Insider (Exodus End 1)

again. Logan let himself out of the dressing room before their porn sounds gave him wood.

Keeping an eye on Toni turned out to be easier said than done. He didn’t want to be blatantly obvious to everyone in the room that he had the hots for her. Not with members of the press for the entire city of Eugene, Oregon, watching his every move. At least Dare didn’t seem to have Toni on his agenda. For now in any case. He had regained his sphere of cool, and everyone was keeping an appropriate distance from the guitar god. Logan spotted Toni talking to the church lady, who was trying her damnedest to gain Max’s attention. Toni had a camera in one hand and a tape recorder in the other and was spouting off questions he couldn’t hear over the din of conversation. Logan decided it was his best bet to find something else to occupy his time.

Beer worked.

He grabbed a bottle from the nearest ice chest and leaned against a wall. It didn’t take fans long to notice he was alone. A particularly talkative young woman decided his ear was free and spent the next twenty minutes telling him about every band she’d ever seen in concert. “Exodus End is the best, of course. I’m looking forward to Sinners’ show tonight too.”

“Great band,” Logan said. He deliberately drained the rest of his beer.

“I think I’ll skip Riott Actt, though. I don’t know any of their songs.”

“You really shouldn’t. You’ll regret it someday.”

At a raucous round of laughter from Max’s general direction, Logan straightened and craned his neck to see what fun he was missing.

“I want to talk to the cleavage cam next,” someone insisted.

Cleavage cam?

Logan decided he’d done his duty for the evening. He handed his empty bottle to the blabbering fan and went to investigate the cleavage cam. That sounded right up his alley.

He wasn’t sure if Toni had come up with the idea of holding the camera between her luscious breasts or if Max had put her up to it. Whoever had come up with the idea had made Toni a complete hit with every male in the room. All in good fun, but if any of them put their hands on her . . .

Logan took a deep breath. Why was he so insistent on claiming her as his alone? He definitely liked the idea that no other dude had ever been inside her, but that couldn’t possibly be the only reason he was so wrapped up in the woman. So protective of her. Overprotective. He couldn’t help himself. He squeezed through the crowd until he stood beside her.

“I’m Dennis Brown. I won my guest pass from a radio show. I’ve been an Exodus End fan for fourteen years and I saw my first Ex-End concert with my parents when I was ten.” The fan spoke into the microphone clipped to Toni’s shirt.

Ugh. He’d seen his first show when he was ten? That made Logan feel old. But thirty-two wasn’t so old, was it?

Not if he had a say in the matter.

Logan was glad to see that not much of Toni’s considerable bosom was actually showing. Her shirt was buttoned around the camera so that the lens protruded from her cleavage, but those perfect breasts of his, of hers, were out of view. He suddenly had a powerful need to stir her up a little.

He leaned close to her ear and whispered, “I think you should keep that camera rolling while I fuck you later.”

Her face reddened as he knew it would, but she whispered, “I think all the jiggling would make anyone who watched it motion sick.”

He chuckled. Okay, yes, he liked that he had been her first and that he was her only lover, but he liked her quick wit even more. He loved how she’d get all embarrassed but still said things he didn’t think would ever come out of her mouth.

“So whose idea was the cleavage cam?” he asked.

“Mine. It’s impossible to get anyone’s attention when Max is around.”

“Tell me about it,” Logan grumbled.

“So I figured if they wouldn’t talk to me, maybe they’d talk to my boobs. Okay, who’s next?” she called out.

Logan leaned toward her chest. “I’m Logan Schmidt, and I’ve been a fan of Toni’s boobs for almost a day now.”

She laughed and slapped him on the shoulder. “Don’t tease.”

“Who’s teasing? They’re amazing.” He moved his mouth close to her ear. “I can’t wait to squeeze them together around my cock and fuck them until I come all over your chest.”

“Oh! So that’s how a guy fucks tits,” she blurted loudly. Very loudly.

Everyone within earshot burst out laughing. She stood perfectly still for a long moment. Logan feared she’d need CPR if she didn’t take a breath soon. He didn’t know CPR, but he was definitely ready for some more mouth-to-mouth with her.

“Everyone knows that,” she announced after an uncomfortably long minute and laughed. And laughed. And laughed some more until Logan decided she was on the verge of hysteria.

He lifted her hand and kissed her knuckles. “Come on, sweetie,” he said. “Let’s take a little break outside. You look like you need some fresh air.” She looked like she needed a psychiatric evaluation, but there was no way he was stupid enough to say that.

Toni swallowed hard and nodded vigorously. Holding her hand securely in his, Logan led her to the back of the stadium near where the buses were parked. He lifted her to sit on a loading dock and stood in front of her knees, waiting for her to say something.

“I’m so sorry I’m stupid about this stuff,” she whispered. “I didn’t mean to embarrass you.”

“I’m not embarrassed,” he assured her. He was smitten by her. He even thought she looked beautiful under the orange glare of the streetlights.

