Page 48 of Dirty Rock

“That doesn’t mean I don’t think we’re making a big mistake here.”

“We’re just taking a drive, Jules.”

Her shy smile turned into a toothy grin that made my chest ache. I’d spent years on the road with Julia. The band and I had relied on her for so many things, expected her to prop us up when we were falling everywhere, and pick us up when we’d gone too far… I’d forgotten that she was a beautiful woman in her own right. A woman oozing with sex appeal. A woman with desire of her own. She wasn’t a part of the band behind the wheel of that car. She was a gorgeous creature any fucker would be lucky to hold in his hands.

“Tell me something.” I paused. “Had you always wanted to fuck me before you knocked on my hotel room door that night?”

“Maybe,” she answered with a little sigh.

“Shit, I thought you’d at least try and lie.” I chuckled.

“Lying has never been my forte. If I can’t speak the truth, I prefer to stay quiet. You’re a good-looking guy. You’re talented, too. Mix the two together, and any woman would be having thoughts. Unfortunately for you, those daydreams were usually drowned out by your stupid decisions over the last three years. Spending time cleaning up your mess made me see you differently.”

“What changed?”

She glanced at me as we hit an open piece of country road, her scowl in place.

I leaned closer. “What made you come to me?”

Julia focused on the road ahead, her hands tightening around the wheel. “I was sad. I knew you were sad, too. You’ve been sad for a while, Rhett. I thought that we could be sad together for a night.”

“I’m not... sad.”

“Really?”

“No.”

“Well, good. I’m glad about that.”

I slumped back in my seat. Why the fuck was every idiot and their dogs throwing misery my way all of a sudden? We lived an unconventional life—one that kept us away from reality. Finding the right balance of rock ‘n’ roll wasn’t something you were born with. It was an education you had to give yourself, and just like any form of learning, some days and nights were harder than others.

“Hey.” She reached out to place a hand on my thigh. My gaze dropped to that point of contact—her perfectly-painted red nails resting on my jeans like they belonged there. It didn’t feel wrong. It was comforting, almost. “No more talking about the tour. No more going over that night. No more sad talk.” I looked up just in time to see her beautiful smile breaking free. “Maybe we both just need a night off from the circus. A night for you to be Rhett, and for me to be Julia. I’ll show you the real me if you relax and show me the version of you you try to hide all the time. What do you say?”

“I say okay,” I whispered, feeling my voice hitch in my throat.

Excitement tore through me. There was more adrenaline in that car beside Julia than when I was out on stage looking at a sold-out Hard Rock Stadium.

We rode through the English country roads together making idle conversation as we listened to Pearl Jam—one of my favourite bands in the entire world—and not once did I think about what we were missing by being away from the Youth Gone Wild.

The crowds.

Or the bright lights I’d got used to standing beneath.

Chapter Fifteen

It was dark by the time we pulled up outside our destination. Julia had a smug smile on her face when she turned the engine off and killed the main beam that had been lighting up the building in front of us. We were, literally, in the middle of nowhere. Her Audi sat in a car park with only a few other vehicles surrounding us. The warehouse I was staring up at looked like some kind of new-build that made cheap plastic toys or Card Factory Christmas crap. It was grey, apart from a blue streak of colour in the guttering and drainpipes.

“What is this place?” I asked, ducking my head to look up through the windshield. “A warehouse?”

“It’s a place for peace. Privacy.”

I gave her a look. “Have you brought me to a sex club, Jules?”

“Little man, you couldn’t handle my kinks.”

Julia had kinks? Christ, I wanted to know each and every one of them, no matter how disgusting they may have been.

She reached into the back seats and pulled out a black cap. “Put this on.”

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