Rockin' the Heart (Hot Wired) (20 page)

She frowned and tried to
return his plastic. He refused. “He hasn’t had a girl long enough to see her upset.”

“You’ve always been his girl, Boo.” She blinked at him
, and a warm bud of hope settled in her gut. “Sitting here thinking back, I realized from the time you roughly hit eighteen he’s been acting weird around you. He hasn’t had a steady girl since then either. You
are
his girl, and he’s never liked it when you were upset. I can’t tell you what to do. We both know Fang’s a good guy. I can’t say what Jase is going to do in the long run.”

“He’ll divide the band.” That reality made her decision
all the harder.

“Maybe.” He pummeled his overlong
, sandy-blond locks with his fingers. As he talked, Heath pushed to his feet and swaggered toward them with determination locked on his features. “If he does, I’ll follow Fang. Jase is a brilliant drummer, but Fang’s the brains and talent behind Hot Wired. I know which star to hang my hat on. Just go easy on Fang if you decide to leave him. That song he wrote you, it came from his heart.”

Heath kicked the base of Keys’
seat. “I need a word with her.”

Keys grinned and kissed her knuckles. “Told you,” he mouthed.

The moment he vacated the seat, Heath plopped into it wearing a mulish expression. “What was that heart to heart about? Warning you away from me too?”

“No.”

“About Jase—”

“Nothing needs to be said. We knew he was going to be difficult.”

Heath rubbed the back of his head. “Maybe more difficult than I expected.”

Blown away once more by Sam’s ability to schmooze the crowd, Heath came off the stage with a long-legged stride.

“
Ah
-mazing performance, guys.” She clapped her hands and beamed with all smiles. Praise for all band mates, but her eyes were alight for
him
. She peered at none other.

That look
of pride is all for me.

Regardless that Jase would disapprove Heath
twined their fingers together and placed a quick smooch on her lips. She clasped his jaw and brought him back for a longer kiss. God the woman did him under.

Too early to
say I love her.
Waiting for the right moment would
kill
him.

“You smell good.” He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and inhaled the scent of her hair.

Eyes twinkling, she delivered him a saucy smirk. “Wish I could say the same for you.”

“Rude!”
Despite his stink, she snuggled against him, and he grinned. Heath caught sight of Jase, fire and brimstone burned from his friend’s expression. Trouble approached in a pissed off swagger of biker boots, leather pants, and ratty T-shirt, while beating out a
rat-tat-tat
rhythm against his thigh with his sticks. “You should be nicer to your boyfriend, brat, if you plan to keep him.”

Sam
rolled her eyes, but her smile remained. Before she could say anything, Tab was in their face. “Thank me later for saving your reckless butts from one royally pissed off drummer.
Celebrity Beef
wants an interview with the hot couple.”

“I think I’d prefer
facing Jase,” Sam mumbled as Tab ignored her and led them to a secure area, with Tex following close behind. Their agent continued to grumble.

“Don’t know why you had to spill the happy news and make this love-nest official. Causing problems for me.
This is going to blow up in our faces. Watch and see. Will create more drama than necessary. Or need. Always causing problems for me. Al-fucking-ways. You’d think it’s a hobby the way you five go about it. Hello, Mr. Mendoza! You remember Fang?” The way she greeted the man, no one would know she’d just been bitching beneath her breath—or what Tab
considered
beneath her breath, because it was usually loud and clear for the offensive party to hear.

“Good to see you again, Ralph.” He shook hands with the media man that’d
conducted more than a dozen interviews with him over the past couple of years. He was one of the few that could be trusted to report the truth rather than sensationalize even the most mediocre of news. “Meet Samantha Collins, my girlfriend and Jase’s sister.”

She nodded at the reporter, but didn’t offer a
greeting. Jaw jutted at a slight off-kilter angle, her gaze narrowed, cynicism clearly blazed from her expression. She had a right to distrust reporters. Over the years they’d scandalized her even when she’d been toeing the line.

