled me that we were sharing that same space as they’d been in. It also pissed me off that Dom and Caleb seemed to think that I didn’t respect the music anymore and that I would ever be lazy or purposefully not give it my best.

Nothing could be further from the truth, and they both ought to know it. There was a difference the size of South America between relaxing a little and losing respect. I definitely fit into the former category.

Running a hand through my hair, I decided to take the stairs down to hopefully burn off some of the excess frustration caused by that little showdown back there, and I took them two at a time. The stairwell was quiet, and the rubber soles of my black Converse sneakers squeaked on the floor on my way down.

I burst out the door that led to the front of the building and found Gerry, an immediate look of concern crossing his features when he saw my thunderous expression. My attention wasn’t on him for long, though, since he was talking to a hot little blonde woman who I wouldn’t mind dragging right back into that stairwell to fuck off my frustration.

Hell, that actually wasn’t a half bad idea. It’d been a couple of days since Melanie or Madison or whatever, and we’d been so busy recording that I hadn’t had time to hook up with anyone.

Crossing the hall to get to them, I gave Blondie a long onceover, and my cock stirred in my jeans. She was even hotter up close. Her body was slim and petite, clad in a professional-looking, black pencil skirt and fitted top that didn’t show any cleavage, but hinted at a decent pair of tits beneath it.

It wasn’t a stretch to imagine fucking her wearing only her sky-high heels while her crystal blue eyes clouded over with pleasure and she begged me to take her harder. With that in mind, I flashed that grin—the one that almost always worked—hooked my thumbs into the pockets of my jeans, and cocked my head. “Hey there, beautiful. How would you like to go have some coffee with me?”

Her eyes narrowed a bit at my invitation, which confused me since I wasn’t used to that kind of reaction from women, especially not with that smile on my lips. She stuck out a tiny hand in my direction and spoke in what I assumed was supposed to be an authoritative tone. It was actually kind of cute. “My name is Alicia Diamond, not beautiful. I’m your new public relations agent. It’s nice to meet you, Jared.”

Staring at her hand for a second, I raised mine to meet it, and my dick twitched at the feel of her soft palm against mine. It was an interesting juxtaposition to her firm grip. If there was a chance she gave hand jobs like she shook hands, I was definitely interested in signing up for an exploratory mission.

“Nice to meet you, Alicia.” Her name rolled off my tongue smoothly. Turning my eyes to Gerry—although they left Alicia’s face reluctantly—I asked, “What happened to Brad?”

Gerry sighed and shook his head slightly. “He retired, Jared. We told you he’d be gone after the tour wrapped.”

“Of course. Now I remember.” I didn’t.

We’d been drinking pretty heavily most nights after our shows on that last tour, and they must have told us during one of those times. Since none of the others had mentioned Brad’s retirement, I thought it was safe to assume that they didn’t remember, either.

The fact that she technically worked for us didn’t deter me. Instead, I squeezed her hand one last time before letting it go, having already held onto it for a second too long. I didn’t miss the flash of heat in her eyes when I did it. “So now that we’ve been introduced, what do you say we go get that coffee?”

Alicia shook her head, earning an approving nod from Gerry. “It would be better if I met the whole band together. That way, we can be sure that we’re all on the same page.”

“They’re all assholes. Come have coffee with me instead. I’ll tell you everything you need to know and more.”

My tone suggested what more would be, but to my surprise, Alicia gave me a cool professional smile and shook her head again. “They might be assholes, but it really is quite important for me to meet with you all together.”

“Sure, but meet with me first,” I urged her, intrigued that she was rebuffing my advances and sure that I could get her to cave.

“Sorry, but I can’t,” she said sweetly. “If you gentlemen will excuse me, there is something that I need to check on.” She spun around without another word and sashayed her tight ass away from me. Her hips swung as she walked, a tiny swing from side to side as her hair caressed her back. My dick was loving the view.

“Where did you find her?” I asked Gerry, noticing that I wasn’t the only one watching Alicia walk away. Not that I blamed the man. I was sure that heads turned wherever she was. What I wasn’t prepared for was the unfamiliar stirring of some possessive instinct that was supposed to live in every man, but had always lain dormant within me.

“She’s the best,” Gerry said smoothly. “You know I only hire the best when it comes to you guys.”

He picked an imaginary piece of lint from his impeccable suit. It was all the man ever wore. The guys and I had a bet going that he probably even slept in a suit. We tried to get closure on our bet a couple times during the tour, but no matter the time you knocked on his door, he was still dressed—in the suit.

“She’d better be,” I muttered as she rounded the corner, thinking back to some of the things that we’d gotten up to and Brad had to deal with. “She going to be around for a while, then?”

Gerry nodded, then gave me a warning look. “Unless one of you fucks it up.”

I raised an eyebrow. He knew that I loved a challenge, especially when it came to women, and that sounded like a challenge to me. Gerry, however, put his hands up, palms out. “That wasn’t a challenge Jared. You guys need her.”

“If you say so, man. We’re delightful little choir boys. I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

At that, Gerry chuckled low and shook his head again. “Whatever helps you sleep at night. Just try to keep it in your pants. It took me long enough to replace Brad. The last thing I need is to have to find a new PR agent because one of you had a hard-on for the best one I could find. See you later, Jared.”

“See ya.” I waved and made for the door myself. It hadn’t taken him that long to replace Brad. We’d only been back for a couple of weeks, and besides, as long as she was clear on what she was getting into, there wouldn’t be any harm caused to the band by my making a play to fuck her.

Grabbing lunch from the in-house caterers on the lot, I sat down with my bacon cheeseburger, our new public relations agent never far from my mind. The way she’d said my name, that flash of heat in those clear blue eyes, and her trim little body had me all riled up, and even if it was just to myself, I had to admit that that play was probably going to be made.

My attraction to her wasn’t even purely physical. She was the first woman who’d shot me down in the longest fucking time, which told me she was different. Women never stood up to me anymore, and I was surprised to find that intrigued me about her.