She smiled softly and shook her head. “You don’t have to lie to save my feelings, Logan. I’m a big girl.”

“I’m not lying.” He lifted her hand from her lap and kissed her wrist. “I wish I could fast-forward time a couple of hours so the show would be over and I could teach you more about making love,” he said. And you can teach me how to love someone.

She wrapped her arms around his head and hugged him to her abdomen. “Why are you so nice to me?”

His chuckle was muffled against her belly. “I have ulterior motives.”

“Such as?”

“Making you mine.” Shit. Why had he said that? He was showing his cards much too soon.

She slapped his shoulder. “Don’t say it if you don’t mean it.”

He wished he could say he didn’t mean it. He didn’t particularly want to be so far gone. Ah, what the fuck—he liked her. A lot. She was just going to have to learn to live with it. If he could admit it, surely she could accept it.

“I mean it, Toni.” He untangled his head from her grasp so he could look up at her. “I really do like you. And it isn’t just lust.” For once in his dick-led life. “I can’t stop thinking about you. Even when you’re not in my bed, you’re in my head. It’s driving me crazy. I’m not sure how to handle it.”

She smiled, and he saw her feelings displayed clearly in her eyes. “You’re going to break my heart someday.” She released a sigh and stared over his head as she spoke. “I really like you too, Logan. But maybe it’s best if we pretend the only thing between us is lust. If I fall for you . . .” She shook her head and closed her eyes.

“You don’t trust me with your heart.”

“Should I?”

He wanted to say she should, wanted to say that he’d never hurt her, but he, more than anyone, was aware of his track record with women.

“That’s something you’ll have to decide on your own.”

She gnawed on her lip and nodded. “I do trust you with my body,” she said. “That’s a start, isn’t it?”

“A perfect start.” For something he hoped never had to end.

Not sure why his train of thought was making his heart thud harder than it did when he dove out of perfectly good airplanes, Logan lifted Toni from her perch on the loading dock and set her on her feet. Perhaps being alone with this woman wasn’t the best idea. She made him say things and feel things that he just wasn’t ready to face.

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“I better get back to the meet and greet,” he said. “Do you want to go back with me?”

She sucked in a deep breath and released it slowly.

“I think I’ll go hide out in Reagan’s dressing room for a little while, if that’s okay,” she said after a moment.

Logan shrugged. “It’s not my dressing room; you’ll have to ask her.” He tilted his head toward her, deciding she looked a little pale. “Are you feeling okay?”

“I think I’m bewildered,” she said, and huffed out a laugh. “But I’m pretty sure it’s from being alone with you.”

“I’d apologize, but I’m not the least bit sorry that I have that effect on you.”

She laughed and grabbed his T-shirt in both hands, tugging him close. “If you really want to make my head spin, you should try kissing me.”

“That sounds dangerous,” he said, folding her in his embrace and pulling her body against his. He wasn’t satisfied until she moved her arms around to his back and there wasn’t an inch of space between them. Even then, he wished they were skin on skin.

“I’m sure this much dizziness is dangerous,” she said as she relaxed against him, her full breasts pressing into his chest. “But I’m willing to hazard the vertigo.”

“I do love a risk taker,” he murmured.

He claimed her mouth in a heated kiss, doing his best to make the earth move topsy-turvy beneath her feet. His world hadn’t been steady since the moment she’d try to rip his arm off by enthusiastically shaking his hand. But he’d always liked a little mayhem in his world.

Twelve

Logan liked her.

Lost in thought, Toni stumbled against a wall on her way to seek sanctuary in Reagan’s dressing room. Toni wanted to have faith in Logan’s words, but something inside her just couldn’t believe that gorgeous, rich, famous, and charming specimen of a man would want anything permanent to do with an unworldly, unexciting, and chubby specimen of a woman. She understood that he must have a thing for virgins and that for some reason he’d latched on to the idea that being the first to conquer her pussy meant he could stick his flag in it and claim it as his, but his feeling of conquest would wear off eventually. She was sure of it. She was terrified of letting herself feel too much for him. She had to work with these guys for four weeks, and if Logan ripped her heart out, would she be able to continue to immerse herself in his world?

This was why she never should have gotten involved with him in the first place. She could try to excuse her behavior by claiming it was her inexperience that had made her fall into the sack with him so quickly, but that was a lie. She knew exactly what she’d been doing. It had been a not-so-momentary lapse of judgment that on a personal level she embraced. On a professional level, however, she wanted to kick herself in the ass.

She should be following the band around right now, interviewing fans, getting inside the backstage scene, but she was utterly overwhelmed by the chaos. She was a solitary creature by nature; she hadn’t a clue how the band members and crew dealt with this insanity day after day. Night after night. Dare had somehow mastered being alone in a crowd, but the rest of the band were constantly on. It was exhausting to watch, much less being caught up in the whirlwind. Maybe hanging around with Reagan in her dressing room for a few minutes before the show started would allow Toni to collect her thoughts.