Ralph hit the record button on his
device, and his photographer readied a camera. “Thanks for giving me your first interview.”

“Our pleasure, huh, Sam?”

“Mmhm….”

“
So what was it like when you two looked at one another and said ‘he-she’s hot, let’s do this’?”

“I’m pretty sure I never said that. Not my lingo, ya know?” She gave the other man a flirty smile. “I’ve had a crush on
Fang since he gave me a heart-shaped jewelry box for my tenth birthday.”

Ralph emitted a burst of laughter.
“Impressionable young thing, huh?”

Heath
felt like an idiot with his grin eating up his face. She never ceased to surprise him. “I don’t remember that. I can barely recall how old I was when I punched Jase in the face and we became fast friends thereafter.”

“
Y’all were thirteen. I was nine. I plotted revenge and—”

“You put gum in my hair, Sam. I had to shave my head to get it out.”

Wicked humor spread across her features. “Good thing you weren’t a girl.”

“It’s obvious you’re comfortable with one another.
Any marriage plans?”

Heath expected Sam to explode. Instead, she shot back with, “We’ll get married when I’m pregnant.”

“Are you trying to conceive?”

“Nope.” Sam circled her fingertip on his belly. “I wanna savor him for a while. Keep him all to myself.”

“She’s teasing you,” he tugged on her hair just a little. “Be nice to Ralph. But no, we’re not discussing marriage or planning babies. Just seeing how things work out at the moment.”

Ralph nodded. “
You were recently in the news for grand theft auto. Do you have anything you’d like to say about that in your defense?”

Deadpan she said, “I hope I’m awarded conjugal visits when I’m found guilty.”

Heath busted out laughing. Ralph blinked, obviously unable to discern her seriousness. In between chuckles, Heath clarified, “Those charges were dropped.”

“Good to know.” Ralph cleared his throat.
“Do you have any special nicknames for Fang?”

Without batting an eyelash, she leaned toward the
recorder. “Pookie. That’s spelled p- o- o- k- i- e.”

Heath
chuckled. The one endearment he’d forbidden her from using. If he were a betting man, he’d bet she used it because he’d coaxed her back onstage against her wishes this evening. She excelled in the subtle art of revenge.

“Interesting endearment.”

“I’m an interesting girl.”

She could say that again.

“How does Jase feel about your romance?”

“You’ll have to ask Jase that question.” Sam twirled a swath of her hair around her index finger.

“Come now. You’ve got to have some sense of how Jase feels.”

Offering support with pressure on her shoulder, Heat
h saved her from the inquiry. “He’s concerned. As he should be. This is a new relationship and we have no idea where it’s going, but they all understand that we have to give it a try.”

“Do you think your romance could break up the band?”

Sam flinched. She’d been straightforward about that being her biggest worry.

“No.” Heath pulled her snug against him, providing comfort the only way he
knew how at the moment. “No way. All of us know we have to keep this”—he motioned between him and Sam—“separate from the band.”

“It’s a bit naïve to think Jase won’t be upset if you break his sister’s heart.”

Jase would be furious and would never forgive him if that happened.

“What if I break Fang’s heart? That’d piss off Jase too.”
Playing the devil’s advocate much, Sam?

“Really, Ms. Collins?”
Amused reservation contorted Ralph’s mouth and created parallel lines between his eyes. “No offense, but Fang’s track record with relationships is sparse at best.”

“He’s a rock star. At best, he’s had
liaisons
not relationships. There’s a difference.” Sam clasped the hand that rested on her shoulder. “What do you know of my past romances?”

Unsure where she went with this, Heath waited.

Ralph shrugged. “Other than your criminal record, not much else is known about you except for your affair with Omega Starr.”

Yeah…that bastard had taken her virginity, paid a reporter to hide out in the bushes and snap shots of
their private moment. As the sole heir to a movie producer tycoon, the asshole was untouchable. Heath had tried. Rumors said he videoed some of their intimate moments. If that proved true, Heath would be tempted to kill him.

