Syon leaned back and closed his eyes the moment the door closed behind Ramsey.
He should go blow his load.
Find someone that looked like Kate and fuck her out of his system.
Instead, he removed his makeup and showered. The suite had three rooms, but Syon felt like a canned vegetable without a balcony. Most of the upscale hotels were going without balconies because of lawsuits over drunken falls. He could still hear the steady beat vibrating down the hallway from where the rest of the band was decompressing.
He pulled on a pair of jeans and wandered over to where his guitar had been set up. Only the bathroom light was on, letting him sink into the shadows as he fingered the strings, letting a melody flow from his mind to his fingers. The concert had taken the edge off his passion, allowing him enough patience to toy with a new rhythm.
* * *
“Overdosing on your sweet body sounds like a great idea.”
Kate growled and looked at her bedside clock…again. She needed sleep, but every time she closed her eyes, she heard Syon’s raspy voice. B.O.B. was sitting on her bedside table, charging away. She’d moved her trusty vibrator onto the table the moment she found out her boyfriend Todd had been two-timing her. She gave a little snort and turned over, because what she craved was hard, body-to-body contact. Bare skin, raspy breath—in short, the whole enchilada. B.O.B. couldn’t deliver that. The moment she closed her eyes, all she saw was the way Syon’s eyes had narrowed before he kissed her.
Damn, the man could kiss.
“Oh, God, yeah…run your claws down me.”
Maybe she should have, because she wouldn’t be getting a second opportunity.
Chapter 2
A Harley sat outside the costume shop the next morning. It was brand-new, the chrome shining in the morning sun. Kate paused for a moment to admire the custom work on the machine. It was definitely not factory specs.
Shit.
Sturgis was three weeks away. She didn’t have a second to spare for the boys who hadn’t gotten their orders in. But bikers didn’t tend to take “no” very well, and Percy would be the first one to run screaming, leaving her to face whatever growling grizzly bear of a disgruntled customer was waiting inside. The guy clearly had money and would expect a cut to the front of the line with a click of his checkbook pen. He wouldn’t want to hear that there were just so many hours in a day and she was maxed out. She took another swing of her coffee and squared her shoulders.
“Kate…darling…”
Kate froze on her way into the shop. She tugged off her sunglasses and leveled a hard look at Percy. He had a measuring tape draped around his neck and stood in the doorway between the machine shop and the cutting area.
He was beaming, smiling from ear to ear with his hazel eyes sparkling. Darling was worse than sweetie when it came to getting worked over by her partner. If there was an asshole in the shop¸ Percy wouldn’t be calling her darling. Nope. Darling meant Percy was licking whipped cream off his fingers and fully expecting her to join the party.
“I’m going home,” Kate declared preemptively. “I didn’t get enough sleep to deal with an ambush.”
Percy rubbed his hands together gleefully and walked up to her with an unmistakably giddy look in his eyes. He leaned in close, clasped her wrists with a death grip fueled by excitement, and whispered, “I could kiss you for being late. You’re too good to me.” He backed up and cleared his throat. “So I started the basic measurements, and you’re right on time to get going with design.”
“Design of what…?” Her jaw hung open as her gaze fell on the person leaning against the door frame behind Percy. Syon Braden was just as deadly without his makeup. More so. There was a raw power in his face.
And he was grinning with victory.
Total ambush!
“Mr. Braden—” Kate started.
“As I told Percy, call me Syon,” he drawled in a deep voice that sent a tingle through her.
Her partner shivered and rolled his eyes before turning around to face Syon. “You did.” Percy trotted off into the third room, which served as the office, leaving Kate facing Syon.
Starbucks was so not strong enough to help her deal with her morning. There was a charge in the air, setting her nerves on edge. It shouldn’t have been possible. The guy’s persona was just fucking huge.
“Come on in, everyone!” Percy called.
Syon crooked a finger at her, but there was nothing playful about it. He was arrogant and damned fucking proud of himself.
She abandoned her coffee cup and forced herself to stride forward with all confidence she could muster. Her system was going haywire again. The fatigue headache she’d woken up with—courtesy of Syon Braden—doing nothing to dull the impact of his presence.
Heat snaked through her, awakening her clit like she hadn’t gone three rounds with B.O.B.
She needed to stock up on batteries.
Syon was wearing a faded pair of jeans that looked extra yummy on him, and a button-down khaki shirt that complemented the lighter streaks in his hair. The spikes weren’t teased up as much today, but that just gave him a rakish appearance. She felt the attraction bleeding off him, growing stronger with every step she took. She was completely off balance having him here in her shop; he’d invaded her safe zone.
He knew it too. There was a look in his eyes that told her how much he enjoyed riling her.
Much as it unsettled and excited her, she knew exactly what he was doing. He was proving how much power he had, and it pissed her off.
“What are you doing here?” she asked when she was close enough to keep her words from traveling to Percy.
Syon pegged her with that intense gaze of his. “Chasing you.”
She stumbled past Syon through the doorway to the office, the gruff, sultry sound of his voice completely unhinging her thought process. There was a suspicious chuckle from behind her, but she couldn’t turn around to snap at Syon because Percy was watching.
No unprofessional behavior.
“Now, Kate, I’ve already spoken to Giles, and he’s on board with the whole thing,” Percy announced with a flourish of his hands.
Kate sat down in one of the chairs in front of Percy’s desk. Syon lowered his frame into another one. She cut him a sidelong glance—there were four chairs in the office, but he’d taken the one beside her.
Syon winked at her and pressed his lips into a silent kiss.
Her damned nipples puckered. She needed something a lot harder than Starbucks.
“When Mr—Syon called to confirm his appointment, I made sure to check with Giles so there wouldn’t be any tension over jumping his contract,” Percy continued.
“Giles is fine with you jumping me,” Syon said with a smirk.
Kate’s jaw dropped.
Percy let loose a peal of laughter. “You are so naughty.” He wagged a finger at Syon. “I love it, but I’m a married man.”
“Percy, could you fill in some of the details?” Kate asked as she steeled herself. Syon wasn’t a subtle sort of personality.
“Oh yes, sweetie…” Percy laid his hands flat on the desk as he leaned forward. “You’re going on tour as personal leather specialist to Toxsin.”
Words failed her.
Syon leaned on his armrest and looked at Kate. “I’m not the only member of the band running short on stage wear. We’re a little ignorant of what the wardrobe needs as far as maintenance. That’s where you come in. The band and I agreed it would be best if you joined us. That way, you can produce what we need, when we need it. No lag time.”
Kate’s eyes widened, and she started to shake her head. Percy made a low sound in the back of his throat as something crashed in the cutting room, followed by two more loud bangs and a shouted word of profanity.