Toni wondered why Reagan had been conspicuously absent for the entire meet and greet. The guitarist didn’t seem the reclusive type. Maybe because she was a temporary band member, she didn’t feel part of the group. She hadn’t ridden on the bus with the guys the night before and had only been with them when required by obligation. Was it because she wasn’t welcome? Or because she didn’t want to be with them? Toni’s journalistic senses were tingling. Something seemed off about the newest member of the band.

Steve stepped out into the corridor and nearly careened into her. He grabbed her shoulders to steady her, and she smiled up at him in gratitude.

“Where’s your Siamese twin?” he asked.

“Huh?”

“Logan. The man who’s been bodily attached to you since you boarded his bus.”

The two of them weren’t that bad, were they? “I think he’s at the meet and greet.” Toni glanced behind her. She couldn’t see the area where everyone had congregated, but the din of conversation and laughter traveled the length of the corridor.

“Without you?”

She turned back toward him and lifted her eyebrows. “Is that a problem?”

Steve shook his head. “Nope. Just surprised he trusts Dare not to scoop you up when he’s not paying attention. Catch you later.”

Dare? Before she could ask what he meant, Steve and his long legs had already traversed half the hallway. He even managed to twirl a drumstick in one hand while walking.

Shrugging to herself, Toni bypassed the dressing room that Steve had just exited and paused outside Reagan’s door. She knocked and waited.

“Occupied!” Reagan called from within the confines of the room.

“Very occupied,” a deeper voice said. Toni was pretty sure the voice wasn’t Trey’s. Was Reagan’s sexy bodyguard inside with her? Toni leaned closer to the door, listening, trying to let the sounds of the milling crowd down the hall fade into the background.

Someone touched her back, and she jerked away from the door, her face flushed with embarrassment. She’d been caught snooping.

She turned slowly, one eye closed as she forced her gaze up a pair of long legs encased in leather, up a stark white T-shirt and a strong neck to a familiar handsome face surrounding a pair of striking emerald-green eyes. Dare. Did he know his brother’s woman was cheating with another man? And how had Steve known Dare would show up when she was alone? She wondered if she should be worried or intrigued.

“Oh, hey, Dare,” she gushed. She pushed her glasses up her nose with the back of her wrist. “I was just hoping to interview Reagan for the book, but I think she’s busy.”

He grinned crookedly. “She’s always busy with Trey.”

Trey. Yeah, we’ll go with that. Reagan is busy with Trey. And maybe it was Trey in the room with Reagan. He had been with her the last time Toni had seen her, but she definitely didn’t remember his voice sounding so baritone.

“You don’t like crowds either, do you?” Dare asked. His green eyes softened when he smiled. “Now that Steve’s out of the dressing room, I think it’s empty. Would you like to get away for a few moments?”

He stepped over to the band’s dressing room and opened the door. “Anyone in here?”

“I’m almost dressed,” a woman said from inside.

“Why don’t you like crowds?” Toni asked Dare as they waited for the woman to put on her shoes and leave.

“Don’t know,” he said with a shrug. “I just like my interactions with others to be more intimate.”

Even with the swollen nose, he was still easily the best- looking man she’d ever stood in a hallway with. Which reminded her . . . “I’m really sorry that Logan hit you on account of me. I guess I shouldn’t have hugged you like that.”

He grinned. “He’s being a complete ass. Guess you bring that out in him. But I’ll get him straightened out for you.”

“What’s that mean?”

Green-eyed gaze boring into hers, he licked the corner of his mouth, and she felt suddenly light-headed and dizzy. Holy father of hot men.

“Nothing,” he said. “How about that interview? I seem to be currently unoccupied.”

“Now?” she blurted. She didn’t have the mental capacity of a gnat at the moment, and her list of questions was on the bus, so she wouldn’t even be able to fake her intelligence.

“If you’d rather wait . . .” He waved a hand. “I just thought we could both get away from the crowd for a moment and get to know each other better.”

She really should be working. And she supposed getting to know Dare Mills was working. She loved this job. “I guess I can ask a few warm-up quest

ions.”

The corner of his mouth twitched upward. “Good.”

Why was he looking at her like that? As though he was touching every inch of her body in his thoughts. And why did she have the sudden urge to peel her panties off? She wasn’t sure if being alone with him was the best idea. He wouldn’t try anything, would he? And if he did, would she have the backbone to turn him down? Surely she wasn’t that despicable. She liked Logan way too much to mess up their growing relationship by fooling around with Dare.

As if Dare could possibly be interested in her. Right.

Yet she couldn’t help but dwell on what Steve had said right before he’d walked away.

The gorgeous woman who’d been Steve’s pre-show entertainment passed through the door that Dare was holding open with one masculine hand. She paused and wrapped both arms around Dare’s