“Yeah…Omega.” She laughed. “He
’s a good guy.”

Like hell!
Asshole was his nickname in Heath’s head.

“You got anything to say about
your on again-off again relationship with him?” Ralph moved the recorder a little closer to Sam.

“Just that we’re still friends.” They were? Why? How’d Heath miss that little aspect? “For the record
, not all the rumors are true in that relationship. The point is, Ralph, you reporters know very little about my love life because I’ve dated mostly kids’ of celebrities. None of them want their broken hearts headline news, and their parents have taught them how to ditch you story hounds.”

“Is that what you did to Omega Starr? Break his heart?”

“No.” Frustration leeched across her forehead in a frown. “Didn’t I just say we’re still friends? He’s more like a friends with benefits type of relationship.”

“Is that status current?”

“Not since Fang came into the picture.”

“Time’s up, Mr. Mendoza,” Tab interrupted and Heath wasn’t sure if she were afraid where the conversation was going or if she truly wanted them to wrap up the interview. “The rest of the band should be ready to meet with you.”

“Thanks for your time, Fang and Ms. Collins.” Ralph pressed what Heath assumed was the off button on the recorder. “If they get a chance, I’d love to interview them as a group.”

A
bunch of photos were snapped of them throughout the interview, and Heath looked forward to seeing what aspect they caught of them together. So much could be portrayed with a single image.

“Catch ya later, Ralph.” Heath led Sam away. “Why didn’t I know you and Omega are still friends?”

“Knew you wouldn’t approve. We kept it low-key. Our sexual status is over now that we’re together.”

The idea of that bastard touching her in that way gave him a bad reaction.
“Damn right it’s over.”

Her eyes were glittering when she tilted her head just enough to get a gander
at him. Her voice dropped to a sultry tone. “You the jealous type, Heath?”

He stopped walking and turned to face her. Aware that Tex was near enough to hear, he lowered his voice. “Where you’re concerned, hell yes.” He
coiled a pink swath of her hair around a digit and gave a little tug. “I want more details when we have some privacy.”

“The rumors aren’t true.”

“Which part of those rumors?”

She wedged her fingers between his belt and pants. “He didn’t pay anyone to take pictures of us.”

“He took your virginity.”

“Yes, but when those photos were released he was furious. He tried to lessen the consequences for me.”

“He could fake anger and the rest.” He’d been raised around some of the best actors in the field. It was plausible he’d learned a thing or two.

“I know
who the guilty party is.”

“Who?” He’d make them pay.

“It wasn’t Omega.”

“Sam….”

“Why does it matter?” She peered over his shoulder and the loss of eye contact felt important. Her antsy bearing indicated he knew the person behind her humiliation.

“Humor me.” He tugged
again on the strands coiled around his finger.

“Jase’s last girlfriend.”

The impact of her words stunned him. “Brittany?”

“Yep.
And she was paid a fortune for it.”

Jase had devoted more time
to that relationship than any other he’d ever had. They all knew she was a media seeking money-grubbing bitch, but Heath hadn’t realized just how big of a troublemaker she’d been.

“I owe Omega an apology.” When she frowned, he explained. “I confronted him about you. He told me to get my facts straight and talk to you. I
told him I knew he was a lying bastard and trying to save face in front of his friends.”

“You confronted him in public?”

“Always did think it best to have witnesses to any threats I issued.”

“You threatened him, too?” Was that horror or amusement painted on her face?

“I told him if he came near you again, I’d break his knees.”

“How long ago was this?”

“Couple of months after the incident.”

Sam laughed. “You do realize he has black belts in a couple of different forms of martial arts, right? He’d kick your ass three ways to Sunday, Heath.” A palm slid up his chest and his pulse quickened
, as she clasped his nape. “But it’s really hot knowing you defended my honor, even if it didn’t need defending.” She scratched her nails across his scalp. “He’s one of my best friends. That won’t change because of us. The only thing that’ll change is our hookups. Sad thing too because he is a decent lay, and I’ll miss—”